Campaigners urge everyone sympathetic to the Welsh language not to back ‘anti-Welsh’ Reform UK
Martin Shipton
A campaign group has warned Welsh speakers and those sympathetic to the language to think seriously before voting for Reform UK after one of the right-wing party’s senior figures said protecting Welsh was not a priority for it.
Dyfodol i r Iaith [Future for the Language] has expressed strong opposition to comments made by Llŷr Powell, Reform UK’s former head of communications in Wales, on the S4C Newyddion programme.
Mr Powell noted that protecting Welsh culture in the strongholds of the language was not a priority. Immigration is a prominent issue for Reform UK supporters, with the party saying it wants to “protect the identity of Britain and its communities”.
Welsh strongholds
But Mr Powell said that protecting Welsh culture was not high on Reform’s agenda, and that immigration in strongholds of the Welsh language like the Llŷn peninsula was not a problem.
Dylan Bryn Roberts, chief executive of Dyfodol i’r Iaith said, “We oppose these comments strongly. They prove that Reform UK is an English right-wing party that places absolute emphasis on Englishness at the expense of the Welsh language.
“As someone who grew up and lives in Nefyn in Llŷn, I know very well that the effect of a constant and numerous influx of residents from across the border is destroying the fabric of Llŷn’s natural Welsh communities. Surveys have identified many people who cherish an English and British identity and this is bound to erode and destroy Welsh identity, with a very low proportion of them (approximately 25% in Gwynedd according to the 2011 Census) learning the Welsh language after moving to Wales.
“The language shift is a growing reality in communities that are naturally Welsh. If we don’t see intensive intervention soon we will have lost these indigenous Welsh communities forever. We know how key such communities are to the future of Wales but most are now limited to the counties of Gwynedd and central Anglesey only.
“We need the next Welsh Government, of whatever party or parties, to prioritise the future of Welsh communities before the decline reaches a point where the situation cannot be retrieved. “Welsh Labour has been complacent since the publication of a report by the Commission for Welsh-speaking Communities in August 2024.”
‘Disrespect’
Mr Roberts continued: “Dyfodol i’r Iaith is calling on every individual in Wales who speaks, learns or is sympathetic to the Welsh language to think seriously before casting a vote for Reform UK, which has shown such disrespect towards the oldest native language of the British Isles.
“There is no doubt that a Reform UK government in Wales would be destructive to the future of the Welsh language, to devolution and to our values as a nation.
“It is necessary to be very vigilant about the effect of casting a protest vote or not casting a vote at all. Although Dyfodol i’r Iaith is a non-partisan lobbying group, we stand firmly against any anti-Welsh and anti-Welsh policies.
“We would welcome Reform UK representatives contacting us.”
Support our Nation today
For the price of a cup of coffee a month you can help us create an independent, not-for-profit, national news service for the people of Wales, by the people of Wales.
They are a party of English bigots, so of course Welsh (nor Wales) matters not one jot to them. Any Welsh person casting their vote for these blackshirts wants their head testing, frankly.
Zero surprise. For far-right British nationalists see the Welsh language and it’s speakers as an enemy within undermining a monocultural centralised, nationalist, xenophobic British/English state. Just like, immigrants, multiculturalism, remainers, the ECHR, BBC, non-heterosexuals and Muslims.
Reform will destroy wales.
Just like farage led lies ripped the UK out of the EU.
Reform UK represents the greatest threat to the existence of Wales as a nation since the 1536 Act of Union.
A closely related threat comes from the amount of attention given to that odious group by news media: of every persuasion. Wasn’t it PT Barnum who said “There’s no such thing as bad publicity”?
And sunlight is the best disinfectant, according to someone else.
Stating the obvious.
This is like the Chicken Society warning chickens not to vote for Colonel Sanders.
If you’re pro-Wales in any way then Reform quite clearly is not a party you should vote for.
“But Mr Powell said that protecting Welsh culture was not high on Reform’s agenda”
So why stand in Wales? If someone wasn’t interested in preserving American culture then they wouldn’t stand for Congress, if someone wasn’t interested in preserving French culture then they wouldn’t stand in the French National Assembly.
Power and constant erosion or norms. Reform want to break things. That is all they are good at.
There are a whole load of other reasons why I wouldn’t back this ghastly lot with my vote, but I’m more than happy to add this one as well!
It was a car crash of an interview by Llÿr Powell. A vote for Reform in Wales is a vote against our own cultural interests.
Powell outlined the reasons why you shouldn’t vote for Reform.
The failure of this cabal to support, embrace and celebrate indigenous British culture is deeply worrying. If their insidious odious anti-British activities continue they might need reporting to Prevent
Indigenous “British” culture is Welsh culture
Exactly. And Reform are anti-British extremists.
Congratulations to Llŷr Powell on that car crash of an interview.
How on earth did they think it was a good idea making him head of comms in Wales? More evidence of the Reform talent puddle?
Powell said – “protecting Welsh culture was not high on Reform’s agenda“ and then goes on to say Reform want to “protect the identity of Britain and its communities”. Its obvious that Powell, a weak minded unionist sycophant, of low intelligence, equates english culture with British culture and that in his opinion this the only culture that matters.
Welsh Unionist like Powell make me cringe in embarassment and I’m pretty sure his English masters snigger at his fawning gutlessness.
Again. Reform, it’s policies and supporters have zero place in Wales. They are a serious threat to our communities, culture, language and economy.
Far a party that claims to be against others coming in to their country and destroying it, it’s odd that they’re doing the same to Wales.
This isn’t just politics, this is an attack on the Welsh, and those doing it are a real danger.
Nothing to see here, only nazis being nazis
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/aug/16/nigel-farage-adviser-uk-would-be-better-off-if-it-had-not-fought-nazi-germany
This country is becoming weaker and sicker by the month. We used to have methods of dealing with collaborationist traitors (see Haw Haw).
Yes. But. Plaid have to have a look at themselves in this instance. That last election was an absolute disaster for plaid, it didn’t get nearly the criticism it should have. The Welsh people were sick of the Tories because of the shambles at Westminster and sick of labour because of the vanity projects and consistent failures of their governance. It was an open goal, and Plaid were prattling on about going back to the EU and climate change, which the vast majority of people in Wales are sick to death of when our NHS is failing, our education system… Read more »
The equivalent would be Non White people in South Africa voting to keep Apartheid and Palestinian People voting for more settlements to be built in The West Bank.
If you’re looking at the problems wales faces dispassionately then choosing not to focus on promoting/protecting an aspect of Welsh culture (yes there is more to welsh culture than the language, for most of us it isn’t a big deal) in its existing strongholds makes good sense. But it won’t be popular in those passionate circles.