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Hundreds march through Machynlleth calling for Welsh Property Act

By Mark Mansfield
The Nid yw Cymru ar Werth (Wales is Not for Sale) rally and march in Machynlleth

Hundreds of people attended a Nid yw Cymru ar Werth (Wales is Not for Sale) rally and march in Machynlleth today (Saturday, 14 September).

They were demanding that the Welsh Government introduces a Property Act to alleviate the housing crisis and secure the survival of threatened Welsh-speaking communities.

Campaigners say that a Property Act would establish the legal right of the people of Wales to a home, ensure that houses are treated as a community need rather than financial assets, and facilitate local ownership and community enterprises of property.

The rally took place just two days before Owain Glyndŵr Day, which marks 624 years since he was crowned prince of an independent Wales.

Owain Glyndŵr held a parliament in Machynlleth after being crowned Prince of Wales in 1404.

'No future'

Addressing the rally, Delyth Jewell, MS, the deputy leader of Plaid Cymru, said: "Here in Machynlleth was the site of our first parliament. It is a crossroads where our history and our present meet. There are still remnants of Glyndŵr on the streets - but it is the struggle of today, not yesterday, that brings us together.

"'Wales is not for sale' are the words of our call. To unite, to challenge, to persevere: a call that shows we will not give up.

"Without intervention, there will be no future for our communities. Without intervention, there will be an end to that thread that connects each of us with those who have gone before. The Welsh language has sustained us for centuries. The language is still alive today.

"'Wales is not for sale' is the call. And we shout those words until every syllable is echoed in our Senedd today. We will campaign, we will persevere, we will demand change"

Crisis

Dafydd Morgan Lewis from Cymdeithas yr Iaith added: "We are facing a crisis. Our young people are exiled from their communities and unable to find affordable homes to live in.

"There was a promise of a White Paper from the government over the summer. But we're still waiting for it. That eternal delay once again! If it comes before the end of the year, I hope it will be a radical one. One that will ensure the statutory right of people to a home in their community at a price that is affordable and that reflects local wages.

"The government is committed to securing one million Welsh speakers by 2050. What chance do we have of achieving that if young people cannot afford to live in their communities?

"I have no doubt that Owain Glyndŵr would approve of our rally today and join us in the call for a Property Act, and nothing less!"

In a recent YouGov poll, commissioned by Cymdeithas yr Iaith, 74% of people said they believed the right to housing should be established in Welsh law. Excluding those who answered, 'don't know', 85% supported the principle.

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16 comments

Garry Jones

I was unaware of this Nid yw Cymru ar Werth march in Mach until reading about it in Nation. I stayed in Mach twice last month for different purposes, but would have considered a third visit, had it not been on the same weekend as another event in Blaenafon. Nid yw Cymru ar Werth. 

Reply
Garry Jones

Nid yw Cymru ar Werth

Reply
Dylan Thomas

SOLD

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Valley girl

This is quite interesting. I have a second home just outside St David’s and can confirm the people who live in St David’s do not support the community. You see Morrisons and Tesco food delivery vans there all the time when there are perfectly good shops in St David’s. These people just want cheap housing. You never see locals in pubs or cafes there. Even locals buy to let out. They can’t have everything.

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CapM

You're not part of the solution you're part of the problem. According to National Park data over 20% of properties in Ty Dewi are second homes. Have you considered that an extra 25% of 365 days a year occupancy in the city would be a boost to all those local businesses you mention and enable locally owned Guest houses, B&Bs and hotels serving tourists to flourish and gain extra income through the provision of added value. If second homes and airbnbs are pushed out then "they" might have a chance of that.

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hdavies15

.. or Valley Girl might be tempted to let her property to a local family for a rent similar to that levied by local social housing provider.

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FrankC

You really are an obnoxious idiot aren't you?

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John Ellis

'... ensure that houses are treated as a community need rather than financial assets ...' That's the nub of this issue. All power to their elbows.

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Dafydd Jenkins

It's really only part of the problem, the local authorities need to sort their stupid strategies out before anything else. For example, here in Ceredigion, we're stuck in 'conservation/preservation mode' whereby you can't get planning permission to build anything if there's a blade of grass nearby. Unless you're a big developer that wants to build a large estate of course... And then the corruption comes out somewhere, because such a small percentage of the development scheme are designated affordable housing leaving the majority of them for open market, and guess who can afford open market houses in Ceredigion... Basically nobody who is already here, they're all targeted towards retirees coming in from away. And then those in the rural communities, who have the opportunity to build on relatives land, to stay in the community and raise the next generation aren't allowed, simply because the archaic planning department say so and because they don't have the balls to stand up against Cardiff (national development plan which focuses on built up areas like Cardiff, Swansea, large towns etc, just doesn't work and shouldn't apply to rural parts, simple as that.) Well, it'll all be obvious in 20 years time when all the outmigration has happened and the aging population is all that's left, not far off now really. Well done, well done.

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hdavies15

Local authorities, especially along the west side seem to have a serious problem understanding the need of local families who may have been resident for decades, even centuries. "Dim bildo fan'na, achos so fe tu fewn yr local development plan, mun" is the embedded response among the muppets at various county halls. Just another piece in the picture of why the language and culture are in decline in what used to be its heartland.

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Swn Y Mor

'Campaigners say that a Property Act would establish the legal right of the people of Wales to a home'. Is this for all the people of Wales no matter their colour, language or ethnicity or does it just apply to white Welsh speakers? 'I hope it will be a radical one. One that will ensure the statutory right of people to a home in their community at a price that is affordable and that reflects local wages'. This line is very interesting because this may lead to what has for now only been a few scattered rumours. If you want to sell your home you will be encouraged to sell to a local person (preferably a Welsh speaker) at a discounted price if need be.

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Padi Phillips

If you were familiar with Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg you'd know that their campaigns are all inclusive, so a Property Act would be for all who live in Wales, regardless of colour, language, ethnicity or any other aspect of their humanity.

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Nemesis

Clearly stuck in the past with no idea about free market economics. Demanding I 'have right to a house /home in the place of my birth etc is just pure fantasy. I was born in Madia Vale London but with average prices over £1 million it's not going to happen. Young people are and will continue to migrate out of Wales as they are intelligent enough to know there are no well paid jobs (unless you're milking the public sector) they go where aspiration is, appreciated and better wages are.

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Hugo

Didn't a local community recently reject additional housing over fears that none Welsh speaking people might move in? Seems like the issue is more around "outsiders" than more houses

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Padi Phillips

I think in the case you mention, where a proposal was that 18 homes be built in the village of Botwnnog the issue was overdevelopment rather than an issue over 'outsiders'. Local need there was for four homes. The county has a general need for more affordable homes, but not in Botwnnog, and to be quite honest, most of those homes, were they built, wouldn't appeal to others in Gwynedd because of Botwnnog's location, quite a distance away from much of the rest of Gwynedd about an hour's drive from Caernarfon. There were genuine worries that the excess housing would get offered to those who don't speak Cymraeg, It might only seem a handful of houses, but in Botwnnog, there are currently about 51 houses, so an added 18 would represent a large increase. N.B. Not all outsiders are non-Welsh speaking. Not all English people moving in are non-Welsh speaking. They are not a problem. It's not about nationality, ethnicity or anything like that; just about language.

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I was unaware of this Nid yw Cymru ar Werth march in Mach until reading about it in Nation. I stayed in Mach twice last month for different purposes, but would have considered a third visit, had it not been on the same weekend as anoth...

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