Post-Covid Wales: Contribute Your Ideas

Can we do more to entice global brands to manufacture in Wales and become an industrial or manufacturing hub for the UK.

I want to live in a country where we have public luxury. I want us to have the best public services and facilities. The best schools, the best leisure facilities, the best care system. I do not believe this can happen without higher taxes. While we must protect the least well off, polls show that the majority of higher and middle income earners would support higher taxes, IF, they thought the money was spent 'well'. This is where participatory budgeting comes in. It allows people to directly decide how tax money is spent. Reinvigorating democracy and rebuilding trust in the system, while delivering public luxury.

Wales should be proud to be the first nation in the world to legislate for children's right to play (Article 31 UNCRC). The Play Sufficiency Duty has been described as "a beautiful piece of legislation" and inspires other countries who recognise the importance of play for the healthy development of children and their communities. Children are undoubtedlysome of the hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic and also have little say or control over the decisions being made on their behalf. Communities where the conditions for play, including staffed provision, gives equity of space to children in society and also provides an opportunity for children to being to process this experience and build resilience for the future.

A positive history of Welsh solutions to Welsh problems can only invigorate the electorate to think: if we can deal with a global Pandemic as a Welsh people, maybe we can look after more than we do, from taxes, to policing, to promoting economic investment. This could well be a watershed moment in viewing the world through the lens of possibilities undiscovered. Welsh vim and vigour could be just beginning to blossom.

Bringing power back to the people. The exploitation of the natural resources of cymru has been in the hands of rich individuals often absent from the locality, either wealthy foreign investors or local landlords whose primary residence was far from the resources that they exploited. As a consequence the exploitation of that resource was conducted with little or no regard to the effect it would have on the workforce, the locals, the landscape or the ecology of an area. With the rise of renewables we are risking falling into the same trap once again, with multinational owned wind farms etc building with no regard to the locality but merely trying to exploit the resource as efficiently as possible. Community run power resources are what will give us the greatest level of energy security and ensure that the profits go to those effected by the energy generation. From turbines on rivers, to windmills, to solar panels, to tidal barrages the opportunities are enormous but the power and the wealth they generate must go to the people. Anglesey used to be an island of windmills, creating a new local and specialised vernacular in house building on the island could create a wonderful local style that would be aesthetically pleasing as well as practical. There are hundreds of rivers and streams in Cymru. Each one providing the opportunity for community schemes and micro turbines producing electricity for individual homes and contributing any excess back to the grid. The valleys of South Wales give ample scope for energy generation schemes to produce electricity on a grand scale, this is how and where the industrial revolution began, by harnessing that power. Solar panels and insulation on all old housing stock could bring us up to date. Reducing the cost of heating and powering our homes and putting any excess back into the grid. This would free up extra capacity to green technologies that Wales has been famous for, like steel production. The tidal barrages should be built and managed without private investment. If cymru could borrow money at a low rate and build the barrages then then the ongoing profit from them will be a great fillip to the national purse going forward. It would act as a clean green resource generating wealth for the country in much the same way, only greener, as the oil resources of Norway that created their sovereign wealth fund.

A future Plaid Government will examine all sorts of emergency planning, from procurement to local businesses planning to adapt, whether that be another pandemic or other national emergencies. These plans should in be proposed in tandem with our arguments for increases in powers in our Parliament, particularly with relation to business and the economy.

There are some great ideas here already, but I think it's important that we decide what shape we want our new Cymru to be. What are the driving beliefs and principles? We have a good start with the Future Well-Being goals (they should be legally binding on WG though!) Once we know those principles, many of the detailed policies will tend to follow naturally from them. So do we need to start with a draft section for our constitution-to-be "We hold these truths to be self-evident..." sort of thing

I believe there is great opportunity for Wales to have an official Maritime Academy to train a new generation of professional seafarers. Scotland has one and there are at least 3 in England, a new vision for Wales could see us training seafarers of our own. I've been working in the industry for 10 years, even for most of my "refresher" training I have to go to English institutes, so this would be beneficial for existing Welsh seafarers also.

Improve the public transport throughout Wales, especially the connection between North & South, on the roads and Via rail network.

