03/29/2024

Wales News Online

Local & National News for Wales

Rayner hits out at Tory and Plaid silence on coal tip safety

LABOUR’S Deputy Leader has criticised Plaid and the Tories for their failure to prioritise coal tip safety in the Valleys in their manifestos, during a visit to Rhondda today.

 

Angela Rayner was visiting Porth to launch Welsh Labour’s offer for the Valleys alongside First Minister Mark Drakeford.

 

Last year, the area was badly hit by storms and flooding that damaged homes and raised concerns about coal tips. Wales has 40% of the UK’s coal tips. The Tories are refusing to fund the work needed to make coalfield communities safe from our industrial legacy.

 

A joint effort by the Labour team in Wales and at Westminster forced the UK Government into providing £30m for immediate flood repair work – months after Boris Johnson’s promises to ‘passport money through’ failed to materialise.

 

The campaign to get the Tories to commit to legacy work on coal tips goes on. Welsh Labour’s Manifesto Moving Wales Forward pledges to pass a new law on coal tip safety to deal with the legacy of centuries of mining, strengthening local authority powers to ensure protection of the public and the environment.

 

It is shocking that that neither Plaid Cymru nor the Tories have a word to say on the issue in either of their manifestos. The Welsh Labour team is working for Rhondda and for communities across the Valleys.

 

Labour’s Deputy Leader Angela Rayner said:

“Welsh Labour is committed to additional flood protection for more valleys homes and will introduce new coal tip safety legislation to deal with the legacy of mining and the effects of climate change.

“In contrast, Plaid Cymru fail to mention these crucial issues in their manifesto, but did find space to pledge bids for sporting events that could cost billions.

“The Tories are similarly silent on flooding and coal tip safety, just as they have been on sleaze and vile comments from both their leader and a local candidate on the avoidable loss of human lives to Covid and malaria.

 

“Welsh Labour is focused on delivering for the Valleys. That’s why it’s important people vote to strengthen the Welsh Labour team in Rhondda and across Wales on 6th May.”

Image attribution: David Woolfall, CC BY 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

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