Ann Davies

I assure the hon. Member that I am sure that the funding will be released but, with all due respect, should it not have been released by the previous Welsh Government when that money was put in a few months ago? While the measures in the King’s Speech set out steps to reduce energy costs, they do not get to grips with the fundamental unfairness of our system. People in Wales pay some of the highest standing charges in the UK, despite average salaries being lower than the UK average. That is unsustainable, and action needs to be taken. Despite being an energy-rich nation, Wales is unable to make the most of our abundant natural wealth simply due to lack of control over it. Plaid Cymru is clear: it is for the people of Wales to control and benefit from our natural resources. This extractive economy model must cease, and money generated from our wind and sea power should be kept and shared within local communities. The Crown Estate must be devolved to Wales as it is already in Scotland. Following the Senedd election, a majority of parties in the Welsh Parliament, including the Plaid Cymru Welsh Government, are calling for devolution of the Crown Estate, as is every single local authority in Wales. The case and democratic mandate are inarguable. We have immense natural resources, including wind and tidal power, that are not being fully utilised. Electricity generation in Wales has fallen by almost 50% since its 2016 peak, as growth in renewable capacity has not kept pace with the drop in generation from coal and nuclear. If we are to strengthen our energy security, we need to see the Government and developers working with the needs of communities to deliver investment in renewables. We need to see it in a sustainable and fair way, with an emphasis on offshore wind and community-led onshore development, and developers need to be totally transparent about costs and how their investment is being funded. The King’s Speech includes the new coal licensing ban, which is welcome. However, as I have raised before in Parliament, the proposed ban in its current form does not guarantee the prevention of commercial extraction of coal from coal tips in Wales. The Government should bring measures forward to close this loophole so that companies can never profit from the more than 2,500 tips, containing millions of tonnes of coal between them. In addition, Westminster must also provide justice for our valley and coalmining communities by fully funding the remediation of coal tips in Wales, which are the legacy of our pre-devolution industrial past. The price tag is estimated at £600 million, but the UK Government have committed only around £143 million. We needed a King’s Speech that addressed the unfairness at the heart of Wales’s energy system. For a country so rich in energy and potential, Wales needs so much more ambition from the UK Government—an ambition that brings communities on the journey and that listens to the voice of Welsh constituents. Plaid Cymru will continue to stand up and demand the fairness that Wales deserves.