14/09/2012

:00:08. > :00:10.If it is mid-September it must be conference season. Over the next

:00:10. > :00:14.four weeks the four main political parties will gather in various

:00:14. > :00:18.parts of the United Kingdom to give their loyal followers some

:00:19. > :00:28.political direction for the year ahead. It is all kicks off here in

:00:29. > :00:34.

:00:35. > :00:39.the market town of Brecon with A warm welcome from his cavalry

:00:39. > :00:43.town where it is half-an-hour's time Leanne Wood will be trying to

:00:43. > :00:47.rally the troops in what will be her second conference address since

:00:47. > :00:51.taking over as the unexpected new leader of Plaid Cymru. That will be

:00:51. > :00:57.the main focus of our attention this afternoon. Listening to every

:00:57. > :01:02.word of that speech will be our political editor, Betsan Powys.

:01:02. > :01:06.Political honeymoons tend to be quite belong in some respects. Six

:01:06. > :01:11.months as Leanne Wood took over the leadership, does that mean that her

:01:11. > :01:16.political honeymoon is over? months is long enough. The good

:01:16. > :01:19.will persists but people who have come here one to understand how the

:01:19. > :01:27.party of what they heard in the election, what they have heard

:01:27. > :01:32.since, how they come together to create a coherent whole. She isn't

:01:32. > :01:38.the only editor on duty this afternoon. Vaughan Roderick is in

:01:38. > :01:45.the main conference hall. Where disaster and has been narrowly

:01:45. > :01:51.averted. They have been trying -- having difficulties with

:01:51. > :01:55.translation equipment. Hopefully everything is back in order as are

:01:55. > :02:01.the party opens up the panel discussion, a new innovation for

:02:01. > :02:05.the party. This came in earlier this year. Discussing strong Labour

:02:05. > :02:13.a sustainable future and the talent for Welsh communities. This is a

:02:13. > :02:18.warm-up for the leader's speech. It will be around to 40 5:00pm. I hope

:02:18. > :02:23.they will sort out the technical glitches. Let's go out and about to

:02:23. > :02:28.dodge the cars. The rally cars and bicycles are going through Brecon

:02:28. > :02:31.this afternoon. I have come out of the conference hall to the

:02:31. > :02:36.Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal. I will be talking to the people who

:02:36. > :02:42.keep the party afloat, the councillors, the activists, to say

:02:42. > :02:47.what they make of Leanne Wood's first six months. Let's have a

:02:47. > :02:52.proper chat with Betsan Powys. Leanne Wood, an unexpected leader.

:02:52. > :02:58.She was the underdog to succeed the Ieuan Wyn Jones. Is the party

:02:58. > :03:03.comfortable with the selection? Most are. They need some reminding

:03:03. > :03:11.every now and again in what they did, why they did it and where are

:03:11. > :03:15.they are headed. Bear in mind it was a decisive victory. She just

:03:15. > :03:20.wasn't supported in certain parts of Wales, the votes came from all

:03:20. > :03:25.over Wales. Perhaps in this part of Wales where Plaid Cymru is already

:03:25. > :03:29.in power and is wanting to hear creative and practical ideas as to

:03:29. > :03:33.where they go from here in difficult economic times, they

:03:33. > :03:37.point out in conversations every now and again this isn't just about

:03:37. > :03:41.this part of Wales were Plaid Cymru in need to take on Labour on their

:03:41. > :03:47.own turf and stab beating them. I was speaking to one councillor who

:03:47. > :03:53.is raising his concern what he wants to avoid his there is a mixed

:03:53. > :03:56.message. There is one message from one part of Wales when they are

:03:56. > :04:04.empowered and another message for parts of Wales where they are not

:04:04. > :04:09.in power. That does not always make that a coherent whole. Some

:04:09. > :04:14.concerns Dublin. What they want here is reassurance. That is what

:04:14. > :04:18.Leanne Wood will be seeking to give them. You talk about where Plaid

:04:18. > :04:28.Cymru does have some power on a local level. It is too early to

:04:28. > :04:38.

:04:38. > :04:43.blame Plaid Cymru's fortunes in the local elections on Leanne Wood. The

:04:43. > :04:48.haemorrhaging votes in Rhondda Cynon Taf, if she can't win votes

:04:48. > :04:54.in a row backyard what hope has she been at the heart as where she is

:04:54. > :04:58.not a natural fit with the Plaid Cymru voters? It was very soon, it

:04:59. > :05:03.was a matter of weeks after she was elected. You might argue that a

:05:03. > :05:10.matter of weeks after a new leader is elected they could be a bounce.

:05:10. > :05:13.There was no Leanne Wood bounce. Plaid Cymru lost ground in the

:05:13. > :05:20.local elections. They lost Caerphilly where they had been

:05:20. > :05:24.gaining ground. They were not making gains elsewhere either. That

:05:24. > :05:29.is going to be difficult. She was supported in those traditional

:05:29. > :05:36.heartland areas it is wrong to think she was not. There was a view

:05:36. > :05:39.that it was time for a change. The votes came in for her. It is those

:05:39. > :05:45.people who what are wanting there to be this coherent message for

:05:45. > :05:54.staff they want this focus on the economy. It is a different focus if

:05:54. > :05:59.you are already in power. There needs to be a slightly different

:05:59. > :06:05.message that is pointing a finger elsewhere. They will want flesh on

:06:05. > :06:09.the bones. What are these policies? What is our big idea? How can we

:06:09. > :06:14.set ourselves apart from the other parties? If you ask Leanne Wood

:06:14. > :06:18.what the biggest achievement has been she will point to implementing

:06:18. > :06:22.the findings of the internal review, but in the internal structures of

:06:22. > :06:29.Plaid Cymru which they will concede have been weak. Putting their House

:06:29. > :06:36.in order. It only takes you so far. That is not a message that is

:06:36. > :06:39.easily sold to the voters. It does not make for good headlines. People

:06:40. > :06:48.will accept that it was time to look good those mechanics and to

:06:48. > :06:52.try and get those right. It does not make for exciting debates. They

:06:52. > :07:02.will want to know where is all that leading, how is a great improve

:07:02. > :07:05.

:07:05. > :07:09.things Electa really? Heart of what she and her executive have been

:07:09. > :07:13.doing his try to put that below the surface away. The leading on from

:07:13. > :07:18.that, today's speech will be focused on talking so that people

:07:18. > :07:23.beyond the core membership of Plaid Cymru. The Welsh electorate as a

:07:23. > :07:27.whole. We talked about Plaid Cymru members from parts of Wales but the

:07:27. > :07:37.key for Plaid Cymru is for those who were not part -- cool and not

:07:37. > :07:44.

:07:45. > :07:50.members are tour. -- who are not members at all. Thank you very much.

:07:50. > :08:00.Let's go out and about and let's go and see who Tomos Livingstone has

:08:00. > :08:01.

:08:01. > :08:05.got as company. I am joined by Allott and Quinn -- Ellen ap Gwynn.

:08:05. > :08:11.You supported Elin Jones for the leadership. What you make of Leanne

:08:11. > :08:16.Wood? I think she has taken to it very well. I would unsupported her

:08:16. > :08:22.because I was her agent. You would not expect me to do anything else.

:08:22. > :08:28.Now the decision has been made to elect Leanne Wood we all need to

:08:28. > :08:35.get behind her and Elin Jones is now her deputy so we have a great

:08:35. > :08:40.team there we can move forward and move Plaid Cymru forward based on

:08:40. > :08:43.the report. You saw how difficult it was for the party and the local

:08:44. > :08:50.elections. How much of the challenge is it going to be to

:08:50. > :08:56.build from the bottom up? Ceredigion we kept, we did not lose

:08:56. > :09:00.out. We gained some seeds, we lost a few that we kept our own position.

:09:00. > :09:08.We managed to take over the council. For as it was a successful election.

:09:08. > :09:16.There is no doubt we have to build the party. The party is being built.

:09:16. > :09:23.Leanne Wood's campaign did bring new members on board. We have seen

:09:23. > :09:28.a substantial increase in membership over that period.

:09:28. > :09:33.youth vote was very important to her in her election. How happy are

:09:33. > :09:39.you with her first six months? lot of new, young members came to

:09:39. > :09:45.Plaid Cymru because of her campaign. Says Leanne's election we have

:09:45. > :09:52.started rebranding. Her supporters be invaluable. She has given us a

:09:52. > :09:57.lot of advice in terms of how we can take on that. We want to work

:09:57. > :10:02.on a close-up faces with Plaid Cymru is centrally. I am very happy.

:10:02. > :10:06.If I can ask you this, the speech is not long now, what are you

:10:06. > :10:10.hoping to hear from her? Youth unemployment is our focus at the

:10:10. > :10:14.moment. I am looking forward to hearing what she has to say about

:10:14. > :10:19.that. She has been saying a few things in the press recently about

:10:19. > :10:23.it but I'm hoping she would give some detail about what Plaid Cymru

:10:23. > :10:28.will do to tackle youth unemployment, what her plans are. I

:10:28. > :10:38.am looking forward to working with her on that. What would you like to

:10:38. > :10:38.

:10:38. > :10:43.hear her saying? Her focuses on economy. We have got the economy in

:10:44. > :10:50.dire straits. What is happening in the London government is having a

:10:50. > :10:55.negative impact on us here in Wales. The Welsh Government is finding it

:10:55. > :11:00.difficult and week, as a local authority level are finding it

:11:00. > :11:06.difficult having to scrutinise our services very closely. Hopefully,

:11:06. > :11:11.not losing too many services. We have to keep a watchful eye on our

:11:11. > :11:14.budgets. We don't want to see some of our staff losing their jobs

:11:14. > :11:18.because there are no other jobs out there. That is the truth of the

:11:18. > :11:22.matter. The economy needs a kick- start to get the engine running

:11:22. > :11:29.again. I think that is what everyone should be concentrating on.

:11:29. > :11:33.We heard a lot in the leadership campaign about independence. Are

:11:33. > :11:41.you disappointed we will not hear about that in her speech? She has

:11:41. > :11:45.made her case there. We and not looking to immediate constitutional

:11:45. > :11:55.change but that decision has been made, there is no need to discuss

:11:55. > :11:56.

:11:56. > :12:05.it again. We do need to concentrate on bread and butter issues. Let me

:12:05. > :12:11.ask you the same question. I think people know what her position is on

:12:11. > :12:15.independence, people know that far Cymru's policy is independence for

:12:15. > :12:19.Wales. We have to focus on the economy first and build it up.

:12:19. > :12:25.People want to see Plaid Cymru putting policies forward. Thank you

:12:25. > :12:29.very much. Plenty to discuss their. Support of concentrating on the

:12:29. > :12:35.economy. For now, back to the studio.

:12:35. > :12:38.One of the main political stories are were the last few weeks has

:12:38. > :12:44.involved the furore reached around GCSEs and the fight, the political

:12:44. > :12:51.spat between two political heavyweight, Leighton Andrews and

:12:51. > :12:54.Michael Gove. It was all about changing been grade boundaries

:12:54. > :12:59.regarding that qualification. It has been a subject that has

:12:59. > :13:03.exercised the minds of Plaid Cymru members this morning. In emergency

:13:03. > :13:06.motion they were rather damning with praise when it came to the

:13:06. > :13:14.Education Minister, Leighton Andrews. They have welcomed the

:13:14. > :13:19.decision by Leighton Andrews to last for at the -- to have the

:13:19. > :13:22.papers are regraded in Wales. The conference has also suggested that

:13:22. > :13:27.the Welsh Education Minister needs to explain why the Welsh Government

:13:28. > :13:31.took the decision with the regulator in England to require the

:13:31. > :13:34.WG easy to change the grade boundaries in the first instance.

:13:34. > :13:40.We can hear more from that debate which took place earlier this

:13:40. > :13:43.morning. The last occasion minister is the

:13:43. > :13:47.regulator for the exam system in Wales, he set up the system and

:13:47. > :13:52.allowed his civil servants to negotiate this with their

:13:52. > :13:55.regulation body. He allowed this situation to happen. The greys were

:13:55. > :13:59.changed and the boundaries were changed when pupils and parents did

:13:59. > :14:03.UN know that was happening. They took exams in good faith note --

:14:03. > :14:09.thinking they would be measured in the same way they would be measured

:14:09. > :14:14.previously all throughout the exam courses. English is a core subject.

