PRESS RELEASE : Labour’s disagreement over 20mph zones in Wales [November 2022]

The Welsh Conservatives have reiterated their opposition to 20mph becoming the standard speed limit in Wales following news that Labour-run Monmouthshire County Council are to scrap the limits on two roads following congestion concerns.

Commenting on the news, the Welsh Conservative Shadow Minister for Transport, Natasha Asghar MS said:

“What we are seeing here is the beginning of, what I suspect will be, large-scale resistance to the imposition of default 20mph from the Labour Government that is riding roughshod over local decisionmakers in pursuit of an anti-driver agenda.

“The Welsh Conservatives have long said 20mph speed limits can be appropriate in certain areas such as outside of schools and playgrounds, but forcing councils to fork out thousands of pounds to fix this baseless law shows it should never have been passed in the first place.

“Labour have already admitted that this policy will come at an astonishing cost of £4.5bn to the Welsh economy, proving being anti-driver means being anti-growth.

“Meanwhile, public opinion has not been greatly in favour of this change, with countless people, all across Wales feeling they were not able to have a proper say in this decision, and a new report has cast doubt over how many lives it would actually save.

“Labour ministers need to stop imposing dogmatic and restrictive measures on road users in Wales and focus on making sure Wales has a public transport system fit for the 21st century.”