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Wales Online
Wales Online
National
Alex Seabrook

Plaid Cymru and Greens form Cardiff electoral pact in upcoming local election

Plaid Cymru and the Green Party are forming an electoral pact in Cardiff for the upcoming local elections.

Voters will decide who should run the 22 councils across Wales in May next year.

Cardiff council has been run by Labour since 2012, and led by Councillor Huw Thomas since 2017.

Ahead of the elections Plaid and the Greens have revealed plans to prepare a joint ‘Common Ground’ manifesto for Cardiff and work together as a 'single united party' in the city.

Read more: If you're interested in reading more about Cardiff, go to our Cardiff homepage

Anthony Slaughter, Wales Green Party leader, said Cardiff was losing public green spaces and suffering from over-development.

He said: “At a time of climate and environmental emergency and growing inequality, 'business as usual' politics is failing our communities at every level of government.

“Warm words and vague ambitions from elected representatives are no longer enough as Cardiff suffers from an increasing loss of invaluable public green spaces, inappropriate over-development and planning decisions all so often skewed against the needs of the communities impacted.

“Wales Green Party believes that power and decision-making should always be devolved to the most appropriate local level, and we believe that this alliance on areas of common ground will give Cardiff voters an opportunity to vote for real change and genuine community representation.

“The challenges facing our capital city are urgent and require new ways of thinking. This working together, cooperative 'grown-up' politics is the change that is needed.”

The Greens have not held a seat on Cardiff council before, but the party received almost 4,000 votes in the last election in 2017, and more than 6,000 votes in 2012. Three Plaid Cymru councillors were elected to the council in 2017, although they have since left Plaid and are now in the new Propel party.

Rhys ab Owen, Plaid Cymru MS for South Wales Central, said: “Plaid Cymru in Cardiff is proud to be part of this announcement of a new political alliance in our capital city. This new electoral alternative can be the change that Cardiff needs, offering communities a fresh political voice by standing under a single joint name on the ballot paper.

“This is about recognising common ground between our parties and campaigners, and working together to do politics in a new and more co-operative way, recognising the need for a new political force that will protect and nurture everything that is good about Cardiff, and which will meet the challenge of the climate crisis and the reckless and faceless over-development we’re seeing in parts of the city.

“We are actively reaching out to those from outside of politics who might share our values and can make a difference.”

Further information on the deal will be announced at a full campaign launch later this year, along with candidate announcements.

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