Plaid Cymru Llundain London

Cyfarfod Cangen y Mis Bach/February Branch Meeting

2012-01-27T14:50:00.003Z

Cynhelir y cyfarfod misol nesaf ar Nos Fercher, 1 Chwefror 2012, 7.30 yr hwyr, yn y bar yng Nghanolfan Cymry Llundain, Grays Inn Road. Croeso i'r aelodau i gyd, yn arbennig i'r holl aelodau newydd.

The next monthly branch meeting will be in the bar at the London Welsh Centre, Grays Inn Road on Wednesday 1st February, 7.30 pm. All members welcome, especially all our new members.

Nadolig Llawen! Happy Christmas!

2011-12-26T15:32:00.002Z

Nadolig Llawen gan Blaid Cymru, Cangen Llundain!
Cynhelir cyfarfod cyntaf 2012 ar Nos Fercher 11 Ionawr, 19.30, Canolfan Cymry Llundain.
Croeso mawr i aelodau, hen a newydd!

Happy Christmas from Plaid Cymru, London Branch!
The first meeting of 2012 will be on Wednesday 11 Januaray, 19.30, London Welsh Centre.
New and old members most welcome!

Cinio Nadolig y Gangen/Branch Christmas Meal

2011-11-29T12:44:00.002Z

Ni fydd cyfarfod cangen arferol ddechrau Mis Rhagfyr. Yn lle, cawn bryd o fwyd mewn bwyty heb fod yn bell o orsaf diwb Holborn ar Nos Fercher, 7 Rhagfyr 2011, 7.30 yh. Croeso i'r aelodau i gyd. Cysylltwch â'r ysgrifennydd am ragor o fanylion.

There will not be a regular branch meeting at the beginning of December. Instead there will be a branch Chistmas meal at a restaurant near Holborn tube station, Wednesday, 7 December 2011, 7.30 pm. All members welcome. Contact the secretary for more details.

Cyfarfod nesaf/Next meeting

2011-11-01T16:53:00.001Z

Cynhelir cyfarfod nesaf y Gangen ar Nos Fercher, 2il Tachwedd 2011 yng Nghanolfan Cymry Llundain, 19:30. Croeso mawr i bob aelod.

The next Branch meeting will be held on Wednesday, 2nd November 2011 in the London Welsh Centre, 19:30. All members are most welcome.

Eurfyl ap Gwilym yn annerch y Gangen/addresses the Branch

2011-09-30T15:21:00.001+01:00

Mae'n bleser gennym gyhoeddi y bydd Dr Eurfyl ap Gwilym yn ymweld â'r Gangen er mwyn siarad am ei waith holl bwysig yn gadeirydd ar y pwyllgor arbennig sy'n ystyried y ffordd ymlaen i'r Blaid:  "Symud ymlaen: Adnewyddu'r Blaid i Gymru". Dyma gyfle ardderchog i aelodau'r Gangen wrando ar un o aelodau mwyaf disglair y Blaid a dweud eu dweud yn gynnar yn y gwaith holl bwysig hwn.

Prin fod angen cyflwyno Dr ap Gwilym, dyn busnes ac arbennigwr economaidd uchel ei barch, sy'n aelod o'r Blaid ers 1963. Efe ysgrifennodd y Cynllun Economaidd i Gymru yn y 1970au cynnar gyda Dafydd Wigley a Phil Williams. Mae ef wedi bod yn gadeirydd cenedlaethol y Blaid ac wedi ei enwebu am sedd ar ran y Blaid yn Nhy'r Argwlyddi.

Cafodd cryn sylw yn ystod ymgyrch etholiad San Steffan 2010 wrth iddo roi Jeremy Paxman yn ei le mewn cyfweliad bythanghofadwy ar "Newsnight".

Yn groes i'r arfer, ar ail Nos Fercher y mis fydd y cyfarfod (a DDIM ar y Nos Fercher gyntaf), felly dewch yn llu i Ganolfan Cymry Llundain, Grays Inn Road ar Nos Fercher 12 Hydref, 7.30 yr hwyr. Croeso mawr i aelodau'r Gangen!

It is a pleasure to announce that Dr Eurfyl ap Gwilym will be visiting the Branch to talk about his crucial work chairing the special committee looking into the way ahead for "Moving on. Renewing Plaid for Wales".  This will be an excellent chance for Branch members to listen to one of the most distinguished members of the Party and to have their say in this important work.

Dr ap Gwilym hardly needs any introduction. A respected businessman and economic specialist, he has been a member of Plaid Cymru since 1963. He wrote the Economic Plan for Wales with Dafydd Wigley and Phil Williams in the early 1970s.  He has been National Chairman and has been nominated by the Party for a seat in the UK House of Lords.

He attracted a new band of fans during the 2010 Westminster election campaign when he proved more than a match for Jeremy Paxman in a memorable "Newsnight" interview.

The meeting will, exceptionally, be on the second Wednesday of the month (NOT on the first Wednesday), so there will be a warm welcome to Branch members at the London Welsh Centre on Wednesday 12 October from 7.30 pm.

Cyfarfod Cangen Nesaf/Next Branch Meeting

2011-08-28T19:12:00.003+01:00

Cynhelir cyfarfod nesaf y Gangen yng Nghanolfan Cymry Llundain, Nos Fercher, 7 Medi am 7.30 yr hwyr. Bydd y drafodaeth yn cynnwys adroddiad am Ysgol Haf y Blaid yn ogystâl ag edrych ymlaen at y Gynhadledd Genedlaethol, fydd yn dechrau drannoeth y cyfarfod. Croeso i'r aelodau i gyd!

The next Branch meeting will be held in the London Welsh Centre on Wednesday 7 September, 7.30 pm. Among other things, there will be a report on this year's Summer School and we will be looking ahead to the National Conference, which begins on Thursday 8 September. Looking forward to seeing members after the summer break!

Branch meeting tonight

2011-07-06T15:16:00.000+01:00

There will be a branch meeting tonight at 7.30pm at the London Welsh Centre. Syd Morgan will be the guest speaker.

Olympic Torch : We are Welsh NOT British

2011-05-18T13:27:00.000+01:00

The announcement that the Olympic torch relay is to visit Wales at the end of May 2012 is an opportunity to show our opposition to the London Games as an English British extravaganza which has sucked money out of Wales and given precious little recognition to Wales. Its an opportunity to show the world that the UK is not just England and that there is a movement for Independence for Wales. The first date is 25 May in Cardiff ... who will be there?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-13391986

TaTa Ieuan?

2011-05-08T20:43:00.000+01:00

The extremely poor showing by Plaid cannot be blamed on one election campaign. For the past decade the party has been campaigning at a national level on the basis that we have people who can govern .... but have failed to remind the Welsh electorate what form of government we wish to see. The progress of the SNP can be laid at the door of their emphasis on Independence with the sub text of the SNP being the only party free of London control able to protect Scotlands interests.

Plaids performance has illustrated what the absence of a longterm strategy based on easily understood aims can do to a party. That lack has led us to wander around reacting to circumstances which led us into Coalition by accident. It allowed us to excuse the lack of focus on Independence by claiming that it was something we hoped to achieve eventually in the long-term. What a thing to do. Put the very policy which we believe is the answer to Wales` problems on the back burner.
In addition, the strategy did not inform us how Coalition would be used tactically to take us forward to our ultimate aim. We claimed success by the fact that ministers were competent at their posts NOT by how much they had progressed Plaids cause. Remember, the referendum was not on further powers but on removing Westminster obstructionism .... soon to come back in another form with Carwyn bowing to his leader.

Plaid needs to get back to being a national movement ...a nationalist party. We must reject any moves from Labour to help them out in their difficulty. Let Kirsty do their dirty work like Clegg is doing in Westminster. Remember that Labour went into coalition not to help us. Let them finish off Kirsty this time. Dafydd El could also help by resigning. Our group of AMs would thus be free to speak out on how they could make Wales a better place.

Is there a leader who can do this for Wales?

AV and WESTMINSTER : SOME THOUGHTS

2011-04-14T23:37:00.000+01:00

What to do? That AV is not a truly proportional system and has only been offered as a bone to Clegg suggests that we should vote no. Apart from contributing to giving Clegg a kicking and putting the Con Dem coalition under strain, voting no will put the likelihood of a truly proportional representation back a generation if not more. Voting Yes is a marginal improvement and may actually harm Plaids prospects in Westminster elections. On the other hand do the Westminster elections matter so much to Plaid? The 25 % cut in MPs plus the YES vote are radically altering and reducing the influence of MPs from Wales. Obviously Wales needs a strong voice at Westminster, but will that voice ever come from a group of MPs from Wales, most of whom are more concerned about their parties` prospects than Wales, not to mention the pointless job of Secretary State for Wales. Perhaps its time for Plaid Cymru to re-assess its electoral strategy and focus on the Assembly as the primary vehicle for pushing the Independence agenda forward.

