TWEAKING THE WELFARE BILL WON’T WORK

Plaid Cymru publish response to UK Government welfare consultation

Plaid Cymru has published its response to the UK Government’s Pathways to Work consultation, condemning Labour’s proposed welfare reforms as “a direct attack on some of the most vulnerable people in our society” and “an insult to the post-industrial Welsh communities Labour claims to represent.”

The party’s Work and Pensions spokesperson Ann Davies MP said the proposed Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill would cause “grave hardship” to disabled people, particularly young people with mental health conditions, and risks replicating the worst injustices of previous Conservative regimes.

Plaid Cymru has criticised the concessions announced on 26 June – including exemptions for existing PIP claimants and temporary protections for some UC recipients – as "inadequate sticking plasters on a fundamentally flawed agenda." The party warned that creating a two-tier system between existing and future claimants does not eliminate injustice, but delays and redistributes it.

Wales, where around 30% of the population is disabled and the poverty rate among disabled adults is among the highest in the UK, stands to suffer the most. Yet the Labour UK Government has refused to publish a Wales-specific impact assessment.

Ms Davies said that “if the Welsh Government have a backbone, they will oppose this terrible bill in its entirety.”

Ann Davies MP said:

“The current system already fails too many people. But instead of meaningful reform that helps the sick and disabled play the most active role possible in society, the Labour Government’s plan is to make it even harder for disabled people to access vital support. This is a direct attack on some of the most vulnerable people in our society, and an insult to the post-industrial Welsh communities Labour claims to represent.

“The so-called concessions announced this week are no more than sticking plasters on a fundamentally flawed bill. There is no fairness in protecting existing claimants while penalising those who become disabled in the future. People do not choose when to get sick or disabled, and so arbitrary cutoff dates make no sense.

“These proposals would cause grave hardship to disabled people and young people with mental health conditions, and they risk replicating the worst injustices of past Conservative welfare systems.

“The economic hit to Wales will be disproportionate, and the Labour UK Government’s refusal to publish a Wales-specific impact assessment is a slap in the face to the people of Wales. If the Welsh Government have a backbone, they will oppose this terrible bill in its entirety.

“The UK Government may have offered short-term concessions, but tweaks around the edges won’t fix a broken system. What we need is investment in inclusive employment, individualised support, and long-term savings through genuinely fair welfare – not cuts that push people further into hardship.

"Our response to the consultation outlines why Plaid Cymru MPs will be voting against this Bill at second reading next week."

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Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working - Plaid Cymru Consultation Response

D-Day 81st Anniversary

Friday was the 81st anniversary of the Normandy landings that re-opening the western front and ensured with the Russian drive from the east the destruction of the Nazi state within less than a year. 

We should remember all those who fought for freedom in Normandy on 6 June 1944, those who came back, and those who gave their lives and never returned. Along with all those who worked at home and overseas to secure the victory over fascism and the peace that followed.

MOVING THE GOALPOSTS

The latest NHS performance data shows Labour Government in Wales missing targets on countless measures despite having moved the goalposts on NHS waiting times. .

Latest NHS activity and performance summary released today (Thursday, 22 May 2025) for March and April 2025 has shown the Labour Government in Wales have missed a vast series of targets aimed at reducing waits in the Welsh NHS.

One significant target missed is the First Minister’s target to reduce two year waits to 8,000 by the Spring of 2025, a target set after missing the Welsh Government’s initial target of eradicating two year waits by March 2023. The Welsh Government have been accused of “moving the goalposts and still missing” by Plaid Cymru’s health spokesperson, Mabon ap Gwynfor.

A series of other historical targets are still being missed by the Welsh government. These include:

• Target: No one waiting for longer than a year for their first outpatient appointment by the end of 2022 (a target established in the planned care recovery plan).
• Reality: the number of pathways waiting longer than one year for their first outpatient appointment was 71,000
• Target: maximum wait for access to specified diagnostic tests is 8 weeks, and maximum wait for access to specified therapy services is 14 weeks – to be achieved by Spring 2024.
• Reality: 35,200 patient pathways were waiting longer than the target time for diagnostics and 4,000 patient pathways waiting longer than the target time for therapies.
• Target: No patients waiting longer than one year in most specialities by Spring 2025
• Reality: Of the total pathways, 155,800 were waiting more than one year

The Government has also missed a series of rolling targets, including:

• Target: 65% of red calls (immediately life-threatening, someone is in imminent danger of death, such as a cardiac arrest) to have a response within 8 minutes.
• Reality: Only 50.9% of red calls arrived within 8 minutes
• Target: 95% of new patients should spend less than 4 hours in emergency departments from arrival until admission, transfer or discharge.
• Reality: Only 67.7% of patients spent less than 4 hours in emergency departments
• No patient waiting more than 12 hours in emergency departments from arrival until admission, transfer or discharge.
• In April, 10,186 patients waited 12 hours or more in emergency departments.
• Target: 95% of patients waiting less than 26 weeks from referral.
• Reality: Only 55.2% of patients have been waiting less than 26 weeks.
• Target: No patients waiting more than 36 weeks for treatment from referral.
• Reality: 268,400 patient pathways had been waiting more than 36 weeks (34.0%)
• Target: At least 75% of patients should start treatment within 62 days (without suspensions) of first being suspected of cancer.
• Reality: Only 63.5% of pathways started their first definitive treatment within 62 days of first being suspected of cancer.

