Meeting invite to turn principle into legal mechanism
First Minister John Swinney has written to Prime Minister Andy Burnham regarding his comments on the constitutional future of Scotland. The First Minister invited the PM to meet to turn the accepted principle into a legal mechanism for a referendum.
The full text of the First Minister’s letter to Prime Minister Andy Burnham:
Dear Andy
I am writing with regards to your comments at Prime Ministers Question’s in response to my colleague Chris Law MP’s question.
Earlier today, you said; “on that question of a border poll, it is to be considered by the Northern Ireland Secretary when there is a clear consensus in the country – when public opinion has changed to the point where the call has to be considered. I would say that it is exactly the same situation in Scotland.”
The Good Friday Agreement, as implemented in UK domestic law by the Northern Ireland Act 1998, makes clear that if it appears likely that a majority of people in Northern Ireland would vote for Irish unification, a referendum should be held.
Your acceptance of the fact that majority support for independence in Scotland also means that a referendum should take place is welcome.
I am encouraged that you have reconsidered your previous comments that the democratic right of the people of Scotland to choose their own future is “off limits.”
This is a long-overdue acceptance of the reality that the people of Scotland will decide their own future, not the UK Government, and a clear endorsement of the fact that the UK must be a voluntary union.
In May, the SNP won a historic and unprecedented fifth term in office, and the people of Scotland elected more pro-independence MSPs than at any point in the Parliament’s history.
Given that, the previous refusal of the UK Government to consider Scotland’s right to decide its own future was clearly unsustainable.
You have rightly identified that there must be a discussion about where power lies across these islands.
By concluding a clear, understandable mechanism, both sides of the constitutional debate can move forward constructively in the full knowledge of an agreed process by which the Scottish people can exercise their democratic right at a time of their choosing.
Now that you have agreed the principle that Scotland should have a referendum when it is likely that people would vote for independence, it is important for us to meet to discuss how we turn that principle into an agreed legal mechanism, as exists in Northern Ireland.
I have asked my office to take forward the necessary arrangements.
Foreign Secretary’s oral statement to the House of Commons on Israel-Palestine
Madame Deputy Speaker, with permission, I would like to make a statement on Israel and Palestine:
I do so as a proud British Jew, someone with the deepest gratitude to the State of Israel for giving a home to my grandmother after she lost her husband, my grandfather, and 60 other family members at the hands of the Nazis.
I remember visiting her in the 1970s in Tel Aviv and seeing the life and the sanctuary Israel had provided. Indeed, some of my most joyful childhood memories were picking oranges as a kid on the kibbutz where my cousins lived.
Madame Deputy Speaker, my personal story and that of thousands of British Jews is one of the many reasons why I say to anyone here or around the world who questions Israel’s right to exist as a homeland for the Jewish people: you are wrong and we will call you out whenever you engage in this attempt at the erasure of Israel.
Madame Deputy Speaker, I know what the trauma of Hamas’s terrorist atrocity of October 7th meant and still means to people across Israel and to Jews across the world. It was a murderous act by a murderous terrorist organisation designed to massacre and instil fear across a whole population.
October 7th makes plain the grave threats that Israel faces. And it has every right to defend itself. We should not only condemn those threats but act against those who carry them out.
Iran continues to threaten Israel and Jews across the world.
We have already designated Iran’s IRGC and we will do more today on Iran’s proxy groups. So today I can also announce we are sanctioning Lebanese Hezbollah’s financing arm, Al-Qard Al-Hassan.
Iran must never have a nuclear weapon. So we are also acting this week to report Iran to the UN Security Council for its nuclear violations, alongside our allies. And I can announce today that we are also reimposing major economic sanctions on Iran in line with the European Union and the United States.
Madame Deputy Speaker, tackling these threats is just one of the important, shared national security interests we have with Israel, on which we will continue to co-operate.
I know too that so many members of the Jewish community now live in fear in the face of rising antisemitism, including here in the UK.
Last week we commemorated the anniversary of the Heaton Park attack—Jews murdered at their place of worship simply for their religion.
An outrage that was followed by antisemitic attacks in Golders Green, including on the Hatzola ambulances.
And the everyday life of Jews in Britain is deeply affected by the climate that such hate creates.
When I went to school in the 1980s, I did so without fear.
Today we need to face the truth: that is not the case for thousands of Jewish children across the UK, children who have to go to school with security guards outside their school.
Mr Speaker, no child should have to go to school facing this. And no teacher should face antisemitism either.
Whether it happens in our schools, universities or workplaces or online or on our streets, antisemitism is a scourge and an evil.
We are rightly putting in place an additional investment of £250 million for community security. But we all have a responsibility to do more.
As part of this, I will in October host representatives of the J7, the countries with the largest Jewish populations from across the world.
We will meet in the UK to discuss the different ways we can work across borders to tackle antisemitism, including tackling online hate.
So Madame Deputy Speaker, I am proud of my Jewishness and unwavering in my support for the State of Israel.
And there is absolutely no contradiction between this and my support for the State of Palestine. Indeed quite the opposite.
The two state solution is based on an explicit belief that the only route to security for both peoples is to live side by side in peaceful co-existence with freedom, security and self-determination.
Securing the two-state solution in its fullest form is the North Star of this government’s policy, and indeed of successive British governments over decades.
And it is precisely this belief in the rights and freedoms of the Israeli and Palestinian people that leads many, including me, to a deep sense of shame about what has unfolded in Palestine under the eyes of the international community.
In Gaza, the most unimaginable trauma and suffering in the last three years – death, destruction and dehumanisation on an appalling scale.
A stain on the conscience of the world and of this country too.
And in the West Bank, the clear attempt to – in the words of Israeli Finance Minister Smotrich – and I quote – “bury the idea of a Palestinian State”.
So Madame Deputy Speaker, there is a deeply painful contrast between our professed commitment to a two state solution, and the reality on the ground in Gaza and the West Bank.
I pay tribute to my predecessors, the current Health Secretary and the Right Honourable Member for Tottenham, for their tireless efforts on this issue as well as my Right Honourable Friend the Member for Lincoln.
