People need ‘time to enjoy' saints' days, says Plaid Cymru's Westminster leader
People need 'the time to enjoy' St David's Day in Wales and St Piran's Day in Cornwall, Plaid Cymru's Westminster leader has said amid calls for bank holidays.
In a debate to mark St David's Day, which takes place on Saturday, Liz Saville-Roberts told the Commons that not having a bank holiday for the event 'doesn't stop us from coming together to celebrate' Wales.
But she said people throughout the UK should celebrate national saints 'with vigour and enthusiasm'.
Neither St David's Day on March 1 nor St Piran's Day on March 5 are bank holidays.
St George's Day, celebrated in England on April 23, is also not a bank holiday.
But people in Northern Ireland and Scotland receive bank holidays to mark patron saints' feast days – St Patrick's Day on March 17 and St Andrew's Day on November 30.
Ms Saville Roberts, who wore a daffodil pinned to her top, said: 'It's a time of course to take pride in our culture, our communities, our language, each a rugged testament to our resilience as a nation.
'We are a nation of creativity and innovation.
'We all here know that Wales has the talent, the resources, the potential to be more than brilliant.
'But it's time to be more ambitious, it's time to up our game.
'While we may not yet have a St David's Day bank holiday, that doesn't stop us from coming together to celebrate what makes our country so special.'
Ben Maguire, the Liberal Democrat MP for North Cornwall, intervened in her speech and asked: 'Would (Ms Saville Roberts) support my calls to make St Piran's Day – the national day of Cornwall – a bank holiday which is taking place on March 5?'
Ms Saville Roberts, who is the MP for Dwyfor Meirionnydd in North Wales, replied: 'Yes, we should be celebrating our regional saints and our national saints with vigour and enthusiasm, and make sure that people get every opportunity and the time to enjoy them.'
She also called on MPs to 'acknowledge the challenges we face' and said the National Theatre Wales company had 'shut up shop', after its closure last December.
'Our arts and culture, so integral to our national identity, they are at present hanging in the balance,' Ms Saville Roberts said, adding that the NHS west of the border had been 'chronically mismanaged'.
David Chadwick, the Liberal Democrats' Wales spokesman and the MP for Brecon, Radnor and Cwm Tawe, later endorsed calls for a bank holiday.
He told MPs: 'Let us move boldly forward, together advocating for St David's Day to be recognised as a national holiday.'
Labour MP for Cardiff West Alex Barros-Curtis had said the budget for Wales shows 'the power of partnership between two governments working together in the interests of the Welsh people'.
He said: 'So why, therefore, Plaid Cymru will be joining the Conservatives to vote against this investment at the budget next week is beyond me.'
Ms Saville Roberts intervened to say: 'He knows as well as I, in real terms, that this is not an increase, and also it is front-loaded for the Welsh budget.
'We know there is grief coming down the track with budgets in future, so it's hardly appropriate to be singing the praises of this budget, knowing what's on its way.'
Mr Barros-Curtis replied: 'That is still inexcusable to me why Plaid Cymru would vote against an extra £1.5 billion in the budget next week and join the Tories in doing so, it seems an unfathomable reason for that.'
In her contribution, Llinos Medi, Plaid Cymru MP for Ynys Mon, said: 'For decades, we have failed to address the fundamental problems that face Wales.
'We have never had an ambitious strategic economic plan. The case for a new radical and made-in-Wales approach to economic development is clear for all to see.'
Welsh Secretary Jo Stevens described 'UK and Welsh governments working together and delivering for the people of Wales on economic growth, on clean energy, on water regulation, on health, and on plans for future rail improvement'.
She told MPs that the Government had secured £80 million of support for the steel community in Port Talbot and supported the Welsh Government with £25 million to secure disused coal tips.
