8. Plaid Cymru Debate: The UK Government's Elections Bill

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 6:04 pm on 26 January 2022.

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Photo of Rhys ab Owen Rhys ab Owen Plaid Cymru 6:04, 26 January 2022

Diolch yn fawr, Llywydd. I think Darren Millar said four times he was disappointed with my contribution. It reminded me of being a four-year-old again, back in the headmistress's office. When it comes to constitutional matters, if I'm disappointing Darren Millar, I think I'm probably doing something right. I certainly wasn't disappointed with your contribution, Darren Millar; I didn't expect anything else from you. In a nutshell, your position is, 'COVID passes for a short period of time to protect people's lives are bad; permanent voting ID to tackle non-existent issues is good.' You mentioned the UK being an outlier compared to Europe. I thought, Darren Millar, you supported this idea of British exceptionalism. We saw Andrew R.T. perpetuating this myth of Britain alone earlier this week. It fits right into your Brexit narrative, doesn't it, Darren Millar?

In your intervention to Heledd Fychan, you said voting ID will be free. Well, somebody has to pay for voting ID, Darren. The pilots themselves cost £3 million, or are you aware of a magic money tree somewhere to pay for voting ID? The amendment in your name, Darren, is incorrect—the Electoral Commission does not support voting ID. Why would anyone vote for your amendment when it's simply incorrect?

Gareth Davies, you mentioned déjà vu, well, we hear you make the same argument week in, week out in the Senedd when it comes to any discussion about the constitution. I didn't hear you say anything about the largest constitutional upheaval in modern days: Brexit. You always go on about public services being on their knees, but Cabinet Office papers say the implementation costs of voting ID will cost between £4.3 million and £20.4 million per election. Is that good value for money when public services are on their knees, Gareth Davies?