We should always be proud that it was a Labour government that took the historic step of recognising the State of Palestine.
But the Prime Minister is right to say that the Labour government has not done enough in the face of what is happening.
So today marks the beginning of a new approach.
An approach that not only calls out injustice and suffering but acts.
And in taking this stance, I make a very clear distinction – which is crucial for all of us in this debate:
Our argument is not with the people of Israel, with whom the UK has unshakeable bonds. Our argument is with the conduct of its government.
And I also want to say emphatically to people in Britain and across the world:
Holding British Jews responsible for the actions of the Israeli Government is antisemitism, plain and simple.
What we seek today is to salvage the only course for peace and security for Israelis and Palestinians – the two state solution.
Let me start with the situation in the West Bank.
Madame Deputy Speaker, at the time of the Oslo peace accords in 1993, around 270,000 settlers lived in the occupied Palestinian territories. Today it is some 770,000.
More settlements have been approved under the four years of this Israeli government than in the previous twenty years.
Let us spell out what this has meant for Palestinian communities.
Houses bulldozed. Roads and public infrastructure destroyed. Families displaced from their homes.
Community by community.
Family by family.
Person by person.
Madame Deputy Speaker, sixty-five Palestinian communities completely expelled since 2023 – a total of over 4,000 Palestinians evicted from their homes due to settler violence and state actions.
And in August, the crossing of a long-standing red line: the issuing of E1 tenders for over 1,200 homes.
I visited a community in the area covered by E1 in 2014. The Bedouin communities I met in Khan Al Ahmar had lived on that land for generations.
E1 proposals would evict them and place settlements directly between East Jerusalem and the West Bank cutting through the heart of Palestine.
Let’s be clear what this means: the creation of a set of facts on the ground to make the two state solution unviable.
And on top of official state policy, settler terrorism is rampant.
The UN reports an average of six violent settler attacks against Palestinians per day this year, the highest on record.
Take one example
In Al Mughayir, twenty miles north of Jerusalem, settlers have encircled the village and mounted a campaign of intimidation, largely under the protection of the Israeli military.
Families in the village are increasingly cut off from accessing their land, squeezed into ever smaller areas and have olive trees uprooted and livestock stolen.
In the same community, just last week, two teenagers were shot when settlers entered the village under police and military escort. Both died before reaching hospital. Madame Deputy Speaker five teenagers have now been killed from their school this year.
Ehud Olmert, the former Israeli Prime Minister, has described what is happening as – I quote – “a violent and criminal effort to ethnically cleanse territories in the West Bank’.
The former Minister of Health and retired Brigadier General from the IDF, Ephraim Sneh has said – and I quote again – “this is ethnic cleansing to put it simply”.
Ethnic cleansing is defined by the UN as ‘a purposeful policy designed by one ethnic or religious group to remove by violent and terror-inspiring means the civilian population of another ethnic or religious group from certain geographic areas.’
The British government agrees that there is ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in areas of the West Bank – perpetrated by settler terrorists.
And all too often the Israeli government has turned a blind eye to this and worse, members of it have made statements and taken actions to support the forced displacement of Palestinians.
Now Madame Deputy Speaker, I recognise the gravity of saying this but the truth is, it is the least the people who face such suffering deserve. And it should be the prelude to justice.
Now for a long time, the British government has rightly said settlements are illegal.
But we have remained silent on the question of the legality of the occupation as a whole, which in 2024 the International Court of Justice concluded was unlawful.
Today I announce that the official view of the British Government is that the occupation is unlawful.
Because of Israel’s entrenchment of its control, its intention to extend permanent sovereignty, and its expansionist agenda via illegal settlements.
Madame Deputy Speaker, our position is not just an overdue statement of reality.
The government believes the unlawfulness of the occupation should be reflected in the economic relationships we choose to have with the occupied territories.
I do not believe that the British people want us supporting the occupation by accepting products from settlements in our shops and supermarkets.
So I can announce today that we will introduce an import ban on goods from illegal settlements in the occupied territories.
To do so, we will introduce a new comprehensive sanctions regime working with my Right Honourable Friend the Business Secretary, with appropriate religious exemptions.
And as part of this regime, we will go further.
We will take action against specific companies and individuals who provide services such as construction, infrastructure, financing, or real estate for settlement expansion.
So to those who finance or facilitate illegal settlements, let me say this, you will face the full force of UK sanctions.
Settlements are illegal. They should not be promoted in our country.
Earlier this year, shamefully, just a few miles from here, we saw an expo advertising illegal settlement land.
We must and we will ensure this never happens again, so we will ban the advertising in the UK of illegal settlements.
The sanctions regime will target illegal settlements and settlement expansion, not Israel.
We will continue to support important and valued trade with green line Israel precisely because we support the two state solution, including security and prosperity for Israel.
For this reason, I wholeheartedly oppose the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions or BDS campaign.
The legislation I have announced today will be in place within 6 to 9 months and we will also take more immediate steps.
Today we are sanctioning a further set of extremist settlers who have supported or incited acts of violence against Palestinian communities.
And I can also announce that we are extending the existing global human rights regime such that it will enable swifter action to deter settlement expansion, including crucially seeking to present the development of E1.
I also want to address the question of arms sales. We have already suspended over 30 arms licences used by the IDF in Gaza. That suspension remains fully in place.
We will now also refuse all licence applications for arms and other exports that materially contribute to the occupation, in effect a double lock against arms sales. This means the ban on such exports will now remain as long as the occupation persists.
To advance the two state solution, we also need viable and effective Palestinian governance.
So I urge the Palestinian Authority to accelerate reform and I urge Israel to lift its withholding of revenues that is financially crippling the provision of essential services in the West Bank.
The set of measures I have announced represents a clear message to the government of Israel, to the Palestinians in the Occupied Territories, and to the world that we will not acquiesce in the destruction of the two state solution.
I turn now to Gaza.
The horror of October 7th appalled the world and had terrible echoes of the centuries of persecution of the Jewish people.
Men, women, children and babies killed, mutilated, and tortured by Hamas terrorists. People murdered whilst seeking to protect their families. Young people massacred at a music festival. People abducted from their homes.
