SENEDD: Reform MS tears into First Minister over ‘disastrous’ £9bn 20mph policy

Speaking in the Senedd, regional MS Laura Anne Jones launched a fiery attack on the controversial policy, accusing the government of ignoring the clear views of the Welsh public.

Ms Jones challenged the economic impact of the 20mph limit, pointing to the Welsh Government’s own analysis that estimated the cost to the Welsh economy at around £9 billion.

“It needs to be asked: has this ill thought out policy already cost our country a lot of money? Yes,” she told the chamber.

“Will it cost an awful lot to reverse? Yes. But how much has it cost our Welsh economy? By the Government’s own calculations, this has cost £9 billion.

“So you cannot say it has been a good policy. It has been a disaster from start to finish.”

Ms Jones also highlighted the record-breaking public petition calling for the policy to be scrapped, which attracted nearly half a million signatures.

Despite the scale of the petition, the Welsh Government has previously argued that it is not representative of the majority view in Wales.

The Reform MS argued that improvements in vehicle safety were already driving down road casualties across the UK, independent of the new speed limit.

“Road casualties have gone down right across the United Kingdom because cars are getting safer. It is a known fact,” she said.

Recent figures have shown that while road crashes in Wales have risen slightly, they remain below pre-20mph levels.

Ms Jones stressed that the opposition was not against targeted 20mph zones in appropriate areas.

“No one across this Chamber disagrees that 20mph should be the case outside schools and hospitals and where it is appropriate. It is disingenuous to say anything else,” she said.

“But this default 20mph policy needs to be reversed.”

The intervention comes as local councils, including Neath Port Talbot, have begun reviewing and in some cases reverting 20mph zones back to 30mph.

In response, First Minister Eluned Morgan defended the policy, stating that it had saved lives and reduced casualties. She pointed to a 22% reduction in police-recorded collisions in Wales compared to a 4% drop in England over the same period, and noted that some insurance companies were now offering reduced premiums in Wales as a result.

She said: “There are children walking around Wales today who would not have been if it weren’t for this policy. We’ve not estimated the cost of reversing the 20 mph speed limit, but it’s clear that, if other parties had intentions to reverse this decision, it would incur significant costs not just financially, but in terms of lives lost and injuries caused.”

Reform Wales has pledged to scrap the default 20mph policy if elected in the upcoming Senedd election on May 7th.

Nigel Farage appoints new Reform Wales leader as Labour says party is now ‘run by Tories’

Reform UK unveiled Thomas at a rally in Newport, where Farage said he had chosen a “battle‑hardened” figure with experience running large budgets and leading a major London borough. Thomas will now front the party’s push for seats in May’s Senedd election, appearing in TV debates and representing Reform in Wales.

The event also confirmed that former Conservative MS James Evans had joined Reform — a move widely expected after he was sacked by the Welsh Conservatives last month for holding talks with the party. Evans’ switch gives Reform two members in the Senedd, but the focus of the Newport rally was firmly on Thomas’s appointment.

Welsh roots, London career, and a return home

Thomas told supporters he was originally from Blackwood, with family roots in the Valleys stretching back generations. He said both his grandfather and great‑grandfather were miners, and that he left Wales as a young adult because opportunities were “few and far between”.

He spent nearly three decades in London, working in financial services and rising through the Conservative Party to become leader of Barnet Council from 2019 to 2022. He later served as opposition leader until May 2024.

Thomas twice stood as a Conservative parliamentary candidate in Islwyn, finishing second to Labour both times. He defected to Reform in June 2025 and moved back to Wales later that year, saying he wanted to raise his young sons closer to family and the countryside he grew up in.

Asked how connected he was to Welsh politics after so long away, Thomas said he had “kept abreast” of events and remained “very informed”.

‘A huge honour’ — Reform’s new Welsh leader speaks out

Dan Thomas, Leader of Reform Wales, said the party had built a “strong team” and would be fighting for communities who feel ignored by mainstream politics.

“It’s a huge honour to lead Reform here in Wales,” he said. “We’ve built a strong team and we’ll get stronger still between now and May and beyond.

“Every day we will be fighting for our forgotten communities and everyone the establishment has ignored for so long.

“This May, vote Reform to deliver the change Wales desperately needs.”

James Evans: a defection already in motion

Evans’ appearance with Reform followed weeks of speculation. He had been sacked by the Welsh Conservatives and stripped of the whip after admitting he had been “continuing to engage” with Reform representatives, despite previously giving assurances he had rejected an approach.

Farage publicly denied speaking to Evans personally, saying he had not talked to him “for a couple of years”. Evans had also previously ruled out defecting, writing that he would not “jump ship when things get tough”.

His move means Reform now has two Senedd members, following the earlier defection of Laura Anne Jones.

Labour: ‘Reform Wales is being run by Tories’

Welsh Labour issued a blistering response, accusing Reform of becoming a refuge for Conservative politicians trying to save their careers.

A Welsh Labour spokesperson said Farage’s claim that there were “no Tories left in Wales” was because “they’ve all jumped ship to Reform UK to save their own skins”.

They pointed to Thomas’s long London career as evidence that Reform’s Welsh operation was being directed from outside the country.

“And now we’ve got a man who was a London councillor until two months ago telling Wales what it needs,” the spokesperson said.

“Ultimately it doesn’t matter who is named as Reform’s leader in Wales. They will just be Nigel Farage’s puppet, doing his bidding from Westminster and silencing the voices of the people of Wales.

“You can’t trust their leader. You can’t trust their words. Reform UK’s leader in Wales is another former Tory. Reform Wales: led by Tories.”

A major shake‑up ahead of May’s Senedd election

Farage said he chose Thomas because he had “been in the front line” of running budgets and leading a large council, and because he represented someone who “went away and came back” to raise his family in Wales.

Reform is targeting seats across South Wales and the Valleys, with opinion polls suggesting the party could make significant gains. All 60 Senedd seats will be contested under a new voting system in May.

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#NigelFarage #Farage #Racist #Racism #ReformUK #Reform #Politics #UKPol #UK #UnitedKingdom #Britain #nathangill #reformwales
He’s telling us what we already know about Farage. A leopard never changes its spots. The fact an ex-reform leader also received a ten year prison sentence for taking Russian bribes really sums up the integrity of their party.

Farage's racism denials are dishonest, says ex-classmate https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2dny3r3vyo