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The National
06-07-2025
- Politics
- The National
The SNP need a new people-first strategy to win in 2026
Then it all fell apart, culminating in the humiliating defeat in 2024's Westminster election, where 517,622 voters didn't vote for the SNP again! The post-2022 SNP autopsy has been dissected at length in these pages ever since. In 2014, the young people voted overwhelmingly for a new sovereign Scotland – 11 years on, why are we not seeing this independence-minded generation breaking through into the ranks of the SNP at all levels? Do the SNP believe Swinney can lead and win an election, despite how he has proven ineffective in every election he has led so far? I am not convinced that the Holyrood polling picture will play out as Professor John Curtice thinks. There is still at lot more SNP voter churn to come, as many independence voters just don't see the SNP as a vibrant independence party anymore, but an establishment party. There is very little that differentiates them from Tories or Labour when in power over a long period, other than being politically slightly left of centre. The SNP governance message is not resonating with the voters, coupled with the Unionist media beating down or underplaying SNP welfare policies around child poverty or no strikes in the NHS. Even when the SNP compare their performance against that of England or the Labour-run Welsh assembly, it gets very little traction. The Unionist parties and the English-owned media keep beating the SNP up over the ferry fiasco, drug deaths, SNP finances scandal, women rights debacle and NHS performance, even though better than elsewhere in the UK, to undermine the governance message now that independence is off the menu, even though more than 50% of Scots want independence. We have seen even at council level in Scotland that the Unionist parties will work together to prevent the SNP having power, Reform – who are mostly disillusioned Tories – will be no friends to the SNP either. Independence is a progressive movement that needs to be moving forward, the SNP leadership need to wake up to this fact and embrace a Scottish sovereignty convention as a matter of urgency. Why? If Keir Starmer called the SNP's bluff tomorrow (he is known for a U-turn or two!) allowing a second referendum in eight to 10 weeks' time, no chance of another year of divisive politics, the SNP and the country just wouldn't be prepared. For many undecided voters, balancing the risk of leaving the status quo and the unknown of a new place in the world is made more difficult without a clear plan and a lack of engagement – even the SNP's 13 'independence' papers/PDFs on the website didn't gain any traction with Scots because they were transactional and poorly publicised. The main way to build momentum for a new sovereign Scotland is to engage with and publicise by talking to the people face to face in public community meetings across all of Scotland, presenting a positive future not only to the converted but to the undecided. This is where a convention wins over a single political party which the country has lost confidence in, especially among independence voters. The plan confirms that we have nailed down what matters most to Scots, the NHS, welfare system, cost of living, energy poverty, pensions, jobs, currency, trade, borders/free movement as many have family ties across the UK, etc. Scots will want to know before removing the Unionist handcuffs and chains that we have a declaration of sovereignty to hand, there is consensus on or an agreed constitution ready and waiting, we have a hand-over plan for the transfer of the reserved UK Government departments – note the Scottish Government has not been particularly agile in setting up welfare systems handed over from the UK to date, never mind something as important as a treasury or defence. Oh, by the way, after 300+ years since elected parliamentarians (not the Scottish voters in a referendum) last signed away our sovereignty, I think we should think again before giving it away again, this time to the EU. In the first instance, Scotland should adopt the Norwegian model of participating in the European Economic Area (EEA) and retaining our sovereignty. A Wilson Stirlingshire YOUR article last week on the SNP's so-called 'strategy' heading into 2026 was an obituary. One that accidentally told the truth: the party has no concrete plan for achieving independence, no clear direction on key issues, no courage to challenge the status quo and no shame in its lack of progress. More than a year into Swinney's leadership and we're still waiting for a vision. Not because he's strategising but because he's afraid. Afraid to lead, to challenge Westminster, to risk anything that might spark a constitutional crisis. The clock is ticking, and we can no longer afford to wait. The situation is dire and immediate action is necessary. What are the rest of us doing? Nothing. Typing. Moaning. Waiting. The comment threads under every article are full of tired excuses and nervous loyalty. 'Be patient.' 'Trust the process.' 