Welsh election 2021: Tories 'would not want vaccine passports'

The leader of the Conservatives in the Senedd has said he would not want to introduce vaccine passports if they come to power after May's election.

Andrew RT Davies said he was "very uneasy" about the idea and they should not be mandatory.

Plaid Cymru and the Liberal Democrats have also raised concerns about the possibility of such a scheme in Wales.

Labour First Minister Mark Drakeford has previously said there were "prizes to be won" from vaccine certificates.

But he warned of "very big practical and ethical challenges".

WALES ALERTS: Get extra updates on BBC election coverage

The potential use of vaccine certificates for entry to certain venues or events is being kept under review by the UK and Welsh governments.

Many Conservative MPs in Westminster have raised concerns about their potential introduction in England.

"On the science that I can see at the moment, I don't think there's a need for a passport to be brought forward, but I can understand why government needs to trial these options to make sure they're satisfied that they've explored all the opportunities available," Mr Davies said on the BBC Politics Wales programme.

Responding to criticism that the party in Wales had not been distinct enough from the Conservatives in Westminster, Mr Davies said the party's manifesto, due to be released on Tuesday, "is devised and authored here in Wales".

"But what you'll also see is a party that works together in the best interests of Wales with colleagues on the other end of the M4 because that's going to be really important, that close working relationship," he added.

WALES ELECTION: THE BASICS

What's happening? On 6 May, people will vote to elect 60 Members of the Senedd (MSs). The party that can command the support of a majority of MSs will form the Welsh government. Find out more here.

What powers does the Senedd have? MSs pass laws on aspects of life in Wales such as health, education and transport - and have some tax powers.

Who can vote? Anyone who lives in Wales, is registered to vote and aged 16 or over on 6 May is eligible. You can register to vote online.

In an article in the Sunday Times, Plaid Cymru's election campaign director Liz Saville Roberts MP, criticised Mr Davies' leadership.

"To be respected in office, you must first prove that you respect that office," she said.

"Every utterance from the leader of the Welsh Conservatives throughout this campaign has suggested that he is incapable of doing just that."

She also criticised Welsh Labour for being "too timid in challenging Westminster, too reluctant to tread too far from the UK government's line".

The Welsh Liberal Democrats' manifesto includes a commitment to "work with local authorities to review school funding via an expert review panel".

Asked on Politics Wales if that was an admission schools had been underfunded while the party's sole Senedd member, Kirsty Williams, was responsible for the education portfolio, party leader Jane Dodds said: "The local authorities are the responsible body for funding schools, and we need to look at how that funding happens.

"So it is about us making sure that there's parity, making sure that is fair funding."

A Welsh government commissioned report, published in October 2020, calculated total spending on schools in Wales in 2018-19 was £2.6bn, or about £6,000 per pupil - 6% lower in today's prices than the figure for 2009-10.

Ms Dodds said: "There's a need for us to look at how schools are funded, absolutely.

"But look at other issues around what we've done in education, smaller class sizes, we're funding holiday hunger, we're making sure that that doesn't happen, we have the new, very first ever made-in-Wales Welsh curriculum.

"Those are real advances in terms of what we're doing in education."

Welsh Labour's Vaughan Gething said: "The real choice at this election - as the numbers, the polling and the voter conversations tell us - is between Welsh Labour and the Tories in Wales.

"We all know that the Tories in Wales won't stand up to their London bosses.

"They never put the economic interests of Wales first, and will never speak out when Tory policies hit jobs in Wales."