As the 20 point peace plan for Gaza sets out, this is one of many reasons Hamas can play no role in the future governance of Gaza, it must decommission its weapons and must dismantle its terrorist infrastructure.
Israel has the right not to live in fear of vile terrorism, and the Israeli State has the right to protect its people and defend its territory.
But Madame Deputy Speaker that cannot justify what has happened in Gaza.
Over 70,000 people have been killed, at least 20,000 of them children. 20,000 children.
The vast majority of the population is now displaced – nearly two million people – who are now penned into just one third of the territory.
Life-saving humanitarian aid and access has been routinely blocked.
Hospitals and clinics have been destroyed.
Over 60% of homes are in ruins.
Mr Speaker, international humanitarian law imposes clear rules for states fighting wars – including to ensure access to food and medical supplies, to avoid mass displacement of civilians, and to avoid the targeting of civilians.
Serious and intentional violations of this law, if proven, amount to war crimes.
What has occurred, including the actions of the IDF, have been examined in depth by a number of organisations, including the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry.
The conclusions of these reports represent increasing evidence that war crimes appear to have been committed.
And we support legal processes to determine this.
On the question of genocide, the UK has always supported full, robust and fair judicial processes to consider allegations, with final determinations made by competent courts before the British government reaches a conclusion.
This has been the case for all of the genocides since the 1948 Genocide Convention: Rwanda, Srebrenica, Cambodia, and acts against the Yazidi people.
This will remain our policy. It is right that this issue has been brought before the ICJ and I want to make it clear that we support the Court in coming to its determination.
So accountability for what has happened in Gaza matters.
But even more urgent is action to address the ongoing crisis.
Because today in Gaza, the death and suffering continue.
Nearly a year ago, Madame Deputy Speaker, a ceasefire was declared. Yet over 1,200 Palestinians have been killed since.
And the people of Gaza are experiencing a totally avoidable humanitarian catastrophe, I am afraid, driven by decisions of the Israeli government.
Last week I talked to courageous doctors and humanitarian aid workers who have served in Gaza. It was a heartbreaking conversation.
They recounted:
Children dying waiting for medical treatment.
People forced to live next to open sewage and without shelter.
And food insecurity rampant.
I’m sure the whole House agrees, this is unconscionable.
So I pledge we will continue to do everything we can to provide all the humanitarian support possible to help the people of Gaza.
UK-supported hospitals in Gaza will enable around 800,000 medical consultations this year and essential health services for patients.
UK expertise will deliver care to over a thousand child amputees.
And we recently welcomed another wave of students from Gaza coming to study in Britain and we will welcome more.
But in truth, unless Israel changes course, the situation will remain dire.
So we are taking further steps – both ourselves and with others.
Our extension of the global human rights sanctions regime will enable us to target those responsible for violations of international humanitarian law, whether in Gaza or anywhere else in the world.
And we will at the UN General Assembly in New York later this month shine the clearest and harshest spotlight on what is happening and what must change.
And with Jordan, we will convene countries across the world to lead a call for action on health and humanitarian access.
We will also lend the UK’s voice to the growing global alliance of countries – led by Arab partners in the region – calling for the full implementation of the US-led 20 point plan, the rejection of extremism, and for a lasting end to the cycles of violence.
As we implement the policy measures I have announced today, we will continue to assess the government of Israel by its actions. We want to see a new approach – in both Gaza and the West Bank.
Madame Deputy Speaker, today we refuse to be bystanders to further suffering and to the destruction of the two state solution.
We call out what is unlawful.
We act on the import of goods from illegal settlements.
We ban advertising of illegal settlements
We act on services to prevent new settlement expansion.
We act on settler violence.
We support accountability for what has happened in Gaza.
And we pledge to galvanise the international community to confront the ongoing and urgent humanitarian crisis.
Above all, we say: Britain is not silent in the face of deep injustice and nor is it powerless.
And today we act in concert with others in a broad international coalition.
I can tell the House that today France and Canada are announcing, alongside Britain, that they will also ban the import of goods from illegal settlements.
Joining the Netherlands, Ireland, Belgium, Spain and Norway – which have either banned goods or are in the process of doing so.
With many other countries – Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Poland, Portugal, and Sweden – pledging today they will support further action.
Madame Deputy Speaker, this is what Britain can achieve leading with others.
And this is in our fundamental national interest because if there is one lesson of recent decades, it is that we will never have stability in the Middle East without a two state solution.
And it is also the case that if we fail to stand up for the values that this country has long held and fought for, we lose credibility and influence in the world.
Madame Deputy Speaker, my parents came here as Jewish refugees and found sanctuary and a country that stood up for the rule of law, freedom and self-determination.
Those are the values this government is standing up for today.
And I truly believe that the vast majority of the British people, including in our communities with ties to the region, are united in their desire to see humanitarian suffering end, and all sides commit to a durable peace process.
And just as we want Israelis and Palestinians to live side by side, so we have to live out those values in Britain.
Jews in Britain, Muslims in Britain, people of all faiths and none have a right to live without prejudice or fear.
Madame Deputy Speaker, a Britain that upholds its values at home and around the world.
A Britain that fights against oppression and suffering wherever it occurs.
A Britain that stands up for what is right.
And I commend this statement to the House.
JEREMY CORBYN: Britain must end all support for Israel’s system of apartheid, occupation and genocide.
Chancellor John Healey has set out his plan to drive growth in every postcode, backing Britain’s extraordinary strengths to deliver benefits across the whole country.
New ambition to double the number of UK unicorn firms in clear signal of ambition for British economy, alongside powers which will help businesses test and scale technologies from delivery robots to medical treatments.
Northern 500 initiative and £150m British Business Bank fund to back high-growth firms across the North.
Speaking at the Manufacturing Technology Centre in Coventry today (Monday 7 September), the Chancellor laid out how he will take an axe to delays holding back growth, from backing British business and giving local leaders more power, to clearing away the delays that hold back investment.
Changes to the judicial review process for Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects announced today will fix a system where every decision can face another challenge, consultation or review before a single brick is laid or a spade enters the ground.
