stay poor, stay silent and for God sake stay obedient!

Stay poor, stay silent and for God sake stay obedient!

The dictat from London has arrived... I'm not listening!

Has anybody actually asked why we're so poor here in Wales?
Why are our levels of poverty so high?
Why do 15% of our youngsters grow up in severe poverty?
Why do 200,000 children live in some form of poverty?

In Wales 700,000 people live in poerty out of a population of just 3,00,000 - I make that a whopping 23% of the population of Wales, just short of a quarter.

Why is Wales, a nation once rich in black gold so poor? Is it because the coal like the wealth built on the backs of the workers went to destination elsewhere?

Why are parts of our nation amongst the poorest in the whole of Europe?

Has anyone asked why?
Are we allowed to ask why?
Are we allowed to believe in a better future for our nation or do we need to ask for London's permission?

Wales has the highest percentage of children in poverty in the UK, according to Save the Children.
One in three are in a family whose income is 60% below the UK average, compared to 27% across all regions. The wealth is maintained in the south-east of England at the expense of Wales, we're stifled out in the west - out of sight and very much out of mind. 

Wales got barely a mention in the Queens Speech. The One Nation speech did indeed speak to One Nation - England. The Tories have no vision for Wales, Labour have even less vision for Wales. They don't want extra powers to be devolved as its easier to blame others. Labour and responsibilty don't go hand in hand, it's easier to play the victim - blame 'them'. I'm sure it wasn't Liam Byrne's fault for writing his infamous note "I'm afraid there's no money left - kind regards and good luck." - it was probably the fault of the biro for having ink in it.

Parts of Wales have voted Labour for over 90 years, and look at where that has got them? Some of them are the poorest parts of Europe let alone Wales! The London parties don't care about Wales - I'd argue our very existance bemuses them, our lack of willingness to be silenced - our fight to exist and to indeed want a better future.

So no, I won't stay poor, silent or obedient. It's time for us to 'man up' in Wales, raise our voices and be heard or go out with a pathetic whimper.

Let's have some ambition. Lets work together to grow our economy and develop our youngsters. Lets invest in our people. Ensure fair funding for Wales! Ensure our children has the best start in life!

http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/700000-people-wales-live-poverty-6060867

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-27600900