European Union: UK Membership

Liz Saville Roberts Excerpts

Monday 24th March 2025 Westminster Hall

[Liz Saville Roberts (Dwyfor Meirionnydd) (PC)]

The end of January marked five years since the UK left the EU. Although a majority of people in the UK, and indeed in Wales, voted to leave the EU at that time, the majority do not think it was a good idea any more. Polling shows that 55% of Britons now say that it was wrong for the UK to leave the EU, with just 11% seeing Brexit as more of a success than a failure. Let us also not forget that young people voted decisively to remain.

[Helen Maguire (Epsom and Ewell) (LD)]

Last week, I asked the Prime Minister whether he would negotiate a youth mobility scheme with the EU. He replied that we are not returning to free movement, but seemed to forget that we already have similar schemes with countries such as South Korea and Australia, based on work and travel for a specified duration of time. Does the right hon. Lady agree that a youth mobility scheme would mean not a return to free movement, but a fantastic opportunity to boost our economy and the prospects of people in Epsom and Ewell, and the rest of the UK?

[Liz Saville Roberts]

I absolutely agree. It is a priority for us as parliamentarians and for the Government to ensure that we do everything we can to widen the horizons for our young people and to give them the best opportunities.

According to polling data from YouGov, three quarters of 18 to 24-year-olds voted to stay in the European Union in 2016. There was a myth peddled at the time that they did not turn out to vote, but that is wrong: around 70% of registered young voters went to the polling booth. Nine years later, the next generation remains decisively opposed to Brexit, with 75% saying it was a mistake. As we look to the future, we must think seriously about the effect of the decision on young people who entered the workforce under its cloud, although many of them would not have been able to vote in 2016. What has “getting Brexit done” meant for them?

The UK no longer allows young people to take part in the Horizon Europe or Erasmus+ programmes, which is a huge loss to students the length and breadth of the UK. Those vital exchanges provided opportunities for young people to live and study in other countries, and their many benefits included improved language skills, cultural immersion and personal growth, leaving the sort of memories that stayed with somebody for ever.

[Ben Lake (Ceredigion Preseli) (PC)]

My right hon. Friend makes a very important point. University towns in communities such as mine benefited from those cultural exchanges, and visitors from the EU enriched many of our communities.

[Liz Saville Roberts]

The January poll by YouGov that I quoted earlier notes that everybody sees that tourism has been hit—by fewer people from the UK going to the EU as tourists and fewer people from the EU coming to the UK. In areas such as my hon. Friend’s in Ceredigion and mine in Gwynedd, tourism provides the chief employment in our economy, along with the universities.

[Tom Gordon (Harrogate and Knaresborough) (LD)]

Harrogate relies on tourism too. Local businesses that used to employ people coming over from the EU say that they are now struggling to recruit, so they have had to shut up and close early, which has cost jobs. Does the right hon. Lady agree that a return to freedom of movement to allow those opportunities would benefit those businesses, which might help the Chancellor with the mission for growth?

[Liz Saville Roberts]

Indeed. Ensuring that there is a workforce for leisure and tourism is proving more and more challenging for a number of reasons, including the shortage of workers who previously came from the EU.

To return to Erasmus+, the Welsh Government made the decision to launch their own scheme in 2021. That was welcome, but the First Minister at the time, Mark Drakeford, said in February last year that

“if we had a choice we would much rather we were part of an established scheme”,

like Erasmus.

Disappointingly, the UK Government announced last summer that they have no plans to rejoin the Erasmus scheme, but I ask the Government to reconsider and look at recent successes in making closer ties with our neighbours. Calls for a youth mobility scheme have also been scorned by the UK Government. What is it about enriching young people’s lives that frightens this Government so much?

Just this month, the UK marked an important milestone with Horizon Europe that indicates an alternative route. Since becoming an associated country in 2024, after three years of non-membership, the UK has boasted a strong performance in recent funding rounds. In particular, the UK hosted 18 successful projects under the European Research Council’s synergy grants, the second highest number among participating countries. Ahead of the spring statement, when the Chancellor will undoubtedly be looking for opportunities to drive growth amid a dismal economic outlook, I urge the Government to find inspiration in our progress with Horizon and to pursue closer ties in further areas.

