Almost half of people in Wales believe the Welsh Government does not serve the interests of Wales "very well", according to a new WalesOnline survey for St David's Day.
However, the same appears to apply to Westminster, with 55% of people voting that Boris Johnson's UK Government also does not serve the interests of Wales and its people "very well."
These findings are in the new State of the Nation survey created by WalesOnline to coincide with St David's Day - as we asked readers their opinions on topics that shape their day-to-day life in Wales. The survey is not weighted to be representative of public opinion like an officially-conducted poll but is a reflection of the feeling of more than 7,000 people who took part.
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The questions we asked ranged from devolution to independence, to how well our leaders govern the country.
Despite this clear disillusion with how the respective governments serve our country, there was no clear solution from respondents as to what can be done to make a big difference to Wales' future.
Around 28% of people who took part in the survey said they supported independence. Given the difference in how they were carried out, it is not possible to read anything into the change from the formally conducted and academically weighted St David's Day poll WalesOnline commissioned from YouGov last year. But the answers are similar with 25% of all respondnents saying they supported independence last year.
Surprisingly, while the coronavirus pandemic has brought devolution to the forefront, many people are still unconvinced. The survey found that there was an exact 50/50 split between respondents who thought "too much" was devolved to Wales, and those who thought "not enough" was devolved.
Last year, WalesOnline commissioned an exclusive St David's Day poll from YouGov which showed that opposition to Welsh Independence had dropped to its lower ever level.
Here is a breakdown of the questions and answers asked by WalesOnline as part of the 'State of the Nation ' poll 2022.
1. Should St. David’s Day become a bank holiday?
Whether St David's Day should become a bank holiday in Wales has been up for discussion recently after Gwynedd became the first council to announce that workers would get a day off on March 1.
Neath Port Talbot is also looking at doing the same. St Andrew's Day is a bank holiday In Scotland and St Patrick's Day is a bank holiday in Northern Ireland.
In December the UK Government rejected calls for a St David’s Day Bank Holiday after claiming too many people commute across the Welsh and English border to make the idea feasible.
Responding to the WalesOnline poll, 66% of people said that St David's Day should become a bank holiday, compared to 29% who said no and 5% who answered that they were unsure.
2. Is a Wales tourism tax a good idea?
Of the 7,456 responses as to whether a Welsh tourism tax is a good idea, 55% of people answered that it was not. Compared to 29% who thought it was a good idea and 16% who were unsure.
Plans for a tourism tax for people staying overnight in Wales took a step forward in February. The Welsh Government has confirmed a consultation will be launched this autumn when details will be released.
The fee would have to be paid by those staying in a council area overnight and would be up to councils to set. The Welsh Government says a tourism tax would raise money for councils to manage services and infrastructure in tourist hotspots.
3. What’s the best thing about Wales?
While there are lots of things to be proud of in Wales, for WalesOnline readers, Welsh people are the best thing about our country.
Of the 4,935 responses, three out of the top nine answers referenced the people as the best thing about Wales. The 'green green grass of home' has also clearly made an impression, with scenery and countryside also forming some of the top answers.
4. Should Wales become an independent country?
Welsh independence is now a more mainstream issue than it has been before. In last year's Senedd elections Plaid Cymru put independence front and centre of their whole campaign, and a previous WalesOnline poll commissioned by YouGov showed opposition to the movement was at its lowest ever.
But a year on, how have people's attitudes to independence changed?
Of the 7,510 responses to the question 'should Wales become an independent country', 63% of people said - with 28% saying yes and 9% unsure.
While the support for the movement is down slightly on the 30% in our poll last year (which cannot offer a direct comparison) the results show the appetite for independence has not yet wavered.
The percentage of people who want independence has been sitting at around 25% for the past few years. Our most recent poll shows the continuation of the support for the independence movement, which has seen consistent growth since the Brexit referendum.
5. Has the Covid pandemic changed your views on independence?
While there had been suggestions that coronavirus and the different ways both governments handled of the pandemic was driving the independence movement - YesCymru's membership swelled to 18,000 in 2020 - the most recent WalesOnline survey shows this might not necessarily be the case.
Over half of people who answered whether Covid had changed their views on independence said that the pandemic had not changed their opinion.
Of the 7,514 responses, 52% said their views had remained the same, whereas there was an exact 50/50 split as to whether people's opinions had changed. Both 24% of people said they were less likely to support independence, as well as 24% who said they were more likely to as a result of the pandemic.
6. How well do you think the current UK Government serves the interests of Wales?
The survey found that over half of respondents (54%) thought the UK did not serve the interests of Wales "very well", with just 17% thinking they were doing a good job, answering "very well".
Of the 7,514 responses, 26% answered that Boris Johnson's government was doing "somewhat well" in serving the Welsh nation, with 4% unsure.
7. How well do you think the Welsh Government serves the interests of Wales?
Despite the survey's responses showing that the UK Government's interest in serving Wales being far from complimentary, the Welsh Government also fared fairly badly.
Just under half of the responses (49%) thought that the Welsh Government served the interest of Wales "not very well", compared with 28% that answered "somewhat well" and 22% that said, "very well".
8. Should Boris Johnson resign as Prime Minister?
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been under increasing pressure to resign in recent weeks as he found himself the centre of a police investigation into breaching coronavirus rules at downing street.
The Met Police are currently investigating 12 parties at Downing Street, with the Prime Minister himself among those being questioned.
Of the 7,502 people who answered the WalesOnline survey, 55% believed Boris Johnson should resign, compared with 36% who said he should remain and 9% who were unsure.
