“Not respectful enough of local government, not respectful enough of places and pride in places, and local identity”. The verdict of Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester, on Holyrood’s attitude towards cities and regions will be tough for some to hear, and will no doubt be rejected by many.

It is, however, correct. Devolution, now a quarter of a century old, stopped at Edinburgh. Worse still, centralisation has largely been the order of the day since, with the power of the cities and regions gradually hollowed out. Devolution from Westminster to Edinburgh, and reverse-devolution from the rest of Scotland to Edinburgh.

The implications of this, over the life of devolution, have been subtle but clearly evident. We may not regard local authorities as being particularly well run, and there is much merit in that in some cases, but nonetheless it must be acknowledged that there is a direct correlation between increasing centralisation to Edinburgh and decreasing council performance on the basic requirements such as roads and pavements, schools and social care.

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This is not inevitable. Indeed, not only is it not inevitable, but the future of Scotland’s regions and cities may prove to be one of only a few genuine dividing lines between First Minister John Swinney and his principal opponent Anas Sarwar.

The story behind Scotland’s reverse-devolution is multi-layered. It is, in all likelihood, unintended, political and constitutional all at the same time.

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