A Glasgow meeting of the council

The Prime Minister met with the First Minister of Scotland in Glasgow on Friday 30 October, following a meeting of the National Economic Council. According to the GOV.UK account of the meeting, the two leaders agreed the council session had been extremely positive and a valuable exercise in starting to explore how each government could contribute to regional empowerment, reindustrialisation and good growth in every postcode.

The Prime Minister also met the First Minister of Wales, Rhun Ap Iorwerth, in Glasgow after the same council meeting. The Welsh account likewise described positive discussions and agreement to start a process exploring how each government could contribute to regional empowerment, reindustrialisation and good growth in every postcode.

A policy sprint led by No10 North

Both meetings agreed there would now be a policy sprint led by No10 North, involving officials from both governments, to take the agenda forward. No10 North is the Manchester-based Downing Street operation set up in July, and the sprint is intended to turn the council discussion into joint work between the UK Government and the devolved governments.

In the Scottish meeting, the Prime Minister said the UK Government would review and respond to a range of issues raised by the First Minister. That review would not include a second independence referendum in Scotland, which the Prime Minister has repeatedly made clear is off the table, the GOV.UK release said.

Next stop: Cardiff

In the Welsh meeting, the Prime Minister said he looked forward to Cardiff hosting the next meeting of the National Economic Council in spring 2027. The sequence of meetings, from Glasgow to Cardiff, is part of an effort to present economic policy as a joint project across the nations of the UK, even where the governments disagree on constitutional questions.

Sources: GOV.UK | GOV.UK (Wales meeting)