Conservative councillors snub Bannau Brycheiniog National Park Authority
Elgan Hearn, local democracy reporter
No Conservative Powys County Councillor will join Bannau Brycheiniog National Park Authority, even though under the rules of political balance they are allowed one member.
At a meeting of Powys County Council on Thursday May 18, group nominations of councillors to take up roles on various committees as well as represent the council on outside bodies, were rubberstamped.
One of these outside bodies is Bannau Brycheiniog National Park Authority.
Powys has the largest representation on the authority which is mostly within the county.
Parts of the national park does go into several other south and west Wales council areas.
Due to this, Powys is allowed to have six councillors on the authority with one each from Blaenau Gwent, Carmarthenshire, Merthyr Tydfil, Monmouthshire, Rhondda Cynon Taf and Torfaen.
A further six members are chosen by the Welsh Government to make up the the national park’s 18 members.
Earlier this month, due to the re-branding and claims of left wing political bias the Conservative group’s representative on Bannau Brycheiniog, Cllr Iain McIntosh resigned.
Head of legal and democratic services, Clive Pinney read through the list of appointees to the national park authority and pointed out that there was one vacancy still to fill.
“The vacancy will be appointed by the Conservatives in due course,” said Mr Pinney.
Terrible video
Conservative group leader Cllr Aled Davies said: “Nobody will be appointed to the national park.
“We’re very disappointed with Brecon Beacons National Park telling local people how to run their businesses and also the terrible video that was produced a few weeks ago.”
The “terrible video” Cllr Davies alluded to, was the one from April, when the name change was announced.
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The film clip has one of Wales’ greatest actors, Michael Sheen, explaining the name change to Bannau Brycheiniog and has been watched by over 40,000 people.
Cllr Davies said: “On top of that, the political balance of the authority isn’t right, I’m afraid this needs to be sorted out very quickly.”
Former national park authority chairman and current deputy chairman, Liberal Democrat Cllr Gareth Ratcliffe responded to the criticism.
Cllr Ratcliffe said: “The national park is politically balanced through this authority and the other councils which is set in statute.
“The comments that it’s not politically balanced are inaccurate.”
Council chairwoman, Cllr Beverley Baynham said that she would note the comments and “not enter a debate” on the issue.
The five councillors that will represent Powys at Bannau Brycheiniog are:
Cllr Gareth Ratcliffe – Liberal Democrat.
Cllr William Powell – Liberal Democrat.
Cllr Edwin Roderick – Independent group.
Cllr Ed Jones – Independents for Powys.
Cllr Huw Williams – Labour.
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Imagine hating your own native language so much! If they don’t like it, why exactly are they here? Most grown up nations don’t allow people who having nothing but contempt for their nation to reside there. Why are we so different?
Can’t wait to see their faces when (not ‘if’) an entire nation begins solely using it’s correct name, Cymru.
Tories in Wales hate Wales.
It is my understanding that local people and businesses can still use the English name is they so wish. The park can not force them to do otherwise. So what is the problem here? Why isn’t the park itself allowed to call itself – what it wants? As for Tories on the park authority – it is probably better off without any on there anyway!
It’s instructive to compare it to, say London.Suppose the Greater London Authority were to announce:— From now on, we’re going to simplify our publications and logos by using just the one name, London. Our Cymraeg publications will refer to us as Awdurdod London Fwyaf. Anyone who prefers to refer to our city as Llundain is welcome to carry on doing so. Nobody would bat an eyelid! Must of us would say “It’s your civic body: you call it what you like.” (My apologies to anyone who has fallen off their chair laughing at the idea of an English local authority… Read more »
The tories are hilarious, they have just lost over a 1,000 councillors in england and they think anyone cares about their views anymore, seriously, the gift that keeps giving
Since 2019, the Tories have used the Union Flag as a swat with which to beat us. Now, their dictatorial arrogance stretches to using OUR language and place names to do the same. They worship a human rights abusing Home Secretary whose ‘dream’ is to send already abused and suffering people thousands of miles away to a country in east Africa. My dream is merely that Welsh voters will pick up their tiny ballot box pencils at the next opportunity and render their twisted party extinct in OUR country.
“We don’t get enough representation so we shall withdraw our representatives.”
Pathetic, puerile and pretty poor representation of their electorate.
Apparently Russian nationalists in Ukraine fell just like the Welsh Conservatives and Rishi Sunak about the Ukrainian language and refuse to use word ‘Kyiv’ as it’s not the Russian pronunciation.
Lies and distortion of the facts, just another Tory statement , Mr Davies claim the park are “telling local people how to run their businesses “. That is a bare faced lie and he needs to retract now, just because his bosses in England do it, we dont need thesel liars here.
The one tory councillor who was on the committee, did what he usually does when things go against him, threw his toys out of the pram and resigned, Let’s hope Fay Jones follows him, but we know she won’t, just like she didn’t come out against Johnson until her opinion didn’t matter, don’t forget McIntosh and Jones wanted Powys opened up during lockdown because we had such low numbers of infection.
So the “culture wars” is actually being waged by these unionists that hate our Welsh culture, not those bogeyman “cultural marxists” that they can’t point to anyone in the room.
Tories really are populist fascists. Politicising our own culture for their own political goals. They’ve dropped all semblance of “conservatism” and embraced English nationalism.
It’s not a surprise those treacherous Conservative councilors are boycotting. They are arrogant anti-Welsh Wales hating bigots whose loyality is to England. Won’t be much of a loss. In fact, their absence will improve the Bannau Brycheiniog National Park Authority. Personally I’d exclude them permanently.
Yes this extremist stance is difficult to categorise as anything but anti-Welsh. Would the Tories boycott the Authority and be in such a stir if the name of the National Park had been changed to and English language name or to King Charles III National Park? I think everyone knows the answer to that question.
Great news! Don’t want them on the board anyway. Gwynt teg ar ôl y ffernsols.
The “Welsh” Tories have for a while now been labouring under the illusion that the vast majority of the Welsh electorate despise the Welsh language and wish to see an end to devolution. The whole party is on an electoral suicide mission, and is fast becoming a political dinosaur..
Not fast enough.
Wales has been cursed for centuries by Welsh people selling out to the English establishment just as the conservatives are so expert at doing now.
Sour grapes are a major component of a Conservative diet.