Sending a clear signal on his level of ambition for UK business, he also set a goal to double the number of unicorn firms – companies valued at over £1billion – in the UK.
The Government will work with the Business Department to identify the next generation of high-growth companies and help them overcome regulatory barriers, access capital, and win government contracts as an early customer.
And he announced the Northern 500: which will bring together 500 of the North’s most ambitious mid-sized businesses into a single growth community led by the Great North partnership of Mayors and supported by the private sector and central government.
Chancellor John Healey MP said: The UK is the third in the world for innovation. Our record is extraordinary… But too often, ideas born here in Britain have to go elsewhere to find the capital they need to grow…
“I’m setting an ambition to double the number of unicorn firms in this country. Together, with Johnny Reynolds I will identify the next wave of unicorns, with the state as an early first customer to ensure they have the necessary backing to scale.”
The Chancellor also committed to delivering new powers to oversee ‘sandboxing’ that will be ready to deploy next year. Sandboxing is the term for how companies and regulators can work together to test new models or features in safe and controlled environments.
The new powers, to be delivered through the Business Department’s Regulating for Growth Bill, will let businesses test cutting-edge products and technologies safely, establish what works and scale more quickly.
Potential use cases of these new powers include patient access to innovative treatments, rollout of delivery robots, defence technologies or maritime autonomous vehicles.
Today’s speech also set out reforms to tackle the bureaucracy holding back growth and investment, putting decision-making back where it belongs and helping ensure people in every postcode benefit from a government focused on delivery.
Chancellor John Healey MP added: I will take an axe to the thicket of consultation, litigation and administration that has a stranglehold too often on private investment.…
“And let me say this – the people who elected this government expect us to get on with it. The role of government is to act.
Judicial review challenges typically delay nationally important infrastructure projects by a year and a half. For example, Sizewell C was delayed by two judicial reviews, both of which ended up being dismissed by the courts, delaying the delivery of clean power to the equivalent of six million homes and 10,000 jobs at peak construction.”
The Chancellor has also instructed the Government to embrace risk when it needs to in order to get things done. Under the current system, decisions have been held back, for example:
Despite 99% of respondents to a Call for Evidence supporting microchipping cats in the same way as dogs in 2019, it took nearly 5 years to make it happen: one call for evidence, two further consultations, legislation through Parliament and then finally enacted in June 2024.
The planning process for East West Rail began in 2019 and has already involved four rounds of public consultation in 2019, 2021, 2024 and 2026. And it could still face more challenges before getting over the line
That’s why from today, Ministers have been told that public consultations are not always required and have encouraged departments to find other ways to get views from the public and experts when developing policies.
The reforms support the Prime Minister’s drive for a faster, more effective state through No10 North, which brings together decisionmakers from across government to accelerate growth and strengthen delivery.
The Treasury and No10 North have been working in lockstep and directly with departments to identify where projects are stalling, why, and which changes to law, regulation or process are needed to get them moving again.
The reforms also reflect lessons from the Fingleton Review, which highlighted how excessive risk aversion and slow decision-making can hold back the delivery of major infrastructure projects.
To tackle delays holding back growth and investment, the Government will introduce a package of reforms to give parliament the ability designate and approve the country’s most important infrastructure and give them significant enhanced protection from legal challenge, reduce unnecessary consultations and reporting requirements, ensure legal challenges are raised and resolved earlier, and make clear that legal risk should inform ministers’ decisions, not dictate them.
Together, the changes will help deliver major projects more quickly while strengthening democratic accountability and giving greater certainty once decisions have been taken.
The Government will also launch a review of the costs of rail infrastructure in the UK in the coming weeks, to identify further practical reforms to radically cut the costs of delivering new rail infrastructure in the UK.
Together, these measures will help build a state that delivers rather than delays, giving government greater confidence to act and ensuring approved projects can move forward more quickly.
The reforms form part of the Government’s wider mission to drive good growth in every Postcode, unlocking the investment needed to create opportunities across the country.
They are a key step in realising No10 North’s focus on stripping away the administrative sludge that has built up around government, restoring democratic accountability and replacing a culture of process with a culture of delivery.
No 10 North will continue working with the rest of government to identify further blockages in the months ahead.
The UK Government has now released £14.09m to Edinburgh and South East Scotland Regional Partnership after signing off on its locally designed three-year Local Growth Fund investment plan, which targets areas with the lowest household incomes to create jobs and boost living standards.
Funding for Years 2 and 3 will be rolled out as the region progresses through its plans.
A partnership between the four regional colleges of Borders, Edinburgh, Fife, and West Lothian plans to train over 20,000 new entrants across the region over the coming decade as well as upskill existing workers.
South East Scotland is the fastest growing region in Scotland, with some of the highest housing demand for now and into the future. The new training hubs will be strategically important in the delivery of 40,000 new homes across the region’s seven strategic housing sites.
The training centre in the south of Scotland will also benefit from Scottish Government funding through the Borderlands Inclusive Growth Deal.
Audrey Cumberford, Principal of Edinburgh College, said:“This is a great example of colleges coming together and taking a proactive approach to meet the skills needs of the region that we serve.
“The construction sector is going to be hugely significant to Edinburgh and the Lothians over the coming years, and these training hubs will ensure it has the workforce it needs to flourish.
“Projects like this emphasise the potential that colleges have to work hand in hand with key employers to provide a pipeline of skilled labour for future employment opportunities.”
Scottish Secretary Douglas Alexander said: “(Today) the UK Government is releasing more than £14 million to Edinburgh and South East Scotland partners who know their communities best.
“These funds will be crucial for addressing skills shortages, driving green innovation and removing barriers to local employment and infrastructure development.
“The UK Government is committed to empowering local communities by spreading power throughout the country.
“These funds will support local leaders throughout Scotland to create skilled jobs, help start up businesses and revive our local high streets.”
City of Edinburgh Council Leader Cllr Jane Meagher, said:“This investment in new training hubs will give thousands of local people the chance to gain new skills and build rewarding careers in construction and green technology.
“With strong demand for new homes together with our work to reach net zero, having a skilled local workforce will be essential.”