:14:14. > :14:17.The credibility of the exam system in Wales has been severely

:14:17. > :14:21.undermined but there are hundreds of pupils who don't know whether

:14:21. > :14:25.they have got the grades they need to proceed with education, training,

:14:25. > :14:29.apprenticeship or whatever their future may be. We are responsible

:14:29. > :14:35.for holding the Education Minister to account. We will not bother with

:14:35. > :14:44.Michael Gove forced a they're very good Welsh MPs from Plaid Cymru who

:14:44. > :14:48.will have fun tackling Michael Gove He is a nothing to do with

:14:48. > :14:52.education in Wales. Leighton Andrews is responsible for

:14:52. > :14:57.education in Wales. This motion demands we take action, and

:14:57. > :15:02.relieved action in the Assembly to scrutinise his actions on this. We

:15:02. > :15:05.may support what he is doing all want to take the lead and show that

:15:05. > :15:08.a separate education system for Wales is the way forward, and

:15:08. > :15:13.dragged Leighton Andrews kicking and screaming towards that it that

:15:13. > :15:17.is what it takes, but we can't let him get away with a mock fight with

:15:17. > :15:21.Westminster, playing in Westminster and removing his own responsibility

:15:21. > :15:27.for what's happened over the summer. It's a shame and disgrace that this

:15:27. > :15:31.has happened. It's an absolute shame that so many of our young

:15:31. > :15:36.people have been let down. Once again Labour has failed to stand up

:15:36. > :15:39.for young people, but we will be there to protect them and

:15:39. > :15:47.scrutinise the minister, and if this emergency motion is passed

:15:48. > :15:51.today, it will strengthen the hand That was Simon Thomas talking

:15:51. > :15:56.earlier this morning. I am now joined by two of his colleagues in

:15:56. > :16:00.the Welsh Assembly, Elin Jones and Alun Ffred Jones. Good afternoon.

:16:00. > :16:08.No way in this emergency motion to YC what Plaid Cymru would have done

:16:08. > :16:12.differently -- know where. I think the minister should have looked...

:16:12. > :16:17.Should have been aware, and should not have allowed the regrading to

:16:17. > :16:22.happen as it did in the first place. That is the challenge. He said

:16:22. > :16:27.there was no other option. Surely the mock fight he is bidding now

:16:27. > :16:34.with Michael Gove, he was aware of what was happening, or was he not?

:16:34. > :16:41.If he was aware of the changes proposed by the regulator, why did

:16:41. > :16:48.you propose doing anything? -- he proposed. He now claims this is

:16:48. > :16:52.terrible and all for and demands a regrading. Simon Thomas made the

:16:53. > :17:00.point clearly that he supported Leighton Andrews in the regrading

:17:00. > :17:05.because it is deemed to be unfair, that is fair enough. But was he

:17:05. > :17:10.aware of the changes previously? If he was, he it should have supported

:17:10. > :17:17.the change, and now he said he opposes it. There is some

:17:17. > :17:21.explanation, and I think Simon asked the committee to convene

:17:21. > :17:27.earlier in order to question the Minister as to whether that was the

:17:27. > :17:33.right and proper course of action. On the wider subject of regrading,

:17:33. > :17:36.is this devolution at its best or its worst? We could now arrive at a

:17:36. > :17:41.scenario where pupils in England to have achieved a similar mark to

:17:41. > :17:46.those in Wales will achieve a lower grades than pupils in Wales. Surely

:17:46. > :17:51.that can't be right. Devolution is about accountability and

:17:51. > :17:55.responsibility. Leighton Andrews, as the Education Minister and a

:17:55. > :18:02.Welsh minister has the responsibility to take action on

:18:02. > :18:08.behalf of Welsh pupils, and he has done that now. Even if he puts

:18:08. > :18:12.English pupils at a disadvantage? It is not about the issue facing

:18:12. > :18:18.pupils in England. That is the responsibility of the English

:18:18. > :18:23.Minister, and he has chosen not to support the inequality those pupils

:18:24. > :18:31.have faced, and Leighton Andrews has used his responsibility to take

:18:31. > :18:34.a different decision in Wales, and is perfectly appropriate. Welsh

:18:34. > :18:44.pupils should be pleased there is devolution and a Welsh minister

:18:44. > :18:48.willing to take decisions. They should not be as pleased... They

:18:48. > :18:52.should not be pleased about how the decision on regrading was taken. If

:18:52. > :18:56.Leighton Andrews knew what was happening, did he agree to it?

:18:56. > :19:04.now have to political head -- heavyweights, seasoned campaigners

:19:04. > :19:08.going hammer and tongs. If this is a contest, there can be no draw.

:19:08. > :19:14.Someone ultimately has to win. How do you think this will play out in

:19:14. > :19:18.the long run? If it is a fight, it seems they have to be careful. The

:19:18. > :19:24.winners and losers here are the pupils and students in the short

:19:24. > :19:29.and long terms, and we shouldn't be drawn to almost a sideshow between

:19:29. > :19:34.these two personalities. The position is, what will we do about

:19:34. > :19:44.the exam system. If changes will be brought about by political machine

:19:44. > :19:47.

:19:47. > :19:50.Nations, well, that is a very I am deeply uneasy about a Welsh

:19:50. > :19:56.minister interleaving and saying, regret, because I think the

:19:56. > :20:00.regrading has been wrong. He perceived and was right, probably,

:20:00. > :20:06.that there had been an injustice done, therefore it is right to call

:20:06. > :20:10.for regrading, but in the longer term, if we feel perhaps we should

:20:10. > :20:14.have a different exam system in Wales, perhaps the Scottish model

:20:14. > :20:20.offers something, that's fine, but we will have to bring everybody on

:20:20. > :20:25.board. On that subject, we will find out the findings of the review

:20:25. > :20:29.into qualifications in a few months time. Do you think this debacle is

:20:29. > :20:34.the final nail of the Cup -- in the coffin for GCSEs in Wales?

:20:34. > :20:41.necessarily, and I am not sure if I would call it the to buckle. I

:20:41. > :20:45.don't like the political fight between England and Wales. I think

:20:45. > :20:51.it should be protocol that Welsh ministers don't comment on English

:20:52. > :20:57.ministers' decisions and vice-versa. I think it is sad in this context

:20:57. > :21:00.that they have chosen to condemn each other's decisions. They really

:21:00. > :21:06.should stick to their own responsibility. Michael Gove should

:21:06. > :21:11.stick to his issued in England, and Leighton Andrews to his in Wales.

:21:11. > :21:17.On to conference matters, this is the second speech since Leanne Wood

:21:17. > :21:22.took over. You were condemned yourself. Do you think the best

:21:22. > :21:28.woman one? -- were a contender yourself. I am glad I am not the

:21:28. > :21:34.one delivering the speech this afternoon! The party decided on its

:21:34. > :21:42.leader. That is not a yes. wouldn't be yes, because I voted

:21:42. > :21:46.for me, so obviously I voted for somebody else in that election. But

:21:46. > :21:52.the party has decided on its leader, and it was a clear decision by the

:21:52. > :21:56.party, and I completely accept that decision, and am pleased to be led

:21:56. > :21:59.by Leanne Wood and look forward to what she has to say this afternoon,

:21:59. > :22:04.because it is always worth listening to. I can't remember

:22:04. > :22:10.which way you voted, Alun Ffred Jones. I supported Elin Jones but I

:22:10. > :22:14.am supportive of the present leader. No divisions here. Six months on,

:22:15. > :22:21.how has Leanne Wood define the future for Plaid Cymru? What do we

:22:21. > :22:28.know about Plaid Cymru? It is still early days, and that is true of

:22:28. > :22:30.most political leaders, that it takes time for them, for their own

:22:30. > :22:35.personalities to come through to lead the party in different ways.

:22:35. > :22:39.She has set up two commissions, one on sustainability and one on the

:22:39. > :22:45.economy, that was the first thing she did, and they are beginning to

:22:45. > :22:49.work. Those two commissions will in the long term to find a way she

:22:49. > :22:52.approaches matters. Would it be fair to say those involved in Plaid

:22:52. > :22:56.Cymru will know a lot more about the future direction of Plaid Cymru

:22:56. > :23:00.than those outside, because when I asked Leanne Wood yesterday what

:23:00. > :23:05.her greatest achievement was in the six months, she said it was

:23:05. > :23:10.implementing the findings of the internal review of the post-mortem

:23:10. > :23:15.following the Assembly election and putting Policy Committee's at work

:23:15. > :23:20.-- Policy Committee's. But that doesn't hit home to the general

:23:20. > :23:27.voter. No, and that is something we need to address in the coming years.

:23:27. > :23:31.It is always dangerous to think that an incoming leader can

:23:31. > :23:38.suddenly direct things. Perhaps in a different context, that is what

:23:38. > :23:44.we need, but in fact, she is trying to build, in the longer term... She

:23:44. > :23:49.needs a firm policy and a sustainable policy in the longer

:23:49. > :23:54.term which will appeal outside the traditional areas and traditional

:23:54. > :23:59.voters. Every person in the party would say that. We in Plaid Cymru

:23:59. > :24:03.had this goal of creating a nation that is self-confident and

:24:03. > :24:08.succeeding. We are not succeeding. The economic prospects of Wales are

:24:08. > :24:13.not good. We need to address that. She is quite right and has made a

:24:13. > :24:18.very bold but correct decision in putting the economy at the heart of

:24:18. > :24:22.her leadership. Unless we get the economy right, we can't talk about

:24:22. > :24:27.devolution in a meaningful way which will have any appeal to the

:24:27. > :24:31.voters in Wales and uncommitted voters, because they will ask what

:24:31. > :24:36.is happening on their doorstep. Youngsters and jobless people in

:24:36. > :24:43.Wales, people who are finding themselves in a very uncertain

:24:43. > :24:46.position. So I think she is writing making that decision, and it falls

:24:46. > :24:52.to us in the party and be on the party to get policies that will

:24:52. > :24:56.offer hope for Wales. Central to that policy is the bill for Wales

:24:56. > :25:00.planned you decided to create, �500 million towards infrastructure. The

:25:01. > :25:06.only problem with that is it is dependent upon bonds and the

:25:06. > :25:10.Treasury wouldn't allow it. If something seems too good to be true,

:25:10. > :25:14.it usually is. He has thrown in the towel and said we can't do that. It

:25:14. > :25:18.is feasible. Just because the Treasury says they won't allow it

:25:18. > :25:23.doesn't mean it is wrong. The Treasury will stand against

:25:23. > :25:27.anything not government policy in England or Westminster. But we say

:25:27. > :25:31.this is one way of getting more money in to improve our

:25:31. > :25:35.infrastructure, and if there is one thing the Welsh economy is crying

:25:35. > :25:41.out for, it is infrastructure projects in Wales. We are losing

:25:41. > :25:45.money, and that has a direct impact on the future of young people. Our

:25:46. > :25:48.policy is good and correct. If we have the power to implement it. But

:25:48. > :25:53.that is the responsibility of Westminster and they are doing

:25:53. > :25:59.Wales down. The UN would Prior -- prioritise as the economy but

:25:59. > :26:04.whenever we talk about her we know independence is in her DNA. You

:26:04. > :26:08.said you thought we as a nation would be in a position to have

:26:08. > :26:11.independence within this generation, I think he said after the next

:26:12. > :26:15.Assembly election, that Plaid Cymru would be in government endured push

:26:15. > :26:18.towards independence. It seems Leanne Wood is slowing but --

:26:18. > :26:24.rowing back significantly from her earlier position. I don't think

:26:24. > :26:28.there is any rolling back. Plaid Cymru supports Wales becoming an

:26:28. > :26:33.independent nation but that is a decision the Welsh people will

:26:33. > :26:37.undertake at some point, hopefully in the future, it is up to Plaid

:26:37. > :26:41.Cymru to make the arguments that Wales would be better served as a

:26:41. > :26:47.fully self-governing nation. And more than anything, our economy

:26:47. > :26:49.would be better served by having more of the economic levers at the

:26:50. > :26:56.disposal of the Welsh nation, rather than a Westminster

:26:56. > :27:01.government. We have had the last 30 years of Westminster economic

:27:01. > :27:06.policy, it has not served Wales well and we're at the bottom of all

:27:06. > :27:10.the economic league tables. Having more taxation levers that influence

:27:10. > :27:15.businesses directly in job-creation at the disposal of the Welsh

:27:15. > :27:18.Government, having a properly focused Welsh economic policy,

:27:18. > :27:23.would lift us out of poverty, and that is one thing Leanne wants to

:27:23. > :27:29.do more than anything. She comes from one of the poorest parts of

:27:29. > :27:32.Wales and Europe, in the Rhondda Valley. She wants to lift us on

:27:32. > :27:36.this inevitability of poverty that the Labour Party seem to think

:27:36. > :27:40.Wales is destined for. Plaid Cymru does not believe Wales is destined

:27:40. > :27:46.for poverty. We think that with an ambitious programme We can see

:27:46. > :27:50.Wales prosper much better than it has. The question in the party is,

:27:50. > :27:55.if the present system works so perfectly for Wales, how is it that

:27:56. > :28:01.we have ended up in this position with GDP in terms of Europe 70 per

:28:01. > :28:06.cent less than the European average. How come so many parts of Wales

:28:06. > :28:11.dominated by the Labour Party for 80-100 years are now the poorest in

:28:11. > :28:15.Europe? Those are questions, if the prison system is so brilliant, how

:28:15. > :28:20.come we have ended up here? Today she will talk about a new green

:28:20. > :28:27.deal, the headline announcement of a speech today. What does that

