HELP WELSH STEEL WORKERS

Plaid Cymru MP Jonathan Edwards has accused the UK government of singularly failing to protect the Welsh steel industry from market volatility and called on the Government to implement measures such as an employer’s national insurance contribution break for West Wales and the Valleys to support against the impact of job losses. 

Following an urgent statement in the House of Commons, Jonathan Edwards MP said,

“Today’s announcement is a devastating blow to the workers and communities of Port Talbot, Llanwern and Llanelli. The steel industry supports thousands of workers across the region, with Tata Steel contributing around £3.2 billion annually to the Welsh economy.”

“The UK Government has singularly failed to protect the steel industry from the volatility of the markets, despite repeated warnings. Artificially cheap steel is being dumped every week from countries such as Russia and China, drowning the UK market and undercutting Welsh-produced steel.”  

“The dumping of Chinese steel is one of the biggest contributors to this crisis. But the UK Government has done little to help the flailing steel industry at home, choosing instead to promote China’s bid for market economy status which would further decimate our steel industry.”  

“Ensuring market fairness for our steel industry should be a top priority for the UK Government. It should be pursued with the same drive as we saw when the banks were bailed out in 2008.”

"The UK Government should also be pressing to implement measures such as an employer’s national insurance contribution break for West Wales and the Valleys. This area is one of the most economically disadvantaged areas in Western Europe and contains the steel plants at Trostre and Port Talbot. Measures such as this would support against the impact of these job losses and provide a boost for the area."

“Plaid Cymru has put forward constructive proposals to save the steel industry in Wales and called on the Welsh Government to urgently consider all options, including taking a temporary stake in Tata Steel to protect workers and guard this key industry, a backbone of the Welsh economy, against these challenging economic conditions.”           

“So far the Welsh First Minister has chosen to ignore these calls, including those made by his own party leader, choosing instead to treat Welsh steelworkers as pawns in a political blame game between the Welsh Government and Westminster.”

“Whilst the Tories and Labour refuse to step up to the plate, Plaid Cymru will press both the UK and Welsh Government to do all they can to protect the jobs of our steel workers.”

A FAIR SHARE FOR WALES

Plaid Cymru's Jonathan Edwards MP has launched a campaign to secure a fair share for Wales from spending on the England-only High Speed Rail (HS2) project. Welsh taxpayers should not be forced to fund an England-only project and that Wales is entitled to a sum of around £2 -4 billon pounds of the HS2 expenditure. The HS2 project runs the risk of dominating infrastructure investment for at least a generation and that there will be little money left to spend on other projects, despite the Welsh transport network being in dire need of investment.

To sign the petition, click here: http://www.getwalesontrack.org/

Plaid Cymru has fought for four years fought for a fair share for Wales from spending on the England-only HS2 project. The HS2 project is estimated to cost £ 50 - 80 billion pounds, improving rail links between London, Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds with little benefit to Wales. The Westminster Government has branded this an UK-wide scheme despite the fact that it sits entirely in England. Wales is home to 5% of the UK population, so we should receive £2-4bn for our fair share.

Our fair share could revolutionise our transport system and deliver much-needed projects such as the electrification of the North Wales Main Line, the Valleys Lines, a South Wales Metro, and countless road projects up and down Wales. Plaid Cymru is the party for all of Wales. Unlike the Labour Welsh Government who have taken the reckless decision to spend nearly £1bn on a 9 mile stretch of the M4, Plaid recognises that roads and railways in all corners of our nation are in need of investment.

Independent research shows that HS2 will have a devastating impact on the South Wales economy, Labour, Conservative and Liberal Democrat MPs from Wales have voted in favour of this project. This is unacceptable; we need to send the so-called Westminster elite a message. Wales is not longer prepared to settle for crumbs from the Westminster table. 

The financial decisions on HS2 will be made in the next Comprehensive Spending Review, which will take place in the early years of the next Westminster Parliament. The run-up to the General Election is the only opportunity the people of Wales have to ensure that those allegedly elected to serve our communities after next May will not support public spending on HS2 unless our nation receives a fair share.

HANDBAGS AT 50 YARDS

The latest bout of handbags between the current Con Dem Westminster Government and the Labour in Wales Government over just exactly who is going to pay what for railway electrification in Wales (and who said what?) is depressing to say the least. There is a convenient manufactured feel about it, with both sides scoring easy political points at our  expense and once again failing to get the electrification of the valley lines project started.

I suspect that but for the increasingly nominal difference in ideology then the Welsh Government in Cardiff would not even be asking Westminster to stump up the cash for electrifying the valley lines. Neither the Westminster government or the Welsh government are serving Wales well or let alone standing up for our interests being too busy having yet another convenient spat.

Plaid is actively campaigning to ensure that Wales gets its fair share of funding from the England-only HS2 project. Plaid has also successfully campaigned to make sure that the electrification programme for the Great Western region was extended beyond Bristol (the original limit for electrification as quietly proposed by the last New Labour government in Westminster).

Sadly it is now becoming clear that the Labour in Wales Government is too weak to stand up to Westminster and its failure to secure a written agreement from the UK Government that the Treasury would cover the costs of electrifying the Valley lines may suggest a more than a degree of incompetence. Until a definitive agreement is reached and signed, then the delays will continue and our country will continue to miss out on millions of pounds of funding that could transform our transport infrastructure, connect our communities, and create a rail network fit for the 21^st rather than the 19^thcentury.

