Asking the right questions

Following my last blog entry when I was being attacked by several Labour MPs for daring to ask questions about St Athan, I have been delighted to receive countless messages of support from people I know and many I don’t know. Thank you all.

We had a very good debate on defence and St Athan in the Plaid National Council meeting and passed a resolution which I’ve printed below. You’ll probably have read in the press that it was either thrown out or just “noted” but that’s not true. There are people who support the project but still want to ask questions about the arms companies involved and what kind of jobs might be created. And of course this is a massive privatisation of military training - putting it in the hands of private companies. As usual, Plaid is asking the right questions. If the right answers are there, why should anyone be so outraged? I won’t be bullied into keeping quiet over something that is so important and which so many constituents have raised with me. That’s why they elected me.

There was a lot said last week about the St Athan development that’s not true. Only the first phase of the project is going ahead at the moment which will not create the 6,000 jobs some people keep claiming. It’s more like 2 - 3,000 and we don’t know yet how many will be moved from other areas and how many will be local. We’ve heard promises like this before, remember! We need a lot more answers.

Polisi Plaid Cymru ar Sain Tathan, cytunwyd yn y Cyngor Cenedlaethol 17/11/07

Ar ôl trafodaeth o’r papur a gyflwynwyd gan Jill Evans ASE a nifer o welliannau, fe gytunwyd:

Mae’r Cyngor Cenedlaethol:

• Yn nodi’r papur safle atodedig ar amddiffyn
• yn nodi taw penderfyniad Llywodraeth y DU yn unig oedd sefydlu Academi Hyfforddiant Amddiffyn yn Sain Tathan
• yn nodi fod nifer o aelodau’r Blaid – am resymau crefyddol a moesol – yn rhan o’r ymgyrch yn erbyn y datblygiad hwn
• yn cadarnhau gwrthwynebiad Plaid Cymru i breifateiddio, gan gynnwys o hyfforddiant milwrol

Mae’r Cyngor Cenedlaethol ymhellach yn:

• cefnogi rhaglen datblygu economaidd llywodraeth Cymru’n Un a fydd yn sicrhau creu a chadw “cyflogaeth yn ôl egwyddorion cynaladwyedd, gan annog swyddi hirdymor o ansawdd uchel” ym mhob rhan o Gymru.
• galw ar Lywodraeth Cymru’n Un i lynu wrth y gofyniad statudol yn Neddfau Llywodraeth Cymru i hyrwyddo Datblygu Cynaliadwy.
• pwysleisio’r angen i’r Cynulliad gael gwybodaeth llawn o bob datblygiad yn ymwneud a’r Academi Hyfforddiant Amddiffyn ac i gael eu hymgynghori mewn penderfyniadau perthnasol i’r project yn y dyfodol
• nodi nad oes gwariant uniongyrchol gan Lywodraeth Cymru ar yr Academi Hyfforddiant Amddiffyn ond yn gofyn fod unrhyw wariant a ddaw yn sgil y datblygiad gan Lywodraeth Cymru’n hysbys i’r cyhoedd
• galw am wybodaeth mwy manwl am y mathau o swyddi fydd yn cael eu cynnig i bobl lleol a’r lefelau cyflog y cynllunnir
• galw ar Lywodraeth Cymru’n Un i ofyn am sicrhad nad yw’r cwmnïau sydd yng nghonsortiwm Metrix yn ymwneud a’r fasnach anghyfreithlon mewn arfau anfoesol ac i’r wybodaeth honno fod yn gyhoeddus
• galw ar Lywodraeth Cymru’n Un i ofyn am warant o Lywodraeth Prydain na gynigir hyfforddiant i wledydd sydd yn annemocrataidd neu’n euog o dorri hawliau dynol
• ail-ddatgan ei gwrthwynebiad i ryfel Irac ac yn nodi ei phryder ynglyn â danfon milwyr heb fod ganddynt yr offer addas.

