Plaid Cymru leadership candidate Leanne Wood is to launch a campaign calling for Wales to be given control of its vast natural resources.
The AM for South Wales Central is to spearhead demands that the Crown Estate, which owns the seabed up to 12 nautical miles off the Welsh coast plus 3,000 acres of land, hands over its responsibilities and rights to the people of Wales.
The annual report of the Crown Estate showed its Welsh holdings generated a gross surplus of £2.3m in 2009-10 with capital receipts bringing in £1.8m. Profits earned by the Crown Estate are paid to the Treasury, according to them, for “the benefit of the nation”.
A Freedom of Information request by the office of Ms Wood revealed not a single permanent member of staff of the Crown Estate was based in Wales.
“Our greatest assets in Wales are our natural resources,” said Ms Wood.
“There is vast potential to generate our own, sustainable energy. We have the capacity to be energy self-sufficient – and that will be vital in a future where fossil-fuels are going to become ever more expensive and scarce.
“The costs plus the environmental imperative will force us to reduce our carbon emissions dramatically.
“It is my firm belief that the people of Wales should have control of our natural resources. There are many people in this country who will agree that the profits generated from wind, sun and water – which could be enormous in the years to come – remain here to benefit people in Wales.
“During the height of the coal industry, enormous profits were generated from the natural resources of Wales yet almost all of the money bled out of the country and lined the pockets of people elsewhere.
“We cannot allow that to happen again.”
A beneficiary of any increase in profits for the Crown Estate would be the Queen who will receive 15% of profits generated in return for the ending of the Civil List following a deal with the Treasury in 2010. A Daily Mail report, which referred to the deal as “a masterstroke,” said it could net the royal family an extra £37.5 million every year.
Ms Wood said: “As a committed republican, I believe it would be wholly wrong for the royal family to reap a larger proportion of the profits generated by the Crown Estate.
“I have been a committed republican for a long time and will remain so whatever the outcome of the Plaid leadership contest as it is my firm belief that the hereditary principle is immoral and anachronistic.
“If I am victorious in this contest, I am likely to be called upon as Plaid Cymru leader to meet and welcome guests from around the world, including monarchs.
“I would be prepared to carry out such duties should that be the will of Plaid members if deemed necessary to focus on our priorities.
“As leader of Plaid Cymru, my main priority would be to concentrate on the economy of Wales and to offer hope to the many that are being left behind through a lack of jobs and opportunities.”
Jonathan Edwards, MP for Carmarthen East and Dinefwr and campaign manager for Leanne’s leadership bid, said: “Control over Welsh natural resources is going to a major future political division line. Wales generates twice the electricity it consumes yet we suffer from the highest energy prices.
“Whilst the unionist parties are happy for our natural resources to be exploited by others, Plaid Cymru believes that we should be strategically using them to create a dynamic economy and deal with the social justice issues we face.
“Whilst the unionist parties believe in a future of dependence and fiscal transfers from London, we want a future where we use our resources to generate wealth to improve the lives of our people.”