Higher education is the anchor of any prosperous society, by providing the skills and knowledge to create, equip, and sustain a modern, innovation-based economy. Wales is lucky to have numerous world-class universities and colleges, in all regions of the country. And in addition to equipping the future economy, they are critical to the current economy as well. A recent report found that jobs supported by higher education sector contribute more to Wales' economy than the entire tourism industry. Higher education in Wales needs real support from the Welsh government. Whilst, admirably, the Welsh government for years capped student fees and paid thousands of pounds for each student topping up the difference, they did not restrict this for study at Welsh universities. This meant that hundreds of millions of pounds of Welsh taxpayer monies were spent at better-resourced English universities, rather than spent in investing in our own institutions of higher education. A future Plaid Cymru government needs to recognise that we can't build a prosperous country if the best and the brightest do not stay here. To that effect, they must incentivise students to study in Wales, which will directly and indirectly create jobs and opportunities for work here, helping create a sustainable, equitable, forward-looking, and technologically modern society.

In order to discourage negative environmental behaviour we should tax polluting behaviours. In Wales we do control some tax revenue streams, and could possibly re-design them to incorporate environmental elements. We could also introduce new taxes or payments for negative environmental behaviour; e.g. road pricing, pay as you throw, home energy use. Redesign business taxes as well as personal taxes. Of course we must protect the least well off, I'm thinking especially of those who are experiencing fuel poverty. The tax could (should!) be ring-fenced to help fund insulation schemes, public transport schemes, re-localisation schemes, etc. These schemes should start before the tax change takes place.

I believe the we need to look in new, exciting and innovative ways to redevelop our already struggling high streets after lockdown. We should looks at redeveloping these areas into entertainment and tourism sectors as well as local independent businesses rather than continuing to bail out larger companies who are struggling to compete with online sales. For example, Newport has a massive tourism industry waiting to be unlocked with its castle (thst continues to be ignored by the local council) and other historical sites such as the Newport ship, the Transporter bridge, The Roman Ampithestre a short drive away in Caerleon as well as the Newport Museum. We should be looking into developing this promising tourism industry and also looking at reimagining Friars Walk into an entertainment and service sector area with more restaurants and venues rather than propping up struggling shops such as Debenhams

By providing more job opportunities. Which also boost our economy.

By providing more job opportunities. Which also boost our economy.

Adopting a tax-free universal basic income could ensure that all citizens of all ages would have an ongoing financial support throughout their lives. This amount would have to be sufficient to cover basic costs and would not be means tested. Although expensive to any government, it would simplify the concept of supporting the vulnerable by de-stigmatising the role of the state in such matters. It would encourage poorer people to take on further education opportunities, mitigate against unemployment and long term health issues and remove the current conditionality imposed upon the unemployed poor and working poor. It would also encourage those entrepreneurs who do not have the luxury of being members of a super-rich family. I believe that this kind of intervention could help society move towards a more level status and restore trust in what looks and feels like a two tier country at present.

A commission to look into abolition of the current bloated and inefficient Welsh Health Boards that are currently not fit for purpose, eg Betsi. Possible suggestions would be either the formation of an all Wales Health Board or, on contrast, going back to a more localised system such as before reorganisation, which in my opinion, has been an unmitigated disaster, particularly with reference to Mental Health provision, which clearly does not function adequately at present.

Tourism is our cash cow atm. It is destroying our rural communities increasing a demand for housing and blocking other industries. We could encourage excursionists or travel within Wales but having discounts for people within wales by post code to take holidays at home reducing road traffic, fights and chasing a market that saves on carbon emissions. We should grow hemp to make hemp products as it’s an extremely versatile and sustainable plant that could give us a clothing production line, construction materials, and other fibre products such as egg cartons.

Reboot suggests we merely start it back up but my feeling is we need a reset. We have the opportunity in truth for a global reset. With Greta drawing the worlds attention to our global environmental plight prior Covid19 and then lockdown showing us how our natural world responded to it demonstrated how we can indeed make an impact towards reducing our carbon footprint. It was clear that many of us could indeed work from home negating the need for commutes congesting highways and creating polluting traffic fumes. From this evidence we must make it more accessible for people to work remotely and whilst doing that improve access to better broadband but also new technology skills. Many of those working from home were middle class workers with laptops and good quality Internet access. This isn't possible in many areas of Wales or is it as available to certain demographic groups. We need to look at how we can make this style of employment and communication available to everyone and at the same quality for all citizens of Wales. Then our environment can recover.

