Welsh Conservatives defend leader’s absence from Senedd to attend Trump prayer meeting
Emily Price
The Conservatives have defended the absence of the Senedd group leader from an important vote on the government’s budget this afternoon.
Darren Millar will miss First Minister’s Questions on Tuesday (February 4) along with the first opportunity to debate Wales’ £26bn draft budget.
Instead, he will attend the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington DC alongside Members of Congress to pray collectively for America and its leaders.
US President Donald Trump is also expected to attend.
Mr Millar will be accompanied on his trip across the pond by fellow Tory MS Russell George who will also miss the Senedd’s budget debate.
Both are trustees of an evangelical Christian organisation that hands out Bibles.
High-profile
The Senedd Tories have argued that today’s debate will merely “note” the budget.
A spokesperson said: “It is not the final vote which will be next month. The Welsh Conservative Group will certainly be voting it down because we believe Labour have the wrong priorities.
“Darren had a longstanding commitment in the US where he will be meeting a number of high-profile politicians.
“Following the decision of Keir Starmer to allow around a hundred Labour activists to campaign abroad against President Trump, Darren’s presence will help rebuild relationships between the US and Wales more broadly.”
The draft Budget sets out revenue and capital spending plans for 2025 to 2026.
Because Welsh Labour holds half the seats in the Senedd – they cannot pass the budget if opposition parties unite.
Both Plaid Cymru and the Conservatives have said they will not support the spending plans.
But the Welsh Government looks set to win today’s motion with both Mr Millar and Mr George missing.
Senedd Members that miss key votes can ask other Members to pair. It is understood that a request from the Tories to pair with Labour was rejected.
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God really does work in mysterious ways.
Kissing the ring eh. Bowing before your master. Good doggy.
Claims religion but supports a multiple felon and abuser. Favouring a hostile US president over his nation. Despicable.
Is this trip by Millar and George part of Welsh Parliamentary business? It is clearly not Welsh Government business. Will there be ANY cost to the Welsh taxpayer? An unnamed Tory spokesperson says Darren will be ‘meting a number of high profile politicians’. I cannot imagine honesty is something that would be on the agenda in the company he will be keeping but it is necessary in the eyes of God so luckily there won’t be any need for him to pretend he is there on behalf of our country nor that he is a leader of anything as he… Read more »
Sack him. Religion and US cults are for his own time,not ours. He needs to maybe trad a few bible oassages, because Trump and his cronies are not compatible with the teachings.
Presumably Rayner’ll forming her new ‘Islamophobia’ quango in her own time then?
You do not have to travel over the Atlantic to join a prayer meeting, praying in the Senedd would work just as well.
Hoping for 20 pieces of silver no doubt.
A very low price selling out what little truth, reason and decency he could have laid claim to.
If this doesn’t show the people of Wales the distain the leader of the Welsh Conservatives Darren Millar has for Wales I don’t know what will? He cares more about attending a right-wing American evangelical Christian shindig and meeting Donald Trump than he does Wales or debating and scrutinising Welsh Labour’s draft budget. He’s truly pathetic and a waste of space. And Reform UK can’t crow about Millar going awol seeing their leader Nigel Farage did the very same by spending more time in America campaigning for Donald Trump reelection as president than working for his constituents in Clacton. Also,… Read more »