Politics

Labour win leaves every party with problems

Published

5 years ago

May 14, 2021

AGAINST all predictions, the elections to the Welsh Parliament have produced neither a coalition nor a breakthrough for either the Conservatives or Plaid Cymru.

Instead, Mark Drakeford will return to Cardiff Bay as First Minister at the head of a Labour Government.

Although thirty seats is not an overall majority, something Labour has never had in Wales, it is more than enough to form a government able to advance its policies with very little horse-trading.

The presence in the Welsh Parliament of a lone Liberal Democrat, Jane Dodds, will almost certainly lead to Labour having 31 dependable votes without having to do too many deals with Plaid Cymru to get what it wants.

CONSERVATIVES STILL WAIT FOR THE GREAT LEAP FORWARD

Red wall’s failure to crumble leaves RT with a problem

The Conservatives captured only one of their target seats, the Vale of Clwyd. They racked up impressive performances in seats they already held.

Apart from the Vale of Clwyd, they failed to make any breakthroughs in North Wales. In seats like Cardiff North and the Vale of Glamorgan, the Conservatives went backwards at a rate of knots.

Already ‘sources’ in the Conservatives claim it’s because the party in Wales didn’t capitalise on the Brexit vote. That, again, reveals a party too intent on internal faction-fighting and reliving the Brexit psychodrama than one focussed adequately on the present and the future.

It also rewrites history (the Conservatives did rather well in December 2019) and ignores an important reality.

Mark Drakeford’s profile during the last year rose.

His regular public briefings brought him and the powers the Labour Government has in Cardiff Bay into people’s daily lives.

As Labour Minister Lee Waters admitted, Mark Drakeford might be ‘a bit nerdy, a bit boring’, but he was Labour’s biggest electoral asset.

As the Conservatives in Wales cleaved to an ever-closer union with Boris Johnson’s Westminster Government, the personal contest boiled down to Boris versus Mark.

The Welsh public took one look at the calm and (yes) boring Mark Drakeford and the shambling sloganeering Boris Johnson and decided which they preferred.

The Welsh Government’s steady and cautious approach to the pandemic contrasts favourably with the scandal-mired and higgledy-piggledy approach over Offa’s Dyke.

Suppose the Conservatives in Cardiff Bay continue to behave like sock puppets for Westminster. In that case, they will never break through to a Welsh public that has not returned a Conservative majority since the nineteenth century.

Someone needs to sit down and explain that to Andrew RT Davies and his handlers in plain and honest language.

The question boils down to this: are you Welsh Conservatives with a plan for Wales or Conservatives in Wales with an agenda set by Westminster and the Welsh Office?

The Conservatives cannot ride two horses at once and need to be upfront about who and what they are.

That said, the Conservatives are Wales’ second party – and by some margin, too. The validity of conservatism as a force in Welsh politics can be neither ignored nor understated.
No matter how much abuse is flung at their candidates and activists on social media by activists from the left and/or those supporting independence, that’s a political reality and will remain so for some time.

A failure to acknowledge opposing ideas not only exist but have the right to exist is a fatal flaw in both nationalist and left-wing politics. Particularly for the former: without persuading small ‘c’ conservatives to support independence, the chances of winning a referendum are practically nil.

PLAID LOOK FOR DIRECTION AND A FUTURE

Despite Adam Price’s abilities, and try as they might, Plaid cannot break through to voters

The election was undoubtedly disappointing for Plaid Cymru. Brave talk and bold promises did not convert to votes where it mattered.

In target marginals, their vote simply didn’t materialise.

Plaid Cymru lost former leader Leanne Wood, and Helen Mary Jones was crushed in Llanelli.

Llanelli has long been the most marginal seat in Wales. Lee Waters’ new majority is some way north of 5,500 and looks to have ended Helen Mary Jones’ long political career.

In Preseli Pembrokeshire, Cris Tomos increased Plaid’s vote by over 50%. In Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire, Plaid’s vote-share went up by over a fifth.

That happened through a volunteer effort as resources were piled into Llanelli, where Plaid was routed.

Plaid has less money than other parties. The folly of pouring resources into a single seat shows weakness. There was no need for a paid organiser for one seat – it should’ve been a regional effort to maximise Plaid’s regional vote.

While the losses of Leanne Wood and Helen Mary Jones are undoubtedly a blow to Plaid Cymru in the Senedd, it is unlikely to upset too many more traditionally-minded party activists.