According to a report undertaken by the University of Edinburgh and West Lothian College, the region has a construction workforce of 57,000, of which 21,000 (34%) commute for work into the region from other parts of Scotland daily.
The study identified that the region requires an additional 20,000 new entrants, upskilling roles and replacement construction workforce over the next 10 years.
Chris Murray MP has welcomed the official opening of the Edinburgh Innovation Hub at Queen Margaret University, a major new centre for innovative businesses which has received £28.6 million in UK Government funding.
Chris Murray MP attended the launch of the new Hub, opened by Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Scotland Melanie Ward and Scottish Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Tourism and Transport Stephen Flynn.
The £40 million Edinburgh Innovation Hub is a joint venture between East Lothian Council and Queen Margaret University (QMU), and forms the first phase of the planned Edinburgh Innovation Park.
It is part of the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal. It is supported by £28.6 million from the UK Government,£1.4 million from the Scottish Government and £10 million from East Lothian Council.
The new facility provides specialist laboratory, office, meeting and conference space for innovative businesses, with a particular focus on life sciences, food and drink, technology, start-ups and related sectors.
The Hub has already welcomed companies including Forge Minerals, Aurora Avionics and Riverwood Ecology, with a further life sciences company recently signing a lease to move around 40 employees into the facility.
The opening represents a significant investment in Edinburgh and the region’s innovation economy and is intended to support the growth of high-value businesses and create highly skilled employment.
Chris Murray MP said:“It was fantastic to be at the opening of the Edinburgh Innovation Hub and to see the businesses already making use of this impressive new facility.
“This part of Scotland has been short-changed for too long, with not enough Government support to create the jobs of the future.
“So as the local MP, I am delighted to see such significant UK Government investment, driven by our brilliant Scottish Labour Ministers. This money will help to create opportunities for innovative businesses to scale up and deliver high-skilled jobs right here in Edinburgh and East Lothian.
“Andy Burnham and the Labour Government are determined to deliver growth and invest in good jobs in the industries of the future, and the Edinburgh Innovation Hub is a great example of what that ambition looks like in practice.
“We have an enormous amount of talent and potential across Edinburgh and Musselburgh, across life sciences, technology, aerospace, environmental innovation and more. This Hub will allow this talent to build the businesses of the future right here in Musselburgh.
“I look forward to working with the Hub, Queen Margaret University, the Scottish Government, East Lothian Council and the UK Government to make sure that potential is realised.”
UK Government Minister for Scotland Melanie Ward MP said:“The opening of the Edinburgh Innovation Hub is a vital step in backing Scottish innovation and building a modern, resilient economy.
“Significant UK Government investment of over £28 million is giving start-ups the specialised lab space they need to accelerate breakthroughs, scale up quickly, and create high-skilled jobs across the region.
“This project shows the tangible impact of targeted UK Government support. While the Hub acts as a flagship engine for the regional economy, its impact links directly into communities right across Scotland.
“By connecting cutting-edge innovation with national supply chains – from Scotland’s space sector to freshwater ecology – we are using targeted regional investments to bring growth, high-skilled jobs, and economic opportunities to every postcode across Scotland.”
Action to be taken on cost of living, local regeneration and essential services to drive down costs and support families.
Taskforces will tackle the immediate priorities of the public, building on action already taken including cutting bus fares and cracking down on subscription traps.
First Secretary of State, Louise Haigh to drive forward work across government to develop local solutions for local communities.
Three new cross-government taskforces are being launched in the new Office for the Prime Minister & Cabinet, tackling systemic issues like the cost of living and public control of essentials and supporting local communities.
The three taskforces will coordinate departments and ministers, focusing on the priorities set out by the Prime Minister to Cabinet yesterday.
The priorities will be driven forward by First Secretary of State, Louise Haigh, who will work across central and local government – including with regional Mayors as the government continues to pass powers from Westminster.
Immediate action will focus on challenging everyday rip-offs, the visible decline of local town centres and the failure of many privatised utilities to deliver basic services at a fair price.
First Secretary of State Louise Haigh said: “The Prime Minister has been clear that the government’s priorities are the public’s priorities.
“This is about putting people back in control of the things that matter most to them and ensuring that the everyday essentials are more affordable and more accountable.”
Based in the Office for the Prime Minister and Cabinet, the taskforces will be fully integrated with No10 and across government to deliver the change the public rightly expect to see.
Details on the three priorities and taskforces:
Cost of Living
On the cost of living, earning back public trust begins with understanding the pressures facing families at the kitchen table. Action has already been taken in this area, including cuts to bus fares, support with energy bills and cracking down on subscription traps, but we must go further.
The taskforce will look to address the long term issues facing families, many of which have too often fallen through the cracks.
Public Control
For decades, the essential services that underpin daily life – housing, water, energy and transport – have suffered from over-privatisation, leading to high costs for the public. The Government is clear that the public has a right to expect these services to be affordable and accountable.
The public control taskforce will rewire the state, examining how public control across those four sectors can be utilised to return them to public service, and bring down costs for families. Looking at areas including market reform that could support these aims.
Community Renewal
Our communities have been left behind, high streets falling into disrepair, rubbish piling up at the sides of our streets – we will reverse that, improving people’s everyday experience of where they live.
Working with local leaders, we will create a genuine plan to rebuild Britain, not just replicating high street strategies that have gone before, ensuring communities are supported to drive through solutions, and deliver growth in every postcode.
As part of the UK Government’s commitment to empowering local communities by spreading power throughout the country, the UK Government has released £52.1 million from the £140 million Local Growth Fund.
Through Local Growth Funds, funding is being handed straight to local decision-makers. Regional leaders have been empowered to design tailored plans that build infrastructure communities need most, delivering skilled jobs, and boosting living standards.
Our Local Growth fund will drive economic prosperity for communities that need it most in Edinburgh and South East Scotland, Glasgow and Tay City regions, Ayrshire and Forth Valley.
Workers, apprentices, businesses and communities across Scotland are to benefit as the UK Government releases the first £52.1 million from the Local Growth Fund after green-lighting five regions’ three-year investment plans for the £140 million initiative.
