Flintshire Chronicle: Round 2

1) What do you think of the proposed changes to the NHS, and what effect do
you think they would have on patients if introduced?

The reforms proposed by Andrew Lansley are truly frightening. They are essentially the beginning of the privatisation of the NHS and there has been outrage in England at these proposals. Luckily for Wales health is a devolved issue and it is thanks to the likes of Plaid Cymru that the Welsh people are in charge of their NHS. Plaid Cymru will fight to protect the NHS. We have innovative and ambitious proposals to improve the service provided by the NHS. Plaid proposes that a national plan for cancer services be developed to ensure that people suffering from cancer receive a comprehensive and seamless care package. We would increase the availability of NHS dentists by requiring all dentists who receive training through the NHS to provide a proportion of their work under the NHS.  Plaid Cymru will also continue to protect the budgets for hospitals to ensure that frontline health services are not affected even though the Tory/ Lib Dem government are cutting the Welsh budget.

2) What are your own personal views on the Flintshire Muslim Cultural Society's plans to create an Islamic culture centre in the county?

I think that the Islamic cultural centre would be a fantastic asset for the community. Flintshire Muslim Cultural Society are to be congratulated on this initiative and I wish the society the best of luck in their endeavours. Flintshire is lucky to have such a vibrant group in our community. Unfortunately there have been a small bunch of narrow minded bigots who have been vocal in their opposition to the centre. I have always found Welsh society to be an extremely welcoming and tolerant and the opponents of the centre are in no way representative of the great majority of the people of Flintshire.

3) If elected, what would you do to address the perceived bias of the Assembly towards the south?

The perceived north-south divide is just that, a perception, there is not truth in it. We have to appreciate that the bulk of our population lives in the south of the country and that it is inevitable that there will be more money spent than in the north. However it is not true to say that there is a bias that benefits the south more than the north. We have to look to the people who put an emphasis on the ‘north-south’ divide; they are invariably tribal politicians who are bitterly opposed to the Welsh people having any say in the running of their own affairs. These people see the Welsh taking responsibility for day to day issues like health, education and jobs and see it as a threat to their cosy consensus. But I promise that if elected to represent Alyn and Deeside that I will serve the people with an unrivalled passion and commitment.