Speaking on Tuesday Plaid Cymru’s Jonathan Edwards MP  said:

“Wales historically receives only a fraction of our population share in transport infrastructure which explains why our road and rail networks are so poor.  We are the only country in the whole of the European continent that does not currently have a single mile of electrified rail track, apart from Albania. This is why electrifying our existing network is so important, but in effect it would only lead to Wales catching up with other parts of the UK.

“Both the UK and Welsh governments have claimed credit for moves to electrify the Valleys lines without agreeing on how it will be paid for.  The posturing by both administrations is putting the project – and the economic benefits that would follow – at risk.  Once again we have Westminster taking Wales for a ride and unfortunately the Labour government is too weak to stand up and protect the interest of Wales.  Labour are also guilty of gross incompetence, basing their position on a TV interview by the Prime Minister rather than the fine detail of correspondence between both Administrations.   

“The truth is that, if the Labour Welsh Government got behind Plaid Cymru’s campaign for a fair share of HS2 funding for Wales – a figure which could be as high as £4bn according to some estimates – then this tiff would be academic.   Instead, the Labour Government blindly follow the position of their Labour masters in London, despite independent economic assessments indicating that HS2 would hit the South Wales economy particularly hard.

“Rather than engage in tedious tit-for-tat exchanges between Westminster and Cardiff Bay, Plaid Cymru is interested in securing fair and sustainable funding for Wales’ railways in order to transform our transport infrastructure and create a network fit for purpose.

“The line between Glasgow and London was electrified forty years ago. Once again, the Westminster elite are happy to treat Wales as a second class nation.

“Carrying out rail policy on the basis of ‘doing deals’ project-by-project is a recipe for disaster, as this row has clearly shown. It is not the way rail policy is done in Scotland and Northern Ireland, where transport infrastructure is devolved where there are much better levels of rail investment.

“If the people of Wales want improved services, quicker journeys and better-connected communities, they should back Plaid Cymru’s efforts to secure fair transport funding for our nation. This Labour and Tory spat shows that the Westminster parties cannot be trusted to act in the Welsh national interest.”

TELLING IT THE WAY IT IS…

To say that our countries interests are often taken for granted by some our MP’s is no understatement. There are more than enough MP’s who represent geographically Welsh constituencies who do little to further the interests of our country or even to call for far funding for Wales. Plaid Cymru Westminster Transport and Treasury spokesperson Jonathan Edwards MP is spot on when he says that any MP based in Wales voting for HS2 without fair funding for Wales will be committing an act of political betrayal. 

The UK Westminster Government commissioned detailed economic analysis by accountants KPMG which shows that hundreds of millions of pounds will be lost from the Welsh economy each year as a result of the proposed HS2 rail link project which plans to link the North of England to London. Yet the figures were only released after a Freedom of Information request by the BBC 2’s Newsnight.  The report indicates that Cardiff will lose £68m per annum; Swansea £16.5m; Bridgend £11m, and Neath Port Talbot £6m and that Wrexham would only gain marginally from HS2.

England-only infrastructure developments should result in Wales receiving its fair share even under the deeply flawed and outdated Barnet formula.  Yet, as transport infrastructure remains not devolved and the HS2 project has been designated by the UK Government as a UK wide project this means that Wales won’t receive 5% of the total costs of the project in compensation.  Last summer the UK Government up-rated the expected cost of the development by £10bn to over £40bn.

Plaid Cymru Westminster Transport and Treasury spokesperson, Jonathan Edwards MP said:

“The last time I looked on a map, London, Birmingham, Manchester, Sheffield, and Leeds were all in England.  I find it difficult to see how the UK Government can claim that this is a UK-wide project.  In reality what we are seeing once again is a UK Government using Welsh taxpayers’ money from the general pool of taxation to fund an infrastructure project which will disadvantage our economy.

“The Budget for HS2 is spiralling out of control and construction hasn’t yet begun.  The budget for HS2 will inevitably increase and it will be the only game in town for generations in terms of rail infrastructure spend, meaning that there will be less money to invest in Welsh transport infrastructure. 

“Wales historically only gets a fraction of infrastructure investment - far less than what our population share would demand. We can ill afford to not receive our fair share from HS2.

“Following queries from the Financial Times as to why the Labour Welsh Government was not supporting Plaid Cymru’s position, it belatedly performed a U-turn.  However it was revealed in a recent Parliamentary question I tabled that the Welsh Government had made no representations to the UK Government on securing a fair deal for Wales.  Wales cannot have a Labour Government that is unwilling to stand up to Westminster on this issue.

“Based on UK Government projections, Wales should receive £2bn as a result of HS2.  However with predictions that the total bill for HS2 could easily double, we could be looking at nearer £4bn.  Either way this is a huge sum of money which could revolutionise transport infrastructure in Wales.

“Together with the published negative impact on the South Wales economy in particular, it would be an act of betrayal by MPs representing Welsh constituencies if they didn’t oppose the HS2 Bill today without cast iron guarantees that we were not going to be short changed again by the UK Government.”

BETRAYING WALES OVER WELFARE

Plaid was right to criticise Labour MPs from Wales who collectively voted in favour of Chancellor Osborne’s welfare cap in the House of Commons. Plaid Cymru’s Jonathan Edwards, along with his Plaid Cymru colleagues Elfyn Llwyd and Hywel Williams were the only Welsh MP to oppose the cap, as Labour in Wales MP’s voted alongside Conservative and Liberal Democrat MP’s to betray some of our country’s most vulnerable people to literally limit the help available to the needy. This is a yet another classic example of Labour in Wales saying one thing and Labour in Westminster doing something different, so much for standing up for Wales!  