My party believes that returning to the single market and the customs union as soon as possible would be a meaningful step towards remedying the economic damage suffered by households and businesses alike. Recent figures by the Economic Cost of Brexit Project show that the average person in the UK is now £2,000 worse off as a result of leaving the European Union, worsening the effects of the ongoing cost of living crisis.

Five years on from our exit from the EU, the world is a more uncertain, more dangerous and less predictable place. From my home in Morfa Nefyn in north-west Wales, the closest capital city is Dublin. Our nearest neighbours for everyone, everywhere in the United Kingdom, are in the EU. The benefits of closer ties with our neighbours and our allies are plain to see, and I urge the Government to take heart from recent successes such as Horizon Europe and to pursue the same bold approach on youth mobility, on Erasmus, and on the customs union and single market.

--- Later in debate ---

[Seamus Logan]

I cannot comment, as I was not here at the time, but we will come back to the issue of the customs union in a moment.

The UK has endured the highest rate of inflation in the G7 for many months. Brexit has exacerbated the cost of living crisis, driving a £250 increase in annual household food bills. Food and drink inflation in 2023 was at a 45-year high, with food prices up by almost 25 percentage points between 2019 and 2023. Analysis suggests that a third of that increase is due to Brexit, meaning UK households have paid out almost £7 billion to cover the extra costs of overcoming trade barriers that make importing food from the EU harder.

No community has escaped, but inevitably it is our poorest families who are hurting the most. Our business community is also enduring increased costs and damaged trade. According to Scottish Government analysis, 44% of businesses in Scotland face difficulties trading overseas, and named Brexit as the main cause. They face significant additional costs and bureaucracy at a time when their margins are already being squeezed at home by decisions made here in Westminster. Our prized seafood industry has been hit with an estimated 50% increase in the cost of packaging items sent to the EU, and new export health certificates are costing the salmon sector alone approximately £1.3 million per year.

[Liz Saville Roberts]

I am sure the hon. Gentleman will join me in expressing dismay at the fact that, for the bivalve fishing industry, the waters of Wales were no longer acceptable, and that industry died with Brexit.

[Seamus Logan]

I thank the right hon. Member for that point. Our fishing industry has effectively lost quota share and has access to fewer fishing opportunities for some species than it had under the EU’s common fisheries policy. That includes, for example, North sea whiting, where the maximum percentage of total EU and UK quota available is 73.5% compared with average UK landings in 2015 to 2019 of 82%. Even where quota has been gained through the TCA, much of it is for species that the Scottish fleet does not generally catch, or does not want to catch, making it of little practical value.

In the wider seafood sector, some shellfish exporters have estimated that the new barriers to trade with the EU have resulted in additional costs of £500 to £600 per consignment, making some exports unviable. Seafood Scotland has described post-Brexit labour shortages as having a huge impact on the seafood processing sector, with businesses turning down growth opportunities due to a lack of labour. We no longer enjoy freedom of movement—it has gone—despite the promises of the then candidate for leader of the Labour party in 2020, now the Prime Minister.

Some 45% of tourism businesses in the highlands and islands have reported staff shortages, forcing otherwise successful firms to cut their opening hours. In July 2022, UKHospitality reported 40,000 hospitality vacancies in Scotland, but the sector is excluded from the UK Government’s seasonal worker scheme. Recent media reporting found that one hotel in the highlands alone is short of 70 staff for the busy summer season. In response to an oral question recently, the Prime Minister told me he was fully aware of the labour shortages and was working to address them. I have two questions for the Minister when she winds up, and the first is: how exactly is the Prime Minister working to address those shortages?

[Sir John Hayes in the Chair]

Travel is more difficult and costly as Brexit has slowed down the process of entering the EU on a British passport. Business travellers and holidaymakers report long delays at some airports and extremely long tailbacks at the port of Dover. Pets can be brought into the European area only with an animal health certificate, which must be issued by a vet and can cost between £100 and £300 per trip. Most mobile phone operators have reintroduced roaming charges, which were abolished for EU members in 2017. Perhaps most shamefully, our young people miss huge opportunities as a result of Brexit because, as many Members said, we are no longer participating in Erasmus+.

