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Reform politicians have announced a partial boycott of the Senedd in response to the suspension of one of their members, Joe Martin, who was barred from speaking following his claim that white people are being “replaced” in the UK. Helen Jenner, the party’s Welsh leader, argued that Martin’s suspension resulted from “undue pressure” exerted by the governing party, Plaid Cymru, and condemned the decision as an “infringement on freedom of speech.”
Martin was prohibited from addressing the Senedd chamber until he issued an apology for his comments, which Huw Irranca-Davies, the Presiding Officer of the parliament, described as “unnecessarily provocative and deliberately offensive.” In protest, Reform members decided to withdraw from much of the parliamentary proceedings on Wednesday but planned to return later to participate in the evening vote. Jenner publicly confirmed the boycott outside the Senedd and emphasized the importance of free speech in a democratic society, stating, “It means very little if it only applies to opinions we agree with,” and adding her concern that “the Senedd [should not become] a place where challenging views are shut down.”
Supporting Martin’s stance, Rupert Lowe, leader of the right-wing party Restore Britain, echoed the criticism of the Welsh Parliament’s decision. Posting on X, he argued that if the Senedd intends to silence discussions related to demographic changes and immigration, it should “be shut down.” Notably, Martin represents the Caerdydd Penarth constituency, which is among the most ethnically diverse areas in Wales. During a business questions session, he sought a statement from the Welsh government on the subject of the “demographic replacement of white British people,” a matter that Senedd members are entitled to raise freely.
Following Martin’s remarks, Business Minister Heledd Fychan promptly queried whether his comments aligned with the Senedd’s standing orders, which empower the presiding officer to rule on the use of discriminatory or offensive language during plenary sessions. Irranca-Davies ultimately decided that Martin would remain barred from speaking in the chamber until he both acknowledged acceptable parliamentary conduct boundaries and apologized publicly during a plenary session. However, this ruling does not apply to committee meetings, allowing Martin to continue his membership on the Equality, Human Rights and Social Justice Committee. This is not the first time Martin has faced rebuke from the presiding officer, who previously censured him over offensive remarks related to the Welsh NHS gender service. Meanwhile, Plaid Cymru MS Marc Jones called on Martin to apologize for the “constant harm and fear he causes among our communities.” According to data from the 2021 census, 93.8% of the Welsh population identified as white, a decline from 95.6% ten years earlier, while the Asian, Asian Welsh, or Asian British population increased from 2.3% to 2.9%
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