Senedd Elections 2021

[Evanivitch]

Thought I'd start the conversation off the back of this news article.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-56830...



Not wrong though, is he?

[oakdale]

Evanivitch said:

Thought I'd start the conversation off the back of this news article.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-56830...



Not wrong though, is he?

He's not very good at spelling and grammar is he?

[MG CHRIS]

For the first time in a long time I have no idea who to vote for. I know who I won't be voting and that's labour but the rest haven't covered themselves in glory recently. Might vote abolish tbh.

[elanfan]

Had a UKIP flyer through the door from Neil Hamilton, vote for him to Abolish the assembly. Really considering it. I never voted for it, only 550000 did and was 50.3% of the vote. Voter apathy as none ever believed it would happen. Convinced if there was a vote now it would be bye bye assembly.

Dominated by Labour for 2 0 years, a talking shop and total waste of money. A layer of government we don’t need or want. Wonder who I’ll be voting for?

[Samcat]

Living in North Wales, all I see from the Senedd is Cardiff-based vanity projects that never really seem to come to fruition. The only thing we get here in the North East is stupid speed restrictions in the name of the environment, and free prescriptions!

The 20 years of Labour control has run the Welsh NHS into the ground, Covid has exposed its weakness (in other parts of the UK as well).

So, time for a change then, but will the traditional Welsh Labour voter be swayed in any other direction? I worry that any vote against Labour will be watered down by votes for other minority parties and Labour will get the highest percent, and retain power, there does not seem to be a strong organised opposition to them. From all the other runners who sounds the most organised?

Locally we have:

Abolish the Welsh Assembly Party
Reform UK
Labour
Plaid Cymru
Conservative
Gwlad - The Welsh Independence Party
UKIP Scrap The Assembly/Senedd
Liberal Democrats

[robuk]

Will turnout increase due to the awareness of what is controlled from Cardiff?

[Byker28i]

https://whocanivotefor.co.uk/ tells you your local candidates


Senedd Cymru elections 🗳️
Mid and West Wales region

Abolish The Welsh Assembly Party
Christian Party "Proclaiming Christ's Lordship"
Communist Party of Britain
Conservative and Unionist Party
Freedom Alliance- Integrity, Society, Economy
Green Party
Gwlad
Labour Party
Liberal Democrats
Plaid Cymru - The Party of Wales
Propel
Reform UK
Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition
UK Independence Party (UKIP)


Out of all those - the only person who responded to my letters, who raise my questions in the Senned was Mair Eluned Morgan, Baroness Morgan of Ely, is a Labour Member of the Senedd in the Senedd and the Welsh Government Minister for International Relations and the Welsh Language.

Interesting that...

[elanfan]

The counter That is I went to see Julie Morgan (Labour) former first ministers wife and discussed a problem with her. She nodded and agreed all through the meeting and said she’d get back to me. Never heard from her again, disliked her ever since.

[ATG]

Round here, Powys near English border, the incumbent Tory is ... meh ... bit of a non-entity in the unfortunate position of representing a Welsh party completely bereft of ideas with terrible leadership. Labour are hardly on the radar and are really weak on policy for farming, rural town economics, etc. Irrelevant really. Plaid and Gwlad are fantasists. Greens aren't standing. Lib Dems stand out as having well thought-out, costed policies that focus on helping people to help themselves. They actually engaged with organisations like the NFU and Farmers' Union of Wales to see how they can shape an agricultural and environmental policy that works for farmers as well as everybody else. Contrast that with Labour and their incompetent NVZ policy, for example, or the rock hard policy vacuum from the Conservatives. Lib Dems are proposing tax reform for high street business, sensible stuff for education and health.

Putting aside my traditional party loyalty to the Conservatives and just focusing on the candidates and their parties' manifestos, for me it's a no brainer, and I know quite a few other former Conservative voters round here who feel the same way. Lib Dems should also be the natural choice for any Green or Labour voters in our constituency too if they use their heads.

[Evanivitch]

Have to say I was unaware how many fractures there were in the Welsh national movement.

Plaid, Gwlad and Propel all running a similar line.

[ATG]

Evanivitch said:

Have to say I was unaware how many fractures there were in the Welsh national movement.

Plaid, Gwlad and Propel all running a similar line.

The kind of thinking and outlook that leads someone to believe the policy priority is Welsh independence tends to make them rather bad at forming effective political movements and finding alliances to achieve common goals. If one's natural tendency is to see things in rather simple, stark, black and white terms, if in spite of having some abstract idea of collective Welshness the reality is you're rather individualistic as opposed to cooperative, if your views and decisions are rather more led by your heart than by analysis and pragmatism, then you are frequently going to conclude the solution to everything is f***ing off and doing things by yourself in a fantasy group of like-minded people. Solution to Wales' problems? F*** off on our own. Solution to disagreements with other Welsh nationalists? F*** off on our own and form our own pure, perfect, party. Party turns out not to be perfect in my own opinion? F*** off and start another one.

Judean People's Front (wkers), People's Front of Judea, Judean Popular People's Front, Judean People's Front (he's over there ... SPLITTER!!)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WboggjN_G-4

Edited by ATG on Friday 23 April 17:31

[robuk]

Some of the manifestos are worth a read to see the range of views out there!

eg.

https://gwlad.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Manif...

"By means of residency controls (see later in this
document) it will be possible to stem the flow of
retirees from England into Wales or, even if they come,
then they’d be like those who retire to Spain in that
their pensions and benefits would be paid from
Westminster’s budget rather than Cardiff’s."

[ATG]

It's amazing how many clearly haven't read the manifestos ... of their own bleeding parties. My former local MP, Glyn Davies, is now the Chairman of the Welsh Conservatives. Listen to this sparkling performance. Yes, we'd like to build hospitals but I can't remember where we've said we'll put them and I've no idea how much we say they'll cost nor where we're getting the money. He's not a bad bloke, but my god ... Health care policy in Wales is a huge deal.

https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/conservatives-s...

[Evanivitch]

Little bit of controversy in Bridgend, with a senior member of the Labour campaign team making distasteful comments about an edited photo of the Independent candidate.

The image in question was edited to make the independent candidate look like Hitler.

The independent candidate's wife is Jewish.

[Jasandjules]

Parbold milkperson said:

Will the turnout be very low? Many Labour voters may simply stay at Home in protest At crazy lockdown measures.

I would prefer to see protest votes or votes for anti lockdown parties.

[Byker28i]

Parbold milkperson said:

Will the turnout be very low? Many Labour voters may simply stay at Home in protest At crazy lockdown measures.

I voted by post...

[Parbold milkperson]

Jasandjules said:

I would prefer to see protest votes or votes for anti lockdown parties.

I am sure that you will see that in overwhelming numbers.
I predict that Labour will lose many seats in the North.

[MG CHRIS]

Evanivitch said:

Little bit of controversy in Bridgend, with a senior member of the Labour campaign team making distasteful comments about an edited photo of the Independent candidate.

The image in question was edited to make the independent candidate look like Hitler.

The independent candidate's wife is Jewish.

Why am I not surprised by this from the labour party lost for words really.

[Parbold milkperson]

Why has the independence question suddenly raised its ugly head?

[nordboy]

I voted against the sennedd first time round and ever since. So it’ll be abolish for me again. Mind you, I’m generally disliking all politicians at the moment.

The money that goes through that place and is wasted is phenomenal!! £60m just to run it, for a population of 3m? Total level of politics that’s not needed. Then you have Wales MP’s on top of that. Tbh the only positive i can think of is free prescriptions?