Voters take our policies for granted - first minister

People in Wales are taking Welsh Labour policies for "granted", the first minister has said.

Eluned Morgan said voters might not "love" what the Welsh Labour government was doing but warned schemes such as universal free prescriptions could be cut back if a different party was in government.

The Welsh Labour leader said she was taking the threat of Reform UK "seriously" ahead of the next Senedd election in 13 months' time.

She said the Nigel Farage-led party does not care about Wales. "There's nothing Welsh about them," she said. Reform called her comments a "desperate smear".

Meanwhile Morgan said she was "really worried" about the UK government's plans to cut disability and sickness benefits.

She said the 20mph speed limit in largely built-up areas in Wales had also saved "at least ten lives".

Plaid Cymru said it was Labour that was taking voters for granted.

The Conservatives called Wales "broken" after 26 years of Welsh Labour governments.

Reform accused Labour of "trying to distract from their own failures".

In a Walesonline live interview on Facebook, Eluned Morgan was asked what she would say to voters who are critical of Labour because of changes to benefits and the 20mph speed limit.

"What I would say is, don't take things for granted," she replied.

"We make decisions on where we spend money.

"You get [universal] free prescriptions in Wales. You don't get that in England.

"You are able to get support in relation to care - there's a £100 cap [per week] on care in Wales. There's no cap on care in England.

"You might not love what we're doing but I tell you what, if we weren't here, and you saw cuts, my god, you would really feel the difference."

Morgan added the Education Maintenance Allowance, which has been kept in Wales, and the recently announced flat rate for youth bus travel to her list that could be cut back.

"All of these things that people just have taken for granted, they've pocketed it," she said.

"I don't know whether other parties will make that promise."

A poll at the end of last year suggested Reform was polling at a similar level to Labour, with both slightly behind Plaid Cymru and ahead of the Conservatives.

Morgan said she was taking the threat of Reform UK "seriously".

"We recognise that there is frustration in some quarters.

"As far as I'm concerned, Reform is not a terribly Welsh party. They don't really understand Wales.

"They are likely to fly Nigel Farage in for a couple of weeks, and they will disappear again.

"They don't offer anything positive. The only thing I know about them in terms of policy is that they want to introduce insurance to the NHS.

"I don't think there's many people in Wales who would be signing up for that."

Morgan said part of the difficulty with being a leader at the moment was "we are being buffeted about by world events", including rising energy costs.

"Trump is causing havoc, absolute havoc."

He said the US president's tariffs are "going to have an impact on our economy here in Wales".

"We make... bits of cars that get sent to the states. That's going to affect jobs here.

"That's not me doing that. That's something else that is impacting on all of us."

The UK government has also said it needs to spend more on defence.

"Where's that money going to come from," Morgan asked. "Will we see an impact on our budgets?

"All of those things are out of our control.

"And yet there's an expectation that we will carry on delivering all the things that we've always delivered."

Morgan has been under pressure over the last few weeks because of planned UK government cuts to disability and sickness benefits.

While the first minister has been careful not to directly criticise the plans, she has expressed concern about their impact and has called for an assessment of how they will affect Wales.

She has also criticised a UK government Labour minister for saying she had welcomed the cuts.

In the Facebook Live interview she said: "I'm really worried about people, and the proposals, and particularly really vulnerable people.

"It's a real worry for people, and part of the worry is not knowing. Are you going to be impacted, where the line's going to be drawn, and when its going to come in."

"The UK government has got to defend its decision.

"What I can do in Wales is to make sure we try and support people as much as possible."

Appearing to refer to schemes to help people get into work, she said: "I'm really worried that if you cut people's benefits, without taking them on a journey, that's really problematic.

"We know what works in Wales - we've done it, through supporting young people into work."

She added that the impact of the benefit cuts needed to be worked out.

"If you are taking quite a lot of money, not just out of people's pockets but out of the broader economy. that money is usually spent locally - that could have a knock on effect on local cafes and local shops and things.

"We do have to consider what the impact will be on Wales and we know its going to be greater."

During the interview Morgan defended the 20mph speed limit, saying it had stopped deaths on the road.

"It's worth celebrating the fact there's considerably fewer accidents, that people's insurance cover has been cut.

"We've saved at least ten lives as a result of it."

A Welsh government spokesman told BBC Wales the figure comes from statistics recorded on road fatalities.

A total of 34 died on 30mph and 20mph roads between October 2022 and September 2023, and 24 died on those roads between October 2023 and September 2024.

The 20mph speed limit came into affect in September 2023.

A Plaid Cymru spokesperson said: "Welsh voters aren't taking policies for granted – it's Labour that's taking the people of Wales for granted.

"People living in Wales know that Labour's record is one of a broken NHS, struggling public services and an absolute refusal to stand up against the continuation of austerity and cutting benefits for disabled people by their London bosses - which will only push our communities further into poverty."

A spokesperson for the Welsh Conservatives said: "Under 26 years of Welsh Labour governments, propped up by Plaid Cymru, Wales is broken.

"Only the Welsh Conservatives will have a common sense plan to fix Wales and deliver for the people of Wales."

A Reform UK spokesperson said: "Our membership is growing daily, and the latest YouGov polling puts us neck-and-neck with Labour. Their desperate smears are no surprise - they're trying to distract from their own failures."

He added: "For too long, Labour has taken Welsh communities for granted, and the Cardiff Bay establishment has failed to deliver."