Boris Johnson’s government was ‘complete hostile to what was best for Wales’ says Welsh minister
Boris Johnson’s government was “completely hostile to what was to Wales’ national benefit” a minister in the Welsh Government has said.
Education Minister Jeremy Miles said that, having had to deal with Boris Johnson, he hoped that a future UK Government would seek to build bridges with the Welsh Government.
Speaking on Hawl i Holi on BBC Radio Wales, he added that any new leader of the Conservative party needed to “reset” the relationship with Wales.
“Can I just say, as someone who’s had to deal with ministers during this time at Westminster, his government has been completely hostile to devolution, and to what was to Wales’ national benefit,” Jeremy Miles said. “In a way that was systematic.
“I’m sure it came from the leader. That idea of insisting that what the UK Government wanted was right, whatever the basis and opinion of the devolved governments, was repellent to us across the United Kingdom.
“And I really hope the new leader, whoever they are, takes the opportunity to reset the relationship between us and Westminster, Scotland and Northern Ireland.”
‘Different face’
Jeremy Miles added that he wanted to see a General Election and a change of leadership straight away.
“I believe he has to go now,” he said. “John Major sent a letter today to the Chairman of the 1922 committee today that I agreed completely with. It would be a new way of doing this.
“But there are moral challenges behind what has happened at Downing Street and I would argue that it’s completely inappropriate under those conditions that he is there until the autumn.
“It’s time for people to have a different choice. A number of people in Labour have said today that they don’t see where the leadership is going to come from within the present Conservative party. And that’s for a reason – it’s a black mark on the cabinet.
“I don’t see where the leader is going to come from that is going to offer a different path. They’ll be a different face but I don’t see them offering a different path. And I look forward for the opportunity for a General Election.”
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A does dim i’w atal rhag digwydd eto Jeremy. Be’ dy ni’n gwneud nawr i amddiffyn Cymru?
With the greatest of respect, I’m not seeing where the leadership is going to come from within UK Labour either.
Starmer is not a popular leader, probably has a similar amount of disdain for Wales’ self-autonomy too and presides over a disunited party, who are being kept in check at the moment by the lure of power.
The fear amongst people like former Tory leadership candidate ex MP Rory Stewart is, that the figurehead will change, but the rightwing lurch of the party will continue, and he refuses to be involved with this incarnation of the party, and many like Chris Patten, John Major have criticised the course it is on, but who, in the present set up can, or would try to take the party back to a more centre right party. With the likes of Patel or Rees-Mogg there, it looks likely to keep going they way it is, and this is worrying for Cymru.… Read more »