In summary, our democratic will is being ignored, we are poorer, the cost of living is climbing, business is suffering, we do not have enough workers, foreign travel is more difficult and expensive, and our young people have lost enormous opportunity. History will reserve an especially harsh judgment for those who misled us down this path. Paradoxically, we are now forced into closer defence relationships with our European allies and higher spending in the face of the growing threat of Russian aggression. But we cannot say that we were not warned that, while the creation of the European Union has been a bulwark for peace in Europe since 1945, its weakening would potentially threaten that peace.

In conclusion, I ask the question that we should all ask: who really benefited from Brexit? It certainly was not the ordinary people. But rather than speak about how bad this all is, let us do something about it. I feel a teeny, wee bit sorry for the Chancellor at the minute, but I am giving her a way out: rejoin the single market, rejoin the customs union and get the benefits that they offer.

--- Later in debate ---

[Ms Oppong-Asare]

I have made the position very clear. In the past the SNP has not voted for the customs union. We are following very clearly what people have asked us to do—our manifesto commitments.

On the Erasmus scheme, which was raised by the right hon. Member for Dwyfor Meirionnydd (Liz Saville Roberts) in particular, we are working with the higher education sector to ensure that our world-leading universities continue to attract the brightest and the best and to support our economy, but I have to say to the right hon. Member that we have no plans to rejoin the Erasmus scheme.

Members raised concerns about opportunities for young people, and put forward proposals for a youth mobility scheme. The Government recognise the value of people-to-people connections, and of schemes that give young people the opportunity to experience different cultures and to work or study elsewhere. For example, the Turing scheme is the UK Government programme for students to study and work anywhere in the world.

[Liz Saville Roberts]

Will the Minister give way?

[Ms Oppong-Asare]

I would, but we are running out of time and I want to give my hon. Friend the Member for Colne Valley an opportunity to respond.

Since 2021, the Turing scheme has helped tens of thousands of UK students develop new skills, gain international experience and boost their employability, in the EU and beyond. Separately to Turing, the UK operates a number of bilateral youth mobility schemes, both with European countries such as Iceland, and with global partners such as India, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. We are also committed to resetting the relationship with the EU to improve British people’s security, safety and prosperity. However, we do not have plans for a youth mobility agreement. We will of course listen to sensible proposals, but we have been clear that there will be no return to freedom of movement, the customs union or the single market.

We are looking to maximise the benefits of the EU relationship. It is a whole of Government commitment, which echoes what my hon. Friend the Member for Rushcliffe (James Naish) said in urging the Government to think creatively. My right hon. Friend the Member for Torfaen (Nick Thomas-Symonds), the Minister for the Constitution and European Union Relations, is leading that charge through regular engagement with his EU counterpart, Maroš Šefčovič, most recently at a meeting at the Parliamentary Partnership Assembly in Brussels on 17 March. The Foreign Secretary attended the EU Foreign Affairs Council, where he and EU high representatives for foreign affairs agreed to work towards a security partnership and committed to six-monthly foreign policy dialogues. The Chancellor also recently attended the Eurogroup, where she outlined that the reset in relations is about doing what is best in the interests of our shared economies.

That work is supported by much greater co-operation between the UK and the EU. Since we came into government, we have had over 70 direct engagements between UK Ministers and their EU counterparts. I hope that reassures Members that the relationship and the work that Ministers are doing with the EU is really strong and that we are very focused on strengthening that relationship in the best interests of this country. In May, we will welcome EU leaders to the UK for the first UK-EU summit, which we believe will provide an opportunity to make further progress on areas that will deliver benefits to British people, guided by our mutual benefit in finding collaborative solutions to our common problems.

