Politics
National smart card system pledged

Bethan Jenkins: Smart Card will ‘deliver free universal entitlements’
PLAID CYMRU will establish a Smart Card system in order to give those who live in Wales access to their universal entitlements, according to a party spokesperson.
Through the system, people will be able to access entitlements including free prescriptions, free bus travel for the over 60s, and free access to museums. Plaid Cymru will seek to expand this list of entitlements when Wales has the power to do so, including offering citizens zero toll charges on the Severn Bridge, and unlimited rail and bus travel, for an annual fee.
Launching the policy today, Simon Thomas said that the cards would symbolise a new relationship between Welsh Government and the citizens it serves.
Plaid Cymru’s Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire candidate Simon Thomas said: “Plaid Cymru will establish a new way of working across government, and between government and citizen, delivering effectively for the people of Wales.
“If elected in May, Plaid Cymru will create a Smart Card for everyone who lives in Wales, which will become the main system of delivering universal entitlements.
“Plaid Cymru’s Smart Card will entitle users to free prescriptions, free bus travel for the over 60s, free access to museums and many other entitlements.
“And as the Assembly gains powers over other aspects such as the Severn Bridge tolls, we will scrap charges for card carriers.
“Plaid Cymru will establish a new relationship between Welsh Government and the people of Wales, and our Smart Card is a symbol of that.”
Plaid Cymru Aberafan candidate Bethan Jenkins said: “Plaid Cymru’s Smart Card will deliver free universal entitlements for the people of Wales. Under a Plaid Cymru government your Smart Card will give you access to free bus travel and free entry to museums and a series of other entitlements, and we look forward to extending this of entitlements list in future.
“It’s time for a government with a focus on what it can deliver for the people of Wales and Plaid Cymru is the change Wales needs.”
Politics
Price pledges independence referendum

A PLAID CYMRU Government – able to command the support of a majority of Senedd members – will offer a referendum on independence for Wales in its first term, party leader Adam Price said.
The Plaid Cymru Leader made the announcement in a keynote address on Welsh independence from the St David’s Hotel in Cardiff.
Plaid Cymru Leader Adam Price claimed that devolution is “under attack” from the Conservative Westminster Government and that with Scotland likely to become independent by 2025 and Brexit making a united Ireland possible, the “momentum of change” has accelerated the need to hold a referendum on Welsh independence by 2026.
Mr Price, the only prospective pro-independence candidate to become First Minister will be responding to the report published by the arms-length Independence Commission in September. It had suggested holding two independence referenda within a decade – the first one exploratory to gauge people’s views in order to persuade the UK Government to hold a binary referendum.
Noting that support for independence was at its “highest” in history, the Plaid Cymru Leader will also confirm that a Plaid Cymru Government would offer one binary choice referendum on Welsh independence and will encourage all those who want independence for Wales to vote for Plaid Cymru in May.
Plaid Cymru Leader Adam Price said: “Devolution itself – that most basic democratic principle that decisions affecting Wales should be made in Wales – is under attack from Boris Johnson’s Conservatives.
Meanwhile, the demand for another independence referendum in Scotland is becoming unstoppable and by 2025 Scotland could well be an independent country. And Brexit has also given further impetus to the calls for a united Ireland.
“Wales is in real danger of being be left behind as part of a rump United Kingdom, in a new England-and-Wales formation – which would be the ultimate worst of all worlds.
“It is for these reasons that I, therefore, pledge today that subject to party approval a Plaid Cymru Government, able to command a majority in the Senedd, will offer a referendum on independence for Wales in its first term.
“It’s implicit in the present Covid crisis – the sense that something new and better must come out of this. Next May, electors won’t just want to carry on with the Old Wales. They will be looking for a new direction, one that offers hope, vision, and ambition. It is our job in Plaid Cymru to provide that hope, that vision, that ambition for real, radical change.
“Independence is the most radical idea in Welsh politics today. The last two polls on independence put it on its highest support in history. An argument once derided as a pipe dream has moved from the margins to the mainstream.
“But whilst banners and marches fuel our fire, the Welsh spring will only truly bloom at the ballot box in May. If you want independence, you have to vote for it by voting Plaid Cymru.
Politics
Senedd consults on new code of conduct

THE SENEDD’s Standards Committee is asking for views on a proposed new Code of Conduct for Members of the Senedd.
If the new Code is agreed, the Senedd’s Members would be subject to the standards of behaviour set out in the Code- including a new principle of ‘Respect’ – after the election in May 2021.
The code outlines how Members should engage with each other as well with staff, stakeholders and the public. The proposed Code also makes it clear that those standards of behaviour should apply to Members at all times, including in their personal and private lives.
If anyone believes that a Member has not met the standards of behaviour set out in the Code, they can make a complaint to the independent Commissioner for Standards. In its consultation, the Committee asks whether the current complaints procedure works or whether it should be changed in any way.
The current Code was agreed in May 2016, and the Senedd reviews it regularly. Updating the Code now has allowed the Committee to reflect on the varied issues over the current Senedd term and any changes in society and public life during that time. The Standards of Conduct Committee believes that the addition of a ‘Respect’ principle would now be appropriate, reflecting:
The independent inquiry report on the Bullying and Harassment of the House of Commons staff which led to the adoption of the Senedd’s Dignity and Respect Policy
Wider movements in society such as #MeToo and Black Lives Matter.
ONLINE ABUSE
The Code of Conduct helps to set the standard and tone of political debate. The Llywydd of the Senedd, Elin Jones MS, has previously said how she believes that targeted online abuse and the tone of political debate are barriers for people entering politics.
The proposed new Code does not refer specifically to the use of social media but says that Members “must not subject anyone to personal attack in any communication (whether verbal, in writing or any form of electronic or other media) – in a manner that would be considered excessive or abusive by a reasonable and impartial person, having regard to the context in which the remarks were made”
By including a new principle of ‘Respect’, it is hoped the new code can address some of these concerns by setting a respectful standard of debate and encouraging people of all backgrounds to get involved in politics.
CONSULTING WITH THE PUBLIC
The Committee wants to hear people’s views on its proposals and on what kind of behaviour they expect from their represented Members. It will then present the new Code to the Senedd who will decide, as a whole, whether or not to agree to it.
The review aims at completion by the end of the current Senedd, in preparation for the next Senedd.
Jayne Bryant MS is the Chair of the Senedd’s Standards Committee.
She said: “The Code of Conduct sets the standard and tone of political debate, and now more than ever it is important to get this right.
“With a serious problem of online abuse and powerful campaigns such as the #MeToo movement and Black Lives Matter, we’ve got to do all we can to improve the tone of debate and set a standard that encourages trust in elected representatives and inspires people from all backgrounds to stand for election.
“We’re keen to hear the view of people from across Wales on the refreshed Code of Conduct for Members of the Senedd.”
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