King's Speech 2024 - The View from Wales

Introduction

While Sir Keir Starmer now has a huge mandate for change, the fiscal environment in which the Government is operating remains precarious. Both Starmer and Reeves have reiterated since the election that their fiscal rules are ‘unbreakable’ – and this has, inevitably, limited Government in what they can expect to achieve in this King’s Speech.

The clear focus of Labour’s first King’s Speech is on more structural reforms to ensure that the new Government can deliver on their promise to get the UK economy growing, securing investment and ‘turbocharging’ the delivery of green energy.

The Government’s own trailing of the Speech suggested that the clear focus for Starmer is on economic growth and mechanisms for wealth creation across the UK – as he says, ‘putting growth at the heart of the Government’s agenda’.

With nearly 40 Bills included in this King’s Speech, it is clear that Labour are hitting the ground running – including headline pledges to establish GB Energy, Great British Rail, the National Wealth Fund and moving forward with measures to improve water quality and improve employment practices for people across the UK.  

For Wales

Notably, the King’s Speech contained provision to establish a Council of Nations and Regions - to ‘renew opportunities for the Prime Minister, heads of devolved governments and mayors of combined authorities to collaborate with each other’. Given the very public difficulties faced by devolved Governments in engaging with the UK Government and evident challenges with existing systems of intergovernmental relations, this is an interesting development in the relationship between the UK Government, the devolved nations and regional mayors in England.

The planned National Wealth Fund, and Business Strategy Council will likely test the durability of Welsh and UK Labour’s campaign rhetoric of ‘two Governments working together for Wales’.

Labour’s plans to bring railways back into public ownership will have considerable implications for Wales and the move will be welcomed by the Welsh Government.  Three out of the four rail franchise operators in Wales currently being in private hands. Ken Skates said in the Senedd yesterday that he fully expects greater roles for the Senedd and the Welsh Government in holding rail operators to account.

The King’s Speech confirms there will be a ‘Crown Estate Bill’, which will focus on widening its investment powers, removing outdated restrictions and giving it powers to borrow. As expected, despite pressure from Plaid Cymru, and some in the Welsh Labour Party, there is no mention of devolving control of the Crown Estate to Wales.

Labour’s ‘New Deal for Working People’ aims to improve employment practices and ban exploitative practices and will apply fully to Welsh workers. These policies signal a clear departure from the previous Conservative administrations, as trade union law and employment rights were a clear area of conflict between Welsh and UK Governments, noticeably with the passing of the Trade Union (Wales) and Social Partnership Acts here in Wales.

Notable Omissions

Following on from high-profile disagreements during the General Election campaign, there was no mention in the King’s Speech of changes to the Shared Prosperity Fund, and how decision-making powers over the Fund might be repatriated to Wales; as per Labour’s manifesto.

An evident focus of this King’s Speech was enhancing regional devolution in England – but, and not unexpectedly, this speech did not reference the devolution of youth justice and probation to Wales, which the Labour manifesto pledged to ‘explore’. It should not be surprising however that these aren’t exactly the top issues in the first King’s Speech of an incoming Labour Government under pressure to deliver economic growth and reduced living costs for people across the country.