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Plaid Cymru called for Wales to be given parity with Scotland on devolved powers.

Rhun ap Iorwerth warned Wales remains the “poor relation” among devolved nations in policy areas ranging from rail, justice and tax to welfare benefits and the Crown estate.

He said: “Our democratic rights as parliamentarians in Wales can’t be considered to be inferior when compared to legislators in other devolved legislatures. But that is the position that we currently find ourselves in.”

Leading a debate, Mr ap Iorwerth warned billions of pounds-worth of investment is being withheld because of a lack of powers over rail infrastructure.

The Plaid Cymru leader criticised Eluned Morgan for “batting away” questions deemed to be beyond the powers of the Senedd “week after week” at First Minister’s questions.

‘Weak’

He said: “Let me decode what she is saying: ‘I’d rather not cause a problem for Keir Starmer than try to do what’s right by the people of Wales.’ It’s weak, it’s weak, it’s weak.”

Mr ap Iorwerth accused Labour of talking the talk on pushing the boundaries of devolution but “remaining resolutely passive when it comes to actually agitating for change”.

He told the Senedd: “If the union is to prove its worth … then at the very least, surely, Wales deserves parity of status with Scotland.

“And regardless of our differences on the ultimate constitutional journey for Wales … it is inconceivable that any party purporting to represent the interests of our nation should not support this very basic principle.”

He added: “The real danger is that any snail-paced incremental change – Labour’s general state of constitutional being – is watered down even further to satisfy party orders.

‘Destruction of the UK’

The Conservatives’ Paul Davies called for a focus on making better use of the powers already devolved rather than “tinkering” and “pushing for more”.

He said: “It’s also very much our view that Wales should not just be a carbon copy of Scotland just because Plaid Cymru says so.

“And to be frank, Plaid aren’t interested in having the same amount of powers as Scotland; they want independence, and we all know that that will in turn destroy the United Kingdom.

“That is their objective; that is their objective, the destruction of the United Kingdom.”

Criticising constitutional naval-gazing, Mr Davies added: “We have to urgently address the apathy for the Senedd by getting on with the job of delivering on the people’s priorities.”

‘Broken’

Adam Price said he had never heard such a passionate defence of the status quo.

The former Plaid Cymru leader asked: “Why defend that status quo? Look at Wales as it is. You talk about broken public services. Look at the criminal justice system. That’s a public service. You’re right, it’s broken but not because of any decision made in this chamber.”

Labour’s Mike Hedges warned: “Wales has had three devolution settlements and we’re no closer to a long-term settlement than we were before the first.”

The former council leader suggested more devolution within Wales, saying: “The question should be where decisions are best made and it isn’t always in Cardiff.”

Mr Hedges added: “Everything does not have to be devolved to Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland or the English city regions at the same time. “

‘For Wales, see Scotland’

Responding to the debate on December 11, Huw Irranca-Davies raised concerns about a “for Wales, see Scotland”-style approach.

The Deputy First Minister told the Senedd that the Welsh Government’s guiding principle will always be what is in the best interests of the people of Wales.

He said: “We don’t want to copy and paste the devolution settlement from somewhere else,” adding: “That would actually be imitation, not devolution.”

Mr Irranca-Davies pointed out that the Welsh Government accepted the recommendations of the independent commission on the constitutional future of Wales.

In the final Senedd vote of 2024, members rejected the Plaid Cymru motion, 37-12, before a version as amended by the Welsh Government was agreed 26-12 with 11 abstaining.