Cllr Dick Cole addresses the future of local government

Mebyon Kernow leader Cllr Dick Cole this weekend addressed a meeting at Plaid Cymru’s pre-election conference in Cardiff on the subject of “The Future of Local Government.”

Cllr Cole told the meeting that local government was an important part of the democratic system, which should be valued and funded fairly, adding that improvements could be made but any top-down reorganisation (such as that forced on Cornwall by the Liberal Democrats and Labour) should not be entertained.

Cllr Cole outlined, in some detail, the undemocratic way in which the new unitary authority was created, which many Plaid Cymru members found shocking.

A guest of the Party’s Councillors Association, he met with a wide range of MPs, prospective MPs, members of the Welsh Assembly and local councillors at the Conference, which focussed on making sure that Wales had strong MPs who would stand up for Wales.

Plaid’s leader Ieuan Wyn Jones told Conference that the London-centred parties “could not be trusted to put the needs of Welsh communities before the City of London.” Others such as the Leader of their Westminster group Elfyn Llwyd MP questioned what use “yet another Labour, Tory or Lib-Dem MP toeing the London party line” would be.

Speaking after the event, Cllr Dick Cole who is standing in the St Austell and Newquay constituency at the General Election said:

“The election of Plaid Cymru and SNP MPs has had a massive positive benefit for Wales and Scotland. Without them, there would have been no Welsh Assembly or Scottish Parliament and much of the investment that has gone into their respective countries in recent years probably would not have happened.

“The coming General Election offers the people of Cornwall, a wonderful opportunity to send MK MPs to Westminster and win a better deal for Cornwall – just as Plaid Cymru MPs are winning a better deal for Wales.”

Further information

Mebyon Kernow, Plaid Cymru and the Scottish National Party are all members of the European Free Alliance. Both the SNP and Plaid Cymru are in Government. The SNP have a minority administration in Edinburgh, while Plaid are in coaliton with Labour in Cardiff, where they have ministers responsible for the economy, housing, regeneration and culture.

If MK MPs are elected at the coming General Election, they will sit with the SNP / Plaid Cymru group at Westminster. Plaid Cymru presently has three MPs and hopes to also win constituencies such as Aberconwy, Ceredigion, Llanelli and Ynys Môn.

Plaid Cymru’s MPs are extremely well-respected. A newspaper columnist (Simon Carr in the Independent) recently referred to them as “Plaid Cymru’s fearsome threesome” and added they “have probably had more effect on Parliament than the entire Liberal Democrats.”