Vive Le Republique

2011-04-14T11:59:00.000+01:00

While the Windosr`s busy themselves for their big day, any criticism of this state political extravaganza is put down on the basis of it only being a bit of fun or its good for tourism. Wall to wall propaganda suggests that "everybody" (sic) is looking forward to the big day and are so happy for the couple.
For us in Plaid it should be an event which represents the centuries old subjugation of Wales and the undemocratic symbol of a the key role the Crown takes in the governance of the UK and Wales. Such language may sound old fashioned these days, but in the not too distant future William will be presented as our next much loved English Prince of Wales. We will undoubtedly see the usual queue of sycophants licking their way into the English Honours lists. What is Plaids policy on this? It seems to be an easy target behind the closed doors of branch meetings and the bar afterwards to mock and denigrate the institution, while the occassional leading light in the party makes a token attack. However suggest that Plaid takes an official line against the monarchy and its like a scene out of a horror film. "You can`t do that, it will be electoral suicide. "
The Wedding this year and the Jubilee next year are opportunities to focus on our attitude and formulate a policy which takes a stand we can believe in.

GENERAL ELECTION DEBATE?

2011-04-13T09:52:00.000+01:00

Judging by the BBC Wales election debates etc., UK Labour are trying to drag the Welsh General Election down to their usual party parochial level. Rather than offer a vision for Wales they simply state that Wales needs to show the Con Dem government what Wales thinks of it. What an idea.. perhaps the next UK General Election should be fought o the basis of showing Obama what we think of his goverment. It may sound silly, but the basis of their campaign is to attack two politicians, Clegg and Cameron, who are not ever going to represent their parties in the Assembly. Indeed UK Labour are being led by Peter Hain, if their campaign launch is to believed, who is also not an Assembly politician. In a nutshell they are using Wales as a political football for its own narrow purposes. We need Wales to give UK Labour a kick up the arse all the way to the border. A vote for Plaid is the clearest way to show London parties what Wales thinks of being treated as an afterthought for centuries.

2011-03-29T21:23:00.000+01:00

Here we go again in Libya on a humanitarian mission...oh yeah! I see little concern for the rebels victims . If some reports are to be believed, rebels are rounding up suspected Gaddafi supporters (civilians among them) and dishing out summary justice. At the same time, little attention is being given to Ivory Coast and the rapidly developing deteriorating situation in the Arab world as well as the arbitarry attacks by Israel on Gaza which are killing civilians. What if the Bloody Sunday killings by the British Army were interpreted as threats to civilians? If the principle of the UN resolution is to be consistently applied we shall be at war with half of the worlds regimes. Plaids response is disappointing to say the least. No matter what an evil sod Gadaffi is, the future looks very uncertain

BEST MOMENTS OF THE REFERENDUM CAMPAIGN

2011-03-08T14:56:00.000Z

With victory comes the opportunity to gloat. Who would have thought that we would have had such a resounding victory in the Referendum campaign with a decent turnout (by modern standards). Labours contribution to the campaign on the ground was reluctant and patchy. One of their councillors Rachel Banner was even leading the No campaign. This contrasted with Plaids foot soldiers who clearly led the ground campaign. Without doubt Plaids message got through to the electorate that we need to take more responsibility for ourselves and protect ourselves from the excesses of London government.
One of my best moments was watching the first result come in from Blaenau Gwent with a clear majority in favour of YES. If Blaenau Gwent voted YES then the matter was settled I thought. The next best moment was watching Kim Howells suffer as one of the few NO pundits available on the results programme. This was then followed by Cheryl Gillan who with no conviction whatsoever claimed the result was "Good for Wales. "

MORE POWER TO WALES

2011-03-08T14:50:00.001Z

With the overwhelming YES vote setting the final seal on UK Labour`s idea of the constitutional settlement for Wales, the stage is now set for Plaid to campaign for more powers for Wales. It is inevitable that certain powers will be transferred as a matter of procedure suchas the St Davids Day Bank Holiday proposal. More significant fields will also evolve such as Justice and Tax raising powers. Clearly if laws are being passed in Wales on a more frequent and regular basis then the need for a specialist legal profession based in Wales becomes inevitable. Independence feels suddenly nearer than it did a week ago.

Welsh Parliament

2011-03-08T14:48:00.000Z

Presumably, now that Wales has legislative parity with Scotland and N.Ireland (or so Carwyn Jones claims) we can look forward to the Assembly being renamed the Parliament of Wales.

Dafydd El : Separatist Guerilla Leader

2011-03-08T14:38:00.000Z

Tory Wales Office Minister David Jones MP has started the post referendum ball rolling by over reacting to Dafydd El`s call for the Wales Office to be scrapped. Questionning its future roll after the tremendous YES vote Dafydd El suggested that the Assembly`s legislative powers made the Office redundant. Mark Jones reacted by saying that Dafydd El had declared a "guerilla war on the British state. " Peter Hain jumped in with his charge that Dafydd El was a separatist! The raising of the political temperature illustrates how scared of Plaid the Unionist parties of UK Labour and UK Tories must be. The referendum is a tremendous boost for Plaid and clearly Plaid is seen as the party with most to gain. Great! Keep stirring it Dafydd!

UK Labour in Wales, the real enemy of Wales

2011-02-23T19:32:00.000Z

The No campaign is a rag bag mix of anti-Welsh quislings best represented by the poor Rachel Banner who despite her Labour party credentials has thrown in her lot with UKIP etc, and wants to lay Wales open to the worst that the Con Dem London government can inflict. Their campaign needs to be hammered into the ground so that this festering symptom of Welsh self doubt can be purged once and for all. A strong Yes vote lays the foundation for further powers to be transferred to take Wales out of its sub colonial status. and ultimately we can achieve what we all joined Plaid for. Crucial to the success of the Yes Campaign will be the support of the UK Labour Party in Wales. Before some of us dither and think that UK Labour can deliver for Wales, just remember what they were like when they were in power: Peter Hain`s stalling over the Barnett formula, their obstructionist tactics over the Housing LCO, their present slagging off of Plaid as an anti-English party etc. Come the day after the referendum result, whatever it is, we need to remember who our real enemy in Wales is ...they are in the same party as Rachel Banner.

Channel 5 insult St Dwynwens and Wales

2011-01-31T14:14:00.000Z

Channel 5`s Wright stuff insulted Welsh popele with the old sheep noises last Tuesday St Dwynwens Day. At first I was pleasantly surprised that they were going to mention it. However as soon a/s they went to a graphic on the St Dwywen, they accompanied it with sheep bleating. I can take a joke about being Welsh. After 30 years of living in London you have to. But there is a difference between a joke where the intention is to be funny and a snide, sneering, belittling comment which is meant to offend. So I had to send off a complaint to Ofcom. Golwg 360 picked it up, but we await developments otherwise.

See http://www.five.tv/shows/the-wright-stuff/episodes/episode-12-135

Make a complaint to Ofcom : https://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/tell-us/specific-programme-epg

Biased English Press

2011-01-31T14:06:00.001Z

Its General Election year in Wales and the papers that most read in Wales are produced in London with not a jot about Wales even in the sports pages. The Sunday Times for example covered two major issues affecting England which made no effort to indicate that they were indeed only relevant to England. If they have implications for Wales then that is never discussed. Thus Lansleys Health reforms and the Forestry Commision sell off were reported so that a reader in Wales who never watches/listens to BBC Wales news might think that these changes directly affect him/her. This is misinformation/misleading/inaccuracy. The Press Complaints Commission have a clause about this! Why not make a complaint...I have : http://www.pcc.org/complaints/form.html
Good luck

N0 FOR WALES : A Bunch of Nutters!

2011-01-19T11:31:00.000Z

The No campaign launches today and their spokesperson, UK Labour member Rahel Banner had a corker of an argument against law making powers. As quoted on BBC Wales News on line:

"True Wales spokeswoman Rachel Banner said: "This referendum is more than just a tidying-up exercise.
"We don't want more laws. What we need is for AMs to focus on education and health and the economy and to build up these things so we can have a prosperous Wales.
"We don't believe new laws will achieve that.""

So how are we going to improve Wales without the ability to make laws Rachel?

YES FOR WALES

2011-01-17T14:15:00.000Z

The Referendum campaign has gotten off to a breakneck start with frenzied campaigning across Wales to ensure the comprehensive defeat of the massive campaign put up by TRUE WALES for the NOs. Clearly this is not the case. Just a glance at the media in Wales will show that it has yet to catch the imagination. The YES campaign may even be fighting a campaign with no opposition., The NO camp which appears to focus on a few Tories and a couple of Labour councillors from SE Wales is struggling to put a campaign together. No obvious leaders such as ex Labour MP Murphy and current Monmouth Tory MP David Davies have come forward, while they are unable to find a Welsh speaking spokesperson. The big danger appears to be a low turn out unless the parties can get the electorate excited enough. A quick glance at Plaid and UK Labour in Wales`s websites suggest it has a low priority at present. We`ll see. In the meantime, why not visit the YES FOR WALES campaign website http://www.yesforwales.com/site/ with less than seven weeks to go

Campaign says 100 threaten TV licence protest over S4C

2011-01-17T14:08:00.001Z

More than 100 people have said they will not pay their TV licence in protest at changes at S4C, say Welsh language campaigners.The Welsh Language Society has asked people to stop paying for the licence until the UK government guarantees what they say is sufficient funding for S4C. Singer and Plaid Cymru politician Dafydd Iwan is among those refusing to pay.TV Licensing warned not having a valid TV licence is a criminal offence.

http://cymdeithas.org/

Gillan Gaffs Again!

