So True Wales have decided that one line of attack they will use to make people vote "No" is to remind us voter about all those AM's with their snouts in the trough spending all those expenses. It could prove an useful argument for them, after all what voter wants to see their money being used to fund someones excessive second home, food and hotel expenditure?
It could be worse you know. Imagine if those AM's claimed 5 times more expenses than they currently do! Sound insane? Well it is possible, all they need to do is change to a very similar job in London. If they want advice about how to do so, then I know who they can ask...
Average AM Expenses Claim inc Travel: £6,682.73
Maximum Expenses Claim inc Travel Made by any AM: £12,500
True Wales Founder David Davies MP Expenses Claim inc Travel: £33,375
% of AM's claiming more than 99% of the maximum allowance: 16%
% of maximum allowance claimed by True Wales Founder David Davies MP: 99.96%
Can I hear someone saying "hypocrite"?
(David Davies MP Expenses figures from here)
Showing posts with label Referendum. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Referendum. Show all posts
Wednesday, 15 October 2008
Monday, 13 October 2008
The Irony of Truth
The laughably named True Wales now have a website! It doesn't contain much yet, but it's already a step further than the Yes campaign. Interesting to read their Vision Statement though:
It's also interesting to note their vision that every LCO should have a referendum on it. Are they mad? We're talking anything between 5 and 11 LCO's a year, how many millions do they intend to spend on referendums (seeing as how they've declared themselves the protector of public money)?
Betsan also comments on the lies and slights of hand printed in the No Campaign's first door to door leaflets. It makes a mockery of their name, "True" Wales indeed. It's also interesting to note which part of Wales has received these scaremongering pamphlets. The leafy suburbs of the South-East, the most likely of areas to vote No and therefore the least likely to pick up on the spin and deceit in the No leaflets.
The problem is that while the two Davids are peddling lies and innuendo the Yes campaign is still waiting to be launched. What's that saying about lies being able to run twice around the world before the truth puts it's shoes on? We need a Yes Campaign now, not tomorrow.
VISION STATEMENT
Wait a second..."restoration of a cohesive, tolerant society"? "No place for discrimination or prejudice"? I thought this was supposed to be a No campaign for the referendum? Is the implication supposed to be therefore that those who want a Yes vote are discriminatory, prejudiced bigots? That's the picture True Wales seems to be painting.Our Wales is a beautiful, diverse country which belongs to all who live here. There are many versions of 'Welshness', all to be respected and celebrated. We believe in equality and fairness for all citizens, regardless of linguistic preference, ethnicity, faith, political persuasion or gender.
There is no place in our Wales for discrimination or prejudice against any group or country. We value all the settlers who have contributed to our cultural diversity and our shared heritage within the United Kingdom.
True Wales advocates:
- spending priorities that reflect the needs of all the people
- restoration of a cohesive, tolerant society
- no increase in the current number of AMs and MPs
- keeping the Secretary of State for Wales
- the maintenance of a strong position within the United Kingdom
- that any application to draw down Legislative Competence Orders from the United Kingdom Government must have the support of the majority of Welsh people
It's also interesting to note their vision that every LCO should have a referendum on it. Are they mad? We're talking anything between 5 and 11 LCO's a year, how many millions do they intend to spend on referendums (seeing as how they've declared themselves the protector of public money)?
Betsan also comments on the lies and slights of hand printed in the No Campaign's first door to door leaflets. It makes a mockery of their name, "True" Wales indeed. It's also interesting to note which part of Wales has received these scaremongering pamphlets. The leafy suburbs of the South-East, the most likely of areas to vote No and therefore the least likely to pick up on the spin and deceit in the No leaflets.
The problem is that while the two Davids are peddling lies and innuendo the Yes campaign is still waiting to be launched. What's that saying about lies being able to run twice around the world before the truth puts it's shoes on? We need a Yes Campaign now, not tomorrow.
Sunday, 12 October 2008
Poll Ponderings
Next up is a new poll data for us to pore through. The Assembly Commission's huge poll asked people, once again, about their views on the Welsh Assembly, a Parliament and independence.
