Plaid Cymru’s Vice President Chris Franks (pictured) has announced he is backing Simon Thomas to be party leader.
Chris Franks said: “I’ll be supporting Simon Thomas as leader of Plaid Cymru. I have worked with him when Plaid was part of the Welsh government. Without Plaid in government we would not have seen the referendum on enhanced powers for the National Assembly, or the Holtham Commission into fair funding. We have set the pace since the election on demanding a Plan B for the Welsh economy. Yet we don’t get the credit for this, and we lost our second party status in the last election.
“Clearly Plaid’s message is not getting through to the majority of people living in Wales. I have been impressed by his communication and public speaking skills. Simon’s strengths will ensure that the party’s message will be heard clearly and concisely.”
Simon Thomas, who will be speaking to party members in Neath later today added: “I thank Chris for his support. Chris is highly respected amongst the grassroots of the party for his hard work. He and his team in Dinas Powys have broken through and retained support in the Vale of Glamorgan. An area which was a difficult place over the years for Plaid is now represented by 4 councillors.
“A key task of my leadership would be to put the party first and take the leadership out to the nation as a whole as much as possible and recapture the high ground of putting Wales first. We have become a party of the Assembly rather than the national party of Wales. Other parties have stolen and worn our clothes. The reality is that both Labour and the Tories have increasingly bowed to their Westminster party demands; revealing their claims to be empty positioning. So leadership from the National Assembly but for the nation as a whole is what I would bring to the role of leader.”
Mid and West AM Simon Thomas has outlined he would be a different type and style of leader:
- Listening and responding to members.
- By introducing better decision making with meaningful consultation with all sections of the party.
- Preparing the party for the long haul back into Welsh government.
