Reform slammed for ‘shameful’ Senedd debate on banning face-coverings

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Tabled by Reform MS Jason O’Connell, the party was accused of stoking division and attacking religious freedom.

Mr O’Connell began the heated debate, held on Wednesday October 21, by discussing crime and public safety, criticising “balaclava-clad young men” on illegal ebikes for ��making our streets feel unsafe.”

But focus quickly shifted to immigration and face-coverings such as the burka and niqab, with the Reform MS accusing Plaid Cymru of caring more about “foreign cultures” than their own.

The Pontypridd Cynon Merthyr MS said many countries have already banned the burka, adding: “We cannot allow this form of oppression to become the norm in Wales.”

Fellow Reform MS Francesca O’Brien supported the call, describing a ban as “simple common sense,” adding “not all cultures are equal.” Her comments were met with shouting from across the Siambr.

Deputy First Minister Sioned Williams accused Reform members of deliberately pitting communities against each other for political gain.

“Who is the arbiter of Britishness or Welshness? Who decides a woman who wears a face covering is less British or less Welsh?” Ms Williams asked the Siambr, warning that political rhetoric was increasingly normalising Islamophobia.

Fflint Wrecsam MS Carrie Harper dismissed claims that the motion was about crime, calling it a “thinly veiled attack on the religious rights of women.”

She said it was ironic that Reform had framed the debate around values in the same week that an ITV News investigation had exposed “deep-rooted racism and sexism” in the party.

Her comments were echoed by Caerdydd Penarth MS Kiera Marshall, who shared that a Muslim woman had been attacked in her constituency over the wearing of a headscarf. She said: “This is exactly what the rhetoric that Reform is peddling is doing.”

There were protests on the steps of the Senedd in Cardiff Bay, which some members joined, before the debate, with the Muslim Council of Wales releasing a statement criticising what was to be discussed.

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