Pride in Place funding should be decided by Westminster, not the Welsh Senedd, says Mark Drakeford.
In a development that could redefine devolved powers, the UK government will determine how funds from the second phase of the Pride in Place town-centre improvement scheme are spent in Wales. Drakeford, Wales’ finance secretary and a former first minister, argues this power should be removed from the statute book. While he concedes there may be better ways to manage the relationship between the two governments, he recognises London’s impatience to deliver results.
A UK government spokesperson warned that repealing the UK Internal Market Act could cause disruption and uncertainty for Welsh businesses. Plaid Cymru accused Wales’ leadership of having “no voice and no influence over Keir Starmer,” while the Welsh Conservatives argued that bickering over devolution distracts from real problems facing Wales.
Earlier this month, 11 Labour Senedd politicians wrote to the prime minister criticizing Pride in Place for eroding devolution by bypassing Cardiff ministers. Drakeford’s stance echoes his 2020 legal challenge against the same act, then known as the UK Internal Markets Act (UKIMA). The High Court dismissed that challenge in 2022, but the Labour government in Westminster has since used UKIMA provisions to fund local governments directly for town-centre improvements, bypassing the Welsh government’s usual role.
Drakeford told BBC Politics Wales that he has observed First Minister Eluned Morgan take a robust line with colleagues and reaffirmed his view that UKIMA should be repealed. He suggested a future approach rooted in agreements and framework-based navigation rather than statutory powers, hoping that as Parliament evolves, reliance on UKIMA powers will lessen.
When pressed about potential hypocrisy for taking the previous Conservative government to court but not the current Labour government, Drakeford argued that Welsh policy remains clear: devolution powers should not hinge on UKIMA. He expressed hope that the current government’s impatience to act would not force them to rely on existing powers, and that better decision-making pathways would emerge.
Plaid Cymru’s Mabon ap Gwynfor welcomed the repeal, describing it as the stance they have long advocated and highlighting what he sees as a rift within Labour between its Senedd and Westminster wings over Wales’ best interests. The Welsh Conservatives urged cross-government cooperation to improve Welsh lives and cautioned that devolved-issues disputes distract from addressing daily challenges.
Phase one of Pride in Place allocated substantial funding to communities across the UK for town-centre improvements. Unlike Northern Ireland, where phase two funding is distributed through the Northern Ireland Executive, Wales will allocate nine local authorities £20 million each over ten years, with funding drawn from local growth funds largely managed by the Welsh government to replace EU economic aid.
The UK government cited Sir Keir Starmer’s comments denying a rollback of devolution, emphasizing belief in devolution’s benefits when Labour leads in Westminster and in Cardiff. Starmer asserted that collaborative governance with a Welsh Labour government has already proven effective in delivering change.
Would you support repealing UKIMA to restore full Welsh control over such funding, or do you think a centralized UK-wide approach better serves Wales’ interests? Share your thoughts in the comments."
