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Opinion

#WhenWalesIsIndependent: Building the Wales of the future

22 Feb 2018 6 minute read

Ben Gwalchmai

‘To take a short-termist economic perspective on Wales, we have to go back to 1298’.

So joked Professor Calvin Jones at our Labour for an Independent Wales [L4IW] event but in every joke there is a grain of truth.

He followed it up by making his point very clear: we in Wales suffer the consequences of an economic structure built on colonialism.

Professor Jones highlighted how Wales, Scotland, and Ireland’s place in the UK is as resource peripheries, there to be exploited by the central economy of London and South East England.

This article is an answer to one question Professor Jones asked during his talk, which is: ‘How can you build prosperity if you are continually sending over… the best of your young people, the best of your natural resources?’

The blue-sky thinking put forward here is just the beginning of my thoughts on #WhenWalesIsIndependent but I hope it encourages discussion and adds to the debate.

I’ve divided my response into three parts: identity, infrastructure, and internationalism.

Identity

It isn’t up to me to articulate other future Waleses. It’s up to the young Tories and the young liberals and whoever else wishes to fight their corner to articulate those other future identities – my future is a socialist future.

A future where extreme inequality like we see now, is no longer possible. Where no one lives in fuel poverty while Wales produces twice as much electricity as it uses.

To me this means being both the red of Labour and the green of a sustainable future because I think valuing those above all else, cares for society best.

What does this mean in practice?  It means building on the work that Labour is already doing but also being prepared for the future.

The foundational economy is an example of the good work already being done that could do with a further focus on revaluing those sectors while bringing foresters and carbon sequesters into the grouping.

Being prepared for the future means two things: the first is Universal Basic Income and the second is a Welsh Engineering Corps [WEC].

The Welsh Engineering Corps would conscript the young people of Wales to work for a common goal for two years.

Why? Because we have a nation-building problem: there are already 3 Waleses within the Wales we have and they hardly talk.

From my own Maldwyn/Montgomeryshire perspective, I found the notion of ‘British Wales’both painful & painfully accurate when I first heard it.

We must bring the Gogs to better understand the Hwntws, the Marcher Men to understand the Over Theres – simply through learning, planting, and working together.

Wouldn’t a compulsory Engineering Corps solve two nation-building problems? One, understanding our fellow Cymraeg [thus building a cohesive national identity] and two, actually building the infrastructure we’re so lacking.

Both are as valuable, as essential as the other. The WEC could not only bring all walks of life together but could act as a political voice for necessary changes of direction.

Infrastructure

Some believe that we can skip over the need for train infrastructure in favour of electric planes but those planes are unlikely to be ready to take over 10 people until 2080.

To build a truly prosperous nation, we need to give our young people a taste of all their country first. We need to literally, physically join up the north and south.

This means reopening the Aberystwyth-Carmarthen line, yes, but it also means building a fast north-south line.

By L4IW’s [conservative, rough] calculations, a line from Cardiff to Caersws would cost £3.3billion. Let’s double that to get from Caersws to Llandudno Junction and then let’s round it up, just in case: £7billion to connect all of Wales.

Yes, it’s worth it. £10 billion would be worth it. No, it’s not a pipe dream – it’s damned affordable to ensure that a student from Bala chooses our capital or Aberystwyth over Liverpool or Manchester.

To ensure that our Caernarfon businesses can trade as easily with Cardiff as they can with Chester; to ensure our politicians are on the trains we use.

When a Welsh Engineering Corps plants the layers of trees, pletches hedges around it, and continues to observe & improve habitats then we’ll have Green Corridors for our wildlife, too.

The second most important thing we need to do is part-nationalize our sustainable electricity, rail, intra-Wales planes, and water production.

We must do this to reap the same benefits as any shareholders but also to stop the presumption that Welsh Government’s focus is on the next jobs report. Government must focus on the long-term future as well as manage the present.

Then there are options like:

  • abolishing private schools
  • triple-tax 2nd homes everywhere and prohibit turning them into businesses
  • introducing graduated corporation tax on turnover in Wales irrespective of where the company is registered
  • Robin Hood & windfall taxes
  • 4 or 5 new income tax bands
  • personal allowance up to 17k
  • make public buses free
  • scrap tuition fees & school league tables
  • end military recruitment of under-18s
  • the mass building of social housing
  • ban privatization of prisons – be more like The Netherlands in our approach to crime & prisons

And that’s just the beginning!

In the preceding three paragraphs is a literal & social infrastructure which gives the future a strong chance.