Plaid Cymru’s Jonathan Edwards MP  said:

“This was a significant vote which proved that Labour MPs from Wales make their decision based on orders from London, rather than on the needs of their constituents.

“It signals a betrayal of some of our nation’s most vulnerable people by a Labour party whose fork-tongued politicians say one thing in Wales and another in Westminster. The people of Wales deserve better than their spineless hypocrisy.

“Plaid Cymru was the only party from Wales to unanimously vote against this ill-judged and immoral policy – Welsh voters will no doubt bear this in mind at the ballot box.

“With the economy being so unpredictable, it makes no sense whatsoever to put a cap on welfare spending with no idea of how many people will need support should unemployment rise drastically and public services face further cuts.

“We in Plaid Cymru have proposed far better ways of bringing down the welfare bill than making the vulnerable pay for the failure of the banks. A living wage, rent caps, and scrapping mandatory zero-hour contracts are just some policies that would put an end to the “working poor” label once and for all.

“It is now clearer than ever before than when it comes to protecting the interests of the Welsh people, Plaid Cymru is the only party to be trusted.”

SIMPLY A BAD IDEA...

Even the news that the Post Office profit rose from £ 152 million pounds to £ 403 million pounds (in the 12 months up until the end of March) made little difference; the Lib Dems (notorious locally for campaign to keep open local Post Offices that were not under threat of closure) have with their Conservative collation partners decided to privatise the Post Office. Labour in Westminster has been busy crying crocodile tears, as they tried and failed (under Peter Mandelson) to privatise the Post Office themselves during their largely wasted 13 years in government.

Privatisation of the Post Office - simply a bad idea...

Don't get me wrong, I have absolutely no problem with the Post Office being given the maximum amount of commercial freedom to go out and diversify and to make money (as happens in the Netherlands) but firmly believe that this is an ideologically driven and unnecessary privatisation  A major concern should be about the longevity of the unprofitable rural postal operations – how long will it be before they are dropped because they don’t make enough profit?

The Post Office, rather than be simply sold off to a private company will be floated on the stock market, with shares being sold off. The business has been valued at something between £ 2 billion and £ 3 billion pounds with up to 10% of shares being set aside for postal workers. Not surprisingly, probably along with most people, the members of the Communication Workers Union are understandably firmly opposed to the privatisation of the Post Office.

Plaid Cymru spokesperson on Royal Mail, Jonathan Edwards MP, said:

“Plaid Cymru is wholly opposed to the privatisation of Royal Mail. 

"When the last Labour Government thought that part-privatisation was a good idea, Plaid Cymru fought to defend Royal Mail in the House of Commons, and will do so again against this Tory – Lib Dem decision.

“Plaid Cymru is very concerned about the Government’s decision to press ahead with privatisation of the postal service that threatens to put jobs and services at risk.

“The reasons for keeping Royal Mail in public ownership are numerous, and the Government has not been able to give sufficient reasons for privatising it.

“In May this year, it was announced that Royal Mail had posted a profit of over £400 million in the preceding year and lays to waste the Coalition Government’s claim that it must be sold off to survive.”

MAKING THE RIGHT DECISION

The news that the latest sets of questionable plans for a £25 billion pound barrage across the Severn Estuary have been kicked into touch by MPs at Westminster should be welcomed. The House of Commons' Energy and Climate Change Committee criticised a "lack of information and noted a perceived lack of transparency" about the proposal.

The MPs stated that the case for the barrage is "unproven" and that Hafren Power had failed to provide robust and independently verified evidence of the economic, environmental and technological viability of the project. The MPs were warned about the potential of job losses in nearby ports, and came to the conclusion that the barrage scheme did not provide a solution to meeting renewable energy targets and it should not go ahead in its current form.

Hafren Power wanted to build an 11-mile barrage between Lavernock Point near Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan, and Brean near Weston-super-Mare, Somerset. In their report MPs said Hafren had failed to make the case that it would be good for the economy or the environment.

This is a sensible decision on the part of MPs in Westminster should, mean that the way is clear to consider more sustainable less environmentally damaging energy schemes. There are plenty of potential options out there including tidal lagoons (as proposed for Swansea Bay), tidal fences and wave power projects which could produce far more energy over a far longer period (and generate sustainable jobs).

When it comes to generating energy and jobs (here in Wales) it is well worth noting that both New Labour and the Conservatives failed to honour their Welsh general election manifesto promise in 2011 to increase the 1 MW limit for off-shore and 50 MW for on-shore threshold for planning for energy projects – something that does not help us here in Wales. This failure effectively threatens to prevent the development of potential energy schemes above that threshold as they have to be decided in Westminster rather than in Wales.

Back in January 2012, Plaid MP Jonathan Edwards called for energy powers to be transferred to the Welsh Government; his bill would have given the Welsh Government powers over energy generation in Wales. The bill (which was blocked by Labour and Conservative MPs, defeated by 239 votes to 44) would have ensured equality with Scotland and Northern Ireland and would have meant that Wales would have been better placed to fight fuel poverty with responsibility for our own resources.

I have for some time had serious concerns about any proposed Severn Barrage, it does not generate enough energy over a long enough period to justify the cost and it would be environmentally damaging. A more logical solution would be to build tidal lagoons, the one proposed for Swansea Bay would be ideal to test out the technology. Previous attempts to develop this technology (here in Wales) have been repeatedly stalled and delayed by a hostile Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) and then powerless (but now vision-less and clueless) Welsh Government.

