It’s a great honour to be selected as the Plaid Cymru candidate for Clwyd South. The reason I put my name forward is because I got fed up with complaining about things. I couldn’t believe that the Labour Party, having had 13 years to make a difference, spent their time doing nothing for the people of this area and Wales in general and instead got us into massive debts which ordinary people like you and me have to pay back. Having had all that time in power they’ve done nothing of value to this area yet they managed to get re-elected here at the last election. It’s time for change, and I thought that instead of complaining I should put myself forward and make something happen.
Clwyd South is very dependent on the public service, and I’m afraid that we are in for a torrid time following the Government’s imminent Spending Review which will hit the poorest hardest. The issue of developing a fair housing policy is also high on people’s minds, and we need to elect an Assembly Member that will stand up to this West Cheshire expansion plan – I certainly respect and support the need for cross-border cooperation, heart patients from this area for instance are dependent on Broadgreen Hospital, but cross-border cooperation doesn’t mean that we have to agree to a massive housing development programme which is designed to answer the housing needs of north west England at the expense of our land and culture.
The London based parties have all failed us, primarily because they haven’t got a vision for Wales – effectively they don’t care about us. Ask yourselves how is it that an economic policy designed for London, one of the richest cities in the world, should work in north-east Wales? As a party we have ideas developed in Wales to answer Welsh needs. That’s why people should vote for us – we want the ability to take control of the country’s resources so that the people here benefit from the wealth created by our resources. Take water as an example, we have millions of gallons of the stuff, perfect for creating energy and household consumption, but we don’t control it and we don’t benefit from it in any way. The people of this area should benefit from the wealth created by the water of this area.
My family have got a strong political association with the constituency. My grandfather, Gwynfor Evans, stood as Parliamentary candidate in the old seat of Meirionnydd in 1955 and ’59 which then included the western part of Clwyd South, and my great grandfather Dan Evans, a bank manager in Wrexham, stood for the old Wrexham seat in 1951 which then included most of current day Clwyd South.
As a family we have always believed in standing up for those that need representation. My family are a constant source of inspiration and a reminder that, if we put our minds to it, we can achieve fantastic things. With the help of the people of Clwyd South we could achieve something very special here next year!
Mabon ap Gwynfor 