Tory leadership: Rishi Sunak backs Wales-only Covid inquiry

Rishi Sunak is appearing with Liz Truss at a hustings in Cardiff on Wednesday

Rishi Sunak has backed calls for a Welsh Covid inquiry and has attacked plans for a larger Senedd.

He said it could not be right that the Welsh government's priority is for more politicians "when the public are struggling to pay their energy bills".

The Tory leadership contender also vowed that a government led by him would be the most active in Wales in history.

It comes a day ahead of a leadership hustings in Wales.

Rishi Sunak and Lis Truss will take part in the event in Cardiff on Wednesday evening.

Meanwhile, on Tuesday former Welsh Secretary Simon Hart claimed a now-ditched plan from Ms Truss to link public sector pay to local living costs would leave thousands of Welsh workers worse off.

The Welsh government has declined to host its own inquiry into its handling of the coronavirus pandemic and is instead participating in a UK-wide exercise which includes a Wales-focused section.

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Critics, including the Welsh Conservatives in the Senedd, say relying on a UK government inquiry is not good enough because much of the response to Covid in Wales was led by ministers in Cardiff.

But the Welsh government has argued that the Welsh response needs to be seen in the context of decisions taken at UK level.

Writing for the Western Mail newspaper, Mr Sunak said: "Better accountability for all politicians is something I want to drive forward, to restore trust in our politics. The public can only trust us if we are willing to be transparent.

"For example, I know the Welsh Conservative Senedd group are calling for the Welsh government to undertake their own independent Covid inquiry alongside the UK-wide one, and these are calls that I completely support."

He promised that more UK government ministers would be visible in Wales under his leadership, "answering to Senedd inquiries", and would work more closely than ever with the Senedd's Tory group.

'People are struggling'

Mr Sunak said a government led by him "would be the most active UK government in Wales in history".

"That fact is that people, whether they are in Swansea, or the most rural Brecon Beacons, should have the same opportunities as people in London or Bristol."

He added: "It cannot be right that the Labour-Plaid coalition's priority is £100m worth of more politicians at a time when the public are struggling to pay their energy bills.

"They should be more focused on these cost-of-living challenges, or the huge health waiting times that blight the Welsh NHS".

The Labour Welsh government - which is not in coalition with Plaid Cymru but has signed a co-operation agreement with the party - has not costed the plans for to expand the 60 member Senedd chamber to 96 politicians.

In August 2020 the Senedd's presiding officer Elin Jones estimated that an additional 30 members could cost £12m a year.

BBC Wales was told the £100m estimate, originally made by the Senedd Conservatives, is based by looking at how much the commission budget might increase, how much the presiding officer estimated the reforms may cost, and the potential cost of new buildings, multiplied by five years of a Senedd term.

A Welsh Government spokesman said: "We are committed to Senedd reform. The changes will strengthen Wales' democracy, secure the future of our Senedd and ensure people across Wales are better represented - reflecting the modern Wales in which we live".

He added: "We are determined to ensure our actions and decisions - and those of other public services in Wales - are fully and properly scrutinised. The UK-wide inquiry is best placed to oversee the interconnected nature of the decisions that have been made across the four nations."

On Tuesday Liz Truss announced, and later dropped, a plan to link public sector pay to local living costs.

There had been a backlash to the policy from several senior Tories, including former Welsh Secretary Simon Hart, who is backing Rishi Sunak.

He claimed 430,000 workers, including police officers and the armed forces, faced a "near £3,000 pay cut". "This would be levelling down," he said.

Brecon and Radnorshire Tory MP Fay Jones, who is also backing Mr Sunak, said it was a "sensible move to u-turn and scrap these proposals".

A spokesperson for Ms Truss said: "Current levels of public sector pay will absolutely be maintained. Anything to suggest otherwise is simply wrong."