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Release of Welsh Government podcast during local elections campaign criticised

11 Apr 2022 2 minute read

The Welsh Liberal Democrats have criticised the Welsh Government for publishing episodes of a podcast during the local elections campaign.

The first episodes of the 10 part series Unlocked: COVID Stories From Wales was released yesterday, with episodes also published on YouTube today.

Welsh Liberal Democrat leader Jane Dodds said that the Welsh Government should not have spent £32,000 on the series as part of their Keep Wales Safe campaign.

“The Welsh Government should not be spending public money on PR campaigns,” she said. “It is disappointing that this has happened and the lack of transparency Labour has shown until this point.

“Furthermore, given we are now in the local election period the release of the broadcast is even less appropriate as it’s providing positive press stories about Welsh Labour’s leadership at a moment he is leading an election campaign.”

The YouTube version of the podcast is published by the Welsh Government’s own account, but the podcast is published by Keep Wales Safe.

The Welsh Conservatives had earlier criticised Welsh ministers for not being transparent about how the show was funded, saying that members of the public could mistake it for an impartial podcast.

“It says a lot that the First Minister is happy to defend his record on a podcast he has bought and paid for, but not in front of a Wales-specific Covid inquiry,” Andrew RT Davies said.

Plaid Cymru have also criticised the podcast, telling the BBC that both using public money “to create a podcast in which they are not mentioned and yet is used to promote the First Minister,” and also the “timing” was problematic during a local election campaign.


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Kerry Davies
Kerry Davies
1 year ago

How does Andrew feel about the £1.1Bn extra that his party at Westminster had to give Wales because of their theft and profligacy in England during Covid? How will he feel when they have to do it again as that was just for 2020/21?
Wonderful thing this Barnett consequential stuff, they rob the treasury to give cash to their donors and Wales gets extra to pay care workers. £32,000 isn’t even chicken feed.

CJPh
CJPh
1 year ago
Reply to  Kerry Davies

C’mon, this whataboutism isn’t great is it? “That guy stole a billion tons of gold! Why would you report me for robbing your house? You should cheer me on! Maybe listen to the podcast I made about the robbery? Your cash paid for it.” No excuses, this is classic “never let a good crisis go to waste” scumbaggery from the political class. The tories are sleazy, Labour are sleazy. Pick your favourite bloodstained rosette, claim all the “my grandfather voted x and so did my dad” votes from people, add on a few “everyone I like on twitter likes you”… Read more »

Last edited 1 year ago by CJPh
Mab Meirion
Mab Meirion
1 year ago
Reply to  CJPh

Remember when he went to London and came back with a Baroness…I’d love to read the minutes of those meetings…

Llinos
Llinos
1 year ago

So maybe we will have a Cymru specific covid enquiry when Westminster does a credible thorough and unbiased covid enquiry about their performance during Covid. From which they will of course exonerate themselves of any errors or wrongdoing. Like they did over Russian interference in the Brexit referendum, Russian oligarchs contributing to the Tory party, misusing public funds to do up Downing Street, taking free holidays from Russian Oligarchs, Partygate, other breaches of COVID rules, giving millions in public money to Boris’ inexperienced chums to buy unusable PPE, withholding from Cymru funds to which we were entitled, Priti Patel’s bullying… Read more »

hdavies15
hdavies15
1 year ago

Covid stories from Wales ? A job done well ? Not really, just a bit better than the job done by that buffoon across the border. Of course the Tories can’t use that line because they were foolishly engrossed by Boris’ superlatives. Surely this gives any worthwhile opposition the chance to release their own podcasts about the decline of the Welsh economy, but there again the London government has played its own major part in turning Wales into an even more dependent blend of energy farm, holiday park and down market dump for unwanted social problems. Labour or Tory, take… Read more »

Brian Coman
Brian Coman
1 year ago

Drakeford….his two year obsession !….now do something about child poverty( worst in the 4 nations)…..the part destruction of the Welsh economy which he has aided with his tunnel vision. Wasting money on those podcasts could have helped a food bank or twenty….

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