Prime Minister offers nations a new partnership to hand more power to regions and cities

Prime Minister Andy Burnham will offer to work with the governments of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to put more decision-making in the hands of regions and cities, at a meeting in Glasgow today.

He is convening the first National Economic Council dedicated to the nations, with the First Minister of Scotland, John Swinney, the First Minister of Wales, Rhun ap Iorwerth, and representation from Northern Ireland. Opportunities for young people, reindustrialisation and regional empowerment are on the agenda.

"The next stage of devolution"

The Prime Minister will say that devolution should not just be about transferring powers from one parliament to another, but should go deeper within nations, to empower the places and communities who know best what they need to grow.

"Through No10 North, we are rewiring the state. I want to make sure every city and region in the United Kingdom is part of that," he said.

"Today I'll be making an offer to the governments of each nation. Put politics aside and work in partnership with the UK Government to develop models of regional empowerment that ensure communities can use their own strengths to unlock their potential.

"This is the next stage of devolution. Together, there is no limit to what we can achieve."

No10 North

The Prime Minister wants to explore closer working with the devolved governments through No10 North to drive reindustrialisation and remove barriers to growth. The government says devolution works best when it is built from the grass roots up, putting control in the hands of the people and places who know their communities best.

The meeting follows the Prime Minister's announcement that £1 billion will be invested across the UK over the next four years in innovation clusters, to help regions with high potential build world-leading industries. It also comes after this week's Budget, which the government says gave families more breathing space and continued funding for the devolved governments to provide public services.

What it means for Birmingham

The Prime Minister, a former regional mayor himself, has put devolution and the regions at the centre of his government. Birmingham already sits within one of England's most established devolution deals, with a regional mayor, Richard Parker, and a combined authority holding powers over transport, skills and housing.

This week's Budget gave English mayors a share of taxes raised in their areas, and the regional mayor described it as a "generational change". Today's offer extends the same thinking to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, with the aim of pushing decisions closer to the communities they affect.

How far the devolved governments take up the offer will become clearer in the months ahead, but the direction from Downing Street is clear: more power for cities and regions.