:28:27. > :28:31.mean? -- Green New Deal. It means it linking environmental

:28:31. > :28:37.sustainability and none carbon emitting economies with economic

:28:37. > :28:41.prosperity. How many new jobs? is a changeover time and every

:28:41. > :28:46.nation in the world faces this change. We are far too dependent on

:28:47. > :28:52.fossil fuels and oil in particular. There are details, we will hear

:28:52. > :28:59.them from the and this afternoon. How many new jobs? This is a matter

:28:59. > :29:03.of building up economic policy so that in 2016, 2015, we can put an

:29:03. > :29:07.alternative programme of government to the people of Wales. The people

:29:07. > :29:11.of Wales in the last election chose Labour for this government and ask

:29:11. > :29:15.them how many new jobs they have created in the last few months and

:29:15. > :29:22.years. Those numbers are not high. It sounds like something which is a

:29:22. > :29:28.development of Leanne Wood's Green Print for the valleys. I wonder how

:29:28. > :29:34.much of that is at work in Wales at the moment. That was a discussion

:29:34. > :29:38.document. She passionately believes in localism. She believes that is

:29:38. > :29:43.one way forward, but also fully acknowledged that private

:29:43. > :29:47.enterprise has a central role to play in the new economy and

:29:47. > :29:52.developing new Welsh economies and creating jobs here in Wales. That

:29:52. > :29:55.is why she set up those two commissions, so we can work out the

:29:55. > :30:02.details in order to produce something that is believable and

:30:02. > :30:10.achievable. I think that we are starting on the journey but have

:30:10. > :30:16.some way to go but I think we are Can I go back to the question of

:30:16. > :30:21.independence. A lot of people are exercised by the finer details of

:30:21. > :30:26.independence, you might call it the tittle-tattle of independence it is

:30:26. > :30:29.keeping the pound, the role of the BBC, the Royal Family. In a recent

:30:29. > :30:35.interview in the Guardian, Leanne Wood Said and keeping the pound,

:30:35. > :30:38.that is a matter of discussion, on the BBC, that is a matter for

:30:38. > :30:42.people to look cut down the line, on the royal family, that would be

:30:42. > :30:52.a matter for it question in the referendum. People do not know

:30:52. > :30:53.

:30:53. > :31:01.where they stand on the question of independence. It is early days. I

:31:01. > :31:10.think we have to really get our economy in a stable position where

:31:10. > :31:15.we are producing wealth in Wales. That is the only way we can make a

:31:15. > :31:19.realistic argument for independence. But if Elin Jones's timeline was to

:31:19. > :31:26.be met because he wanted to see independence after Plaid Cymru

:31:26. > :31:32.government came to being, that these, surely, the kinds of details

:31:32. > :31:37.we would have access to now. now necessarily, know. Plaid Cymru

:31:37. > :31:41.is not putting an independence referendum at the top of our agenda.

:31:41. > :31:47.The economy is at the top of the agenda. That is where we want to

:31:47. > :31:56.see the focus of our work and the focus of largely banned the Welsh

:31:56. > :32:00.Government of work as well. -- of Welsh Labour and the Welsh

:32:00. > :32:05.Government as well. Time to find out now what is going on inside the

:32:05. > :32:10.conference hall. This is the end of that the panel

:32:10. > :32:16.discussion. These are the two Assembly Members who are our

:32:16. > :32:26.members of the sustainability Commission. They are in discussion

:32:26. > :32:27.

:32:27. > :32:37.with Oxfam and the WWF. They are PP and were not necessarily Plaid

:32:37. > :32:57.

:32:57. > :33:07.Cymru eight supporters. -- they're I am not sure how clearly people

:33:07. > :33:16.

:33:16. > :33:26.heard that question. This is a question from the floor and the

:33:26. > :33:28.

:33:28. > :33:35.question of sustainability and sustainable development.

:33:35. > :33:38.Has anybody got anything to say on that? It is very concerning in

:33:38. > :33:41.Wales and in developing countries as well that there are an awful lot

:33:42. > :33:47.of corporations to want to go in them liberalised not only provision

:33:47. > :33:53.of goods but of services so they can move in and take over water

:33:53. > :33:57.supplies, education and health. That brings back best to the

:33:57. > :34:03.beginning where I said that Oxfam is working in 92 countries, the

:34:03. > :34:07.world is global now. Whatever happens in those discussions,

:34:07. > :34:15.whatever happens with climate change in Asia it will all come

:34:15. > :34:25.back to roost here. Any more questions? One final question from

:34:25. > :34:26.

:34:26. > :34:34.the floor? You have been very quiet, you have anything to say about what

:34:34. > :34:44.has been raised so far? Can I ask about retro fitting. You refer to

:34:44. > :34:50.it in a Commons earlier. This triple bottom line that has been

:34:51. > :34:54.referred to, in terms of fuel poverty, what other ideals would

:34:54. > :35:02.you bring forward in terms of tackling fuel poverty because the

:35:02. > :35:12.government tells us it is across a government priority? Is that

:35:12. > :35:13.

:35:13. > :35:20.rhetoric? We are not seeing any serious bends being made. -- bends.

:35:20. > :35:27.Statistic Sara bit of an issue. In the short term there is a genuine

:35:27. > :35:35.problem because I keep hearing governments and George Osborne

:35:35. > :35:40.talking about we will do this, that and the other. Globally, there is

:35:40. > :35:45.an increase in demand for energy. Long-term fuel prices and not going

:35:45. > :35:50.to do anything apart from going up. We're trying to sort out the

:35:50. > :35:57.resilience of homes and people to cope with that. The people who are

:35:58. > :36:03.in worse fuel poverty arak nowhere near the areas you would consider

:36:03. > :36:06.normally poor. They are in the oil fired Raeburn land somewhere in

:36:06. > :36:11.Powys or wherever. They don't have access to cheap forms of

:36:11. > :36:16.electricity. Everybody else, they are relatively cheap. There is a

:36:16. > :36:20.lack of joy and appear in terms of come if you go back to your

:36:20. > :36:27.planning question, lot of people don't want wind farms, biomass

:36:27. > :36:32.plant, but actually what kind of energy supply is going to be

:36:32. > :36:38.suitable for you in the long term in the future? They have been some

:36:38. > :36:43.fantastic projects that I have seen in my role as eight Dragons then

:36:43. > :36:53.type of judge. Fantastic ones looking at how do we get a

:36:53. > :36:55.

:36:55. > :37:03.localised the supply of biomass, sort out and that for -- and sort

:37:03. > :37:09.that out. That was an Michael from WWF. This panel is overrunning a

:37:09. > :37:14.little bit. We expect the UN would's leadership speech shortly.

:37:14. > :37:18.I am sure we will hear more about energy when Leanne Wood fleshes out

:37:18. > :37:22.the details of the green deal she would be talking about in her

:37:22. > :37:26.conference beat what is slightly delayed because of some translation

:37:26. > :37:31.issues which Plaid Cymru have had in the main conference hall. As the

:37:31. > :37:36.build-up continues, we can rejoin Tomos Livingstone who is mingling

:37:36. > :37:43.with delegates. I am still outside by the canal. We

:37:43. > :37:51.have three guests here. We have Vaughan Hughes here. We also have

:37:51. > :37:58.looked James from plight -- Plaid Cymru Youth. What is the secret

:37:58. > :38:02.from a success in a by-election? When we are able to engage with the

:38:02. > :38:09.people, when they are allowed to concentrate on Welsh issues as

:38:09. > :38:14.opposed to British ones, they chose Plaid Cymru in Barry and Anglesey.

:38:14. > :38:20.How is a Leanne Wood going down in Anglesey? It is a Plaid Cymru

:38:20. > :38:24.heartland. Are there any tensions are problems? The one thing that

:38:24. > :38:34.she has done is explode the myth that there is a North Wales a

:38:34. > :38:34.

:38:34. > :38:40.different sort of nationalist, be a consultative sort of nationalist.

:38:41. > :38:46.She has exploded this myth of there being several parts commit parties

:38:46. > :38:56.and is scarcely a strange one up in north west Wales. -- and a very

:38:56. > :39:00.strange one up in north-west Wales. Your task is to look at

:39:00. > :39:06.organisations that Leanne Wood put store by. How important is it for

:39:06. > :39:10.the parties to get this right? is absolutely crucial. We can get

:39:10. > :39:19.people out of motor and cambers that the St-- at the right times.

:39:19. > :39:22.We had a review of the party before Leanne Wood was elected. Different

:39:22. > :39:26.from other parties we are remembered prevent roots up kind of

:39:26. > :39:30.party and we want to not only use our people were but two want to use

:39:30. > :39:34.their ideas and engage them in the journey we are about to take. There

:39:35. > :39:42.is a lot of excitement about Leanne Wood's speech today at the start we

:39:42. > :39:49.wanted hear her engaging with people -- want to hear engage my

:39:49. > :39:56.people outside of Plaid Cymru. difficult is it to achieve people

:39:56. > :40:00.voting for Plaid Cymru? What you have to do, as politicians, is to

:40:00. > :40:05.see how you can make things better for people in Wales, how we can

:40:05. > :40:10.take people with us but what we can give back to them. We now have

:40:10. > :40:15.youth unemployment, unemployment in general, we had a review over the

:40:15. > :40:20.summer which shows that the London parties have allowed the Welsh

:40:20. > :40:24.economy to shrink since the late 1980s. We can't allow this

:40:24. > :40:29.situation to persist. We need positive ideas to deal with this

:40:29. > :40:38.and enable our businesses to get credit and looking at inward

:40:38. > :40:42.investment. We need to keep the Welsh pound in Wales. Now would

:40:42. > :40:47.like to bring it looked James in here. A lot of Leanne Wood pos mac

:40:47. > :40:52.support came from Plaid Cymru Youth. How do you rate was she has done?

:40:52. > :40:56.It has been very positive. Leanne has had a lot of support from young

:40:57. > :41:01.people in the party not only before I came to the conference this

:41:01. > :41:08.morning, I was talking to my grandmother about Leanne Wood's

:41:08. > :41:13.message and she is very positive. It is a message resonates with the

:41:13. > :41:20.whole of the Welsh nation. Looking forward to that speech when we do

:41:20. > :41:24.get to it eventually, not a lot of mentions of independence. It is

:41:24. > :41:31.focusing on the economy. Does it get people enthused to join Plaid

:41:31. > :41:36.Cymru? We want to see a plan for Wales and I expect the an's message

:41:36. > :41:40.to be very positive about Plaid Cymru having a plan for Wales which

:41:40. > :41:50.is in stark contrast to other parties, the British parties, who

:41:50. > :41:58.

:41:58. > :42:02.want to have Wales's future on the sidelines. I will last you the same

:42:02. > :42:07.question. Is this decision to push independence to the sidelines and

:42:07. > :42:14.concentrate on the economy, is that the right call? We have to do with

:42:14. > :42:17.the economy. It is of concern to the people of Wales. We want an

:42:17. > :42:22.independent Wales because it would be a fairer Wales and the more

:42:22. > :42:26.prosperous Wales. We have to do with the economy. We have a moral

:42:26. > :42:32.obligation to deal with unemployment. We have seen whether

:42:32. > :42:36.Labour Party's dereliction of duty has done to Wales. We have heard a

:42:36. > :42:43.lot about independence in the leadership campaign and we will not

:42:43. > :42:47.hear much on it this afternoon. economy is the overriding concern.

:42:47. > :42:57.Before we can do something positive about the economy we have to get

:42:57. > :43:03.our hands on the levers of economic power. Through independence, one

:43:04. > :43:10.belongs to the other. It is a matter of emphasis. Leanne Wood is

:43:10. > :43:16.right in putting the economy at the forefront of her speech. She has

:43:16. > :43:21.not delivered it yet, we're all waiting to hear what she has to say.

:43:21. > :43:26.We have to get our hands on that the levers of economic power.

:43:26. > :43:34.did hear a guest speaker earlier today, the situation is difficult

:43:34. > :43:39.in Scotland -- is different in Scotland. Scotland is another

:43:39. > :43:44.country and we must remember that. I think there has been a tendency

:43:44. > :43:50.for Plaid Cymru to think that we can copy exactly what is happening

:43:50. > :43:56.in Scotland for historical reasons. When the Act of Union happened in

:43:56. > :44:01.Wales, from lots and lots of differences, the legal system, all

:44:01. > :44:07.sorts of differences exist between in -- Wales and Scotland. We are

:44:07. > :44:17.not where Scotland is at the moment. We are awe-inspiring -- aspiring to

:44:17. > :44:18.

:44:18. > :44:24.where they are now. Scotland has a different country, does it put

:44:24. > :44:31.pressure on? The position of the Scottish National Party has put

:44:31. > :44:39.constitutional issues at the centre of political life as a there's a

:44:39. > :44:42.lot of scaremongering going on. It has changed the political landscape

:44:42. > :44:46.and when Scotland has incurred the Independent, we will be left with

:44:46. > :44:51.an entity which is England and Wales which is an entity we don't

:44:51. > :45:01.want to live in. We're out of time. Plenty more to discuss their. We

:45:01. > :45:04.