'The past six months have already seen billions of pounds of investment committed and hundreds of jobs created,' Ms Stevens added.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
North Wales Live
26 minutes ago
- North Wales Live
Surge in Welsh house names in Abersoch and Llanberis and what's driving it
Tourism is helping to drive a 'Cymrufication' of place names, a major study has found. The trend was observed in two holiday hotspots in Gwynedd and it appears to be accelerating. In the two villages, Abersoch and Llanberis, higher-the-average numbers of holiday homes have Welsh names on platforms like Not only are Welsh place names considered increasingly 'fashionable', they are seen as helping to promote the area to tourists. One person in Abersoch told the study that the area's 'Welshness' was an 'added bonus' for attracting tourists or in appealing to those with second homes in the area. A similar but less acute trend was seen in Llanberis but the outcomes sometimes differed, with a higher number of mixed Welsh-English names. The findings were reported in a study commissioned by the Welsh Government into how property, street, and business names are changing across Wales. Despite high-profile switches of traditional Welsh properties to English names, the research found a clear shift towards using Welsh language place names over the past decade. Local authorities received three times more applications for Welsh language street names than English language names between 2018-2023. Most changes to property names are in the same language. However, when the language does change, properies are at least three more likely to be renamed from English to Welsh than the other way round. People report that Welsh house names give them 'a sense of pride, place or nostalgia'. For the study, seven locations were selected for in-depth scrutiny, including Abersoch and Llanberis. Others included Connah's Quay in Flintshire, Llanidloes in Powys and Narberth in Pembrokeshire. These were compared against data from other places in Wales, including Wrexham, Llangollen, Llandegla and Denbigh. In Connah's Quary, most properties are numbered rather than named, though some do have 'alias names' - names given to homes in addition to house numbers. Often these alias names reflected rural areas outside the post-industrial town. In contrast Abersoch has very few numbered-only properties (7.8%) with a higher prevalence of named properties (71.1% of the 332 surveyed properties) compared to other localities. Where residents in Abersoch do have numbered properties, they like to give it a name – there's a higher prevalence of alias naming here compared to other places. Join the North Wales Live Whatsapp community now The overall preference of named properties could reflect the village's settlement pattern, it being a smaller coastal community with a mix of older housing stock and houses built in small batches. In contrast, Llanberis has a large number of numbered properties and most its Welsh language names were alias names. Here, Airbnbs have expanded rapidly in recent years and the resulting friction has led to the village being dubbed the "next Abersoch". In Llanberis, the study detected particular concerns over the impacts of tourism amid a perception than more properties were being given English names. This perception is based on the historic threat to local topographic names, especially online, said the study. Examples cited included the 'Steps of Cirith Ungol' in place of Llwybr Llwynog, and 'Looning the Tube Level' for Ponc Penrhydd, used by climbers at Dinorwig Quarry. In both Abersoch and Llanberis, businesses and holiday lets were seen to be driving the adoption of Welsh names, often by switching from English. It's thought their names were often chosen to appeal to tourists. In Llanberis, one business owner said a Welsh language name was an important part of their distinctive tourism 'brand'. The study noted: 'Other non-Welsh-speaking business owners (in Llanberis) had adopted Welsh language business names to 'belong' and to create a distinctive Welsh language sense of place for the community and for tourists.' This trend was supported by data from where the majority (63.2%) of named properties listed in Wales have an English language name – much higher than the all-Wales average (50.4%). It's believed that accommodation providers appeal to tourists by offering properties with words like 'View', 'Cottage' and 'Sea'. In Abersoch, however, the opposite was true, with 72.4 % of its holiday properties listed having Welsh language names on This is in a village where 57% of residents are Welsh speakers. Overall, holiday accommodation in Abersoch was found to almost four times more Welsh names (42 properties) than English names (11 properties). Welsh Language Secretary Mark Drakeford said: 'Place names help tell the story of who we are as a nation, and this new research helps us understand our linguistic landscape. "I'm encouraged to see more people embracing Welsh property names, regardless of their background.' Gwynedd reclaiming Welsh language names To further delve into property name trends in Gwynedd, 10 other localities were assessed. These were: Aberdyfi Blaenau Ffestiniog Dolgellau Morfa Bychan Morfa Nefyn Nefyn Porthmadog Trawsfynydd Tywyn Y Felinheli Between 2009-2024, Dolgellau was found to have had the highest number (23) of property name changes, while Trawsfynydd had the fewest number (four). Across the county, changes from an English to a Welsh name were around 10 times greater than the other way round. This was much higher than anywhere else in Wales and was particulaly noticeable with business names. Sign up for the North Wales Live newsletter sent twice daily to your inbox Data from Cyngor Gwynedd suggest these switches peaked in 2020-21. Although no explanation was give, this activity is thought to be linked to the staycation boom that occurred during the Covid pandemic. One council's Street Naming and Numbering officer told the study: 'In recent times, with Covid, we've seen an increase in staycations and being a tourist area, we had a lot of changes of use into B&Bs or Airbnbs and conversion of outbuildings to holiday lets and that kind of thing.' The visitor economy has long dictated place naming in Wales and the legacy of Victorian tourism can still be felt: the study cited Happy Valley in Meirionnydd and Grey Mare's Tail waterfall in Conwy county – there's also a Happy Valley in Llandudno. The Welsh Place-Name Society told the study that these names are 'not without interest, nor are they invalid, but are they names that we would wish to promote in today's world?'
