Talking to People Involved in Politics… Karl Davies, Chief Executive of Plaid Cymru  We posed a series of questions to all the parties with candidates standing in the 2001 General Election. Here's what Karl Davies of the Welsh Nationalist Party, Plaid Cymru, had to say.
 Do you think nationalism has as much appeal to today's youth as it did when you were our age?
"I believe that young people have as much concern about the future of their country as youth during any period did and I see the very same idealism and love for their country drive young people now as I saw when I was their age."
When did you join your Party?
"I joined Plaid Cymru in 1979."
 Would you recommend going to jail for your beliefs?
"Certainly I believe that on occasion to make the great sacrifice of using non-violent direct action which will lead to jail is something which some circumstances call for." Do you think the blandness amongst the political parties has caused apathy amongst our generation towards politics and politicians? "I would say that it is the blandness of political parties that creates the apathy amongst young people today. It is the duty of all politicians to engage with young people and to react to the things which concern them."  What can we do to get older politicians to listen to us?
"The best way to get politicians to listen to people is to say that you will not vote for them and, even worse, to say that you will vote for other people." Why should young people get involved in politics? "Even those under 18, who cannot now vote, will have a vote at some point and thus it is in the self-interest of all politicians to listen to young people." What has been your greatest political achievement to date? "The greatest political achievement of Plaid Cymru - The Party of Wales has been to campaign for 75 years to bring democracy to Wales through having a National Assembly."  Do you think the assembly has achieved much to date?
"The greatest achievement of the National Assembly has been to give the people of Wales a voice and to ensure that Wales' voice is listened to. The best example of this is the way in which it exposed the fact that European Union money that had been allocated to Wales, billions of pounds, was being paid to the Treasury in London and was not being passed on to Wales." The above applies to the political process in the United Kingdom and follows the laws of the UK.
- The Pupiline Team
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