WELSH secretary Peter Hain was accused yesterday of acting like a "colonial governor" in his relations with the Assembly. Conservative Assembly leader Nick Bourne claimed Mr Hain's Government of Wales Bill, currently going through Parliament, would have the effect of "rigging" future elections to the devolved body. He said the Welsh secretary "under-mined" devolution by pressuring the Labour-run Assembly government to change its health policy. Mr Bourne said provisions in the bill to change the way in which AMs were elected were designed to serve Labour, rather than the people of Wales. The bill - produced in response to Lord Richard of Ammanford's review of the operation of devolution --would bar politicians from standing as both constituency and regional candidates in Assembly elections from 2007. At present, 40 AMs are elected on a first-past-the-post basis from local constituencies and a further 20 from five electoral regions. The system is designed to ensure minority parties get some Assembly representation. Under the bill's provisions, would-be AMs would opt to stand either as a constituency or regional candidate --something which might make it more difficult for smaller parties's top people to secure a place. Mr Bourne said: "The electoral system is being rigged in a way that I think is absolutely outrageous. "If it were being done in Zimbabwe, presumably Peter Hain would be jumping up and down about it, saying it was 'rigging the elections against the opposition,' which is what they are trying to do here. "It's outrageous and it was not a recommendation of the Richard Commission. "Disallowing constituency candidates from standing as list candidates damages the three opposition parties to different degrees. It does not damage the Labour Party. "The bill is about serving the interests of Labour rather than the interests of Wales." Mr Bourne also criticised Mr Hain's intervention in the formation of Welsh health policy. Earlier this year, Mr Hain said in discussions with first minister Rhodri Morgan they agreed to aim for the "the same destination" with the NHS in Wales as in England. "Peter Hain is incredibly arrogant and this idea that he 'prompts' the Assembly government to change policy seems to undermine his argument that we have got real devolution," said Mr Bourne. "He says he has given a nudge to Rhodri Morgan over NHS waiting lists and Rhodri has heeded it. Well, either we have power over these issues in Wales to get them right or wrong, or we don't. "We don't need a colonial governor in the shape of Peter Hain giving Rhodri a nudge. "And more than that we need the first minister to tell him what to do when he tries to give him a nudge." | 
