Wigley's nomination not presented

There is speculation that Dafydd Wigley’s nomination to the House of Lords has been blocked. There was an internal party vote in Plaid. Today Dafydd Wigley is withdrawing his nomination partly because he believes it has been blocked. Here is the exchange I had with Lord Jay who chairs the Lords Appointments Committee. The press did not notice it.

Following a pre-appointment scrutiny hearing by the Public Administration Committee on 22nd July, Lord Jay took up this appointment from October 1st 2008.

This is part of the transcript of the PASC meeting on 16th July 2009

Q67  Paul Flynn: We do not have any representatives of minority parties on this Committee but I wonder how the number of positions are allocated. In Wales a minority party must have had some indication that they were going to have a slot somewhere to appoint, because the party internally held an election to put forward a nomination as a Lord. This was at least two years ago now and nothing has happened. I am curious. Is it possible for majority parties to block minority party candidates? Is there a system where there is an allocation?

Lord Jay of Ewelme: My understanding is that this is an issue which is discussed amongst the party leaders and an agreement is reached on the number of names who would then be put forward from each party to us to take forward our procedures. Since I have been in the Commission we have been asked to vet a party political appointment from Conservative and Labour, but that is all so far. This is upstream from us, really.

Q68  Paul Flynn: If we take a hypothetical situation, where someone nominated by a minority party might well be a big beast and a potential embarrassment to the Government or the opposition, is it possible for the Government or the opposition to exercise pressure to keep that person out or to delay the appointment?

Lord Jay of Ewelme: The Prime Minister always puts names to us. That is the system as it works at the moment. The process, I imagine, is that there are discussions between the Prime Minister and the party leaders and out of this come the names which are put forward to us. I am glad to say that I do not know exactly what that process is. It has not, certainly since I have been there, led to proposals for other than the Conservative and Labour Party.

Forgotten Outrage

Eighteen years ago today, the Polisario Front (the Western Saharan liberation movement) lay down their arms ending a sixteen year war with Morocco. As part of a UN negotiated ceasefire a referendum on self-determination was promised but has yet to be carried out. In the meantime 165,000 Saharawi’s continue to live in refugee camps in the Algerian desert whilst the rest of the population suffer under an unlawful occupation.

 
To mark this anniversary, a delegation of campaigners and MP’s will today visit Downing Street to call on Britain to use her role within the UN Security Council to help enforce the terms of the ceasefire agreement and resolve the 34 year Western Sahara conflict. They will also demand that Britain takes swift action to ensure the safety of the Oxford Six, a group of students arrested and beaten after protesting at the refusal of Moroccan authorities to allow them to travel to England for a British Council sponsored peace workshop in August.

 
After over three decades it is time to put a stop to this egregious violation of international law and ensure that Morocco does not block the long-awaited referendum on self-determination in ‘Africa’s last colony’.

Newport at MN memorial

Among the stories that Admiral Alan West told yesterday was one about a former mayor of Ogmore. The minesweeper on which  Alan was serving some years ago was twinned with Ogmore. On a visit to the ship the mayor revealed he was a former stoker. The visit celebrated the twinning with food and a great deal to drink.

The next day a frantic phone call was received from the Clerk to the Ogmore Council. Where was the mayor's chain?  He has returned home without it. Alan West searched high and low. It was eventually found. One of the stokers was wearing it as he was working in the bowels of the ship. It was a present from a fellow stoker.

Comments

[Keith at Tregenna]

Newports Wartime Shipping

http://www.newportswartimeshipping.info/index.htm

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