'Don't criticise – start your party.' That's not activism. That's servitude with hashtags. This isn't a movement anymore. It's a funeral procession, dragging the corpse of 2014 behind it as if it still holds significance. And the saddest part? Nobody wants to admit what's needed. Because here's the truth: you don't get independence by being well-behaved. You don't win freedom through stage-managed conferences, safe speeches and avoiding controversy. You win it by pushing the line. By risking consequences. By standing up when you're told to sit down – and refusing. Where's the fire? The resistance? Who among our so-called leaders is willing to go to jail? Who's willing to break ranks? Who's willing to shut down the system that denies us? No one. Could you compare that to the figures we remember? Ian Paisley didn't care if you hated him. Michael Collins didn't ask for permission. Gerry Adams – like it or not – gave speeches that made empires nervous. They stood on a hill, willing to die there. Now look at John Swinney. Will anyone remember him? Of course not. Because he's not willing to die on a hill – he's not even willing to climb one. His legacy is 'managed decline with a smile'. And here's the worst part: there's no one waiting in the wings to replace him. The absence of a strong, courageous leader is glaring, and it's high time someone steps up because nobody in modern Scottish politics is willing to do the unspeakable. To resist. To provoke. To act. To fight. That's why we're stuck. Not because we lack a mandate. Not because of Westminster. But because nobody in power – or even most of the movement – is willing to pay the price for the future they claim to believe in. It's time for a new approach, a new mindset, a new wave of activism. We need a fresh perspective and a new generation of leaders who are ready to take the necessary steps for change. When considering leaders like Adams or Paisley, we see individuals who embody a fierce commitment to their ideals and community. They don't merely manage situations; they actively fight for change. Their drive stems from a deep passion for their beliefs, demonstrating an unwavering determination to challenge the status quo. In contrast, some leaders miss the mark, like Swinney, who tends to focus on maintaining peace rather than advocating for necessary action. While managing conflict is essential, authentic leadership requires a willingness to confront challenges boldly. Leaders like Adams and Paisley rally their followers with powerful narratives and a clear vision, igniting passion within their communities. We need leaders who are not afraid to take a stand and inspire others to follow. Effective leadership is about instigating transformation, not just maintaining order. By fostering a sense of urgency and purpose, dynamic leaders ensure that their voices resonate. Swinney's approach often lacks the decisiveness needed to mobilise support for meaningful change. In contrast, passionate leaders create loyalty and motivation among their followers, inspiring them to pursue justice and social progress. It's this clarity of purpose and action that ultimately paves the way for a lasting and impactful legacy. James Murphy Bute CRACKS in the graphite core of the Torness nuclear reactor in East Lothian, Scotland's last remaining nuclear power station, have risen to 585, the highest number ever, igniting fears of a nuclear meltdown and calls to shut it down. During a March inspection, the 585 cracks were found in the bricks in Reactor 1's central core area, which are key components for cooling and keeping the reactor from melting down. Torness is run by EDF, France's national energy company. It was scheduled to shut down in 2023 but in 2016, EDF extended its life to 2030. The Ferret obtained documents released under FOI from the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR), that the parlous state of the graphite core posed a 'significant challenge' to keep the plant operating safely over the next five years. EDF insists that Torness is safe (and ONR seems to trust EDF). But EDF has every incentive to keep the plant humming along, generating profits for the French state. Scotland's other nuclear power station at Hunterston B in North Ayrshire was shut down in January 2022, a year earlier than planned, following the discovery of 586 cracks in its two reactors. If Hunterston B was deemed too dangerous to continue operating, why isn't Torness? The nuclear industry, through its lobby group Britain Remade, is trying to reverse Scotland's ban on new nuclear power. It's getting help from English Labour MPs in Scotland. The scandal-hit Douglas Alexander, Lothian East MP, is pimping for the industry. Scotland possesses enormous renewable energy resources, as well as oil and gas. We don't want or need uneconomic and unsafe nuclear and should strongly resist English Labour's attempts to force it on to us. Leah Gunn Barrett Edinburgh JUST a wee reminder that the Tour de France has begun, and more readers than you can imagine are cycling fans. And you can hang a kilt on the story, Borderer Oscar Onley is taking part. This exceptional athlete came third in the Tour de Suisse recently and was second in the Tour of Britain! Jings crivvens, twa kilts!, there's another Jock in Le Tour, Edinburgh's Sean Flynn is a teammate of Oscar Onley. C'mon, The National, we're not all into ball games and gee gees, more cycling coverage, please! Malcolm Bruce Edinburgh
Pembrokeshire Herald
04-05-2025
- Business
- Pembrokeshire Herald
Pembrokeshire defies Welsh tourism tax amid anti-English tensions
