‘Antidemocratic nature of Westminster laid bare’ – all the reaction from Wales as Sunak to become PM

Plaid Cymru have said that the unopposed election of Rishi Sunak as Prime Minister has revealed the “antidemocratic” nature of Westminster.

Their comments come after Penny Mordaunt conceded the Tory leadership race to Rishi Sunak and said he has her “full support”.

Both she and Boris Johnson dropped out of the race after struggling for support within the party.

But Westminster leader Liz Saville Roberts MP said: “The antidemocratic nature of the Westminster system has been laid bare for all to see. Rishi Sunak has no mandate, no legitimacy. Democracy demands a General Election.

“Rishi Sunak’s coronation may soothe the financial markets in the short term, but the Tory party is still riven with factions who will be jostling for the upper hand at critical votes. More fundamentally, the chronic crisis and abuse of democratic legitimacy remain unresolved.

“He has no electoral mandate for the austerity measures he plans to inflict on our public services, which are already close to buckling after twelve years of Conservative mismanagement. Wales did not vote for this in 2019.

“The people of Wales deserve an opportunity to reject this rotten Westminster system at the ballot box with a general election. Only Plaid Cymru can offer the people of Wales a voice and vision for a better future.”

‘Welcoming’

However, Welsh Conservative leader Andrew RT Davies said that the Parliamentary Conservative Party now commanded the confidence of Westminster.

“The Government has a clear agenda that it needs to get on with,” he said. “The cost of living, the war in Ukraine and getting the UK onto the path of growth and opportunity after the COVID pandemic.

“I know that colleagues in Westminster will realise the real need to come together to deliver for the people of Wales and the United Kingdom.

“As a friend of Wales, Rishi understands the challenges we face, with high energy bills, high inflation, and household budgets being stretched to breaking point.

“I look forward to working with him to tackle those challenges.

“It should also be celebrated that, during Diwali no less, we are welcoming the UK’s first British-Asian and Hindu Prime Minister.

“I want to thank, on behalf of the Welsh Conservatives, Boris and Penny, who have so much to offer our party and our country going forward.”

‘No mandate’

Welsh Liberal Democrat Leader Jane Dodds MS said: “The Conservatives have over the seven years continuously treated the UK like a fiefdom to carry out internal battles, as a consequence the country has suffered time and time again.

“The problem is clearly not any single Prime Minister or Minister, but the Conservative Party as an institution which continues to put its own wellbeing above that of the country’s and is so internally divided it cannot hope to produce a well-functioning government.

“Rishi Sunak showed time and time again in his role as Chancellor that he was out-of-touch with the struggles ordinary people faced whether it’s paying their heating bills or being able to access key public services.

“The public has lost trust in the Conservatives and Sunak does not have a mandate from the people, we need a General Election now to get us out of this perpetual chaos and give the country fresh hope.”