Andrew R T Davies will take a small fall from his high horse with the news that support for independence doubles in the under 24's, but much more interesting is the party by party data, but any pleasure Plaid will get from that would be cancelled out by the fact that the poll states that only 27% of their own voters want independence.
Peter Hain told us just last week that:
The most bizarre finding though is that 2% of Plaid voters want to scrap devolution all together. Do they know who they're voting for?!
Note: The call for a Yes campaign increased today with the launch of an online cross-party group calling for a referendum, see here. Not being a Facebookian myself I can't join but I hope you do!
Andrew R T Davies will take a small fall from his high horse with the news that support for independence doubles in the under 24's, but much more interesting is the party by party data, but any pleasure Plaid will get from that would be cancelled out by the fact that the poll states that only 27% of their own voters want independence.
Peter Hain told us just last week that:
“Welsh Labour members – and even more Welsh Labour voters – are currently overwhelmingly against an early referendum, and I do not see that changing for some years to come.”Some asked at the time where he got that piece of information from and it seems even more codswallop than before today as the poll discovers that only a third of Labour voters would vote No. 50% of Labour voters want a Parliament or independence. As I said last week, Peter Hain is nowhere near the wavelength that his party's members are on.
The most bizarre finding though is that 2% of Plaid voters want to scrap devolution all together. Do they know who they're voting for?!
Note: The call for a Yes campaign increased today with the launch of an online cross-party group calling for a referendum, see here. Not being a Facebookian myself I can't join but I hope you do!
Thursday, 9 October 2008
Why Use The Stick?
Rhetoric Innes comments on Peter Black's speech and repeats the mistakes Peter did in that speech.
As I posted yesterday I think that what Peter said needed saying and I agree with most of it. But it makes it harder for me to see it as a honest, passionate plea for a Yes campaign when he peppered it with petty point-scoring.
What on earth does London's mad ID-card scheme have to do with establishing a Yes campaign, or Edwina's new Health policy. Even more bizarre, what do ASBO's and curfews have to do with it?| Nothing of course, but I guess that as a politician Peter Black is unable of resisting the urge to try and score points.
Does Peter honestly believe that the best way to get Rhodri and Ieuan to start a cross-party campaign with his Liberal Democrats by calling them "devo-doubters" and by slagging them off on affordable homes and "Y Byd". His speech should have been a call to Labour and Plaid to work together along with the Lib Dems to bring forth a Yes campaign, not just an attempt to bash them in public.
Rhetoric Innes does the exact same thing, stating that:
If you want everyone to co-operate and work together for the good of a Yes campaign, don;t start by slagging them all off in an attempt for party political gain.
As I posted yesterday I think that what Peter said needed saying and I agree with most of it. But it makes it harder for me to see it as a honest, passionate plea for a Yes campaign when he peppered it with petty point-scoring.
What on earth does London's mad ID-card scheme have to do with establishing a Yes campaign, or Edwina's new Health policy. Even more bizarre, what do ASBO's and curfews have to do with it?| Nothing of course, but I guess that as a politician Peter Black is unable of resisting the urge to try and score points.
Does Peter honestly believe that the best way to get Rhodri and Ieuan to start a cross-party campaign with his Liberal Democrats by calling them "devo-doubters" and by slagging them off on affordable homes and "Y Byd". His speech should have been a call to Labour and Plaid to work together along with the Lib Dems to bring forth a Yes campaign, not just an attempt to bash them in public.
Rhetoric Innes does the exact same thing, stating that:
If you are reading this outside of Wales. It is the Welsh Liberal democrats who are at the fore of Pro-Devolution. The Separatist Plaid Cymru do not want this compromise. Both the Welsh Conservatives and Welsh Labour do not recognise or choose not to recognise that Separatist Nationalism will increase under a Tory government with people in Wales feeling disenfranchised at being ruled by a government they largely did not vote in.Yes it gives us all a good laugh to imagine the Lib Dems being at the fore of anything, but again you have to ask whether calling Plaid "separatist" and telling the Tories that they'll be a government that nobody wants is the best way to promote a cross-party campaign.
