Swinney insists 'stars are aligning' for independence as Burnham offers 'deeper devolution' deal

John Swinney is to tell the SNP conference in Aberdeen that Scotland's independence movement has unstoppable momentum, declaring "there is no turning back" just hours after Andy Burnham made a devolution pitch designed to smother the separatist cause. The Prime Minister, speaking in Motherwell on Friday, offered Holyrood a new regional economic empowerment deal including powers from the DWP, but pointedly told Scots to "move beyond" the constitutional question, with a No10 insider confirming he has ruled out a second independence referendum for the rest of his time in Downing Street.

Burnham described Scotland as "one of the most centralised nations in Europe" and said devolution was "never supposed to stop at the doors of the Scottish Parliament".

Critics rounded on Burnham for urging Scots to drop the independence question while simultaneously reopening Brexit rows and refusing to rule out a future EU rejoin pledge.

A new MRP poll predicts Labour would win a majority of 353 seats if an election were held now, deflating SNP ambitions of tipping the scales in a parliament where no single party commands a majority.