Gwynedd Council to vote on support for Welsh independence

Gwynedd is expected to become the first Welsh local authority to support independence when it votes on the matter on Thursday.

Yesterday, Caerphilly Town Council became the first town council in the south of Wales to back taking full control back from Westminster to Wales.

If Gwynedd County Council votes to formally declare support for Welsh Independence, it will become the first of Wales’ 22 local authorities to do so.

The full Council meeting will take place this Thursday in Gwynedd’s main chamber at the council’s Caernarfon headquarters.

The motion proposed by Porthmadog East Councillor Nia Jeffreys, reads: “We call upon the Council to call for independence for Wales, and send a clear message that Wales is not too small or poor to stand on its own feet, and that we yearn to make decisions that affect our future here in Wales, and not in London.”

A string of town and community councils across Wales have already voted for independence, with most of them in Gwynedd, including Porthmadog, Blaenau Ffestiniog, Nefyn, Bethesda, Caernarfon, Llanuwchllyn, Trawsfynydd, Llanystumdwy, Pwllheli, Bontnewydd, Llanberis, Waunfawr and Caeathro, and the Llanllyfni.

Machynlleth in Powys was, however, the first to back the move.

‘Change’

The vote will come a week before a march in support of Welsh Independence takes place in Caernarfon, on Saturday 27th July, where thousands are expected to attend.

The march, organised by All Under One Banner Cymru, hopes to build on the success of the inaugural AUOBCymru march in Cardiff last May which was attended by over 2,000 people.

Councillor Nia Jeffreys from Gwynedd Council said: “Change is in the air in Wales and the people of Gwynedd are leading the change.

“There is a new confidence, in particular from our young people – there is absolutely no reason why all decisions about Wales should not be made in Wales rather than in London.

“I and many others from north Wales attended the All Under One Banner Cymru march in Cardiff.

“There is already a lot of excitement about the march on the 27th of July in Caernarfon and the vote of support from Gwynedd will add to the momentum of this grass roots movement towards independence.”

Gwion Hallam, Chair of the YesCymru Caernarfon group, said that it was great to see the first Local Authority take a vote on independence.

“Great to see Gwynedd voting on this. It would be normal to be an independent country like other countries,” he said.

“But after decades – indeed, centuries – of being persuaded that we are too poor or too small, there is a bit of persuasion to be done. It would be great for Gwynedd to be the first Local Authority to formally support the call for independence.”