Political reporter, Wales News
The prime minister has played down divisions within his party after weeks of public criticism of him from Welsh Labour leader Eluned Morgan.
Sir Keir Starmer told Wales the Welsh first minister was “right to raise concerns” and promised to “deliver on those as far as we can”.
He spoke ahead of his Welsh Labour conference speech in Llandudno, where he will allege Plaid Cymru would be willing to form a “backroom stitch-up” with Reform and the Tories after the next election.
Plaid, which has strongly ruled out working with Reform in any form, accused Sir Keir of “peddling fiction”.
In her conference speech First Minister Eluned Morgan will say Reform would “rip” up the NHS.
In May, Morgan used an event in Cardiff Bay’s Norwegian Church to set out a series of criticisms and demands of the UK government.
Dubbed her “Red Welsh Way”, Morgan said she would “not stay silent” if Sir Keir’s government took decisions “we think will harm Welsh communities”.
She complained about the UK government’s plans for benefits and winter fuel payments, and demanded Wales benefit from wind power via the Crown Estate.
The UK government has since U-turned on both winter fuel payments and disability benefits – the latter after a huge rebellion threatened Sir Keir’s government.
Speaking at a visit to RAF Valley on Anglesey, Sir Keir said the Westminster and Welsh governments “work very well together”.
He said the UK government had given Welsh ministers their largest financial settlement since devolution began.
Sir Keir said there was a “good relationship” and argued the spending review – which saw £445m for rail including new stations and £118m for coal tip safety – showed there was “a lot of really important delivery for Wales”.
“She quite rightly raises the issues of concern and I’d expect her to do so. And I work with her to deliver on those as far as we can.”
In a conference speech on Saturday, Sir Keir will make the case that having two Labour governments in London and Cardiff is delivering for Wales.
“This is the party that has got wages rising faster in the first 10 months than the Tories managed in 10 years.
This is the government that is cutting bills and creating jobs,” he will say.
He will warn abandoning Labour could risk a “return to the chaos and division of the last decade” with a “backroom stitch-up between the Tories, Reform and Plaid”.
Plaid Cymru has firmly ruled out working with Nigel Farage’s Reform UK, with leader Rhun ap Iorwerth saying in March there was “no way to see any co-operation at all between two parties who are so fundamentally different”.
He also told PA Media in May he could not see a “formal relationship” with the Conservatives “after 14 years of destruction”.
But he said “co-operation can take many, many forms. It can be informal. It can be issue by issue”.
The next Senedd election will see the partial-first past the post and proportional voting system used since 1999 replaced with elections that aim to better reflect how people vote.
It will make it very hard for any party to win a majority or govern alone, and parties will face questions about who they may be prepared to work with.
In response, a Plaid Cymru spokesperson said: “If this is Labour’s big pitch to the people of Wales, then frankly, they’re scraping the barrel. Instead of offering hope, they’re peddling fiction about imaginary coalitions involving parties that agree on virtually nothing.”
Welsh Conservative Senedd leader Darren Millar has said he would work with “anybody” to unseat the Welsh Labour government in Cardiff Bay.
He said: “It is in the national interest to kick Labour out of office so we can get to grips with these challenges and fix Wales. The Welsh Conservatives will do everything we can to secure that outcome.”
‘Moment of reckoning’
In her conference speech, First Minister Morgan will say the next Senedd election will be a “moment of reckoning”.
In a bid to mobile the party’s membership, Morgan will say: “Reform are rising. Plaid are mobilising.
“This is not a moment to look away. This is the moment to look forward – a moment of maximum opportunity and, yes, also of serious threat.”
She will say Reform want to “dismantle” the NHS and “rip it up” for a “privatised, profit-driven” system.
A Reform UK Wales spokesperson said: “Wales now has the worst health service and health outcomes in the entire UK. Baroness Morgan is a former health minister herself – her record speaks for itself.”
Jo Stevens, Welsh Secretary, will announce a £11m fund for businesses in Port Talbot.
It includes £6.78m from the UK government and £5m from Tata Steel and will support firms that offer skilled, well-paid employment opportunities.
She will say: “This new fund is a powerful example of what can be achieved when Labour governments, trade unions and business work together to deliver for communities.”