If you want everyone to co-operate and work together for the good of a Yes campaign, don;t start by slagging them all off in an attempt for party political gain.
Wednesday, 8 October 2008
I Say Yes, You Say No
Peter Black made a speech in Plenary today calling for the establishment of a Yes campaign for further powers - I can't agree more.
The One Wales Agreements commits the government to a referendum before 2011 with the caveat that they can pull out if they think they'll lose it. I understand the need for the caveat, if it was clear that a referendum would end up in a 1979 drubbing then it would set back further devolution for a decade or two. But there's an increasing worry that Labour and Plaid are planning to rely on that clause just because they cannot be guaranteed of a win.
That is poppycock.
Washed-up Has-been Peter Hain is telling us that there shouldn't be a referendum before 2011 because people don't want further powers. Of course what he really means is that Labour MP's don't want further powers. When he says that the majority of Labour members and voters are against it then he should cast his mind back to last year when his party's members voted for the One Wales Agreement by about 79% to 21%. If it was only Peter Hain making that argument then it would be easy enough to ignore, nobody listens to him anymore anyway (as proven by the 79% who wanted a coalition with Plaid even though Peter had ruled it out, and that was before his disgrace and resignation). But he isn't the only one saying it. We keep hearing that we need to be sure we'll win before we announce a referendum, that we need to be sure that we'll win before we launch a Yes campaign.
That is poppycock.
The whole point, the only point, of a Yes campaign is to convince Welsh voters that further powers is a good thing and that they should vote Yes (that's why we call it a "Yes" campaign!). Unless we put forward the case for further powers, the undecided voters will not be convinced. How can we win enough support to be guaranteed a victory if we never start campaigning for a Yes vote? It simply makes no sense.
Polls and research show more people supportive of further powers than are against it. There's enough undecided to swing the vote either way. But there's no use sitting on our arses waiting for those undecided to switch to the Yes camp, the only way that will happen is if we set up a Yes camp and start using our energies to convince them it's worth voting Yes.
It's about time Rhodri and Ieuan pulled their finger out and start putting the case for further powers.
The One Wales Agreements commits the government to a referendum before 2011 with the caveat that they can pull out if they think they'll lose it. I understand the need for the caveat, if it was clear that a referendum would end up in a 1979 drubbing then it would set back further devolution for a decade or two. But there's an increasing worry that Labour and Plaid are planning to rely on that clause just because they cannot be guaranteed of a win.
That is poppycock.
Washed-up Has-been Peter Hain is telling us that there shouldn't be a referendum before 2011 because people don't want further powers. Of course what he really means is that Labour MP's don't want further powers. When he says that the majority of Labour members and voters are against it then he should cast his mind back to last year when his party's members voted for the One Wales Agreement by about 79% to 21%. If it was only Peter Hain making that argument then it would be easy enough to ignore, nobody listens to him anymore anyway (as proven by the 79% who wanted a coalition with Plaid even though Peter had ruled it out, and that was before his disgrace and resignation). But he isn't the only one saying it. We keep hearing that we need to be sure we'll win before we announce a referendum, that we need to be sure that we'll win before we launch a Yes campaign.
That is poppycock.
The whole point, the only point, of a Yes campaign is to convince Welsh voters that further powers is a good thing and that they should vote Yes (that's why we call it a "Yes" campaign!). Unless we put forward the case for further powers, the undecided voters will not be convinced. How can we win enough support to be guaranteed a victory if we never start campaigning for a Yes vote? It simply makes no sense.
Polls and research show more people supportive of further powers than are against it. There's enough undecided to swing the vote either way. But there's no use sitting on our arses waiting for those undecided to switch to the Yes camp, the only way that will happen is if we set up a Yes camp and start using our energies to convince them it's worth voting Yes.
It's about time Rhodri and Ieuan pulled their finger out and start putting the case for further powers.
