Radical reform must include devolution of powers to Wales’ – Plaid Cymru
Radical reform must include devolution of powers to Wales’ – Plaid Cymru
Liz Saville Roberts responds to the Home Secretary’s proposed policing reforms in the Commons
In response to the Home Secretary, Shabana Mahmood’s statement in the House of Commons today (Monday 26 January), Plaid Cymru Westminster Leader Liz Saville Roberts MP said that this was “exactly the right time” for the devolution of policing to Wales.
The Home Secretary said that these changes to how policing works are the most significant in around 200 years, with a transformation in the structure of forces, the standards within them, and the means by which they are held to account by the public.
Liz Saville Roberts said in the chamber that the white paper recognises that changes to policing governance and crime prevention in Wales will have to reflect the existence of over a quarter of a century of devolution. However, the extent of the implications of these reforms on Wales is unclear.
Plaid Cymru has long argued that policing and justice should be devolved to Wales, in line with arrangements already in place in Scotland and Northern Ireland. As Ms Saville Roberts pointed out in the chamber this afternoon, the cross-party Silk Commission report in 2014 recommended the devolution of policing powers, as did as the Thomas Commission in 2019, and the Independent Commission on the Constitutional Future of Wales in 2024.
The UK Government has repeatedly rejected these calls, but Ms Saville Roberts made the case for it now as part of the UK Government’s “package of radical changes”.
Speaking in the House of Commons, Liz Saville Roberts MP said:
“The white paper recognises that changes to policing governance and crime prevention in Wales will have to reflect the existence of over a quarter of a century of devolution.
“Meanwhile, three independent commissions have recommended that justice and policing be devolved to Wales.
“Considering around 56% of our police funding already comes from devolved sources – does she not agree that this package of radical changes is exactly the right time for the devolution of policing to Wales?”
In her response, the Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said:
“No I do not.”
Speaking after the session, Liz Saville Roberts MP added:
“The Home Secretary talks up these proposals as radical reform, yet continues to block the devolution of policing to Wales – despite this being an evidence-based position endorsed by three independent commissions over more than a decade. Her response is an ideologically-driven blanket denial of the needs of Wales.
“This flat refusal comes just days after the First Minister of Wales, Eluned Morgan, called for the devolution of justice, exposing the deep divisions and lack of coherence within Labour’s ranks.
“Policing works best when it is accountable to the communities it serves. If ministers are serious about making policing more efficient and effective, they cannot keep ignoring the clear and consistent case for devolution. Any credible programme of radical reform must include the devolution of policing powers to Wales.”