A long way to go to Welsh independence

PEOPLE calling for an independent Wales may have reached 20%, although, judging by Plaid’s election results, this is an exaggeration and leavers still have a mountain to climb.

Firstly, about 20% of Welsh residents were born in England, a large number married to Welsh people. Many more have family living and working in England. Most of these are very unlikely to vote for an independent Wales.

Secondly, hundreds of thousands of Welsh people cross the border every day to work in England. Would they want to cause any friction? And the same applies to tourism, when 80% of tourists are from England.

Thirdly, many Welsh firms have English branches or contacts and rely on England for the bulk of their exports.

Wales also benefits from the Barnett formula, which transfers a large subsidy into Wales and knocks a big hole in Joy Davies (Western Mail Letters, February 24) that Wales would be better off.

Finally, if Wales did vote for independence, what is to stop Conservative Monmouthshire, refusing to join the Socialist Republic of Wales and voting to join England?

David Gorton Rumney, Cardiff