This is not a zero-sum game; it is a win-win for both sides, with people across the UK and the EU benefiting. It is about turning the page, reforming alliances and forging new relationships with our European friends. I want to be very clear that the Government will be open-minded and pragmatic about proposals that would improve British people’s security, safety and prosperity, while keeping clear the red lines that we will not compromise on. In this time of change, the Government are stepping up to build alliances in a bid to make people safer and more prosperous. That is the core of our national interest.

Oral Answers to Questions

Liz Saville Roberts Excerpts

Wednesday 12th March 2025 Commons Chamber

[Jo Stevens]

The criterion for the announcement last week is publicly available; I suggest the hon. Gentleman has a look at it.

[Liz Saville Roberts (Dwyfor Meirionnydd) (PC)]

Diolch yn fawr iawn, Lefarydd. I am sure the House will join me in remembering the Llandow air disaster in which 80 people lost their lives 75 years ago.

Elaine’s Hair and Beauty Salon in Llanrug, Pitian Patian Nursery in Llanwnda and care homes and GP surgeries across Dwyfor Meirionnydd tell me that national insurance hikes coming in just a few weeks will stop them hiring new staff. The Secretary of State’s Government say they are cutting welfare to get people into jobs. What jobs?

[Jo Stevens]

Plaid Cymru’s manifesto for the general election had £5 billion of unfunded commitments. If the right hon. Lady’s party were in power, we would be facing the same legacy that we had from the Conservative party: a £22 billion black hole that has meant that we have had to take difficult decisions. Her constituents will want more investment in our NHS, more investment in our public services and more investment to support businesses; her party voted against all that in the Welsh budget.

[Liz Saville Roberts]

If the Government agreed with the Secretary of State’s counterpart in Cardiff, we would have the money from the Crown Estate as well. Back in 2015, the Secretary of State and I walked through the same Lobby to vote against what she then described as despicable Tory welfare cuts, and she dared the break the Labour Whip to do so. Given the evidence of her strong convictions on the issue, how can she justify remaining in a Cabinet that is intent on implementing Tory-style welfare cuts?

[Jo Stevens]

We inherited a Tory welfare system that is the worst of all worlds: it has the wrong incentives; it discourages people from working; the people who really need a safety net are still not getting the dignity and support that they need; and the taxpayer is funding an ever-spiralling bill. It is unsustainable, indefensible and unfair. Our principles for reform are clear: supporting those who need support, restoring trust and fairness in the system, fixing that broken assessment process and the disincentives and supporting people to start, stay and success in work. The right hon. Lady should support that.

Oral Answers to Questions

Liz Saville Roberts Excerpts

Wednesday 5th March 2025 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I thank my hon. Friend for raising this familiar topic. We inherited a SEND system that failed to meet the needs of children and families. That is why we are investing £1 billion in SEND, alongside £740 million for councils to improve inclusivity and expertise in mainstream schools and to ensure that special schools can cater for children with the most complex needs. We are working closely with partners in Devon to deliver an accelerated progress plan and we have deployed SEND advisers to offer support to the local authority.

[Liz Saville Roberts (Dwyfor Meirionnydd) (PC)]

By cosying up to Putin, Trump is making Europe less safe. We all recognise the need for Europe to adapt. Germany is changing its fiscal rules to boost investment in defence and infrastructure and creating a €500 billion fund to strengthen its future. Will the Prime Minister please consider a similar approach, focusing on strategic investment rather than imposing further hardship on the poorest through cuts to welfare and international aid?

[The Prime Minister]

As the right hon. Lady knows, it is important that, if we are to increase defence spending as we are, and to have that fully costed and fully funded, we need to put that plan before the House, which is what I did last week. She talks about fiscal rules and funding, but I have to say that it was highly regrettable that Plaid Cymru voted against £1.6 billion to fund public services in Wales. She needs to explain how that helps her constituents and the people of Wales.

Ukraine

Liz Saville Roberts Excerpts

Monday 3rd March 2025 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

Different people will respond in different ways. Some will take to the keyboard as warriors; I picked up the phone to world leaders to try to resolve the situation.