:45:04. > :45:09.We are joined by the Plaid Cymru parliamentary leader -- Elfyn Llwyd.

:45:09. > :45:15.As a sceptic turned convert, do you have a close working relationship

:45:15. > :45:19.with Leanne Wood? I always have. More of the same. How would you

:45:19. > :45:27.describe your first six months under her tenure? It is always

:45:27. > :45:31.difficult -- difficult and a new 10 year. She has gone back to grass

:45:31. > :45:35.roots. She is inclusive and likes to speak with all parts of the

:45:35. > :45:39.party, including the grass roots, as I mentioned. She has done that,

:45:39. > :45:44.and from now warn you will see a different emphasis. She has

:45:44. > :45:49.listened carefully and been debating. She knows whether

:45:49. > :45:52.membership ought to go, and I think she will express that in his speech

:45:52. > :45:57.today, and in the coming months I think we will find out the plans,

:45:57. > :46:03.where we want to end up, and what she has cleaned in the past few

:46:03. > :46:07.months. You use the word difficult, it has often been heard by Plaid

:46:07. > :46:12.spokes people over the last 18 months, the word difficult or

:46:12. > :46:18.challenging, in interviews after elections. Is there a risk that

:46:18. > :46:23.that has become part of the Plaid lexicon? Leanne has had a few

:46:23. > :46:28.months, so I am not saying that in any shape or form. It is not meant

:46:28. > :46:32.to be a backhanded deal has sold, let me stress that. -- backhand --

:46:32. > :46:37.backhanded insult. For someone to lead a party is different from what

:46:37. > :46:41.they have done before. By definition it is a new spring. She

:46:41. > :46:46.knows where she wants to go -- new thing. She has learnt from the

:46:46. > :46:50.membership. She is inclusive as a politician, not only with us in the

:46:50. > :46:54.party but in the street. She is very good at making contact on the

:46:54. > :46:58.street. That is one of her very good winning points and we will see

:46:58. > :47:02.that in the coming months. Let us flesh out the details of what we

:47:02. > :47:07.will hear this afternoon. By all accounts, she has taken her cue

:47:07. > :47:11.from the work of the philosopher DJ Davies from the beginning of the

:47:11. > :47:17.last century. Somebody who stressed that the relationship between

:47:17. > :47:21.nationalism and socialism hung by a free Wales, if you like, so she is

:47:21. > :47:26.keeping the theme of independence but bringing the economy into that.

:47:26. > :47:31.She is. This seems to be an acceptance. In the Guardian this

:47:32. > :47:35.morning it said in terms of Plaid Cymru as a party, Wales is an

:47:36. > :47:41.under-achiever and it was time to do something about it and it was

:47:41. > :47:43.time to re- calibrate the message. It is not like we are back at the

:47:43. > :47:48.conferences where nobody mentioned independence and journalists were

:47:48. > :47:54.trying to spot somebody using the word. It is not a case of that but

:47:54. > :47:58.striking a deal with voters to say, clearly at the moment night the nor

:47:58. > :48:01.plied -- Plaid feel independence is right at the moment, but we ask you

:48:01. > :48:06.to put your faith and has to be in government to prove that something

:48:06. > :48:10.can be done about the economy, and when that is done, we will convince

:48:10. > :48:14.you this is a realistic option, independence is a realistic option

:48:14. > :48:17.for the future. That is the leap of faith they're asking voters to make,

:48:17. > :48:22.and the deal that for them, electorally, politically, is

:48:22. > :48:29.crucial, because they admit they have not managed to succeed there

:48:29. > :48:35.but -- so far, and that is why they have not succeeded on electoral

:48:35. > :48:41.terms. Whole Williams was making the point -- how will Williams,

:48:41. > :48:45.that Wales was being underfunded to the tune of �680 million. Nobody

:48:45. > :48:49.told him that in a double-dip recession we are unlikely to get

:48:49. > :48:53.that. In the chamber there were nodding heads from every party. We

:48:53. > :48:58.said this years ago about the squeeze, but evidently everybody

:48:58. > :49:04.now agrees. It just shows you, actually, the lack of agreement

:49:04. > :49:08.between the other parties. He was there, I was there, and I am glad

:49:08. > :49:14.he said it and proud. Even the Conservatives to Merv from that you

:49:14. > :49:18.now, but why does it take so many years to realise what we say? We

:49:18. > :49:23.consistently stand up for Wales as he did in that debate, and nobody

:49:23. > :49:31.tried to interrupt him. A very fine speech, but he was making his bike

:49:31. > :49:36.so sickly and well, and we have to do that every time -- making his

:49:36. > :49:40.point succinctly and well. We are now getting the call from Labour

:49:40. > :49:45.took electrified lines. They did nothing in power. It takes a party

:49:45. > :49:51.with ambition to get these messages through. With public sector debt at

:49:51. > :49:55.65 per cent, the equivalent of GDP, do you not accept any reform to the

:49:55. > :50:00.Barnett formula is as far away as the economy? Let's see what the

:50:00. > :50:08.commission comes up with. We don't know that. In 12 months' time we

:50:08. > :50:12.will be discussing their Hilton Commission report. Time moves on!

:50:12. > :50:18.Exactly. These days, you can't just leave them on the self and shape,

:50:18. > :50:21.because we are in a seat -- squeeze, we must avoid this. We must

:50:21. > :50:25.consistently bang the drum. We do that well and hard on behalf of

:50:25. > :50:29.Wales. Eventually these things happen. It takes a while but if we

:50:29. > :50:33.didn't do it, nobody would, and that is the point I am trying to

:50:33. > :50:38.make. On the economy, Betsan, how hard is it to get your voice heard?

:50:38. > :50:42.It is cluttered territory, everybody prioritising the economy,

:50:42. > :50:46.we have the coalition giving way as electrification and the Labour

:50:46. > :50:50.government in Wales pursue Enterprise Zones, the new green --

:50:50. > :50:53.Green New Deal By Plaid Cymru. I suppose it is whatever fits with an

:50:53. > :51:00.individual voter. It is exceptionally hard, but right to

:51:00. > :51:06.say that what else at this pup -- point could Plaid Cymru do. The aim

:51:06. > :51:14.for Leanne Wood is to focus four- square on the economy, to try and

:51:14. > :51:18.out left weight -- Labour in some areas of Wales. Trying to make a

:51:18. > :51:22.point from Plaid Cymru's point of view that Welsh Labour is attacking

:51:22. > :51:27.the Welsh economy as they would see it, but that at economy is also in

:51:27. > :51:31.decline and a Labour in Cardiff Bay. Therefore, what you need to come

:51:31. > :51:36.out with is a positive response and say, OK, this is what we would do.

:51:36. > :51:40.The question is to what extent will there be flesh on those bones and

:51:40. > :51:45.how soon. We know there is a commission and Adam Price looking

:51:45. > :51:50.at closing the office gap, but what are the policies? While waiting for

:51:50. > :51:54.something to happen on the Barnett formula, which all parties in Wales

:51:54. > :51:59.now agrees something needs to be done, but as you say, is unlikely

:51:59. > :52:03.to happen for a long time, what in the meantime due offer? What

:52:03. > :52:08.positively do people understand is an Plaid Cymru policy on the Welsh

:52:08. > :52:12.economy? I am sorry to be the bearer of the bad news, but if you

:52:12. > :52:18.read the national treasure of plight Cymru, Dyfed Tristan

:52:18. > :52:23.Davies's words, it says I'm sure our friends fighting in the

:52:23. > :52:27.European and Westminster elections will understand the 2016 elections

:52:27. > :52:32.must be a priority for Plaid Cymru. Does that mean Plaid Cymru in the

:52:32. > :52:35.past has made the mistake of throwing the sources and European

:52:35. > :52:40.elections rather than concentrating on Assembly elections, where it has

:52:40. > :52:45.lost out? Possibly, but we will not complete the divest the other two

:52:45. > :52:55.elections of funds, but it may be the case but we need to concentrate

:52:55. > :52:55.

:52:55. > :53:00.on the National Assembly elections, It is a comparison often made with

:53:00. > :53:04.the SNP, and that is something they have turned to, the prioritising of

:53:04. > :53:11.the Scottish parliament. We will ensure proper representation at

:53:11. > :53:15.parliamentary level. I believe the way things are looking, two-and-

:53:15. > :53:18.half years is much longer in terms of the next election, but I do

:53:18. > :53:23.believe it is right that we concentrate fully on putting

:53:23. > :53:27.forward the strongest possible election forced down in Cardiff Bay,

:53:27. > :53:33.because at the end of the day, that is where Wales's future lies.

:53:33. > :53:36.on the economy and devolution of taxation. You're asking for

:53:36. > :53:41.everything. Haven't you ever wondered, be careful what you wish

:53:41. > :53:47.for? We are asking for everything knowing full well we won't get it!

:53:47. > :53:52.You ask for wealth and won't get its. That's the point of this. But

:53:52. > :53:57.we are discussing various ideas about commissions and so on, and

:53:57. > :54:02.they do believe there will be some forms of taxation coming to Wales,

:54:02. > :54:07.and it's only right that taxation is also the responsibility to spend

:54:07. > :54:11.wisely, because you are accountable for it. I don't know if you read it,

:54:11. > :54:17.but there was work done by the Labour Assembly Member Mike Hedges,

:54:17. > :54:21.talking about tax avoidance, economic distortion and so on. Have

:54:21. > :54:28.you taken into account those types of effect if you have everything

:54:28. > :54:32.devolved? We have taken certain matters into account. I don't

:54:32. > :54:35.believe for a moment that you will get the whole slate we asked for. I

:54:35. > :54:40.have been in politics long enough to realise that much, but if we are

:54:40. > :54:46.talking about green taxes, for example, and a limited form of

:54:46. > :54:51.income tax, and repatriating value- added tax, these things are feeble

:54:51. > :54:55.and happen in other parts of the UK, of why not in Wales? -- these

:54:55. > :54:59.things are feasible. Then we could get the economy going. The other

:54:59. > :55:03.point we need to look at his if Northern Ireland are able to deal

:55:03. > :55:08.with corporation tax changes, Wales should also, because that would be

:55:08. > :55:16.key in any economic regeneration. Thank you. We can no joined Tomos

:55:16. > :55:21.I am joined by Heledd Fychan, parliamentary candidate for Plaid

:55:21. > :55:25.Cymru and a member of the policy forum. Leanne Wood has decided to

:55:25. > :55:29.hold a root and branch policy review, looking at a party policies.

:55:29. > :55:33.We have not heard much about new policies from Leanne Wood. Is it

:55:33. > :55:37.the right approach to take this in- depth look at the party's position?

:55:37. > :55:41.I think it is a very logical approach. We are obviously living

:55:41. > :55:46.in tough economic times, and every party has to be about their

:55:46. > :55:49.policies. It is easy to promise the world at election time and say we

:55:49. > :55:53.will do these wonderful things, but the reality is there isn't much

:55:53. > :55:57.money out there so we are forced to think creatively and think about

:55:57. > :56:01.our policies, can we afford those, and what to prioritise in order to

:56:01. > :56:06.get the economy moving again and more people in work. The work is

:56:06. > :56:12.going on, a work-in-progress, but what do you think we will see being

:56:12. > :56:18.announced eventually? Unfortunately, I am not a psychic, and I am glad

:56:18. > :56:21.that we are a very democratic party, because -- at the moment much is

:56:21. > :56:26.open in all areas. We are focused on education at the moment had

:56:26. > :56:29.heard a lot this morning about ensuring everyone has access to

:56:29. > :56:33.education and ensuring high standards as well. But we need to

:56:33. > :56:39.look more fully, if we are to go down the independence route, we

:56:39. > :56:42.need to think about our priorities in an independent Wales and think

:56:42. > :56:46.every policy area needs to be covered and we need to justify

:56:46. > :56:49.these policies as well. mentioned independence. As we

:56:49. > :56:53.understand we will not hear a lot about Leanne Wood about

:56:53. > :56:58.independence. Is she right to play down that part of Plaid Cymru's

:56:58. > :57:01.appeal? It is not a matter of playing down, because it was at the

:57:01. > :57:04.heart of Leanne's campaign and we had a lot about it at the spring

:57:04. > :57:08.conference. But you don't want to hear a party the day hearing the

:57:08. > :57:12.same thing repeatedly, and to be honest, people want to hear about

:57:12. > :57:16.the economy. That is what worries people at the moment. We need to

:57:16. > :57:20.emphasise that and come up with new, fresh ideas. We are fed up of

:57:20. > :57:24.hearing other parties sympathise, but even those in government aren't

:57:24. > :57:28.doing anything to change situations. We have a lead a full of ideas who

:57:28. > :57:32.has an energetic team and I'm really looking forward to hearing

:57:32. > :57:36.her ideas about developing an economy that will work for Wales.