Sunday, 5 October 2008
Can Never Change His Spots
I didn't see the Politics Show today, but apparently Peter Hain appeared on the show and stated that he would argue against a referendum in Wales before 2011, even though the Welsh branch of his party had voted for one. His reasoning was that there was division in Labour about the subject and that without the support of the whole of Labour the referendum would be lost. In other words, instead of trying to convince his colleagues that a successful referendum would be good for Wales, instead of setting out to prove his colleagues wrong, Peter Hain wants to do exactly what he did in drafting the Government of Wales Act 2006 and put the unity of the Labour party before the good of Wales. I can't say I'm surprised, I just hope that Labour's Assembly group ignore the busted flush member for Neath.
The Double Century post!
The Double Century post!
Thursday, 25 September 2008
True To Their Word
Apparently we now have a wannabe official No campaign. (Such campaigns are not official until the Electoral Commission specifies them as "the chosen one", that won't happen until we actually have a referendum called).
It seems that someone had a quiet word in David Davies' ear about his suggestion of going with the slogan "Wales for the Union" so the name is now "True Wales". While the idea behind the name is that:
As a flashback to 1997 True Wales is led by a Tory and an unknown Labour Councillor (what happened, was even Llew Smith refusing to work with you David?). Apparently the group consists of Labour, Tories and Independents, although no names yet apart from those two - I wonder if there will be anyone else we've heard of (apart from the other Welsh Tory MP's, who we can safely assume will follow David anywhere).
So what kind of debate can we expect from True Wales? The fact that they're already talking of representing those who wish to stay in UK gives you a hint of what their tactic will be. The same theme can be seen in these two recent statements from True Wales' leading men:
Will the formation of True Wales mean a Yes campaign is set up soon? There will be lot of pressure on Labour and Plaid to form one but don't hold your breath, I have a feeling the One Wales Government has decided to wait until after the All Wales Convention before they make any such move. While that may or may not be a good idea, those in favour of a Yes vote should better start banging their drums a little louder, even if the first signs from the No campaign seem a bit weak. After all, it's important that they remember that the 1997 No campaign that so very nearly derailed devolution was also lead by an unknown Labour Councillor from the Valleys.
It seems that someone had a quiet word in David Davies' ear about his suggestion of going with the slogan "Wales for the Union" so the name is now "True Wales". While the idea behind the name is that:
"members felt that those who support Wales' presence in the United Kingdom have been for too long unfairly categorised as "anti-Welsh". True Wales aims to represent the true feelings of the huge majority of people in Wales who wish to remain in the United Kingdom"Hmm....representing the huge majority of people in Wales who wish to remain in the UK? Funny, I thought that we were talking about a referendum on further powers, something that apparently more of "people in Wales" (not "Welsh people" note) support than oppose.
As a flashback to 1997 True Wales is led by a Tory and an unknown Labour Councillor (what happened, was even Llew Smith refusing to work with you David?). Apparently the group consists of Labour, Tories and Independents, although no names yet apart from those two - I wonder if there will be anyone else we've heard of (apart from the other Welsh Tory MP's, who we can safely assume will follow David anywhere).
So what kind of debate can we expect from True Wales? The fact that they're already talking of representing those who wish to stay in UK gives you a hint of what their tactic will be. The same theme can be seen in these two recent statements from True Wales' leading men:
"...the devastating impact separation from Britain would have on Wales."
"Granting full lawmaking powers to the Assembly would be a huge step along the rocky road to full independence for Wales, which is what many people in the Yes camp actually want. Make no mistake – independence would drag Wales down to Soviet-style poverty"So expect True Wales to try and turn the referendum into one on independence instead of debating what the referendum actually is for, a devolved Parliament, weaker than that of Scotland. It also seems that they'll colour this theme with sweeping statements like above, telling us that there is no way on God's earth Wales could survive a Yes vote and independence without becoing a third world ghetto.
Will the formation of True Wales mean a Yes campaign is set up soon? There will be lot of pressure on Labour and Plaid to form one but don't hold your breath, I have a feeling the One Wales Government has decided to wait until after the All Wales Convention before they make any such move. While that may or may not be a good idea, those in favour of a Yes vote should better start banging their drums a little louder, even if the first signs from the No campaign seem a bit weak. After all, it's important that they remember that the 1997 No campaign that so very nearly derailed devolution was also lead by an unknown Labour Councillor from the Valleys.
