The UK Labour party has announced its proposed plans on reforming devolved powers in Westminster including additional powers for Wales. The Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer, described the reforms as the “biggest transfer of power from Westminster” and said they would go ahead if the party wins the next general election.
The recommendations came from a report carried out by former prime minister Gordon Brown. According to the former PM a Labour government would abandon “centuries of centralisation” of power.
In a conference in Leeds on Monday Sir Keir set out a few of the reforms which included shifting 50,000 civil servants out of London as well as abolishing the House of Lords and forming an elected second chamber in its place. In the report Mr Brown said the second chamber in Westminster would play an important role in “ensuring that power cannot be clawed back to the centre by future governments”.
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He also proposed that the second chamber in Westminster would aim to strengthen the Sewel Convention for Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, which prevents the UK Government from interfering in devolved areas. This convention was broken when all three devolved legislatures withheld consent for the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020.
Whereas the main focus seemed to be about “[making] the UK work for Scotland” the report also introduced planned additional powers for Wales. The report stated that the UK Labour party were “mindful” of the fact that the Welsh Government had set up their own Independent Commission on the Constitutional Future of Wales but proposed to “strengthen self-government for a new era” in Wales.
In the report it specified that the Welsh devolution should be “constitutionally protected” by strengthening the Sewel Convention through the proposed second chamber. It would support the enhanced role for Members of the Senedd so that they could “enjoy the same privileges and protections as Members of Parliament in relation to statements made in their proceedings”.
The report also noted that a Labour government would make “new powers” available to the Senedd and the Welsh Government including “embarking upon new powers over youth justice and probation service". They would also enhance access to economic resources for Wales with the British Regional Investment Bank “[maximising] support for innovation and investment in Wales", which would be "in conjunction with the Welsh Development Bank and the European Investment Bank".
The report also went on to criticise the UK Government under former prime minister Boris Johnson's premiership by stating that the current system allows the government to "abuse the power with which it has been entrusted". As a solution the report suggests that radical change is needed to bring "political power closer to the people whom it serves... rebuilding trust in our political system; and ensuring every part of the country can have the same economic opportunities".
In response Plaid Cymru Westminster leader Liz Saville Roberts MP criticised the former prime minister for a “timid” report which she described as “damp squib for Wales”. In a statement, she said: “By offering more powers to Scotland than to Wales Labour is once again showing that how much they are in awe of SNP-run Scotland while taking Labour-run Wales for granted. Scotland is rewarded while Labour is content for Wales to make-do and mend with piecemeal powers. Not only does this report not go far enough but it also backtracks from previous Labour promises – the 2017 Labour manifesto having promised the devolution of policing to Wales.
“The Labour Welsh Government’s Thomas Commission recommended that justice should be wholly devolved and a Welsh legal jurisdiction created. This timid report only offers piecemeal powers over youth justice and probation, showing the level of disdain the central Labour party holds towards the only government it currently runs.
“The undermining of their Labour colleagues in Wales also raises questions as to whether a UK Labour Government would ever properly implement the recommendations of the Welsh Government’s Independent Constitutional Commission. The Labour Welsh Government have supported Plaid Cymru’s policy of devolving powers over the Crown Estate. This report fails to even mention those powers, again treating Wales as less deserving than Scotland.
“This report does nothing to change the fundamental inequalities of the UK. Despite vague promises of giving Senedd and Scottish Parliament members the same status as MPs the report also recommits to the principle of Parliamentary Supremacy. For as long as that fundamental principle remains the Senedd will always be subservient to Westminster. Despite Labour claiming this is the biggest transfer of power away from Westminster it is clearly not to the people of Wales.”
Welsh Conservative leader, Andrew RT Davies, also criticised the report. Following its publication he wrote on Twitter: “The big lie in Labour’s report out today is that places like Wales have not seen growth because of the Conservatives.
“Labour are in charge in Wales. They have been for 25 years. That’s why Wales has the lightest pay packets in Britain. To see the cost of Labour look to Wales.”
During the conference Sir Keir said he would now "refine and test" the suggestions made by the former prime minister with the aim to implement them as policies in the first term of Labour government. When asked to outline one thing in the report that would improve the lives of people in the first day of Labour government Sir Keir said: "This is vitally important if we ask ourselves what is the single biggest thing that is holding us back. It is the failure of economic growth over the last 12 years. I profoundly believe that amongst the causes for that is because we have not allowed and empowered every part of the country to play its part".
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