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Time for Wales to focus on post-Brexit opportunities, says Plaid Cymru leader

27 Jan 2020 3 minute read
Adam Price: Picture by Plaid Cymru (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

It’s time to move on from the battle to remain in the EU and seize the opportunities for Wales after Brexit, Plaid Cymru’s leader will say today.

Adam Price said that it is time for Wales to focus on “new opportunities” in a “new landscape” ahead of the UK leaving the EU on Friday.

The Plaid Cymru Leader will be delivering a keynote speech on Beyond Brexit: Charting a new course at the Pierhead building at 12pm today.

Speaking ahead of the speech, Adam Price said that whilst “we weren’t all leavers” the UK and Wales would now be leaving the EU and that there was “little point” in fighting “yesterday’s battles”.

A “positive post-Brexit plan for Wales” with more powers for the Senedd would be needed to “tackle and solve Wales’ economic problems,” he said.

Speaking ahead of his keynote speech, Plaid Cymru Leader Adam Price AM said: “We weren’t all leavers but we are all leaving now and there is little point in continuing to rehearse these arguments or fighting yesterday’s battles.

“It is the Red Dragon of Wales that will be taking back control, and if Plaid Cymru has anything to do with it, eventually setting us on a new course.

“Simply defending the status quo is no longer enough.  It’s time to focus on the new opportunities in the new landscape. Northern Ireland has special status. The north of England will see a lot of investment. Scotland will be a continued focus because of the movement for independence.

“We need a positive post-Brexit plan for Wales and a stronger Senedd with more powers to tackle and solve Wales’ economic problems.

“We could have new flexibility over tax – such as powers to vary corporation tax or VAT for key sectors like construction and tourism. We could also secure power over public procurement rules to allow to support our foundational economy programme based on a local import substitution alongside a government backed Made in Wales and Buy Welsh programme.

 

‘Vavavoom’

Adam Price said it was time to turn the “power grab” into a “power gain” and take advantage of some of the “flexibilities” afforded to Wales outside the European Union including:

  • The ability of the Wales Development Bank to allow to lend without the constraints of state aid rules
  • Devolve power over corporation tax, capital gains tax on property, apprenticeship levy and the air passenger duty.
  • Develop new procurement rules to support our foundational economy.
  • Create Welsh freeports at key ports and airports.
  • Welsh work permits as part of a Welsh migration system.

“Instead of focusing on the losses from the Single Market, we have now to start to focus on the new opportunities in the new landscape,” he said.

“We must ditch the old sense of resignation: when England catches cold, Wales catches pneumonia.  It’s time instead to dose up on some economic Vitamin C – inject the Welsh vavavoom into our new way of thinking.

“Leaving the European Union does not mean leaving the hope of a new Wales behind and for those of us who want to channel our positive energy we can turn the next fifteen months into Wales’s transition period.”


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Jonesy
Jonesy
4 years ago

this should have been the message during the election campaign they would not have performed so badly then

Huw Davies
Huw Davies
4 years ago
Reply to  Jonesy

Correct. Had he and Plaid in general only been half a pace behind it wouldn’t look so bad, but this is about half a lap and losing ground. Johnson and his mob must be having a good old laff at our expense and it seems the Big Liar is already scheming to make the regions pay for any disadvantage suffered by London. To be fair to Adam he has recently spoken about Independence but now he needs to turn up the intensity and really drive home the critical points as a matter of urgency, and there’s plenty of ammo there.… Read more »

Cambro
Cambro
4 years ago
Reply to  Jonesy

Should have been the message since the Continuity Bill.

John Ellis
John Ellis
4 years ago
Reply to  Jonesy

I don’t actually think Plaid performed that badly, in that they held on to and tended to improve their support in the Fro Cymraeg constituencies which they already held.

What they failed to do – and not for the first time – was significantly to improve their position outside those areas. In not a single constituency which they failed to win were they even the runner-up. That’s the mountain they have to climb before a PC-led government can come to pass.

Alwyn J Evans
Alwyn J Evans
4 years ago
Reply to  John Ellis

Not losing ground when there were huge electoral gains to be made, was a failure.

John Ellis
John Ellis
4 years ago
Reply to  Alwyn J Evans

I don’t dispute that. But Plaid haven’t yet found a way to reach beyond Y Fro.. Until they learn how to do that they’ll be ‘frozen in aspic’, electorally speaking.

Jonesy
Jonesy
4 years ago
Reply to  John Ellis

lost thousands of votes in Jonathon Edward’s constituency – tories in second place only a 1000 between them – thanks to their women friends who sympathise with Saudi ideology and brexit obsession

John Ellis
John Ellis
4 years ago
Reply to  Jonesy

Indeed. That’s their weakest link in Y Fro. And the proposed Westminster constituency changes – assuming they happen; rumour has it that the Bunterites are having second thoughts – may make that even more the case.

Though I’m ignorant about the ‘woman ftiends and Saudi ideology’ bit. What have I missed?!