AS COUNCIL TAX premiums and tourist levies stir tensions, local businesses and residents weigh the cost of protecting Welsh identity against the economic lifeline of English tourism. In St Davids, the recent spring sunshine bathes flint cottages and surfing shops in golden light. But beneath the postcard-perfect surface, a quiet rebellion is taking shape. This year, Pembrokeshire County Council became the first local authority in Wales to push back against the Welsh Government's controversial tourist taxation strategy. After reducing the second home tax premium from 300 per cent to 150 per cent in October, the council announced in April that it will not implement the proposed visitor levy during its current term, which ends in 2027. The move has been praised by some as a lifeline for struggling businesses. Others fear it signals a retreat from urgently needed reforms to address the housing crisis and preserve Welsh-speaking communities. Christopher Taylor, 85, has run the St Davids Bookshop since 1974 and previously served as mayor of the city. He says the area has long relied on English second-home owners and tourists. 'Second homeowners who have been regular customers over decades are selling up,' he told The Telegraph. 'Tourists and second homeowners support jobs here, and we really can't risk seeming unwelcoming.' Chris Taylor, 85, seen here standing at the back on the right, runs a shop which is important for both tourists and locals alike (Image: YPD) St Davids, Britain's smallest city, is one of the jewels of Pembrokeshire's coastline and a magnet for both walkers and surfers. But signs of change are everywhere. Lockboxes for holiday lets now pepper the streets—dubbed 'tosau' or 'pimples' by some Welsh speakers. Grant Pratt, 38, who manages the surf shop Unsunghero, is frank in his assessment: 'It's small-minded,' he says of locals who complain about incomers. 'Incoming English families have reversed the fate of the struggling local primary school. Who wouldn't prefer to live somewhere bustling rather than full of moaning elderly Welsh folk?' Tourism remains central to the local economy. In 2023, it generated £604 million in Pembrokeshire and supported more than 9,200 full-time equivalent jobs. Yet the tone of some public discourse, particularly online, has left business owners wary of being associated with anti-English sentiment. One shopkeeper, who asked not to be named, said she feared a return to the 'dark days' of the 1980s, when arson attacks by the nationalist group Meibion Glyndŵr targeted English-owned holiday homes. Most of Twr y Felin's guest are tourists from England, the hotel said (Image: File) At the luxury art-themed hotel Twr y Felin, General Manager Emma Bowen said that 85 per cent of their clientele are English tourists aged between 50 and 70. Twr y Felin manager Emma Bowen: Wants how funds will be used to be clear While she supports the concept of a tourist tax, she insists it must be clear how the funds will be used. 'Good examples are Germany, France, and Switzerland, where tourist taxes subsidise attractions and public transport for tourists,' she said. In nearby Tenby, the impact of policy is also being felt. Lucas and Melanie Boissevain, who own the award-winning Penally Abbey Hotel, warn that mounting costs could become unsustainable. 'We've had Covid, unfair competition from unregulated Airbnbs, rising staffing, power and food bills – all with little government help,' said Lucas. 'Now come the levies that will add £6,500 a year to our operating costs.' According to Lucas, Wales has lost 50 per cent of its serviced accommodation providers over the past 15 years. 'This has been made up with a growth in Airbnb-style unserviced beds, but who wants to have a lockbox tourist economy, without breakfasts and the human touch?' Despite government aims to channel second home tax revenue into affordable housing, some critics argue that the funds haven't been used effectively. Without clear reinvestment and consultation, opposition to the levies may continue to grow. More broadly, the proposed tourism tax across Wales has drawn both fierce criticism and cautious support. Industry groups and operators argue that it risks deterring visitors, threatening jobs, and weakening local economies—especially in areas like Pembrokeshire that are heavily reliant on tourism. Some families may opt to holiday elsewhere, fearing added costs, while others may cut back on spending in local shops, cafes, and attractions. A Welsh Government consultation found that 74 per cent of people who were likely to holiday in Wales believed the tax could put them off visiting. Opposition politicians, particularly Conservatives, have branded the levy a 'toxic tourism tax' that could damage a fragile sector. But supporters—including figures in Plaid Cymru and Labour—say the proposed fee, at just £1.25 per adult per night, is modest and commonplace across Europe. They argue it would raise much-needed funds for local infrastructure, including toilets, car parks, and footpath maintenance, and help ease the pressures of overtourism. Following public feedback, the Welsh Government confirmed children will be exempt and has promised a full review of the tax's impact within four years. There will also be further consultation with businesses and communities. Across the UK, similar measures are being considered. From April 2024, three quarters of councils in England and Wales will introduce 100 per cent premiums on second homes, and some are extending these to Airbnb properties. Manchester introduced a tourist tax last year. Others, like Bournemouth, paused plans after backlash from the hospitality sector. Pembrokeshire's stance has made it a test case. With visitor numbers still recovering post-pandemic and an economy reliant on tourism, many locals are asking whether pushing away the English is a price they can afford to pay. As one visiting mother from Bath remarked while enjoying tea at Penally Abbey: 'It's lovely here, isn't it? Who really needs to get on a plane?' That sense of quiet appreciation may be Pembrokeshire's greatest asset. But it remains to be seen whether it can coexist with the cultural pressures that have driven the Welsh Government's policies—and the resistance now rising against them. This article was based on a national newspaper report in The Telegraph which can be read here.
