Draft article: Rebecca McCurdy 2026-07-23 14:54

He has only been Prime Minister for a matter of days, but Andy Burnham has already handed an own goal to John Swinney. The UK and Scottish leaders met for the first time in Glasgow to mark the opening of the Commonwealth Games. His first visit to Scotland should have been an opportunity to set the tone, a chance to reset relations with Holyrood and show that Westminster was now listening. Journalists got wind of the visit earlier this week, but No 10 remained tight-lipped before confirming late on Wednesday night that the Prime Minister would not be speaking to the media during his first visit north of the border. His time as Prime Minister has been short so far, but this is already becoming something of a pattern. On Monday, after officially entering Downing Street, Burnham declined to ta