It is no exaggeration to say that a seismic shift has happened in Wales in recent years.
Less than a decade ago, independence marches would attract only a handful of committed activists. Fast forward to 2023, over 7,000 people marched through Swansea on Saturday, showcasing a confident, modern, and inclusive sense of nationhood billowing through the streets.
Long gone are the days of the people of Wales simply accepting the inequities of the union. A new energy has spread throughout the country. More people than ever before are enthusiastic about our potential to become a better, fairer, more prosperous Wales.
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This sentiment is reflected in a poll undertaken by Redfield and Wilton last week, which suggests that 32% of people in Wales would vote Yes in a Welsh independence referendum if held tomorrow. In 2014, a poll found that only 3% supported independence.
The poll's crucial finding was related to Labour. 42% of Labour supporters would now vote ‘Yes’ in an independence referendum, compared to 43% who would vote ‘No’. That is a remarkable development.
This phenomenon was reflected in the conversations I had in Swansea on Saturday. Many Labour supporters were increasingly frustrated with Keir Starmer's outright refusal to engage with this growing sentiment in Wales. Blindfolded by a Union Jack, Sir Keir has failed to notice the shift in sentiment among his own supporters.
Starmer’s strategy of appealing to right-wing British nationalism might work well in the Home Counties, but it’s unlikely to receive the same reception here in Wales. Let there be no doubt: Independence has entered the political mainstream in Wales, and it's time UK Labour caught up.
The Independent Commission on the Constitutional Future of Wales, established by the Cooperation Agreement between Plaid Cymru and the Welsh Government has established three “viable” options for the future of Wales, which includes independence. Crucially, it has concluded from evidence received by stakeholders that Wales’s current constitutional settlement is “not sustainable.”
The cost-of-living crisis has exposed the unsustainability of our current settlement.
Borrowing, taxation, energy regulation—the very powers necessary to address this crisis—are jealously guarded in Westminster by a government we did not choose. The status quo has failed us, burdening our people with an economic system that disregards our needs.
Welsh Labour MP Chris Evans almost, just almost, seemed to join the dots on the BBC’s Sunday Supplement programme.
The Islwyn MP lamented that “we don’t have the economic infrastructure, don’t have a central bank, we don’t have our own rule of law as Scotland does - those things need to be ironed out before we have that debate within Wales”.
Rather than make the argument to acquire those powers, his conclusion was that we should simply accept the status quo.
He complained that pro-independence voters are “obsessed by constitutional issues” and that we should be focussing on “bread and butter issues” rather than demanding more powers.
Rather than accepting the status quo, it is surely the case that further powers are absolutely crucial if we want to improve the lives of people in Wales. Many Labour supporters desire independence. But as we face a General Election, it will become increasingly clear that the Labour Party will never be a vehicle for greater self-government.
The starkest example of all was the contribution of the Deputy Leader of Welsh Labour, Carolyn Harris MP, on ITV Wales’ Sharp End in December.
On the programme, Ms Harris directly undermined the First Minister Mark Drakeford on the devolution of policing. Despite the full devolution of policing being included in Welsh Labour’s winning 2021 manifesto, its Deputy Leader rejected the idea outright, despite overwhelming evidence of poor outcomes in a structurally broken system.
Her reason for opposing the devolution of policing? I quote – “I just wouldn’t”. No reason, no explanation, no ideological position, only “I just wouldn’t”.
Despite the arguments of the anti-devolutionists having been crushed under the weight of evidence, they remain in control of the Labour Party.
Ron Davies famously said that devolution is a process, not an event. However, the viability of this process cannot be guaranteed with two parties in Westminster obsessed with maintaining the status quo.
It is only by electing a strong team of Plaid Cymru MPs that we can demand more powers for Wales. We are the only party that will vote according to the Welsh national interest, not along Westminster party lines.
Wales needn’t be locked forever in a choice between Tory hostility and Labour indifference. I say to all those disaffected by the current state of affairs: if you want to be part of a movement to build a fairer nation – Plaid Cymru welcomes you with open arms.
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