Price: ‘Westminster incompetence and corruption’ means it’s time for Wales to take control

Jez Hemming, local democracy reporter

Plaid Cymru’s leader says now is time for Wales to take its future into its own hands because of Westminster’s “incompetence and corruption”.

Adam Price was making a whistle-stop visit to St Asaph to gee up activists and the party’s Vale of Clwyd candidate Glenn Swingler.

He said he had high hopes of making gains in north-east Wales but side-stepped talk of a coalition with Labour, although he said he would work with anyone “for the benefit of the people of Wales”.

He said a Plaid government would fix “social injustice” in the country before addressing constitutional issues but maintained he would look to hold a referendum within the next Senedd if he was First Minister.

Mr Price told party workers a third of people in Wales were on board with Welsh independence and claimed the cause is further ahead than Scotland was a decade ago.

When asked if he could be alienating potential voters with his independence referendum pledge, he rounded on Westminster.

He said: “In terms of the timing look at the state of of the UK, look at the incompetence and corruption even in Westminster.

“Surely now is the time to decide to take our future into our own hands.

“At the moment we don’t even have the power devolved to ask the question – that’s something we have to change surely.

“We think that it’s the right thing to do to give the people of Wales the right to decide on their future.

“We’re not going to realise our potential unless we take that step.”

‘Change’

Mr Price had been visiting candidates in Wrexham and Clwyd South in a final push before next Thursday’s Senedd vote.

He rejected claims people in the north-east of the nation had more affinity with major cities in England’s north-west than Cardiff – and pledged to form a government for the whole of Wales.

However, the Plaid leader refused to be drawn on whether a referendum would be a red line if Labour needed his help to form the next Welsh Government.

He said: “Six days out from an election we are just focused on victory now because we genuinely think we’re not going to be able to build that new Wales unless we change the political leadership.”