Its the 26th of April, thirty years after the Chernobyl accident. Its the date I knew I was an Ecosocialist and that there was no alternative to that viewand the view of the Green Party. Its 9 days till the Assembly elections. WE must clearly remember that there is only one Green party that presents a clear anti Nuclear stance.
There are Green party candidates standing in North Wales where the lead candidates is Duncan Rees and in particular in Ynys Mon the Green party Candidate Gerry Wolff was quite clear “ For many years I have campaigned on environmental issues, predominantly focusing on climate change. I have long opposed nuclear power and am strongly against the proposed construction of Wylfa B on Anglesey. Renewable energy is a viable alternative and can create desperately needed jobs in the area.There is a pressing need, at all levels of government, to ensure that, in both policies and practice, the environment is protected for current and future generations.”
Gerry Wolff and Duncan Rees Wales Green Party Candidates
PLAID Cymru candidate for Ynys Mon Rhun ap Iorwerth has pledged to fight to ensure development of a new nuclear power plant at Wylfa B is in the interests of the people of Anglesey.
Rhun ap Iorwerth ....a Nuclear Cuckoo?
Rhun ap Iorwerth
Plaid Cymru has been forced to defend its Ynys Môn candidate Rhun ap Iorwerth some years ago after an influential Plaid blogger accused him of telling “blatant lies” and of being a “cuckoo in the nest”.
Michael Haggett, whose blog Syniadau (“ideas” in Welsh), is widely read by members of Plaid, claims the former BBC broadcaster gave dishonest answers when asked about his and the party’s attitude towards the building of a new nuclear power station on the island, known in English as Anglesey.
Many have seen Plaid’s approach to nuclear power as contradictory. While the party officially opposes nuclear power stations, its former leader Ieuan Wyn Jones – whose resignation from the Assembly prompted the election of Rhun Ap Ioerweth – supported the building of the proposed Wylfa B power station on the island.
On his blog, Mr Haggett reproduced a transcript of an exchange between Mr ap Iorwerth and Vaughan Roderick, the presenter of BBC Radio Wales’ Sunday Supplement programme.
Commenting on Mr ap Iorwerth’s assertion, Mr Haggett said on his blog: “If Rhun wants clarity, then we need to be absolutely clear that he is misleading people on this issue by telling blatant lies.
“{While} it might or might not be true to say that Plaid used to have a policy of developing nuclear power stations on existing sites at some time in the past, it has most definitely not been Plaid Cymru’s policy for some years. The decision made at conference is that Plaid Cymru are totally opposed to the construction of any nuclear power station in Wales, including a new nuclear power station at Wylfa B and Rhun is deliberately misleading people by pretending otherwise.
“He will be a liability to Plaid Cymru for years to come, because he clearly isn’t interested in Plaid’s policies for Wales. He is a cuckoo who has duped his way into our nest in order to follow a private agenda of his own, or the agenda of a narrow interest group within the party that refuses to accept democratic decisions made by the membership as a whole.”
In fact the Plaid conference in 2011 passed a resolution which said: “Plaid Cymru’s total opposition to the construction of any new nuclear power stations. If the Westminster Government gives the go-ahead for a new nuclear power station at Wylfa, we should make sure that the investment recognises the need to employ local people, invest in training to maximise local employment and make sure that indigenous companies benefit from supply chain opportunities.”
A Plaid spokeswoman responded: “We’re very proud of Rhun ap Iorwerth who is an excellent candidate who truly understands the economic realities facing the people of Anglesey and is passionate about building a brighter future for them.
“Our positive messages on jobs and the economy are being well received across the island. As the strong local candidate, the people of Anglesey know that Rhun understands the issues they face on a daily basis and is best placed to fight on their behalf in the Assembly.
“Rhun has been sincere and honest with regards to his support for securing local, well-paid jobs at Wylfa from the outset, and fully respects those who hold views to the contrary.”
Privately, leading figures in Plaid are seething about the unwelcome intervention by Mr Haggett. A party source said: “ it’s appalling that Michael Haggett has chosen to go public with his criticism.