9. Should Mark Drakeford stand down soon, as he said he would?
Mark Drakeford has refused to give an exact date on when he will stand down as First Minister, but has made it clear that he will not remain as leader into the next election, scheduled for 2026.
In November 2021, announcing coalition agreement with Plaid Cymru to work together in the Senedd he was asked if the three year timescale or the deal with Plaid Cymru was an indication of when he plans to stand down.
He told journalists the three year timeline was a “decent horizon” to aim for. Mr Drakeford also said his plan was to lead the party into the election in May and then "make sure we were thoroughly established on the path of this Senedd term.
"Nothing in that has changed and nothing in this agreement changes it. It’s a decent horizon for us to tackle together the very ambitious policy areas in which we have come to an agreement," he added.
"There will be a natural break point at which point we can see the progress we have made and see what lies beyond that."
The results of the WalesOnline survey show that readers are keen to see this happen, with 58% of respondents saying he should stand down soon as he said he intended to do.
Of the 7,524 people who answered the question, 26% said no and 16% were unsure.
10. Is enough (or too much) devolved to Wales?
Perhaps one of the questions that provided the most divisive response on the poll was whether enough or too much was currently devolved to Wales and under the control of the Welsh Government.
This question proved polarising, with a straight 50/50 split between those answering that "too much" was devolved, and "not enough" was devolved.
Both answers garnered a 38% piece each, with just 23 votes difference in favour of "too much".
The difference between "unsure" and "enough" was devolved also caused a close split at 12% and 13% each.
11. What single thing could be done which would make a big difference to Wales’ future?
In proving that there is still an appetite for independence in Wales, it was one of the most popular answered when respondents were asked " What single thing could be done which would make a big difference to Wales’ future?".
Independence made up the top four answers, however this still only accounted for a small amount of the 4,975 responses.
Other responses about how Wales could improve included Mark Drakeford resigning, the M4 relief road and ending devolution.
Millions of pounds that were spent on the scrapped M4 relief road were formally written off last year, ending any remaining hope that the project might go ahead.
A total of £135.7m in public money has been spent on the M4 relief road, which would have seen a new road built to alleviate traffic congestion near the Brynglas Tunnels.
The money spent included development work like "environmental surveys, ground investigation data and transport models." The road was officially scrapped in June 2019 after years of political wrangling, delays, disagreements over cost and environmental concerns.
12. Do you think the Welsh Government is doing enough to support the Welsh language?
The majority of voters in the poll (66%) thought that the Welsh Government is doing enough to support the Welsh language.
Of the 7,479 responses, 19% thought more could be done and 17% were unsure.
The Welsh Government has committed to trying to get one million Welsh speakers in Wales by 2050. They have set out a detailed plan on how they intend to do this which can be found here.
There are, according to the Welsh Government’s Annual Population Survey, more than 883,000 people in Wales who can speak Welsh equating to around 29% of the population.
13. Is the Welsh Government doing enough to tackle the second home crisis?
As the housing market up and down the country continues to boom, there is a growing contention around second homes - particularly in rural Wales.
In December last year, First Minister Mark Drakeford said there are "too many second homes" in some parts of Wales that are affecting communities and causing housing prices to rise sharply.
Measures to curb the second home crisis were alluded to when Mr Drakeford signed a Senedd co-operation deal with Plaid Cymru leader Adam Price.
The deal by the Welsh Labour Government includes potentially increasing taxes and more planning controls as part of a wide range of measures to tackle the problem.
One area of north Wales, Dwyfor, has been selected by the Welsh Government to pilot radical new policies to curb the second home crisis. The Welsh Government is as yet tight-lipped about what policies it hopes to test out in Dwyfor and how long the pilot project will last before other areas of Wales are brought in. More details on this can be found here.
If the survey is something to go off, it seems as though perhaps the Welsh Government needs to share more details about their plans, as 56% of respondents said the Welsh Government was not doing enough.
However, perhaps unsurprisingly, there seems to be no clear cut answer to the problem with 23% said they were unsure if the Welsh Government were doing enough, and 21% saying they were not.
14. Should second-home owners face higher taxes?
If there is one clear cut answer from the survey, it is that voters believe in their majority that second homeowners should pay higher taxes, with 68% voting 'yes' on this question.
Of the 7,497 responses, 32% voted no against higher taxes.
A consultation was launched last year on proposing local variation to land transaction tax (LTT) rates for second homes, short term holiday lets and potentially other additional residential properties across different parts of Wales.
Land Transaction Tax (LTT) replaced Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) in Wales in April 2018.
Property owners pay the tax when they either buy a freehold property, buy a new or existing leasehold, or are transferred land or property in exchange for payment, for example, they take on a mortgage or buy a share in a house.
Under current laws, those looking to buy such properties in Wales have to pay a minimum of 4% duty, which has increased from 3% since December 2020.
This higher LTT rate is activated when a house is sold to someone already owning another property. In addition to holiday homes, this could also apply for someone buying houses to rent out or someone who is in the process of selling their original home.
While 4% is payable on properties sold for up to £180,000, the rate rises to 7.5% on sales of between £180,000 and £250,000, and up to 16% on properties for £1.5m or more.
However under considered proposals, those planning to buy a holiday home in Wales could be paying a higher rate of Land Transaction Tax.
The consultation so far recognises that LTT is "an episodic tax" that only charges at the point of purchase. According to the Welsh Government, it is "likely to have a limited impact" in the short and medium term for the existing proportion of short-term holiday lets or second homes in Wales.
Full details on the proposals can be found here.
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