Welsh Labour are currently having their spring conference in Llandudno.
Given that latest polls suggest that they're going to almost completely wipe out the Tories in the next election there was a buoyant mood among delegates as both First Minister Mark Drakeford and UK leader Keir Starmer addressed the conference. However, below the carefully stage-managed speeches and the applause there is a lot going on which will have a real impact on people in Wales and our lives.
Read more: Keir Starmer promises to give Wales power back over replacement EU funds
These are some of the key takeaways of the conference so far:
There are clear flashpoints under the surface between Welsh and UK Labour
Though both Mark Drakeford and Keir Starmer were immensely complimentary of each other during their speeches, there are clearly areas where they disagree. Perhaps understandably, the overwhelming aim of Starmer is to win the next election. Clearly he sees being fiscally prudent as a key part of this and this has led to an unwillingness to make spending commitments that he will later regret.
In an interview with WalesOnline, he refused to commit to giving Wales its fair share of HS2 funding or any more money for the Welsh NHS until closer to the election. Given that the Welsh Labour Government has repeatedly said that without more NHS funding it will be very hard to end the crisis in the health service, this will be disappointing to Mark Drakeford. Given that even the Welsh Tories are asking for a fair share of HS2 funding (and it is clear Wales has been shafted over the lack of a HS2 consequential) it will be doubly disappointing his stance on this.
Speaking to WalesOnline after Sir Keir made the comments, Mark Drakeford said that it would be a "negotiation". He said: "I certainly understand that an incoming Labour government will inherit the most unholy mess left behind by Liz Truss, and 13 years of austerity. So it can never be a matter of Welsh Labour asks and UK Labour says yes, it's a negotiation, it's a discussion. It's an unconcluded discussion. So we go on making the case, Keir and his team have to weigh up, not simply the things that we will be putting to him, but what people in Scotland, Manchester and Liverpool etc will be putting to him."
Other areas of disagreement came in the form of introducing a more proportional voting system for elections. Mark Drakeford, a long standing supporter of proportional representation, used a great deal of his speech talking about the virtues of a more proportional system. However this was the only part of the First Minister's speech which didn't bring forth support from Keir Starmer.
Mark Drakeford stole the show when it came to the speeches
Keir Starmer's speech was as you would expect. It hit some key points, kept people's eyes on the prize, managed expectations and gave a bit of red meat to the Welsh crowd in the form of giving control over former EU money to the Welsh Government. It was warmly received by the audience.
However, Mark Drakeford possibly delivered one of his finest speeches as leader of Welsh Labour. Set against the backdrop of his wife's recent and sudden death, he came across with a real warmth and humanity. When his voice cracked as he spoke about his grief, the whole crowd rose to their feet to applaud him. He later became emotional in an interview with WalesOnline but managed to keep it together which should, wherever you stand on the political spectrum, be worthy of your respect.
Though Starmer is popular within most of the party (hard to be hated when you are on course for a stonking majority), Mark Drakeford is seen by Labour members, particularly in Wales, in an almost talismanic way. You could feel the real love many in the Welsh party have for him.
Singing from the same hymn sheet on the union
Both Starmer and Drakeford were speaking as one when it came to the need to defend the Union. Starmer told the conference: "Don’t underestimate how important your qualities are for renewing the bonds of a Labour Britain. Nobody should pretend the case against Britain, against our union, is as advanced here as it is in Scotland.
"But nor should we ignore the fact that it does find a voice in this nation as well. Yes, those qualities help keep it at bay. But to defeat it comprehensively we need something else. We need hope. Not a grandiose, utopian dream, kind of hope – I don’t mean that. I mean the basic, ordinary hope, we used to take for granted. The sort of hope you can build your future around, that aspirations are made of."
Drakeford went even further saying that more devolution was needed to safeguard the union. He said: "If Labour is to save the union, we can’t do that by defending the status quo. By nervously hoarding power at the centre as this Tory government has done time and again.
"Rather, it is by building a new partnership of equals based on mutual respect. A partnership that has the confidence to redistribute power and opportunity – radically – to every community, every nation, every part of our country."
Look at our record...no not that one
Walking around conference you would be under the impression that all is well in the party. Governing in Wales and on course for a majority in Westminster. Mark Drakeford started his speech by mentioning a few of the party's achievements in office and Starmer repeatedly pointed to how much could be learned from the Welsh party.
What has been conspicuously missing is any meaningful debate about the utter shambles of public services that the government is presiding over in Wales - especially in the health service. The overwhelming narrative has been, "once the Tories are out, all will be well". But if, as Starmer suggested, additional cash is not forthcoming, the Welsh Government will have far fewer places to hide when it comes to defending Wales' failing health service.
Not that Mark Drakeford seems concerned, speaking to WalesOnline he said: "I am very confident that the next Labour government will invest again, in our public services. If you look at what happened back in 1997, it was a decade of investment that led to record levels of satisfaction in the health service in England and in Wales. So I am not expecting that the tap will be turned on in this torrent of money. What I do expect, and I'm sure Keir expects, is that over the term, not just one but two Labour governments at least we will see that steady restoration of investment in our public services."
Read next:
- Living and dying in pain: The victims of Wales' NHS waiting list scandal
Adam Price says Plaid Cymru 'must do better' after accusations about party's culture
The £3.90 fry-up Welsh politicians can enjoy that makes a mockery of plans to make us eat healthily
Wales' Future Generations Commissioner's jet-setting flights round the world