Internationalism

We already have world-class art, talent, and produce so when I say a future economy of Wales should focus on internationalism, I’m not talking about trading goods.

No. I’m talking about using Ynys Môn as more than just a port, about using the Brecons as more than just the British playground.

Let’s use our spaces for future-facing projects: let’s make Ynys Môn a spaceport and let’s hire out our no-fly zones and our rough terrain to NATO militaries.

This ties into Bleddyn Bowen’s work in both, examining the opportunities and the risks.

It goes without saying that our culture and creativity brings the world here but could the earlier suggested WEC go out into the world and help build infrastructure?

We could develop a WEC+ that enables our young people to stay there for another 3 years to get a degree, learn future-preparedness from all over the world, and do good work, internationally.

The simple truth is that we need to work as both a part of the UK – even with England in its current temper tantrum – and free to do our own thing on the international stage.

Perhaps this is the beginnings of a business plan, perhaps it isn’t. It’s a start on a future.

We will be a weird, wonderful corner of the world so long as we embrace our identity, infrastructure, and internationalism. Soon.


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21 Comments
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Capitalist and Welshnash
Capitalist and Welshnash
6 years ago

The kind of Wales you are talking about sounds like one where civil liberties are of secondary importance, and I would spend my life fighting it. What Wales needs is to break Labour hegemony at all costs. It is damaging this country more than anything since the Acts of Union. Walk around the Valleys, look at the disparagement. That’s what 100 years of Labour has done. Don’t blame Westminster, let’s look in the mirror and take responsibility. Labour’s Conformity is not the answer. E. g. Conscripting young people into a corps. It’s authoritarian, and it’s wrong. Also, mass building of… Read more »

jasrob
jasrob
6 years ago

Strongly agree , CapNash!
Most of us have already thought about the national electricity, rail, water and prison stuff, so that’s possible.
But a lot of this fist in the air, red scarf in the sunset, gives me the gulag willies.
Only capitalism will get the wagon rolling. I see small government, lower taxes for industry and even lower for families
enabling them to live in architect designed, multi income private housing communities with their own primary schools
and area heating systems. And that’s just the beginning…………………

bengwalchmai
bengwalchmai
6 years ago
Reply to  jasrob

Hey both, This is great to see – exactly the kind of responses I’d both expected and hoped for. Thanks for them. That’s why I wrote, “It isn’t up to me to articulate other future Waleses. It’s up to the young Tories and the young liberals and whoever else wishes to fight their corner to articulate those other future identities – my future is a socialist future.” I’d just like to clarify my WEC suggestion a little: I think it a pragmatic answer to the call for a return to National Service but also something that gives to society for… Read more »

CambroUiDunlainge
CambroUiDunlainge
6 years ago
Reply to  bengwalchmai

If this was all about Balance we’d be talking about ideas that are more ideologically centrist mirroring the bulk of voter who are not politically aligned. 😉

Not sure we can pick and choose where and when balance is necessary – it either is or is not. An example being Socialism has a strong support in Wales – but that’s because the system has become so unequal. The voter will bring balance.

jasrob
jasrob
6 years ago
Reply to  bengwalchmai

Okay, Ben. Six days later and maybe a few like ‘self might have bent a little on the WEC, as it might give our youth a
feeling of fellowship. When I was thinking of this, though, I only saw young men, not women. Don’t Israeli women
take part to some extent?

JE Lloyd
JE Lloyd
6 years ago

A period of public / national service is no more authoritarian than the state claiming part of your earnings and property (aka taxation). I don’t really like “isms” of any kind because they involve the direction of policy by ideological dogma rather than the needs and interests of real people and communities. Nonetheless I find much in this programme that is appealing, whatever the author chooses to call it

JE Lloyd
JE Lloyd
6 years ago

And I agree that effective government of Wales and the development of a dynamic economy is not possible without an efficient national transport system. At this point, the focus should be on major rail investments, including the North-South link

Warren Davies
Warren Davies
6 years ago

I’m not saying that I agree or disagree with the proposals, but it is great to hear some specific ideas of what an independent Wales could do. This kind of thing gets people’s imaginations going. Independence for its own sake, or for historic or governance reasons just isn’t going to excite the general public.

Plaid Cymru ran a website a few years back as part of the their ‘Million Conversations’ campaign. This website was excellent for allowing anyone to post and/or discuss different ideas for Wales. Sadly the website, ‘Million Ideas’ is now closed.

