Welsh Trade Unions And The Welsh Labour Party. Time For A Split?

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

Welsh trade unions and the Labour party have been entwined for over a century. And understandably so. But as the disunited kingdom contemplates the possibility of a long dark Brexit of the soul then perhaps this partnership should not now be as strong a it was.

And, like the majority of Welsh voters (though it is declining) this support is mainly due now to what the Labour party has done in the past. It cannot be argued that in the past the Labour Party was the party for ordinary men and women. Hence it got the people's votes and most of the unions political monies.

But that was then and this is now. Past performance does not justify the votes and finances of the arrogantly incompetent Labour party of the present.

Look at the workers at the Ford Engine plant in Bridgend who are soon to be made redundant. Did they see the Welsh Labour party swing into action when the first signs in 2017 that there was a problem? No. They give Ford money to deal with the consequences of Brexit (which as I posted at the time raised questions in itself) and what good did it give those soon to be redundant workers?

Remember when the news of the redundancies first came out the comments from Welsh Labour figures (including former First Minister and local Assembly member Carwyn Jones) gave statements which were just nothing of substance.

I can give you other examples. When the announcement Tesco call centre in Cardiff was to be closed down Carwyn Jones did not know it was coming and Labour did not fight to the death to keep it open. Similarly the soon to be closed call centre in Swansea. Where was the fight from the Welsh government for the workers? I don't know whether they had union membership there (and if not Welsh Unions you should ask why) but I'd guess they're feeling betrayed by "the people's party" now.

(And by the way I still think people in Wales should boycott Virgin media for this)

So this political levy. Why can't some of it go to Plaid Cymru? Why does it have to be (in terms of political parties) Welsh Labour? After all no one would call Plaid Cymru conservative. It will have the interests of the Welsh people and those who have made their home here at heart. Plaid who tried to get zero hours contracts abolished in Wales where Labour, Labour please note, voted against.

More people are considering independence as an option for Wales.
Unlike Labour Plaid is not a party of the establishment. It will not cocoon itself in Cardiff Bay as the rest of the nation suffers. It will go out and battle for the best outcome. Not make meaningless statements of nothing as jobs are under threat.

So perhaps trade unions in Wales it's time for a split. No longer make alliances based on a glorious past but of an independent future instead.

Until the next time.