:57:36. > :57:41.To think we will hear those ideas in the speech? We haven't heard a

:57:41. > :57:45.great deal so far. We haven't, so I am excited to hear about those. We

:57:45. > :57:49.have heard from me and in the past about her ideas on developing the

:57:49. > :57:54.green economy, and I think we will see that developed. We will have to

:57:54. > :57:59.wait with interest. Thank you. Not much longer to wait, so we were

:57:59. > :58:03.handed back to Allott in the studio. We can see Leanne Wood in the

:58:03. > :58:08.conference hall on screen, and she will be there in person in about

:58:08. > :58:11.two minutes. Betsan, in the meantime, let's talk about Leanne

:58:11. > :58:17.Wood and her profile. We don't often see Welsh politicians getting

:58:17. > :58:22.as much coverage as UK politicians. We see here at first Minister's

:58:22. > :58:28.Questions. Her strategy so far has been, First Minister, D you agree

:58:28. > :58:31.with me, and the answer is often yes. Where has that got her? That

:58:31. > :58:35.has confused people because during it was their campaign it was clear

:58:35. > :58:39.people want to the message, that she was from a part of Wales which

:58:39. > :58:41.took on Labour in the Rhondda Valley, she was a fighter to go out

:58:42. > :58:45.on the street and take an aggressive message to Labour on

:58:45. > :58:49.their own turf and beat them, though that is not what we had seen

:58:49. > :58:54.in the chamber. I was talking earlier about how those parts work

:58:55. > :58:58.together to create a coherent whole, a message all of Wales. What is the

:58:58. > :59:01.tactic going on here, why are we only hear one voice in the chamber

:59:01. > :59:06.and another elsewhere, how will that workers a message? There are

:59:06. > :59:13.still some people saying there are questions over how that will come

:59:13. > :59:17.together. How would Plaid insiders quantify the success of this

:59:17. > :59:21.speech? They said all along but they don't expect to have voted for

:59:21. > :59:24.a leader who will be a brilliant performer in the chamber. They

:59:24. > :59:29.didn't expect to see Shine there. Where they want her to shine is on

:59:29. > :59:35.the streets, talking to the people of Wales. We are not around that

:59:35. > :59:38.often when she does that. But clearly at an autumn conference,

:59:38. > :59:43.this one annual conference, they will want to be convinced that that

:59:43. > :59:53.is happening and is working, because that is why they voted for

:59:53. > :59:54.

:59:54. > :59:59.We have 30 seconds away from hearing from Leanne Wood. We have

:59:59. > :00:09.had technical difficulties with the translation equipment. Hence the 30

:00:09. > :00:11.

:00:11. > :00:16.minutes delay. The stage is set as we can see. The lights are down and

:00:16. > :00:23.Vaughan Roderick can take us through proceedings.

:00:23. > :00:26.Please give a warm welcome to Plaid Cymru leader, Leanne Wood.

:00:26. > :00:36.Assembly Members are all on the stage including Dafydd Elis-Thomas

:00:36. > :00:36.

:00:36. > :00:46.which ran into a spot of bother before these some -- before the

:00:46. > :00:57.

:00:57. > :01:02.summer. He stands for the ovation A warm reception for the Plaid

:01:02. > :01:10.Cymru leader. It is an honour to stand here today

:01:10. > :01:17.and address you in my first leader speech to our annual conference. It

:01:17. > :01:23.is a cause an opportunity to present myself to a new guardians.

:01:23. > :01:33.What to you here and see is what you get with me. No varnish, Nova

:01:33. > :01:41.

:01:41. > :01:46.near, just what. -- no Veneer, just would. Those of you in the hall

:01:46. > :01:50.know the kind of leader that you elected. Someone at a friend to

:01:50. > :01:57.speak her mind, someone who puts principle at the core of her

:01:57. > :02:03.politics. There are times when that is not easy, Times when it may be

:02:03. > :02:07.not to our advantage in the short run. But in the long run of

:02:07. > :02:12.political life and politics is a marathon and every sprint, I tell

:02:12. > :02:18.you this, people have seen through politicians that say one thing and

:02:18. > :02:23.do another, who promise the earth and then leave a bitter taste of

:02:23. > :02:29.disappointment in their wake. People are thirsting for something

:02:29. > :02:34.new and I am determined that is what we are going to give them. I

:02:34. > :02:38.have always said that I wanted to do politics a little differently

:02:38. > :02:43.and for me our conferences a space for the leader and not just to

:02:43. > :02:46.speak but also to listen. I would like to thank you for the many

:02:46. > :02:53.words of advice and encouragement that you have sent to me over

:02:53. > :03:00.recent months. We have got four exciting years ahead of us and it

:03:00. > :03:10.is my aim to cross the finishing line in 2016 as the winner, leading

:03:10. > :03:15.

:03:15. > :03:21.Plaid Cymru the government of Wales. We have got to get over that

:03:21. > :03:25.finishing line together. I am going to need each and every one of you

:03:25. > :03:29.to roll up your sleeves and committed to the hard work

:03:29. > :03:35.necessary to build the organisation and the momentum that we will need

:03:35. > :03:40.to get over that line as winners. The world champion cyclist speeding

:03:40. > :03:50.through this mid Wales town today and in the race to win, not to do

:03:50. > :03:50.

:03:50. > :03:58.well, to win. Plaid Cymru which is good luck to all of them. Wishes.

:03:58. > :04:03.We have come up to the heart of Wales. As the National Eisteddfod,

:04:03. > :04:11.the applied Cymru conference moves around the country usually between

:04:11. > :04:21.north and south will stamp when I joined Plaid Cymru in, part of the

:04:21. > :04:22.

:04:22. > :04:27.firm for me as a young men Bowe was coming to know my country -- part

:04:27. > :04:37.of the Fen has come to know my country. In coming to know Wales I

:04:37. > :04:44.came to love her and in loving her to wish for her transformation.

:04:44. > :04:54.This isn't just that seek a deer it is the lives of people we know and

:04:54. > :04:57.

:04:57. > :05:03.the communities where we left calls me to act. The disabled person who

:05:03. > :05:13.is House and because there is nothing suitable for him in his

:05:13. > :05:19.local area or the woman I meant who was crying, I can now feed my

:05:19. > :05:25.family, and she thanked me for any emergency food parcel. Although a

:05:25. > :05:33.man who contacted my office thinking of killing himself when he

:05:33. > :05:41.heard that his benefits were going to be cut. One thing that is not

:05:41. > :05:49.going to work is waiting and hoping that the problems will go well way.

:05:49. > :05:58.We live in very hard times but it is also a time which is full of

:05:58. > :06:04.potential and possibilities. There is another way of working. That is

:06:04. > :06:11.what we can do, this is a very special year for Plaid Cymru it. We

:06:11. > :06:19.have been new leader but more importantly, it is time for a new

:06:19. > :06:28.start, a new team, it is time for us to draw up new plans and a new

:06:28. > :06:35.route for the nation. We bring their new hope with us to Brecon as

:06:35. > :06:45.we come together in this conference today. Here, 600 years ago it took

:06:45. > :06:47.

:06:47. > :06:57.this summer, our last spring's won his last battle. -- our last Prince

:06:57. > :07:00.

:07:00. > :07:10.won his last battle. Not the first although last Welsh meant to lose

:07:10. > :07:16.

:07:16. > :07:25.his life fighting far away from his country. So here in Brecon, he was

:07:25. > :07:34.last seen. It is appropriate that the conference here is here for his

:07:34. > :07:40.special day. The great wizard as Shakespeare called him disappears

:07:40. > :07:50.into the mists of history. But his spirit is alive. When the Sunday

:07:50. > :07:57.Times made the survey in 1989 of the because figures of the

:07:57. > :08:04.millennium, he was above Galileo and Isaac Newton. It shows that

:08:04. > :08:13.although we are very small nation weekend do great things. End their

:08:13. > :08:17.a Plaid Cymru government very great things are possible. Of course, we

:08:17. > :08:24.remember another great Welshman this year as well, Gwynfor Evans.

:08:24. > :08:34.He turned hopes into reality by a winning our first parliamentary

:08:34. > :08:35.

:08:35. > :08:42.Westminster seats 100 years ago to last week. He was born in Barry. He

:08:42. > :08:48.moved to the north and then to the West has a bet it was all important

:08:48. > :08:58.to him that Wales was one and threw everything he was still one of the

:08:58. > :09:00.

:09:00. > :09:08.Barry Boys. Just think of it, what would he have thought if he had

:09:08. > :09:18.heard a Platt can remember what have won their seat in Barry. -- a

:09:18. > :09:18.

:09:18. > :09:28.Plaid Cymru member had won his seat in Barry. With a swing of 16%,

:09:28. > :09:40.

:09:40. > :09:47.Plaid chemistry is winning from Anglesey to the whale. -- Mark

:09:47. > :09:56.Plaid Cymru in. We should win everywhere else in between. We have

:09:56. > :10:04.come to Powys. That huge bit in the middle. It extends from mercy of to

:10:04. > :10:12.the Vale of Glamorgan, from the Black Mountains up north. It is

:10:12. > :10:18.important to remember our unity as a nation. Some tried to divide us,

:10:18. > :10:24.north and south, Welsh speakers are non-Welsh speakers, rural areas and

:10:24. > :10:34.the Valleys, Plaid come agree it rejects these divisions. We reject

:10:34. > :10:48.

:10:48. > :10:56.all divisions. We love every part It was on a plate mountain not far

:10:56. > :11:05.from here that we still have no admittance signs that Gwyn Evans

:11:05. > :11:15.objected to so fiercely but believe me there are no no-go areas for

:11:15. > :11:17.

:11:17. > :11:22.Plaid Cymru. There never has been and they never will be. We're the

:11:22. > :11:30.only party for Wales in Wales. We're the only party that we can

:11:30. > :11:40.say we speak always for the benefit of Wales. We're not going to stop

:11:40. > :11:46.until we have a government also. Eight government which will speak

:11:46. > :11:50.always for the benefit about one nation. Wales now needs a

:11:50. > :11:55.government that thinks ahead and plans to protect all those people

:11:55. > :12:02.who are at risk of sinking beneath the terrible tide of austerity,

:12:02. > :12:07.wave after wave of cuts to jobs, benefits, services, cuts in pay and

:12:07. > :12:10.in real income. Wales are now he's a government that takes

:12:10. > :12:18.responsibility and that tries to solve our problems not just blames

:12:18. > :12:21.others. What does that mean? It means a government up attacks Welsh

:12:21. > :12:26.pensioners from cuts in council tax, by doing a deal with local

:12:26. > :12:30.government, like the one reached in Scotland rather than simply acting

:12:30. > :12:34.as the Tories' henchmen. A government and make sure I gets the

:12:34. > :12:44.budget for Remploy factories devolved to Wales before a factory

:12:44. > :12:47.

:12:47. > :12:53.is closed. We need the government that will ease the burden on that

:12:53. > :12:57.mother who has too much week at the end of the money for step she needs

:12:57. > :13:05.it government that make sure her kids are fed and well educated, to

:13:05. > :13:10.make sure her government -- of families warm in winter. That is

:13:10. > :13:16.what she needs and what we need her to know is that air Plaid Cymru

:13:16. > :13:21.government will deliver that. As a party we have four years of hard

:13:22. > :13:25.work ahead of us. Like all those Olympian Paralympians, the prize we

:13:25. > :13:31.seek for Wales will not be won in the final two weeks of the race

:13:31. > :13:36.itself. It will be won in all those Mon-Sun years of door knocking, in

:13:37. > :13:43.all weathers, tweeting all hours, in the million conversations we

:13:43. > :13:50.will need to have to win the trust of the nation. We come to Brecon,

:13:50. > :13:55.the town where two rivers meet, but ask, it is a fitting meeting-place

:13:55. > :13:59.for the party with two rivers of thought also mingle. Two attributes

:13:59. > :14:04.use of the great Welsh radical tradition, the green of Welsh

:14:04. > :14:09.nationalism, green because of our love for our land but green as well

:14:09. > :14:16.for the love of the planet that we share and the red of socialism. The

:14:16. > :14:24.red, like our bled, to symbolise our common humanity. If we add in

:14:24. > :14:30.the white of PC we get the red, the White and the green. Three colours

:14:30. > :14:34.united under one banner, the colours of our country. Geology

:14:34. > :14:38.bequeathed Wales with mineral riches they should have been a

:14:38. > :14:48.blessing but for too many turned out to be a curse. We can not make

:14:48. > :14:50.