2011-01-17T14:03:00.000Z

Chesham MP Cheryl Gillan (The Chesham Cat) did it again last week when she was interviewed on Radio Wales. Wales` incompetent Tory Secretary of State has suddenly cast a shadow over the progress of the LCO on organ donation which will assume consent by potential donors unless they “opt out” as opposed to the current “opt in” situation. Gillan has thrown a spanner in the works by suggesting that the LCO might be illegal. What she really means is that she does not want Wales going its own way of course. What compounded her grasp of affairs was that she denied introducing a measure to the House of Commons on the very same issue several years ago!

Jill Evans makes stand for S4C

2010-12-02T16:52:00.001Z

Plaid President Jill Evans has pledged not to renew her TV licence in protest against the proposals to cut S4C`s funding and push it under the BBC . See http://cymdeithas.org/

ENGLAND LOSE WORLD CUP BID ...EVERYBODY CRY FOUL

2010-12-02T16:48:00.000Z

Great news that England lost out to Russia. Apart from not having to endure endless replays of 1966, we will not see more money diverted from Wales to London. Whats more William Windsor showed himself in his true colours as a proud Englishman (quite rightly)rather than an avid Wales rugby supporter with pretensions to the title of Prince of Wales.

What Recession?

2010-11-25T21:29:00.000Z

What recession? From here in London, all I see is big money government investment. I see that £400 million is being spent to refurbish Kings Cross station, £6billion to finish Crossrail and £1billion for Tottenham Court Rd Tube station, £1billion on a facelift for the West End for the Olympics, and £900million on an upgrade of the Victoria Line for 2012. This is not to mention other major investments in Londons prosperity including the multi-billion pound Olympics. All of which attracts praise from the big banks and business. And it is not only London, when you look at High speed across England and Trident submarines and aircraft carriers in Scotland.
So who is feeling the recession? Severn Barrage scrapped, Newport Passport Office scrapped, Electrification of the main line in South Wales scrapped and Saint Athan scrapped. The answer is obviously Wales, so what more proof does Wales need to show that it is being robbed blind?
The Con Dem government says we are all in this together. Does Wales want to be in with a bunch of thieves and liars?

Bank Holiday for Wales? Can`t afford it!

2010-11-23T22:53:00.001Z

Isn`t it indicative of the contempt of the ConDems that a bank Holiday is called without any discussion to mark the marriage of the privileged when the lot of the hardworking or forgotten less well off is set to deteriorate. Indeed, it recalls the unanimous decision of the Welsh Assembly in more prosperous recent times to REQUEST a Bank Holiday on our National Day which was duly turned on economic grounds. Will we see the CBI coming out against this new Bank Holiday?

The Windsor`s are at it again...

2010-11-16T12:18:00.000Z

Here we go again. First it was Mrs Windsor`s Diamond Jubilee now there is a wedding in the family. These royal extravaganzas serve to emphasise the gap between the have nots in Wales and the wealth of London, especially the aristocratic elite who contribute nothing. William Windsor`s wedding will be used to promote the constitutional supremacy of the monarchy in the usual psychophantic deluge which accompanies such events in the media as well as by those looking for honours.
For us in Wales, the idea that he can just move to Wales to "live" emphasises the difficulty that young people have in buying a home in their own community. Freedom of movement as ever is restricted by abiity to pay.
So what can nationalists do? At least speak out.

And why not organise an alternative street party in praise of Wales?

ROBBERS HOARD DISCOVERED

2010-11-15T14:25:00.000Z

Ever wondered what happened to all the money nicked from Wales by successive London governments? We can reveal its all been found! Believe it or not they have been busy digging holes across London and burying it under our very feet. One big stash, about £1billion, is actually in the process of being buried at Tottenham Court Road Station. Another £10billion is being ferreted away in East London by the London 2012 cartel led by Seb Coe. Billions more have been passed to bumbling gangleader Boris the Bike. Government sources in Whitehall have been trying to keep the whole affair under wraps as the cash is important to an economy founded on organised crime as witnessed by the Great Bankers Robbery two years ago. The Con Dem government is of course keen not see its electoral support eroded by a deterioration in the living standards of those who live off the backs of ordinary hardworking people and hopes that by cutting the number of MPs, calls for action will be neutralised.

WHERE IS OUR AMBITION? WHERE IS OUR VISION?

2010-11-15T13:50:00.001Z

Big Demo in Cardiff the other day about the threats to S4C. A range of big name speakers in attendance with 1,500 in support (source GOLWG360). What were they calling for? Was it something like "WALES DEMANDS POWER OVER BROADCASTING! " or was it " FIGHT THE CON DEM CUTS : GIVE US OUR TV!" The answer is NO. What they called for was a request for an independent review into S4C. In other words "Excuse me for interrupting, if thats OK, would you please like to consider a review which would not be binding and you could read whenever you like, please thank you."
It was a Cymdeithas led demo I know, but it does make you wonder about the ambition of nationalists. It makes you wonder, for example, what we demanded when there was a possibility of a Labour led Coalition in Westminster last May with possible Plaid Cymru participation. It also makes you wonder what we are going to be calling for in the next few months leading up to the Assembly elections. Will we be calling for a campaign for more powers as a price for continued Coalition with Labour in Cardiff? Or will we be helping to manage the Assembly as it is?

Funny Tories

2010-10-20T14:23:00.000+01:00

If you want a good laugh, just listen to the so called Welsh Tories justifying their existence in Wales. Even better is listening to the new Tory membership, the former Liberal Democrats. Another good laugh is the ongoing Tory joke called Mohamed Ashgar, who did Plaid a big favour when he scarpered to the Tories.

Going For Independence!

2010-10-20T14:05:00.001+01:00

The last 6 months of the Con Dem government is all the evidence we need to convince Wales that Independence is the only option left for our future. The shear contempt for the Assembly shown by UK Ministers regarding S4C, the scrapping of Quangoes and the Thatcherite cuts which hit Wales more severely than the rest of the Union must prove to people that a strong growing Plaid presence is the only defence under the present arrangement. Presumably we can look forward to a strong campaign from Plaid to defend Wales from the cuts which will reap electoral fruit in 2011. However, at best such a campaign will only modify the cuts imposed by Westminster. To solve the problem of these eternal fights against Westminster, we have to break free. Will the Plaid campaign say this? After all thats why Plaid was set up and thats why we joined it.

UK Liberals in Wales : Holding the Chopping Block for the Tories.

2010-10-20T13:57:00.000+01:00

Whats the point of the Liberals? Simon Hughes and Kirsty Williams harp on about how the Liberals have made their mark on the Comprehensive Spending Review. I suppose they ahve a done a good of holding the chopping block steady for the Tories axe. Wales is being sucked dry of investment while Trident sails on and students face massive increases in fees. Personally I can`t wait to see the Liberals swept out of Wales in 2011.

Cheryl Gillan is doing a great job ... for England

2010-10-20T13:42:00.000+01:00

What has Cheryl Gillan done for Wales? Severn Barrage scrapped. Newport Passport Office scrapped. Electrification of the main line in South Wales scrapped. Saint Athan scrapped. Meanwhile Crossrail in London goes on and more billions are spent on the regeneration of the East End and the Olympics. The Newcastle Metro gets a chunk of money and they are committed to a new bridge over the Mersey.
So what is Cheryl Gillan for? Clearly to act the part of colonial governor beraing bad news rather than the greatly valued represenative for Wales sat the Downing Street Cabinet Table, which Hain and his Labour predecessors never were. The sight of her in whitehall saying what a good job she had done for Wales and Newport by saving 40 jobs out of 300 in Newport an dlosing all the reamining offices in Wales.
The more thats lost for Wales, the greater the benefit to England

S4C : Whats that got do with Wales?

2010-10-20T13:30:00.000+01:00

The announcement that funding for S4C will become partly the responsibility of the BBC crystalises the contempt to which Wales is held in England and by the colonial Secretary of State from Chesham. Alun Ffred, Assembly Culture minister has been kept totally in the dark over developments and was shocked by the leaks just a day or two before the Budget. Shocked as he was given no clue of the plans. The future of a major cultural institution of Wales decided behind closed doors in Whitehall. So much for Camerons commitmebnt to Devolution of Power in his Big Society

Taking Life Too Seriously?

