4 WALES, SEE WESTERN ENGLAND II

The Labour in Wales Welsh Government’s plan to develop Wales’ economy pretty much effectively aims to turn our country into ‘Western England’.  Plaid Cymru have warned that the National Development Framework will ‘split Wales’ and is simply about ‘securing crumbs from the UK Government’s table’.

The regional development plan put forward by the Welsh Government, which covers the next 20 years or so, seeks to identify where nationally significant developments should take place, national and regional growth areas, what infrastructure and services are needed and how Wales can contribute to the fight against climate change.

In Cymru / Wales, until we run our own affairs, we are facing some interesting if somewhat stark choices, we can choose the Alun Cairns model of Tory-inspired Western England or Labour in Wales’s new flawered vision of our future. Labour in Wales’s regional map would “drives a wedge” into Wales, and ignore the “pressing” issue of lack of north-south connectivity, and neglects some of those parts of Wales needing regeneration and development.

The Welsh Government simply replaces the four-region model with a different approach focused on distributing wealth, power and investment equitably across the whole of Wales by targeting intervention and growth to the areas in most need.

What’s depressing is that Labour’s proposal might as well be a carbon copy of the Tory-inspired model of entrenched economic dependency. The four-region approach is modelled on the UK Government’s Growth Deal areas. Future Wales is more about the future of the Northern Powerhouse, the Bristol Western Gateway and the Midlands Engine than it is about Cymru / Wales.

This simply offers an economic plan based on securing crumbs from somebody else’s table, rather than building up Wales’ economy in its own right. Instead of offering a vision that brings Wales together, Labour is carving Wales up to serve Boris Johnson’s agenda (and Cymru / Wales) on a plate without even the asking. 

The new / old lack of vision pushes the north and the south of our country even further apart and neglect’s the pressing need for improved north-south connectivity. As if that wasn’t enough it also neglects some of those parts of Wales most in need of regeneration and development, namely the western seaboard and the valleys of the south. 

This approach will not change the UK and Welsh Governments failure to distribute wealth and growth equally across Wales. It is still not too late for this Labour-in-Wales Welsh Government to replace the four-region model proposed in Future Wales 2040 with an approach that focuses on making Wales a connected, sustainable, prosperous and self-sufficient nation in every sense. We can live in hope…

Now sadly, none of this is new - the other unionist / centralist party in Cymru / Wales, the Conservatives in Cymru / Wales, with a few honourable exceptions have never been happy with idea of devolution actually delivering anything beyond simple inadequate administration, deep down they would probably like to get rid of it (along with the very idea of Cymru / Wales). 

Here in Cymru / Wales we have all seen and experienced over the years the Westminster wobble ( by Red, Blue /Orange and Blue governments ) in relation to the commitment to complete the electrification of the Great Western line to Swansea, the failure to develop the Swansea Bay tidal lagoon, and the threat to cancel promised public borrowing powers after the proposed M4 Relief road was dropped.

Boris' mutterings about intervening to overrule the Labour in Wales Government's decision not to build the M4 relief road, or the lead Financial Times article (Monday 13.07.2020) about Westminster’s plans to retain control of state aid at the expense of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, should not surprise anyone. 

It is interesting that Boris and his ilk, in what's probably the most narrow elitist English governments (if not one that appears to be increasingly out of touch with English thinking on the Union) anytime since the 1700’s, have serious barely concealed disdain for the concept of devolution and barely concealed contempt for Cymru / Wales itself. 

Labour in Wales’s lack of vision firmly routed in a belief in the union and what is an incredibly faint if not mistaken hope that the Labour cavalry in Westminster will eventually come riding to the rescue. They didn’t do much between 1997 and 2010, and with Labour in Westminster representative (in Wales) voting against or abstaining on the transfer or strengthening of devolved powers to Cymru / Wales it does not suggest that they will  in future. 

Honestly it should be enough to make people wonder just exactly who’s interests we are being governed in?   For our SE our future, if left to other people’s choices is as part of the Western Gateway (a revamped version of the old Severnside Agenda, or Greater Bristol by any other name). What we are looking at is not so much a case of for Wales see England, more like for Wales, literally see Western England.

WAITING FOR HELL TO FREEZE OVER

Our much maligned Local government is actually one of our most important layers of democratic representation, it delivers many frontline services such as social care and waste collection. 

Yet, for many people local government is not that representative or responsive and that’s down to the fact that local government elections in Wales are held using the First Past the Post (FPTP) voting system which is unfair and unrepresentative. 

This questionable winner takes all system leads to huge gaps between vote share and seat share. We end up with councils dominated by one monolithic party elected with less than a majority of the vote. 

Another side effect is that this leads to the development of a stifling undemocratic ‘safe seats’ culture where parties hold certain areas with little to no competition. 