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
The Welsh region revolting against anti-English attitudes
In St Davids in Pembrokeshire, spring sunshine illuminates the flint cottages and surfing shops. Britain's smallest city, in a region sometimes called 'Little England', has become a key battleground in the fight for the soul of Wales – or rather, for its reputation for offering a warm welcome to outsiders. In 2017, in a UK first, the Welsh government gave local councils the power to levy up to 100 per cent council tax premiums on second homes. In 2022, it increased this to 300 per cent. And in a final volley late last year, it announced a visitor levy, to be introduced from 2026. The tourist tax will cost hotel, B&B, and self-catering property guests in Wales £1.25 per person per night. Now Pembrokeshire is the first region to revolt against the taxes that local business owners say are threatening their livelihoods. In a shock council vote in October, it reduced the second home tax premium to 150 per cent. And on April 2, it said it would flout the Welsh government and not implement any tourist taxes during its current term, which ends in May 2027. 'Second homeowners who have been regular customers over decades are selling up,' says Christopher Taylor, 85, proprietor of the St Davids Bookshop since 1974 and former mayor of St Davids. On the day of my visit, the bookshop was doing a brisk trade in Dylan Thomas reprints and walking guides. Taylor acknowledges that St Davids is littered with the tell-tale holiday-let lockboxes some Welsh speakers dub 'tosau' ('pimples'), but says 'better-targeted' measures, such as the building of homes locals can afford, would keep incomers as well as St Davidians happy. 'Frankly, tourists and second homeowners support jobs here and we really can't risk seeming unwelcoming,' he adds. Tourism supports 9,244 full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs in Pembrokeshire and generated £604 million for the county in 2023. 'It's small-minded,' Grant Pratt, 38, the manager of St Davids surf store Unsunghero, says of the tendency of locals to moan about tourists who keep the cash tills ringing, as well as folk from England moving to the area. 'When the Premier Inn came here [in 2022] there was this huge campaign [to stop it], even though the hotel reduces pressure on housing stock being used for holiday lets,' he says. 'Then you hear of pubs with locals-only areas, which is very silly.' Pratt points out that, rather than ruining the area, incoming English families have reversed the fate of the struggling local primary school. 'Who wouldn't prefer to live somewhere bustling rather than full of moaning elderly Welsh folk?' he adds. Another St Davids shopkeeper, who does not want to be named, says she is wary of Wales returning to the 'dark days' of the 1980s. During that decade, Meibion Glyndŵr, a paramilitary Welsh nationalist group, conducted dozens of arson attacks against English-owned holiday cottages across the country and anti-tourist sentiment ran high. At Twr y Felin, an art-themed hotel built around a former windmill on the outskirts of St Davids, a group of French 60-somethings scan the menu for Welsh white wine as English families pad through the foyer in flip-flops on their way back from White Sands Bay, a crescent of beach that lives up to its billing. The hotel is part of the Rarebits Collection, an organisation of hotels, most of which are kept afloat by English visitors. In the last figures available, Wales hosted 8.44 million overnight trips for holidaymakers from England and Scotland in 2023. General Manager Emma Bowen says Twr y Felin's clients are '85 per cent' aged 50-70 and English. That said, the hotel does support a tourist tax, Bowen adds, but only if it is '100 per cent transparent' what the money raised would be spent on. 'Good examples are Germany, France, and Switzerland, where tourist taxes subsidise attractions and public transport for use by tourists,' she says. A key criticism levelled at Wales's second homes levies is that the extra money raised, though earmarked for social housing, have not been used for this purpose. An hour's drive east in Tenby, there's no shortage of 'pimple' lockboxes accessorising the Pembrokeshire resort town's lofty Victorian facades. Just down the coast at Penally Abbey, well-heeled English holidaymakers nibble carrot cake and gaze across manicured gardens to a glittering coastline. Lucas and Melanie Boissevain bought Penally Abbey in 2014 and have since transformed this Gothic-style former monastic retreat into a stylish award-winning hotel with an acclaimed restaurant. Melanie, a former interior designer, laughingly describes the hotel's vibe as 'like you have chanced upon the home of a grand dame who has just left for Venice'. Former accountant and textile industry manager Lucas, 65, has strong feelings about Wales's treatment of tourism business owners. 