"TWENTY thousand people have now signed a petition to stop the Wales-wide introduction of a 20mph speed limit.

And here’s a gentle reminder why: it was the Labour-run Welsh Government that made the decision in July 2022 to make 20mph the ‘default national position in residential areas’ in Wales, with the law expected to come into force on September 17th.

The full petition—entitled ‘Stop the change of speed limits to 20mph on 17th September—reads: “This decision is not representative of the broader public opinion and as such, it is not democratic to implement the changes. An alteration to road laws on this scale should be subject to much more extensive polling or possibly as part of a Welsh referendum on the matter.

“The use of speed bumps and 20mph zones in built-up areas and near schools is a generally accepted practice for the safety of children and adults. The widening of these measures could lead to an increase in ‘road rage’ incidents and currently appears to be nothing more than a revenue stream for people to pay fines when they are caught speeding (when they are travelling at a safe speed).

“I am yet to see an opinion supporting the changes, I have asked multiple people locally and read the comments left by many people online. It was the negative response to the changes that prompted the creation of this petition.”

Given thousands of people have voiced their opposition to the plan, clearly Labour is out of touch with public opinion, and thankfully the petition is now set to be considered for a debate later this month.

My personal position is one echoed by the Conservative group where we are supportive of 20mph in obvious areas – including in residential areas, schools and other built-up areas – however, I don’t believe there is a need for a default 20mph across the board. Ultimately, the responsibility for decision making should be one for local authorities to make, not the Welsh Government.

It seems that with default 20mph speed limits, the road-building ban and a rumoured congestion charge, Labour is determined to hold back Wales’ economy even more than it already has.

It’s high time that Labour finally made the people’s priorities its own priorities."