The Observer said on Sunday that this week's TUC conference marked the start of the political conference season. WRONG!! Having returned that day from the Plaid Cymru conference, which took place in Llandudno from Thursday to Saturday last week, I can assure both my readers that serious political debate was already well under way before Brendan Barber and company assembled in Liverpool.
Plaid's conference was vibrant and utterly contemporary, bringing together grassroots green-red activism with a stunning record in government. Leader Ieuan Wyn Jones (who this writer has not been reluctant to criticise in the past) is making a real impact as Deputy First Minister with responsibility for transport and the economy - Wales' response to the recession has been recognised as the most effective in the British and Irish Isles, and the new National Transport Plan offers a realistic vision based on sustainability and fairness; and Elin Jones has been making a similar impact in agriculture and rural affairs.
The guest speaker at the conference dinner was George Monbiot, who expressed his delight at moving to Wales and finding at last a serious political party whose entire programme he was happy to sign up to - poor England, was the message. Fringe events and stalls ran the gamut from the police, via the Humanists and the Autistic Society, to the campaign against bauxite mining in Orissa. Of course, the real highlights were the revues on the Thursday and Saturday evenings, where few trouser legs stayed dry.
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