The Welsh Labour government has released new procurement card spend data for 2022-2023. Apart from the total cash spent almost doubling from £800,000 to £1,500,000, the taxpayer might want to see exactly what crucial devolved government work they are financing. Here are the highlights:
Welsh officials have been keeping themselves well fed and watered on the taxpayer’s dime. Labour made a massive deal last year of government procurement card spending – they even rebranded their Twitter to attack the Tories for spending cash on cocktail parties for diplomats and so on. Funny they don’t seem too keen to mention it any more…
UPDATE: Welsh Tory leader Andrew RT Davies says:
“The Labour Welsh Government are literally dining out on the backs of taxpayers as ministers complain of tight financial constraints and NHS waiting lists balloon for six consecutive record-breaking months. You couldn’t make this up.”
Former Treasury minister and adviser to Burnham in the Makerfield campaign Lord Jim O’Neill, who has turned down a role in his government, said Burnham’s first statement Commons was:
“The last thing investors wanted to hear… gilt yields have risen by a 0.25% in one day, which is a lot. We’ve not had that since Liz Truss days… If your country is under the focus of ‘can they come up with a sensible fiscal strategy’ on a day when the markets think ‘well no, you’re not showing any sign of it’ you’re going to have a tough day…if it stays like this your mortgage rate is going up.”