The locally delivered fund targets Scotland’s Regional Partnerships that contain the areas with the lowest Gross Disposable Household Income (GDHI) per capita.
By trusting local knowledge over top-down directives, regional leaders have been empowered to design tailored plans that build physical infrastructure, establish high-growth commercial spaces, and close vital skills gaps.
Scottish Secretary Douglas Alexander said: “The UK Government is committed to empowering local communities by spreading power throughout the country. These funds will support local leaders throughout Scotland to create skilled jobs, help start up businesses and revive our local high streets.
“After months of close working directly with regional partners across Scotland, the UK Government is now releasing £52.1 million directly to regional leaders who know their communities best so delivery can begin.”
This funding targets the Scottish Regional Partnerships that contain the communities that need it most – areas like West Dunbartonshire, North Ayrshire, Dundee, Clackmannanshire and Fife – which have lower GDHI than other parts of Scotland.
The £140 million package is allocated proportionally by population across five Scottish regions.
Year 1 allocations, released now to enable delivery to begin, are as follows:
Glasgow City Region: total 3 year allocation of £60.9 million, with £22,684,596 now released.
The region will deliver business support, skills and employability programmes, and capital investment supporting the creation of high-growth commercial business space, as well as regional infrastructure projects for housing supply, land use, and town centre regeneration.
Edinburgh & South East Scotland: total allocation of £37.8 million, with £14,095,909 now released.
The region will deliver regional skills and employability programmes and capital investment in establishing flagship Housing and Net Zero Accelerator Hubs (HaNZAH) to train workers in green construction and retrofit technology, alongside a new Regional Intelligence Hub to inform regional economic planning, following the model of the Glasgow City Region.
Tay Cities Region: total allocation of £19.5 million, with £7,256,931 now released.
The region will deliver skills and workforce development programmes in priority sectors such as tourism, advanced manufacturing, creative industries, and agriculture and food, alongside capital investment in new industrial infrastructure, including new small-scale innovation spaces, and business grants.
Ayrshire: total allocation of £11.8 million, with £4,400,298 now released.
The region will launch a new Shared Economic Development Service and Regional Intelligence Hub, following the model of the Glasgow City Region, alongside regional recruitment incentives, employability hubs, business start-up support structures, and accelerator grants.
Forth Valley: total allocation of £9.8 million, with £3,665,499 now released.
The region will deliver skills and employability services and specialist support for growth businesses, establish new Regional Partnership and Programme Management functions, and unlock vacant or stalled housing sites through the Forth Valley Housing Enablement Fund.
Funding is being delivered directly to Regional Partnerships to enable strategic decision-making and maximum growth impact. Regional Partnerships are collaborations between local government, the private sector, education and skills providers, enterprise and skills agencies and the third sector to deliver economic prosperity across Scotland’s regions.
Wider UK Government investment in Scotland
The UK Government is investing more than £2.3 billion over 10 years in dozens of important local and regional projects the length and breadth of Scotland, bringing much-needed economic and community renewal. These include:
· £140m Local Growth Fund
· £280m Pride in Place Programme (Phase 2)
· £12m Pride in Place Impact Fund
· £43m Growth Mission Fund
· £200m support for ten Scottish towns (Pride in Place Phase 1)
· £320m for the Glasgow City Region and North East Scotland Investment Zones
· £52m for the Inverness and Cromarty Firth, and Forth Green Freeports
· £81m for Community Regeneration Partnerships in Dundee, Scottish Borders, Argyll & Bute, and Na h-Eileanan Siar
· £188m to complete Levelling Up Fund projects
· £76m in UK Shared Prosperity Fund transition funding for 2025/26
· £60m innovation funding for Glasgow City Region (across the Innovation Accelerator 2025/26 and new Local Innovation Partnerships Fund)
· £20m Local Innovation Partnerships Fund for Tay Cities creative tech sector.
· £17.3m for Energy Transition Zone
· £5m for Community Ownership Fund projects
· £16m for Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities over 2025 and 2026.
· £50m Defence Growth Deal
· £2.6m for V&A in Dundee
· £752m to deliver Scotland’s 12 City Region and Growth Deals over 2025/26 – 2034/35
Families are being encouraged to enjoy days out for less over this bank holiday weekend as the government’s Great British Summer Savings scheme is set to end on 1 September.
Millions of pounds have been saved by families so far via a VAT cut from 20% to 5% on kids’ meals in restaurants and tickets to attractions like theatres and soft play, alongside free bus fares in England for children aged five to fifteen.
The UK’s leading holiday park operator, Haven, returned £4 million to holidaymakers after it joined the government’s scheme.
A VAT cut from 20% to 5% on kids’ meals in restaurants and tickets to attractions like theatres and soft play has been in place since 25 June, allowing families to enjoy their summer holiday activities for less, giving people breathing space during the cost-of-living squeeze.
The scheme ends at midnight on Tuesday (September 1) and the Chancellor has urged people to make use of the savings over this bank holiday weekend.
Yesterday the Chancellor visited Haven’s Kiln Park holiday park in Pembrokeshire, as the company announced that as a direct result of Great British Summer Savings families holidaying on its parks have got back more than £4 million.
Around 251,000 families have benefited from the savings across Haven sites UK wide, and 39,000 families across Wales.
Over 2,100 eateries and attractions across the UK are now listed on the government’s deal finder website – one of the fastest digital tools ever launched in partnership between business and government – where families can search for discounts close to them.
Businesses from across the UK have been passing on the savings, including Barleylands Farm Park in Essex, Playdale Farm Park in Scarborough and Alexandra Palace which has offered savings on activities including boating lake pedalos and family dining. Adventure Attractions, the operator of Bournemouth Pier, has gone further by removing the historic Pier Toll and offering families discounts on attractions.
Chancellor of the Exchequer, John Healey MP, said: “I want every family to get out and enjoy the bank holiday weekend by taking advantage of the final days of Great British Summer Savings.
“This government is determined to give people a bit of breathing space. So families can afford the days out that make the summer holidays special. Whilst giving our world-class attractions and businesses a welcome boost in trade.”