Plaid Cymru have criticised the Labour Government’s mismanagement of the NHS over the last 26 years of power, accusing them of running the Welsh NHS into ‘the ground’, by ‘constantly’ missing targets with ‘no real sign of change’.

Plaid Cymru spokesperson on Health, Mabon ap Gwynfor MS said: 

"Hundreds of thousands of people on waiting lists, over 8,000 of those waiting over two years. The fact that any Government is trying to claim that as a win, is a sign of how far down the road of Labour mismanagement we are.

"A record of constant failure and missed targets - that is the record of this Labour Government when it comes to our NHS. A record of people waiting too long, not getting the service they deserve – a record of failure.

“Even after moving the goalposts from their original target of eradicating two-year waits in 2023, Labour have still managed to miss their targets. Not only that, but on every single performance indicator – Labour have missed their targets.

"An NHS run into the ground, and waiting lists as long as this simply isn’t as good as it gets for Wales, our NHS can be so much more than this. With a new government with a credible plan for our NHS, a plan to reduce waiting lists and reform our NHS for the future. That is what Plaid Cymru offers in 2026."

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THE TRUTH ABOUT BEXIT

If Starmer Wants Growth, He Must Confront the Truth About Brexit – Plaid Cymru.

PM’s “refusal to face the economic reality of Brexit” risks continued harm to Wales, says Plaid Cymru leader following key UK-EU summit.

Plaid Cymru leader Rhun ap Iorwerth MS has called on the UK Government to acknowledge the economic impact of Brexit on Wales and take steps to rebuild the UK’s relationship with the European Union by rejoining the Single Market and Customs Union.

He warned that without addressing the structural trade and investment barriers created by Brexit, the UK Government’s priority of driving economic growth will remain significantly constrained – with Wales among the hardest-hit parts of the UK.

His comments come after the UK and EU agreed to a new deal, including a 12-year agreement on EU fishing boats in UK waters. In return, the UK secured an agreement that reduces checks on food exports to the EU.

Mr ap Iorwerth has said that the UK Government has so far “failed to properly reset the relationship with the EU”, warning that without action “the damage will continue”.

By 2025, Brexit will have cost the Welsh economy up to £4 billion, reduced the value of Welsh exports by up to £1.1 billion, and led to a loss of £1 billion in European structural and rural development funding.

Post-Brexit trade agreements between the UK, Australia and New Zealand have also placed additional pressure on Welsh agriculture and manufacturing.

Plaid Cymru leader Rhun ap Iorwerth said: “Today’s summit was a critical opportunity to begin repairing the UK’s broken relationship with Europe.

“If Keir Starmer is serious about his government’s priority of growing the economy, he must seize the opportunity to remove trade barriers with our largest neighbouring market by committing to re-join the Single Market and Customs Union.

“This is the most effective way to reverse the damage inflicted on Welsh communities by Brexit, and his government have thus far failed to use all the tools at their disposal to address this damage.

“If Starmer is serious about resetting the UK’s relationship with Europe, he must heed Plaid Cymru’s calls and grasp at the opportunity to join the Single Market and Customs Union to protect the Welsh economy.”

Plaid Cymru is also calling on the UK Government to create a Youth Mobility Scheme and re-join Erasmus+, to give Welsh young people new opportunities to live, learn and work across Europe.

Parts of the new deal are still subject to negotiation but expect ministers today to be talking up gains on "jobs, bills and the border".

Mr ap Iorwerth continued: “In Wales, Plaid Cymru has never shied away from the realities of Brexit.

“Removing trade barriers with one of the largest and most prosperous markets in the world to give our economy the boost it needs by facilitating the free movement of goods, services, capital and labour across the EU – benefitting both UK businesses and consumers.

“Next year, Wales has an opportunity to elect a government that will advocate for exactly that.

“Plaid Cymru are laying out a clear, positive vision for the future – one that includes reconnecting with Europe for the benefit of our people and economy.

“After 26 years of Labour rule in Wales, people are crying out for a government that sticks to its principles, listens to public opinion, and offers real solutions. While Labour panders to Reform voters and avoids the truth about Brexit, Plaid Cymru stands for hope – and for Wales working with Europe again.”

-ENDS -

TIME FOR A PLAID GOVERNMENT

Plaid Cymru the only credible pro-Wales government on offer in 2026.