:14:50. > :14:54.the same mistakes again. We have Our national, natural resources are

:14:54. > :15:00.our inheritance, Alastair harness for the benefit of the people of

:15:00. > :15:06.Wales. -- ours to halve its. The Green economy can be a motor for

:15:06. > :15:09.our second industrial resort -- revolution. It already employs more

:15:09. > :15:14.than financial services and telecommunications combined. And we

:15:14. > :15:19.can be innovators, as well, a Cardiff-based company is the first

:15:19. > :15:23.in world to use a process similar to photosynthesis in its patented

:15:23. > :15:28.solar film. It is also the first in the world to use 100 per cent

:15:28. > :15:34.renewable energy to produce renewable technology. Now that's

:15:34. > :15:37.what I call so so it -- sustainability. But as the Welsh

:15:37. > :15:42.Government's own sustainability Commissioner, Peter Davies, has

:15:42. > :15:48.argued, we are not realising our full potential. Opportunities are

:15:48. > :15:51.being wasted. So what will we do? One of the first acts of a Plaid

:15:51. > :15:56.Cymru government would be to establish our own National Power

:15:56. > :16:03.House, for green energy, investing in our national infrastructure from

:16:03. > :16:08.tidal energy to community and wind and hydropower, focused on our own

:16:08. > :16:13.needs, and yes, where appropriate, exporting this valuable commodity,

:16:13. > :16:23.but he is the difference: Repatriating the profits and

:16:23. > :16:29.

:16:29. > :16:34.reinvest it -- reinvesting them for Over the years, people have

:16:34. > :16:39.sacrificed so much, like the miners who lost their lives this time last

:16:39. > :16:44.year in the tragedy at the Gleision mine in the Swansea Valley. For

:16:44. > :16:50.many, those images, unfolding in front of us on the rolling news

:16:50. > :16:55.media, stoked up deep memories and emotions for those people old

:16:55. > :17:00.enough to remember a time when people's lives were littered with

:17:00. > :17:09.such cruel events. Our thoughts are with the friends and families of

:17:09. > :17:14.those whose lives were so tragically cut short. As Gwyn Alf

:17:14. > :17:24.Williams once said, we as a nation have been around for a millennium

:17:24. > :17:31.

:17:31. > :17:41.and a half. It is about time we had It is time, as one of Plaid's

:17:41. > :17:45.founders, G -- D J Davies said, for us to cultivate. We must now take

:17:45. > :17:50.control of our own economic destiny. We must take responsibility for

:17:50. > :17:55.where we are going. And one -- what better way than to his seat and

:17:55. > :17:58.support our own home-grown businesses? Locally, family, co-

:17:58. > :18:03.operatively, community and, these are the businesses we want to see

:18:03. > :18:07.become the bedrock of the Welsh economy. He in rural Wales I am

:18:07. > :18:13.very much mind for up the crisis in Welsh agriculture, particularly in

:18:13. > :18:17.the dairy industry. The crisis has driven many people to the edge of

:18:17. > :18:21.desperation. Many Welsh farmers were on the brink of going in --

:18:21. > :18:25.and there with the milk price dispute earlier this summer, but

:18:25. > :18:30.this crisis strikes to the heart of our local fault system and has the

:18:30. > :18:35.potential to hurt us all -- local food system. We need more people

:18:35. > :18:41.producing food, not fewer. We must be helping, not hindering, what is

:18:41. > :18:47.by definition this most essential of industries. 2013 across the

:18:47. > :18:51.world will be a year of global food crisis, extremes of temperature and

:18:51. > :18:56.drought in places as far apart as the American Midwest, the Russian

:18:56. > :19:02.steppes and the Australian outback, will mean food shortage is on an

:19:02. > :19:06.unprecedented scale. Already comprises have risen by 25 per cent

:19:06. > :19:14.worldwide, and are set to rise higher. In parts of Africa and Asia,

:19:14. > :19:21.this may trigger famine and social upheaval on a vast scale. We are

:19:21. > :19:25.fortunate to live in a green, fertile, wind and rain swept land.

:19:25. > :19:31.You can tell this summer in Wales, the rain is warm! But we should

:19:31. > :19:36.never, ever take that for granted. Being at the end of a long and

:19:36. > :19:41.distant food chain, or relying on oil imports to power our cars or

:19:41. > :19:46.Utah homes, is neither sustainable nor a ecologically resilient in the

:19:47. > :19:51.long run -- or heat our homes. We have the capacity to be energy

:19:51. > :19:56.independent. We have the capacity to be self-sufficient in water if

:19:56. > :20:03.Westminster allows us, and we can be food secure, producing more of

:20:03. > :20:09.our food locally through local -- for local consumption. And early

:20:09. > :20:14.action for Applied Cymru government would be to set ambitious but

:20:14. > :20:17.achievable targets to get our cars and Futures renew plea, weaning

:20:17. > :20:27.ourselves of our addiction to or I'll -- When You're ugly. After all,

:20:27. > :20:35.

:20:35. > :20:40.Wales gave the world the fuel cell. You know, it's important in

:20:40. > :20:43.politics to get the right perspective. We must see Wales

:20:43. > :20:48.standing -- as a small country, standing on the Brecon Beacons

:20:48. > :20:52.though, we do not see smallness. Behind to stretch the southern

:20:52. > :20:56.seaboard and the valleys. Look north and west, and they you will

:20:56. > :21:02.see below, green hills of the uplands, and beyond them, the

:21:02. > :21:08.mountains of the North. Look at that landscape and reject any

:21:08. > :21:16.doubts you may have. This small nation has within it vast resources

:21:17. > :21:23.and potential. We have, and we can, achieve the greatest of things. But

:21:23. > :21:28.first, they come to critical ingredients. -- they come two

:21:28. > :21:32.critical ingredients. Hard work and self-belief. Nowhere has this been

:21:32. > :21:36.more evident than the Olympics this year. Wales achieved its highest

:21:36. > :21:41.ever charity -- tally of gold medals in the Olympics and

:21:41. > :21:51.Paralympics. We won more medals per head than any of the nation in

:21:51. > :22:00.

:22:00. > :22:04.There, of course, we have Welsh athletes in a Welsh team,

:22:04. > :22:11.representing Wales. They will focus all their energy on winning for

:22:11. > :22:15.Wales, and we will do the same. Their success has allowed us some

:22:15. > :22:19.small distraction from what continue to be very difficult times.

:22:19. > :22:23.To us in Plaid Cymru it was obvious from the start but the Westminster

:22:23. > :22:27.coalition strategy was never going to work -- that the coalition

:22:27. > :22:33.strategy. Wales needs jobs, it is as simple as that, and plenty of

:22:33. > :22:38.work needs doing. Like Roosevelt in his economic plans in the United

:22:38. > :22:46.States of the 1930s, Wales needs a new deal, but Green New Deal.

:22:47. > :22:52.Aiming to provide skills, work, hope and opportunity for a new

:22:52. > :22:56.generation who have a right to believe that life can be better.

:22:56. > :23:01.The policies being pursued by the UK Government in Wales have taken a

:23:01. > :23:06.crisis and turned it into a disaster, and we all know too well

:23:06. > :23:11.who has been hurt the most by austerity. Just look at the victims

:23:12. > :23:17.of welfare reform to see who is paying. So let's be clear,

:23:17. > :23:23.austerity has nothing to do with economics. It has everything to do

:23:23. > :23:28.with politics. The recession has given this government a golden

:23:28. > :23:32.opportunity to attack the welfare state and those who rely on it, and

:23:32. > :23:38.attack they have. Where is the opposition? Who is defending the

:23:38. > :23:42.unemployed from the savage attacks? From what I can see the official

:23:42. > :23:46.opposition offers austerity light, hardly surprising after Labour gave

:23:46. > :23:53.a slight touch regulation, private finance initiatives and regional

:23:53. > :23:58.pay. Their latest idea is Prix distribution, short hand for

:23:58. > :24:02.undermining the mistakes Labour made in government. Pike Cymru's

:24:02. > :24:07.economic Commission has laid bare the challenge we face -- Plaid

:24:07. > :24:11.Cymru. Everywhere we look we see the symptoms of our predicament.

:24:11. > :24:16.Wales has the highest brain-drain of all the nations of Britain,

:24:16. > :24:20.almost 40 per cent of the graduates of universities in Wales have left

:24:20. > :24:24.Wales within six months of graduating, and that compares to

:24:25. > :24:29.just six per cent in England and seven per cent in Northern Ireland.

:24:29. > :24:34.They leave, and still leave disproportionately, for London,

:24:34. > :24:40.because opportunities simply aren't here. It's important to remember

:24:40. > :24:45.and continue to instil in young people the importance of education.

:24:45. > :24:51.Throughout our recent history, those who went before us understood

:24:51. > :24:55.education's value, especially as a route out of poverty. The miners

:24:55. > :25:00.gave us libraries, the manic Street Preachers said. My mother

:25:00. > :25:09.encouraged me, I might say nagged me, for a better word, to work hard

:25:09. > :25:15.in school by holding up their hands and saying to me "do you want red

:25:15. > :25:20.raw hands like this?" And when I think of the fate of this country,

:25:20. > :25:25.I often think of her message to me written in the lines of those

:25:25. > :25:30.outstretched hands. That was 25 years ago in the 1980s, at a time

:25:30. > :25:34.every bit as challenging as this. Then, we in Wales were creating new

:25:34. > :25:38.businesses at the rest -- as the rest of the UK. Now we generate

:25:38. > :25:44.less than two-thirds the new businesses per person than the rest

:25:44. > :25:50.of the UK. And the situation is even worse when it comes to inward

:25:50. > :25:53.investment. In the early 1990s, Wales, with just five per cent of

:25:54. > :25:57.the population, was securing one in every five of all foreign

:25:57. > :26:04.investment projects into the UK. Now we are managing less than two

:26:04. > :26:08.per cent, one 10th of what we managed 20 years ago. And Mrs

:26:08. > :26:11.Rodney's Welsh cakes are doing a better job of selling Wales abroad

:26:11. > :26:21.than anything being done by this Welsh Government. How did that

:26:21. > :26:24.

:26:24. > :26:28.It is plain to see that the Welsh economy is seriously

:26:28. > :26:33.underperforming. Our economic and development is the single biggest

:26:33. > :26:39.hurdle to our progress as a nation. It condemns us to dependence on a

:26:39. > :26:43.government in Westminster of which ever colour, which will never have

:26:43. > :26:48.Wales's interests as its overriding priority. It doesn't have to be

:26:49. > :26:53.this way. Hard decline, are poverty, is not and never has been

:26:53. > :26:58.inevitable. It is for all these reasons that we have declared

:26:58. > :27:03.raising Welsh economic performance to a level equal to the rest of the

:27:03. > :27:08.UK the overriding priority for this party for the decade to come. To

:27:08. > :27:14.get there, we will need to use all the skills at our disposal, public,

:27:14. > :27:21.private, voluntary. In a small nation, we cannot hide away in our

:27:21. > :27:25.sector. We have to work together. Our economic Commission is looking

:27:26. > :27:28.after comprehensive strategy. -- after strategy. I have asked the

:27:29. > :27:34.commission to look at three sets of measures fora Plaid Cymru

:27:34. > :27:44.government to implement. Firstly, establishing a new mutual

:27:44. > :27:47.innovation and enterprise Wales, i e Wales. Bringing together the

:27:47. > :27:53.skills of the people in the public and private sectors, to push

:27:53. > :27:58.forward a Welsh New Deal. It was DJ Davies in the Thirties who first

:27:58. > :28:03.called for a Development Authority for Wales. It is time again to

:28:03. > :28:10.reinvigorate, regenerate and recreate a new catalyst for

:28:10. > :28:15.creativity in a form fit for the Wales of the 21st century. Secondly,

:28:15. > :28:20.if the London-based banks won't lend to Welsh businesses, we need

:28:20. > :28:28.to create our own financial system so that more of the money made in

:28:28. > :28:38.Wales stays in Wales. Channel 4 has its own bank of Dave. Let's had our

:28:38. > :28:44.

:28:44. > :28:50.Rome back off -- our own Bank of Dai. Let's turn the existing

:28:50. > :28:55.patchwork of community lenders into a National Savings super mutual.

:28:55. > :29:00.Public sector pension funds in Wales have billions in assets, �6

:29:00. > :29:05.billion in total, hardly any of which is invested in Wales. Surely

:29:06. > :29:10.we can do better. As part of our further recommendations to the Silk

:29:10. > :29:15.Commission, we will seek the park - - the power to offer tax breaks

:29:15. > :29:19.similar to those currently available in Canada, to those

:29:19. > :29:24.pension funds prepared to invest in their own communities. Investing

:29:24. > :29:27.two or three per cent of our own workers assets in Wales will help

:29:27. > :29:32.transform the economy while presenting no risk at all to the

:29:32. > :29:38.future returns to scheme members. That is a flavour of some of the

:29:38. > :29:48.things we can and will do in government. We can do great things.

:29:48. > :29:49.