Yet, in Scotland and Northern Ireland, local government elections are held using the Single Transferable Vote (STV), a fairer, more proportional system that doesn’t suffer from many of the problems of FPTP and has been found to deliver much fairer outcomes.

Today ((18th November) the Senedd will be voting on whether to pass the Local Government and Elections (Wales) Bill, an important and significant piece of legislation which aims to transform local democracy in Wales.

This opportunity to reform our local government electoral system to make it more democratic is to be welcomed.

That said in an entirely typical Labour in Wales fudge - the decision in relation to electoral reform - which is vital to rejuvenate local democracy - to local authorities themselves. 

The introduction of Single Transferable Vote in multi member constituencies would change everything and eliminate safe seats for ever - which is a good thing. 

Somehow I suspect that hell would freeze over before our Labour in Wales representatives voted to bring in representative democracy at the civic centre (in Newport) along with any other Labour in Wales controlled local councils.

UNSAFE HANDS

Meanwhile in Westmonster, Blunderman (aka Johnson) has managed to do it again, with a remark about devolution north of the border being a disaster, something that both an 18th or 21st century member of the English elite (or a pre 1992 Conservatives) might well consider to be true, but not necessarily a position held by a majority of Scots and some by this point no doubt alarmed Scottish Tories. Just hoe well that remark plays north of the border remains to be seen. Obviously Cymru / Wales remains unmentioned, with its weak devolutionary settlement and incomplete devolution of powers it remains both the small unspoken elephant in the room, as well as the most vulnerable of all the devolved governments to devote rollback.

MENTAL HEALTH ONE STOP SHOPS

A Plaid Cymru Government would establish Wales-wide hubs to provide mental health support for young people.

The hubs would offer early intervention for young people who are not ill enough to require advanced psychiatric treatment; yet require support for their mental health. 

They would offer pre-arranged counselling and could deal with emergencies and other walk-ins.

We would establish hubs to provide comprehensive, youth-focused services, including mental health services, health and other community and social services in a single community-based setting, sometimes referred to as “one-stop shops”, with “youth” defined to include both adolescents and young adults .

The hubs will also offer other services to treat the whole person in an age appropriate manner. There will be the opportunity to co-locate other services (employment, specialist education etc.) in these areas. This would be a one stop shop for young people to access a range of services focused on mental health.

They would be offering counselling on both an appointment and emergency basis – with a large enough team to deal with emergencies. 

The main selling point would be anyone could walk in and get advice and arrange counselling if needed. 

They would be linked with other health services to refer people. They could also offer group activities and more general youth work.

By offering intermediate services and early intervention the teams will prevent problems from developing into significant psychological needs.

REMEMBERING (REMEMBRANCE)

Another remembrance Sunday is passing,  if a somewhat muted to Covid19. Next Wednesday is the 11^th November, at 11am it will be one hundred and two years to the moment when the Great War - at least on the Western Front came to an end - with the armistice. There are no more living veterans from the First World War, yet people will pause to publically and privately remember the veterans and survivors of more historic and more recent conflicts and particularly those who never came back. 

The 947,023 military casualties (with 744,702 of them from these islands) between 1914 and 1918 (by way of comparison with the 264,000 military dead from 1939 - 1945) should still shock us even now.  My family like far too many others in Wales (and elsewhere on these islands) had relatives who served and survived and also relatives who lost their lives in the First and Second World Wars and other conflicts. 

My lost relatives (and their missing descendants) occasionally play on my mind - one of my maternal grandmother’s lost two brothers in the First World War and its aftermath. Her elder brother was a regular soldier, who wrote home and told them not to allow his younger brother to join up and to come out to France. It was, however, too late as the younger brother had already joined up was killed in action in 1918 and buried near Amiens. My paternal great grandfather (and my grandfather) both served in the First World War and survived but came back as deeply changed men (as did many).

Coming from a relatively large extended close family, I am of the age, that I grew up with a generation of older relatives a number of whom had seen active service in the second world war in the Navy, Army, Air Force and the merchant navy. They like many from those generations rarely talked about their actual experiences of the war, and then perhaps save only occasionally to those whom they had served with, who would have understood, because they had survived similar experiences. Younger relatives have also served in more recent more modern conflicts around the world and fortunately have come back. 

As I have said previously I have absolutely no problem remembering those who lost their lives and the courage, comradeship and their endurance of those who served in the First World War and other more modern conflicts (and not necessarily those who served in the armed forces). What I have no time whatsoever is rose tinted sentimental nostalgic flag waving foot-tapping pap. As has been said elsewhere, soldiers don’t go into conflict aiming to die - not for the politicians, for patriotism or even us - but they often can end up dying with their friends and comrades with whom they served. 

