INTRODUCING a £ 35 a week payment for every child in low-income families in Wales could lift 50,000 children out of poverty, says Plaid Cymru.
Speaking ahead of a Plaid Cymru debate in the Senedd on Wednesday, January 8, Plaid Cymru Leader Adam Price said children born today are at the “highest risk of poverty” in sixty years and parents have to choose between “feeding themselves and feeding their children.”
One of Plaid Cymru’s main policies during the general election in December last year was to “eradicate child poverty in Wales” and Mr Price said that had not changed.
The Leader of Plaid Cymru said a newly-elected Plaid Cymru government in 2021 would make eradicating child poverty in Wales one of its “priorities” and said a direct payment to all children in low-income families would be one possible option in doing this.
He added that a payment of £ 35 a week could “radically transform the lives of young people across Wales” giving them “the best start in life they deserve”.
Mr Price said that while the current Welsh government lacks a “specific strategy” to tackle poverty, Plaid Cymru would deliver a program of government with the eradication of child poverty a priority.
Mr Price said Plaid Cymru would not only “manage problems” but “solve” them.
Adam Price said: “Children born today are now at the highest risk of poverty in sixty years. Parents have to choose between feeding themselves and feeding their children. Growing up and living in poverty is no longer the exception in Wales. It’s the norm.
“One of Plaid Cymru’s main policies during last year’s general election was to eradicate child poverty in Wales. That has not changed.
“Plaid Cymru would make eradicating child poverty one of its top priorities. One of the ways we could do this is by introducing a new direct payment for low-income families. A payment of £ 35 per week for each child could radically transform the lives of young people across Wales and give them the best start in the life they deserve.
“Although Labour in Wales does not have a specific strategy to tackle poverty or even a basic definition of poverty, the Plaid Cymru government will introduce a competent government program that prioritises the eradication of child poverty.
“We won’t just manage problems. We will solve them. Poverty is a political choice. Plaid Cymru will ensure that Wales chooses differently.”