:29:49. > :29:54.At Westminster away team led by Elfyn Llwyd will offer alternatives

:29:54. > :30:00.to the UK Government strategy. I will do the same when I meet the

:30:00. > :30:05.new Welsh Secretary. The sad truth is planned beat me be a long time

:30:05. > :30:10.coming. Government after government in Westminster believe there was

:30:10. > :30:17.only one game in town, one industry in one city and that industry was

:30:17. > :30:22.the city and the city was London. Now, that industry has been found

:30:22. > :30:31.wanting and so the cupboard is bare. There is no point in looking to

:30:31. > :30:34.London for our salvation. Changing their head of UK plc will make as

:30:34. > :30:40.much difference to Wales as changing the head of Barclay's has

:30:40. > :30:45.done for the culture of the city of London. Personalities come and go

:30:45. > :30:52.in London's corridors of power but the priorities and the problems for

:30:53. > :30:58.Wales persist. The only way we will build his from the bottom up. As DG

:30:58. > :31:05.Davies said, as the 1930s economic crisis raced around us, it is Wales

:31:05. > :31:11.alone that can lift Wales from the dust. There is every reason for us

:31:11. > :31:17.to be hopeful. Wales can do great things. We can fight not just the

:31:17. > :31:23.battle but a war against injustice, poverty and adversity and we can

:31:23. > :31:29.win. We can finish the course and claim the prize, not far ourselves,

:31:29. > :31:37.not for this party, but for Wales. For the people and the land that we

:31:37. > :31:42.all love. And they have achieved my mother's ambition, I don't have her

:31:43. > :31:50.red, raw hands but I have her heart of could it and I pledge to you

:31:50. > :31:57.this, I will work as long and as hard as this body and mind allows

:31:57. > :32:07.me to get us to way we want to be in the sure knowledge that if we

:32:07. > :32:07.

:32:07. > :33:03.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 55 seconds

:33:03. > :33:08.believe, if we really believe Wales That was Leanne Wood in a speech

:33:08. > :33:11.that focused in large parts on giving the economy in Wales a kick-

:33:11. > :33:16.start. She promised a new deal and a Plaid Cymru government which

:33:16. > :33:20.would focus on Wales's energy needs with the profits are redistributed

:33:20. > :33:30.and she also said that a Plaid Cymru government would create an

:33:30. > :33:30.

:33:30. > :33:34.investment in to prise -- investment enterprise. Her speech

:33:35. > :33:39.end like speeches in the past which have tended to concentrate on the

:33:39. > :33:43.perceived lack of educational attainment in Wales, the

:33:43. > :33:48.reorganisation of the NHS. One might have thought you were

:33:48. > :33:53.listening to the Green Party has some stages. It is interesting that

:33:53. > :33:57.we saw a couple of shots of Adam Price in the audience. We know that

:33:57. > :34:06.he has been advising Leanne Wood and there was some interesting new

:34:06. > :34:11.ideas there, not spell that in any great details. There was talk of

:34:11. > :34:17.the not-for-profit company that owns Welsh Water. A similar body to

:34:17. > :34:20.look after the energy sector in Wales. It sounded like a recreation

:34:20. > :34:26.of the Welsh Development Agency although which some sort of tinge.

:34:26. > :34:30.A regional bank for Wales was talked about. We expected the

:34:30. > :34:34.Conservatives to be spelling out proposals along those lines in the

:34:34. > :34:39.pretty near future. There were a lot of ideas there but not spelled

:34:39. > :34:44.out in any huge amount of detail. One word that we did not here was

:34:44. > :34:49.the word independence. All those things you have mentioned there

:34:49. > :34:58.would be the bedrock of independence. Plaid Cymru are

:34:58. > :35:02.saying when voters say they are too poor a tip been independent, Plaid

:35:02. > :35:05.Cymru have raised their hands and agreed. Maybe we should be

:35:05. > :35:15.prosperous first and then move forward. This is spelling out ideas

:35:15. > :35:20.to do that. She attacked the job- creating record in Wales compared

:35:20. > :35:26.to the 1980s. Cool was in charge of the Welsh economy up until 18

:35:26. > :35:32.months ago? It was Ieuan Wyn Jones as the economic minister. The

:35:32. > :35:38.successes she talked about, who was in charge when those were coming in,

:35:38. > :35:43.it was Peter Walker in the Welsh Office. She had to tread quite

:35:43. > :35:46.carefully around them. Plaid Cymru would have to accept some

:35:46. > :35:50.responsibility for the way the Welsh economy is. Would you say

:35:50. > :35:54.this is an ambitious project which she is starting? She talk about

:35:54. > :36:04.cultivating our own garden. There is nothing much to cultivate in

:36:04. > :36:05.

:36:05. > :36:08.Wales at the moment. I would say what the strategy here is to

:36:08. > :36:11.present Plaid Cymru it to the people of Wales as a party that

:36:11. > :36:15.isn't obsessively about independence and the Welsh language.

:36:15. > :36:21.I talking about things that Plaid Cymru don't talk about very much it

:36:21. > :36:26.is about positioning the party, moving perception of the party in

:36:26. > :36:30.the Ayes of the voters. That is a very slow process. That is what it

:36:30. > :36:34.intended to do. Whether those policies will work, I think some

:36:34. > :36:42.will be picked up by are the parties. It sounds to me like the

:36:42. > :36:50.Bank of Wales may be an idea. I can't imagine any reasons why

:36:50. > :36:56.Labour or the Liberal Democrat whip a pose that idea. -- would a pose

:36:56. > :37:00.that idea. Some of that is ambitious but some of it might be

:37:01. > :37:05.stuff that is coming in any way. Many of the main political parties

:37:05. > :37:09.have toyed with sustainability of the past. The met Ben's had a green

:37:09. > :37:14.tinge to them, the Conservatives had a great green Porsche at the

:37:14. > :37:22.moment to stop his is a danger this is here today, gone tomorrow

:37:22. > :37:25.territory? The Green Party had the problem that much of the

:37:25. > :37:31.sustainability agenda is not long term. It is about fundamental

:37:31. > :37:34.changes. If you are in an economic Piat as we are now where there is

:37:34. > :37:39.genuine economic hurt, people are saying a gradual transformation to

:37:39. > :37:48.a greener, clean economy may be all very well but we need quick fixes

:37:48. > :37:52.now. We need jobs now. That maybe the difficulty of the stop as a

:37:52. > :37:56.Saturday it will buy Leanne Wood time as a leader. Something else

:37:56. > :37:59.that was absent today was no guarantees as to how many Assembly

:37:59. > :38:05.Members would be returned, no guarantees as to when we would see

:38:05. > :38:11.the next Plaid Cymru government. If she was quite cautious.

:38:11. > :38:15.elections are a long way off. Before we get to the next elections

:38:15. > :38:21.we're going to have the Scottish independence referendum. Whichever

:38:21. > :38:26.way that goes, that is going to transform politics in the UK, in

:38:26. > :38:31.Wales, in Scotland either way. We need to do any predictions before

:38:31. > :38:35.we know the result of that referendum. It is impossible for me

:38:35. > :38:41.and impossible for any it the leader of any party. There was no

:38:41. > :38:44.great need for her to set targets today. There are no elections

:38:44. > :38:49.coming up apart from police commissioners where they are not

:38:49. > :38:59.standing. Many thanks. Let's go out and get all the reaction to that

:38:59. > :39:00.

:39:00. > :39:06.speech with Tomos Livingstone. I am joined by a Lindsay Whittle.

:39:06. > :39:10.Do we know a little bit more about the vision Leanne Wood has? I think

:39:10. > :39:14.we know a lot more. She talked about regenerating Wales and

:39:14. > :39:18.regenerating the economy of Wales. She talked about politicians be

:39:18. > :39:25.more honest and open. I think she practises what she preaches in that

:39:25. > :39:28.avenue. You must remember that Leanne Wood could have taken any

:39:29. > :39:35.increase in salary when she became leader of this party and she did

:39:35. > :39:44.not do so. That is a principled politician. You saw a principled

:39:44. > :39:49.politician on stage today. They is nothing much about health -- and

:39:50. > :39:54.there was nothing much about health in a speech today. We might is not

:39:54. > :40:01.put a sign on the Severn Bridge say Wales's court -- is closed for the

:40:01. > :40:06.day. We need jobs. Caerphilly is a local authority that Plaid Cymru

:40:06. > :40:13.used to rent but it does not any more. What did you hear today that

:40:13. > :40:19.will help you win back the control of that local authority? It was an

:40:19. > :40:24.excellent speech. Jobs are the lifeblood of any community. She

:40:24. > :40:31.talked about sustainability, without a decent economy you can

:40:31. > :40:37.not run a health service. She had the emphasis right. I thought it

:40:37. > :40:42.was sincere, almost as she said the right tone. We will hear about her

:40:42. > :40:49.background. She talked about her mother. Does that help to appeal to

:40:49. > :40:56.people when you're going out canvassing? I think it does help to

:40:56. > :41:02.relate to people. What she said today will help get her across to

:41:02. > :41:06.people. She will be accepted by people from all over Wales. She

:41:06. > :41:12.appealed to all parts of Wales in a speech. Simon Thomas, some of the

:41:12. > :41:16.policy details we heard bare, Leanne Wood was talking about a

:41:16. > :41:20.not-for-profit electrical company at up our these ideas into workers

:41:20. > :41:26.mac she is building on things that have been discussed and a party for

:41:26. > :41:31.a few years now. She is putting flesh on the bones. The important

:41:31. > :41:36.message there she got across today was that we are rich in our

:41:36. > :41:40.resources but we have been exploited. She was talking about

:41:40. > :41:47.the closing of that circle make sure the profits from wind energy,

:41:47. > :41:52.for example, I'll return to the communities. We need to support

:41:52. > :41:56.local businesses. That is about making things better for local

:41:56. > :42:01.businesses are making things better for the environment as well. She is

:42:01. > :42:09.talking about a development agency, will be used to have the WDA until

:42:09. > :42:13.recently. She talked very strongly about a public body but a private

:42:13. > :42:18.part of that and she wanted a partnership between the private

:42:18. > :42:22.sector and the public sector in Wales. We will have to be clear

:42:22. > :42:32.that the Welsh Labour government has not created a single new job

:42:32. > :42:35.

:42:35. > :42:44.since we had this massive us. We need to think afresh about how we

:42:44. > :42:48.can get money circulating in the economy. As a counsellor, Leanne

:42:48. > :42:56.Wood was talking about having a pension funds investing more in the

:42:56. > :43:03.communities. How practical is that? It is feasible. She talked about 3%

:43:03. > :43:09.of the pension fund being used in that way. I sit on the board of the

:43:09. > :43:13.Welsh pension fund and it is something we have looked at. We

:43:13. > :43:18.have got used the money and the resources available. Billions of

:43:18. > :43:23.pounds have been exported from Wales over the years by companies

:43:23. > :43:32.who are based anyway -- anywhere bar Wales. We have to generate

:43:32. > :43:39.within our country. Leanne talked about wanting to reach people

:43:39. > :43:47.outside the hall today. The talking of her mother, many people in Wales

:43:47. > :43:50.talk about the love of the family and I thought was a wonderful touch.

:43:50. > :43:58.She dedicated her mind and her body to that caused a metal bar was

:43:58. > :44:03.powerful. Membership went up when she became leader. That is great.

:44:03. > :44:08.Many thanks to all of my guests. It is time we handed back to the

:44:08. > :44:15.studio. I am joined by the president of

:44:15. > :44:20.Plaid Cymru. It was a speech very different to the ones we usually

:44:20. > :44:25.hear from a Plaid Cymru leader. It focused on green issues, we did not

:44:25. > :44:30.hear the word education, health mentioned once. Is that the

:44:30. > :44:35.strategy for Plaid Cymru? I thought it was an inspirational speech. She

:44:35. > :44:45.had the audience eating out of her hand. Anybody who ignores the power

:44:45. > :44:47.

