The Welsh Conservatives are "in a dire state", riven by infighting and toxic splits, a columnist for the Daily Telegraph has said. Writing for the London-based newspaper, Kara Kennedy said that the party was a "sinking ship".
Ms Kennedy argued that the Conservatives in Wales were split between those who wanted to "kowtow to the overwhelmingly left-wing majority in Wales" and take a more centrist approach to policy, and the "true blues" who have "dug their heels in, hoping for a genuine Conservative force to return to Wales once more".
Ms Kennedy refers to Mr Sunak’s exclusive opiniohn piece for WalesOnline, regarding his aims to “bring everyone back together” in which he said that as prime minister, he would change his approach to Wales because it “deserves better.” But Ms Kennedy criticised Mr Sunaks’ celebration of his Welsh counterparts who he had said were “doing a fantastic job to hold Labour to account.”
She claims that Andrew RT Davies, the current leader of the Welsh Conservatives, has “been steering a sinking ship for quite some time” and suggests that in this dire state of affairs, some believe “he is holding on for his chance of a knighthood.”
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Ms Kennedy believes that what Wales needs from the next Tory leader is vision and strength. She wrote "Towards the end of his time as leader, Boris had begun to ignore the problems piling up in Cardiff... An injection of energy would be welcomed by these Welsh Tories."
Mr Sunak is said to be the most popular candidate amongst MPs and MSs in Wales, and has received backing from former Welsh Secretary Simon Hart, Brecon and Radnorshire MP Fay Jones, Montgomeryshire MP Craig Williams and Clwyd West MS and Senedd Tory chief whip, Darren Millar. Ms Truss is said to have the backing of Clwyd West MP, David Jones, and Senedd members Janet Finch Saunders and Laura Anne Jones.
In preparation for leadership hustings, contenders Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss, wrote exclusive opinion pieces for WalesOnline, outlining their future plans for Wales. In his opinion piece for WalesOnline, the former Chancellor laid out his policies for Wales and called for an independent Covid inquiry for Wales. He criticised the Labour-Plaid Cymru coalition priority to bring "£100m worth of more politicians" and said that the focus should be on the cost-of-living challenges.
He said: "I have been very honest with people that inflation makes people poorer and we need to bring it down as quickly as possible. I have a plan to tackle it and rebuild the economy, so that we can capitalise on the opportunities that Brexit has given us.
"I want Wales to thrive, and I promise that a government led by me would be the most active UK Government in Wales in history."
In her opinion piece exclusively for WalesOnline, Ms Truss promised that she would work with the Welsh Conservatives in the Senedd to "build an aspiration nation, where everyone from all parts and all backgrounds has the opportunity to realise their dreams." She added that she would help people with the cost of living crisis by starting to "slash" taxes, reverse the rise in National Insurance and create new job opportunities.
Ms Kennedy described the split within the party: “The infighting in the party has become more and more toxic since Boris’ downfall, as half of the party have decided that the only way to win seats is to kowtow to the overwhelmingly Left-wing majority in Wales, taking a more centrist approach to policy.
“The true blues in the party have rightly dug their heels in, hoping for a genuine Conservative force to return to Wales once more."
She added: "Devolution is a breeding ground for nationalism and socialist policies. If either Sunak or Truss wants what is best for the Union, and to embody Thatcher, they will have to take back control of all corners of British Conservatism."
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