PROFESSOR DYLAN JONES-EVANS

After one of the most tumultuous years in the history of this nation, Welsh voters will be going to the polls on May 6th to choose the next Welsh Government. Given what has happened in the last twelve months, it will be critical to have strong policies to help the economic recovery and to ensure that we do not fall further behind the rest of the UK in terms of prosperity and employment after the Covid-19 pandemic. So what have the main parties to offer in terms of the Welsh economy? That is what this column will be examining over the next three weeks prior to the Senedd election and there is no better place to start than by examining some of the promises from the current incumbents in the job, the Welsh Labour Party. Given that it has been in government since 1999, it may be understandable that the party is following a ‘steady as she goes’ and ‘safety first’ approach rather than the radical call to arms that some would argue is necessary at a time of crisis especially for an economy th...

On Monday, the final leadership campaign for the three main parties in Wales will be complete. This, in many ways is the most important as the next leader of the Welsh labour Party will also, unless there is political earthquake, become First Minister on the 12th of December. And the campaigns for the Labour leadership by Mark Drakeford, Vaughan Gething and Eluned Morgan have generated many new policies that hopefully will not just be left on the campaign trail but will be considered for potential implementation during the remainder of this Assembly term. Unfortunately, this column will not do justice to all of the ideas that have emanated from all three campaigns so I will instead try to examine succinctly some of the big ideas from each of the candidates. The Finance Minister Mark Drakeford passionately believes that the creation of worthwhile, properly rewarded employment is the most effective way out of poverty, the best route to fulfilled lives, and has a positive impact o...