Welsh Conservatives should call ourselves Conservatives and Unionists on the ballot paper

Wales is a proud unionist country with a proud unionist tradition. Recent ‘State of the Union’ polling shows that it is the most unionist of the four nations – with two thirds (68%) of Welsh voters saying ‘No’ to independence. But, with the nationalist parties newly emboldened by Brexit, the Covid-19 pandemic, and now loudly banging the drum for separatism, it is time for Welsh Conservatives to be bolder than ever in our support of the United Kingdom. 

In June, the Welsh Conservative Party announced a review of its structure, ahead of next year’s Senedd elections, to be carried out by the Director of the Scottish Conservatives, Lord McInnes, who will recommend changes to create a “modern, effective campaigning force in Wales.” One of the best recommendations that could be made, in my opinion, would be to let Tory candidates and agents call themselves ‘Welsh Conservative and Unionists’ on the ballot paper in 2021.

In Scotland, the Party was officially known as the Scottish Unionist Party until 1965. Today, candidates at every level of government call themselves ‘Scottish Conservative and Unionists’ on literature when campaigning, and also on the ballot paper. Since the 2014 independence referendum, the unionist brand has proved more and more advantageous for Scottish Tories. In 2016, Ruth Davidson capitalised on the referendum result to increase the Conservative share of the constituency vote by 8.1%, and replacing Labour as the second-largest party and main opposition in Holyrood for the first time since the dawn of devolution. 

In recent months, Welsh independence polling has crept steadily upwards. Prof Roger Awan-Scully’s Attitudes to Devolution and Welsh Independence June poll showed 25% of voters would vote ‘Yes’ in a hypothetical independence referendum compared to 54% who would vote ‘No.’ This is an increase of 4% for independence and a decrease of 1% for ‘No’ since he previously asked the question in January 2020. Plaid Cymru leader Adam Price has previously predicted a referendum on Welsh independence in the next decade. On top of this, newer parties like Gwlad Gwlad and the Welsh National Party have recently been established, also supporting Welsh separatism. 

Just as Scottish Conservatives have reaped the benefits of unapologetically wearing their unionism on their sleeves, so too could the Welsh Conservatives adopt a winning strategy for the 2021 Senedd elections: by campaigning as Welsh Conservatives and Unionists from Pembrokeshire to Wrexham and Barry to Anglesey; positioning ourselves as the voice of Wales’ unionist majority.

Siôn Davies

 "Neath Fair -- Welsh flag" by GeeHock is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0