[Liz Saville Roberts (Dwyfor Meirionnydd) (PC)]

Working together with our European partners is essential for security, stability and peace. Plaid Cymru commends diplomatic initiatives over the weekend. Boosted defence spending should not come at the expense of international aid or public services that are starved of resources. The Prime Minister talked of Tory fiscal failures, but protecting peace now calls for a bolder vision. Under what circumstances would he commit to looking again at the fiscal rules to ensure that the UK can responsibly invest in defence, humanitarian commitments and public services?

[The Prime Minister]

I do understand the right hon. Lady’s concern. As I explained to the House last week, the decision on defence was not one I wanted to take, but the defence and security of Europe required us to take it. On the fiscal rules, economic stability is vital. If we lose that, we will lose far more out of all our budgets. I will work across the House, in whatever ways we can, to increase development aid, notwithstanding the budgetary constraints. I spoke to the president of the World Bank on Friday to have that very discussion. Those discussions are to be had with other countries and institutions, and innovation and discussion across the House would be a valuable part of that exercise. The principle behind her question is the right one: we must support international development and aid.

Defence and Security

Liz Saville Roberts Excerpts

Tuesday 25th February 2025 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

The reforms are really important. The strategic review is very important, and the funding is very important. This is a moment when we must step up and play our full part in the defence of our country and the defence of Europe. I have already commented on the plan that the Conservative party put forward at the election. I have not quoted my words; I have quoted the words of the Institute for Government, which said—[Interruption.] Well, I would say what I think, but what the Institute for Government said was perfectly right. The plan was not properly funded and it was not a credible plan. We have put a credible plan before the House, and I am glad it has been welcomed.

[Liz Saville Roberts (Dwyfor Meirionnydd) (PC)]

Plaid Cymru stands firm with the need to safeguard Ukraine’s sovereignty, because international security is also national security. However, the UK will now cut the already diminished foreign aid budget to fund military spending. National security calls for building peace, as well as for armed forces. Given the importance that overseas aid plays in preventing conflict, building democracy and curbing warmongering tyrants, to paraphrase the Foreign Secretary, surely cutting foreign aid too is a massive strategic and moral mistake?

[The Prime Minister]

The right hon. Lady is right to raise the importance of overseas development—I have said that from the Dispatch Box a number of times—but this is a moment when we have to step up and increase our defence spending. Of course, everybody in this House would wish that was not the situation. We have had a peace dividend for many years, but that has come to an end. We have to step up and our first duty is to keep the country safe, which requires a credible plan. I accept that it is a difficult plan—this is not a decision that I wanted to make—but it is a credible plan for the defence and security of our country and of Europe.

Storm Darragh

Liz Saville Roberts Excerpts

Tuesday 10th December 2024 Commons Chamber

[Ms Oppong-Asare]

A lot of work has been done in this regard, but if my hon. Friend writes to me I shall be able to respond to her directly and adequately.

[Liz Saville Roberts (Dwyfor Meirionnydd) (PC)]

I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Ceredigion Preseli (Ben Lake) for securing the urgent question.

Electricity supplies have yet to be restored to some Gwynedd communities, more than 72 hours after the red weather warning. The switch from copper to digital technology means that all landline telephones will need electricity to work in the future, as do mobile phone masts. These matters are reserved to Westminster—they are not devolved—so will the Minister speak to her colleagues in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, and commit to a Government assessment of the resilience of mobile and landline communication in Wales and the adequacy of the support given by BT and EE to elderly and vulnerable people during the switchover process?

[Ms Oppong-Asare]

Engineers have been working tirelessly with National Grid’s electricity distributors and with other networks to ensure that steps are taken to reconnect vulnerable customers in particular, but if the right hon. Member writes to me, we can look into this in more detail.

Infected Blood Compensation Scheme

Liz Saville Roberts Excerpts

Monday 2nd September 2024 Commons Chamber

[Nick Thomas-Symonds]

Now that the regulations have been laid, as I indicated, it is operationalised, and I know Sir Robert Francis will now be moving as swiftly as he can to be in a position to deliver that final compensation to the infected down the core route and to start those payments by the end of the year.