Railway infrastructure is an essential tool in economic development. We will never be able to develop our economy in our own interests while this power resides with Westminster

In the last Senedd elections I was very concerned about politicians from outside Wales, with no proven commitment to or current experience of living in Wales, being foisted onto us through our rather limited PR system. To avoid this happening in future I propose that to qualify as a candidate in future Assembly elections, a candidate must have lived here continuously for the 3 years preceding the date of the election (i.e. they must have been on the Electoral Register in Wales and have their main residential address here continuously for the 3 year period up to the date of the election). This will show to the electorate that the candidates have some current first-hand experience of living in Wales, and that they have a personal stake in Wales and are not standing for election solely to pursue furtherance of their own or their political party’s ambitions.

Social Emoitonal skill development, health, and fitness do not begin in secondary school. Physical, psychological, and social health begins at birth. This needs to be addressed consistently beginning in Foundation all the way through old age. Reactionary programs and policeis need to turn into proactive programs and policies.

Why aren't industrial buildings being encouraged or made to fit solar panels to the roofs of their buildings? Surely this would help the environment even if the energy produced only provided enough power for lighting, office equipment, such as computers, photocopier, etc.

Encourage and invest in business areas that will allow more Welsh graduates to remain in Wales. Particularly in North and Mid-Wales. This will also help diversify our local economies to stop the over reliance on tourism shown up by Covid-19.

To help combat the problem of homelessness in Welsh towns and cities, invest in a modular homes project similar to the one recently completed in Cambridge. These units are based on a static caravan/mobile home-type design, whereby each unit is completely self-contained and takes up a relatively small space.

Static caravans are being used as second homes it's about time the owners paid tax on them

Tax breaks for technology, greener energy & water companies to invest in Wales, allowing certain "rewards" for investment into certain areas. Additional breaks for training / retraining local population for employment - Think (in green investment) something along the lines of a Tesla giga factory opening up, with breaks / grants for training / retraining anyone with x miles - With Tech, something along the lines of tax breaks for tech companies opening an office in Wales / moving an office to Wales, with additional grants available for taking on additional staff from local areas & universities (which may only be applicable for companies who would pay X amount of tax per year). The additional tax coming in off these larger companies should help repay the grants (although I'm no economist) Wales is actually in a good geographical location to support those. Having a lot of space for warehouses / factories, being close to England / London, being an entrypoint / exit point from & to US / Canada / Ireland & Europe Then of course, Welsh Independence would allow the ability to add on additional import / export taxes.

We often see the GERW deficit figure bandied about. Whilst it is something that needs to be addressed in and of itself, we should address the underlying causes, that is GVA and fewer workers on average in the 30-50 bracket. Combined these cost Wales some £7Bn in lost revenue. It's interesting to note that whilst our GVA per Capita bumps around the circa 70% of the UK average, it's notable that capital expenditure on key areas such as Transport, Science & Education is of a similar proportion. So my first proposal is that Plaid campaign to reverse this obvious entrenched economic disadvantage. We should be looking at investing the difference in rail freight services to key manufacturing hubs, addressing the recruitment crisis in schools and fully resourcing them in terms of buildings and equipment. We should establish a national Welsh School of Pedagogical Studies to drive forward excellence in teaching at all levels. Further we should ensure that we support research in Welsh Universities that puts Wales at the forefront of technological advance. Lastly we should move from the inward investment model that is essentially a cash bung for jobs to a model of investment in Welsh entrepreneurship and build our home grown sector. We have to look at how to support such concerns as they grow and ensure that not only do they compete in broader markets, but that they're able to add value here within Wales. Such a focus will enable Wales to sustain more jobs that are well renumerated, help retain our talent and reduce the economic gap in terms of fundementals such as housing cost and income. Coupled with a capital investment plan that is balanced throughout Wales this would help build economic resilience in local communities the length and breadth of the country and lead to many social goods ... not least the position of Cymraeg in Y Fro. I think that such an approach would help close the revenue expenditure gap and help build trust in Plaid as a party that is able to govern effectively and facilitate prosperity for our families and communities.

