WALES “SHACKLED” BY WESTMINSTER

Plaid demands freedom to grow Welsh economy

Plaid Cymru has demanded that Wales be “released from its Westminster shackles” so that its economy can grow.

The party’s treasury spokesperson, Jonathan Edwards, has said that Westminster’s legacy is making Wales one of the poorest regions in Europe whilst inner London has become the richest, and pledged to “fight tooth and nail” if re-elected in June, for Wales to be “released from its Westminster shackles” and allowed to re-build its economy.

Mr Edwards said that people in Wales suffer with lower wages and a more challenging standard of living than their English and Scottish neighbours as a result of being unable to grow its own economy. He said that Wales has been “shackled” by Westminster, reliant on Tory politicians representing constituencies outside Wales to make decisions for Wales.

The Carmarthen East and Dinefwr MP, who is standing for re-election in June, said that Wales must be given the freedom to “fix its own problems”.

Commenting, Plaid Cymru MP for Carmarthen East & Dinefwr, Jonathan Edwards, said:

“Westminster’s legacy is making Wales one of the poorest of all the nations and regions in Europe whilst inner London has become the richest.

“For how long will we put up with having to ask Westminster to build roads and railways in Wales as well as England? For how long will we put up with having to ask Westminster to support Wales’s exporters and manufacturers, as well as London’s banking sector? The reality is, no Westminster MP representing constituencies outside Wales will ever have the unique needs of Wales as their priority.

“People across Wales are suffering with lower wages and a poorer standard of living than elsewhere across the British State. And is it any wonder, when we see billions of taxpayers’ money being spent on projects such as HS2 and Crossrail, when the people of Wales can’t even travel from the north to the south of our own country on a train without leaving it?

“If we want our economy to grow, our wages to increase and our standard of living to be improved, we have to do it ourselves.

“We must demand that Wales be released from its Westminster shackles so that we can fix the problems that have been left unattended by Westminster and start building our country into the country it could and should be.

“We don’t have to put up with low wages. We can demand that we be given the responsibility to grow our own economy, bypassing the bureaucracy of Westminster. If Westminster won’t electrify our railways then we will, and if Westminster wants to spend all taxpayers’ money in one corner of England then they can allow us to make our own investments in Wales.

“It’s time Wales took control of its own future and stopped relying on a bureaucratic Westminster establishment who will never have Wales’ interests at heart.”

ENDS

PLAID MONMOUTHSHIRE MANIFESTO 2017

Plaid Cymru is a party for local communities, based entirely in Wales. We fight against downgrading and selling off local services.

Where Monmouthshire services are good, Plaid councilors will support them; where they need improvement, there will be open constructive criticism and proposals for better ways of working.

Plaid Cymru candidates are committed to:

• Protecting our services by fighting for fair resources, delivered by fairly treated frontline staff.
• Clamping down on executive top-level pa, but paying all staff above the “living wage”.
• Putting peoples needs first instead of ticking boxes. This has transformed services in Plaid run Gwynedd.
• Supporting teachers and reducing bureaucracy to give more time with pupils. Plaid run Ceredigion is ranked No 1 in Wales, the only authority classed as ‘outstanding’.
• Acknowledging that bilingual education is of enormous benefit therefore making it accessible to all.
• Buying council goods and services locally; investing council reserves locally where possible but always responsibly and ethically.
• A cleaner, greener Monmouthshire, supporting sustainable working and local renewable energy projects.
• Working for planning reform, towards sustainable, affordable development meeting the needs of local communities.
• Working in partnership to invest in social housing. A decent home is everyone’s right.

A GLASS HALF FULL...

Now don’t get me wrong, I warmly welcome the news of the 12 priority (out of 46) stations announced today by the Labour in Wales government, which include:

·      Cardiff: Ely Mill/Victoria Park

·      Cardiff: Newport Road/Rover Way

·      Cardiff: St Mellons

·      Newport: Llanwern

·      Swansea: Cockett

·      Swansea: Landore

·      St Clears

·      Deeside Industrial Park/Northerm Gateway

·      North Wrecsam

·      South Wrecsam

·      Llangefni

·      Bow Street

It’s certainly a step in the right direction, if one that is somewhat limited by a combination of a lack of ambition and the fact that the Conservative Westminster government consciously chose not to devolve any control of Network Rail in Wales to the National Assembly.  This failure by Westminster to standing up or to even represent our national interests by giving us here in Wales the tools to do the job to improve our poor public transport system is nothing new.

While you would not have expected the Conservative Liberal Democrat government to strengthen devolution or protect Welsh interests because it was probably too busy privatizing everything that was not tied down. It is also worth remembering that the Party formerly known as New Labour also did not devolve control of that portion of Network rail to Cardiff when it controlled Westminster with a significant majority.

It is also worth remembering that the extension of the electrification of part of the Great Western line to Cardiff (originally it was Swansea) is only taking place because of the hard graft put in by Ieuan Wyn Jones, then Deputy First Minister in the Plaid driven One Wales Government.  Originally it had been suggested that the electrification work on the Great Western would stop at Bristol and Wales would be left out of this plan entirely.

A glass half full is better than an empty glass, but, more locally there is significant room for improvement, and many local residents would welcome a public commitment to new railway stations at Magor, Caerleon / Ponthir and significant improvements to services and facilities at Abergavenny, Caldicot, Chepstow, Cwmbran, Pontypool, and Severn tunnel Junction – including safe, secure, reasonably priced (if not free) parking. Not to mention a public commitment to actually reopening the Ebbw vale rail link to Newport.

TELLING IT LIKE IT IS!

Responding to Theresa May's comments in Wales, Plaid Cymru's Parliamentary leader, Hywel Williams said:

"The people of Wales will see through this deceptive rhetoric by Theresa May. This is the most important election since Margaret Thatcher first swept a weak and limp Labour Party aside and the impact that that election had on communities across our country continues to take its toll.

"Plaid Cymru will not allow another deliberate destruction of Welsh industry and for the future of generations of young people to be blighted. Unbearable poverty continues to exist where economic activity once thrived and Plaid Cymru will not sit on its hands and allow history to be repeated. 

"The Tories will win this election. The weak and divided Labour Party are not fit to form a government so what this election is about is sending the strongest people to Westminster to stand up to the Tories and defend Wales. It is between the Tories and Plaid Cymru - the Destroyers and the Defenders. Labour MPs are too weak and divided to fight the Tories. Plaid Cymru is the only party that will stand up in Westminster and make sure that the Government's actions work for Wales, not just for the south east of England."