[Liz Saville Roberts (Dwyfor Meirionnydd) (PC)]

I thank the Paymaster General for his statement, which is testament to the long-fought campaign for victims, including the campaigning done by my constituents Judith Thomas and Ruth Jenkins, whose husband and brother Christopher Thomas died in 1990. The UK Government have announced that the Infected Blood Compensation Authority will work closely with the devolved Administrations to deliver payments in Wales, and the statement outlined meetings that were held with the devolved Health Ministers. In May, the Senedd heard that the UK Government will bear the costs of the scheme in full. Will the Paymaster General today reaffirm that commitment, and assure victims in Wales that they will not face any delays in compensation?

[Nick Thomas-Symonds]

I can reassure the right hon. Lady that in advance of the action I took in the summer, I spoke to the Health Ministers in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. I am very committed to working with the devolved Administrations. I repeat the commitment that this will be funded by the UK Government. I am also happy to give the commitment that there will not be undue delays, whether in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.

NATO and European Political Community Meetings

Liz Saville Roberts Excerpts

Monday 22nd July 2024 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I do not think the deal we have is good enough. If we talk to any business that deals with the EU, they complain it is not good enough for them and has made trade harder, not easier, and that is a real problem. We can do better than that. The EPC was an early opportunity for us to reset our relationship and begin progress towards that better relationship, whether that is in relation to trade or defence and security, which are both very important to us.

[Liz Saville Roberts (Dwyfor Meirionnydd) (PC)]

I welcome that the Prime Minister says that there is an appetite for a reset in our relationship with our European neighbours. A core element of collective European security is collective economic security. He knows that being outside the single market and the customs union has cost the UK economy almost £140 billion. How will he remedy this toxic Tory legacy by continuing to refuse even to consider rejoining those economic structures?

[The Prime Minister]

I think the relationship can improve. We can have a better relationship, but I do not think we can simply ignore the referendum and go back into the EU. In the discussions I had with our European allies, none of them was urging us to take that course. They were interested in the argument we were making about a better relationship and how that could work in relation to trade, education and security and defence. That is why I wanted to be clear from the outset about our approach.

Debate on the Address

Liz Saville Roberts Excerpts

Wednesday 17th July 2024 Commons Chamber

[Liz Saville Roberts (Dwyfor Meirionnydd) (PC)]

This morning’s King’s Speech was a different sort of Gracious Speech from that to which some of us in this House are accustomed. It was heartening to hear some positive proposals that I look forward to debating, such as measures to address the need for long-overdue improvements to employment rights, reforms to the archaic House of Lords, and the extension of VAT to private schools. I particularly look forward to working together on the issues related to violence against women and girls, and was very interested to hear the Prime Minister name some activists in this area. I put on record the name of Rhianon Bragg of Rhosgadfan in my constituency, and the work she has been doing after the experiences she suffered at the hands of her offender. I would also like to mention Elfyn Llwyd, my predecessor, and the work that he did on stalking legislation, which I hope we will be able to strengthen.

However, considering Labour’s message of change, I was disappointed not to hear about legislation to address the inadequate funding framework which leaves us short-changed in Wales. We have heard, of course, about the situation in the north of Ireland, where I believe further steps have been taken than have been taken in Wales. While Labour’s Government in Wales have been distracted by internal party politics, Plaid Cymru has reiterated our clear and credible call for fairness and ambition for Wales. That means a fairer funding deal so that we can properly invest in our public services; it means the billions owed to us from HS2 so that we can connect our communities north to south; and it means powers over our natural resources so that we can ensure energy profits are directed into Welsh communities, helping us to build an economy fit for the future and creating well-paid green jobs.

Of course, we face the immediate challenge to the economy in Wales of the situation of Port Talbot. I think everybody in this House will be very much aware that we need security of supply when it comes to virgin steel for all the other projects that we hope to bring forward with net zero. The UK Government need to be working closely on finding some solution to what is happening in Port Talbot.

