Plaid Cymru stages election event, without saying one of its candidates is a lobbyist

Martin Shipton

Plaid Cymru has launched its Senedd election campaign in Carmarthenshire - but without mentioning that its second-placed candidate is a lobbyist.

Nerys Evans, who was previously a regional member of what was the National Assembly between 2007 and 2011, seeking to resume her political career following many years as the director of a lobbying firm.

Yet the mini-biography of her included in the press release about the campaign launch fails to mention her directorship of Cardiff-based Deryn Consulting or London lobbyists Cavendish Consulting, which assimilated Deryn earlier this year.

Instead it states: “Born and raised in Llangain, Nerys Evans has established and grown a successful small business. She has worked as Director of Strategy for a workplace learner provider, and as a board member of the FUW. She was previously elected as the Assembly Member for Mid and West Wales, successfully bringing broadband to many communities in Carmarthenshire.”

Although she came third in the party selection contest for the new super-constituency of Sir Gaerfyrddin, Ms Evans leapfrogged former Plaid leader Adam Price because of Plaid’s gender-balance policy under which the second candidate on the closed list has to be female. The top position was won by sitting MS Cefin Campbell.

When Mr Price got fewer votes than Mr Campbell in the selection contest and was allocated the number three slot on Plaid’s list, there were concerns that one of Plaid’s leading figures might not win a seat in next May’s election. However, current polling suggests that Plaid could win three of the six seats in Sir Gaerfyrddin.

In September Plaid Cymru was criticised for participating in a networking event organised by Cavendish, for which Ms Evans now works. The ‘Meet the Candidates’ event took place yards from the Senedd at the Wales Millennium Centre (WMC) in Cardiff Bay.

It was marketed to businesses and organisations as an opportunity to rub shoulders with Plaid politicians who may have a role in the Welsh Government after next May’s Senedd election.

The WMC event coincided with a Plaid Cymru summer school being held in the same building and most Plaid MSs were present, including party leader Rhun ap Iorwerth.

The Cavendish event was an opportunity for the lobbying company to sell its election package to potential clients and secure access to Plaid candidates for existing clients. Those present were addressed from the podium by Ms Evans.

Cavendish posted on social media a video shot outside the WMC. The narrator said: “Cavendish Cymru are here at the brilliant Wales Millennium Centre today for our ‘Meet The Candidates’ event with Plaid Cymru. We’ve got a load of Plaid Cymru candidates here today from across Wales, engaging directly with businesses and organisations about what a Plaid Cymru government after May 2026 might mean to them.

“Opinion polls are projecting that Plaid Cymru are well in the race to be leading the next Welsh government and there will be implications for businesses and organisations not just in Wales but across the UK. Cavendish Cymru will be here to support you from now until election day with all the data, the news, the insights of the campaign. So get in touch with us today and find out how we can help.”

'Disgraceful'

Jeff Jones, a former Labour leader of Bridgend County Borough Council, said at the time: “It’s disgraceful. We live in a democracy. The only people that Senedd Members should listen to are their constituents. Here we have a company basically saying to business we can get you privileged access to the politicians who make the laws in Wales. It’s corrupt. Simple as that. Weren’t we promised in 1997 that the new Assembly would usher in a different sort of politics in Wales? What happened?”

A Plaid Cymru spokesperson defended its participation in the event, saying: “It’s standard practice for political parties to engage with a wide range of stakeholders. Plaid Cymru ensures this is done transparently and to a high ethical standard.”

At the campaign launch event in Carmarthen Town Football Club, current Plaid Cymru leader Rhun ap Iorwerth said: "People across Wales, including here in Sir Gaerfyrddin, have lost faith in Labour’s ability to make a difference to their day-to-day lives, having presided over long waiting lists in the health service and declining education standards. They need a government that is serious about getting to grips with the issues that are important to them, their families and their communities. Labour’s time is up, and Reform have no interest in offering those solutions.

"It is clear that only Plaid Cymru can offer the new leadership that Wales needs. That’s why more and more people are turning to us and our promise of a new government, with new energy and new ideas. A Plaid Cymru government will be more radical, more ambitious, and more impatient to bring about positive change than any which has gone before it.”

'Hope'

Ms Evans said: "As we start this election campaign in Sir Gaerfyrddin, we’re coming across so many people who see Plaid Cymru as the only party willing to fight for what is best for Wales and Carmarthenshire, many of whom are former Labour voters.

"The opinion polls, as well as the historic by-election in Caerphilly, also clearly demonstrate that it will be a two horse race between us and Reform over the coming months. We are confident that our message of hope will prevail next May."