The last thing we seriously need to do is limit the amount of sustainable energy we can develop, we need to maximise the period of generation well beyond the 3 hour energy pulse offered by all previous incarnations of the barrage. A combination of tidal lagoons and other energy schemes could offer release energy for a far longer period than 3 hours and minimise any damage to the environment. By using a variety of options we could generate sustainable jobs and make Wales a world leader in developing the energy generation technology.

A ROAD TO NOWHERE…

We have had a fantasy barrage (as proposed by Peter ‘the Pain’ Hain) and now we have a road to nowhere which press reports suggest that Chancellor George Osborne will announce plans to support a new toll motorway in June's comprehensive spending review. The one thing Wales does not need is yet another expensive toll road with yet a franchise holder milking it for every penny and pound that they can squeeze out of us.

Interestingly enough the BBC suggests that Westminster sources have confirmed that an agreement in principle had been reached but a deal on funding was not finalised. Considering that when the Welsh Government looked at this option it was binned on grounds of cost.  One of the reason why, when Plaid was in government (between 2007 and 2011) that the M4 Gwent Levels relief road was dropped was that it was unaffordable.

During the botched consultation in the spring of 2012, the one option that made the most sense was the one that would have involved the grade separation of some junctions and partial or full closure of other junctions on the Newport A48 Southern Distributor Road (SDR) which should be a real alternative route to the M4. Price wise that would have come in at around £300m, this would be more affordable that the £ 1 billion pounds plus that any Gwent Levels M4 relief road would cost.

Plaid Cymru Economy and Transport spokesperson Jonathan Edwards MP said:

"Plaid Cymru when in government looked afresh at the needs of the M4 and Wales-England transport corridor under Ieuan Wyn Jones. This included the principle of tolling, which we rejected. We embarked on a programme of improvements, including the Newport distributor road and the rail electrification, which could alleviate congestion and meet both business and environmental objectives. These need to be fully rolled out as an alternative to a highly expensive, environmentally damaging brand new motorway. The proposal that such a motorway would be tolled in Wales is the worst of all scenarios as we need to attract business investment not put it off with a penalty charge for coming to Wales.

“Wales has a real need for useful infrastructure spending, linking all parts of our nation and increasing connectivity. Rather than tolls, what's needed is a swift implementation of the Silk recommendations and a Barnett floor so we can borrow effectively and efficiently to invest.

“But does anyone seriously think that charging motorists to cross the Severn Bridge and then charging them again to use the motorway a few miles later is going to make south Wales more economically competitive?

“The only other toll road in the UK is the M6 in the Midlands which has seen toll prices rise by 175% since it was opened but the number of users plummet. It has also done nothing to reduce congestion. The lack of any other toll road proposals shows what people think.

“Wales has a greater capacity for borrowing money because we don’t have as many debts due to PFI, but we have to make sure that this is invested in schemes which will pay their way both in the short and longer term for the economy and sustainability."

The Party of Wales former Transport Minister Ieuan Wyn Jones said:

“The reason that the M4 relief road was abandoned was not simply the issue of affordability at £1 billion but also the fact that I was advised that not only was the new relief road to be subjected to tolls, so was the existing M4 to be tolled. This was due to the evidence that had been gained during the operation of the M6 toll road which had never made any money. I came to the conclusion that it was simply unacceptable for motorists to have to pay tolls on the Severn bridges and on the existing M4 and new relief road. There was already significant complaints about the tolls on the Severn bridges and this additional burden on motorists and businesses could not possibly be justified. That is why I accepted my officials’ advice not to proceed with the relief road but to ease congestion around Newport by linking into the southern distribution road as an alternative route.”

THEY NEVER EVEN ASKED?

The news that the Labour in Wales government in Cardiff never even asked the Westminster Government about the Severn Bridge tolls should not really surprise anyone and will bring no comfort to Motorists travelling from England to Wales on the Severn bridges who (as of 01.01.2013) now pay £6.20 – up from £6 from 2012. The cost for vans and minibuses travelling west rose from £12.10 to £12.40 (2.5%), and from £18.10 to £18.60 (2.8%) for lorries and coaches.

Plaid Cymru submitted a Freedom of Information request to the Department of Transport seeking details of any correspondence between it and the Welsh Government on the level of tolls since May 2011, the last Assembly elections. In its response the Department of Transport merely listed emails between the Highways Agency and the Welsh Government advising of planned increases in tolls for 2012 and 2013. The FOI request revealed that there was no other correspondence between the Welsh Government and the Westminster Government – so much for standing up for Wales!

Plaid Cymru Transport spokesperson Jonathan Edwards MP said: “The lack of complaints over the continued rise of the Severn Bridges tolls once again shows that the Welsh Government are crying crocodile tears when they complain about motorists’ rising costs.

“The tolls rise annually according to RPI inflation index under an Act of Parliament from 1992. This is higher than the CPI inflation which has now become the norm for inflation, such as pensions upratings – so it is not even the fairest form of inflation.

“While the UK Government have been happy to rip up parliamentary acts for S4C that operated on the same inflation increase basis, they aren’t willing to touch the Severn Bridges – and the Welsh Government haven’t even asked them to consider it.

“Other companies and investments have been forced to take the economic situation into account in recent years and many will tell you about the problems that the tolls cause them.

