Leader of the Welsh Conservatives in the Assembly, Nick Bourne AM, has called on the Labour-Plaid Assembly Government to end its culture of secrecy and allow open debate on the state of public finances.
During First Minister’s Questions Mr Bourne highlighted important discussions that are currently being carried out behind closed doors.
Doctors, nurses, teachers and other frontline staff are being denied honesty and openness on crucially important matters that will affect them directly.
In the Scottish parliament, on September 9th, a full debate was held on the findings of an independent report into the issues being faced there.
Mr Bourne said: “All we get from this government, time and time again, is silence and secrecy.
“These are vitally important times for the future of Wales. We are being faced with the consequences of years of Labour-Plaid overspending.
“WAG has made no provision for the savings that have to be made and would have come no matter who won the General Election.
“They refuse to discuss this. All we hear is how the UK government is to blame.
“That’s despite the fact that Labour left the UK with one of the biggest budget deficits in western Europe.
“WAG is currently cutting our NHS to the tune of hundreds of millions of pounds. This is a budget that the Welsh Conservatives have pledged to safeguard.
“As in Scotland, there must be fuller input and debate into these life-changing decisions.
“This is a Labour-Plaid administration that commissioned one of the biggest management consultancies in the world to analyse our National Health Service.
“Then it refused to accept the resulting critical report even existed until it was leaked. Now it won’t tell us how much the report that isn’t a report cost the taxpayer.
“We’re stuck with tired old politics and a culture of secrecy. It has to end.”