2010-09-15T08:41:00.000+01:00

Isn`t it hard being Welsh and trying to live like a normal Englishman? Always moaning. I go into Lloyds Bank in Caerffili and the Welsh language signage has appallingly sloppy spelling. I complain in writing to Birmingham Customer Relations. I get a phone call from Bromley where they have passed my complaint as I live in their area. The man (poor dab)is apologetic because he cannot understand/comment on my complaint and decides to pass it on to Pontypridd. I have to stay in Novotel in Cardiff one night and find in the morning that they are tuned into BBC West .. terrible things happening in Taunton I see, but I am in Wales! I complain. They aplogise, but they say there are technical issues. The same technical issues I assume which allowed me to watch BBC Wales in Portugal and Crete. I go on the London Olympic website and find that Welsh is almost non existent, despite them nicking £600 million from Wales. I have been complaining for 4 years! Coe promises wonderful things and then reneges. Then there is the Border Agency consultation on immigration. I want to point out that there is no mention of Welsh language skills for prospective immigrants and want to see the consultation documentation in Welsh as I have been able to do for many UK government websites. There is none, so I complain and they say they have none. Then there`s Cleggs Your Freedom website. There is no provision to use it in Welsh. I complain to my local Tory MP (Ha ha). I pester him until he gets a reply for me 6 weeks after. Clegg says they have no plans but welcome submissions inWelsh which they will translate! And then there`s the BBC... well thats a long story.

Ron the Saviour?

2010-09-14T20:36:00.000+01:00

It was weird seeing Ron Davies in the front row behind Ieuan Wyn Jones during his leaders speech at Conference. It was even weirder to witness the warm reception he enjoyed. It was not that long ago, Councillor Ron Davies was leader of the UK Labour Party in Wales. Now he is Plaid Cymru candidate for Caerffili despite refusing to sit as a Plaid Cymru councillor, preferring to sit as sn Independent. People in Plaid obviously see Ron Davies as an MP. When he stood as an Independent Assembly candidate in Caerffili he undoubtedly kept a large proportion of his personal vote as well as disgruntled Labour voters. Is he likely to keep that support and Plaids traditional voters in Caerffili? . Someone who switches party allegiance is different to someone who becomes an Independent. He may not be in the same league as the turncoat former Plaid AM Ashgar but it is a big ask. On the other hand, what if he wins? ... and Ieuan loses. There would be a leadership contest and .... who knows?

Plaid Conference Inspiration

2010-09-14T20:29:00.000+01:00

Did anybody see mention of Independence in any of the publicity surrounding last weeks Conference. Despite the fact that campaigning for Independence the last 80 odd years has only seen progress in Plaids support and a growing acceptance of Plaid ideas by the mainstrean we seem to be avoiding the issue. Instead we are offering things like library books by post. Its as though we are in a rugby game where we have fought all the way to the five metre line with the try line beckoning and suddenly run out of ideas on how to go that extra bit and cross the line. The danger is not that we are just going to stand still, but that we are going to be pushed back with our enemies discarding all the gains made. If we cannot inspire our own members, what hope is there for the electorate?

Sebastian`s getting desperate

2010-09-14T20:21:00.000+01:00

Had to laugh the other day. Sebastian Coe had a letter in the Western Mail asking for volunteers for the Olympics. Apart from the fact that he has probably had little luck with the same ruse in London, after robbing Wales of £600million and ignoring the Welsh language he now decides he wants our young people to work for him for nothing and pay for their own keep for the honour. The legacy of the Olympics for East London is an area on which millions have been spent on infrastructure and promotion to regenerate a run down area. The legacy for Wales is yet another kick in the teeth.

Cymdeithas in London

2010-09-14T20:08:00.000+01:00

Cymdeithas Yr Iaith were in London last Thursday 9 September to protest against the proposed cuts in S4C`s budget by the Con Dem government. All very laudable, but a traditional sit down protest outside a government office does not get much media attention. It made no impact on the governments response to an S4C delegation the same day, who were sent packing and told to come up with a package of cuts by Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt who has never even been to Wales. Even a demonstration the same day by activists getting on the roof of Parliament only got a couple of lines in Metro. If Cymdeithas are serious about direct action they need to rethink their tactics. The old song Peintio`r Byd Yn Gwyrdd/Paint the World Green may be a pointer on how to get attention. Think Buckingham Palace in Green, the Olympic stadium in Green or Nick Clegg in Green? That may get a few lines in the Sun and Mirror.

Call For Wales to have power over alcohol pricing

2010-08-23T19:31:00.000+01:00

Poor Labour`s Edwina Hart only suggested Wales might have the power over alcohol pricing in Wales and the ConDems went into overdrive to attack her with the Wales Office`s David Jones spitting fire about Wales never having the power over alcolhol licensing. Anybody would think she was proposing to lead an armed rebellion against England. If this is what the reaction is going to be over a proposal which Cameron has already said may be OK for Manchester, then hopes of breaking out of the colonial style government grudgingly accepted by the Tories for Wales are slim unless Plaid raises its game and drags UK Labour in Wales into a more constructive platform on self government.

Tories Want Asgar Our?

2010-08-23T19:27:00.000+01:00

See Betsan Powys`s Blog for an update on Plaid/Tory defector Mohammed Ashgar

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/betsanpowys/

Nuke Wales

2010-08-23T19:17:00.000+01:00

Did anybody see the Evening Standards Richard Godwin article on Trident on Wednesday 18 August. While questioning the Con Dem governments enthusiasm for Trident he suggested Cameron might want to get rid of the existing missiles by "making a metaphorical smoothie of the old weapons, a smoothie of unilateral war, say, on China or Wales"
While accepting the bloke was not serious (I hope), the comment does again raise the question of how Wales is regarded in London by many English commentators and the impact this has on the public. If a Plaid supporter had suggested nuking England there would have been hell to play about racism and so on. When its against Wales, any protest is dismissed as a failure of Welsh people to have a sense of humour. Ho Ho, Nuke Wales, Ho Ho!

If Its To Do With Wales Cut it!

2010-07-28T11:47:00.000+01:00

The Con-Dem s have adopted a very simple technique when making decisions on the cuts it will impose in the Autumn. You can just see Cameron, Osborne and their fag Clegg pouring over the details highlighting anything to do with wales and cutting it. S4C ...Cut ! A new English language news service for ITV... Cut! Electrification of the main line in S.Wales ... Cut! Arts Council Funding ... Cut! On the other hand in England, we here that they have to keep their projects. Crossrail..Essential! Olympics...Essential! Trident..Essential! etc... At the same time they are splashing out extra cash on their education and health plans for England.

Who Would Want to hurt William Windsor?

2010-07-28T11:33:00.000+01:00

The people of Ynys Mon can rest at night knowing their police are hard at it keeping a watchful eye on William Windsor who has chosen not to stay on base with his colleagues but to rent a cottage so he can have relaxing nights on the pop with his mates and the odd romantic evening. They will be pleased of course that they will not have to bear the cost but merely lose some of their policemen. Cameron talks of all of us being in the economic mess together, of fairness and respect. As ever we pick up the tab for people who seem to be on one long holiday.

Elected Police Commissioners : Another Trap?

2010-07-28T11:02:00.000+01:00

On the surface, it doesn`t sound too bad an idea. Locally elected police commissioners accountable to local needs. Whats more political partiy candidates can stand for election. Lets take a look at the candidates. The Tories will want to lock everybody up (excepting Kenneth Clarke) bring back torture and hanging and sack all the police. A volunteer force with nice black shirt uniforms will be enthusiastically recruited to round up the dregs of society to transport them to Tasmania with the permission of that nice girl from Barry. UK Labour will form a multitude of focus groups of stakeholders to get at the causes of crime and investigate as many strategies as possible to tackle crime. Focus groups will go home to find their homes have been trashed by new black shirted vigilante mobs. The Liberals will try to pick the best features of Labour and Tory plans and adopt a programme where middle class blackshirted (with nice tanker tops) mobs will ask permission before trashing your home. And this is Plaids chance to have a force which operates on a consensual basis with the local community and puts all those allegations of fit ups against Plaid activists in the past. The idea of the police being an organ of the UK state acting in the interests of the propertied classes and those with special privileges will be history. Time will tell. It could be that the poor sucker elected will just have take the rap for putting into action all the Con-Dem cuts of course.

Support Labour? Like Hell.

2010-07-16T10:07:00.000+01:00

I came over all funny the other night. I was watching various UK Labour spokespeople attacking the Con Dem Coalition on health, education, spending cuts etc etc... They were pressing effective arguments with conviction. The idea that the a big mistake had been made at the General Election was being confirmed in statement after statement. However, though they are doing a good job in these early days of opposition without a leader as the spectre of Thatcherite Toryism return, 13 years of Blair and Brown cannot be forgotten. They treated Wales shabbily with Hain in the forefront. They took the UK to war and were going to maintain Trident. Big Brother identity cards and privatisation of services in England (and then Wales?) were continuing. Cynical Labour with all its trumpetting about defending Wales, will only be looking at power in Wales as a pawn in its strategy to return to power in Westminster. Once achieved, Wales will be forgotten again. Plaids strategy in all this? Hopefully, it will be to extract significant concessions so that they will be unable to forget us when they return to power in Westminster.

Clegg`s Big Ideas make Kirsty Redundant.

