First Minister says next Prime Minister must focus on greater powers, fair funding and respect for Wales’ democratic mandate

FIRST MINISTER Rhun ap Iorwerth has said the next UK Prime Minister must commit to a “new relationship with Wales” as Sir Keir Starmer prepares to leave office.

The Plaid Cymru leader said he wished Sir Keir well, but warned that political instability in Westminster was affecting the Welsh Government’s ability to engage with Number 10 on issues that matter to people in Wales.

His comments came after Starmer announced on Monday (Jun 22) that he would resign as Prime Minister and leader of the Labour Party.

Starmer will remain in Downing Street until Labour selects a successor.

Mr ap Iorwerth said: “I am disappointed that the Welsh Government’s ability to engage with the UK Prime Minister on issues which matter to the people of Wales is being hampered by the turmoil in Westminster.

“I wish Sir Keir Starmer well as he prepares to leave office. I would like to see his successor recognising that Wales needs a new relationship with Westminster, with a focus on greater powers, fair funding, and respect for the democratic mandate delivered by the people of Wales.

“My government and I will always seek a constructive relationship with whoever is in Number 10, but we have clear expectations that the respect agenda must work both ways.”

In a shorter statement posted online, the First Minister added: “The next PM must commit to a new relationship with Wales — with a focus on greater powers, fair funding and respect for our mandate.”

Labour’s National Executive Committee is expected to open nominations for the party leadership on July 9, with the process due to be completed before Parliament returns from its summer break in September if a contest is required.

Andy Burnham is widely expected to enter the race after returning to Parliament following his victory in the Makerfield by-election.

Reform

Responding to the resignation, Reform UK Sir Fynwy Torfaen MS Laura Anne Jones said the change in Labour’s leadership would not erase the party’s record of failure or reverse the country’s decline.

Ms Jones said: “History will judge Keir Starmer as one of the worst Prime Ministers this country has ever seen. He failed to properly invest in our national defence at a time of growing global instability, doubled down on ideological net zero policies that have driven up costs for families and businesses that I represent, Labour refused to back Britain’s own oil and gas industry, backed the disastrous family farm tax that led to suicides and presided over a Government that too often put political dogma ahead of common sense.”

She added: “It is also worth remembering that Monmouthshire MP Catherine Fookes was Sir Keir Starmer’s top advisor as his Parliamentary Private Secretary. His record was not created in isolation, and those who stood beside him cannot now pretend they had nothing to do with it.”

The Reform MS stressed that in Wales, Labour, with the support of Plaid Cymru, spent “more than a quarter of a century running down public services.”

She said:m “They left us with record NHS waiting lists, struggling schools, crumbling roads, declining rural communities and an economy that has held Wales back. The faces may change, but that record cannot. Labour blindly follow ideological dogma that is destroying Britain.”

Ms Jones concluded: “This country does not need another political rebrand or another round of excuses. It needs a completely different direction before its too late. Reform UK will continue holding Governments to account across Britain, offering the common sense alternative that people are crying out for. But it is now more essential than ever that the electorate put Reform into Government in Westminster. The establishment parties of the Tories and Labour have failed our country, it’s now time for something new.”

Liberal Democrats

Welsh Liberal Democrats Spokesperson David Chadwick MP said: “Changing the person at the top won’t change much unless Labour finally confronts the structural problems that continue to hold Wales back.

“Despite Labour’s catastrophic Senedd election results, there is little sign that Westminster Labour’s attitude towards Wales has changed.

“The next Prime Minister must also learn a lesson that the last five have ignored: you cannot sustainably grow the economy without pursuing a closer relationship with the EU or introducing a fairer funding formula for Wales that recognises the unique needs of our population.

“Wales needs more than a new Prime Minister. We need a Westminster government that finally takes Wales seriously.”

The change of leadership comes at a sensitive time for Wales, with questions over fair funding, the future of devolution, public services and the relationship between Cardiff Bay and Westminster likely to feature prominently in the weeks ahead.