Skates accuses Plaid government of “Thatcherism” over school milk consultation

The leader of Welsh Labour has accused Plaid Cymru of Thatcherism by “looking at snatching free milk from schoolchildren”.

Ken Skates, the MS for Fflint Wrecsam, raised the issue during First Minister’s Questions on Tuesday afternoon.

The £3 million a year free school milk scheme provides to children from Reception to Year 2 and subsidised milk to those in Years 3 to 6. Schools choose whether to take part, and can provide up to 250ml of milk per pupil.

But the Rural Payments Agency, which runs the scheme on behalf of the Welsh Government, will stop doing so after 31 March 2027

A 10-week consultation is under way over proposals to end the existing free milk scheme, which has run since 1977, or replace it with a new Welsh school milk scheme should take over from April 2027.

Mr Skates accused the Welsh Government of “Thatcherism” and claimed that the Government had failed to keep its election promises.

Mr Skates said: “Before May’s elections, your party made a raft of promises. But, six months on, health visitors in Cwm Taf are still waiting for you to end a dispute that you’d promised to end within days; parents on low incomes are still waiting for payments that you promised within weeks of the election; council tax revaluation, one of the key issues on which you walked away from the co-operation agreement in the last Senedd, has been kicked into the long grass; and you promised never to repeat the injustice of Thatcherism, but you’re looking at snatching free milk from schoolchildren.

“We thought that The Traitors season had come to an end, First Minister, but isn’t it the case that people in the public gallery today and across Wales have found themselves with a Government that isn’t being faithful to its promises?

First Minister Rhun ap Iorwerth told the Senedd the consultation was happening because a contract had come to an end, and that milk is still provided in schools as part of free breakfasts.

The first minister said: “All those, with respect, are nonsense, of course, because, on council tax, whereas the previous administration kicked it to one side and did nothing, we are determined that we need to find a more progressive solution to council tax as it is.

“On school milk, a consultation is happening because a contract came to an end, and milk continues to be delivered in schools as part of free breakfasts.

“We’re looking at a Government here that made a set of promises, and I know it’s a new concept, but it’s a Government that’s sticking to those promises in making sure that we are delivering the free childcare; that we are delivering those free school meals, with further announcements this week on expansion; that we are delivering help for families with the cost-of-living crisis.

“That is what people are seeing in this Government: a Government of action.”

Speaking after First Minister’s Questions, Mr Skates said: “Amongst a litany of rollbacks and broken promises, the Plaid Cymru Government are considering snatching free milk from school children.

“Surely a so-called progressive government would see that such a cut could cause real detriment to the 80,000 children who benefit from the scheme.

“Rather than repeating the injustices of Thatcherism, Plaid should rule out scrapping free school milk and commit to replacing the existing scheme.”

The consultation and further information can be found on the Welsh Government website.