The SNP have hit back at Andy Burnham after the Greater Manchester Mayor pledged to put Scotland at the centre of his ambitions for government, with the party saying Scottish voters have been down this road too many times before.
Burnham, who is widely seen as a frontrunner to eventually lead the Labour Party, made the comments as part of a broader pitch that appeared designed to win back trust north of the border. But the SNP were having none of it, and wasted little time in pointing out that warm words from Labour figures about Scotland have a pretty poor track record of turning into anything meaningful.
The SNP said the message from Scottish voters is simple – they have heard it all before. Labour has made big promises about Scotland for years, and time and again those promises have either been watered down or forgotten entirely once the votes are counted.
It is a familiar pattern that has played out repeatedly in Scottish politics. A senior Labour figure arrives with fresh enthusiasm, talks up devolution, speaks about partnership and respect, and pledges that this time things will be different. Then not very much changes.
For Burnham, the challenge is particularly steep. Labour only recently returned to power at Westminster under Keir Starmer, and the relationship between the UK Government and Holyrood has already shown signs of strain on a number of fronts. The SNP government in Edinburgh has clashed with London over everything from the two-child benefit cap to the broader question of where power should sit.
Burnham has built a reputation as one of Labour’s more independently minded figures, having carved out a strong power base in Greater Manchester and shown a willingness to push back against his own party leadership when he felt it was necessary. That reputation has made him popular with some voters who are tired of what they see as overly cautious, top-down politics.
But the SNP argue that his track record elsewhere in the UK does not automatically translate into a compelling offer for Scotland, where the constitutional question remains front and centre for a huge chunk of the electorate.
Scotland has its own parliament, its own distinct policy priorities, and a large portion of its population that wants either full independence or a significantly stronger form of devolution. Any Labour figure looking to make inroads there needs to grapple seriously with those realities, not just offer reassuring noises about being listened to.
The SNP’s response reflects a broader frustration that has built up over many years. The party argues that Scotland’s interests are consistently sidelined at Westminster, and that no amount of goodwill from individual Labour politicians changes the fundamental dynamic of a system where Scottish votes are regularly outnumbered by those from elsewhere in the UK.
For Labour, winning back Scottish seats remains an important long-term goal. The party was once dominant in Scotland before the SNP surge swept most of their MPs away. They made some progress in the 2024 general election, clawing back a number of constituencies, but they remain a long way from their former strength north of the border.
Burnham entering the conversation about Scotland could be seen as part of a wider effort to show that Labour understands the country and takes it seriously. Whether Scottish voters see it that way is another matter entirely.
The SNP clearly want to frame any such overtures as empty politicking, and given the history, it is not hard to see why that message might land with at least some voters. Trust, once lost, takes a long time to rebuild, and Labour has a lot of rebuilding to do in Scotland.
What Burnham says next, and more importantly what he does if he ever gets the chance to act on his promises, will matter far more than the initial pitch. For now though, the SNP are making sure nobody gets too carried away.