Must admit that I was disappointed by the Ieuan Wyn Jones interview on tonight's programme. I hadn't expected much though. There's cannot be much room for manoeuvre since the Assembly budget has already raided reserves as far as responsibility allows. Business experts, Brian Morgan and DJE were restrained but deeply critical of the longstanding 'freebie' driven policies of successive Assembly Governments. Putting electoral advantage before economic development carries a price which eventually has to be paid. But we are where we are. I really don't want to be too critical, because the problems are so large and there are no obvious answers.
The one surprise to me was IWJ'S statement that the Assembly Government is going to be giving Government owned land away for affordable housing. Not sure how this is going to work. The Government won't have any money to build houses itself on any significant scale. Are they really going to be giving land to the private sector to build affordable housing. Doubt it somehow. Looking forward to finding out more about this.
I enjoyed the evasive answers about the discussions that Ieuan has supposedly held with the Treasury about the Plaid election promise to cut Corporation Tax. His readjustment of words every time he answered a question on this suggested to me that no such discussions have taken place. Perhaps I'm wrong of course. I well recall Plaid Cymru running this line at the last Assembly Election. Thought it was disingenuous then - and nothings been said since to change that opinion.
The Miliband interview was worth watching, but only for the two withering looks he gave Adrian Masters when asked about his leadership ambitions. Its the look most people reserve for their shoe when they've trodden in something unpleasant.
5 comments:
Ieuan Wyn Jones is and always well been a small town solicitor without any vision. Plaid were right to drop him in the first place. He was frankly pathetic last night and Rhodri was just as poor on the Sharp End.Although Rhodri really seems to have at last picked up a decent suit from the Oxfam shop in Cardiff.Yesterday was an exercise in spin which most of the journalists swallowed hook line and sinker. The idea of giving away land owned by the taxpayer is really laughable and has not as usual been thought through.
Banging on about the Welsh assembly again I see.
Bob - I've no comment to make about Rhodri's dress sense. Loose talk costs lives - at least in Wales it does.
anon - I live in Wales. At present I know a lot more about the National Assembly than I do about Westminster issues. If I succeed in becoming an MP of course, the content os this blog will change.
As one of the authors of Plaid's policy on corporation tax - along with Eurfyl ap Gwilym - I find your suggestion of disingenuousness as perplexing as it is insulting. Our position on business taxes has been consistent over many years - we want to cut them as we believe this is the most direct and most efficient way of stimulating business investment. We have cut business rates, would like to go further - and when we lead our own Government we will. We don't have the power to vary corporation tax - a policy which your party in any case opposes, Glyn - but we have established the Holtham Commission to produce proposals which I am sure will form a core talking point at the next Westminster election. It will be interesting to see which side you will be on in that debate. If there are any Plaid tactical voters in Montgomeryshire I am sure they would also be interested to know.
Adam - This is a very interesting comment. At the last Assembly Elections I shared platforms with Plaid representatives who publicly advocated the cutting if Corporation Tax. I, and representatives of other parties pointed out that this was disingenuous, because the National Assembly had no such power. On both ocassions, the Plaid rep then retreated. Other Conservative candidates told me the same thing was happening to them. I thought it was wrong to imply that this was an Assembly Election issue. This was why the interviewer on Dragon's Eye was so keen to establish if the Deputy Leader of the National Assembly (and that was the hat he was wearing) had made submissions to the Treasury on this point.
At the time of the Assembly Election, I also pointed out, as did the Ukip representative, that personally, I very much approved of reducing Corporation Tax. I'm pleased that this may be your policy when the next Election is contested. I hope its the Conservative Party policy as well, but I'm not in any position to make any commitment about it. At this stage I also believe it's difficult to make any judgements about taxation policy in 18 months time. You may with my pleasure pass this opinion on to any voters in Montgomeryshire.
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