Simon Palethorpe, CEO of Haven, said: “Great British Summer Savings has helped us put more smiles on more faces this summer – with over half a million youngsters receiving Haven activity vouchers. That’s half a million more reasons for families to make memories together at the seaside.
“Great British Summer Savings is a good example of Government and businesses, like Haven, working together to keep costs down for families who choose a British break – supporting jobs and boosting the coastal economies where we operate.”
ODEON, which joined the scheme at its launch in June, has said that more than 1.2 million guests have benefited from discounted cinema trips through Great British Summer Savings.
Greene King, another participating business, has said that they have sold more than 1.1 million children’s meals and recorded more than 80,000 entries to its Wacky Warehouse soft play venues, resulting in cumulative savings for customers of more than £740,000.
Merlin, operator of iconic destinations including Alton Towers, LEGOLAND Windsor and the London Eye, welcomed almost 5 million guests to its UK attractions between 25th June and now, helping families enjoy even better value days out.
Support will continue for households with measures announced over the last month like the £2 cap on bus fares in 2027 and removing VAT from electricity bills will continue to give families breathing space in the months ahead.
Action to slash business rates by 20% for pubs, social clubs and live music venues will also boost Britain’s hospitality sector which has been supported by the increased footfall attracted by the discounts created by Great British Summer Savings.
Fiona Eastwood, CEO of Merlin Entertainments, said: “The Great British Summer Savings scheme has helped more families enjoy memorable days out together this summer, while providing a welcome boost for destinations across the country.
“We were pleased to pass these savings on to our guests at Merlin’s UK attractions, making visits more accessible and helping even more families create lasting memories during the school holidays.”
Suzie Welch, Managing Director UKI, Odeon Cinemas Group said: “ODEON is delighted to be part of the Great British Summer Savings scheme, helping to offer even greater value to our guests.
“It was fantastic to launch the scheme at ODEON Milton Keynes on 25 June, alongside Sir Keir Starmer and children from local schools.
“Since introducing the reduced rates across 100 ODEON cinemas, more than 1.2 million guests have benefited from the offer and enjoyed a trip to the cinema.
“Alongside a fantastic summer film slate – including Toy Story 5, Minions & Monsters, Moana and many more – the scheme has helped make the big-screen experience even more accessible for families across the UK.”
Lucy Fenner, Commercial Director at Alexandra Park and Palace Charitable Trust said:“It’s been fantastic to see so many families making the most of the Great British Summer Savings scheme at Ally Pally.
“Government initiatives that can support charities and businesses like ours to help families and communities enjoy more affordable days out, get active, and make the most of green parks and places on their doorstep, can make a real difference, especially in the school holidays.”
Andy Burnham will arrive in Ukraine today for his first overseas visit as Prime Minister
Prime Minister in Kyiv for first international visit to reiterate UK’s unwavering commitment to Ukraine
Comes as the Prime Minister announces the UK has agreed that defence firm MBDA can release classified information on UK components for the long-range missile, SCALP, to establish local assembly lines in Ukraine
Burnham expected to meet with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and chair his first meeting of the Coalition of the Willing, alongside other world leaders in the city to mark Independence Day
Andy Burnham will arrive in Ukraine today (Monday 24 August) for his first overseas visit as Prime Minister.
Just weeks after welcoming President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to the UK in July as his first international guest, the Prime Minister has travelled to Kyiv to reiterate the UK’s unwavering support for the Ukrainian people.
Visiting on Independence Day, the Prime Minister will tell the Ukrainian people that the UK is four-square behind Ukraine’s independence, and Russia’s threats only strengthen the UK’s resolve.
To underline the strength of this commitment, the Prime Minister is set to announce that the Government has agreed that defence firm MBDA can release classified information on UK components for the long-range missile, SCALP, as Ukraine and France look to establish local assembly lines in Ukraine.
The missile is the French-produced version of the UK’s Storm Shadow, with both using shared French and British technology.
The move follows the UK being the first to gift long-range strike weapons for defensive purposes to Ukraine in 2023 and will allow the French and Ukrainians to move forward with the Ukrainian assembly of the missile.
It also complements the major UK effort to rapidly develop low-cost advanced long-range strike weapons for Ukraine through Project Brakestop.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham said: “On Ukraine’s 35th anniversary of independence, the Ukrainian people should be in no doubt: the UK is behind you today and for as long as it takes.
“I am proud of the contribution our country has made to Ukraine and I want the Ukrainian people to hear it directly from me that our support will not waver. After all, Ukraine’s security is our security.
“The friendship between our two countries will long outlast Russia’s illegal war. In both the fight and in the rebuilding to come, we will stand with Ukraine and deliver opportunities for people across both our countries.
“Russia should be in no doubt of our resolve. We will not back down until there is a just and lasting peace.”
While in Kyiv, the Prime Minister will take part in Independence Day events and co-chair his first meeting of the Coalition of the Willing to discuss how the UK can continue to support Ukraine as it courageously defends itself against Russia’s illegal invasion.
He will tell international partners that the UK’s leadership on Ukraine will remain steadfast under his Government.
While in Kyiv, the Prime Minister is expected to be presented with an award on behalf of the British people, in recognition of the United Kingdom’s support.
The UK has been one of Ukraine’s foremost partners since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, providing a range of military, economic, and diplomatic support, underpinned by the UK and Ukraine’s 100 Year Partnership.
This includes leading efforts to secure Ukraine’s long-term security alongside France as co-chairs of the Coalition of the Willing, and committing £25 billion in funding, including £16 billion in military assistance and £5.6 billion in non-military support.
One month after making his first instruction as Prime Minister, Andy Burnham has announced the next steps in his national drive to end rough sleeping by announcing immediate action to offer everyone who needs it a route off the streets by Christmas, backed by increased funding of £442 million.
Everyone sleeping rough is to be offered a route off the streets this winter if they need it, the first major milestone in the Prime Minister’s commitment to end rough sleeping
Under a boosted £442 million package, areas with the greatest need will receive the largest share of support, to get people out of the cold this winter and give people facing long-term homelessness a settled home and the support to keep it
In a drive to bring everyone together to play their part, the Prime Minister is announcing a first of its kind national summit on tackling rough sleeping to take place in the Autumn.
