A harsh reminder came about this week of how impotent Assembly government ministers can quickly become in times of crisis, along with Welsh politicians generally, as rail electrification plans began to seriously unravel. Unhappily, the same official incapacity was also very apparent over the tortuous goings-on at S4C. In many respects, the whole Assembly apparatus is starting to resemble the Hadron collider in that it is very impressive & very expensive but very few actually understand what it is supposed to achieve.
The spectacle of Carwyn, IWJ and Alun Ffred doing their habitual hand-wringing was only slightly less distasteful than watching ConDem insurgents Peter Black & Alun Cairns perform their usual blame game number interspersed with non-specific calls for action. The Vale of Glamorgan MP was particularly incensed at events surrounding the Welsh-medium broadcaster and told a Dragon’s Eye interviewer of his outrage at the “appalling situation of finding ourselves in this .. err .. situation”. Hmm. Quite.
As it happens, it is something of an irrelevancy that devolved government will fail to address these issues - regardless of any additional powers.
It is a safe bet that Whitehall will come up with a cunning plan early next year to redefine the Swansea to Paddington service as “Cardiff to Paddington” and the pragmatic political bourgeois who inhabit Cardiff Bay will go along with it. Similarly, the lluvy establishment and their political wing will run for cover as further revelations emerge from Iona Jones’ employment tribunal, making BBC anschluss feel like a welcome relief.
It’s good to be back.
5 Comments:
What on earth are you talking about? When it comes to broadcasting WAG is not "impotent in a crisis", it is impotent all the time. It has no powers. The area is not devolved. What do you expect them to do, stage a coup d'etat and send armed police to sieze S4C HQ in Ty Glas Park?
Grow up.
The why do AMs persistently mouth off at every opportunity as if they have the solutions to hand and would apply them if only they had the powers?
Good point by Shambo. I think AMs were scared shitless that they were going to get the bill for S4C and would be the baddies when cuts were required. It's a different story now that BBC are in the frame.
This is a bizarre post. The Welsh Government does not have responsibility for broadcasting or Network Rail...they literally CAN'T (legally) do anything other than complain and lobby. They are not allowed. They have influence over the fields devolved to the Assembly and the referendum is about abolishing the LCO process, not gaining more powers.
Does the blogger want the Welsh Government to assume powers over broadcasting and Network Rail?
Unless he/she does, the post makes no sense.
"Shambo said...
The why do AMs persistently mouth off at every opportunity as if they have the solutions to hand and would apply them if only they had the powers?"
Because it would be even more ridiculous for them to remain silent on issues that affect their constituents. That's why local councillors still sound off about health even though it mostly isn't a local authority issue, and why MEP's comment on planning applications/the economy/education when they aren't directly European issues.
It really isn't difficult to understand, and the original post does not make sense other than as a mindless rant.
There is a significant difference between speaking out and simply posturing.
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