Abolish the Welsh Assembly Party

The Abolish the Welsh Assembly Party (Welsh: Plaid Diddymu Cynulliad Cymru) is a single-issue political party launched in Wales in 2015. The party campaigns for the abolition of the Senedd Cymru, the devolved, unicameral legislature of Wales, instead favouring no devolved Welsh Parliament or assembly in Wales.

Abolish The Welsh Assembly Party

Welsh: Plaid Diddymu Cynulliad Cymru
LeaderRichard Suchorzewski
FoundedJuly 2015 (2015-07)
HeadquartersCroffta
Mid Glamorgan
CF72 8NE[1]
IdeologyWelsh Parliament abolition
Colours          Dark red and red
Slogan#savewales
Senedd Cymru
1 / 60
Local government in Wales
1 / 1,253
[2]
Website
www.abolishthewelshassembly.co.uk
  • Politics of United Kingdom
  • Political parties
  • Elections

History

The party was formally registered with the Electoral Commission in July 2015[3] and was publicly launched in November 2015. Its sole stated aim is the abolition of Senedd Cymru / the Welsh Parliament, formerly known as the National Assembly for Wales. The party nominated candidates for each of the regional lists in the 2016 Assembly elections, winning 4.4% of the regional vote and returned no seats.[4] It did not contest any constituency seats. Richard Suchorzewski, stood in the 2019 Newport West by-election, the first time the party had nominated a candidate for a Westminster seat. Suchorzewski stated that his main aim was to raise awareness of the party's message.[5] He campaigned on the single issue of the Welsh Assembly, claiming it was a "a waste of money", "an unnecessary tier of politics" and "a misguided promoter of human rights".

In November 2019, Lee Canning defected to the party as he claimed that the Welsh Conservatives are not doing enough to maintain the unity of the U.K.[6] Canning aims to stand "in a key target seat" in the 2021 Senedd election. In May 2020, Powys councillor Claire Mills quit the Welsh Conservatives and joined the party for similar reasons, becoming the party's first elected representative in Welsh local government.[7] Richard Suchorzewski became the new leader of the party in June 2020. Later in the same month Gareth Bennett, the former leader of the UKIP Senedd group and Independent MS, joined the party along with former Brexit Parliamentary candidates Cameron Edwards and Richard Taylor.[8][9][10]

Electoral performance

Welsh Assembly elections
Election # of List vote % of List vote # of overall seats won +/- Position Outcome Notes
2016 44,286 4.4 (#6)
0 / 60
 0 N/A Not in Assembly

See also

References
  1. "View registration – The Electoral Commission".
  2. "Your Councillors by Party". Powys.gov. Retrieved 6 June 2020.
  3. Registration:Abolish The Welsh Assembly Party, Electoral Commission. Retrieved 2 May 2016
  4. "Wales Election 2016: Constituencies & Regions". BBC News. Retrieved 1 May 2016.
  5. Craig, Ian (22 February 2019). "Party dedicated to abolishing the Welsh Assembly will run in Newport West by-election". South Wales Argus.
  6. "Top Tory Lee Canning quits to join anti-Assembly party". itv.com. 19 November 2019.
  7. Masters, Adrian (13 May 2020). "Conservative councillor defects to anti-devolution party". ITV News. Retrieved 6 June 2020.
  8. Masters, Adrian (2020-06-24). "First Senedd Member for party which wants to abolish the Welsh Parliament". ITV News. Retrieved 2020-07-22.
  9. "A Member of the Senedd has joined the Abolish the Assembly party". Wales Online. 24 June 2020. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
  10. "Ex-UKIP Senedd leader Gareth Bennett joins anti-devolution party". BBC. 24 June 2020. Retrieved 26 June 2020.


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