Thursday, 4 September 2008
Wales For Whom?
A few weeks ago I asked this:
As someone who will vote, and probably do some campaigning, for the Yes campaign my reaction to this news is: BRILLIANT!
Firstly it will hopefully jolt Labour and Plaid Cymru to actually move on the issue and set up the Yes campaign. While the All Wales Convention trundles along anyone with a calendar can see that by the time they finish there won't be much times for a campaign and vote before 2011 so let's get the ball rolling on the campaigning side.
Secondly, it's David Davies, the eternal clown of Welsh politics. The very fact that he wants to call the campaign "Wales for the Union" shows how out of touch the man is. While the Yes/No split is relatively close at the moment, the way to bolster the Yes vote is certainly not to make voters think that they're voting for the Union if they vote No. The way to convince people to vote No is to say that it is a vote for Wales, to protect Wales, to improve Wales - not to tell them that they're voting for the Union. If David Davies starts printing posters with "Wales for the Union. Vote No" on them then all the Yes campaign need to do to win is print posters with "Wales for Wales. Vote Yes" and they'll have the referendum in the bag!
Finally, it's David Davies (yes I know I've already said that but bear with me!). As I explained in my previous post the Electoral Commission will have to chose a campaign group to be the official group. David Davies is clearly angling to be the man who leads the group. For a strong No campaign he will need cross party support. Clearly there is cross party support for a No campaign, at least Tory/Labour - I'm not as confident as David is that he'll have the support of many Lib Dems, but how many of those will want to be linked to David Davies? While Llew Smith may well be happy to throw his hat in, how will Chris Bryant or Ian Lucas feel about getting into bed with their Tory counterparts?
Interesting times!
The second question that has to be asked is: Who on earth will run the No campaign this time round? The Electoral Commission gets to decide which No group is to be the "official" one they will be seriously hindered this time round by the fact that there will be no major party to start the campaign. Highlights of the 1997 count gave us Michael Ancram and Nick Bourne (how times have changed!) telling us how bad devolution would be - who will be the criticiser in chief this time round? It seems that the No campaign will have to be lead by Labour Welsh MP's who desperately tried to stop the One Wales Coalition and their Tory counterparts.Well David Davies MP has decided that he wants to be the No campaign's knight on a white horse and has declared that he will be launching the No campaign. He has already had what he describes as "tentative talks with one ex-Labour MP" (in other words - Llew Smith!) and he's open to suggestions for a name for the No campaign. His personal favorite is "Wales for the Union".
As someone who will vote, and probably do some campaigning, for the Yes campaign my reaction to this news is: BRILLIANT!
Firstly it will hopefully jolt Labour and Plaid Cymru to actually move on the issue and set up the Yes campaign. While the All Wales Convention trundles along anyone with a calendar can see that by the time they finish there won't be much times for a campaign and vote before 2011 so let's get the ball rolling on the campaigning side.
Secondly, it's David Davies, the eternal clown of Welsh politics. The very fact that he wants to call the campaign "Wales for the Union" shows how out of touch the man is. While the Yes/No split is relatively close at the moment, the way to bolster the Yes vote is certainly not to make voters think that they're voting for the Union if they vote No. The way to convince people to vote No is to say that it is a vote for Wales, to protect Wales, to improve Wales - not to tell them that they're voting for the Union. If David Davies starts printing posters with "Wales for the Union. Vote No" on them then all the Yes campaign need to do to win is print posters with "Wales for Wales. Vote Yes" and they'll have the referendum in the bag!
Finally, it's David Davies (yes I know I've already said that but bear with me!). As I explained in my previous post the Electoral Commission will have to chose a campaign group to be the official group. David Davies is clearly angling to be the man who leads the group. For a strong No campaign he will need cross party support. Clearly there is cross party support for a No campaign, at least Tory/Labour - I'm not as confident as David is that he'll have the support of many Lib Dems, but how many of those will want to be linked to David Davies? While Llew Smith may well be happy to throw his hat in, how will Chris Bryant or Ian Lucas feel about getting into bed with their Tory counterparts?
Interesting times!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