"But for south Wales motorists the tolls keep rising. I’m sure that neither the UK or Welsh Government have even considered entering into discussion with the private company who owns them to lower the tolls during these tough times.

"In a few years, though, the cost of the Severn Bridges’ construction will have been repaid and the bridges will come back into public ownership.

"Major decisions will have to be made about the Bridges’ future ownership – by the Welsh Government, the UK Government or some form of joint ownership and, depending on who holds the purse strings, the amount that motorists will pay in tolls in future.

"It is vital that the Welsh Government take a more proactive stance in supporting the Welsh economy."

LONG TERM THINKING

In Northern Ireland there is clear evidence of some long term thinking as more than £ 44 million pounds has been approved to boost green energy generation including potentially some 1,000 megawatts of renewable wind generation. Some of the funding will go to improve the transmission network and sub stations. The Northern Ireland Executive has set a target of generating 40% of the Northern Ireland’s energy from renewable sources by 2020.

The Scottish Government revealed its new green energy target set at 50% of demand by 2015. The Scots have already surpassed their 31% target for 2001 by about 4%. The SNP Government has stated that the new target would help build on the current 11,000 jobs in green energy following a "bumper year" for investment, with projects estimated to be worth £2.3 billion pounds.

The Scottish government's new interim target for 2015 is included in a refreshed Routemap for Renewable Energy for Scotland. Sustainable energy generation has been boosted by the launch (in October 2012) of a £103 million pound fund for Scottish renewable energy projects. The Renewable Energy Investment Fund (REIF) is designed to attract more private investment to the sector. Scottish priorities include wave and tidal energy, and renewable district heating.

Meanwhile in Wales...yesterday the Welsh Labour in Wales Government yesterday woke from its post Welsh general election slumbers and demanded control of large-scale energy projects in Wales. Carwyn Jones now says that the Welsh Government should have the same powers as its counterparts in Scotland and Northern Ireland to set energy policy – it’s a pity that he did not ask for the powers when Labour had a majority in Westminster.

The truth is that Plaid’s Jonathan Edwards MP and his colleagues in Westminster have done more (since the last Westminster general election) to try to get energy policy devolved to Wales than the whole of the Labour Party in Westminster and the Labour in Wales Government in Cardiff. The party formerly known as New Labour has had plenty of opportunities to stand up for Wales; it has just chosen to put its own party interests before those of the Welsh nation.

A FIRST STEP

It has taken far too long and I for one doubted whether Westminster would deliver, but there is now a Groceries Ombudsman who will be able to fight for both farmers, food producers and food consumers. Even getting to this point has been a hard slog for campaigners inside (and outside) of Westminster. Plaid has campaigned extensively on this issue but we are not their yet. What now needs to be done is for the new Groceries Ombudsman (created by the passing of the Groceries Code Adjudicator Bill last week) to be given real teeth to tackle supermarket price fixing (with significant fines) which hits the farmers, the food producers and the consumers of their produce.


Plaid Cymru MP Jonathan Edwards said:

"It is very welcome news that the Government has acted to empower the Ombudsman with the ability to levy fines, as advocated by Plaid Cymru since 2004 when Simon Thomas AM, the former MP for Ceredigion introduced a private members bill.

"This move will benefit the thousands of people working within the agricultural sector, particularly within the milk industry.

"The agricultural industry makes a huge contribution to the Welsh economy and its employees deserve to be treated with fairness and respect.

We are therefore pleased to see the Government take steps to ensure that the supermarkets are forced to deliver fairness throughout the supply chain.

"Recently, the dairy industry has faced a crisis due to a cut in the price of milk, leaving farmers at a loss and paying more to produce than sell.

“It is encouraging to learn that the Department for Business have listened to concerns that their original Ombudsman lacked the powers required to protect farmers. I look forward with interest to seeing the amended legislative proposals in detail."

A REGULATED ENERGY MARKET?

Plaid is right to call on the Welsh Government to pull its finger out when it comes to ending the injustice in the energy sector. The big six energy cartel members are busy ramping up fat profits while they can and successive Westminster Government’s have quietly looked the other way. We have excessive profiteering on the part of the energy companies, while Welsh consumers pay around 5-10% more for their energy than anywhere elsewhere in the UK due to a combination of poorer energy infrastructure, the effective demise of competition in the nominal free market, and older housing stock.

I can see no good  reason why the energy market in Wales should not be regulated in here in Wales - we would be hard pressed to make it any worse. Energy wise things have not been helped by the Labour in Wales Government (in Cardiff) which shows no signs of stirring from its s elf-induced lethargy to do anything significant about developing the energy sector. They have done little save to bleat occasionally about excessive on-shore wind-farm development and the lack of any real planning input in the process due to the 50 MW (onshore) and 1 MW (off-shore) rule, something that ironically is their fault.

We need not be in this situation, if the party formerly known as New Labour and the Conservatives had actually honoured their Welsh general election manifesto promise in 2011 to increase the 1 MW limit for off-shore and 50 MW for on-shore threshold for planning for energy project. This failure effectively prevents the development of realistic community beneficial energy schemes, some of which may be over the threshold, so they have to be decided on in Westminster rather than in Wales, and since when has Westminster seriously had any time for Wales?

Back in January (2012) Plaid MP Jonathan Edwards called for energy powers to be transferred to the Welsh Government; his bill would have given the Welsh Government powers over energy generation in Wales. The bill, which was blocked by Labour and Conservative MPs (and defeated by 239 votes to 44), would have ensured equality with Scotland and Northern Ireland and would have meant that Wales would have been better placed to fight fuel poverty with responsibility for our own resources.