'We've had Covid, unfair competition from unregulated Airbnbs, rising staffing, power and food bills – all with little government help,' he says. 'Now come the levies that will add £6,500 a year to our operating costs.' Lucas points out that the financial pressures on hotels that offer services such as restaurants and on-site staffing have been 'immense', and have led to a 50 per cent reduction in serviced accommodation operators across Wales in the last 15 years, with a 30 per cent decrease in serviced bed count. 'This has been made up with a growth in Airbnb-style unserviced beds, but who wants to have a lockbox tourist economy, without breakfasts and the human touch?' English over-50s are ever-more crucial for hotels such as Penally as arrivals from markets like the Netherlands, France, Germany and Italy have not bounced back to pre-Covid levels. England's councils are now following Wales's lead, with three quarters of local authorities in England and Wales introducing a 100 per cent council tax premium on second homes from April 1, and some extending these charges to properties listed on Airbnb. Meanwhile, London is mulling over a tourist tax, following Manchester's introduction of a £1-a-night visitor charge in 2023. Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole have paused plans for a tourist tax after 40 hoteliers lodged a formal complaint about the proposed £2-a-night charge. Back at Penally Abbey, the Boissevains' spaniel Maude is chasing bees through spring daffodils in the grounds of property that survived the dissolution of the monasteries and a devastating fire in 2020 that forced the hotel to close for a summer. It will doubtless soldier on. In the hotel's smart sun room, I chat to a family of three holidaymakers from Bath who are looking forward to Penally's full Welsh breakfasts, and who plan to stroll across the tan sands of South Beach into Tenby for afternoon ice creams. 'It's lovely here, isn't it?' says the mum, wistfully. 'Who really needs to get on a plane?'. Maude wags her tail in assent. Doubles at Penally Abbey cost from £210 per night B&B. Doubles at Twr y Felin cost from £205 a night, B&B. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
30-04-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
The Welsh region revolting against anti-English attitudes
In St Davids in Pembrokeshire, spring sunshine illuminates the flint cottages and surfing shops. Britain's smallest city, in a region sometimes called 'Little England', has become a key battleground in the fight for the soul of Wales – or rather, for its reputation for offering a warm welcome to outsiders. In 2017, in a UK first, the Welsh government gave local councils the power to levy up to 100 per cent council tax premiums on second homes. In 2022, it increased this to 300 per cent. And in a final volley late last year, it announced a visitor levy, to be introduced from 2026. The tourist tax will cost hotel, B&B, and self-catering property guests in Wales £1.25 per person per night. Now Pembrokeshire is the first region to revolt against the taxes that local business owners say are threatening their livelihoods. In a shock council vote in October, it reduced the second home tax premium to 150 per cent. And on April 2, it said it would flout the Welsh government and not implement any tourist taxes during its current term, which ends in May 2027. 'Second homeowners who have been regular customers over decades are selling up,' says Christopher Taylor, 85, proprietor of the St Davids Bookshop since 1974 and former mayor of St Davids. On the day of my visit, the bookshop was doing a brisk trade in Dylan Thomas reprints and walking guides. Taylor acknowledges that St Davids is littered with the tell-tale holiday-let lockboxes some Welsh speakers dub ' tosau ' ('pimples'), but says 'better-targeted' measures, such as the building of homes locals can afford, would keep incomers as well as St Davidians happy. 'Frankly, tourists and second homeowners support jobs here and we really can't risk seeming unwelcoming,' he adds. Tourism supports 9,244 full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs in Pembrokeshire and generated £604 million for the county in 2023. A return to the dark days? 'It's small-minded,' Grant Pratt, 38, the manager of St Davids surf store Unsunghero, says of the tendency of locals to moan about tourists who keep the cash tills ringing, as well as folk from England moving to the area. 'When the Premier Inn came here [in 2022] there was this huge campaign [to stop it], even though the hotel reduces pressure on housing stock being used for holiday lets,' he says. 