ZACK Polanski has condemned Andy Burnham over his apparent refusal to grant a second Scottish independence referendum.
It comes after the new Prime Minister told John Swinney that they will have to “agree to disagree” on Scottish independence in a call on Tuesday, according to a UK Government source.
The two leaders spoke for the first time since Burnham took office, with the First Minister extending an invitation to visit Scotland “at the earliest opportunity”.
Swinney also raised the issue of Scottish independence, stressing the pro-independence majority in Holyrood, in the hopes of advancing the debate.
But a UK Government source has since said that Burnham had been resistant.
“When the question of independence was raised, the Prime Minister was quite firm that they would have to agree to disagree,” he said.
“It’s not something he’s focused on and it’s not a conversation that he’s interested in taking forward.”
Reacting to this refusal to discuss a future indyref2, Zack Polanski hit out at Burnham.
Its so poor to treat an entire country like this. Still Labour has always been this way - and Andy Burnham proving no different. https://t.co/FdT0dgfs9S
— Zack Polanski (@ZackPolanski) July 21, 2026
Writing on Twitter/X (above), the Green Party leader said: “It's so poor to treat an entire country like this.”
He then added: “Still Labour has always been this way - and Andy Burnham proving no different.”
The Prime Minister spoke to all of the heads of the devolved governments on Tuesday, with a UK Government spokesman saying he stressed to all of them his desire for “practical measures, not constitutional changes like further referendums”.
The spokesman added: “The Prime Minister had calls with the First Minister of Scotland, the First Minister of Wales and the First Minister and Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland today.
“The Prime Minister said he was serious about creating a new politics – rooted in finding common ground based on collaborative, practical and pragmatic relations with the Heads of the Devolved Governments.
“Working in partnership, the Prime Minister said together they could drive deeper devolution to all parts of the United Kingdom to get growth going.
“The Prime Minister added he was focused on practical measures, not constitutional changes like further referendums, to give families more breathing room by helping them with the cost of living, which he had done today by helping millions of households with their energy bills.
“The Prime Minister said he looked forward to meeting with the Heads of the Devolved Governments soon and visiting Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland shortly.”
Speaking to PA on Tuesday, Swinney acknowledged there were areas where he and the Prime Minister would not agree.
“Obviously, the Prime Minister and I have different views on the constitution, but I’ve got a mandate to take forward and that mandate from the people of Scotland resulted in the largest number of MSPs in the Scottish Parliament who support independence and a referendum on that question,” he said.
“So, I will be looking to advance that mandate that I received directly from the people of Scotland in the course of the last few months and to making sure that Scotland has a choice about her own future.”
