'Green jobs revolution' pledge by Plaid Cymru as they launch manifesto
Plaid Cymru has promised a "green jobs revolution" as leader Adam Price unveiled the party's election manifesto.
The plans include electrification of all mainline rail lines by 2030, three tidal lagoons and an offshore windfarm.
In his speech, Mr Price said despite the nation’s role in the first industrial revolution, Wales has been left in a “rut of intergenerational poverty”.
Mr Price pledged that tens of thousands of "green collar" jobs can be created in Wales over the next ten years and Wales will be be "entirely reliant" on renewable energy by 2030.
Mr Price also renewed his call for Welsh independence. The party has pledged to introduce a self-determination Bill, aimed at a referendum on independence before 2030, if elected to lead the Welsh Government.
In its manifesto, Plaid Cymru is calling on the UK Government to give an additional 1% of GDP to invest in green infrastructure, which will allow Wales to spend an additional £15 billion on green jobs, transport, and energy.
The party also said they want the Treasury to raise Wales’ borrowing limit to £5 billion, bringing the total investment to £20 billion.
The party's green plans include:
The electrification of all mainline rail lines by 2030 and electrification of the Valleys railways
Building a super metro in the south east of Wales, a new Metro system for Swansea Bay and the western valleys, a metro for the north east of Wales
Reopening rail services in the Amman, Tawe, Neath, and Dulais valleys
Expanding the trans-Wales bus network and a new, publicly-owned regional bus company for the south of Wales
The construction of tidal lagoons in Swansea Bay, Cardiff, and Colwyn Bay
An offshore windfarm off Ynys Môn
A barrage on the River Usk
Building 20,000 green social houses and a £5 billion home energy efficiency programme.