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Welsh Tory Chair defends cut in the number of MPs in Wales

24 Sep 2021 2 minute read
Glyn Davies

The Chair of the Welsh Tories has defended the cut in the number of MPs in Wales.

Glyn Davies, who used to be the Member of Parliament for Montgomeryshire, argued that the current system isn’t fair on England.

But he added that he doesn’t like “seeing the stress it will cause to elected MPs from all Welsh parties, especially my party”.

The Boundary Commission for Wales is planning to axe the number of MPs in Wales from 40 to 32 – a reduction of 8.

Despite Wales losing 20% of its representatives the number of MPs across the UK will stay the same, at 650.

The number of MPs in England is set to increase by 10, from 533 to 543.

The new constituencies are due to come into force at the next General Election, which is expected to be in May 2024.

Boundary Commission will open an 8-week consultation period where the public can share their views on the proposed constituencies for Wales.

Davies made the comments following an interview with Guto Harri for the S4C politics show Y Byd yn ei Le.

‘Stress and anxiety’ 

He said “Firstly the Constituency Boundaries Review, which is causing stress and anxiety to every party – more so in Wales than anywhere else in UK. Number of Welsh MPs falling from 40 to 32.

“Of course I don’t like it or seeing the stress it will cause to elected MPs from all Welsh parties, especially my party. But I can see no alternative.

“Can’t slip back to ‘rotten boroughs’ of centuries ago. Average English constituency electorates are 16,000 more than average Welsh electorates.

“And that’s making no allowance for the 60 MSs that are responsible for many issues that land on English MP’s plates. Current position is in no way fair.”


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J Bowen
J Bowen
3 years ago

The UK Government’s policy of underfunding Wales has led to the exodus of jobs outside the border. Also we have the influx of 2nd home owners, who are not on the electoral roll. Keep at it Westminster!!
We won’t have to ask for independence from England in future, we will have no representation.

Jonathan Edwards
Jonathan Edwards
3 years ago

Wales’ over-representation at Westminster is part of the 1960s Butskillist consensus, whereby Labour was allowed to keep rotten boroughs like Newcastle Central. The justification was that it achieved a sort of broad fairness between Labour and Tory at Westminster. Welsh Labour use their current bloc of Welsh MPs to make good on the famous Drakeford ‘insurance policy’ that is the Westminster system. This locks Wales into a dependency culture. I hope for the start of a process of exposing how this dependency is bad. Step 1 – get Wales Revenue Authority going. Step 2 – get Welsh control over Welsh… Read more »

Dafydd Iwan
Dafydd Iwan
3 years ago

Since Wales is causing England so much stress and hardship, would it not make all kind of sense to create an independent Welsh Senedd, and set England free to do their own thing?

Huw Davies
Huw Davies
3 years ago
Reply to  Dafydd Iwan

It’s partly a ‘cat playing with the mouse it’s caught’ sort of thing.

Jonathan Edwards
Jonathan Edwards
3 years ago
Reply to  Huw Davies

No, Huw. The problem is that Wale lacks fight. This fight can be won. See Honey Badger taking on the lion!
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=honey+badger+vs+lion

Jonathan Edwards
Jonathan Edwards
3 years ago
Reply to  Dafydd Iwan

Cyntuno’n llwyr, Dafydd. But how? I have tried to map out the route. And work out why Wales doesn’t actually do it. Working as a member of Plaid Cymru. Hit two problems. (1) Plaid hasn’t studied nation-building properly. It got interested in sugary drinks, climate change, instead of nation-building. (2) Plaid edged out people like me who put getting an independent Senedd at the top of the list, not half-way down or lower. Gyda llaw – the route is call an All-Wales Constitutional Convention to design our Senedd. Then legislate for an approval Referendum. NOT the other way round!

Last edited 3 years ago by Jonathan Edwards
Y Cymro
Y Cymro
3 years ago

Tory failure Glyn Davies wants to demote and demean Wales. He & they argue that us Nationalists want to remove all our MPs from Westminster. So why complain about any reduction, they say. Ah, but Wales would be free from your clutches if we were independent. And due to the current Unionist system where we only have 60 Senedd MS members in Cardiff and soon to have 9 less MPs in London, means our voice is limited even further. And any reduction in MPs is done not to rebalance, but to cynically create an imbalance in favour of the Conservatives… Read more »

Last edited 3 years ago by Y Cymro
Gareth Parry
Gareth Parry
3 years ago

The underlying message in ‘unfair on Wngland’ is that as far as the tories are concerned Wales is totally and utterly subsumed within England, and is not recognisant of it’s devolved status or demographics, this loss of Welsh seats is our tipping point, whether we as the Welsh nation are merely subservient to England or do we rise as one independent Nation. if this power shift is to be fought, we must look to and support Plaid Cymru, YesCymru, Gwlad and yes even Propel, the threat to our Welsh existence is no longer just about y Hen Iaith it is… Read more »

j humphrys
j humphrys
3 years ago

Welsh Tory defends, Labour MP defends, Keir Starmer defends…………………..
All defending attacks on democracy. Who will defend democracy? Not Westminster!
“It isn’t fair on England, boo hoo!” Just B off to England, we don’t need you in Cymru!

Last edited 3 years ago by j humphrys
Quornby
Quornby
3 years ago

Idiot.

Sian
Sian
3 years ago

Unfortunately the numbers game takes power away from smaller communities like those we have in Wales, even Cardiff hasn’t a massive population compared to the much larger cities in England. Therefore representation of our views on a UK level is going to be even more restricted. We seriously need to increase the number of
MSs and devolve the police and justice systems asap.

Huw Davies
Huw Davies
3 years ago

Can’t help thinking, if they were really that bothered about fairness then they’d be pushing for some sort of proportional representation! All this means Wales is going to be of even smaller concern to England. Any problems in Wales will now be dismissed as ‘that’s what you get for voting Labour’, every unfavourable anomaly will be used to show voting Labour is a bad idea. David Cameron spent years deriding the Welsh NHS ‘Offa’s Dyke is a border of death’ etc.. But Welsh Labour would prefer Wales to remain the butt of Tory jokes than be self governing.

Grayham Jones
3 years ago

It’s time for a new wales 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 kick all English party’s out of wales that’s the Tories Labour and all Brexit party’s stop being little Englanders and and be proud to be welsh look at the future of your children and grandchildren it’s time for a new wales 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 A Free Wales 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

Steve Duggan
Steve Duggan
3 years ago

Since when has this move to reduce Welsh MPs been about fairness? The Conservative party been seen as the fair party ! Isn’t the real reason being it will help them gain more seats?

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