‘Little Englander’ Truss will boost Welsh independence movement says Guardian newspaper
Liz Truss’ “Little Englander” approach which involves “ignoring or being insulting towards the other nations of the UK” will boost the independence movement in Wales, the Guardian newspaper has warned.
The newspaper’s editorial today warns that her strategy was to “win by appealing to the hearts of the Tory members rather than their heads” but that it would have grave consequences for the union when she became Prime Minister.
Lizz Truss is widely expected to clinch her party’s nomination for leader and therefore be asked to become the next Prime Minister, beating former Chancellor Rishi Sunak into second place.
The Guardian however warned that it “may be her Little England politics that do the most harm” with her words already having alienated those who wanted independence for Scotland and a united Ireland.
“Nationalists in Wales too would be boosted by a Truss premiership,” they said.
On Scotland “Ms Truss has gone out of her way to pick a fight,” they said. “She called the first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, an ‘attention-seeker’, branded nationalists as separatists and unequivocally ruled out an independence vote”.
“Ms Truss’s strategy is to win by appealing to the hearts of the Tory members rather than their heads. However, words once said cannot easily be swallowed,” the newspaper said. “They can have a radicalising effect on activists and MPs.
“Things could fall apart rapidly. Divides are widening between London and the rest of England, between England and the other nations of the union, and between the young and the old.
“The foreign secretary, like Mr Johnson before her, gives the impression that English politicians can get away with ignoring or being insulting towards the other nations of the United Kingdom.
“By stoking fissiparous tendencies, Ms Truss makes it harder for the country to hold itself together.”
‘Let down’
The Guardian warning comes after a YouGov poll reported in the Sunday Times suggested that support for Welsh independence is set to rise if Liz Truss becomes Prime Minister.
The poll showed that support for independence was currently at 25% in Wales but would rise to 28% if Rishi Sunak won the Conservative leadership contest and 30% if Liz Truss did the same.
There was bad news in Scotland too for Liz Truss, where a Panelbase poll showed that support for staying as part of the UK fell from 51% to 48% if she took over as Prime Minister. Rishi Sunak fared slightly better but support for the union fell to 49% if he was in charge.
There were also signs that Liz Truss was the more polarising figure in Northern Ireland, with a poll by LucidTalk showing that she was backed 62% to 14% for Sunak by unionists but that Irtish nationalists preferred Sunak to 44% to 6%.
In England too, more voters thought the UK would break up under Liz Truss than Rishi Sunak, by 28% to 26%, according to YouGov.
Liz Truss’ campaign have said that they intend to take a harder line on the union than Boris Johnson, with the Scottish and Welsh nationalists rebranded as “separatists” by No 10, and that they will “ignore” Nicola Sturgeon.
Speaking ahead of hustings in Perth, Scotland, she said: “For too long, people in Scotland have been let down by the SNP focusing on constitutional division instead of their priorities. That won’t happen under my watch.”
She added: “I’ll make sure that my government does everything to ensure elected representatives hold the devolved administration to account for its failure to deliver the quality public services, particularly health and education, that Scottish people deserve.
“As prime minister and minister for the Union, I will deliver on my ambitious plan to capitalise on the opportunity we have to turbocharge the growth and business investment required to get Scotland’s economy moving.”
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.
It’s not difficult to rubbish anything Tories say because it’s generally rubbish. They are now pressing ahead with calling us ‘separatists’ on top of ‘nationalists’ by way of insulting us. I’m a togetherist meaning working with our neighbouring countries on an equal footing and on the basis of mutual respect NOT under the increasingly apparent jack boot of colonial bullying. This hate agenda being implemented by them through their media is an abuse of power. It will alienate people who are currently sat on the fence when they all finally get the message that there is a plan to eradicate… Read more »
Those who want Independence are not separatists but WELSH PATRIOTS who want to rule themselves not by a foreign country
All you need to remember is, the definition of terrorist just depends on which side you’re on?
F F S You are taking this out of concept who mentioned the word terrorist you we want independence through the ballot box not bloody violence PATRIOT FOR THE LOVE OF YOUR COUNTRY
The tories and the english media are calling us separatists aren’t they, it’s how they control the agenda, just take a look at Venezuela
Just listen to Liz Truss’s rhetoric. It’s English imperialism wrapped in the Union Flag with her intention of putting the Celtic nations back under Westminster’s thumb. We also have Tory toddler Alun Cairns recently state that Liz Truss has his support because she will strengthen the Union. But what does he mean by strengthen? Is he inferring that he wants her to “take back control” from Wales , Scotland & Northern Ireland. To remove further powers with the end goal of Whitehall direct rule? If so that would be an act of political suicide akin to ISIS destroying ancient temples… Read more »
The UK Tories are becoming Putin’s URP everyday.
They do not respect peoples of other countries such as Wales, Scotland, Ireland or the Ukraine.
All nations must have the right of independence with in definition of the UN.
I would like to know what the UN think of the situation in the UK. Why are they so quiet ? Have the Senedd spoken to them? Democracy does not exist in the UK, and the shutting down of democracy and freedom leads to wars!
The guardian really doesn’t deserve the credibility it receives, when you look at how complicit they are with the illegal detention of Assange, uk msm journalists are spineless scum
A’u gwrthwynebiad golygyddol i annibyniaeth i’r Alban, heb sôn am Gymru.
Roedd un o’r posteri Albanaidd ar un o’u llinynnau sylwadau yn ceryddu sylwebydd Cymreig am ddisgwyl i’r Guardian adrodd yn ddigonol ar wleidyddiaeth yr Alban neu Gymru. “Anghofiwch e! Dim ond os yw’n ymwneud â gwiwerod coch neu wyliau y maen nhw’n sôn amdanom.”
MSM is a term I’ve only encountered when policing the UK propaganda hate speech TV station. I’m not even going to name it. Client journalist filth and yes there are many ‘spineless scum’ there and in their buddy newspapers which print many anti Welsh hate articles but very few, if any, will be at The Guardian.
I used to think that as well, but reading how a guardian journalist knew that Assange was being spied on by his supposed security team for the Americans, even listening in on his talks with his legal team, they decided to with hold that info, there’s lots to suggest the guardian isn’t quite as left leaning as it makes out. The term MSM has been around probably since 2015/16
Muscular Unionism = independence quicker. It’s as simple as that. They can’t see it and long may that continue.
Nobody will do anything though. Ours is a cowed people, desperate to cling onto the moral high ground at the expense of ever doing anything. Just eternally turning the other cheek to be slapped at every new indignity just spinning round and round like a human swingball set, cheeks getting redder and redder waiting for y Mab Darogan or Arthrwys reborn to gain independence for them.
Nothing. Just “oh we must do everything peacefully. We must suffer the slings and arrows of Tories with outrageous fortunes”.
Unleash the dogs of politics…
Thank the lord the yanks control the nukes…
She doesn’t need an ethics adviser; bad news for Patel and Badenoch
Don’t even look at the dead cat on the table.
If someone says “Oh look, a squirrel!”…
Keep watching them, closely.
There is inevitably a question they are trying not to answer.
In this case 12 years worth of questions.
This blog should not be drawing a public subsidy via the Welsh Books Council in order to summarise editorials from other publications.
It’s up to the people of each country want and NOT what three individuals like Truss, Cairns and Sunak want. They are only there to do as they are told to do by us. They are acting like dictators when only one person’s opinion counts.
It’s the rise in English nationalism within Conservative ranks post Brexit that has led to renewed interest in independence in Wales.