2010-07-14T12:05:00.000+01:00

Doesn`t Clegg look a sad dejected soul in Westminster. The referendum on AV, redrawing constituency boundaries, reducing Wales MPs to 31 etc looks like it may all backfire on him, while his big initiative on line to get people to say what they want is the usual agony aunt of politics. A reduction of seats could see Ceredigion, Meirionydd and Powys combined in one massive constituency.
Opinion polls in S.Wales put him on 2% in some areas. Before the election the Liberals could have died quietly, now they are going to go out in agony. Quick, find a vet!
While Cleggs sidekicks in the Cabinet wield the knife, poor old Kirsty Williams, leader of the headless chickens in Wales, is lost for words. You can`t help feeling sorry for the poor thing. When she took over, they had only recently blown their big chance at government in Wales. She appeared to be making progress fair play to her. Now the UK bigwigs have taken up their big chance in Westminster, she has found they do not want to know her. She makes a sorry sight as she shuffles around the backs of her superiors trying to get a look in. Her lot is to maintain a fiction of her support for Clegg. Her predecessor, Mike German was shuffled off to the Lords for a nice retirement. She can only look forward to the Job Centre.

Ron for Leader?

2010-07-13T20:10:00.000+01:00

So Ron Davies is standing for us in Caerffili. What if Ieuan loses his seat and Ron wins Caerffili .... ? Could we see Ron taking the leadership of the Plaid Group and therefore Plaid?

ConDems Put Boot Into Wales ..simply taking up the baton from UK Labour

2010-06-24T23:12:00.000+01:00

Con Dem performance so far is Thatcherite history repeating itself. Thatcher`s first years were marked by the inexorable merciless shut down of manufacturing and mining in Wales, deterioration of services attended by massive increases in unemployment. Whole communities were condemned to a despair which has become ingrained and normalised. New Labour`s sucking up to middle England reinforced this despair despite UK Labour `s apologists in Wales who are currently reawakening their socialist principles.
With Liberal help the ConDem coalition is condemning Wales to another 10 or 20 years of being treated like dirt by Westminster ... the consequences of such a degraded position which would hardly be contemplated let alone tolerated by profiteers and middle classes of SE England. Despite their promises, the Liberals in the ConDems are supporting the rejection of the Housing LCO which had been obstructed by Hain and Labours Welsh quislings, the exclusion of reform of the Barnett formula, and Wales Secretary Gillans referendum question with so many words it would fill a whole week of the Sun.
Members of UK Labour in Wales are showing a miraculous transformation in their concern for Wales. A couple of months ago they were obstructionist in their tactics regarding the LCO, while Hain was warning against a rushed early (October) referendum ... not to mention their treacherous attitude to the Barnett Formula where they supported the UK Treasury line of Gordon Browns government.
So where is Plaid in all this? In the Thatcher years, we were initially in the wilderness following a disastrous referendum strategy in 1979. But we kept to our principles and said so, with Independence (self government etc) at the core of our campaigns . As a result we made steady progress. How is it going to pan out this time? Are our leaders going to take a lead? Are they going to react to events with a few words or are they going to proact and be ambitious? Is Plaid going to aspire to the next step beyond what UK`s Wales Labour Party is now aspiring to for the powers of the Assembly? Everything we have done in the past has been measured against a simple yardstick i.e does this action take Wales further along the road to determining its own affairs? On this yardstick, a big question mark still surrounds our success or otherwise in the Coalition with UK Labour.
It is clear we are on our own now in our quest. We used to think that the Liberals were progressive when it came to Wales and a potential ally against Labour and Tory Unionism. As far as the Liberals are now concerned, they only deserve contempt. Plaid is on its own when it comes to further devolution and independence .. its time to remember that.

Welsh Liberals? Liars and Deceivers?

2010-06-16T11:57:00.000+01:00

Welsh Liberals have confirmed what we have known for years. They are so busy trying to be all things to all people, that when they get a chance of power they can pick and choose what they keep or discard. One of the more telling occasions has been the rejection by Welsh Liberal MPs of an amendemnt by Elfyn Llwyd to get the Trident programme brought into the spending review. £10 billion could be saved at a stroke by dumping this monstrous method of killing millions at a stroke. The Liberals response was not even to abstain but to vote against. What did they say in their fictional work "The Liberal Democrat Manifesto of 2010"? Need I tell you?

Thank goodness we did not get entangled with them in a coalition agreement for the Assembly. At least we know what our enemy the UK Labour party are up to in the Assembly Colaition. They may be devious, but we know they want to destroy us by rational methods as opposed to aimless Liberal chaos.

NO 2010 REFERENDUM

2010-06-16T11:42:00.000+01:00

Surprise Surprise! Cheryl Gillam claims its Peter Hains fault we cannot have an Autumn referendum. We stand by and watch them arguing knowing full well they are both happy to string Plaid along. Whats Plaids response......well, er Dafydd Ellis Thomas says it can wait until the Autumn of 2011! Whats the official response? "Plaid Cymru AM and Deputy Group leader, Helen Mary Jones has welcomed the Secretary of State’s confirmation that the Referendum on further powers for Wales will be able to take place next March" according to a Plaid press release. Remember March 1st 1979. Knee deep in snowdrifts pushing YES campaign leaflets through doors while our Labour "allies" stayed at home in the warm. Result? A four to one defeat.

End The Coalition

2010-05-30T12:53:00.000+01:00

UK Labour`s quisling First Minister Carwyn Jones kicks the Lib-Plaid Cardiff Council`s education proposals into the long grass. The proposals would have met the demand for Welsh language education in Cardiff. They had endured fierce opposition from the local UK Labour party led by Kevin Brennan and allies such as Leighton Andrews. Plaids Neil McEvoy on the Politics Show (30 May) reported that the UK Labourites in Cardiff West had described the plans as "ethnic cleansing" and " apartheid" He called on Plaid AMs to get the decision reversed. Isn`t about time we thought of pulling the plug on the Coalition. When it comes to key issues such as the dumped "Y Byd", the delays and obstructions over the referendum and now Welsh language education we have been sidelined. UK Labour are letting Ieuan play with some of the toys, but it is clear they are now gearing up to destroy us as the Assembly elections approach next year. Their weapon? Independence and the Welsh language.....the very issues which we have used to make progress over 80 years of our existence. The Coalition has brought that progress to a halt in the Euro and UK elections. Do we want the same again in 2011?

Right Wing Tory to Chair Welsh Affairs Committee

2010-05-29T19:42:00.000+01:00

Tory MP David Davies of Monmouth has put himself forward to Chair the Commons Committee which scrutinises LCO proposals from the Assembly. If we thought Welsh UK Labour chairs and committees were obstructive enough we haven`t seen anything yet!

No Plaid Lords

2010-05-29T19:34:00.000+01:00

The announcement of new Lords for Lib Dems such as former leader Mike German highlights the undemocratic nature of the Lords which the Lib Dems are so keen to reform, but appropriate reward for brown nosing Tories. No Plaid lords announced despite the democratic way we selected our candidates .... are we that disgruntled? Not really, but on the other hand Wales is being denied representation in one of the key organs of state

The Two Bigots EXTRA

2010-05-29T19:26:00.000+01:00

Question time is from Brecon. No Plaid speaker. The UK Labour rep is London MP and Portillo sidekick Diane Abbott ..... no Welsh UK Labour....No Carwyn Jones. Chances of Welsh issues being debated NIL. No surprises there, but the response of Plaid Cymru HQ ? According to the Western Mail Saturday 29 May, they are quite comfortable as Plaid has had reps on programmes coming from England. WHO the hell said that??? For years we have complained about the BBCs failure to reflect Devolution and especially their disregard for Wales on Question Time. HQ response is incomprehensible and fails to take advantage of a golden opportunity already being capitalised on by UK Labour.

THE BROTHERS DIMBLEBY : TWO BIGOTS OF A KIND

2010-05-25T12:11:00.000+01:00

Having been advertised the previous week as coming from Wales, I was looking forward to the 21 May edition of Any Questionsis with Jonathan, brother of David, in the Chair. This would be an opportunity to hear some views post General Election about Wales. Unfortunately, the panelists had no connection with Wales, while none of the questions were about Wales! So much for the BBCs stated response to devolution. What a surprise!
What made matters worse was a questionner saying that he had been given a question to ask! In previous responses to my complaints about Question Time, for example, the BBC has stated that questions are generated by the audience ... this places a big question mark on this careful process! What another surprise ... well not quite.
I must have missed the reanming of Radio 4 as Radio England. Hopefully, they will arrange all future programmes to be broadcast from England. This will aviod confusion about the purpose of Radio 4 as a UK station.

GILLAN BLOWS IT AGAIN

2010-05-25T11:56:00.001+01:00

Welsh Secretary Cheryl Gillan made yet another gaffe in a row over the timing of a referendum on more powers for the National Assembly. After meeting senior officials of the Electoral Commission, Ms Gillan issued a statement suggesting there was a “mandatory requirement” for there to be a 10-week consultation period about the referendum question.
Her wording was quickly disputed by the Electoral Commission, which said there was no legal compulsion for it to consult for 10 weeks. She is clearly looking to stall the whole process. She voted against giving Wales full lawmaking powers in 2006 and has never admitted she was wrong.
Rhydian Thomas, deputy head of the Electoral Commission Office in Wales said: “There is no mandatory obligation for there to be a 10-week consultation period, although we have expressed our view that such a period is desirable. But if we were asked to produce a report within a week, we would do so.”