:44:47. > :44:52.Leanne Wood brings to Welsh You have to get the economy right

:44:52. > :44:56.to get the resources for health and social services and everything else

:44:56. > :45:00.she mentioned. When you go down the pub, they are talking about a lack

:45:00. > :45:03.of money in their pockets, but also in Wales they are talking about

:45:03. > :45:07.educational attainment, talking to Plaid Cymru about the health

:45:07. > :45:11.service on the brink with centralisation of services, but we

:45:11. > :45:16.didn't hear a word about that. have to get the resources to get

:45:16. > :45:20.the services we want. She was concentrating on his failure over

:45:20. > :45:25.20 years, successive governments in London and indeed Labour in Cardiff,

:45:25. > :45:29.failing to get this right. We have to crack this one to get a future

:45:29. > :45:33.for all our people and the services they need. In communities in Wales,

:45:33. > :45:38.are they talking about a new national Power House or Prince

:45:38. > :45:42.Philip hospital? I think there are talking about jobs, poverty, a lack

:45:42. > :45:46.of services and support, and those other things Leanne covered. She

:45:46. > :45:50.was very strong, her message was very clear, and one thing I have

:45:50. > :45:54.heard set mostly about Leanne by people on the streets is that she

:45:54. > :46:00.speaks their language and was talking to the people of Wales

:46:00. > :46:06.Today. It is the economy and creating jobs which is central to

:46:06. > :46:11.worry agenda now. When she was talking about this Green New Deal,

:46:11. > :46:15.there was no mention of how many jobs it would create, or more

:46:15. > :46:20.importantly, mention of how much it would cost to set up, the schemes

:46:20. > :46:25.that would for example generate title and wind energy. We now

:46:25. > :46:29.40,000 jobs have been created already by green renewable energy

:46:29. > :46:33.industries. Leanne has set up a commission to draw up a very

:46:33. > :46:38.detailed economic plan for Wales, which would have those answers in

:46:38. > :46:42.them. The workers on going now. But that clearly has huge potential for

:46:43. > :46:47.us in Wales if we are able to control these resources and use

:46:47. > :46:52.them to benefit people in Wales. Where has the word independence

:46:52. > :46:58.gone? We need constitutional change to facilitate these, but it doesn't

:46:58. > :47:02.happen overnight. For example, Leanne talked about the need to get

:47:02. > :47:06.on to loan sharks. We need additional powers to do that. It is

:47:06. > :47:11.an incremental process, and we can go as fast and as far as the people

:47:11. > :47:15.of Wales want. Plaid Cymru will allow them that choice. But it

:47:15. > :47:19.wasn't mentioned in her speech. was underlying, because the powers

:47:19. > :47:22.are necessary to deliver the goods, and that London won't deliver, we

:47:22. > :47:29.will do it ourselves. That was central to her message and she

:47:29. > :47:34.needs tools to do the job. I was putting this point earlier, it is a

:47:34. > :47:40.very cluttered territory, the economy. We have electrification

:47:40. > :47:43.due to the coalition government's decision, we have the Welsh Labour

:47:43. > :47:48.government pushing Enterprise Zones in Wales. How difficult is it for

:47:48. > :47:51.you as a party to have your voice heard on that subject? I think

:47:51. > :47:55.Leanne's voice will be heard very clearly, because we are the only

:47:55. > :48:00.party looking at the needs of Wales and nothing else, and prioritising

:48:00. > :48:05.them. As she said herself in her speech, many politicians talk about

:48:05. > :48:10.these things but don't deliver. If there is one thing you can say

:48:10. > :48:14.after seeing Leanne speaking today, she is totally dedicated to

:48:14. > :48:20.delivering. She talked about hard work and the needs to believe in

:48:20. > :48:23.ourselves, and she clearly does that, and I think that message

:48:23. > :48:28.certainly went right through the conference for today, and I think

:48:28. > :48:31.anybody listening to it would have been inspired. It is a team effort,

:48:31. > :48:36.and Leanne will need their help and be looking at it from all

:48:36. > :48:42.directions. For example, the wait till is looking at procurement

:48:42. > :48:46.policy in the European Parliament to make sure Welsh -- the Welsh

:48:46. > :48:51.Government is supported. That will deliver for Wales. A phrase that

:48:51. > :48:55.stuck with me was cultivating our own garden, as she put it. What is

:48:55. > :48:59.left in Wales to cultivate? We have had the industries which have now

:48:59. > :49:05.all but disappeared -- heavy industries. There is hardly

:49:05. > :49:09.anything there to create wealth. goodness, we have our Lunt, the

:49:09. > :49:15.agricultural and associated industries. Farmers giving up left,

:49:15. > :49:19.right and centre. We need a change in that, we need fair play for

:49:19. > :49:23.dairy farmers. Look, in a starving world, we can't ignore this

:49:23. > :49:28.dimension and been food and it comes from Tesco. We need to

:49:28. > :49:31.develop ourselves and maximise resources. The world is moving in

:49:31. > :49:36.that direction and that is what the green revolution is about, cutting

:49:36. > :49:40.out the middlemen and the transport costs and doing it locally. We have

:49:40. > :49:45.huge talent in Wales, and people nationwide and locally here in

:49:45. > :49:50.Brecon, you see community schemes people have developed themselves,

:49:50. > :49:54.creating jobs locally, growing and selling food, new producer and so

:49:54. > :49:58.on. There is huge talent. It is just a matter of providing the

:49:58. > :50:03.right support developer and Newt -- nurture that are making huge

:50:03. > :50:06.difference to the economy. This is a larger project than saving the

:50:06. > :50:12.local hospital which could be done with pressure over the course of a

:50:12. > :50:16.few months. Is that a strategy to buy Leanne Wood some time? It is

:50:16. > :50:20.not long-term or short-term. There is the long-term economic

:50:20. > :50:24.development strategy, but of course there are immediate things like

:50:24. > :50:30.Leanne calling for devolving the budget for Remploy to keep jobs in

:50:30. > :50:37.Wales. She is active. You will not see the creation or resurrection of

:50:37. > :50:40.the WTA overnight, or a national Power House -- the BDA. You will

:50:40. > :50:45.not see tens of 1000 new jobs created by the Green New Deal.

:50:45. > :50:49.These things have to be done all the time. These things don't happen

:50:49. > :50:54.overnight. We are the only party planning for the economy of Wales,

:50:54. > :50:58.and you have to plan, and no one else is doing it. I wonder about

:50:58. > :51:02.the danger of a long-term project when it comes to returns at the

:51:02. > :51:06.ballot boxes. I have no doubt people will be looking at Leanne

:51:06. > :51:09.Wood. Creating institutions, where their development body or using the

:51:09. > :51:13.money that may be available from pension investments and all the

:51:13. > :51:17.rest, getting the powers for the Assembly to borrow money, all these

:51:17. > :51:20.are steps necessary to deliver the goods, and we must show we are

:51:20. > :51:26.serious about it. I hear a deafening silence from the other

:51:26. > :51:32.parties on how they would use the Assembly to a poll Wales. Can I ask

:51:32. > :51:36.about Leanne Wood's leadership. 2 M Powell Wales. She was talking

:51:36. > :51:39.about the terrible effects of austerity in this speech, and

:51:39. > :51:44.heavily critical of the Conservatives' actions in

:51:44. > :51:47.Westminster. Plaid in the Assembly did align themselves with the

:51:47. > :51:53.Conservatives on the motion of no confidence against the health

:51:53. > :51:57.minister. Do you think that was wise? Plaid doesn't align itself

:51:57. > :52:02.with parties, it takes a view on issues. They were certainly in the

:52:02. > :52:05.same boat, voting the same way. course, and parties voted in the

:52:05. > :52:10.same lobby in Westminster. The question is whether we were

:52:10. > :52:15.satisfied. I wonder how often Plaid MPs vote with the Conservatives in

:52:15. > :52:19.Westminster? Plaid Cymru has, many many times. When Labour was in

:52:19. > :52:22.government, Plaid might oppose them for different reasons from the

:52:22. > :52:26.Conservatives. Whichever party brings for good ideas, we will

:52:26. > :52:29.support them, and look for supporting Cardiff Bay as well for

:52:29. > :52:33.good ideas from us, but we are convinced that unless we become the

:52:33. > :52:37.largest party leading the Welsh Government after 2016, we will in

:52:37. > :52:41.10 years' time be sitting here again waiting for someone else to

:52:41. > :52:45.deliver. It is time we did it by ourselves and we start today.

:52:45. > :52:50.People in Wales expect parties to work together when something is

:52:50. > :52:56.right, and the idea that we can't vote with one party or the other...

:52:56. > :53:01.So more of the same. When something is right, usage supported.

:53:01. > :53:05.Dafydd Elis-Thomas was wrong in his criticism? I am saying, or what

:53:05. > :53:13.Plaid Cymru does, the way we decide how to vote, is right or wrong,

:53:13. > :53:16.that is what the party is about. he is wrong in his criticism?

:53:16. > :53:20.was taking responsibilities in the University of Bangor and couldn't

:53:20. > :53:24.be down on that day because his deputy was seriously ill and he had

:53:24. > :53:29.to be there. That was understood and it is unfair on him to be

:53:29. > :53:32.castigating him now when we know the position and he was supported

:53:32. > :53:37.by his constituency party. He pledged his support in Leanne Wood

:53:37. > :53:41.to the job she is doing, and we are going forward as the United Party

:53:41. > :53:47.and would be split over this. it came to performance in First

:53:47. > :53:50.Minister's Questions. -- when be split. A lot of the arms questions

:53:50. > :53:56.are asking the First Minister to agree, and he answered, of course I

:53:56. > :53:59.do. Where has that taking it? asked a few more questions -- if

:53:59. > :54:03.she asked a few more questions like today we may get a different answer.

:54:03. > :54:07.But that is a form you have to use, the same as Westminster, the way

:54:07. > :54:13.the Prime Minister refers to the answer you have just given. Can you

:54:13. > :54:16.name one punch she has landed on him? I am not in the Assembly so I

:54:16. > :54:22.don't have the opportunity to follow as I was when I was a member.

:54:22. > :54:25.I am sure you would remember one. She has scored, in the Assembly or

:54:25. > :54:30.outside, very heavily indeed in bringing the social conscience of

:54:30. > :54:34.Wales to the top of the political agenda, and bringing an urgency

:54:35. > :54:39.about it. That is what Carwyn Jones isn't showing. She was showing that

:54:39. > :54:44.urgency today, and that will cut through his imagination. We haven't

:54:44. > :54:50.as yet mentioned coalition. Labour had been governing now with 30

:54:50. > :54:57.members in a 60 member chamber. Are we right in thinking that any

:54:57. > :55:02.suggestion of co-operation from now on will not happen? At the moment,

:55:02. > :55:06.the group in the Assembly is an opposition group. We have an agenda

:55:07. > :55:10.and issues we want the government take on board. There is no

:55:10. > :55:14.discussion of coalition. When it comes to the Budget, though, Plaid

:55:14. > :55:19.were adamant that they would not co-operate with Labour last time.

:55:19. > :55:23.Would you do the same again? have a new leader and we will have

:55:23. > :55:26.to see how Lehane takes the group forward in the Assembly, but I have

:55:26. > :55:31.every confidence that she will do what's right for the party and the

:55:31. > :55:34.people of Wales. I don't want to second guess anything. What should

:55:34. > :55:38.be the bargaining position when budget negotiations start quite

:55:38. > :55:43.soon? We must argue the case against London and the Treasury for

:55:43. > :55:46.a fair deal for Wales. Scotland is getting a very fair deal. You are

:55:46. > :55:51.doing a bargain with Welsh Labour, not the coalition government in

:55:51. > :55:56.Westminster, so what could you ask of them? The government in Wales,

:55:56. > :56:01.Labour or Platt, has to argue for a fairer deal. If we don't get that

:56:01. > :56:05.fairer deal, there are no resources to distribute and you are robbing

:56:05. > :56:08.Peter to pay Paul. The second thing is that the Assembly doesn't have

:56:08. > :56:12.borrowing powers. We need those powers. It is reasonable that we

:56:12. > :56:17.can and we hope in the wake of this will Commission will get

:56:17. > :56:21.recommendations to more for it. -- this will Commission. There is an

:56:21. > :56:25.agenda we will fine-tune in order at 2016 to be ready for government.

:56:26. > :56:31.We have had conference speeches from Leanne Wood and six months in

:56:31. > :56:33.the job from her. You are inside the Plaid bubble, how would you

:56:33. > :56:38.assess the state of the party now you have had an internal review and

:56:38. > :56:44.we have seen the findings. In the last 18 months you have lost seats

:56:44. > :56:49.at local elections, Assembly elections, you now don't have any

:56:49. > :56:54.foothold in power in Cardiff Bay or any say on power or influence in

:56:54. > :57:00.Westminster, unlike any of the other parties. You are dying to

:57:00. > :57:04.come in! We have just won two outstanding by-election victories,

:57:04. > :57:13.won in Paris and one on Anglesey, and those were in seats we hadn't

:57:13. > :57:18.won before and we were breaking new ground. In the big picture of it,

:57:18. > :57:22.you are a party which has lost seats and has been using the word

:57:22. > :57:27.disappointing and challenging for quite a long time now. When we will

:57:27. > :57:32.sit -- will we see a reversal? have no doubt that when the 2015-16

:57:32. > :57:35.elections come, we will see the effect of the and's leadership.

:57:35. > :57:39.Already party membership is increasing substantially and we

:57:39. > :57:44.have feedback that people respond to the challenges she is putting,

:57:44. > :57:47.and answered an this will be seen in the ballot box. When we see that

:57:47. > :57:52.reflected at the polling stations, in what way do you think that will

:57:52. > :57:56.be reflected? I think the two by- elections are an indication of the

:57:56. > :58:02.way things were working. Our membership is going up as Dafydd

:58:02. > :58:06.said and we are the only party increasing membership. The next

:58:06. > :58:10.challenge we have in terms of the elections is the European election,

:58:10. > :58:14.which will be a national election. We are preparing for that already,

:58:14. > :58:19.and I think there is a new confidence in the party, and a

:58:19. > :58:23.definite direction, and I think the party is in very good spirits.

:58:24. > :58:27.quick final word to the President. If there are lingering doubters,

:58:27. > :58:32.what would you say to them after today? Listen to Leanne, looking

:58:32. > :58:36.her eyes, see her confidence and a challenge, respond to it, Wales can

:58:36. > :58:41.do it and she can lead weight -- lead Wales to achieve that.

:58:41. > :58:46.President of Plaid Cymru, Dafydd Wigley, and Jill Evans, thank you.