The 2026 Senedd Election offers a “golden opportunity to elect a pro-Wales government” Plaid Cymru’s leader has said.

Marking a year to go until the people of Wales go to the polls, Rhun ap Iorwerth invited everyone who “believes in Wales and its possibilities” to vote for Plaid Cymru as the only credible “pro-Wales government on offer in 2026”.

Speaking at an event in Cardiff Bay to mark 12 months until the Welsh General Election, Rhun ap Iorwerth MS will say:

“Wales is in desperate need of a fresh start and new ideas after 25 years of Labour in charge.

“I invite everyone who believes in Wales and its possibilities to seize the golden opportunity and vote for Plaid Cymru next year as the only credible pro-Wales government.

“Time and again over the last few months, the First Minister Eluned Morgan and her Labour government have put party before country. They have failed to stand up to Keir Starmer and given up on demanding fairness for Wales.

“In stark contrast, a Plaid Cymru government would demand a better deal for Wales at every turn so we can give you the public services you deserve.

“Health, wealth and Wales will be the focus of my government  - one that will prioritise giving people the care they need where and when they need it, and tackle the ongoing cost-of-living challenges affecting so many.

“Electing another Labour First Minister will only achieve the same results - a faltering economy, stretched councils and a crisis hit NHS.

“So, on the 7^th of May next year, I urge everywhere who wants to see real change, who wants a government not afraid of standing up to Westminster, and who believes that this is not as good as it gets for Wales to vote for Plaid Cymru.

“The choice is clear, four more years of Labour prioritising Labour’s interests, or a Plaid Cymru Government relentless in pursuing what’s right for Wales.”

- ENDS -

VE DAY 2025

This Thursday the 8th May 2025 will be the 80th Anniversary of Victory in Europe - an anniversary we should remember for a variety of reasons including the hard fought bloody victory of allied forces over fascism and the destruction of a great evil in the world. 

On the 80th anniversary of VE Day it is right that we should reflect on the bravery of so many men and women who fought the tyranny of fascism and came back home. We should also spare more than a few thoughts for those who made the ultimate sacrifice and never came back home.

Peace after war always comes with a price even for the victors. With the sense of relief would have been an awareness of those friends and neighbours who were not there, those who would have lost their lives and those who would have lost loved ones. 

At the time despite the no doubt profound and overwhelming sense of relief that many people would have felt and displayed, people would also have been conscious of the on going conflict in the Far East and the fact that relatives and friends would have been still serving in distant lands overseas in the war against Imperial Japan or on their way to the Far East to join the fight against Japan.

For a state so allegedly if somewhat selectively obsessed with elements of a rich history it is the things that are forgotten that occasionally should still have the power to surprise or shock us. 

A few years ago I was talking to my godfather, who had served in North Africa and Italy during the Second World War, and had been in India when the war ended, he was shocked to discover that the Poles had been excluded from the Allied victory parade in held in London in June 1946.

The 4th June 2025 will actually be the 79th anniversary of the great victory parade, which was held in London to commemorate the victory over fascism. This was held on June 4th 1946 by the then Labour Government, who staged an elaborate victory parade in London. 

Representatives from over 30 Allied nations gathered to celebrate the Allies collective victory over fascism. Some 134 different nationalities actually took part in the victory parade:  Czechs, Dutch, Iranian, Indian, Sikh, Norwegian, Canadian, South African, Arab, Belgian and Australian and many others marched (or flew over) through the streets of London. 

Absent were the Poles, who in probably one of the most despicable (even with the benefit of hindsight) gutless acts of any Westminster government, who were excluded due to indirect pressure from Stalin. 

The Poles, over 200,000 thousand of whom had served alongside the Western Allies, in the Mediterranean and Western Europe, and who had given so much for allied victory in almost every campaign and had done the ground work which broke the enigma codes (this was only formally recognised on 12th July 2001), were perceived as a problem post war.  

The British Labour government initially invited the Soviet-backed government in Poland to send a flag party to represent Poland among the allied forces in the parade, but did not specifically invite representatives of the Polish forces that had fought in the West alongside Allied forces. 

Attlee's government had previously hindered, harassed and pressured the Poles to return to Soviet occupied Poland, before somewhat reluctantly granting them asylum. 

The Poles were specifically and perhaps deliberately excluded - perhaps due to a combination of expediency and pressure from / fear of offending Stalin. 

To their everlasting credit, the RAF, consistently refused to harass the Poles to return to Soviet dominated Poland from the start, and they gave the Polish airman who had fought so valiantly in the Battle of Britain in 1940 the option to fly but they chose not to fly in the aerial victory parade in an act of solidarity with their excluded comrades on the ground.  

Poland itself would not finally be free and a democracy until 1989. The Poles finally marched in the National Commemoration Celebration Day of VE Day and VJ Day in London on 10 July 2005.