Western Telegraph
an hour ago
- Western Telegraph
Kurtz renews wildlife cull call over rise in bTB breakdowns
In the 12 months to March 2025, a record 13,174 animals were slaughtered in Wales due to bovine TB, an increase of 17.7% compared with 11,194 in the previous year. There were also 619 new incidents during the same period, a 2% increase from 607 in the prior 12 months. In a letter to the Deputy First Minister, Mr Kurtz referenced the latest data from Lincolnshire, where a five-year culling programme has seen TB prevalence in badgers fall from 24% to just 4%. Natural England has confirmed further culls will take place in ten more areas from this September. The intervention follows mounting frustration across Wales' agricultural communities, particularly in long-standing TB hotspot areas like Pembrokeshire, where confidence in the Welsh Government's eradication strategy is at an all-time low. Mr Kurtz, who has helped push forward the Pembrokeshire Project, a science-led local initiative to tackle the disease, said it was time for the Welsh Government to take a more honest, holistic and pragmatic approach. He said: 'Farmers are being pushed to the brink, financially and emotionally. The ongoing toll of bovine TB is devastating, not just for businesses, but for the mental wellbeing of entire families and communities. 'Welsh Government must be willing to look at all the evidence, including the clear impact that targeted wildlife control is having in parts of England. It cannot keep asking farmers to suffer while ruling out potentially effective tools. Mr Kurtz also criticised the Welsh Labour Party's 2021 manifesto, which pledged to 'forbid' a badger cull, a word he described as 'ideological and absolute,' showing a refusal to engage with evolving science or the real-world impact on farming families. 'To use the word 'forbid' in a manifesto is extraordinary. It suggests that no matter what evidence emerges, the decision is made. That's not a science-led approach, that's politics getting in the way of progress.'
Leader Live
an hour ago
- Leader Live
Plans for more rail services between Wrexham and Liverpool
It will allow the Welsh Labour Government to put forward detailed plans for improvements to the Wrexham-Liverpool line and upgrades to the North Wales mainline. The announcement provides the funding for the first major component of Network North Wales to be delivered, and for development work to relieve capacity constraints at Chester station. Last month, Welsh Government Transport Secretary Ken Skates put forward plans for increased train services between Wrexham and Bidston to two trains per hour within the next three years, ahead of the introduction of four trains per hour that will run direct between Wrexham and Liverpool by 2035, after rail line works at Padeswood are completed. This funding will advance these plans. In addition to numerous improvements in North Wales, the funding will propel forward plans for five new stations in South East Wales. The infrastructure funding will be released over the next ten years. MOST READ Wrexham MP Andrew Ranger and MS Lesley Griffiths said: 'Today's news is a win for Wales and a win for Wrexham. Improvements on the line between Wrexham and Liverpool will benefit the local economy and connect communities across both sides of the border. 'Wales was starved of rail funding under the previous Conservative governments and we welcome this long-overdue investment. This is a clear example of two Labour Governments working together for the benefit of the people of Wales.'
