Jeremy Corbyn rejects Kezia Dugdale's call for a ‘new Act of Union’

Kezia Dugdale and Jeremy Corbyn with Carwyn Jones and Sadiq Khan at a Labour pro-EU rally in London before the referendum - Image credit: Press Association

Jeremy Corbyn has undermined Kezia Dugdale's calls for a "new Act of Union" by saying he "wouldn't use the words ‘new Act of Union'".

Speaking in London last month, Scottish Labour leader Dugdale said a new "federal solution" was needed for the UK in the wake of the vote to leave the European Union.

She said: "Following the Tories’ Brexit gamble, we need a new Act of Union for this new century.

“That is why the time has come for the rest of the UK to follow where Scotland led in the 1980s and 1990s and establish a people’s constitutional convention to re-establish the UK for a new age."

But in an interview with BBC Scotland yesterday, Corbyn said: “I want us to look at the constitutional relationships. I wouldn’t use the words ‘new Act of Union'.

He did, however, say he backed Kezia Dugdale's call for a UK-wide constitutional convention.

"There is a huge issue about regional government across England, and there is a need to have a discussion about the relative powers in Scotland, in Wales and in Northern Ireland of devolved assemblies," he said.

A Scottish Labour spokesperson said: "Kezia Dugdale has proposed a new Act of Union to strengthen our union across the whole of the UK for generations to come.

"Being part of the UK protects jobs and the money we need to invest in our public services."

Responding to Corbyn’s comments, Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson said: "I never thought I'd find myself agreeing with Jeremy Corbyn.

"But he's quite right to reject the idea of a new Act of Union; it's clearly little more than a Scottish Labour gimmick, from a party all at sea on the constitution."

Corbyn and Dugdale also clashed at an NEC meeting in September, after the Scottish Labour leader accused him of “undermining” her over calls to increase the power of the party north of the border.