Minister vows to ‘engage’ as Plaid launches push for police devolution in Wales

Will Meakin-Durrant and Zoe Head-Thomas, Press Association

Andy Burnham’s devolution push will stretch “across all corners of Wales”, a minister in Westminster has pledged, as Plaid Cymru leaders launch pleas for more policing powers in Cardiff Bay.

Welsh Secretary Stephen Kinnock told the Commons on Wednesday that the Labour Government would “engage on the future of devolution, including deepening devolution” west of the border.

He was responding to Plaid Cymru’s Westminster leader Liz Saville Roberts, who asked him why some English regional mayors appeared to have a greater say on policing in their areas than members of the Senedd.

Speaking at a press conference in Cardiff, Welsh First Minister Rhun ap Iorwerth told reporters he was hopeful he could lead Mr Burnham to a position where “the need for the devolution of policing becomes clear in his mind”.

Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland have different devolution settlements.

While the Northern Ireland Assembly at Stormont and Scottish Parliament in Holyrood are responsible for decisions affecting the police in their areas, the UK-wide Home Office is responsible for the four Welsh forces.

And in England, some regional mayors have policing powers.

For example, the mayor of Greater Manchester – a role which Mr Burnham held for more than nine years before he became Prime Minister – can appoint the chief constable and set their police forces’s budget and priorities.

Ms Saville Roberts said: “A union that treats people differently depending on where they live must change.

“So, does (Mr Kinnock) honestly believe that the city region of Greater Manchester should have more powers over policing and keeping communities safe than the Parliament of Wales, the Senedd?”

Mr Kinnock said: “I think many of the ideas coming forward around devolving power right across our United Kingdom, beyond Cardiff Bay and Holyrood, for example, are very exciting ideas.”

He added: “With regard to policing, the Prime Minister and I have been very clear that we will engage on the future of devolution, including deepening devolution into communities across all corners of Wales.

“On policing specifically, our focus has and always will continue to be on cutting crime.

“Our priority will always be ensuring the safety and security of the people of Wales.

“What matters is what works.”

Mr ap Iorwerth, on a visit to Cardiff and Vale College, said he wanted to “empower communities” in Wales but added: “We need a strong Senedd, a strong Welsh Government, in order to make that happen.”

The Plaid Cymru party leader continued: “That is a point that I made very, very directly to the Prime Minister, and he gets it, I think.

“On policing, he has had, as a mayor of Greater Manchester, more influence over policing than I do as a First Minister of Wales.

“We raised more than half of funding for policing in Wales directly here in Wales, not through the Home Office.

“It is time now to move forward with a devolution of policing and justice.”

Mr ap Iorwerth later said: “The challenge that we have is that we know that within the Labour Party there have been successive attempts to put a block in place to that.”

He added: “I am positive about the conversations that I am able to have with Andy Burnham in guiding us to that position where the clarity of the need for the devolution of policing becomes clear in his mind, as it has been for a long time in mine.”

Mr Burnham swept into power in July, promising to “take power out of” Westminster.

Making his first speech in the Commons on Tuesday, he said the model of having elected mayors throughout England gave “big city regions the ability to set new ambitions for themselves”.

He added that he had tasked his flagship No 10 North operation, based in Manchester, with setting up a devolution deal for Cornwall “with or without an elected mayor”, following his visit to the county last month.

He said: “I today extend the same offer to all parts of England without devolved power.”

Speaking in Port Talbot last week, Mr Burnham said he had called a meeting on the National Economic Council for October, with devolution on the agenda.

“Maybe there’s an argument for deeper devolution,” he said.

“So, more power into the cities and the regions of Wales, to north Wales working more with the North West, or mid-Wales more with the West Midlands – of the kind of devolution that is developing now quite quickly across England.

“I’m open to conversations, though, with the Plaid Senedd Government about those things.”

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