'Then you hear of pubs with locals-only areas, which is very silly.' Pratt points out that, rather than ruining the area, incoming English families have reversed the fate of the struggling local primary school. 'Who wouldn't prefer to live somewhere bustling rather than full of moaning elderly Welsh folk?' he adds. Another St Davids shopkeeper, who does not want to be named, says she is wary of Wales returning to the 'dark days' of the 1980s. During that decade, Meibion Glyndŵr, a paramilitary Welsh nationalist group, conducted dozens of arson attacks against English-owned holiday cottages across the country and anti-tourist sentiment ran high. At Twr y Felin, an art-themed hotel built around a former windmill on the outskirts of St Davids, a group of French 60-somethings scan the menu for Welsh white wine as English families pad through the foyer in flip-flops on their way back from White Sands Bay, a crescent of beach that lives up to its billing. The hotel is part of the Rarebits Collection, an organisation of hotels, most of which are kept afloat by English visitors. In the last figures available, Wales hosted 8.44 million overnight trips for holidaymakers from England and Scotland in 2023. General Manager Emma Bowen says Twr y Felin's clients are '85 per cent' aged 50-70 and English. That said, the hotel does support a tourist tax, Bowen adds, but only if it is '100 per cent transparent' what the money raised would be spent on. 'Good examples are Germany, France, and Switzerland, where tourist taxes subsidise attractions and public transport for use by tourists,' she says. A key criticism levelled at Wales's second homes levies is that the extra money raised, though earmarked for social housing, have not been used for this purpose. An hour's drive east in Tenby, there's no shortage of 'pimple' lockboxes accessorising the Pembrokeshire resort town's lofty Victorian facades. Just down the coast at Penally Abbey, well-heeled English holidaymakers nibble carrot cake and gaze across manicured gardens to a glittering coastline. Lucas and Melanie Boissevain bought Penally Abbey in 2014 and have since transformed this Gothic-style former monastic retreat into a stylish award-winning hotel with an acclaimed restaurant. Melanie, a former interior designer, laughingly describes the hotel's vibe as 'like you have chanced upon the home of a grand dame who has just left for Venice '. Former accountant and textile industry manager Lucas, 65, has strong feelings about Wales's treatment of tourism business owners. 'We've had Covid, unfair competition from unregulated Airbnbs, rising staffing, power and food bills – all with little government help,' he says. 'Now come the levies that will add £6,500 a year to our operating costs.' Lucas points out that the financial pressures on hotels that offer services such as restaurants and on-site staffing have been 'immense', and have led to a 50 per cent reduction in serviced accommodation operators across Wales in the last 15 years, with a 30 per cent decrease in serviced bed count. 'This has been made up with a growth in Airbnb-style unserviced beds, but who wants to have a lockbox tourist economy, without breakfasts and the human touch?' English over-50s are ever-more crucial for hotels such as Penally as arrivals from markets like the Netherlands, France, Germany and Italy have not bounced back to pre-Covid levels. Unheeded lessons England's councils are now following Wales's lead, with three quarters of local authorities in England and Wales introducing a 100 per cent council tax premium on second homes from April 1, and some extending these charges to properties listed on Airbnb. Meanwhile, London is mulling over a tourist tax, following Manchester's introduction of a £1-a-night visitor charge in 2023. Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole have paused plans for a tourist tax after 40 hoteliers lodged a formal complaint about the proposed £2-a-night charge. Back at Penally Abbey, the Boissevains' spaniel Maude is chasing bees through spring daffodils in the grounds of property that survived the dissolution of the monasteries and a devastating fire in 2020 that forced the hotel to close for a summer. It will doubtless soldier on. In the hotel's smart sun room, I chat to a family of three holidaymakers from Bath who are looking forward to Penally's full Welsh breakfasts, and who plan to stroll across the tan sands of South Beach into Tenby for afternoon ice creams. 'It's lovely here, isn't it?' says the mum, wistfully. 'Who really needs to get on a plane?'. Maude wags her tail in assent. Doubles at Penally Abbey cost from £210 per night B&B. Doubles at Twr y Felin cost from £205 a night, B&B.