Plaid’s core problem is that its central office staff and its national executive consists of factional activists who pursue sectional interests above creating a policy agenda that speaks to the sort of voters Plaid needs to pick up.

Those small ‘c’ conservatives – socially conservative but inclined to Plaid on other issues – have no home or voice in the party.

They might vote Labour. They might vote Conservative. Far worse, they might not vote at all. And they will not vote for Plaid.

If Plaid is going to be a third party with influence, instead of a ginger group constantly on the fringes of power but without ever exercising it, it needs to professionalise its organisation and stop the nonsense which ties the hands of regional campaigns.

There’s no point having your head in the clouds if you’re hurtling towards the ground without a parachute.

TIME TO ABOLISH ABOLISH

The argument is over. The Welsh Parliament is here to stay.

A website, a slogan, a few polls. Constantly bigged-up by the London media and the BBC, Abolish the Assembly (sic.) got exactly what it deserved.

Bog all.

The Greens outperformed Abolish – again – demonstrating the farce of Richard Suchorzewski’s invitation from the BBC to the main leadership debate for what it was.

While the Abolish voice will not be silenced, its hammering will ensure it won’t be given a free pass in the future.

After five years of faction-fighting, UKIP’s vote predictably collapsed.

Only one of its candidates – Paul Dowson in Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire – came within 50 of getting 1,000 votes in any constituency.

As Welsh online media becomes more diverse and breaks through to more people in Wales, and it will, the hold of London dead tree media will decrease. The chances of fringe single-issue parties getting the coverage and exposure they enjoyed before the election will recede.

Not because those voices aren’t necessary, but because the voters – those who consume media – don’t think they’re important enough to justify coverage.

The argument about abolition is over. What remains is the debate about what powers the Welsh Parliament has in the future.

THE THREAT TO LABOUR

As Labour’s biggest asset in the election, who succeeds Mark Drakeford will be vital to Labour’s future chances

When a party has performed so far above pollsters’ expectations in an election, it sounds strange to speak of its threats and problems.

But there are issues that Labour cannot ignore.

It has no excuse left for not delivering its modest policy agenda within the five years of this Welsh Parliament.

Secondly, turnout in Labour safe seats – those with no second party threat – was humiliatingly small. Swansea East turned out barely a third of its electorate, and Merthyr and Rhymney 35%. That’s no ringing endorsement for a sitting government from its core voters.

The politics of Wales outside Labour safe seats were far more dynamic, and the electoral significantly more engaged.

Although barely half of 16-17-year-olds registered to vote, most of those who registered voted. And a basic assessment suggests they voted disproportionately for Plaid and the Green party over the big two.

Complacency is also a risk. Labour cannot just sit back; it’s got a more-or-less working majority under its own steam. There can be no excuses now.

The pandemic was the Welsh Government’s unseen friend in this election. It raised the Welsh Government’s profile within Wales and showed the public what the Welsh Government could do with its powers. It boosted Mark Drakeford’s public profile.

As the campaign went on it became noticeable other Labour ministers faded into the background in favour of a focus on Mark Drakeford’s personal qualities.

In the past, this was called ‘the doctor’s mandate’ in UK elections, and Mark Drakeford’s evident diligence and doggedness played well.

In the absence of the pandemic, it’s hard to see how Labour could’ve maintained its death-grip on the levers of power unaided.

The biggest challenge for Labour is who succeeds Mark Drakeford and when.

He said he would stand down in this Parliamentary term, and that leaves Labour a real difficulty.

The personal focus on Mark Drakeford deflected attention from the shortcomings of pretenders to his throne.

Vaughan Gething: patronising, easily rattled, waspish, doesn’t command the detail.

Ken Skates: unfairly labelled plastic but with a sound grasp of policy but almost no public profile to speak of.

Probably the ablest of the Welsh ministers is Lee Waters. He is bright and articulate but hamstrung by a reputation for being ‘difficult’.

Nine out of ten voters probably couldn’t name any other members of the last Labour cabinet. Unless you’re a farmer. In which case, you’ll have a Lesley Griffiths dartboard.

Without Mark Drakeford at the helm, there’s a distinct shortage of candidates with either the public profile or political weight to take up the post of First Minister.

Wind forward five years, Labour faces a real fight if it fails to deliver on its limited manifesto and lacks a leader who appeals to the wider Welsh public and not just Labour’s endemic tribalism.

Then the political landscape of Wales might well change.

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.”