𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Keir Starmer is on course for a disaster in next year’s Welsh Assembly elections, according to a new poll, as Labour’s support is wiped out by insurgent parties. A new poll by YouGov for ITV has found Welsh voters have turned against Labour and the Tories in droves.

It finds Welsh nationalist party Plaid Cymru is now in first place, on 30% of the vote. Reform UK is now in second place, on 25%. Meanwhile Labour is down to just 18% of the vote, but ahead of the Tories on 13%. Since the 2021 Welsh elections, this suggests Labour’s support has crashed by nearly 20 points, with the Tories down by 13 points.

The poll was released ahead of tomorrow, which will mark exactly one year until polls open for the crunch election.

If played out, the result would be Labour’s worst ever since the advent of devolution to Wales in 1999.

Responding to the poll, a Plaid Cymru spokesperson said: “More and more people are turning to Plaid Cymru as the only party standing up for Wales’s interests, offering a credible pro-Wales government in 2026.”

“The Labour party has betrayed those who put it into power at Westminster, and Eluned Morgan has gone along with it, proving she is no more than an apologist for Keir Starmer.

“As voters turn their backs on Labour, the choice in the 2026 Welsh General Election is clear. A Plaid Cymru government led by Rhun ap Iorwerth with a positive vision and not afraid to stand up to Labour, or Reform UK led by work-shy ex-Tory Nigel Farage whose real interest lies in cosying up to Donald Trump.

“Unlike Labour who have taken the support of steelworkers, pensioners, business owners and the most vulnerable in society for granted – we will continue to work hard to make the case that a Plaid Cymru government will bring about a fairer, more ambitious Wales.”

Today the Labour Welsh First Minister broke with her London counterparts to demand a review to cuts for winter fuel, in an attempt to avoid the negative backlash from Rachel Reeves’ decision.

Eluned Morgan said: “Let’s be honest though, it hasn’t all been popular.”

“The cuts in winter fuel allowance is something that comes up time and again and I hope the UK government will rethink this policy.”

Reform UK is also looking forward for a strong showing following its local elections breakthrough this weekend.

In April Nigel Farage said Reform has a “huge amount to do in Wales in a short space of time”.

Asked if Reform is a protest party, he shot back: “We’re not protesting. We want to reindustrialise south Wales.”

“Let’s be absolutely clear about that.

“The fact that we’ve all bowed down to this god of net zero, closing down steelworks, closing down some of the coal that we still need, all of this is madness.

“The Senedd has been overtaken by people who all believe in the same blooming thing.

“We’re going to be a big antidote to that. It’s not a protest, this is about positive change.”