Politics

What is the future for Labour?

Published

10 years ago

August 20, 2015

Tom Sinclair

Labour leadership hopefuls: L-R (in picture) Liz Kendall, Andy Burnham, Yvette Cooper, and Jeremy Corbyn.

FOLLOWING Ed Milliband’s resignation after the General Election, The Labour Party has been doing a serious amount of soul-searching. Numerous reasons have been given for the party’s poor performance, even though they gained seats in England and only lost one in Wales.

The most common reason given from inside the party is a variation on the theme that under Ed Milliband, the party veered too sharply to the left. There have been numerous ways of expressing this, from Chuka Umunna claiming that the party needed to be more ‘business friendly,’ to acting leader Harriet Harman and candidate Liz Kendall refusing to vote against the Conservatives’ welfare bill because British people have real concerns about benefit spending.

This contrasted sharply with the experiences of many canvassers who felt abandoned by the parliamentary Labour party, which made constituency candidates something of a hard sell in places. Across the country, the emergence of UKIP as, if not a credible political force, then certainly one strong enough to influence the outcome of any seat, was largely at the expense of what Labour would have considered core voters in 1997. Anti-austerity parties to the left also benefitted from Labour’s perceived lack of opposition to Conservative policies.

The election of a new Labour leader was meant to be the fairest and most transparent to date in a party that has traditionallyprideditselfonadherenceto democratic principles. Jeremy Corbyn, described ad nauseum in the press as an ‘Old Labour dinosaur,’ and a ‘veteran left-winger’ was only put on the ballot after 35 MPs, many of whom had no intention of voting for him, decided that all facets of the party should be represented. That these MPs were subsequently described as ‘morons’ by one of Tony Blair’s former advisors shows the extent to which the left-wing of the party is viewed as an embarrassment nowadays.

A strong showing ofpopular support for Mr Corbyn has led to outcry in the national press. A YouGov poll recently put him on CHECK %, leading to claims that the poll was inaccurate, and leading people to predict a schism in the Labour party similar to that which occurred when Michael Foot was made leader – something Mr Corbyn has blamed for the landslide defeat in 1983. The Daily Mirror, the only remaining left-wing tabloid, has suggested implementing an ABC (anyone but Corbyn) strategy, while on the other end of the scale Toby Young has suggested that those on the political Right join the Labour Party and vote for Mr Corbyn as a way of bringing down the Labour Party.

Mr Corbyn is certainly different to any leadership contender since the early nineties, if not before. Having said that, John Smith was considered to be on the centre-right of the party then, which shows how much the political landscape has shifted. The public spending cuts that Ed Balls claimed he would not alter if Labour were elected would have had an old One Nation Tory like Ted Heath spinning in his grave. Mr Corbyn has claimed that the role of leader should be more about facilitating debate rather than developing policies. He is known to favour the abolition of student fees, scrapping Trident, and the renationalisation of the rail industry.

There has been uproar in the Labour party about this. Apparently Labour should not be a party of protest but a party of government. It appears that from an opposition perspective, this means agreeing with most of what the party in power proposes, on the basis that they were voted in and are therefore what the electorate want. It may be facile to suggest that this makes the concept of an opposition moot, but certainly the parameters of debate will be narrowed.

Interestingly, a journalist for the Independent checked out the YouGov poll results for Mr Corbyn’s policies, and found that the public were heavily in favour, with 60% in favour of nationalising trains, for example. It appears that the claims that the Labour party has already suffered a split between the grass-roots supporters and the metropolitan ‘elite’ may have some basis in fact. A point which appears to be overlooked is that ‘three-time-winner’ Tony Blair still had the support of Labour’s core vote, until it began melting away over the New Labour years. Without this support, and without any way of either working with the SNP or encouraging Scottish voters back into the fold, the ‘swing seats’ targeted in ’97 will be increasingly irrelevant.

Andy Burnham, the politician many party insiders would like to see get the nod, is nominally on the left of centre, in the same way Yvette Cooper is slightly to the right. Mr Burnham is the only candidate to say that he would serve in a Corbyn shadow cabinet. Liz Kendall, considered one of the Blairite faction’s big hopes, has performed poorly, and is fourth-placed by some margin. A spoof facebook page – Liz Kendall for Conservative Leader – had nearly as many ‘likes’ as her own page before it was deleted. A problem appears to be the unwillingness of the other three candidates to commit on issues, for fear of jeopardising their shot at the top job.

Whoever emerges as Labour leader in the coming months will be in an unenviable position. They will have to reconcile those on the political Left and Right, and attempt to appeal to disillusioned Labour voters, as well as trying to take votes from the Conservatives and UKIP and, in all probability, having to work with the SNP and possibly Plaid Cymru in Wales, both parties with a broadly left-of-centre manifesto. It is far too early to tell what sort of a party will emerge at the other end, the outcome of a leadership battle fought across such a wide spectrum, and the ensuing rise in the number of party members, many of whom are looking for a credible alternative to the Tory-lite policies of the last two decades, will mean the party will indeed be living in interesting times.