Where did we go wrong?

2010-05-16T23:30:00.000+01:00

Plaid Disaster? We had more TV time than ever. Paxman was put in his place by Eurfyl ap Gwilym, and feedback from campaigning was positive. But then again ...... Elfyn Llwyd blew it on Dragons Eye, Ieuan said he hoped England would win the World Cup on BBC 3, Helen Mary bleated on about the exclusion of Plaid from the Prime Ministerial "Debates", and we avoided any comment on Independence and the SNP did just as badly.
Perhaps the problem was we did not focus on our core policy .... i.e.advancing the political message of greater powers for Wales and eventual Independence. Perhaps it was our leadership. Perhaps perhaps.... What is certain is that we have to ensure that we are not relegated to 3rd or 4th place at the Assembly elections next year...... with the Liberals and Tories set for some gains on paper. Its no good saying people will not vote Liberal because of the coalition or people will not vote Tory because of Thatcher. We have to make sure they do not vote that way and win Labour votes!
How? Well thats what leaders are for!

Cheryl .. an aswer to our prayers!

2010-05-16T23:06:00.000+01:00

The post of Secretary of State for Wales was one of the last Cabinet posts to be announced not because greater thought was necessary for this crucial post, but because as ever it was an after thought. You can imagine the scene in No10 when Cameron thinking he has finished for the day is reminded about Wales. "Oh give it to whoever we put in as shadow" he orders. Clegg deciding that this is his chance to stamp his mark on this administration decides to suggest a Liberal MP from Wales for the job. "Excuse me, Mr Cameron Sir, Master, sorry to interrupt .." Cameron is appalled by the impertinence of his newly acquired fag who has not impressed with his foot massage technique. "You`re sleeping on the floor tonight Clegg...................after I give you jolly good thrashing!"
And so we are stuck with bit of Cameron totty from the Home Counties who struggles to remember who is in charge in the Assembly ... but hell we have been here before haven`t we?.

Plaid : Party of Government or Party of Wales

2010-05-11T23:11:00.000+01:00

Plaid suffered a disastrous election, no matter what spin you put on it. What was significant was that manifesto was very strong on how we would bargain for a fairer share of the cake for Wales without any significant focus on the means to achieve that .. i.e Independence! Our election message, and the reeason for anybody being a member of Plaid, is to drag further powers to determine our future from the reluctant grasp of Unionist Parties. So why was it not given prominence when it is the reason for every extra step of success achieved so far?

Referendum Boost

2010-05-11T23:04:00.000+01:00

The prospects for the success of the referendum received a boost following the Liberals ditching of all their principles for the sake of power. The UK Labour Party in Wales will now grasp the need for an Assembly with stronger powers as a means of holding on to some degree of power. Wales will obviously profit from such Labour cynicism as it will have some measure of protection from the worst excesses of Tory government.... with the support of their Liberal poodles. Remember Thatcher!

Labour Desert the Valleys

2010-05-11T22:59:00.000+01:00

Why did not Brown go for the progressive alliance which would include Plaid Cymru? This would have enabled Labour to implement much of its manifesto. Instead voters across the Valleys who voted for UK Labour will feel abandoned at their very moment of need. Labour clearly hope that they will profit from the rebound of unpopopularity following the Liberal Tory cuts. Good old Labour ..party first, Wales last

Vote Liberal Get Tory

2010-05-11T22:56:00.000+01:00

After the bad news of election night, the Liberals give us a political present. What will the voters of Ceredigion think of Liberal support of the Tories. What about Kirsty in Brecon and Radnor. Any thoughts of a come back must be light years away for Lembit.

HELP WANTED TO KICK ARSE

2010-04-28T14:43:00.000+01:00

On the ground, our supporters in Wales are working their butts off to get the message across in the old fashioned way...knocking on doors and pushing leaflets into the mouths of rabid dogs waiting the other side of the letter box. They need help as always. An extra body or two on the streets cuts down the workload for everybody and reduces the pressure to get this ward or that done before election day. Many constituencies are aiming to deliver not just one leaflet but several. In Caerffili, they have had up to 60 out on the streets. Lindsay Whittle believes there is every chance of pulling it off despite the UK media. In Ceredigion the constituency is awash with Plaid posters ... and Lib Dem. Its going to be close. We can all help.

GIVE MONEY OR GO DOWN AND HELP....OR BOTH!

BBC..... ENGERLAND!

2010-04-28T14:35:00.000+01:00

While there has definitely been some progress in getting Plaids message across on the BBC and to a lesser extent elsewhere, there has still been a need to keep an eye out. I have lost count of my complaints to BBC when just happening to catch programmes on TV and Radio. What the true situation is like is anybody`s guess. What I mean is that the election is everywhere and programme producers ignore the fact that there are other parties than the Big Three in Westminster. Thus discussions on Education, Health and Planning for example ignore the fact that these are devolved to Wales, Scotland and N. ireland. They are therefore misleading the electorate in those countries on what the Big three parties are offering the electorate as well as ignoring the opportunities to bring Plaid an dthe SNP into the debate.
By the way I have had a couple of apologies, but most answers from the BBC revolve around editorial pressures ... not the need for democratic fairness

Plaid 2 BBC 0

2010-04-28T14:32:00.000+01:00

Once you get away from the Media fascination with Clegg, you start seeing real discussion :

If you didn’t see Llyr Huws Gruffydd on Sunday’s show, you watch our outstanding candidate on BBC iPlayer http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00s7s78/The_Politics_Show_Wales_25_04_2010/

The discussion featuring Llyr starts around 48 minutes into the programme.

Plaid 1 Paxman 0

2010-04-28T14:28:00.000+01:00

What a treat it was to watch Plaids economic spokesman running Paxman into the ground. It was just like watching a teacher turning the screw on a lazy student. Check out the link to Mynwy`s blog :

http://plaid4monmouth.blogspot.com/ -

Hung Parliament Plaids Lost Opportunity?

2010-03-23T15:36:00.000Z

The possibility of a hung Parliament has not been lost on Ieuan and the rest of the Plaid leadership. Unlike the Lib Dems, they have come up with a shopping list to present to a potential suitor. But where are the specific Welsh issues? Why not demand the transfer of more powers such as over energy projects like Nuclear and the Severn barrage, of responsibilty over all broadcasting in Wales , or the use of the Welsh language in Whitehall departments with responsibilities for Wales such as the Home office and Justice Department. These do not need a referendum ... or do they and we have to go through a tortuous 10 year process for every morsel?

Campaign for Change

2010-03-23T15:31:00.000Z

Plaids campaign for the General Election is based on rearranging the budget in favour of the needy, for example swap increased pensions for cancelling Trident. Apparently this is cloud cuckoo land politics according to Labour and Tory alike. Instead of spending millions on military hardware that is not needed and giving it to people who have worked all their lives contributing to the UKs coffers we are asked to look forward to period of economic despair where we all put our hands deeper into our pockets for the benefit of the bankers.

Bottomless Pit

2010-03-23T15:19:00.000Z

How much more money can London take? Tens of billions on its bankers, tens of billions on its trains, and the odd wedge for whatever seems to need a bit of cash. Wales pays more than its share, yet when it complains is called land of the whingers for moaning.

Land of Joke and Story

2010-03-23T15:13:00.001Z

Did you see the little round bloke from Gavin and Stacey on Sport Relief? He whipped the audience into a frenzy in his plea for more commitment to win medals at the London Olympics in England. He said something about winning for Britain .... to the strains of "Jerusalem" another fanatasist anthem of the English. The other fantasy of course is Land of Hope and Glory

London 2012

2010-03-23T15:06:00.000Z

Received a letter from Sebastian Coe last week responding to calls for the London 2012 to make provision for Welsh on its website. Despite a promise from Coe a few years ago that he would ensure that all matters dealing with Wales would be provided in Welsh, he has reneged on taht promise. In his letter, he points out that Welsh is not one of the two official Olympic languages (French and English)., but they are providing jolly nice resources for schools in Welsh. So much for Wales being part of the British bid. Countries with languages other than English and French used their own languages in addition to the official languages when they held the Olympics of course .... so isn`t Welsh an official language of the UK? Isn`t Wales being asked to stump up millions of pounds to regenerate London?

BBC England

2010-03-23T14:55:00.000Z

We set ourselves the task of building on the success of an apology from Womans Hour to trying to respond to as many occassions when the Devolution Dimension has been ignored when reporting the run up to the UK General Election. We had a great start with Question Time from Cardiff. Two Wales based politicians, including Peter Hain, UKIPs Farage, Janet Street Porter and a mystified Tory! No Lib Dem....w hy didn`t they complain? This contrasted with an edition from Belfast a few weeks earlier where all politicians were N. Ireland based and practically all the questions were about N. Ireland. In Cardiff there were no specifically Wales questions despite the unanimous vote on the referendum days earlier. They even had a question on an English soccer captain`s personal difficulties. Letters flowed from branch members and the usual stock answers returned. Never mind, there are plenty more programmes ... on radio File on Four, Any Questions and on TV etc etc... . Talking of which the Andrew Marr Show sent a nice letter thanking us for pointing out that we existed.

