‘People aren’t sheep’: Labour has earned its 100 year dominance in Wales says former First Minister Carwyn Jones
Former First Minister Carwyn Jones has said that “people aren’t sheep” and that Labour has earned its political dominance in Wales.
Labour is closing in on 100 years of winning every General Election in Wales, having done so since November 1922, replacing the Liberal Party which has previously dominated since the 1860s.
Labour has also won every Senedd election since 1999 – only failing to win two European elections, in 2009 and 2019.
But speaking on S4C programme Y Byd yn Ei Le, Carwyn Jones told presenter Guto Harri that their dominance was based on their electoral record.
“People aren’t sheep,” he said. “If people didn’t think the Labour Party was doing a good job, they wouldn’t vote for the Labour Party.”
Guto Harri had suggested that people had “gotten into the habit” of voting Labour, as Wales was “poorer than the rest of the UK, wages are lower, and one of every five are on waiting lists”.
Carwyn Jones responded: “Well, if you look at the situation compared with England, the health service in England is under strain, joblessness is lower in Wales – that historically never happened, but it’s true now.”
“Nid defaid yw pobl. Os oedd pobl yn meddwl bod y Blaid Lafur yn gwneud jobyn gwael, yna bydden nhw ddim yn pleidleisio dros y Blaid Lafur.”
🏴 🌹 🐑
Chi’n cytuno â @AMCarwyn bod record Llafur yng Nghymru dros y ganrif ddiwetha yn un i’w ddathlu? pic.twitter.com/65N44Gp73M
— Y byd yn ei le (@ybydyneileS4C) January 5, 2022
Presenter Guto Harri asked whether the Labour party were taking people’s “votes for granted, and there are constituencies across the south of Wales where things never change?”
Carwyn Jones said: “There are seats in England that were Labour for a century but have now switched to the Conservatives. But that hasn’t happened in Wales.
“Why? I would argue that it’s because the people of Wales see that the Labour party are working for them.”
Guto Harri asked whether it was “healthy to depend on the same party that been in power for 100 years to come up with new ideas?”
“Labour haven’t been in power for 100 years of course, because Wales has had Conservative governments,” Carwyn Jones said. “Since ’99 the Labour party have never won a majority, we’ve always had to work with other parties, and I welcome that. I think that’s wise.
“The other parties need to appeal more to people rather than complaining that they don’t get the votes.”
Y Byd yn ei Le is on S4C at 8pm tonight.
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Labour has only won 8 out of the last 28 U.K. elections. Yet Cymru has NEVER voted Tory. Labour happy to sacrifice the cultural socialism of Cymru on the Westminster altar. We are better, because our culture is not based on imperialism & the subjugation of other nations. We should take responsibility for our own affairs & stand up for equality & justice for all.
The majority of registered electors in all Senedd elections have chosen not to vote, what does this tell us about the robustness of our democracy?
What Labour are damn good at is lowering Welsh aspirations and weaponising poverty. Be grateful for the little you get their mantra. The Conservatives are worse. They not only have weaponised poverty, but wish to remove our Senedd , then devolve Welsh nationhood assimilating us into England as part of their Tory blueprint. It’s on record. Do some research, and I don’t mean those fruit loop Facebook conspiracy theorists pages inhabited by Covidiots & Anti-Vaxxers. Respectable websites that reveal facts not Trumpian Alt-Right fake news. See, confidence is a fragile thing. Keep knocking a people down, they tend to stay… Read more »
I agree with everything that you have said after all the Welsh blood that has been spilled in the Wars and powering the empire with Welsh coal our country of Wales and it’s people are not on the union jack flag or the Royal Standard wake up Wales let’s go for independence
We in wales have got to stop being little Englanders and be proud to be welsh kick all English party’s out of wales 🏴 start fighting for your children and grandchildren future in wales 🏴 it’s time for a new wales 🏴 get the people in your town’s out voting for new wales 🏴
When the Labour Party small “n” becomes a capitol “N” and 100% reform of the House of Lords is truly on the agenda and when “Welsh” Labour is properly autonomous and raising its own funds they should come back and see how I feel then. I won’t hold my breath.
The Welsh people have been loyal to the labour party and they are taking the Welsh people’s vote for granted even after Robbing the fund set up for the children of Aberfan to make the tips safe the tips that killed them ànd the Welsh people still vote for the labour party not me since they did that to to the children of Aberfan
Carwyn Jones’ celebratory tone is an attempt to erase decades of the Labour party’s abuse of power and resultant corruption in the valleys. Why people vote Labour in areas amongst the poorest in Western Europe shouldn’t be celebrated, it should be to the shame of the Labour party that year on year they have failed people in the valleys of South Wales. In my opinion they have a cheek to put up candidates for election. People in the valleys are fed up with being at the bottom of practically every social, economic and health indicator league table. The South Wales… Read more »
Why are we so poor in Wales after all the mineral welth that’s been mined in Wales we should be one of the richest country in the world we have been raped of the welth that should have been kept in Wales and the labour party let it happen why do the Welsh people in the valleys still vote for labour party when they have been in power in Westminster they have not been any good for Wales ànd. Did nothing for the valleys in south Wales