Plans for nuclear power site at Wyfla must centre on needs of local community ? Don't fall for it. A Nuclear power industry in Wales makes no sense at all all. It is very expensive to build and inefficient at producing electric power with only 18% of energy generated used in electric power generated at best. The rest of the energy is wasted. Don't mention CHP from nuclear, the last project came to a disastrous end in 1986 in Northern Ukraine. We in Wales have plenty of wind across the west coast of our country and wind farms are more reliable, safer and cheaper and quicker to install and more flexible to operate. We also have tidal currents that can generate electricity. There is also solar. They are all better options. I doubt the UK will ever get a financial backing for nuclear power. The companies have always withdrawn their backing when they accessed the financial reality of such a scheme. The UK plans for nuclear generation in Wales can only be seen as a scheme to keep Wales within the UK and nothing more. Plaid Cymru must not back the scheme and instead must develop our own energy policy based on sustainable power generation with no harmful waste. A nuclear power industry will do nothing for ordinary people, but put them at risk. It will be better to invest finance in the manufacture of wind turbines, solar panels and tidal power capture equipment, which will provide real jobs and growth in the economy.

Wales is a world leader in environmental legislation, and since lockdown it has been nature and our natural spaces around us that have kept people going, improving mental health, offering hobbies, and keeping us fit. Now more than ever, it's critical to do everything we can to change the fate of the world through reducing carbon emissions, rewilding areas, connecting wild areas together, and acting to show the world that natures future doesn't have to be set in stone. Therefore, i fully believe that with the publics attitude being so much more seated to our natural arwas, that we open Wales back up from Ovid through green methods. Our economy is driven so much by our tourism industry, and we in west Wales have suffered and will continue suffering if our economy isn't diversified to include more industry than just tourism, farming and a fishing. My suggestions therefore include: 1. Increasing investment into green energy where appropriate to diversify coastal economies, including traineeships and employment opportunities being favoured for local people. Upskill local youth to take in high end professional jobs, and work to highlight successes globally. 2. Subsidise farming not based on yield but through what percentage of their land is set aside for wildlife. Subsidise practices that benefit nature and introduce levies on practices which are damaging to nature. Be proactive in our way of thinking around food production, and promote the use of local products going into local stores. 3. Work with all sectors to realise environmental measures, but put particular focus on the private sector, attracting industry with a track record of being green, but also produce guidance on how existing business can work to benefit wildlife and diversify their practices to improve our economy. I've plenty more ideas but I'll leave that there for now! Mae'n pwysig i fi i ail-agor ein economi trwy feddwl amdano natur, ac yn gynnwys y ffaith dan ni'n gallu newid ein dyfodol rwan. Gynnon ni y cyfle prin i greu newidiadau enfawr, a dan ni angen dim ond rhywyn i ddod o hyd y hyder i arwain y ffordd. Diolch, Andy

Science is such a powerful tool in politics and everywhere else. It's is what fuels innovation, it's what legitimises debate, it's what we use to justify our decisions, but what we have seen during this pandemic is the misuse of Science, using as an excuse rather than to justify. We need to follow and listen science rather than to look and listen. Science deserves more than a glance. Which is why, I believe Wales needs to establish a Science board itself, one which not only helps the Welsh Government with decisions using the wide range of expertise, but also can scrutinise members on evidence presented to encourage the use of scientific logic rather than scapegoat science.

This should have happen yesterday, as it could be used as an employment creation tool. When it is set up, it would provide hope for a large section of the so called 'left behind' Welsh population. Within its design, it could encourage local sustainable farming schemes, local sustainable energy units, local industrial tourism and so on. Thus providing good 'sustainable' jobs within an area, where they are desired and much needed.

As has been suggested, introduce a Tourist tax and further taxes on second/holiday homes. The proceeds to be invested in the Welsh Developement Agency to re-balance the economy

Encourage everyone to keep a hand written journal of people they come into contact with. This only needs to be paper and pen and everyone can do it. It can run alongside any other more technical tracing app.

While this will cost money evidence suggests that it has a beneficial impact on local economies. It will also help to lift thousands of children out of poverty.