Jonesy
Jonesy
4 years ago
Reply to  John Ellis

using a woman who sympathises with fundamentalist islamist ideologyy as a poster girl

j humphrys
j humphrys
4 years ago

Adam hasn’t noticed the “North” is getting walloped, with removal of social moneys from the very Brexit towns that recently voted Tory to “leafy” well off areas in Southern England! This is the cause of much bitter amusement on social media.
btw. EU exports 9% to UK. The UK exports 47% to the EU…………… for the time being, that is.
I’m not trying to put Adam’s ideas down, just pointing out a few things that are happening. Anyone figured out the drop in output the effects of depression of half a nation has on an economy? Support Plaid!

A Prophecy is Buried in Eglwyseg
A Prophecy is Buried in Eglwyseg
4 years ago

Darkness falls. But now is only early evening. Survive what is coming.

We must survive what is coming. Hide Welshness in places your great great great grandchildren will find it. Find ways to ensure people speak Welsh at all in 300 years. All forms of resistance to the English Language help ensure our survival. 6 generations, or so, that is how long the darkness will last.

Tudor Rees
Tudor Rees
4 years ago

I think Adam Price has the right approach. If Wales conceded 2 early tries in the first 10 mins of a 6 Nations match [cf.Ref. 2016 & Election 2019], it would be pointless and counter-productive for the players to spend the next 30 mins arguing about it! It would be essential for them all to pull together, and make the most of the opportunities that crop up, for the good of the team, WALES.

Alwyn J Evans
Alwyn J Evans
4 years ago

Why has he not been negotiating with Westminster for the past 3 years rather than trying to obstruct?

Brexit was a UK decision, like it or not, Plaid should have respected that and worked towards the interests of an independent Wales and not try and get overly involved in UK politics.

What a wasted opportunity, now unionist will dictate the future because nationalists are seen as defeated. They lost someone else’s battle and took huge backwards steps.

Wexit
Wexit
4 years ago

Alwyn Evans has hit the nail on the head here. Adam and Liz were bewitched by the thought of working with the metropolitan Remainers on the Westminster stage, and gaining a sliver of influence there. Which even in the most optimistic scenario, was never going to happen. The oppprtunity to grandstand just went to their heads, plain and simple. Did Plaid ever comission any work to try and reach out and understand why 53% of the Welsh population wanted to leave the EU? No. Did they ever explain their decision to go from ‘We will respect the Welsh vote’ (2017),… Read more »

j humphrys
j humphrys
4 years ago
Reply to  Wexit

It’s not 53% anymore!

Richard
Richard
4 years ago

So is Plaid now giving up trying to stay aligned to the single market? Are the effectively abandoning companies like Airbus (as well as Welsh farmers) to their fate?

j humphrys
j humphrys
4 years ago
Reply to  Richard

Yes, the “Grey Divide” – brexiteers will still wallop him anyway, as you can see here.
Plaid changed their minds because they could see the public had swung back to pro Europe, which is reflected in the outcome in GE popular vote. Plaid should consider Direct Democracy with their members?
Nation Cymru comments are from those of us with some time, and not working folk. I get that from the
comment brevity of people such as yourself.

Walter Hunt
Walter Hunt
4 years ago

I hope we are now seeing a new more politically intelligent Adam Price. There’s some good stuff in this text. It’s upbeat. It’s measured. Gone is the near hysterical language we heard from Plaid in the recent past. This is a man with a plan. It stresses opportunities rather than threats, positives rather than negatives “The red dragon … TAKING BACK CONTROL” is a great side-of-a-campaign- bus style slogan – plagiarism aside. The phrase “we can turn the next fifteen months into Wales’s transition period” hits the right note. It’s confidence without Sheffield Rally arrogance.

Jonathan Gammond
Jonathan Gammond
4 years ago

All sounds very 20th century pulling at analogue levers in a digital age. The tax system seems stuck in the past and unable to tap the wealth of the 21st century in order to fund what our society needs to thrive.

CapM
CapM
4 years ago

Brexit is an win for those Welsh nationalists who, let’s be honest only got their exit from the EU by riding on English coat tails. Not just the result but having a referendum in the first place. Of course riding those coat tails involved not only Brexit as a destination but being taken where the wearer of those coat tails wants to go. Including what was obvious from the start, a more strongly identifying and more unified Britain. The whining by Welsh nationalist criticizing Plaid Cymru for not riding English coat tails in order to promote Welsh independence (! )… Read more »

Mawkernewek
4 years ago

The problem with this line of argument is that the current régime in Westminster interprets devolution to be solely in its gift and within its power to grant or to refuse to do so unilaterally.
As such, if Plaid Cymru accepts the situation, then even the smallest concession as far as devolution goes would have to be spun positively, no matter how insignificant it is in the overall scheme of things.

David Roberts
David Roberts
4 years ago

Congrats Adam, you’ve just made Plaid look a right bunch of mugs, for the last 3 years!!!

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