Ron Davies ..born again nationalist?

2010-02-13T00:06:00.000Z

Wow! It was not long ago that Ron Davies was the face of new Labour in Wales. Admittedly, he is no Mohammed Ashgar in terms of Party Flipping, but he is a turncoat .... which begs the question of trust! All of a sudden he is being lauded by the party crachach following his success in winning the trust (for pragmatic reasons) of Caerffili Plaid leader Lindsay Whittle whose own credentials as a nationalist are impossible to compromise. Ron, for example is guest speaker at Plaids pre Election conference dinner. Ron is also being touted as the possible Caerffili candidate for 2011. Do we really want to win a seat with a candidate telescoped into a seat, whose nationalist credentials are in doubt? UK Labour love to woo and forgive rebels and outcasts as long as it suits them, and they are sure to try with a successful Ron. The trouble is, how resistant will Ron be to the sweeteners offered by a UK Labour in defeat looking to destroy an ascendant Plaid?

Voting for a Paper Clip

2010-02-11T23:52:00.000Z

The battle for Welsh freedom entered a new phase when the Assembly voted unanimously for a referendum. All the Party machines will be girding their loins for the momentous day when the people of Wales will be voting for the constitutional equivalent of a paper clip. You can just imagine the scene on the doorstep. "Good evening, I represent the radical mass movement, Plaid Cymru bent on the destruction of the British state and their lackies. Will you be voting yes in the referendum.?" screamed Iron Will Jones (no relation to Ieuan) at the pathetic voter. "Why should I ? " said the pathetic voter . "Because we will be finally free after centuries of English oppression and systematic ethnic cleansing by the hated English colonisers of our beautiful country". "How?" asked the pathetic voter. "Isn`t it obvious, you pathetic voter? Your Yes vote will strike a mortal blow to those who seek our extinction by tidying up the constitutional anomaly of the Legislative Competence Order imposed on us by the machinations of Peter Hain attempting to pacify the anti Welsh UK Labour MPs who like to claim more power than the House of Lords in scrutinising .....Blah.... Blah..." droned Iron Will. "So, basically, if I vote YES I will wake up the next day in a Wales proud to take its place in the global family of nations?" enthused the pathetic voter. "Er, not quite.... really it won`t really change much, but I will still think I am important." said Iron Will.
The referendum won`t even get Owain Glyndwr stirring in his grave, let alone the people of Wales. Peter Hain has performed a master stroke! To achieve any significant progress, the people of Wales first need to be enthused enough to vote YES in this referendum. Mandela, Ghandi etc had real change to inspire and envision their people. We have the prospect of voting for a tidying up exercise on a colonial style settlement equivalent to tidying up a few papers with a paper clip. We could be trying for the next hundred years to get over the low hurdle of this referendum simply because it must be one of the least inspiring referenda on self determination of all time. Unionist parties must surely be queuing up to congratulate Hain on his vision.

Woman`s Hour Apology

2010-02-09T12:23:00.000Z

Plaid supporter Huw Jackson, who just happened to catch Womans Hour recently discussing David Cameron`s propsals on the health service complained when no mention was made of the fact that these propsals were irrelevant to Wales. As Health is devolved then listeners should have been made aware that the discussion was only relevant to England. Rather than the usual claptrap reply (he is an expert in complaining), he got an apology agreeing with his point! He is now hard at it complaining as much as ever about the implications of such policy announcements during the elections. "Unless the London media make it clear to the electorates of Wales, Scotland, and N.Ireland that what is being proposed by the London parties is only relevant to England, then they are guilty of misleading those electorates. The same must also be said for the proposed televising of Prime Ministerial Debates."

No Campaign : Bring Back the Empire!

2010-02-09T12:14:00.000Z

True Wales the misnomer for the Anti Wales, Anti Language, Anti Nat etc mass movement of Rachel Banner and um........ someone else somehwere has got off to a bad start with their attempts at forming a "No Campaign" for this Autumn`s (to be confirmed) referendum. No less an anti Wales zealot than UK Labour MP Don Touhig has refused to join! " Its not my scene" he told the Western Mail. That leaves Rachel with just one leading MP in favour of her campaign : Tory David Davies MP for Monmouth who frightens even the right wing of the Tory party with his extreme views. Won`t it be interesting to see UK Labour supporter Rachel when the Tories get in, campaigning side by side with David Davies to ensure Wales has little defence against Tory cuts and Tory indifference to Wales.

Lib Dem Determination!

2010-02-09T12:08:00.000Z

Nick Clegg says he is passionate about giving more power to Wales according to the Western Mail report on their "Welsh Conference" or rather Conference in Wales. He is so passionate that when he was asked about the transfer of justice and criminal powers to Wales he was not unequivocal in his response. Instead of "YES, OF COURSE" he said "WE WOULD LOOK AT IT" he said! What a waste he has turned out to be.

Peter Hain : Darling of Labour MPs in Wales

2010-01-18T11:52:00.001Z

Peter Hain`s job is to represent Wales interests in the Cabinet. At least that`s what his job description says .....or so we are told. Faced with a possible unanimous vote in favour of a referendum in the Assembly, you would think his job would be made easy. On the contrary, he is not convinced of the timing, he says. Meanwhile new Labour leader, Carwyn Jones, is also being cagey, having one eye on the Unionists, especially his MPs. Whats the betting on the referendum ever happening with a Tory government and a bigotted bunch of opposition UK Labour MPs in Wales?

Tory Waffle

2010-01-18T11:48:00.000Z

Did you see the inept ITV Wales interview with David Cameron? They were like party hacks cuing Cameron on a range of subjects and amazingly missed the opportunity of quizzing him on the referendum! Perhaps he was reluctant to be drawn on his promise that he would respect an Assembly REQUEST for a referendum while he would not make any promises on timing!

Democratic Deficit

2010-01-18T11:42:00.000Z

Devolution has reduced the Geographic spread of Westminster`s tentacles in a number of key polcy areas, such as Health and Education. Unfortunately Sky News, ITV news and BBC News do not appear to be aware of this when reporting policy statements from the three main Unionist parties as we approach the UK General Election. Ed Balls is irrelevant in Wales. This issue will obviously be a concern during the proposed TV debate between the three main Westminster leaders where the BBC needs to give a warning to voters in Wales, Scotland and N. Ireland that many of the issues discussed may not apply them.... or alternatively invite the leaders of Plaid Cymru, SNP and Sinn Fein to the debates. Otherwise the BBC is wilfully misleading the electorate.

Jubilee Sycophants vs St David

2010-01-18T11:40:00.000Z

Presumably, those such as the CBI, who oppose a National Bank Holiday in Wales on economic grounds, will oppose a far more expensive and disruptive UK wide Bank Holiday for a monarch. Its disgraceful to see the Labour Party turning its back on the people in favour of the privileged again.

Trust Labour and Tories ... no way!

2009-11-07T13:26:00.000Z

Cameron commits himself to agreeing to a referendum on further powers. Can we trust him after their U turn on a Lisbon Treaty referendum ....obviously not.
Labour commits itself to a Coalition agreement with Plaid on Plaid`s condition that there is a referendum on further powers. Can we trust them ? Obviously not! Peter Hain has been laying the ground for scrapping a referendum, while UK Labour leader in Wales hopeful Carwyn Jones wants to consult his party over the issue ... even though they have already done so.
On November 18th the Report on whether there is the appetite for a referendum is published. It is expected to say there is and there is NEED for a referendum.
On December 1st UK Labour in Wales announces its new leader. Whoever they get will be taking instructions from London and you can bet UK Labour`s interest and not Wales`s will be on the agenda. Trusting Labour is always a mistake. If they enter an agreement with you, it is for the sole purpose of destroying you.
Meanwhile Plaid s National Council meets in Aberystwyth to discuss developments. Its time for them to state loud and clear to UK Labour that if they do not honour the One Wales agreement we are out of government. The alternative is a powerless Assembly facing up to Tory government in London. The Tories scrapped the GLC because it was Labour. They could do the same to the Assembly

LCO Disppointment

2009-10-12T10:35:00.000+01:00

So the Assembly will not gain powers to force organisations receiving less than £400,000 in public funds to embrace bilingualism. UK Labour MPs have had their way and the Assembly has had to cave in.
The CBI in Wales called for any measures affecting business to be reasonable and practical and it is significant that this has now been written onto the face of the LCO. You can imagine what the obstructive face of business will do with those words.
Menna Machreth, chair of Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg, said: “The Wales Office and Welsh Assembly Government have decided to block the people of Wales from gaining access to the Welsh language. What difference will this measure do to the day-to-day lives of people in Wales? The Wales Office and Assembly Government prefer to please large corporations and anti-Welsh elements within the Labour Party instead of making a real difference to the Welsh language’s status in Wales.”

