Nations and regions talks moved UK ‘down the road’ in boosting growth – Starmer

The Prime Minister faced questions about why his former chief of staff – now the envoy to the nations and regions – was not at the meeting.

The first meeting of the Council of the Nations and Regions took place in Edinburgh (Andy Buchanan/PA) (PA Wire)

The Council of the Nations and Regions has moved the UK “a long way down the road” towards more jobs and investment, the Prime Minister has said.

The body met for the first time in Edinburgh on Friday, bringing together the leadership of the devolved administrations and English metro mayors in an effort to “rewire” the way the Government interacts with devolved areas, Sir Keir Starmer said.

Following three hours of meetings, Sir Keir touted the importance of the summit, but dodged questions about his former chief of staff Sue Gray – who was appointed an envoy to the nations and regions after leaving the job earlier this week – not being in attendance.

Asked about Ms Gray, the Prime Minister instead spoke of the meetings, saying: “For everybody listening and watching this, who’s concerned to know, is there going to be investment in my region? Are there going to be jobs where I live?

“The answer is, today, we’ve got a long way down the road of collaborating to that end.”

Speaking after the summit, Scottish First Minister John Swinney said the relationship with the previous UK government was “utterly disrespectful”, but he stressed the need for action from Sir Keir if it is to be repaired.

“Credit where credit is due, the Prime Minister came into office and said he was going to sort that, and he has done that,” he said.

“He’s undertaken a lot of discussions with us to try to take forward a shared agenda.

“I welcome that, but we’ve got to see the fruits of that dialogue and I hope to see the fruits of that by a Budget that secures investment in the public services and in the infrastructure of our country, and significant progress on the urgent projects such as carbon capture and storage, which is so critical for the journey to net zero.”

Speaking at the outset of the meeting, the Prime Minister told assembled leaders: “This council is a statement of intent on my behalf and on behalf of the Government about the way in which we want to work with all of you.

The question is not the aspiration, it's whether we can roll up our sleeves and work together to deliver that growth, because that unlocks so much

Sir Keir Starmer

“I think that is as important as the substance of what we discuss, is how we collaborate, how we work together.

“Because the UK is really strong, we’ve got so much to offer, particularly when it comes to growth and investment, but we are a bit complicated.”

He went on to say the UK should “harness” the different identities in the country, adding he sees facilitating collaboration between them as a “responsibility of this Government”.

Sir Keir said: “There’s a lot of identity and pride of place, which I think should be celebrated. It’s a really powerful feature of the whole United Kingdom, between all its places, nations and ingredients, strong identities that bind people together.

“We should harness that.”

Those around the table, he added, will be “equal voices”, with a view to “solving problems”.

The main topic of Friday’s summit was “investment and growth”, the Prime Minister said.

“Growing the economy is the number one mission of this Government,” he said.

“We’re not unique in that, most governments, nations and regions want to grow the economy.

“But the question is not the aspiration, it’s whether we can roll up our sleeves and work together to deliver that growth, because that unlocks so much.”

Despite her move to become the “envoy to the nations and regions”, former Downing Street chief of staff Ms Gray did not appear at the inaugural meeting.

Ms Gray took on the role of Sir Keir’s aide when Labour swept to power in July, but she has since been replaced by Morgan McSweeney, who led the party’s election campaign.

Former civil servant Ms Gray, who boasts decade of experience behind the scenes, cited “intense commentary about my position” that risked becoming a “distraction” when she stood down.