Shocking figures on Welsh poverty point to potential benefits of an independent Wales

There was a headline news item on BBC Wales yesterday (23 October) " 'Paupers' funerals' in Wales reach five-year high". The news item went on to report that the number of public health funerals in Wales in 2017-18 was the highest for at least five years. So-called paupers' funerals are held by public authorities and the figures show a rise of 62% since 2013-14. This news comes after research by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation resulted in a report being published earlier this year, which revealed that a quarter of people in Wales are living in poverty.  Oxfam Wales have stated that: "Almost one in four people in Wales lives in poverty which means they get less than 60% of the average wage. That is about 700,000 of our fellow citizens."

These shocking statistics reveal the failure of Wales present political and economic status within Britain. There is clearly great potential  for the development of a strong economy in Wales, if it can gain greater autonomy over its own affairs. Wales has a thousand miles of coastline, five million acres of land, a number of untapped natural resources and people that can make a successful nation. These elements can only be properly brought together for the good of the people if decisions affecting Wales are made in Wales. Instead this potential is hindered by its affairs being dominated by the British Westminster parliament in London. As the leader of Welsh political party Plaid Cymru, Adam Price, recently made clear, independence is the best path out of poverty for many people in Wales. His stated goal is for Plaid Cymru to win the next two Welsh Assembly elections - in 2021 and 2026 - and follow them with a referendum on independence. The present levels of poverty clearly point to the need for the changes that only an independent Wales can deliver.