Plaid Cymru Policy on St Athan, agreed in National Council, 17/11/07

After a discussion on the paper presented by Jill Evans and a number of amendments it was agreed:

National Council:

• notes the attached position paper on defence
• notes that the decision to establish a DTA at St Athan was the decision of the UK government alone
• notes that many party members – for religious and moral reasons – are campaigning against the development
• reiterates Plaid Cymru’s opposition to privatisation, including that of military training

National Council further:

• supports the economic development programme of the One Wales government which will ensure the creation and retention of employment “firmly guided by sustainability principles, encouraging long term, high quality jobs” in all parts of Wales
• calls on the One Wales Government to remain committed to the stautory requirement in the Government of Wales Acts to promote sustainable development
• emphasises the need for the Assembly to be kept fully informed of all developments relating to the Defence Training Academy and to be consulted on all future decisions relating to the project
• notes that there is no direct spending by the NAG on the Defence Training Academy but asks that any ancillary spending by the Welsh government is made public
• calls for more detailed information about the kind of jobs that would be offered to local people and the planned wage levels
• calls on the One Wales Government to seek assurances that the companies involved in the Metrix consortium are not engaged in the illegal trade of unethical arms and to make that information public
• calls on the One Wales Government to request a guarantee from the British Government that no training will be offered to countries which are undemocratic or guilty of human rights abuses
• reiterates our opposition to the Iraq war and notes our concern regarding sending soldiers without them having the appropriate equipment.

Whatever happened to mature debate?

Little did I think when I drafted a paper on defence at the request of Plaid’s National Executive Committee that I would end up being called everything from “dangerous” to a “nutter” by Labour politicians.

It’s hard to believe that I am under attack for debating defence policy – one of the most important issues we all have to deal with, and St Athan - one of the biggest investments in Wales’s history, but not without controversy.

Plaid will have this debate at our National Council meeting tomorrow (Saturday), and after that we’ll be very happy to continue the debate in public, when I hope the media will continue their interest. My paper was written for the members - putting forward ideas and proposals for us to talk about before making policy decisions. It’s a pity that such documents get leaked to the press and misinterpreted.

It should be no surprise to anyone that Plaid would not be part of NATO or would scrap nuclear weapons. It’s been our policy for years. But in a changing Wales we have to look at our changing defence needs as a small European country. It doesn’t reflect well on the maturity of political debate when some politicians react with such hysteria to a genuine and important discussion.

Yma o Hyd for Ray

It’ll be a sad occassion on Thursday when I attend the funeral of Ray Gravell in Llanelli. Ray was a true gentleman, a patriotic Welshman who’ll be sadly missed.

It’s widely known that Dafydd Iwan was Grav’s favourite singer, and before games Grav would sing his songs, especially, “Yma o hyd.” Dafydd will be singing at Ray’s public service at Stradey Park in Llanelli at 1pm on Thursday.

A campaign has started to try and get the song “Yma o Hyd” into the Top 40 of the UK Charts this week in memory of Ray, and Dafydd has stated that all profits from the sales of the song will go to the Ray Gravell Memorial Trust.

You can buy “Yma o hyd” online from www.itunes.co.uk (or another online store) - it will only cost you 79p. Going by recent trends, “Yma o Hyd” should reach the UK Top 40 if more than 3,000 copies are sold on Itunes.

In honour of Ray’s memory I would urge you to buy the song. The version to purchase is Dafydd Iwan ac Ar Log - Album: Yma o Hyd - Song 21: Yma o Hyd) :http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?playlistId=155877741&s=143444&i=155878261

Coming apart at the seams

In the words of one journalist this week, “Belgium is coming apart at the seams”. We thought it took a long time after the Assembly elections in Wales but it’s now four months since the Belgian elections and they still haven’t been able to form a government.

No agreement can be reached between Dutch speaking Flanders and French speaking Wallonia. There are eleven political parties represented but, interestingly, there is not one “national” Belgian party. Plaid’s sister party in Flanders, Spirit, supports independence. Sooner than any of us imagined, they may just achieve their aim.

The Technological Divide

I suppose it’s obvious really, but the recent report by the Welsh Consumer Council proves that it’s the young and the rich that benefit from new technologies. There is low take up of technology like the internet by older and by poorer people. Those of us who use internet and e mail a lot tend to assume that everyone else does as well. So more and more communication and information sharing is done by computer. There are exceptions. My father goes to a weekly computer class and is much more skilled than me. But when you realise that only 21% of people over 65 access the internet (compared with 75% of people aged 25 to 34), it’s no wonder that a lot of people feel out of touch - particularly with politics and politicians.

As a politician I have a website, publish reports and e bulletins and, of course, this blog. But nothing is more enjoyable or more effective than speaking to people face to face - whether in a public meeting, when out knocking doors or in a surgery. Thanks to the Welsh Consumer Council for reminding us of that.