In politics, we often talk about elites. When it comes to Westminster politics, we talk about the metropolitan elite, who enjoy dinner parties at their homes in North London and share the same worldview.
They club together to form an ideological cartel that sneers at the concerns of people in post-industrial Britain. They populate the media, politics, the civil service and cultural institutions as well.
In Wales, just as there is another layer of government and media as a result of devolution, there is another layer of elites.
They’re called the Crachach (pronouncing this is closer to “crack-ack” than “crach-ach”). They’re a Welsh-speaking elite, many of whom have their roots in Welsh-majority communities in West and North West Wales, but who moved to Cardiff when Welsh speaking media like S4C grew, and as political powers flowed from Parliament to Cardiff Bay following the devolution referendum in the late 90s.
The Senedd (Welsh parliament) where GB News is banned
PAThis is why you see a sizable Welsh-speaking population in parts of Cardiff, which you don’t tend to see in nearby towns like Swansea and Newport.
As Cardiff became Wales’ capital in more than name, the Welsh establishment settled there to consolidate their power.
While many people in Wales continued to look towards the UK Parliament rather than the Welsh Senedd – turnout in Senedd elections is around 44%, while it’s more like 65% for UK General Elections - the Crachach elite populated Welsh cultural institutions, quangos and political positions.
Just because many people in South and East Wales weren’t particularly engaged with the new political powers in Cardiff Bay didn’t mean that they weren’t being governed by them.
The Crachach does what all elites do: impose their minority views on others. A very pertinent and recent example of this is the new constituency names that have been decided for the Senedd. This may sound minor, but it is in fact a significant change that will impact the whole of Wales.
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ReformUnder Labour and Plaid Cymru’s dreadful plans to put 36 more Senedd Members in Cardiff Bay, electoral constituencies will be redrawn and renamed.
And, as a result of these plans, it has been decided that every single constituency in Wales will have a Welsh language name.
For instance, my home county of the Vale of Glamorgan is overwhelmingly English speaking (around only 1-in-10 can speak Welsh).
It’s being paired with neighbouring Bridgend (fewer than 1-in-10 can speak Welsh), under the new name Pen-y-Bont Bro Morgannwg.
Cardiff North and East will become Caerdydd Ffynnon Taf. And across Wales, all constituencies, no matter how many Welsh or English speakers there are, will have their names changed to Welsh names.
This is just wrong. Most people in Wales do not speak Welsh (only 18% can). While it’s completely right that majority-Welsh speaking areas should have Welsh placenames, they should not be forced on English-speaking areas, where commonly used names are already in place.
But this is typical of the Crachach, working to force their culture and customs on the rest of Wales. Fundamentally, Wales is bilingual, and the Crachach should remember that, rather than seeking to ignore commonly known placenames like Swansea.
I also believe this is an act of voter suppression. As I’ve said, turnout in Welsh elections is low, and giving constituencies names that most local people don’t recognise will only make that worse, and allow the Crachach to continue quietly dominating the Welsh public space, making sure all of their friends and family get taxpayers’ money for their projects.
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PAI’m just as Welsh as anyone from West or North West Wales. But what the Crachach try to do is pretend that only one type of Welshness exists, and that speaking Welsh is a pre-requisite.
Newsflash, throughout most of South Wales and East Wales, people are proudly Welsh, but the Welsh language is not a great part of their lives. That’s not to say we don’t want to hear it or that we want it erased from Welsh life. But it means that both languages should be recognised.
The Welsh language is part of Wales’ history and its future, but so is the English language, and if that isn’t recognised, it will disenfranchise the majority of people who live in Wales.
The former First Minister Rhodri Morgan said he wanted the Welsh Assembly to be an Assembly of the people, not an Assembly of the Crachach.
But these new constituency names will ensure that the English speaking communities in Wales continue to feel disengaged from the Senedd, so the elites can continue their political dominance, and their cultural dominance through regular public funding streams from Welsh Government.
It's time for the majority of Welsh people to take Wales’ institutions back from this narrow elite.