Davydh Trethewey (@MawKernewek)

How does the governance of NATO work? Is it one country one vote, such that as a member Cymru would have the same amount of influence in decision making as the USA? Or is it contributionist such that it depends on how much different countries are funding NATO activities. How would this be counted, since to do so would be necessary to separate ‘national’ from ‘NATO’ activities of each country’s military. Being in NATO might make Wales a target for the Russians or Chinese in the event of a war, but in a total war it could be anyway, NATO… Read more »

ERNEST
ERNEST
6 years ago

Agree that conscription sounds too authoritarian. There should be incentives for young people to take a career in engineering: I found that career has good job satisfaction. As an independent nation Wales (nor Scotland or Ireland for that matter) should not be inviting that USA led imperialist block NATO onto our lands. They have a record of supporting colonial powers in the past 70 years including Against Vietnam’s independence, sided with colonial wars of pre-1974 Portugal in Africa, Overthrew the elected government in Chile in 1973, Yugoslavia, and Libya ! In fact, Libya was one of the richest countries in… Read more »

Eos Pengwern
Eos Pengwern
6 years ago

As another mid-Wales based Nationalist but with a bent towards small-government, pro-business solutions, I see things in this article to strongly support and vehemently oppose in equal measure, and I’m glad that Ben has anticipated that response.

Overall, though, I’m delighted to see the debate move beyond “Should Wales be Independent?” to “What sort of a country should an independent Wales be?”

Capitalist and Welshnash
Capitalist and Welshnash
6 years ago

Labour has always periodically drifted towards authoritarianism.

That’s not an independent Wales worth fighting for. It’s an independent Wales worth laying down your life if need be to fight against.

Wales is better than Left-wing Authoritianism.

CambroUiDunlainge
CambroUiDunlainge
6 years ago

I’d kind of feel there’s an authoritarianism in there as others have said. I think that’s the real threat to democracy. It can surface from any ideology and and from any form of governance. It may work in the short run but we do not know what tomorrow may bring and how those leading our nation tomorrow may react (this is why I’m so vehemently against a nation built around any ideology – it does not reflect the bulk of the electorate to do this). Independence right now is all about tomorrow – its possibilities but also its pitfalls and… Read more »

Benjiman L. Angwin
Benjiman L. Angwin
6 years ago

Well, we can agree. Remarkable this life is.

Aled Gwyn Job
6 years ago

Some good points here from Ben Gwalchmai, but I’m afraid that his vision for a future socialist Wales leaves me cold. Especially when one bears in mind that “socialism” has been the defining attribute of the Labour Party which has mis-managed Wales so dreadfully for the best part of a century. The challenges of setting up an Independent Wales are such that only a productive, entrepreneurial and dynamic mind-set can ensure that it can be a success. That has to mean a much expanded private sector, and an instinctive drive to turn Wales into the best small country in the… Read more »

Dafydd Thomas
Dafydd Thomas
6 years ago
Reply to  Aled Gwyn Job

I have to agree with you Aled. What is Ben thinking when he wants “a mass building of social housing”. At present we in Wales are providing large numbers of social housing in response to the needs of England. Where both English Tory and English labour authorities are pushing people out, especially those who have psychological and physical problems who are therefore unable to work and are expensive to keep i.e. High health and social care costs. Better spend money on infrastructure and get the economy going and give opportunities to our young people. I have to admire Ben taking… Read more »

Michael Matthews
Michael Matthews
6 years ago

To achieve all that would require us to cut all ties with Westminster, something l would fully support.

sibrydionmawr
6 years ago

Along with others, I would be vehemently opposed to the idea of a conscripted WEC. There may well be a need for some kind of national service offering that is voluntary, that offers young people an opportunity to spend some time both working on projects of social benefit to our nation, and also acquiring experience of working life in a safe and supportive environment with others of a similar age. It could become something of a ‘right of passage’ for those transitioning to adulthood. It could be a very positive environment that allows young people to find out about their… Read more »

Trailorboy
Trailorboy
6 years ago

I really like this and the tone is really uplifting and positive.

jasrob
jasrob
6 years ago

hands up all those who live on a council estate and like it.

Graham John Hathaway
Graham John Hathaway
6 years ago

I don’t find conscription too alien a term. It’s on what basis. It’s important to define what it means and its terms of use. It’s far better than unemployment, or working in a ‘revolving door’ of short term nothing jobs. Nothing feeds crime more than idleness. I like much of this report. Work brings association. Identity. Let’s not look backwards and point blame. I fear the force of greater alienation of the lower order of achievers as we become more technical and the demands for higher level thinking and competencies of modern working practices. Where does AI fit in. What… Read more »

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