Wednesday 13 May 2020

Welsh Democracy is at risk and we must rally to defend it.

Though an English Tory MP's call for the Welsh Parliament to be abolished has been described as "wrong and unhelpful" by a Welsh colleague in the Commons it does seem that  the defiance of the Welsh Government in not automatically folwing the irresponsible policy of Boris Johnson 
Shrewsbury and Atcham MP Daniel Kawczynski said he was fed up of Wales having different rules to England.
The BBC reports that 
Unlike in Wales, people in England can drive to "other destinations" to exercise from Wednesday.
Montgomeryshire MP Craig Williams said Mr Kawczynski should not be questioning the "fundamentals of Welsh democracy".
Calling for for the scrapping of the Senedd, Mr Kawczynski had said the 
"current gap emerging" during the coronavirus crisis resulted in "the prime minister saying to my constituents you can now go for a walk on the beach, but you are prohibited from going across the frontier to get to our nearest coast".
"I am sorry but the time has come to reach out as Conservatives to large numbers of like-minded citizens in Wales who like us believe in one system for both nations," he said.
"We must work towards another referendum to scrap the Welsh Assembly and return to one political system for both nations - a political union between England and Wales."
The assembly was renamed Senedd Cymru - Welsh Parliament this month.
 he comments have already been rejected by Welsh Secretary Simon Hart and Conservative Senedd leader Paul Davies.Mr Hart told BBC Radio Wales on Monday the abolition call was "not a sentiment which has added much value to this really important discussion".
On Twitter, Mr Davies wrote: "No. This is not our party's policy".
Now, in a letter to Mr Kawczynski, Mr Williams said a number of constituents had raised his "thought-provoking insight into UK constitutional affairs".
Mr Williams tells his Conservative colleague we should "respect that the Welsh Government and Welsh Parliament can, and will, exercise their constitutional powers, granted through multiple referendums by the people of Wales".
"The time for serious debate and inquiry into the effect of this divergence is not for now," the Montgomeryshire MP writes.
"It will come later. In the meantime, to question the fundamentals of Welsh democracy because of any divergence is wrong and unhelpful."
So far from defending the Senedd and Welsh Democracy Mr Williams appears to be simply saying now is not the time for the Tories to seek revenge  on Wales for falling in line with the Scottish Government , rather than the Westminster (England) line.

The "Welsh" Media seems to have fallen in line in taking the Westminster line  and some have raised the possibility that Wales Online may be using more "journalist" from the parent Trinity Mirror company than those actually based in Wales during the crisis 9an it may well remain so.

Whether the Tories are actually considering abolishing the Senedd or it is a veiled threat for the Welsh Government to fall in line , remains to be seen but I wouldn't trust them with the future of Welsh democracy.

As for Scotland it they may believe that the Scottish Parliament is unassailable and any move against it will lead to an  immediate rise in support and vote for independence.

Welsh Democracy is at risk and we must rally to defend it.

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