Llanelli politician Siân Caiach chairs new Ein Gwlad branch

Siân Caiach, whose People First party has been a thorn in Plaid Cymru’s side in Llanelli, has joined new party Ein Gwlad.

Caiach, who polled 2,004 votes in 2011 and 1,113 in Llanelli at the 2016 Assembly elections – more than the margin between Plaid Cymru and the Labour incumbents – will head Ein Gwlad’s Llanelli branch.

Her candidacy at those elections were widely held to have cost Plaid Cymru the Llanelli seat.

Ein Gwlad announced this week that they have launched three new branches in different parts of Wales over the past few days.

The branches are in Conwy Valley, Llanelli and West Glamorgan.

The Cangen Dyffryn Conwy chair is Rhydian Hughes, of Pentrefoelas, who is a former YesCymru vice-chair.

“Everyone knows things can’t stay the same as they are in Wales and that we need change,” he said at the launch.

“But, it’s not enough to want change- you have to thirst for change, and in Ein Gwlad, I think we have a party that is thirsting for change in our nation.”

He added that Wales needed to develop its own political ideology, and that Ein Gwlad should not position itself on the British left or right.

“What’s important are the ideas- not where they are on the political spectrum,” he said.

“The important question for Ein Gwlad is-  will these ideas benefit Cymru and its people?”

‘Change’

James Llewelyn Henton, Chair of the new West Glamorgan branch said that the new party would fight for a recovery in Wales’ economy.

“People need to realise that their current local politicians here and on a national level, just building some fancy new buildings and new road layouts, while not changing the fundamental problems at the core of the issues here, will never change anything in reality, except the view” said Mr Henton, of Castell-Nedd.

“We need actual change and we need it now. That’s why our 21st century party is needed, no more established nonsense, just pure ‘what will suit the Welsh people best’ politics is what we need, and what Ein Gwlad is here to do.”

The party’s interim leader Gwyn Wigley Evans said that he expected more branches to start up over the next few months in the lead-up to the party’s first national conference in Newtown on February 9, 2019.

“Supporters have now turned into fully fledged members, who want to make a difference in their localities which is brilliant,” he said.

“Obviously, we have a clear presence on the web and on social media, but there’s nothing to beat working on the ground in our local communities and talking to people.”