Last week Plaid Cymru’s Simon Thomas AM outlined what he saw as excessive profits by energy companies. He called for the Welsh Government to work towards the devolution of energy policy so that it can protect the people of Wales form unjust practices.

The Party of Wales Mid and West Wales AM Simon Thomas said:

“As winter approaches, families are finding it more difficult than ever to pay for their heating bills, yet energy companies are reporting enormous profits. We cannot protect Welsh consumers from price rises without obtaining further energy powers and the ability to regulate the energy market in Wales.

“It is clear that something needs to be done. It isn’t fair that Welsh consumers pay 5 or 10 per cent more for their energy than other UK regions. We have heard allegations of price fixing at a time when figures also show that there are thousands of excess winter death each year. If energy companies are found to have been price-fixing then there will be serious questions for them to answer about those excess deaths.

“The Party of Wales is convinced that the devolution of powers over energy is the only way to protect Welsh customers from the unfair practices in the energy market.

“But we also want the Welsh Government to use the powers it already has to help more people. Through extending the Arbed scheme we could help more families bring down their energy bills by making their homes more energy efficient – this could have a huge effect on their bills. Heating bills are one of the biggest worries that Welsh families are facing this winter, and a Party of Wales Government would do much more to help them.”

A pressing question remains, whether or not Carwyn Jones will actually trying to do something or anything about trying to develop our countries energy potential over the remaining years of their term in office? I suspect that the answer is going to be a resounding no! Sadly I suspect that he and his Labour in Wales government will sit quietly and do nothing merely waiting for the Westminster cycle to run its course and duly (they hope) return a Labour in Westminster Government – what a waste of time and (admittedly limited) opportunities.

MADE IN WALES

Many people are concerned about the state of the economy as the latest GDP figures show a deepening of the double-dip recession, with a 0.7% drop in output during the second quarter. This is not good and the UK Westminster Government has not helped matters with cuts on capital spending projects as the crisis in the construction industry (whose output has slumped dramatically with quarter-on-quarter falls of 5.2% and 4.9% in the last two quarters) threatens to get worse.

The UK Westminster Government spending plans will do lasting damage to our long-term economic prospects. It’s time for job-creating taxation powers to be transferred to the Welsh Government so that we can create ‘made in Wales’ economic solutions, as by now it’s pretty clear that those from London are clearly not working.

Plaid Cymru Treasury spokesperson Jonathan Edwards MP (on Wednesday 25th July) said:

“These are truly disastrous figures showing that the economy is in a downward spiral, with the worst double-dip recession since the 1950s.

“They show weakness across the economy, with the construction industry quite clearly in crisis.

“We are paying the price for failing to invest in infrastructure spending when the financial crisis began. If the London parties had introduced our infrastructure policies when we first proposed them then the construction industry would be booming and we would be looking forward to new roads, hospitals and schools.

“Instead, cuts to capital budgets mean that very little construction is now being undertaken by either the public or private sector.

“The concern is that these cuts are doing not just short-term, but very long-term, lasting damage to the productivity of the economy.

“We are in a lost decade with a stagnant economy contracting once again and the current direction of travel shows no indication of improvement, and the Tories still refusing to recognise that their financial plans have failed.

“It is now more urgent than ever that job-creating levers, such as control over income and corporation tax, are given to the Welsh Government so that we can have ‘made in Wales’ solutions to these economic problems – because it is clear that the Tory government in London don’t have a clue.”

ALL IN IT TOGETHER?

Plaid Cymru's Treasury spokesperson Jonathan Edwards MP has repeated calls for greater responsibility within the financial sector as a report is published showing the bosses of FTSE 100 companies enjoyed an average 12% rise in their take-home pay last year.

Mr Edwards, who has consistently maintained that curbing executive pay and reforming the banking system are key to economic recovery, insists that the Coalition government must shrug off its complacency towards big bonuses and put the interests of the real economy ahead of the City elite.

Responding to the survey conducted by Manifest/MM&K, Mr Edwards said:

"In recent years, the financial sector in Britain has created an unacceptable culture of rewarding failure and neglecting responsibility.

"The Coalition government is also complicit in this negligence. While ordinary people are feeling the squeeze, those earning more than £3,000 a week are enjoying tax cuts introduced by the Chancellor's latest Budget.

"Plaid Cymru have always maintained that big bonuses must curbed if we are to tackle the UK's widening wealth gap - the largest in Europe - brought about by the Coalition's complacency and the previous Labour government's lethargic approach to financial management.

"Only yesterday (Monday), we warned that the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill currently going through Parliament, could become a 'Bad Bosses' Charter' if it limits employee rights, and lacks strength in sections which deal with directors' pay and bonuses.

"Plaid Cymru would look to address the weakness of certain sections of the Bill through introducing a maximum wage and allowing employees' representatives to be included remuneration committees.

"These latest statistics serve as a reminder of who's really 'in it together'. While the majority of the population are dealing with soaring food and fuel prices, the FTSE 100 bosses are benefiting from soaring salaries.

"We should be asking serious questions about what sort of society we want to create as a result of the recession. A return to business as usual for the economic elite favoured by the Labour-Tory tag team is not acceptable.

"The UK Government needs to curb executive pay and reform the banking system so that it works in the interests of the real economy rather than a self-serving cash machine for bankers and others.”

