'A cheap and second-rate' budget deal - Conservatives

Plaid has been bought for far less than anyone expected in what is effectively a second-rate trade-off.

The government will decide on exactly how this money is spent, not Plaid. We’re in for more of the same lazy Labour – easily spending very little to get votes.

This is nowhere near enough for the economy. We’re still missing crucial details on enterprise zones, solid decisions on business rates relief, and improvements to inward investment.

Our NHS will still face record-breaking cuts, immense pressure on frontline services, and hospital downgrades. That’s unacceptable and unnecessary.

The creation of apprenticeships is just one part of a much wider economic problem.

There is a great deal more that could be achieved with the right action and ambition.

I suspect Plaid’s internal struggles have pushed its leader into a cut-rate deal, dictated not by her, but on the whim of others.