10. Plaid Cymru debate: Young people and communities in Wales

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 5:09 pm on 14 March 2018.

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Photo of Llyr Gruffydd Llyr Gruffydd Plaid Cymru 5:09, 14 March 2018

I think it's important to make the point that it's not only young graduates that need to be considered as those who have the vital skills to contribute to the Welsh economy, of course. Over two thirds of young people don't go to university, and we as a party have mooted the youth basic income, of course, which would be based on four key pillars: a guaranteed job in the first place, preferably, but that's clearly not always possible. The other options would be a true national citizens' service, a paid 12-month placement similar to the AmeriCorps model; support for both higher and further education, removing some of the artificial divides between the two in doing so; and the option, of course, of a new enterprise allowance, assisting young people to start new businesses. Now, we can learn some of these lessons from trials being carried out elsewhere. Finland is trialling a universal basic income, and feasibility studies are being carried out in Scotland as well, where four councils are building the first pilot schemes in the UK, supported by a £250,000 grant announced by the Scottish Government. And, in terms of a basic income for young people, last summer, New Zealand's The Opportunities Party proposed a universal basic income policy for young people aged between 18 and 23 to support their transition into adulthood, and young people there would receive $10,000 per year, divided into weekly installments of $200, to support them in that critical period of self development.