SO MUCH HOT AIR...

By the time the dust settles around the draft Energy Bill (rolled out at Westminster on the 22nd May) the best that can probably be said about it is that was a missed opportunity because of the failure to include the devolution of energy planning powers to the National Assembly. Plaid’s Jonathan Edwards MP, put forward legislation (Electricity Generation (Wales) Bill ) to devolve energy generation planning powers to Wales (last January), but that idea was voted down by Labour in Wales and Conservative MPs in Westminster – so much for standing up for Wales! At present, the Welsh Government only has powers to decide on energy proposals up to 50MW on land and 1MW on sea. One direct result of this state of affairs is that the recent decision to grant permission for the Pen y Cymoedd windfarm in south Wales (which will generate an estimated 250MW) was made by the Secretary of State in London and not by the Welsh Government in Cardiff. Another result is that all the hot air generated by the Welsh First Minister on energy infrastructure development is largely meaningless as along as his colleagues in Labour in Wales (in Westminster) and their Conservative friends in London continue to refuse to allow our country to make its own energy decisions.

LABOUR INACTION

Despite all the budget day bluster from Labour, when it came down to the actual vote (on Monday evening) Labour politicians failed to oppose the cut to the 50p tax rate. The vote was forced by Plaid Cymru and the SNP, some 22 MPs voted against the cut, with only two Labour MPs voting to keep the top rate at 50p. The vote took place after both Labour Leader Ed Milliband and Carwyn Jones (Welsh First Minister) made much of their party’s opposition to the cut from 50p to 45p proposed in last Wednesday's Budget.

Plaid Cymru's Treasury spokesperson, Jonathan Edwards MP said:

"Having heard Labour's alleged objection to this regressive taxation policy time and again last week, the inaction of its party members last night showed astonishing hypocrisy.

"Over the past few months, we have seen Labour abstaining or voting with the ConDems on important issues such as privatisation of the NHS and cutting Welsh farming subsidies. Labour of course introduced regional pay in the public sector and are now advocating a regional cap on benefits. What we saw last night was the Tory-Labour tag-team at work yet again.

"Plaid Cymru has always maintained that progressive taxation is a principle, not an option, and those who are most able to afford to pay must make a fair contribution.

“Cutting the 50p income tax rate for the mega rich who earn more than £3,000 per week whilst continuing to slash support for the needy and vulnerable shows once again that the Coalition only cares about the rich and wealthy.

"Labour's failure to vote last night clearly shows that their priorities are much the same.

"First Minister Carwyn Jones's inability to influence his MPs in Westminster reveals a crisis of leadership for the party in Wales.

"His Treasury spokesperson, Owen Smith MP, was quoted last week as saying that cutting the top rate of tax for the rich would show how out of touch this Government is, yet when it came to the crunch last night, Labour failed to deliver.

"The Labour Welsh Government as always is more interested in serving its masters in London Labour HQ than serving the people of Wales."

OOPS...AN UPDATE

An advisor to Ed Balls, the Shadow Chancellor, has admitted that Labour had made a “screw-up” on Monday night by not voting with Plaid Cymru and the SNP to oppose Con Dem plans to cut the top rate of tax for the highest earners. The admission reveals embarrassing efforts by Labour staff to claim their abstention had been planned, and also reveal that Carwyn Jones was only belatedly told what was going on in Westminster rather than being part of Labour Party discussions. The Labour no-show followed some pretty vocal opposition and several pledges from shadow chancellor Ed Balls to vote against the Budget measure. The Con Dem Government won the vote on the 45p rate by 319 to 22, a majority of 297.

WAKING UP FOR WALES – PERHAPS NOT?

There may be some signs the Labour in Wales is finally waking from its self induced slumber? First Minister Carwyn Jones claimed that Wales is losing out on jobs and investment because it lacks the same powers over renewable energy enjoyed by Scotland. He has called for control of energy projects up to 100MW to be devolved to Wales.

Now I have no problem with that, it is worth noting that when Plaid Cymru MP Jonathan Edwards (31.01.2012) introduced a bill in Westminster which would have given the Welsh Government powers over energy generation in Wales – something both Labour and the Conservatives included in their respective Welsh general election manifesto's last year - its clear that Labour in Wales’s Westminster representatives were not prepared to play ball.

Mr Edwards argued not unreasonably that the proposal would lead to equality with Scotland and Northern Ireland and that it would mean that we would be better placed to fight fuel poverty with responsibility for our own resources. This entirely reasonable proposal was voted down by Labour MPs, who were more than happy to team up with Conservatives MPs to stop their own party in Wales taking these powers. The proposal was defeated by 239 votes to 44 after Labour and Conservative MPs teamed up against the Bill.

Waking up for Wales perhaps not? Carwyn is on record as saying that he wants decision-making powers for renewable energy developments up to 100MW to be devolved to Wales. So what about any projects that come in over the magic 100MW figure? That according to Carwyn's logic would get decided upon in London by Conservative / Lib Dem Ministers.

Now oddly enough this position may not quite be as ill-thought out as it first appears as it would mean that all of Wales' offshore wind farms, large-scale tidal developments (including any proposed re-badged Severn Barrage) and some of the biomass plant proposals that are floating about would all be excluded. Obviously from a developmental, strategic or practical point of view this is complete nonsense.

Anything for a quiet life and nothing controversial to disturb ones sleep perhaps? And anyway as Labour in Wales representatives in Westminster are totally opposed to any plans to devolve more powers to the National Assembly anyway perhaps this is the ideal solution to the problem as it puts party interest before the national one? Perhaps Carwyn hopes that no one will notice...

