David Chadwick Delivers Speech to Welsh Liberal Democrat Conference in Wrexham

Good morning, Conference.
 It’s brilliant to be back together - to see this room so full of energy, passion and belief.

Because that’s what sets us apart.
 We are not the party of cynicism or grievance.
 We are the party of hope.

Hope that our communities can thrive again.
 Hope that politics can still be honest.
 Hope that Wales can be fairer, more prosperous, and proud again.

Because, let’s face it - politics has lost its way.
 Too much noise, too little leadership.
 Too many people chasing headlines, and not enough thinking.

And in that vacuum, we’ve seen the rise of anger and the collapse of responsibility.

That’s why we, as Liberal Democrats, are here.
 Because when others stoke division - we build community.
 When others exploit despair - we offer hope.
 And when others chase power for themselves - we fight for the people we serve.

Nowhere is that contrast clearer than in the rise of Reform UK.

They shout loudest, but they listen least.
 They promise everything but plan for nothing.

They claim to speak for Wales, yet they can’t even be bothered to name a Welsh leader, announce their candidates, or tell people who their First Minister would be.

They don’t care about Wales. 

When people ask me what it is like being in parliament,

I immediately picture Nigel Farage, who I sometimes have to walk next to in the voting lobby, 

This one man who has done so much damage to our democracy, our economy, and the Liberal international order that secured peace in Europe for decades. 

The same Nigel Farage who said he admired Vladimir Putin.  

And now he is focused on Wales. Well, let’s look at what he has done to Wales. 

In April 2016, Nigel Farage said: “If we vote to Remain on June 23rd it is the end of the steel industry in this country. Simple as that. We must Leave EU.”

 

He accused those who warned of the impact of future tariffs of “scaremongering.”

Look where we are now - with what remains of the once-proud Welsh steel industry teetering on the edge, thanks to new threats of devastating tariffs from the EU, where we send 78% of our steel.

Nigel Farage promised to “take back control.”
Instead, Britain is now at the mercy of others - our once proud and powerful voice silenced at the table where decisions are made.

On a campaign visit to Mid Wales in 2016, Farage told local farmers they’d be better off outside the EU - that leaving would mean “less red tape, more trade, and a brighter future.”

But what did Welsh farmers get?

Mountains of paperwork, collapsing exports, and trade deals with Australia and New Zealand, championed by Kemi Badenoch, that threaten our world-famous lamb farmers and the rural communities that depend on them.

Thanks to the Tories’ deal with Farage, Australia and New Zealand could now send up to 200,000 tonnes of beef and lamb into British supermarkets every year.

On the cost of living, Farage promised - and this is another direct quote - “Everything will get much cheaper, absolutely. We will open ourselves up to the world and buy cheaper goods.”
But in reality, supermarket prices have risen by around 40% since then.

What a betrayal of people’s trust.

And now Farage is taking his snake-oil sales pitch to new heights -
 claiming he can reopen blast furnaces, or send people back down the mines,

Last time Nigel Farage’s team made gains in Wales, within five years they’d splintered into three different parties and a handful of independents - torn apart by infighting, hatred and corruption.

It is no shock to anyone in this room that the former leader of Reform in Wales has pleaded guilty to taking bribes to make pro-Russian statements.

Once upon a time, some might have called that treason.

Wales deserves better than becoming a Reform circus - with yet another bunch of clowns.
 Wales deserves honesty, decency, and a plan that adds up.
 They peddle nostalgia - we’ll build the future.
 And that’s what the Liberal Democrats offer.

Meanwhile, let’s be honest - the political landscape is changing fast. 

The Conservative Party is falling apart before our eyes.

And, Conference, I’ll be honest - I debated whether even to mention the Conservatives today; whether a dying party is worth the oxygen.

But I’ll tell you why they still matter.
Because while their party sinks into irrelevance, those who once voted Conservative are looking for a new home.

One-Nation Conservatives used to vote for a party they saw as the party of responsibility, economic stability, and community - people who believed in respecting institutions and balancing the books.