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Lord Elis-Thomas, energetic Welsh nationalist who took a pragmatic approach to devolution
Lord Elis-Thomas, who has died aged 78, was a mercurial Welsh nationalist who served 20 years as Plaid Cymru MP for Meirionydd, left active politics to chair the Welsh Language Board, then re-engaged to become the devolved Welsh Assembly's first Presiding Officer. Slight, blond-haired, impulsive and a self-proclaimed Marxist, Dafydd Elis Thomas (he hyphenated his name on becoming a peer) was a pragmatic nationalist, concerned with the realities of power rather than Celtic romanticism. Despite having a PhD on Eulogies in Medieval Welsh Literature, he saw the language as of essentially practical value, notably in communicating with his constituents. Elis Thomas did once make a speech in Welsh to the Commons' Welsh Select Committee. But he warned against the National Eistedfodd becoming 'an introverted cultural ghetto'. Nor had he any time for Welsh-language extremists, and when English-owned holiday cottages were being torched he urged Margaret Thatcher to give the police resources to apprehend the arsonists 'before anyone is killed'. As president of Plaid from 1984 to 1991, Elis Thomas worked hard to heal the breach between the radical Left and party traditionalists, and persuaded the party to abandon its historic commitment to a completely independent Wales. He also forged links with the Scottish National Party, Irish nationalists and separatists on the Continent. Over time, he came to envisage a Welsh identity being established in a European rather than British context, through a 'post-nationalist' Green alliance of small states. In the 1989 Euro-elections he stood for North Wales, finishing a strong third. Unlike some in the party, he refused to deal with Sinn Fein, condemning Gerry Adams's visit to Wales in 1987 as an affront to the relatives of servicemen murdered by the IRA. For most of his time at Westminster Elis Thomas was one of two Plaid Cymru MPs, the other being the more moderate Dafydd Wigley. He tabled questions on an industrial scale, winning concessions from successive governments over economic support for the principality and use of the Welsh language. He gained compensation for disabled slate workers and was instrumental in saving the Cambrian Coast railway from closure. He also took a keen interest in mental health – being vice-chairman of the all-party group – and in the welfare of animals involved in medical experiments. Elis Thomas caused little surprise with his announcement in 1991 that he would not stand for the Commons again because Parliament was almost beyond reform – 'a club for fat, tired and unfit old men who are getting less and less capable of intelligent analysis'. But there was bewilderment in his party when he accepted a life peerage, members finding this hard to reconcile with his protestations of disillusionment. The narrow vote for Welsh devolution in the referendum of 1997 brought Elis Thomas back on to the political stage as one of nationalism's senior figures. Elected in the first Assembly elections of 1999 for Meirionydd Nant Conwy, his old Westminster seat, he was elected its inaugural presiding officer. It was ironic that the most explosive moment during his 12-year occupancy of the chair should be his expulsion from the chamber of Plaid's future leader Leanne Wood in 2004, for referring to the Queen as 'Mrs Windsor' and refusing to withdraw the remark. Elis Thomas served in what by then had become the Senedd until 2021. He left Plaid Cymru in 2016 to support Carwyn Jones's Labour-led Welsh Government, joining it in 2017 to serve for a year as deputy Minister for Culture, Tourism and Sport. Latterly he sat as an independent. Dafydd Elis Thomas was born at Carmarthen on October 18 1946, the son of William Ellis Thomas, a Presbyterian minister, and the former Eirlys James. He grew up in a Welsh-speaking home, first near Llandysul in Ceredigion and later at Llanrwst in the Conwy valley. His family background was a mixture of the Left-of-Labour ILP, Liberal and Plaid. From Ysgol Dyffryn Conwy, he read Welsh at the University College of North Wales in Bangor. After a brief stint as a reporter on the Western Mail, he became in 1970 a tutor in Welsh Studies for the Open University and Coleg Harlech. He also worked as a freelance broadcaster for BBC Wales, HTV, Radio Wales and, later, S4C. He continued his academic work after his election to Parliament, lecturing in the English department at Bangor, gaining his PhD at the University of Wales in 1988 and subsequently lecturing there. In 1990 he was given a fellowship at St Andrew's University to work on a book entitled Post Nationalism. Elis Thomas was active in the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament