Madam,

Nine years ago a handful of us met to discuss the impending crisis facing the people of Gwynedd in light of a decision by the Plaid Cymru-led county council to set about implementing its policy which would have meant closing over 50 primary schools.

Taking into account there was no elective or co-ordinated opposition to those plans, we decided to set up a new political party to give an effective voice to the outrage felt by the vast majority of residents within the county.

To the surprise of many, the newly formed Llais Gwynedd party took 13 seats off Plaid Cymru in the ensuing council elections in May 2008.

When Plaid duly recovered from that initial shock, having lost overall control of the council, they suddenly took a U-turn and most school closures were ‘put on hold’.

With an exception of a handful of schools in Meirionnydd, the plans were more or less abandoned – at least so the impression was given by them at the time.

Harold Wilson famously said “a week is a long time in politics”. So, one would assume that the eight-year span since 2008 to the present day is indeed a very long time.

Sadly, the electorate tends to forget certain events, but, whether we like it or not, tinkering and experimenting with the education and future of our children and young people is something we should not forget.

During the last few days the council, or rather its cabinet, of which all of its 10 members are Plaid Cymru councillors, has released a document which will in effect, if fully implemented, mean the demise of eight secondary schools in the county.

At the present time there are 14. Implementing this policy would leave schools run by just six headteachers.

Yes, of course, we know what their answer will be, “this is only a document for ‘consultation’. Where and when did we hear that before?

By writing this letter I hope it will be another ‘wake up’ call to those citizens of Gwynedd who really care about its future.

The only answer to tackling the many problems that face us is to have an effective opposition party that will stand up to fight and defend our communities.

We should not accept being bullied into accepting decisions which we strongly oppose. I ask all of you who share our concerns, not only about the future of our education system, but also about our fragile economy, much of which is based on tourism, for your support.

The pending closures of our public toilets and tourist information centres is a matter of grave concern and one which begs the question, do the officers and the cabinet not realise that almost £1 billion comes into the county through the tourism industry, not to mention the 10,000 jobs that rely on it?There will be council elections in May 2017; Llais Gwynedd hopes to be fielding candidates in most of the 75 wards.

We look forward to your support in whatever way possible.

Yours etc,

Cllr Owain Williams, Leader, Llais Gwynedd (Clynnog Ward), Pwllheli.

Have your say on the local issues affecting you - email [email protected] or join in the conversation on our Facebook page