Farming

‘Poor decision’ New Creamston housing condition overturned

Published

5 hours ago

December 4, 2025

Bruce Sinclair - Local Democracy Reporter

A “POOR DECISION” agricultural worker-only imposed nearly 40 years ago has been removed from a Pembrokeshire property by county planners.

In an application recommended to be approved at the December meeting of Pembrokeshire County council’s planning committee, Tim and Cathy Arthur sought permission for the removal of an agricultural worker-only condition at New Creamson, Creamston Road, near Haverfordwest.

An officer report for members said the agricultural condition was imposed when the dwelling was built in 1988/89, with a later certificate of lawful development granted this year after it was proven the site had been occupied for more than 10 years on breach of that condition.

An application for a certificate of lawfulness allows an applicant to stay at a development if they can provide proof of occupancy over a prolonged period.

Speaking at the meeting, agent Andrew Vaughan-Harries of Hayston Developments & Planning Ltd told members the original agriculture-only condition was a poor decision by planners back nearly four decades ago.

“When this application was made in 1988-89 we go back to the Preseli District Council – I was still in school – it was only a 50-acre farm, it should never have been approved as it shouldn’t have been viable.

“The current applicants have owned it for the last 20 years; they’ve tried to grow apples but couldn’t make a go of it and then went in to holiday lets. We can’t enforce redundant conditions from bad decisions made years ago.”

Approval was moved by Cllr Brian Hall and unanimously supported by committee members.

Health

‘We are on our own’: Unpaid carers forced to ‘beg’ for support

Published

5 hours ago

December 4, 2025

Chris Haines, ICNN Senedd reporter

UNPAID carers are being left to “pick up the pieces” of a broken system due to a lack of respite, unsafe hospital discharges and carer’s assessments that result in “nothing at all”.

The warning came as the Senedd’s health scrutiny committee began taking evidence for an inquiry on access to support for more than 310,000 unpaid carers across Wales.

Chris Kemp-Philp, from Newport, who has been a carer for 33 years, gave up her career to become a full-time carer after her husband medically retired from the civil service in 1990.

Ms Kemp-Philp, whose husband died in April, told today’s (December 4) meeting: “I thought he’d been really badly treated… The last four months of his life were dreadful for both of us.”

She was only offered an updated carer’s needs assessment – a right under the 2014 Social Services and Wellbeing (Wales) Act – the day after her husband died.

Ms Kemp-Philp did not realise she had become a carer at first. “But, of course, having lost two incomes and to survive on a half civil service pension wasn’t great,” she said.

She told the committee how the couple “shielded” during the pandemic, saying: “For the past five years, basically, apart from going to a hospital or… a medical facility – I didn’t leave the house because if I’d have gone out, I could have brought something home.

“So, we spent five years literally avoiding people. The experience was unpleasant, I had two great-grandchildren born in that time and I only saw them on video.”

Ms Kemp-Philp said her husband was “pingponged” back and forth after unsafe discharges from hospitals in Gwent. He was put in a car by two nurses then she had to get him out on her own at the other end, with clinicians effectively telling her: it’s your problem now.

“Every time he was sent home, nobody came to help at all,” she said, explaining how she struggled to cope and her husband’s death brought a tragic sense of relief.

Judith Russell, who moved back to Wales to care for her mother 23 years ago, told Senedd Members the responsibility grew greater over the years.

Ms Russell, whose mother died last Saturday on the eve of her 102nd birthday, told the committee: “It’s been my privilege to care for her but I wish other people—I wish there had been more actual care for her. That’s it.”

Ms Russell also cares for her husband who has Alzheimer’s disease, acts as guardian for her disabled sister and cooks every week for her sister-in-law.

“It’s quite a responsibility,” she said. “My life is taken up with caring. I didn’t actually know I was a carer, I cared for my mother because she was my mother – I looked after her, of course I did – and it wasn’t until about three years ago that I identified as a carer.”

Ms Russell warned: “All through this last 23 years, I’ve had to fight and struggle to find things out… there’s very, very little help out there.”

She said she was given a carer’s assessment earlier this year but “there was nothing they could offer me, quite frankly – nothing at all”.

Ms Russell told Senedd Members: “We had a diagnosis [but] there’s no offer of help, there are no directions to find help, somebody to point you – you should be doing this, this is available, that’s available – nothing, you’re on your own completely.”

She joined the Bridgend carers’ group which opened a door to other people grappling with the same weight of responsibility and helped navigate the system. Ms Kemp-Philp added that joining a similar peer support group saved her life.

Ann Soley, who is originally from France and has been living in Wales for eight years, described how life was turned upside down when her British husband had a stroke.

She said: “We are stressed, we are lost. A lot of carers have lost their friends, that is just unbelievable for me because I realised society is not there – there is no compassion.”

Kaye Williams, who works at Bridgend carers’ centre and is herself a carer, warned the witnesses’ experiences are commonplace across the country.

Sue Rendell, from Caernarfon, has cared for her husband who has vascular parkinsonism for nearly 14 years and was waiting for a doctor to call as she gave evidence remotely.