Thirty years after the Chernobyl accident. For anyone who has a "Green" bone in his body, it is a time for mixed emotions.Sadness, Anger, Frustration, to mention a few. On t.v. and media we see horrific photos of when it happened to the present, where mother nature is trying her best to recover from the worst damage mankind has inflicted on her. Vegetation is a tough old bugger, but animal and human life will be affected indefinitely ? But the question to ask is, what is being done about it.? Simple they build a "shed" over it to hide it and hope that everybody will forget about it. Since Chernobyl we have another similar accident at Fukushima, so now you would think that we ALL would learn the lesson and say enough is enough ? Oh no, that would be to simple, people who have "lost their moral compass" would become normal human beings again, they would not be able to stand for office in public life and say they are representing "us", when in fact they are only representing themselves.? The visit last year of Mr Naoto Kan the former P. M. of Japan, and last week end's visit by the Rev. Nagase for the protest walk, are powerful tools for PAWB's ongoing campaign agains the "Nuclear Lie" but at yesterday's Gov. inquiry perhaps we were gifted with another closer to home.? I do love old proverbs, adages, etc. so here is another. "Give them enough rope and they will hang themselves". A statement by and on behalf of the people of Anglesey said that there are 10,000 unemployed people there. Statistics unearthed by Rhiannon Wolfseem to suggest that these are "spurious" to say the least. The figure being under 2,000. Another statement said that everybody that had been spoken to " couldn't " see the Wylfa Newydd project begin soon enough.
I came across this PAWB article during my daily trawl of events. It was somewhat of a synchronicity..particularly as it is five years from Fukushima and we must remember this. There are frequent debates on the scientific merits of nuclear power and while I am an opponent of it on a scientific level as well as a social and political one. Nuclear power by its very form, nature and structure does not fit into the green model of democracy or structure or accountability. Nuclear power by definition is centralised , risky, needs its own security and police force and belongs to the large powerful nation state.
Wales is a small country it needs to be committed to a decentralised model of politics. Renewable energy is the only way forward to an independent Ecosocialist Wales. It would give the people and communities of Wales direct control over its economy and power supply. I worry about the implications of Daffyd Wigleys comments for many of the excellent EcoSocialists within Plaid. I worry about a post May challenge to its leadership from Rhun ap Iorwerth and his pro nuclear leanings. The article from PAWB was a response to an article in November in the Daily Post. I fear that with the blotting out of the Lib Dems in May an Ap Iorweth Leadership following the style of the naked populism of Peter Black and Neil Macavoy will make Plaid the centralist of the Liberal Democrats. I hope that this will not be the case and many like myself look forward to working with Plaid after May. The dream of an independent, non nuclear non aligned Wales can only come from a cross fertilization between the two parties and those more subtle Corbynistas who do not follow the centralisation of the old Brit left. This is the article
Sorry Mr Wigley – you’re very wrong
A number of inaccurate statements by Dafydd Wigley (Plaid Cymru) in his Daily Post article on nuclear power on November 5 need to be challenged. Firstly, he says that we need new nuclear power stations to meet “an electricty supply crisis by mid-century.” Demand for electricity has actually fallen in the British state in the past few years. Electricty storage is developing very quickly and note how the biggest economy in Europe, namely Germany is closing all its nuclear stations by 2022 and undertaking a renewable energy revolution. There is no reason why we cannot power our own renewable energy revolution with the best renewable resources in Europe at our disposal.
The massive amount of land bought for the Wylfa B project is a green field location and involves its extensive trashing. Would Dafydd like to comment on the need to store doubly hot and doubly radioactive waste from possible new Wylfa reactors on site for at least 160 years? Does he relish the destruction of the natural beauty of the bay at nearby Porth y Pistyll by building an industrial jetty across it to import building materials?
On the matter of the French EPR reactor proposed for Hinkley and Sizewell, those currently under construction in Finland, France and China are hopelessly over budget and behind schedule. Dafydd’s concerns about decommissioning costs for the EPR reactor apply equally to the ABWR reactor proposed by HitachiGE for Wylfa and Oldbury. He is therefore being inconsistent by welcoming Hitachi’e ABWR to Wylfa as “it is used successfully in four reactors at three different locations”.
What Dafydd fails to mention is that not a single ABWR in Japan is in operation since the triple meltdown of the Fukushima reactors. Even when they were in service they only managed a 56% load factor, well short of the 80% needed to pay their way. They obviously suffered numerous problems leading to shutdowns. Furthermore, a proposed ABWR project for the South Texas site in the USA was abandoned in spring 2011 because nobody wanted to invest in it.
There are still several Nuclear Cuckoos in the Green nest......Vote Green May 5
"A peaceful war, a sweet wound, a mild evil......"
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