[lg policy] Ma who blamed migrant for rubbish bids to lead Assembly (which he wants to a bolish)

[Harold Schiffman]

Ukip AM Gareth Bennett has said he wants to lead the party in Wales and one
of his key policies would be to abolish the Assembly- to which he was
elected in 2016.

The South Wales Central AM, who caused controversy in the run up to the
election by linking ethnic minorities and litter in Cardiff
<https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/politics/ukip-candidate-who-linked-immigrants-11277821>
, says he wants a referendum on "whether the Assembly
<https://www.walesonline.co.uk/all-about/national-assembly> has worked".

“In Wales, the people now need to be able to have their say on whether or
not they think that the Welsh Assembly serves a useful purpose.

"The last referendum, in 2011, was a complete con trick, as people who did
not support the existence of the Assembly had no option to vote for.

"We now need to have a meaningful referendum on this. In May 2024, the
Assembly will have been in existence for 25 years – maybe that is a good
time to consult the people of Wales as to whether it has worked.”

Another of his "radical" policies is to cut the amount of money given to
promoting the Welsh language.

Neil Hamilton was ousted as leader
<https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/local-news/neil-hamilton-ousted-ukip-leader-14672320>
in May and replaced by Caroline Jones AM.

But Mr Hamilton has said he wants to stand again in a formal ballot is due
to be held by the end of July.
Who is Gareth Bennett?

Gareth Bennett was elected to the National Assembly in 2015 as AM for South
Wales Central.

Born in 1968, he is originally from Cardiff and went to Llandaff City
Primary School and Radyr Comprehensive.

He has worked in a number of jobs including in a call centre, as a writer,
and labourer.

He joined Ukip in 2014.

He is a member of the Equalities, Local Government and Communities
Committee and the Petitions Committee.

In his statement, he has said: "I hope that this election will be won on
policies. There are two factors at play here. One, I am the only candidate
with radical policies. The others are just offering things that are little
different from the mainstream parties.

“Two, UKIP members will only see my policies adopted if I win this
leadership election. So it’s up to the members – do they want something
different, or do they want us to be just the same as everyone else?”

Caroline Jones AM

Mr Bennett caused controversy before he was elected by saying that Eastern
European immigrants were part of the cause of waste problems
<https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/politics/ukip-candidate-accused-shocking-slur-11057253>
in a Cardiff suburb.

Since then, he was banned from speaking in the chamber after comments about
transgender people
<https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/am-banned-speaking-chamber-after-14034253>
which were described as "hateful".

He also invited Donald Trump to the opening of his constituency office in
Pontypridd.
<https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/politics/ukip-am-invited-donald-trump-12174926>
That office never opened.

Mr Bennett has said he "has" to stand up for free speech.


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 Harold F. Schiffman

Professor Emeritus of
 Dravidian Linguistics and Culture
Dept. of South Asia Studies
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA 19104-6305

Phone:  (215) 898-7475
Fax:  (215) 573-2138

Email:  haroldfs at gmail.com
http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/~haroldfs/

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