Continuing the “Devil’s Advocate” series – looking closer at some of the arguments which will be, or are being, used against Welsh independence – I turn to perhaps the oldest one of the lot.
It’s a point of view that’s always been popular to a certain degree – though you can make the argument that it’s become less popular in the last few years – and it’s that devolution proves that independence would be a big mistake.
There are some things here that are beyond anyone’s control.
If you believe in democracy, then you have to accept that people will vote for political parties and policies you don’t like. If, before or after independence, people vote in Labour governments or individual politicians that rub you up the wrong way then that’s their will. That doesn’t mean the political landscape – party-wise – would remain the same after independence.
Opinions on the quality of politicians and political debate are subjective – someone who would be written off by some as a poor MS or councillor would likely be hailed by someone else as a good one. If people are convinced now that the quality of politicians is poor and there are too many of them already, it’s unlikely they would change their minds regarding independence.
The key to addressing some of these problems starts with accepting there’s a problem in the first place. The Senedd and Welsh politics more generally are far from perfect – though it’s unrealistic to expect them to be.
The obvious area to focus on here would be the constitution (A Welsh Constitution) including:
- The electoral system – Introducing a wholly proportional voting system to prevent one-party dominance and encourage coalition working at all levels of government.
- Reform of local government – A presumption in favour of power being exercised as locally as possible. This should include granting more statutory powers and bigger budgets to councils and even considering things like the creation of federal states/cantons in Wales.
- A review of the number and distribution of elected officials at all levels of government – When you count community councillors, county councillors, PCCs, MSs and MPs there are around 9,400 elected offices in Wales. Any and all means to cut that number should be explored. Bridgend will have 51 county councillors from May – the same number as New York City.
- A review of standards in public life – This could include constitutional clauses relating to the standards expected of politicians (such as a mandatory recall procedure), confirmation hearings for key public appointments, strengthened powers for scrutiny committees, making contempt of parliament an actionable offence and the introduction of a Standards in Public Life Tribunal to replace current standards committees and the Adjudication Panel.
- Public broadcasting & public information – A properly resourced Welsh public broadcasting system and media to improve scrutiny and accountability, as well as open access to government information and citizenship and political education in schools (by this I don’t mean party politics, more like political theory, the mechanics of government, policy ethics, controversial social issues etc.).
- Improvements to civil service recruitment and training – This could include further developing the school of government idea in the Labour-Plaid agreement.
Do you know what the best part about this is? With some exceptions, the Senedd and Welsh Government could do a lot of the above now without the need for independence.
