Why are the Welsh voting conservative??

[nonsense123]

I understand why most people vote it seems rational to me as a country to vote for Brexit and the conservatives particularly with Corbyn leading the Labour Party. What I am confused by is why is one of the poorest parts of Europe - Wales voting for a party that believes in entrepreneurship and less state intervention when Wales is so reliant on money from Europe and state institutions. Interested in any Welsh mums voting for Conservative party and the rational. (Not remotely about judgement or argument just totally curious).

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/2912092-To-wonder-wtf-is-going-on-in-Wales?

There are a few on this thread. :)

"why is one of the poorest parts of Europe - Wales"

Maybe because they are sick of being one of the poorest parts of Europe.

Because the miners' strike is no longer a recent memory for many in the valleys who ten or twenty years ago would rather die than vote conservative.
Amongst many other factors, many of which are the same as England - general mistrust / disillusionment / alienation from politics and politicians, and the desire that something must change.

Plus misinformation and lack of political knowledge. Most probably don't realise that European funding paid for new roads and buildings in many areas, or respond with "yeah but..."

Because voting is a matter of personal choice and they want to?
(I never realised countries had to vote as one and according to Mumsnet opinion)

Speaking as a Welsh person living in Wales who will be voting Tory I can tell you I am voting this way as labour have had their stint and not a lot seems to have changed. The nhs is a joke and our schools are really struggling.
I think labour need their arses kicking and have become complacent, this time last year you could have put a red rosette on a donkey and people would have voted for it but no more, people I speak to are sick of being considered the poor relations and are desperate for change.

It is genuinely incomprehensible and quite heartbreaking.

I've heard (not checked) the population in Wales is getting older as younger people leave for job opportunities elsewhere. People are more likely to vote cons as they get older.

Wales has been tending right for a while - see the Brexit vote there.

Labour disrespected its core vote in Wales just as it did in Scotland. I know some parts of Wales well and they are wastelands - no jobs, communities breaking down, schools and hospitals crap, mental health problems among young people frighteningly endemic, drugs and petty crime all over the shop. I'd hate to raise a family there but lots have no choice.* Been going that way for decades and New Labour didn't do enough to sort it out. The generational hate for Tories over the miners' strike isn't fresh any more and Labour government didn't bring renewal.

*i know this doesn't describe every part of Wales

I am voting this way as labour have had their stint and not a lot seems to have changed.

I'm asking genuinely as I don't live in or anywhere near Wales, have things changed for the better since ConDem/Tories have been in power?

Why are the English [or anyone else for that matter] voting for the Tories? Just because it was a Labour stronghold for so long, doesnt mean that the Welsh cant vote for who they want, without people questioning their choices. I dont vote Labour but I also dont vote Tory.

Wales is a huge problem for the UK. Its rich natural resources created artificial connurbations which, now it is no longer economically viable to mine here, have basically been left to rot. Think Merthyr Tydfil, Blaenau Gwent etc.

It's true that Labour didn't bring regeneration: in all honesty I don't think it's possible, the geography of Wales is just too hostile to be an attractive investment prospect. It makes transport tricky, it makes developing a skilled / educated workforce tricky. The steel industry limps on, but for how long?

All this only makes it even more incomprehensible to me that Wales voted out and is leaning towards Tory now. I guess people just don't realise that it's European money which has basically been feeding them for decades.

And I speak as a fluent Welsh speaker, fervent Welsh person living in a very deprived area.

I'm despairing really.

Because they are very sensible and they can see what a mess the Labour party are in and how much better Tory policies are including the the less fortunate.

The Welsh can vote however theylike. Mymother never told us how she voted and one of my twin 18 year olds is deliberately telling no one either - it's no one else's business.

I do however want every mumsnetter who has a right to vote to check now that they are on the register and make sure they do vote, whoever they vote for. Let's get a very high turnout this time.

I'm very confused, and know little about politics apart from when I swot on google.

The Tories are in charge now. So the Tories are responsible for NHS, Education etc.

So how is changing your constituency from labour to Tory going to change things?

Is each constituency responsible for local hospitals/schools? Or is everything controlled by the main government?

Genuine question. Because I thought the main government were in charge, and if life is shit in your constituency under a labour MP, voting now Tory will just seal the fate of more shit for another 5 years.

munchmunch
Yes I think they are slowly, my local mp is still labour but I do think it'll switch to conservative this time, I am in north wales and labour seem to think Wales is only in Cardiff so we have less spent up here per head as opposed to South Wales but we are starting to get funding for a better road network here.
There is one main road into north wales and some times/days of the week it is pure bottle necked, the Tories have been campaigning for ages to solve this.
its difficult to answer your question thoroughly as like I say we still have a labour govt but everyone you speak to wants change and I think it'll happen. There's a few labour arses twitching round here

Because Labour have promised much and delivered fuck all for many years.

elphame
if I could like your post I would.
That's exactly what the general feeling is round here.

Doing the same thing & expecting a different result is probably why. Not at all surprising really

Because Labour have become far too complacent in Wales and there's an assumption that we will always vote for them, but people are very fed up here. Remember that we have devolved power here and Cardiff gets everything whilst the rest of the country gets bollock all, our NHS is in a mess, ditto the education system which both lag behind the rest of the UK.

I call the Welsh government the Mickey Mouse government. It's farcical.

Because we in Wales have lived under the devolved Welsh assembly which is Labour ruled for quite some time now. We see libraries, swimming pools closing, children's school buses being taken away, an NHS that's struggling worse than any other in the uk, schools that fall well short of satisfactory. Whilst the assembly members voted for a £10,000 pay rise each last year. Maybe it's time for a change. As pp have said, labour have become arrogant and complacent that the voting public will continue to vote for them. The referendum was proof that Welsh people want change.

That's interesting disastrous, I hadn't thought about it that way before. Are the circs in Wales unique? (Industrial South Wales). Other ex-coal mining areas are better able to support large post industrial populations?

So any constituency that is Tory, is probably a safe seat and will remain Tory.

Any constituency that is labour, will be voted out, as the feeling is labour have done nothing.

So Tories will win by a landslide

But how much power does a labour constituency have under a Tory government?

Thanks Zinc. I had no idea. This is why I like MN so I can always learn more, especially where politics are concerned.

Only thing I would say is we are Tory here, and libraries have gone, schools are doing badly, surestart centres closing, so not sure who is responsible overall?