Reform would cut Welsh 'wasteful spending', Tice says

Richard Tice said Reform would not cut jobs on the "front line" of the NHS

The deputy leader of Reform UK says his party would cut "wasteful spending" if it forms the next Welsh government.

Richard Tice said Reform would cut "back office" roles in the Welsh NHS and would drive down waiting lists.

He denied it would lead to job cuts on the "front line" of the health service.

Tice spoke ahead of the party's UK conference in Birmingham this weekend.

Reform UK has been performing well in opinion polls for the next Senedd election, suggesting it is competing to come first.

The party has only one MS currently - Laura Anne Jones. She defected from the Conservatives during the summer.

Reform is yet to begin announcing candidates for the next Senedd election and has not decided on a candidate for first minister.

Reform would be likely to need the help of another party to govern if it won the next Senedd election, in a voting system where it is hard for one party to secure a majority.

The only major party that has not ruled out working with them is the Conservatives, whose Senedd leader has said he would work with any party to remove Labour from power.

Tice said: "I think we'll cut out the nonsense and start to identify some of the vast amounts of wasteful spending across the whole of all of the areas where Labour over the last 25 years have actually reduced the quality of public services."

He gave an example of removing the Welsh government's 20mph speed limit in largely urban areas, which he described as a "ridiculous policy".

Tice continued: "The NHS is not short of money. It's the way that it is being mismanaged, the way that it wastes money."

He added: "It's about managing it better. More people on the front line, wonderful nurses and doctors, less people in the back office, creating paperwork and bureaucracy that infuriates nurses and doctors."

"It's not job cuts in the front line," Tice said.

Tice said Reform would do "a lot better than Labour" in cutting waiting lists.

"We will commit to be absolutely determined to drive waiting lists down, improve productivity, improve healthcare for everybody across Wales."

Tice said the party was "on the side of the workers - that's why we're leading in the polls in Wales".

"People recognise that we know how to get our economy growing in Wales, as across the rest of the UK, and also to cut out illegal immigration.

Analysis

The deputy leader did not volunteer how much he was hoping to save to BBC Wales, his arguments reflecting the line that Reform is cutting "wasteful spending" in English councils.

Tice's 20mph speed limit pledge as an idea to save money will raise eyebrows, particularly with councils that have spent money reverting 20mph in some areas to 30. Replacing or installing signage, for example, is not free.

Just last year the Welsh government earmarked £5m to help revert the limit in some areas.

There is also the argument from supporters of the 20mph policy that it has saved lives - the first year saw around 100 fewer people killed or seriously injured on 20 and 30mph roads, although caution was urged around the statistics at the time.

There was no detail offered on what Tice said about the Welsh NHS - it's not clear what he meant by back office staff.

But the new party is clearly still developing its Welsh platform - a fact made obvious by its lack of obvious candidates for first minister ahead of the next May election.