SETBACK FOR MAY IN DUP DEAL TALKS
ACHASTENED Prime Minister has pledged to work with “humility and resolve” in the national interest as parliament awaits the unveiling of a Queen’s Speech by a government which lacks a majority.
Theresa May has yet to strike a deal with the Democratic Unionist Party’s 10 MPs to shore up her minority government, with the Northern Ireland party saying an agreement was “certainly not imminent”.
A DUP source told the Press Association that talks with Mrs May’s Conservatives “haven’t proceeded in a way that the DUP would have expected” and cautioned that the party “can’t be taken for granted”.
The DUP is understood to want more investment for Northern Ireland plus the retention of the triplelock guarantee on pensions and winter fuel allowances for older people.
The Queen’s Speech will lay out the legislative programme for a twoyear session that will be dominated by Brexit.
It will also contain bills intended to bring down motor insurance premiums and tackle “widespread abuses” across the claims management sector, as well as a draft Domestic Violence and Abuse Bill.
Mrs May said: “The election result was not the one I hoped for, but this government will respond with humility and resolve to the message the electorate sent. We will work hard every day to gain the trust and confidence of the British people, making their priorities our priorities.
“First, we need to get Brexit right. That means getting a deal which delivers the result of last year’s referendum and in a way that commands maximum public support.”
The Conservative leader insisted that there was still a mandate for Brexit, saying: “The fact is that over 80% of the electorate backed the two major parties, both of whom campaigned on manifestos that said we should honour the democratic decision of the British people. While this will be a government that consults and listens, we are clear that we are going to see Brexit through, working with Parliament, business, the devolved administrations and others to ensure a smooth withdrawal.”
Mrs May acknowledged the problems facing the country and reached out to “working families”, saying: “The referendum vote last year was not just a vote to leave the EU... [It] was a profound and justified expression that our country often does not work the way it should for millions of ordinary working families.
“That is why this legislative session will also contain a number of measures to build a stronger economy so we can improve people’s living standards and fund public services... The National Living Wage will be increased so that people who are on the lowest pay see their wages go up as the economy strengthens.
“We will continue to bring down the deficit so that young people don’t spend most of their working lives paying for our failure to live within our means. Work on our modern Industrial Strategy will continue to ensure all parts of the country share in economic success.”
Mrs May insisted she led a “government with purpose” that would put itself “at the service of millions of ordinary working people for whom we will work every day in the national interest”.
First Minister Carwyn Jones said: “[The] speech will be delivered to a sombre country that is trying to come to terms with the terrible events of recent months. There is also great uncertainty across the UK, not helped by the UK government’s complete failure to provide any information on their potential deal with the DUP.
“The General Election has also thrown into much sharper relief the challenges faced by the government in developing an approach to Brexit that can genuinely command the support it needs from across the country and the political spectrum.
“Our businesses are crying out for clarity. Our economy needs certainty. The Prime Minister must now put the UK economy above political selfinterest and reconsider plans for a hard Brexit, for which she has no mandate.
“People’s jobs and livelihoods are dependent on continued access to the single market – we can ill-afford to gamble with Wales’ future prosperity. We all have a stake in the future of the UK and there should be mechanisms in place that allow all voices to be heard.
“Only then can we create the stable environment in which our economy can prosper. We are ready and willing to work with the UK government and the devolved administrations to agree common approaches – through discussion, not diktat – to prevent friction within our own internal market.
“Last week we set out exactly how this can be achieved in our policy paper on Brexit and devolution. However, if the Prime Minister disregards our efforts to work together and, instead, chooses to disrespect devolution and constrain the devolved nations, she will bring about a constitutional crisis that will damage the union.”
Plaid Cymru’s Westminster leader, Liz Saville Roberts, said: “The balanced Parliament places a duty on all of us – no matter what party – to deliver a Queen’s Speech that reflects the outcome of the election. That means delivering on priorities from different parties.
“Welsh economic priorities must be reflected in the Queen’s Speech. We need a Wales Bill alongside legislation to incorporate EU law in order to repatriate powers to Wales in devolved areas such as agriculture, and we must equip our country with the financial firepower it needs to build up our economy and boost standards of living for our citizens.”