and the Labour Party before joining Plaid Cymru in 1967. He drafted the party's 1970 election manifesto Action for Wales and fought Conwy, receiving 11 per cent of the vote, mostly from Labour supporters attracted by his socialist zeal. His showing enabled the Conservatives to oust the sitting Labour MP. From 1970 to 1972 he was Plaid's director of policy. Then he was selected as candidate for Merioneth, in place of Wigley, who had moved to Caernarfon, having pushed the Liberals into third place. At the snap February 1974 election Elis Thomas pulled off the biggest upset in Wales, ousting Merioneth's Labour MP Will Edwards by 588 votes. Arriving at Westminster the baby of the House at 27, he appointed himself Plaid Cymru's chief whip – Wigley, who also won a seat, becoming leader. He declared: 'Two is a party' and demanded official recognition as such. This 'new party' enjoyed unanticipated political influence, as the survival of Wilson's government depended on support from the smaller parties. Elis Thomas immediately offered it, provided the Government satisfied 'the constitutional aspirations of the Welsh people'. In that year's second election, in October, when Plaid won a third seat, he quintupled his majority to 2,592. He would retain the seat – redrawn in 1983 as Meirionnydd nant Conwy – by larger majorities at three further elections. In his first year, Elis Thomas was the Commons' most prolific questioner, tabling 748. He campaigned hard for withdrawal from the EEC in the referendum of 1975, urging that Welsh votes be counted separately. As Labour prepared to legislate for devolution he pressed for Wales to have the same degree of autonomy as Scotland. In November 1978 he guaranteed James Callaghan Plaid Cymru's three votes in return for compensation for ailing slate quarrymen, support for the Welsh language and an early date for the referendum. Elis Thomas took the outcome of the referendum, on St David's Day 1979, badly. Only 20 per cent voted for a Welsh assembly, and having invested heavy emotional capital in the campaign he reacted fiercely, declaring: 'The only way forward is direct politics.' That December he urged a Welsh general strike to save the steel industry, and a year later worker-occupation of factories threatened with closure. When Argentina invaded the Falklands, Elis Thomas, as Plaid Cymru's vice-chairman, failed to convince the party that they should be handed over. He went on to launch an ill-defined 'community socialism' programme that was blamed for Plaid's subsequent poor showing in the Gower by-election. Wigley had beaten Elis Thomas to the party presidency in 1981 when the veteran Gwynfor Evans retired. In 1984 Wigley stood down, and Elis Thomas was elected in his place; one of his first actions was to pledge support to Arthur Scargill's striking miners. In 1986 Plaid came out against a new nuclear power station to replace the Magnox plant at Trawsfynydd, one of his constituency's biggest employers. Elis Thomas supported the decision, having worried about the potential for leaks of radiation, but urged the Government to plan for new jobs when the Magnox plant was decommissioned, as happened in 1991. Elis Thomas attended Tony Benn's Chesterfield 'socialist conference' in 1987, and the following year tabled hundreds of questions for CND. In January 1991 he voted with Labour's hard Left against the Gulf War. Giving up his seat in 1992, he sat initially as a crossbencher in the Lords to reflect his chairing a public body, but took the Plaid Cymru whip after his term at the Welsh Language Board ended in 1999. In the Welsh Assembly, his duties as Presiding Officer – with David Steel initially his counterpart in Scotland – kept him out of active politics until 2011. He was AM for a redrawn Dwyfor Meirionnydd constituency from 2007, and returned to the fray as Plaid Cymru's spokesperson for Environment, Energy and Planning before transferring to Rural Affairs, Fisheries and Food in 2012. From 2011 to 2014 he chaired the assembly's Environment and Sustainability Committee, and in 2015-16 the Welsh Government's Future Landscapes Working Group. Elis Thomas was at various times president of the anti-fascist organisation Searchlight Cymru; chairman of Screen Wales; a member of the Arts Council for Wales; and a governor of the Church in Wales and the British Film Institute. He was president, then chancellor, of Bangor University from 2001 to 2017. He was appointed a privy councillor in 2004. Dafydd Elis Thomas married Elen Williams in 1970; they had three sons but the marriage was dissolved in 1987. For several years until 1992 his partner was Marjorie Thompson, chair of CND. In 1993 he married Mair Parry-Jones. Lord Elis-Thomas, born October 18 1946, died February 7 2025 Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