This is an important point: when we talk about fairness, it is not a matter of begging for money from Westminster. On the one hand, it is about demanding the money that is rightly owed to Wales. People who argue for the strength of the Union—possibly from the Government Benches; it is not something that my party does—should be looking for that giving the nation of Wales fair funding. However, it is equally significant to me and my party that we have the necessary levers—the tools that we need to drive up our own economic development in Wales. We do not want to have our hands out with a begging bowl; we want the means to grow our own economy, and for that to be answerable in Wales.

Interestingly, that point was raised in the King’s Speech today in relation to devolution in England. Having had a quarter of a century of devolution in Wales under the model devised by Labour and under a Labour Government, it would be very interesting to strengthen the economy in Wales as well. Plaid Cymru’s amendment sets out that vision in plain terms. It calls for measures to reform Wales’s fiscal framework to provide consistency, transparency and fairness—replacing the Barnett formula with a needs-based formula, introducing multi-year funding settlements, and restoring the Welsh budget to 2021 spending review levels. That is how Labour could bring about real change in Wales.

Indeed, what is missing from this King’s Speech is just as important as what is in it. The decision not to scrap the two-child benefit cap shows Labour’s choice not to prioritise the immediate needs of nearly a third of children in Wales who live in poverty. Labour officials have repeatedly refused to make that so-called unfunded commitment, but the point—this matters—is that the decision not to fund that commitment is a political decision. Plaid Cymru has championed real change: alternative means of taxation that would enable the funding of progressive policies, such as equalising capital gains tax with income tax, which would raise £15 billion a year. Some £2.5 billion is needed to fund the abolishment of the two-child benefit cap, less than a fifth of all that potential income. Just imagine how much we could do with the remaining contribution to the public purse.

Scrapping that cap alone would help lift 65,000 affected children out of poverty in Wales—that is 11% of children in Wales. Child poverty levels are unacceptably high, and this policy only increases those levels further. Investing in our children’s futures would be a real, powerful change in the here and now. Labour has committed to the idea of a taskforce, and I have to welcome that, because it is a step in the right direction. It is very interesting that that has happened today; is this the first indication of a U-turn on the part of Labour? If so, I would welcome it, and I look forward to hearing more on that.

Today, Labour also committed to strengthening devolution in England. It is of course important that communities have a real say in decisions that affect them, yet similar promises were not made to Wales. Labour’s manifesto committed to strengthening the Sewel convention and to “considering”—that weasel word—the devolution of justice and policing to Wales. That has already been considered, because it is the policy of the Labour party in Wales, but it has not been brought forward. Given the state of our prisons as bequeathed to us by the previous Government, with their policy of 14 years of austerity, we need radical ideas to tackle that blight and the question of how we rehabilitate people and deal with justice. In Wales, of course, the key measures involved with rehabilitation and making our communities safer—namely health and housing—are already in the hands of the Senedd. We need all this in place.

In recent years, Welsh devolution has been constantly undermined. It is high time to go further and pass legislation to put legal safeguards in place to protect devolved powers. We also need to heed the recommendations of experts and expand devolved powers, particularly in policing and justice, but in broadcasting too. If we are to tackle the question of the expansion of far-right populism, we need to have the means to do so through broadcasting. We also need to expand devolved powers in rail services and the Crown Estate, to name just some.

Plaid Cymru will use the clear role that we have in this new Parliament to demand that Wales is treated fairly. We will, of course, also be raising with colleagues in this place the question of our relationship with our nearest neighbours. When I am standing in Pen Llŷn, the nearest capital city is not London but Dublin, and our relationship with the rest of the EU is absolutely critical since the economic damage that Brexit caused.

We will also be raising the issue of the disaster that is unfolding in Gaza and the response of this place, and how we seek justice for the people of Palestine and make sure that in future they are properly treated and recognised as a nation in the world. Again, we will be using this theatre to make sure that our voice is heard. We will therefore continue to push the UK Labour Government to be more ambitious. I heard the Prime Minister talk about the “lobby of good intentions”. Yes, there are good intentions; there are also good intentions to work together where we can, and Plaid Cymru will hold this place to account for the people of Wales.