One month after making his first instruction as Prime Minister, Andy Burnham today (Wednesday 19 August) has announced the next steps in his national drive to end rough sleeping by announcing immediate action to offer everyone who needs it a route off the streets by Christmas, backed by increased funding of £442 million.
New accommodation and support will be rolled out across England this winter, learning from innovative approaches put into place during the pandemic.
Alongside emergency accommodation to end the need for rough sleeping, the programme, fully funded within MHCLG budgets, will offer practical help with housing, health and other needs, helping people build a more stable future.
In addition, the Prime Minister has announced he will host a first of its kind national summit in the Autumn to bring together leaders from across society – from business, finance, charities, health, faith communities and more – to ask what role each of them can play in ending rough sleeping.
The new commitment to offer everyone a route off the streets this Christmas, along with boosted funding and a landmark summit, reflect the Prime Minister’s approach of bringing everyone together in a national drive to step up and play their part in ending rough sleeping – with everyone pulling in the same direction at a local level to make real change backed by funding at a national level.
The plans will not only change the lives of those being given somewhere to sleep and a foundation to rebuild their lives but have huge benefits for the whole country, as research from Crisis suggests preventing 40,000 people from becoming homeless for a year could save taxpayers around £370 million.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham said: “No-one should have to bed down in a doorway or outside a station. But we’ve seen it for so long that it feels like Westminster has started to accept it.
“I won’t accept it. That’s why my first instruction as Prime Minister was to end rough sleeping. And it’s why today we’re getting started with a national drive to get everyone in for Christmas.
“We did it in the pandemic. We can do it again. But it needs all of us. Government will put the money in. But I’m asking leaders in communities and sectors across society to play their part locally too.
“Let’s get people out the cold. And let’s bring back hope.”
Housing Secretary Angela Rayner said: “When the Prime Minister pledged to end rough sleeping, we said we’d move urgently from words to action. Today we’re delivering on that promise.
“This funding will help thousands of people leave the streets behind, move into secure homes and get the support they need to rebuild their lives.
“Working alongside councils, mayors and charities, we’re backing local areas to tackle rough sleeping at its roots, giving people the security, dignity and opportunity they deserve, and restoring hope to those who have been let down for far too long.”
The government is also confirming project allocations for this programme, which includes the investment into long term accommodation announced in July.
As well as off the street provision, the funding will help local areas deliver more than 1,000 settled homes over the next three years, alongside intensive wraparound support to help people rebuild their lives.
Areas facing the greatest pressures will receive the largest share of support, with communities all across England getting support to address rough sleeping in their area. Working alongside councils, Mayors will play a leading role in driving local action to end rough sleeping and making the decisions that are right for their communities to deliver help where it is needed most.
Alongside funding allocations, the Government is publishing guidance to help local areas mobilise quickly and deliver a consistent route off the street offer this winter. The guidance will make clear the need to ensure adequate and accessible provision for women experiencing rough sleeping, recognising that women are often underrepresented in official statistics and may be at greater risk of violence, abuse, and exploitation.
Guidance encourages local areas to consider single sex accommodation with specialist, intensive and trauma informed support, for victims of domestic abuse and sexual violence. This will support the government’s commitment to halve violence against women and girls in the next ten years.
Charities, faith groups and community organisations are at the heart of efforts to end homelessness. That is why, in addition to holding a first of its kind national summit bringing together leaders across society with a role to play, £8.4 million of the new funding is going specifically to the Ending Homelessness in Communities Fund.
This takes total funding allocations announced today for 100 different projects to £47 million over three years, helping small and medium-sized organisations provide life-changing support to people experiencing, or at risk of, homelessness.
Together, these measures form the foundation of cross-government work to end rough sleeping at the earliest opportunity, combining immediate action this winter with lasting solutions to help people rebuild their lives for good.
CHARITIES Crisis Scotland and Homeless Network Scotland made the following statement last month responding to new Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s commitment to end rough sleeping:
“The new Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s commitment to end rough sleeping, backed by new investment, is a positive step. The additional funding that will come to Scotland through Barnett consequentials provides an important opportunity to strengthen efforts to end rough sleeping in Scotland and support more people into safe, secure homes.
“We are calling on the Scottish Government to use this extra funding to expand Housing First and ensure more people experiencing the most severe and complex forms of homelessness can access the housing and support they need.
“Housing First is one of the most effective and innovative policy interventions of recent times. It provides people with a permanent home alongside flexible, person-centred support. The evidence is clear that this approach works, providing the stability and support required so they can leave homelessness for good and rebuild their lives.
“Scotland has long been recognised as a leader in progressive approaches to ending homelessness. But leadership is measured by delivery. Through the Ending Homelessness Together action plan, the Scottish Government committed to making Housing First the default option for people with multiple and complex needs. Yet access remains far below the level required, with current provision estimated to meet just nine percent of demand.
“With rough sleeping continuing to rise, this funding is a chance to turn ambition into action. Expanding Housing First would ensure Scotland continues to lead the way in ending homelessness and delivering on the ambition to end all forms of homelessness.”
Gordon Llewellyn-MacRae, Interim Director at Shelter Scotland said:“Andy Burnham is right to make homelessness his day one priority.
“Rough sleeping in Scotland more than doubled between 2021 and 2025. But it would be wrong to suggest that getting people off the streets is enough.
“Rough sleeping happens because councils don’t have enough homes or hotel rooms even to provide basic emergency accommodation. It is a symptom of a political failure at Westminster and Holyrood that prefers sticking plasters to long term solutions.
“If Andy Burnham is serious then he should look again at how the UK Government creates homelessness by cutting local housing allowance – making it impossible for people when their wages don’t keep up with rents.
“He should look again at the asylum system that forces people fleeing persecution into homelessness by evicting them from accommodation when they are granted leave to remain.
“He should remove the so-called bedroom tax which the Scottish Government spends millions of pounds every year to effectively eradicate in Scotland. Money that would be better spent on homelessness prevention and local services.
“And most importantly he should invest in a new generation of social housing, including increasing capital investment in Scotland so that councils and housing associations can build at scale.”
