New electoral rules 'will thwart Reform'

FORMER First Minister Mark Drakeford has defended the proportional representation (PR) electoral system that will be used to elect Senedd members in May's elections.

- ELLIE GOSLEY Reporter [e-mail]

Mark Drakeford

Mr Drakeford defended the system brought in thanks to a law pushed through while he was still First Minister as part of a cooperation agreement with Plaid Cymru.

He said: "What the new voting system guarantees is that there will be a progressive government in Wales after the election because we will have a system where if 30% of the population in Wales vote for a party of the far right, you'll have 30% of the votes in the Senedd.

"Seventy per cent of votes will continue to be parties who broadly share a progressive idea of what the future of Wales should be like."

Mr Drakeford went on to say that under the old system, it would be "likely" for Reform to win a significant number of seats.