Nigel Farage ‘not interested in Wales’, Starmer claims
Sir Keir Starmer has said Reform leader Nigel Farage “isn’t interested in Wales” and has no viable plan for Port Talbot’s blast furnaces.
Speaking at the Welsh Labour conference in Llandudno, the Prime Minister described the Reform UK leader as a “wolf in Wall Street clothing”.
“When you ask him about Clacton, he thinks he’s running in the 2.10 at Ascot,” Sir Keir joked.
Mr Farage has said his party wants to restart Port Talbot’s blast furnaces but Sir Keir said the Reform leader has “no idea what he’s talking about”, when it comes to the furnaces, and has “no plan at all”.
Arc furnace
Port Talbot’s remaining blast furnaces were shut down in September, with a new electric arc furnace being built in their place.
Reform is looking to end Labour’s 26 years of domination at the Senedd elections in May next year.
Labour performed poorly in this year’s local elections in England, which saw Nigel Farage’s party win a swathe of council seats.
Taking aim at Mr Farage, Sir Keir said the Clacton MP is “a wolf in Wall Street clothing”.
“Reform claimed to be the party of patriotism while sucking up to Putin and abusing our armed forces online.
“They say they’re the party of workers while they vote against workers’ rights, intending to charge people to use the NHS and plan unfunded tax cuts for billionaires.”
Sir Keir also said any deal between the Tories, Reform UK and Plaid Cymru at next year’s key elections in Wales would amount to a “backroom stitch-up”.
The elections to the Senedd will use a proportional system for the first time, meaning coalitions are likely.
‘Chaos and divison’
The Prime Minister said it would risk a “return to the chaos and division of the last decade” and risk rolling back the progress his party is starting to make.
It would be “working families left to pick up the bill”, he added.
“Whether that’s with Reform or with Plaid’s determination to cut Wales off from the rest of the country, with no plan to put Wales back together,” he said.
“I know that these are the parties that talk a big game, but who is actually delivering?”
Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has not ruled out making deals with Plaid Cymru or Reform at the next Senedd election.
Farmers gathered outside the conference to protest ahead of Sir Keir’s speech, with about 20 tractors parked on the promenade in the north Wales resort town by late morning.
Fantasies
First Minister Eluned Morgan accused Nigel Farage of “peddling fantasies” about the future of Wales.
Next year’s key elections in Wales will be a “moment of reckoning”, she said.
“Reform are rising and across the country, people are asking big, serious questions about what kind of future they want for Wales,” Baroness Morgan told the conference.
“It’s time to stand up,” she added.
“While Nigel Farage is in Port Talbot peddling fantasies about sending people’s grandchildren down coal mines and reopening blast furnaces, we’re dealing with the reality that they left behind, the scars of decades of Tory neglect, the cost of industrial decline,” she said.
“We’re not romanticising the past. We’re cleaning it up.”
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Nation.Cymru banned from the Welsh Labour conference?
Wear that badge with pride, N.C!
The truth: Nigel Farage ‘not interested in Wales’. The lie: Labour ARE interested in Wales. Call me petty if you wish and I don’t expect him to engage with Welsh names and words if he is not able to. This conference was in Llandudno. Keir Starmer should have dropped in, at least once each, the terms ‘Cymru’ and ‘Ynys Mon’. For the love of God, even the former Tory (therefore anti Welsh MP for Ynys Mon) did that so nothing to see here. A Labour Party accepting that the 250 year party of apathetic surety is over and even now,… Read more »
Hasn’t Eluned Morgan had to apologise to Martin Shipton and NC in general for a previous exclusion? What will she say this time? Will it be ‘we can’t do anything. We are under Westminster orders’? Ah, OUT YOU GO!
It is their loss. I think as a news platform for Wales with a very balanced and eagle eye view of what is going on in Wales and Welsh folk, nation.cymru has its finger on the pulse. Most likely, nothing much will happen in the conference other than a few tears and hugs of commiseration.
Yes. They know they are cooked here. Like a terrified Tory defecting to Reform, Labour members of our Parliament and supporters need to move to the future and pick up their application pack to join Plaid – NOW!
It kind of reminds me of the mistake Kamala Harris made before the US election when she refused to share a platform with Joe Rogan. This Resulted in her failure to reach out to millions of undecided voters. The Welsh media may be weak but banning Nation Cymru may be a strategic blunder. Not only does it demonstrates Labour’s poor communication strategy but also their arrogance. This will only play into the hands of Plaid Cymru, and possibly (unfortunately) Reform.