But that party is long gone, too busy tearing itself apart in a failed attempt to imitate Reform.

A once-serious party reduced to a hollow slogan machine, obsessed with culture wars, blind to community, and utterly lost on the economy.

This week, Kemi Badenoch announced plans to pull the UK out of the European Convention on Human Rights - the very framework Churchill helped build.
 They’ve gone from defending the rule of law to drawing up lists of judges they’d sack for being too independent.

That isn’t conservatism - that’s anarchy wearing a blue rosette.

So to every One-Nation Conservative in Wales:
 if you believe in fairness, in community, in the rule of law and responsibility, in building a Wales with a thriving private sector - there is a home for you here.

You don’t have to choose between extremism and irrelevance.
 You can choose Welsh Liberalism - a politics of hope, of balance, of basic decency.

And then, of course, there’s Labour.

In power for twenty-six years.
 A generation.
 And what’s left to show for it?

A broken health service.
 Children leaving school illiterate.
 A country that performs worse than England and Scotland on almost every major metric.

They’ve become a party that manages decline instead of inspiring renewal - a government comfortable in power but out of ideas.

In Powys, the Health Board have made an active decision to artificially extend waiting times for patients - despite their repeated promises to cut them.
 Why? Because patients in Powys are supposedly being treated too quickly compared to the rest of Wales.

Imagine that - injured limping hobbling patients being treated “too fast.”
 It’s a disgrace that such a policy has ever been allowed to be implemented, 

And what has been the response of the Welsh Labour Minister - the man who ultimately has the power to step in, to force the Health Board to change its mind, or to provide the funding needed to deliver the standard of care patients deserve?

No condemnation.
 No meeting with the Health Board or local representatives to find an alternative solution.
 Not a word.

And that, Conference, sums up the mentality of Labour here in Wales:

 

Instead of aspiring to lift Wales up, they drag communities down to the lowest common denominator.

And they can’t even be bothered to fix the mess they’ve made of our country.
 With half their Senedd Members standing down, they’re running away from the problems they’ve created.

Conference - Wales deserves better than this endless drift.

So while others trade blame, here’s what we stand for.

Liberal Democrats don’t just talk about values - we live them.
Our vision for Wales is clear and hopeful.

We believe in power in the hands of communities - not distant ministers.
 Because people know best what works where they live.

We believe in education as the great leveller - and in a childcare system that lets every family work, learn and thrive.

We believe in healthcare that prevents problems before they start - supporting people early, easing pressure on hospitals, keeping us safe and independent in old age.

We believe in a strong private sector alongside great public services, because Wales cannot thrive on government jobs alone.

We believe in our young – in tackling poverty, fixing housing and protecting the environment that sustains us all.

That’s our Liberal vision:
 Fairness. Freedom. Community.
 A Wales that works for everyone.

And we’re proving it already.

Look at our candidates.
 People rooted in their communities.
 People who know their towns and villages inside out.
 People who don’t need a focus group to tell them what matters.

Our candidates are community champions.
 They’re the living, breathing proof that when people get the chance to lead locally - things change.

And that’s what 2026 is all about.

We are fighting populism. 

We believe that truth and honesty are the best ways to do so.  

This is a long-running Liberal tradition. 

As a former Liberal Prime Minister once said, 

Liberalism is the trust of the people tempered by prudence.

We aren’t afraid to tell the truth. 

Because the next election won’t be left versus right anymore.
 It won’t be Labour versus Conservative.
 It will be fear versus hope.

A choice between harking back to the past or offering an ambitious vision of the future.

Reform offers fear, false promises and division.

We offer hope, change, and the ambition that things can - and will - be better.

Hope that politics can be decent again.
 Hope that leadership can be honest again.
 Hope that our best days are still ahead of us.

So let’s take that message to every town, every valley, every street, every farm in Wales.
 Let’s tell people: you don’t have to settle for chaos or division.

The Welsh Liberal Democrats are back.

 And we will give Wales the leadership, the dignity, and the future it deserves.

Diolch yn fawr, Conference. Let’s get to work - and let’s make sure there are at least ten banners up here next time.