Taking Carmarthen for granted?

2009-10-12T10:30:00.000+01:00

What is amazing about Adam Prices withdrawal from Westminster is the way commentators and people in Plaid seem to be taking the people fof Carmarthen for granted. The Wales on Sunday was even touting that Angharad Mair would be a likely candidate to replace him. Is this not the way of the UK Labour Party parachuting in candidates it would like to see join the Westminster gravy train? Lets hope we follow the correct procedures and the right candidate for the people of Carmarthen is selected. Otherwise we may end up with massive egg on our faces.

Party Leaders Debate

2009-09-23T12:51:00.000+01:00

I see the SNP is challenging the much trumpeted debate between the UK party leaders. Quite right too, but what about Plaid? Surely we should be joining the challenge. Apart from the pronciple, what if the SNP wins some concession. Will we then amke a challenge?

2009-08-13T14:43:00.000+01:00

End of Coalition

2009-08-13T14:28:00.000+01:00

The latest LCO to hit the rocks is a signal failure of Peter Hain`s hotchpotch of procedures designed to please Labour MPs in Wales. Fundamentally the LCO system is laborious, costly, time consuming and poor government. Whats more it reinforces the indignity and apparent inferiority of AMs elected to represent Wales having to go cap in hand to Labour MPs in London for PERMISSION to pass a law. Surely its about time Plaid Leaders laid it on the line to UK Labour. If they want Plaid on side, they need to start giving. With a potential Tory victory in Westminster next year, what hope for LCOs and wales then?

We Are Being Robbed : Whisper thief....

2009-08-13T12:54:00.000+01:00

For donkeys years we have known that membership of the UK has few benefits. The idea that the stronger members will support the weaker members is turned on its head when it comes to the UK. Thus the Holtham Commission and a House of Lords Commission have shown that we have lost and will lose billions under the Barnett Formula. Hain, the man paid to represent and defend (?) Wales at the cabinet table defends the Barnett Formula. Whats the point of his job? It`s certainly not to fight for Wales in his opinion.
Of more concern is the overall reaction to the news of this robbery. It seems to be one of indecision and delay when all we need is someone (i.e. the government) to say "We are going to adopt a needs based formula for funding Wales" Rhodri Morgan has suggested as much, but then he has no power.

2009-08-13T11:46:00.000+01:00

BNP = English National Party?

2009-06-27T17:03:00.000+01:00

BNP Boss Nick Griffin says that you cannot have a Black Welshman. Tell that to boxer Steve Robinson and hurdler Colin Jackson. Clearly the bloke is a bit unstable.... how else do you lose an eye in a shooting accident. Unfortunately, though, the BNPs views are getting more of an airing and unfortunately they do strike a chord. How else do you explain their strong turnout in Caerffili in Abertawe in the Euro elections? Their relative success in the Euro -elections in Wales as elsewhere demands that their arguments are met full on. They hide behind democracy but would soon sweep it away given the chance. They have already decided that only certain people can be classed as British and Welsh. If we do not assert the right of an individual to describe themselves as Welsh then who is? An attack on one person`s identity is an attack on all us.
Then again, I headed this piece "BNP = English National Party?" The question mark is important as it is not an English party. Many English people of all colours and persuasions will have no sympathy with the BNPs views. That they represent a group of people who varyingly call themselves English or British is true. That they are party of hatred is also true

The new Battle of Hyddgen!

2009-06-27T16:46:00.000+01:00

What would Owain Glyndwr think of his descendants? Exactly 608 years after his victory at Hyddgen at the foot of Pumlumon plans are afoot to construct a windfarm on the battle site. While there is no objection to windfarms in principle the idea of destrying a historic site such as this with such great importance to Wales is tantamount to official vandalism on the grandest scale. Would such a proposal be even considered on the site of the Battle of Hastings? Imagine the outcry from all those so called "British" historians like Starkey and Schama let alone the media.... especially if the proposal was made by a French energy company! You could imagine the headline in the Sun...which probably thinks the English won that battle anyway.

Charles Windsor Prince of England

2009-06-27T16:27:00.000+01:00

Have you seen the hesitant preparations to commemmorate 40 years since Charles Windsor`s Mum made him a symbol of Welsh subjugation. The Western Mail`s Saturday magazine is carrying a three page interview where he is asked about nothing in particular. There is occassional reporting of his tour around Wales. Not so long ago schoolchildren would be bussed in to each location and given flags and told to cheer. Now the apologists for monarchy seem less sure of themselves. Leanne Wood on Question Time was the odd one out among the other sycophants on the panel when she declared she was not a monarchist .. and still got a warm reception.
But then again, we do have Tory MPs in Wales, and one of them , David Davies, is spitting fire that a march is being held to celebrate the lives of the Abergele Martyrs who died while placing a bomb during the Investiture. These brave men who had no intention of causing death and injury are being equated with Al Qaeeda suicide bombers!
With the death of the pop singer Michael Jackson, the media attention aroused is a reminder of what will follow the death of Mrs Windsor. While not wishing anybody dead, the occasion will be cynically used to its utmost potential to sell the ideas of monarchy and Britishness. This will quickly be followed by an Establishment campaign to popularise the imposition of William Windsor (or whatever name he uses) as Prince of Wales. Obviously this must be opposed and ideally the authorities must decide to drop the idea .... but remember last time. Did anybody take a lead apart from MAC? Surely a more constitutional campaign could be organised?

Greenland Free!!!!!!!!!!

2009-06-25T23:26:00.000+01:00

Greenland gained almost 100% independence from Denmark this month. With a population of under 60,000, it has taken control of all aspects of government except Foreign Affairs and Defence. They had to go through a number of hurdles set by Denmark but they have almost achieved their independence. How long are we in Wales going to have to wait?

Coalition under threat?

2009-06-25T23:04:00.000+01:00

How patient must we be with the coalition with UK Labour? The European Election results were disappointing to say the elast considering the poor standing of UK Labour. The Tories are back and we all know that they really want he Assembly to fail so that they can get rid of it. Winning the Westminster Election will put them in a powerful position to engineer its demise. UK Labour are already doing a good job of that of course. Replacing Gordon Browns hitman in Wales , Murphy, with Peter Hain means no change in their approach. Peter Hain has alreday stated that there is unlikely to be a referendum before the end of this Assembly term when, of course, the Tories will be back in Westminster. The Housing LCO designed to tackle the housing crisis in Wales has been withdrawn following TWO years of UK Labour disrupting tactics. The same could happen to the language LCO. The idea of the LCO procedure was that the assembly would essentially ask for permission to pass legislation for a topic area. Instead UK Labour are strangling these proposals under the guise of scrutiny. What other cointry in the world would put up with these conditions?
After two years of sharing power, the question neds to be asked. Has the coalition brought the day when Wales is free closer? At the moment it looks like resounding NO.

Rudderless and Pointless : UK Labour

2009-04-27T19:31:00.000+01:00

UK Labour`s conference in Wales on the weekend was notable for Murphy`s pathetic plea to the people of Wales to trust them! Don`t vote Plaid or the Tories will get in ....what a vision for the future. Of course the best protection for Wales is a proper Parliament. Paul Murphy did not even mention the referendum which is a cornerstone of the One Wales Agreement. In the meantime good old prospective pensioner Rhodri Morgan is letting things slip about how Wales is short changed by UK Labour in Westminster. He said that Wales has 5% of the UK population, 4% of the UK budget, but 6 % of the need !!! In other words we are owed £1.5 billion by Alistair Darling. I wonder if Rhodri has mentioned this to the commission into the Barnett Formula. Gordon Brown showed his awareness of Wales` funding arrangements when he insisted that the Barnett Formula was needs based rather than population based. Gordon couldn`t even pronounce Eluned (as in Morgan and the Delilah song) . Which all goes to show that UK Labour members in Wales do not care a dam about Wales .... they just want the votes to keep coming and are beginning to realise that thye are draining away rapidly.

Cwmbran Labour Party Plead "Stay Away Next Time Murphy!"

2009-04-26T20:46:00.000+01:00

Opposition parties across Wales are keeping their fingers crossed that UK Labour Secretary of State for Wales and Torfaen MP Paul Murphy will be coming to canvass soon in their part of the country. This follows the news that Thursday`s (St George`s Day) by-election for the Upper Cwmbran East ward seat on Cwmbran Town Council was lost by UK Labour to an Independent in a two horse race. Despite the Town Council being 100% Labour, the local Labour Party felt so threatened that they initially welcomed the help of such a political heavyweight as Murphy as they embarked on the thankless task of defending UK Labour`s record on the streets of Cwmbran. However, the people let them know what they thought of Murphy`s government by voting three to one against UK Labour. (Independent 291, UK Labour 99).
Pity Plaid did not stand. Never mind... only three years to the next local elections....plenty of time.

Charles Windsor

2009-04-21T11:34:00.000+01:00

How would you rate Charles Windsor`s efforts for the Welsh Language on his website?

http://www.princeofwales.gov.uk/