She told the committee: “You go in in the morning to see if he’s still breathing to be honest. We’re at the later stages of his disease and it’s physically demanding, it’s mentally demanding and it’s administratively difficult as well… it’s just very wearing.”

Ms Rendell, who was shattered after a late night caring, said she has tried to get respite but has been told there’s nothing available in Gwynedd nor Anglesey for her loved one’s needs.

She told the committee unpaid carers in Wales are “expected to pick up the pieces” but “nothing much happens” after an assessment. “Fine words butter no parsnips,” she said.

Ms Russell added: “As carers, we save the government millions… and I asked for some help this week actually. I’m 258th on the list for a hip replacement… and I asked the doctor: as a carer, couldn’t I possibly go up the list a little bit? ‘No, we’re not allowed to do that.’

“It’s the only thing I’ve ever asked for.”

Education

‘Sink or swim’: Young carer sat exam hours after 3am hospital ordeal

Published

5 hours ago

December 4, 2025

Chris Haines, ICNN Senedd reporter

A TEENAGE carer sat a GCSE exam only hours after getting home from a hospital at 3am following a family emergency, a Senedd committee has heard.

The warning came as witnesses highlighted a “sink-or-swim” reality where children as young as three are taking on caring roles while feeling invisible to schools and social services.

Elektra Thomas, 15, who cares for her autistic, non-verbal brother and her epileptic sister, was part of a remarkable and articulate trio of teenagers who gave evidence to a new health committee inquiry on access to support for unpaid carers today (December 4).

The teenager helps her brother Blake get ready for school in the morning and helps him communicate by acting as his voice, which she has done since about three years old.

Ms Thomas told Senedd Members her sister has two children, “so I’m either handling her having a seizure, running around with her medication… or I’m looking after her kids”.

She said: “I’ve been having school assessments at the same time she’s had a seizure. I’ve been in ambulances waiting for her to get into a hospital while also studying.”

Ms Thomas explained how she is unable to focus on her schoolwork if her brother has had an overwhelming day. “I can’t focus on myself and I don’t have time for myself,” she said.

The teenager, who is from Carmarthenshire, described how she was once in hospital until 3am then sat a test – which went towards her GCSE grades – that same day.

Ms Thomas warned young carers do not have time to manage their own mental health, saying: “I didn’t have time for myself, I had time for my brother and sister and that was it.”

She said: “As a young carer who wasn’t noticed for a decade, it was pure manic: I had no coping skills, I had no support – and this has been going on since I was about three or four.”

Ffiôn-Hâf Scott, 18, from Wrexham, who is working while studying in sixth form, has similarly been a carer since she was four years old.

“I used to care for my mum and my sister,” she told the committee. “My sister used to be in a psychiatric ward, she was there for seven years.

“And I care for my mum because she’s diabetic, classed as disabled, has a long list of mental health issues, she has in the past suffered a stroke and had cancer.

“I don’t know how she’s still standing.”

Ms Scott said: “The main challenge right now is looking after myself and learning that you actually have to keep yourself afloat… to keep looking after someone else.

“I think for a very long time I ran on nothing because of my caring role or I didn’t think about the things I needed to do for me, so respite and things like that.”

The Welsh Youth Parliament member warned a lack of support for young carers has been normalised, saying she has had to explain herself 70 different times while aged 12.

Ms Scott said: “I remember going to my teacher and saying – we had a piece of coursework – look I can’t do this right now… you’re going to have to fail me…

“Their response was just ‘well, you have too much on your plate and you need to take things off your plate’ and I was like: it’s very bold of you to stand where you’re stood and say that to me because it’s not a choice to take on the things that we do take on.”

She recalled receiving a phone call about her mum collapsing moments before a maths test and expressed concerns about the prospect of mobiles being banned in schools.

Albie Sutton, 16, a young carer from north Wales, looks after his disabled mother by doing things such as cleaning the house, budgeting and cooking for the family every day.

Mr Sutton said: “It’s a real struggle for her to move around the house, to even do stuff like getting dressed or moving to the toilet by herself… so I’ve got to help her.”

The teenager estimated his caring role takes up about 25 hours a week and makes it difficult for him to pursue some of his hobbies such as competing in powerlifting.

“My mind feels like a hive of bees,” he said. “There’s so many things going in and out… I get home at the end of the day and I’m like ‘oh my God, I’ve got to do this, I’ve got to do that’.”

Warning of the mental stress, he added: “It’s also really difficult for me to socialise… I feel very isolated in my caring role, especially at home. I’m always housebound, I never get the opportunity even just to go out in my local town.”

Mr Sutton told Senedd Members it plays on his mind that his younger brother may have to take on responsibility. “It’s got me debating whether I can go to university,” he said.

He called for a Wales-wide campaign to raise awareness among educators and employers of the issues young carers face and how to recognise the signs.

Ms Thomas agreed: “I’ve had multiple teachers look at me and go ‘what’s a young carer, sorry?’. I’ve had pharmacists go ‘are you sure you’re a young carer?’ and it baffles me.”