Banning Nation.Cymru. This was the day when Labour should know they join Reform, Tories, Lib Dem or ANY party or debt ridden LTD company masquerading as one pushing the Unionist status quo, NOT TO KNOCK MY DOOR LOOKING FOR A VOTE unless they can explain to me how they propose to GET WITH THE PROGRAMME! Annibyniaeth.
Pathetic behaviour from Welsh Labour. Is this the “Red Welsh Way” in action?🤔
They aren’t red in any shape or form. They are neoliberal conmen masquerading as Labour.
I think banning you from the conference is their loss, and smacks of the behaviour of Starmer’s new best friend, Donald Trump.
i was amused that WOL headlined their report of his speech as warning that Farage is treating the Welsh people as fools. Comments were turned off on that and many other articles.
i was going to point out that being treated as fools has been increasingly our experience of the Labour Party, so I will do it here.
Keep up your good work in providing a forum for discussion across the diverse viewpoints of our country.
🏴
I am shocked to learn that Nations.Cymru is banned by the Labour Party. Are you being singled out or are lots of others being treated similarly? I find it very concerning.
You wouldn’t be banned from the Reform conference. .
I very much doubt Nige would want any probing questions about actual policy
in regards to Wales asked by representatives of Nation.cymru.
Does he have any actual policy other no forcing people in Wales to learn Welsh?
No need to doubt, or speculate, just ask.
If we have to ask, then he is not interested. Serious politicians who respect the electorate and value the country come forward and present their ideas.
OK. Name me a policy by your favourite ex banker that his party will introduce in Wales that soley benefits Welsh people.
Drop the the obsession with school children learning a bronze-age language, and get their reading, writing and arithmetic up to scratch.
And there it is. Proof of your xenophobic attitude towards the Welsh speakers.
Copy “benefits of bilingualism in early childhood” into a search bar.
You probably won’t like the results.
Welsh school standards for numeracy and literacy are very good. Historically English language most likely older then Welsh. Any particular reason you dislike the Welsh language? Are you being forced to learn the language?
Gething must have been sending out the press invites?
Starmer is beyond the pale, he can’t get the Trump tariffs removed off TATA products despite saying he has a great deal.
If you listened to Starmers so-called speech two things would have happened you’d realised that he was talking pure rubbish even contradicting himself on Reform spurting lies about them . He for a so-called Prime Minister made it clear he has no brain. His lies were unbelievable he spurted them out with every sentence. This was an old speech written by some script writer who does not have a clue. I’m not a reform follower but his words will surely bury Welsh Labour with the lies. Jo Stevens followed and she lied even more than he did.
Welsh Labour isn’t interested either.
It is of course a disgrace that NC is banned; but hardly a surprise given that Transport House is stuffed with Gething acolytes. On the other hand, there is nothing worth listening to there anyway. Starmer does so many u turns he probably doesn’t know which way he is facing today and the Baroness only believes what she was told by last person she spoke to.
Farage may not interested in Wales but Wales is interested in Farage as we will all soon find out. Also, the constant defamation and slagging off by the media has a reverse effect, as we saw with Trump in the USA , other political parties must do better
It’s ok he excluded anyone left of Thatcher from the main Labour conferences too. This party, Nu New Labour 0.2 is not interested in anything else than implementing more of the same neoliberalism this country has been subjected to for decades. The supposes climb down in the benefits saga only kicks the can down the road. Anyone who currently claims PIP and has to renew their claim on or after the 2026 deadline will probably end up being refused under the new bill’s proposals. The Chancellor’s statement that she will freeze income tax thresholds is a blatant attempt to pit… Read more »
We all know Reform UK are not interested in Wales. Only a fool would believe that. All Farage wants is to use and abuse the Welsh electorate. But for Keir Starmer and his complicit Corgi Eluned Morgan to make that claim with his record in office made me laugh out loud. Is this the same UK Labour party who has ignored Welsh Government numerous requests for further devolution. Slighted Wales with no rail infrastructure consequential. Gave Wales £450 million over a 10 year period compared to the English North £6.5 billion and expected is to be grateful. And their welfare… Read more »
I agreed with Starmer’s assertions until he suggested Plaid Cymru would work with Fascists, or for that matter Tories. Correct me if I’m wrong, didn’t Plaid rule out working with the Tories before the last Senedd Election? Plaid will NEVER do deals with Fascists like so called Reform. So, I’m pretty sure that what Starmer said is not just a lie, but libel.
First thing Starmer has said that isn’t utter crap for ages. Labour are still Reform wannabee’s and really a crap government that allows the fascists to rise. We have had a reform fascist in Pontyrpidd 2 weeks in a row dishing out crap. Where are the traditional parties. Local Labour MP probably in Israel, as she is pathetic.