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Delyth Jewell, who is the deputy leader of Plaid Cymru, is one of four regional Senedd Members serving the South Wales East region.

As this is my first column of the new year, I’d like to wish you all a very happy and healthy 2024. The coming year is set to be a pivotal one, politically: in the coming weeks and months, we will see the Welsh Government’s latest budget, the election of a new First Minister, and, sometime this year or next (!), a Westminster election.

That election cannot come soon enough – provided that the party that wins it is willing to make meaningful, radical and progressive changes. The funding deal which Wales receives from the UK Government is unfair and inadequate. That is true of the present Conservative Government, and there is, maddeningly, no commitment from Keir Starmer that he would put that right. I am increasingly frustrated by the Labour leader’s unwillingness to signal any kind of ambition or firm principle, for fear that he will put off some of the electorate.  

There are serious problems that must be addressed here in Wales, too. The Welsh Government’s failure to get to grips with running the NHS or our transport system means the inadequate spending power we receive is spent on sticking plaster solutions, instead of building long-term sustainability.

I want us to think more about longer term issues like our environment.  

The recent heavy rain has increased many people’s fears about flooding. The psychological aftereffects left by flooding take far longer to clear than dirty water, and I’m determined to see that people who’ve experienced flooding receive more counselling support (especially children). I am painfully aware of how the recent rain has also unsettled people living near coal tips. We have been assured by the government that there is no immediate risk posed by any coal tips, and I’m glad that work is underway to assess and catalogue the tips that still litter our valleys. But Westminster must pay towards clearing these legacies of a mining industry which predates devolution. They have a moral responsibility to pay towards making these sites safe.

It’s clear that this is far more that a safety issue: it is a matter of historical, social and climate justice.

I know that the mental health toll taken by the climate crisis is weighing heavily on many people, especially children and young people. That is why, later this month, I will put forward proposals to ensure the school curriculum includes an understanding of the severity and urgency of the climate crisis and ecological emergency, to be taught as a key concept across all areas of learning and experience.

I want to ensure that updated guidance is given to teachers to help them support the record numbers of young people who are suffering with anxiety and grief over how these crises will affect the world which they inherit from us. And I want to ensure that the way that these crises are framed in the curriculum focuses on the agency we all have to make a difference – so that young people aren’t overcome by feelings of despair or isolation. Together, there are so many things which we can all do to tackle these crises which are set to dominate the coming years. I want that sense of empowerment to shine through for our young people.

If you’d like to share your thoughts with me about ideas for improving the curriculum in Wales, and the links between mental health and the climate crisis, you would be welcome to email me: delyth.jewell@senedd.wales