News

Rhun ap Iorwerth demands ‘New Deal for Wales’ with powers matching Scotland

01 Oct 2026 4 minute read

Prime Minister Andy Burnham (right) and First Minister of Wales, Rhun ap Iorwerth meeting for the first time at a bilateral meeting in Glasgow in July. Photo Alastair Grant/PA Wire

Nation.Cymru staff

First Minister Rhun ap Iorwerth has written to Prime Minister Andy Burnham calling for a “New Deal for Wales” that would give the country powers and financial freedoms already available to Scotland.

The Plaid Cymru leader is seeking control over policing and justice, rail infrastructure, the Crown Estate and welfare, alongside greater flexibility over funding.

His demand comes after Mr Burnham ruled out giving the Welsh Government the power to hold an independence referendum, while promising a “fair hearing” on further devolution.

Mr ap Iorwerth will set out his proposals at Plaid’s annual conference in Llandudno on Friday afternoon, in his first address to the gathering since the party’s election victory in May.

In his letter, he argues that the Senedd election gave his government a mandate to seek further powers to improve public services and grow the economy.

He describes the case for devolving policing and justice as “compelling and urgent”, arguing that the division of responsibilities between Cardiff Bay and Westminster makes services harder to coordinate.

“The current separation between devolved public services and a reserved justice system creates a recognised ‘jagged edge’ in the devolution settlement, making it harder to design and deliver coherent, citizen-centred services,” the letter says.

In his conference speech, the First Minister is expected to challenge the UK Government over the pace of constitutional change.

“The UK Government speaks of rewiring the state, but with so little of that constitutional current flowing from Westminster, Wales can so often feel off grid,” he will say.

“So today I can confirm that I have written to the Prime Minister with a formal ask – A New Deal for Wales.

“A New Deal to redress the historic unfairness of our fiscal and constitutional settlement and to put Wales on an equal footing with Scotland as a bare minimum.”

He will tell delegates: “Since entering politics, I have always vowed to give Wales a strong voice.

“Not a script passed on from the Westminster whips’ office or ‘lines to take’ from a leader in another parliament – but a voice of our own.

“And since becoming First Minister, it is that voice I have used in every conversation with every UK Government representative I have met.”

He is expected to add: “It remains my hope that the Prime Minister will listen in a shared spirit that the respect agenda between the Welsh and UK Governments must work both ways.”

Referendum powers

Speaking to BBC Wales on September 25, Mr Burnham said a decision on an independence referendum should be made jointly with Westminster.

He argued that other UK nations did not have the power to call such a vote themselves and said he did not “think we can create a different arrangement for Wales”.

The UK Parliament had to have a “say on an issue of that magnitude”, he added.

Mr ap Iorwerth has said he will seek referendum powers, although he has ruled out holding a vote before the next Senedd election in May 2030.

The Senedd recently rejected a Reform UK motion stating that Wales should remain part of the UK, instead passing a revised Plaid motion saying the people of Wales should decide the country’s constitutional future.

Policing and welfare

Mr Burnham has said he is open to considering the devolution of policing, raising the possibility during a visit to the Tata steelworks in Port Talbot in August.

Asked about the issue in his BBC interview, he said he would examine the case rather than take a fixed position.

“I have to respect the governments in the nations of the UK, and I will, and give a fair hearing to anything that is put to me,” he said.

The Prime Minister also agreed to look at the Welsh Government’s Cynnal proposal to trial payments of £10 a week for 15,000 children under six in households receiving universal credit.

The scheme would require agreement from the Department for Work and Pensions and HMRC to ensure the payments were not taxed or offset by reductions in other benefits.

Mr Burnham is due to meet the UK’s first ministers later this month.

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