Expelled Plaid AM launching a ‘party within the party’
DAYS after he was expelled from Plaid Cymru, defiant AM Neil McEvoy has announced the formation of a new group aimed at making the party more attractive to the Welsh working class and those who have been “forgotten”.
Earlier this week the South Wales Central AM was excluded from Plaid for 18 months after a panel decided he had brought the party into disrepute.
The as-yet-unnamed new group will be launched tomorrow in Llangollen, where Plaid is holding its spring conference.
A statement issued by Mr McEvoy said: “The campaign group is being formed as a result of demands by grassroots Plaid Cymru members to push for a sovereign and united Wales. Over consecutive Plaid conferences members have met and discussed how best to take Plaid forward and have expressed frustration with the current direction of the Assembly group. Plaid members feel that party democracy and the rule book need to be respected.”
The group will have three key principles: individual sovereignty, with natural justice, due process and free speech at the heart of Welsh life; community sovereignty, with the rights of communities to influence decisions respected and referendums on issues like Local Development Plans and planning respected; and national sovereignty, with a push for a referendum on “Welsh national sovereignty” as soon as a majority in the Welsh Parliament is achieved.
It will also campaign on agendas like tackling corruption in Wales, reaching out to those who have been let down and left behind by the political establishment, a united Wales and building a new economy by reindustrialising Wales for the 21st century.
Mr McEvoy said: “This year is a turning point for our nation. People have been wondering what on earth is going on in the National Assembly. Devolution promised so much but after 20 years of Labour rule the Assembly is a mess. Due process has been abandoned, natural justice has been forgotten about and there is a whole swathe of the country that has been either badly let down or forgotten about.
“We are keen for Plaid Cymru to make real inroads in Wales and want to reverse the trend of declining votes. We want to convince the Welsh working class to vote for us and reach out to those who currently don’t vote. We need a Plaid that is going to expose, oppose and replace Labour, while campaigning for Welsh sovereignty.”
Members of the new group will pay a membership fee. They do not have to be members of Plaid, but cannot be a member of any other party.
A Plaid spokeswoman told BBC Wales the party was “open and transparent” and “allows robust debate”.
“The focus of our spring conference this weekend will be to share and discuss the innovative ideas that will help us achieve our mission of building a new nation,” she said.
“Constructive contributions from the new campaign group will be noted.
“Nevertheless, it would be more appropriate for its spokesperson to be a member of Plaid Cymru.”