Newspapers criticised for misleading stories on devolved matters

Newspapers have been criticised for publishing stories that suggest England-only education policies will apply in Wales.

Councillor Carrie Harper, who represents the Queensway ward on Wrexham Council, said she was frustrated and disappointed to see misleading headlines in both the Wrexham Leader and Western Mail newspapers about the UK Government's plans to extend school hours.

She said: 

"Newspapers such as the Guardian correctly identified this as a proposal for England only. Unfortunately our local newspaper and the Western Mail, which claims to be the national newspaper of Wales, managed to suggest this applied to Wales.

“People need accurate information particularly in the midst of a pandemic and it’s not acceptable for publications in Wales to report England-only announcements as if they apply here. Education is devolved, as is Health and many other areas, something I’d hoped would be much better understood by those reporting our news.

"What Ministers announce in London often does not have any relevance in Wales at all. This really needs addressing once and for all, those reporting the news have a responsibility to ensure accuracy.”

She said that parents and teachers would be confused by the misleading reporting and called on newspaper editors to ensure reporting reflected the reality of devolution: 

"Education has been devolved for 22 years now and there's no excuse for these consistent failings. If they can't these basics right after two decades, what else are they getting wrong?"