With the Plaid Cymru two-day conference coming to an end on a sunny Saturday afternoon at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, it seemed that the party had a lot to look forward to in the coming months. Last year, the party faced a disastrous result in the Senedd Election.
During his speech, the Plaid Cymru leader, Adam Price, admitted that it had been "disappointing", but that the party had reached success through the party's co-operation agreement with the Welsh Government. You can read more about Adam Price's speech here.
The deal, which will last until the next Senedd Election in 2026, has seen the party turn its policies into laws by tackling the second home crisis with tougher new measures and the promise of free school meals for all primary school children. But where does Plaid Cymru go next and what can we expect from them?
Here are the key things we learnt from Plaid Cymru's conference in Cardiff - what the members had to say about the upcoming council election, Senedd reforms and the cost-of-living crisis.
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'The council election is the most important election for Plaid Cymru'
On May 5, people all over Wales will be going to the polls to cast their votes for local councillors. The council election will decide who runs local authorities and make decisions on different aspects such as transport, schools, social services and waste. According to Aaron Wynne, the Conwy councillor for Llanrwst, this will be the "most important" election for him and for his party.
Speaking to WalesOnline, he said: "I think the partnership between the Labour party and us has proven what we can do with opposition - it proves what we can do if we were in government. With the council election, for me and definitely for Plaid Cymru this is the most important election that we have."
He added: "It shows that our politicians are out there working with our communities and working with people, not on a higher level far away like Cardiff or London. They are a part of the community. The local authorities set a framework for the future elections that we have. The work that Plaid does in the communities, locally, and what is important to people from day-to-day is so important to us."
Heledd Fychan MS for South Wales Central agrees. Arguably, the last two years has seen the Welsh Labour Government take the political centre stage with the focus primarily on their leadership during a pandemic, but for the Rhondda Cynon Taf councillor this does not mean that Plaid's work has been completely overshadowed.
Heledd said: "It has always been challenging - one party has had a huge platform over the last two years and there hasn't been any events taking place due to Covid. But we can't forget that it's our councillors that have been out there helping out in the last two years, for example in Rhondda Cynon Taf - it has been local councillors that have been leading campaigns to support them. People certainly won't forget that."
Plaid Cymru members back Senedd reforms
During a meeting on Saturday, Plaid Cymru members had overwhelmingly voted in favour of the position paper on Senedd reform. Although not a policy, the position paper will lead to negotiations and could see changes delivered in time for the next Senedd Election in 2026. The party wants to expand the Senedd to 100 members and adopt the Single Transferable Vote (STV) as the electoral system.
As it stands, the Senedd in Cardiff Bay has 60 members. Speaking before the vote, Heledd Fychan MS said that the current number of Senedd members makes it "hard to scrutinise effectively" and has called for a diverse Senedd with more women and people of ethnic backgrounds to represent the communities of Wales.
Single Transferable Vote means an electoral system of proportional representation. In other words, voters could choose who they wanted to represent them in a ranked preferential system. As it stands, the voting system is the first to past the post, where you vote one person and whoever gets the majority wins.
Following the announcement of the vote, a Plaid Cymru spokesman said: "With the foundations of democracy under threat in many parts of the world, Plaid Cymru members have made clear today their wish to make a difference, and put Welsh democracy on a firm footing. We are going to continue to work across the parties to bring about a new, gender-balanced Senedd in law by the next election in 2026.
"We want to see a stronger Senedd with a greater ability to act for people right across the country. Having a more powerful legislature in place will be important in order to withstand the Conservative attempts to turn the clock back on devolution. We believe that a gender-balanced legislature must be a fundamental organising principle of our constitution, as well as expanding other similar measures to guarantee representation of people of colour and ethnic minority groups in the Senedd."
'We stand in complete solidarity with the Ukrainian people'
During his speech on Friday, Adam Price addressed the invasion of Ukraine at the hands of Putin. In February, the Plaid Cymru leader alongside Labour Senedd member Mick Antoniw travelled to the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv in spite of UK Government advice saying it was not safe to travel there.
Addressing the invasion, he said: "When thinking about our fate as a country, it's impossible not to think about Ukraine that is under siege by Putin's army. For Putin, Ukraine is not a country, but a region - a region that belongs to Russia.
" When I visited Ukraine shortly before the war started, I saw and heard for myself the fierce passion and determination of the people of Ukraine. The people of Ukraine remind us all that the moral strength of a national spirit determined to survive is stronger than any number of tanks, armoured vehicles and missiles in the hands of people with no justification, no clear sense of purpose, no direction, and no moral compass.
"We stand in complete solidarity with the Ukrainian people in their resistance to Putin’s war of aggression and urge the European Union to fast-track their membership of the European family of democratic nations. We would like to see an independent Wales one day re-join that family too if that is our people’s wish. But that is the point isn’t it: nations should be free to determine their own future."
'Let us celebrate the fact that because of Plaid Cymru we have secured free school meals for our children'
To close the conference, Ben Lake MP for Ceredigion discussed the cost of living crisis and the need to help Welsh communities during financially challenging times.
During the speech, he took the time to criticise the UK Government in Westminster: "Despite the talks of "levelling up" - the United Kingdom is still a state that is obsessed about centralizing powers in Westminster. The net-zero transition demands a change. The cost of living crisis demands a change.
"But the Chancellor's Spring Statement on Wednesday failed to raise to the occasion. Yes, I was very pleased to see three longstanding Plaid Cymru objective policies being fulfilled - a thousand pound increase on wage allowance to help small businesses with employment costs, cut fuel duty and a VAT cut on energy efficiency materials.
"But the wider package of measures was completely inadequate. Inadequate for those that need support the most. Inadequate in regards to deep strategic changes that are needed right now and for the future."
He added: "Plaid Cymru, and devolution in Wales, is delivering real change that improves the quality of life for Wales’ citizens, works towards meeting our net-zero commitments and addresses the social inequalities allowed by Westminster. The only obstacle to our ambition, is the UK, not Wales.
"Let us celebrate the fact that because of Plaid Cymru we have secured free school meals for our children, meaning those who need it will be helped. Children will not go hungry simply because Plaid Cymru – you and I, and especially our brilliant Senedd members – pushed for change, and refused to accept no for an answer."