The first world war was the first conflict when real concerted efforts were made to remember and record all of those who had fallen - particularly because of the decision (taken for a variety of reasons) not to bring the fallen home for burial. One consequence is that far too many literally still lie in corners of foreign fields, are names on war memorials, faded photographs, faded memories or too many literally have no grave at all. 

Speaking of another bloody conflict across the Atlantic, US President Abraham Lincoln rightly noted at Gettysburg the fallen had given their last full measure of devotion. And that what we do or say does not really matter in comparison with what the fallen (and those who survived) had done. It may be more true today that the world will little note the current crop of political leader’s lyrical wittering on conflict (both recent or older) or long remember them. 

What we should never forget what the former soldiers and veterans did and what they went through. We should not just cherish their memory but should ensure that after their military service they remain fully honoured as should be the military covenant. Never again should it be found that dead heroes are cheaper to honour  than live ones. 

ANOTHER CHARTIST ANNIVERSARY

Today (Thursday 4th November 2020) is the 121st anniversary of the Chartist Rising - where in 1839 some 10,000 people from Newport and the surrounding valleys marched on the Westgate hotel in the city. They marched to establish representative democracy and sought to overthrow an undemocratic government on Thursday 4th November 1839.

Today in Newport there would normally be commemorations of the Chartist struggle and remembrance of the high price they paid for it. The Chartists struggle was part of on-going attempts to reform the electoral system and to make it more representative. In the early 1800's, there were persistent calls to reform to the elitist controlled decidedly unrepresentative electoral system - this struggle led to the The Reform Act of 1832 which made the existing electoral system more representative to a degree. 

The act left many working class people without a vote, as voters were still required to possess property worth £10, a substantial sum at that time, to vote. This decision split the reform movement, separating the more middle class property owning elements off from the working class. This led to development of the Chartist Movement, which demanded  further reform, including: 

* The right to vote for men over 21 years of age.

* A Secret Ballot

* No property qualification to be an MP.

* Payment for MPs, so that the poor were not debarred.

* Equally sized constituencies.

* Annual Parliamentary elections.

Organised petitions were ignored, peaceful meetings were disrupted, or ignored by the government. 

In pre-emptive strike, in May 1838, Henry Vincent, an exceptionally articulate leading Chartist orator, was arrested for making inflammatory speeches, tried, and sentenced to twelve months in prison. This led to outbreaks of popular violence, and Chartist John Frost called for a action to demand his release.

The march on Newport took place on 4th November 1839, with 3,000 men marching with pikes, clubs and firearms from Pontymister to Newport. Troops had been called in, and were waiting when the chanting crowd arrived at the Westgate Hotel, the order was given to open fire, after the Riot Act was read in both English and Cymraeg.

In the fighting that followed, at least twenty men were killed and fifty more seriously injured. The true figure remains unknown as some of the wounded were spirited away and treated secretly concealed in local communties out of the sight of the authorities. In the repression that followed, John Frost, and other Chartist leaders, was arrested and charged with high treason. They were found guilty and sentenced to be hanged, drawn and quartered. 

The savagery of the sentences was universally shocking, and the ensuing outcry forced Prime Minister Lord Melbourne to commute the sentence to life transportation. The convicts were eventually granted a complete pardon in 1856 and John Frost received a hero's welcome on his return to Newport. By the time of his death, aged 91, the vast majority of the reforms for which the Chartists had campaigned had been enshrined in law.

While much of the Chartist legacy remain safely historic, at least in Newport it remains controversial, and it can be heated at times. Until fairly recently, local Conservatives used to hold an annual fund raising dinner, to commemorate the crushing of the rising, and the courage of the mayor who was wounded in the fighting at the Westgate. The Labour party in Newport, proclaimed themselves the heirs of the chartists and has endeavoured to monopolise the memorial side commemorations as their own. 

In the 1960s controversial redevelopment in the  heart of Newport, led to the creation of a public square which was named John Frost Square. Alongside the square a 35 metres long mosaic mural was created spectacularly along one wall of a pedestrian walkway leading through to John Frost square.  

When the area was redeveloped again, there was some discussion about what to do with the mural (which was very popular with many Newport residents). The labour council refused to protect the mural, refused to assist residents attempts to protect it, and generally ignored popular protests. Elected labour representatives, at all levels, made mumbling excuses and refused to engage with residents and protestors. 

The Labour in Wales City Council then panicked, especially after a well attended well published and understandably angry protest march and rally in John Frost Square, they acted decisively and ordered the destruction of the mural at after 4.30 pm on the 3rd October 2013, in the knowledge that any protests would be insignificant given the short notice. More than a few residents have neither forgiven or forgotten what the Labour Party in Wales representatives did and the manner in which it was done.