Conservative leadership contender Liz Truss has been criticised for pledging to build a new M4 to the south of Newport if she becomes the next Prime Minister - even though she would not have the power to do it.
At the Conservative Party leadership hustings in Cardiff on Wednesday, foreign secretary Ms Truss heavily criticised Wales' First Minister Mark Drakeford for his decision to scrap the project in 2019 after years in which it had been developed as a proposal to ease traffic congestion around the M4 through Newport.
The plans would have seen a three-lane motorway built on part of the Gwent Levels in Newport. After the project was ditched, in 2020 the South East Wales Transport Commission recommended building six new train stations between Cardiff and Newport to deal with the continuing congestion problems.
Read more: The twists and turns of the £1.3bn M4 relief road that never happened
Many of the levers of power that would be needed to build the road are devolved to the Welsh Government meaning politicians in Westminster do not have the power to force the project through. Former prime minister Boris Johnson previously pledged to build the road which led to Mr Drakeford accusing the UK Government of "pretending" to have the power to do it.
The issue was raised again in last night's Conservative leadership hustings in Cardiff. You can recap our coverage of last night's hustings here.
Ms Truss, who battling former chancellor Rishi Sunak to become the next prime minister, said: "Whether it’s stopping the M4 relief road, whether it’s whacking a tax on our tourist industry, I will crack down on his negativity about Wales and about the United Kingdom. I'm afraid one of them is Mark Drakeford."
"Whether it's stopping the M4 relief road, whether it's whacking a tax on our tourist industry, I will crack down on his negativity about Wales, and about the United Kingdom."
Asked specifically if she would build the M4 relief road, she said: "Yes."
Ms Truss, who said earlier this week that Scottish first minister Nicola Sturgeon was "best ignored", was asked if she would do the same with the first minister in Wales. She said: ""The issue in Wales is different. [It's] that the opportunities being brought forward by UK Government aren't being taken up, like the M4 relief road. That would generate jobs in Wales."
John Griffiths, MS for Newport East, said Westminster politicians pledging to build the road were "arrogant" and accused the UK government of trying to "ride roughshod" over Welsh devolution. Highways and transport are a devolved issue under the terms of the Government of Wales Act 2006 and are at the discretion of the Welsh Government, which has always maintained that the road is a matter to be decided by Wales. The UK Internal Market Bill which passed into law in December 2020 gives additional powers to the UK Government to spend money on otherwise devolved areas such as infrastructure and economic development, but the powers to build projects remain with Wales.
Mr Griffiths said: "Our Gwent Levels are very precious and once again it’s sad to hear arrogant Conservative politicians at Westminster suggesting they would pour concrete over them in the midst of a climate emergency.
"As chair of the Gwent Levels working group, I am very proud of the progress Welsh Government and other organisations such as the Living Levels Partnership are making to protect and enhance this unique and historic area. It will not be undone by the next Conservative prime minister who, like Boris Johnson, was threatening to ride roughshod over Welsh devolution and the decisions we make here.”
Last summer the Welsh Government scrapped its planning protection for the route along which the road would have been built, effectively confirming it would not be happening.
READ NEXT:
The things we learnt from the Conservative leadership hustings in Cardiff
'We've been forgotten' Residents' anger as ‘unsafe’ bridge remains closed one year on
Man who binned Bitcoin worth £200m assembles team he says can find it in landfill
Demolition of historic school building delayed after 'unexpected' discovery of bats
