What devolution could mean for Wales
I was raised in North Wales. My parents met at Shotton Steel where my father was a steelworker. My upbringing in a working class community where families experienced frequent hardships and injustice instilled an important value that shapes my politics to this day - that no person should be judged on anything other than the efforts they make, and the decency they show to others.
Access and opportunity create gateways to the futures young people across Wales can channel those efforts into. Offering this to all requires an active political decision - to fairly distribute power, rather than centralise it.
The involvement of regions, councils and communities in the decisions and finances that sculpt their everyday experiences is powerful. Under the previous Welsh Labour Government, the process of devolving decisions in this way began to take hold, with choices over local transport schemes, plus more than £100 million to actualise them, transferred from Welsh Ministers to our regions and councils.
As the Minister for North Wales and Transport, I gave this power and money away and advocated for the process at every turn. I did so because I firmly believed that the people living in Aberystwyth were far better placed to make the calls on how to improve Pier Street than a Minister sat in Cardiff Bay.
Through Corporate Joint Committees, councils across a region were given a space to work collectively on transport, planning and economic development. Conclusions were not made in silo but with a combination of localised skills, knowledge and portfolio expertise to inform them. Making decisions in a holistic, informed way can only function to make a community stronger.
As elected politicians we enter into a dynamic with the public we serve where-by we ask them to trust us to make appropriate decisions. We should return that sentiment.
At the time when this significant act of devolution within Wales unfolded, no Senedd party of any political stripe objected. In a Parliament with no political majority this was certainly a rarity.
My hope is that this process was just one step in an ever-progressing devolution journey - one which young people in Wales will reap the benefits of for generations.
We are currently engaged in a UK-wide conversation around power placement. New Prime Minister Andy Burnham talks about the model of ‘Manchesterism’ with unfaltering pride. He should, as it has been an indisputable success.
Manchester is the fastest growing city-region in Europe. It also holds the record for the biggest fall in inner-city deprivation. 'Manchesterism' champions the notion that growth cannot be achieved from the top down, it can only be nurtured from the bottom up.
The Prime Minister has promised to deliver growth in every postcode, achieved by devolving power and money to the most effective levels of government.
The concept of “No 10 in the North” serving as the “nerve centre” for delivery already demonstrates both a symbolic and visible shift in the placement of political power.
In a time where the public are openly expressing apathy with politics, it is vital to demonstrate that politics is happening with and around people rather than to them.
Politics does not just happen at Westminster in London, as in Wales it does not just happen at the Senedd in Cardiff Bay. A new Plaid Cymru Welsh Government with nationalist ideology at their core has inevitably sparked speculation about the timeline of Welsh independence and the strategic building blocks Plaid are laying towards achieving it. One must question if claiming more powers just to centralise them is for the good of the people of Wales, or as a function to boost a newly empowered Party’s ego.
For me, the localisation of power and money in Wales is intertwined with young people’s opportunities. Education, transport links and jobs are vital to get right. My background, my politics and my career have all reinforced my opinion on this.
Only when we are enacting devolution in the most effective way will the ‘Manchesterism’ model truly be unlocked for North, South, Mid and West Wales.
Ken Skates is the leader of Welsh Labour and a Member of the Senedd for Fflint Wrecsam.
He was born in Wrexham and raised in Flintshire. His upbringing shaped his political outlook, instilling in him the value of good people who fought for fairness.
Skates went to Cambridge University, before entering a career in local journalism. He then worked for Labour MP Mark Tami for 10 years, before being elected as a Member of the Senedd in 2011. He held several roles under the previous Welsh Labour Government, including Cabinet Secretary for Transport and North Wales.
