Andy Burnham has said his programme of devolution strengthens the case for a written constitution for the UK, arguing that it would reshape how the state operates after centuries of unwritten political arrangements. The prime minister said the UK’s political system needed a major overhaul to help ensure opportunity is shared more evenly across the country. He pointed to the fact that the UK is one of only a small number of major democracies without a written constitution, a document that sets out the fundamental rules by which a nation is governed. Burnham Says Devolution Points To Codified RulesSpeaking this weekend, Burnham said his government’s decentralisation plans—carrying the intention of giving regional leaders greater control over finances—strengthened the argument for a codified constitutional settlement. He said the approach would increase the case for a constitution as “Britain is changing” and as “England is certainly changing”. Burnham said the UK should develop a codified model of devolution that works across Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the English regions. He linked that model to what he described as an emphasis on equivalent living standards across the UK. Burnham also reiterated his pledge of “good growth in every postcode”, saying it was more than a political slogan. “Rewiring” Decision-Making Outside WhitehallBurnham described the next stage of devolution measures, announced on Friday, as the most radical shift from what he called an overcentralised political establishment. He said the “rewiring” of the UK had “gone to a new level of seriousness”, with decision-making moved outside Whitehall to mayors and local authorities through No 10 North. The comments came alongside plans that aim to transfer more power and resources from the centre to regional leaders. Limits, and Potential Consequences, for a Written ConstitutionTim Bale, a professor of politics at Queen Mary University of London, said introducing a written constitution would be a major departure for the UK. He noted that, historically, many countries adopted such documents in the aftermath of revolution or war that removed or delegitimised a former regime. Bale said it remained unclear how the UK government would pursue constitution-making alongside Burnham’s wider agenda, which includes work on devolution as well as social care and public control of utilities. He added that a written constitution could place limits on the executive, because it would likely put the rules “beyond the power of parliament to change with a simple majority”. Bale said it could also help define responsibilities across levels of government, including local, regional and national authorities, although he said such a document would not be able to restrict scope to that alone. In his 2024 book, Head North, Burnham—who wrote it with Steve Rotheram, the Liverpool city region mayor—argued that deep inequality had become entrenched in Britain partly because the country had not evolved from what he described as a “feudal state” in which power is largely concentrated in Westminster. Burnham wrote that Britain’s failure to set out clear rules for governing the country was a key reason it had become one of the most unequal major nations. He also said the UK’s “unwritten and murky constitutional arrangements” had the effect of hoarding power in a small number of hands across Whitehall and Westminster and the wider networks surrounding them. Germany’s Model and Income Tax Sharing PlansBurnham has cited Germany’s postwar basic law, known as the Grundgesetz, as an inspiration. That constitutional framework includes a requirement for equivalent living standards across states, with redistribution from wealthier regions to ensure parity. Under devolution plans announced last week, regional mayors across England are due, by early 2028, to be able to retain a share of income tax generated in their area. The government is expected to publish further proposals in late October, with an expectation that economic powerhouses such as London, Greater Manchester and the West Midlands would pass some of their share to less prosperous regions including Hull and East Yorkshire. Dr Hannah White, chief executive of the Institute for Government, said adopting a written constitution would represent a very significant constitutional shift and would be a major exercise. She said a fully codified constitution would need to go beyond devolution to cover all the rules that structure the UK state. Join the discussion? 2 August 2026
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