Tuesday 29 January 2008

The future's not bright.....

Peter Hain spent years fighting apartheid. He spent years trying to get elected to Parliament. He's written dozens of books and pamphlets on politics.

He's spent the last 10 years in government - in big departments like the DTI, the Foreign Office and the Department for Work and Pensions (whose budget is 9 times that of the Welsh Assembly). He was Northern Ireland Secretary when devolution was restored to Belfast.

So he'll be really chuffed to discover that Glyn Davies thinks he'll want to spend his twilight years as AM for Neath.

It may look like promotion from Berriew, it certainly doesn't from Westminster, where Hain is still an MP.

Glyn advises us to remember: "You heard it here first".

We will, Glyn, we will.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Ah, but what if Peter has his eye on being an AM for Neath as a stepping stone to becoming First Minister of Wales. Obviously this even more barking mad than Glyn Davies' comment, but it could bring Wales much closer to the exciting left-of-centre laboratory of democracy that many of us fought the referendum for (including Peter btw).

Glyn Davies said...

I noticed you didn't promise to 'eat your hat' or 'run stark naked through the streets of London' if I turn out to be right. He might just prefer to be a big Hain in a small pool that a who Hain in a big one.

Miss Wagstaff said...

Think that was wishful thinking from Glyn. Peter would certainly liven the place up. That reminds me, I must change the water in the fish tank tomorrow and move 'Bob' into his bowl for the duration.

Anonymous said...

Unfortunately, Glyn still looks at politics through the wrong end of the telescope. If he ever does get to Westminster, he'll understand that Cardiff politics are marginal and parochial, and very few MPs would wish to go there.

Anonymous said...

Well, the whole point seems to be missed here.
I thought the point of a Welsh MP was to represent Wales, not himself/herself and their career. The best place to do that is Wales and Cardiff Bay, that allegedly is where the future is, and we could do with some gravitas there.
Why should London be considered “better” than Cardiff? This is perpetuating a myth that I thought we were getting away from. All that is important is actioned in Westminster, its back to the cult of celebrity. That’s where the media focus, that’s where the social life is. That’s not what I am paying for as a taxpayer. What benefit do we as Wales get from our MPs? I would love to see a piece of evaluative research done on this!
I think Glyn has it right, I would prefer him to be in Cardiff Bay, but better him in Westminster than that dolt Opik

David Cornock said...

Isn't the first point of any MP to represent their constituents? MPs from Kent or Lancashire aren't sent to Westminster primarily to represent England?