LABOUR TEAMS UP WITH THE TORIES

Plaid Cymru MP Jonathan Edwards yesterday (31.01.2012) repeated calls for energy powers to be transferred to the Welsh Government, which is currently run by elected representatives of Labour in Wales. Jonathan Edwards hoped to introduce a bill in Westminster which would give the Welsh Government powers over energy generation in Wales – this was something that was supported by both Labour and the Conservatives in their Welsh general election manifesto's last year, where they argued that there should be an increase from the present 50 MW limit.

Mr Edwards argued that the proposal would lead to equality with Scotland and Northern Ireland and that it would mean that we would be better placed to fight fuel poverty with responsibility for our own resources. This sounds fair and is entirely reasonable, but Mr Edwards motion was voted down by Labour MPs, who were more than happy to team up with Conservatives MPs to stop their own party in Wales taking these powers. The proposal was defeated by 239 votes to 44 after Labour and Conservative MPs teamed up together against the Bill.

After the vote, Jonathan Edwards, Plaid MP for Carmarthen East, said:

"It is extraordinary to see Labour MPs from Wales teaming up to vote with the Conservatives against a motion that would empower the Welsh Government which they run. Do they just not trust Carwyn Jones with these powers?

“My Bill was simply titled ‘Energy Generation Wales’ and, although our policy is for full transfer of powers to Wales, it would have been open for other MPs to amend and put forward their own suggestions.

“This was an opportunity for Labour to introduce proposals from the manifesto on which their Welsh Government were elected last year but their MPs in London seem strangely keen that Wales should not have these powers.

“When you see the Conservatives and Labour walking through the lobbies together in London then you know that they are doing something which is good for Westminster, not for Wales.

“It is a strange world where Labour would so obviously rather have the Conservatives in charge of energy in Wales than take responsibility for it themselves.

"In 2012 alone, Labour MPs from Wales have voted in favour of NHS privatisation, a reduction in farming subsidies for Wales and now against Wales having the same energy powers as Scotland and Northern Ireland.

"If Carwyn Jones can't persuade Welsh MPs to support his policies, then it makes you wonder if he has any influence on his own party – never mind his complete failure to influence the Tories in charge at Westminster."

TOOLED UP!

News that the UK is training Saudi Arabia's national guard (the elite security force deployed during the recent protests in Bahrain) in public order enforcement measures and the use of sniper rifles should come as no surprise. Plaid's Jonathan Edwards MP, who has tabled parliamentary questions to the Ministry of Defence about its links to Saudi Arabia, has done excellent work exposing this questionable but no doubt lucrative business to the cold light of day. The UK Government has spent may years tooling up the forces the of repression across the globe and signing lucrative arms deals with some of the worlds most repressive regimes.

Depressing though this news is, we would do well to note that this is relatively old news - in that the UK has been quietly supplying and training up some pretty questionable people's security services for years. Even David Cameron took arms dealers on a recent tour of Middle Eastern states - no doubt we can off a good discount of rubber bullets and tear gas in exchange for ensuring that more than a few pints of the dark stuff (and we are not talking about Guinness here) keep flowing. Mrs Thatcher in here time oversaw the the sale directly and indirectly of more than enough weapons to Saddam Hussein when he was our boy, some of which broke the sanctions that were imposed during the war between Iraq and Iran.

ACCENTUATE THE POSITIVE?

News that Conservative Minister Greg Clark agreed to meet with Plaid's Jonathan Edwards MP and Welsh First Minister Carwyn Jones to look at implementing the wider devolution of energy powers for Wales is good news. Currently the Welsh Government only has powers to determine planning applications up to 50MW on land, meaning that it cannot decide on a tidal lagoon in Swansea Bay or larger energy generation schemes.

The Conservative and Labour manifestos for the Welsh general election both pledged to make the case for devolving powers over energy projects up to 100MW. Plaid has called for the full devolution of energy powers arguing that the figure of 100MW has been “plucked from thin air” and not based on any meaningful target. The only question is will Carlwyn's Labour lot step up to plate and make the most of this opportunity or not?

Some more better news is the UK Government’s announced u-turn on closing coastguard stations. The much criticised plans would have seen Wales’ three coastguard stations reduced to one, with the closure of facilities at Milford Haven and Holyhead, leaving just Swansea operational. The well organised and highly effective ‘Save Our Coastguard’ campaign in Milford Haven and the hard work of Plaid’s former AM Nerys Evans helped to put this issue firmly in the public eye.

The right mess of things made by Westminster has shown that Wales cannot seriously expect Westminster to look after issues in Wales. Under the original proposals our coastal waters would have been served by coastguard centres as far away as Aberdeen and the south coast of England. Skilled workers and important local knowledge of the area would have been lost.

The Con Dem Government did its best to try and sneak out the consultation in the first place, perhaps hoping that no one would notice what was being proposed. Westminster MPs were given little opportunity to scrutinise the proposals. There is also the alarming news that no discussions were held with the Welsh Government as much of this shambles took place during an important election period in Wales.

The danger is that the devil may yet remain in the detail, but the news that UK Ministers have extended a consultation on the plans and will allow the Commons transport committee extra time to complete its assessment of the proposals, is to be welcomed. Plaid and many people view the Coastguard as a vital emergency service for all our coastline, and has called for a consultation to look at devolving coastguard services to Wales.