Plaid Cymru mulling name change to ‘New Wales Party’

Plaid Cymru is mulling a switch to a bilingual name in order to increase its appeal outside of Welsh-speaking parts of Wales.

A review of the party by former SNP leader at Westminster, Angus Robertson, suggested that the party needs “an image and message that will find a common appeal across all of Wales”.

“There should be a more inclusive brand for the party,” his report says. “Choosing the name Plaid Cymru Newydd / New Wales Party […] may be one way forward that merits discussion.”

New leader Adam Price raised the possibility of a name change in August of last year, during the leadership election campaign.

Writing for the Western Mail, Mr Price said the proposed name would signal that Plaid “is the party of Wales’ future”.

In excerpts from Angus Robertson’s report, quoted in the magazine New Nation by thinktank Nova Cambria, he is quoted as saying that “the Welsh language is both and at the same time a strength and weakness for Plaid Cymru”.

“Plaid performs well amongst voters who are strong Welsh identifiers, and a key part of Welsh identification is associated with the language.

“However, such is the close relationship of Plaid Cymru with the language, for many Welsh people – whether they are Welsh speakers or not – Plaid Cymru is seen as solely the party of and for the Welsh language.”

As a result, he says, Plaid Cymru “struggles to reach out to non-Welsh speakers” and “struggles to present itself as an all-Wales party”.

“In response to these dilemmas, there needs to be a determined effort to craft an image and a message that will find a common appeal across the whole of Wales.”

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