TOO MANY politicians today have lost the will to be radical engines of change in society. 

The history of politics has always seen reaction to crisis differ, from transformative agendas which restructure society for the better, to weak tweaks which barely touch the status quo. 

The Covid-19 pandemic has been one such crisis, and now is the time to imagine the future, think of our aspirations and question if the society we inherited, really lives up to the lives we want.

The pandemic put the brakes on our society, on our lives and on our world. It hit us hard, in our social fabric, with family, friends and neighbours losing their lives, while we also faced a rising unemployment, rising cost of living and rising taxes. 

But the pandemic did give us one thing, it gave us perspective. It made people realise what was important to them; family and community, green spaces over grey concrete, and a healthier balance between work and life. 

We seem to be losing this perspective, day by day, as governments in the Senedd, in Westminster, in private meeting rooms and through the media, pushing us to return to the status quo which benefited the few. 

There are things we can and we should be looking to implement. If not now, then when?

The Attlee government had been in an unprecedented situation after the second world war. 

It was elected by a country ravaged by war, loss, poverty, poor housing and inequality. Instead of reverting back to the dark days of the ’20s and ’30s, they radically imagined what society should be, including strengthening the welfare state by expanding on the Lloyd George model. 

Aneurin Bevan, inspired by the co-operative model of his native Tredegar, imagined a universal healthcare system, free at the point of use to everyone.

The National Health Service, now a beloved national treasure, faced fierce opposition at its conception. The Conservatives voted against it 22 times, citing that it “undermines the freedom and independence of the medical profession to the detriment of the nation” (isn’t it ironic how similar their language is against any radical piece of legislation these days). Similarly, the British Medical Association was also fiercely against its foundation. 

There is always opposition to change; any social, economic and political change which take power from the powers that be and hand it to average citizens. 

The Conservative Party, and the Labour Party (both the UK and the Welsh one) often shoot down Plaid Cymru policies that would change lives, would make lives better, and would help our citizens. 

Most recently, we tried to pass a rent cap to give families and people some breathing room in a world of rising taxes, rising food costs and rising bills. It did not pass. 

The argument about cost just won’t cut it any more. The Westminster government had a debt of 250 per cent in 1948 when the NHS was established and of 150 per cent in 1959 when Harold Macmillan declared that “we had never had it so good.” 

Not doing what is right because it is too expensive didn’t cut it then, and it won’t cut it now. It is just a smoke-screen by politicians and the power that be to keep the system in place. 

But Plaid Cymru will never stop. We want to build a better Wales and a better world. We want to learn from the pandemic and work to make the lives of people in Wales feel more fulfilling. 

One particular policy that interests me is the four-day work week. Trials are already being undertaken and the benefits of the scheme have been noted, including increasing productivity, a better work-life balance, and increase wellbeing. 

A similar system that works with the four-day work week is universal basic income (or UBI). Plainly people, not matter who they are, would receive a lump sum of money for them to spend. 

The idea behind it is based in solid economic theory, most importantly that for a healthy economy to grow (and continue to do so) people need to spend money, not hoard it. 

UBI is important since for many young people, minority groups and working class people rent amounts to almost half of their pay check. With rising food costs, rising bills and rising taxes, people are being squeezed while their wages have stagnated since the early 2000s. 

Today, Plaid Cymru are at the forefront of necessary, radical change. I am proud that we were able to secure a commission to look at implementing a national care service. 

This is the next logical step for our National Health Service. The Covid pandemic has brought this to the forefront, that oftentimes our elderly and those needing social care are left to fend for themselves, in isolation, alone and vulnerable. I am proud to see the community spirit which came to light during these times. 

With neighbours helping neighbours, and friends helping strangers, it was warm to see how the community spirit which seemed so thin over the last decades reignited when it was most needed. 

Now it’s time to help our elderly properly, not to put it on an already stretched community which are already struggling to feed and heat themselves. 

We should be looking radically to the future, to imagine a world we want to live in, and work hard to implement that society as much as we can. 

The status quo is a choice, it has always been a choice. Crises in the past have seen the country radically build a fairer society, but have also seen us shrink back to the previous structure. 

We in Plaid Cymru always dream of the future, we look to the future all the time. What is the country we want to see, what is the society we want to live it. 

We use this to set alight our passion for social justice, for change and to make society more equal. We will not listen to voices of the past, who say we must settle for what we have. They failed to stop the wheel of progress in the past, and they won’t stop it now. 

Rhys ab Owen was elected to the Senedd in the South Wales Central region for Plaid Cymru in 2021. Plaid’s conference begins on Friday March 25.