Andy Burnham cannot stop the United Kingdom from breaking up, Sinn Féin said after signing a pact with the SNP and Plaid Cymru.
The first ministers of the UK’s three devolved nations – John Swinney, the SNP leader, Rhun ap Iorwerth, leader of Plaid Cymru, and Michelle O’Neill, Sinn Féin’s vice-president – signed a memorandum of understanding during a meeting in Cardiff on Monday.
The deal aims to pile pressure on the Prime Minister after Donald Trump, the US president, said he would “love” to see a united Ireland.
Ms O’Neill, Northern Ireland’s First Minister, said Mr Burnham “will not be able to hold back the tide” of nationalism in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Speaking at a joint press conference by the four leaders, she said: “We’re certainly living in times of enormous change, change that is unstoppable, change that – no matter what is said by any British prime minister – will not be able to hold back the tide of what’s happening in front of our eyes right now.
“Our common cause here is the understanding that Westminster does not and will never serve our people well. Our common cause here is that we have the right to self-determination, and the common cause that we have here is that we need to collectively ensure that that message is heard in Westminster.” » | Simon Johnson | Scottish Political Editor | Monday, September 14, 2026