I think that there are some brilliant ideas from my fellow supporters and the enthusiasm that comes over in the comments here is self evident. It would be wonderful to be part of a collection of inspired minds and put together real innovative policies and concepts. A Wales that is independent of England is more feasible now than ever. We can rid ourselves of income tax and put in place progressive tax systems that works for the C21st. Initiate true reform to the democratic process. Have world beating education that encourages individuals to success and not just to get through exams that churn out browbeaten young adults who've learned nothing more than how to conform with a Victorian England idea of how the masses should behave. Wales could become an open and outward looking nation that makes itself known within the rest of Europe and the world. I call on the leaders of our party to utilise those of us who have spent a lifetime of living, working and experiencing the rest of the world. Call for us to return to Wales. Together we may sculpt a vision and practical plans that will bring all of Wales to the mission of an independent nation, and make the rest of the Union say, 'Oh, I wish our nation was that exciting and progressive'.

With COVID hitting Wales & Wales' industry hard, unemployment going up and a lot of people it would be good to start looking into a Finland-style UBI Scheme (one of the more successful in developed countries) and whether it would be feasible to implement in Wales over the coming years. Avoiding the currently implemented universal credit scheme would be hugely important as its results have so far been inconclusive, besides bad press... There have also been a number of studies which have proven that moving to a 4 day work week has no negative effects on productivity, and generally increases population happiness. It would be good to further look into these studies and how they might have an impact on the Welsh Population

A fund for promoting green businesses in wales allowing them to access favourable loans. Can also be loans for community projects with key aims of environment and society. Maybe link it all with Kickstarter campaigns so we as individuals can donate to specific projects. Or even a national kickstart campaign, to get investors from across the world to help us build nationally/internationally important projects. Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon etc

Include the history of Wales, the people and the Welsh language as a core subject across all education platforms

A kitemark-style, tiered system of offering tax/rate reductions for business that actively offer/include the Welsh language. i.e., businesses that have internal and external signage bilingual, have their literature/menus etc bilingual and see local/Welsh products could receive different ratings and tax/rate reductions as an incentive to include the Welsh language in their business operations.

With Wales known across the world for its sporting heritage, Wales needs to add to its sporting repertoire to include our male and female national cricket team. with the recent match of Irish victory in the Ireland vs England ODI, it can be seen that small nations have what it take to hold their own on the international sporting stage.

Fake news and populist generalisation hits at the very heart of democracy. Using the wealth of Welsh philosophers, we could make a unique contribtuion to teaching our children what does exist from what really does not exist - this is a real strength of the French education system and is lacking in Britain. We could highlight current educational practitioners using this material, incentivise new practice, make resources for teachers, suggest how the subject could be incorporated into the current curriculum, include options in Univeristy and teacher training and thus build a distinctively Welsh response to a very modern problem.

The South Wales Valleys are some of the most deprived areas of Wales and the entire UK. Allocation needs to be made for specific funding through the Welsh Budget, alongside a dedicated Minister, aiming to improve the South Wales Valleys to become the engine of the post-Covid Welsh economy. With the population of the Valleys representing roughly 30% of the entire Welsh population, a Plaid Cymru Government must ensure successful investment schemes and funds to be implemented in order to improve housing, transport, schools and local facilities, lowing the level of poverty, unemployment and increasing the household, median and regional GDP of families and communities living in the area.

One of the biggest roadblocks to an independent Wales is how unknown the process will be. We need to have a fully fleshed out guide with an economic plan that we can show to the indy-curious and the indy-skeptics in our nation. With 25% (and growing) of our population already on board with independence, it is time that we answer the big questions. There is also a desperate need for Plaid Cymru representatives to get out there more - to egage the public in discussion on the streets and in their homes, as well as to get on TV more to argue our case. It is frustrating that our nation has to rely on English media outlets, but until Wales gets it's own powers over broadcasting, we need to have more interviews on those English outlets, so that the people of Wales at large can hear our message.

A new independent Wales WILL need a central bank and to issue our own independent currency. We will also need a way for Wales grown industries and businesses to raise revenue - we will need our own stock exchange. A Welsh stock exchange must give access to the people of Wales in invest in their industries that they choose without having to seek English or other outside investor. This will also give Welsh people the security of a diverse source of income rather than just from your main employment. This stock exchange can also trade London, EU and overseas shares.