Of course we may have a new Welsh Secretary by the end of the day but he news that UK Government has refused to pledge that the same level of funding that Wales receives from the EU today will be provided post-Brexit is hardly surprised
Welsh Secretary Alun Cairns who I suspect will keep his job has came under pressure in the House of Commons to guarantee that Wales will not lose any of its present cash.
As the Wasting Mule points out Wales is due to receive around £1.8bn in European structural funds investment between 2014 and 2020. During the EU referendum campaign, 13 Conservatives pledged that EU funding would continue until 2020 unless a programme was due to end earlier.
Mr Cairns insisted Wales would receive its “fair share” but said a straight replacement of EU cash with funding from another source “misses the point”.
He said:
“[Simply] replacing what are currently EU funds as one source with another source from Westminster misses the point: the EU referendum sent out a number of messages; those areas that receive most EU funds were the areas, sadly, that voted strongest to leave the European Union. We need to look at models of regional aid in a different way.”In other words we made the wrong choice and now will suffer from it despite the LEAVE campaign promises ,made only a month ago
Or is Mr Cairns saying that voters in Wales voted to leave because they felt that EU money was not effective and we could do better with less money but directed by the"highly efficient government" at Westminster?
In an open letter, on June 14 leave campaigners including Boris Johnson, Michael Gove and Priti Patel - assured Welsh people and organisations there's "more than enough money".
If the public votes to leave on 23 June, we will continue to fund EU programmes in the UK until 2020, or up to the date when the EU is due to conclude individual programmes if that is earlier than 2020.
– VOTE LEAVE
In the letter, campaigners also claim to take back control of UK taxpayers’ money, improve funding mechanisms and priorities the NHS.
Leader of the Welsh Conservatives - Andrew RT Davies commented on the announcement saying we need to take control of our own money.
Today's announcement is hugely welcome, and is further evidence that Wales would be better off out of the European Union.
Despite the First Minister's fantasy claims, we now know that funding for each and every part of the UK, including Wales, would be safe if we vote to leave.– ANDREW RT DAVIES
Shadow Welsh Secretary Paul Flynn (now that something I didn't think i'd ever write) sought to hike up the pressure, saying:
“The Secretary of State’s answers have been predictably vacuous and ambiguous. Could I give him a chance to boost his promotion hopes today by giving a straight answer and flout all parliamentary traditions. Brexit is perilous to Wales, especially to the steel industry.“There will be an immediate loss of £600m, and there might be further losses later. The simple question is, and a one-word answer will do: Will he guarantee that Wales will not lose any of the funding that it has now under Brexit?”There may be some Nationalist here who will feel that BREXIT will be an opportunity to point out just how Bad for Wales is an enhance the Independence call'
It may well be the case; However I can forsee Unionist using the chaos that will result from BREXIT including a rerun to Austerity to warm us and particularly Scotland that a similar result would ( in their opinion) occur after a YES vote for Independence .
We will have the likes pf Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson (Don't Laugh) arguing that the mess that he and his LEAVE colleagues has led us into, obviously shows that we should not change the constitutional make up of the UK.
It may sound ridiculous (and it is ) but then so was the claim that Wales would see the same EU funding being replaced like for like by the LEAVE camp during the BREXIT referendum.
Will the people of Wales and Scotland fall for it? The former alas may well do so. but with a Unionist Media and a Labour Party making the same case as the Tories. Who is to say that those waivers in a Scottish Indyref 2 might also do so.
1 comment:
The Westminster Establishment have been swift and merciless - as is their usual practice - in shutting down speculation, discussion and any room for dissent. "Brexit means Brexit." Those of the Establishment that are in the Labour party, though, have been less successful, so far, and even though the coup may yet end in tears, I don't think that many at Westminster would mind very much.
We'll see, though, how things will work out in the longer term. Its our job, now, to bring to the attention of the ordinary voter (in all areas of all parties) the disaster that awaits, and that their own self interest will benefit from distancing ourselves to the greatest degree possible from the Broken Parliament and its Imperial Establishment.
HMO
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