Plaid attack at campaign launch

It called for parties to use only money from Wales for next May's election.

Plaid MP Adam Price challenged Labour to fight "on their own two feet" and not use cash from the steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal.

Labour accused Plaid of hypocrisy for relying on a bequest of more than £300,000 from a supporter, Howel Vaughan Lewis, who had lived in London.

Plaid defended the counter attack by saying that Mr Lewis was a Welsh-speaker originally from Ceredigion.

Mr Price, Plaid's election director, warned that an election "bought by mega donations from business backers" would not help "rebuild public confidence in the political process."

"Labour, the Tories and Lib Dems must fight this election on a level playing field "
Adam Price MP

"Labour, the Tories and Lib Dems must fight this election on a level playing field - only using funds raised in Wales, Welsh party resources, and should not be dependent on the big names of their London-based masters to gain attention in the media," he said.

He particularly urged Welsh Labour not to use any of the £2m donated to the British Labour Party by Mr Mittal.

The Mittal company is being prosecuted after a gas blast that killed 41 coal miners in Kazakhstan.

Labour accused the opposition party of inconsistency and "accepting money from wherever it suited them".

Labour lead candidate for mid and west Wales Alun Davies said: "Labour fights these elections as a Welsh Labour Party, we're part of the United Kingdom Labour Party and we fight elections on money that we raise within the law."

'Smokescreen'

Mr Davies said Mr Price appeared to be advocating an "ethnic litmus test" for somebody to take part in the elections and voters would "see through Adam Price's rhetoric and naked self-interest".

The Liberal Democrats said the talk about the "Welshness" of funding was a "smokescreen" to cover a lack of "substantial deliverable policies".

Lib Dem AM Peter Black said: "Voters will be concentrating on the issues, and so will the Welsh Liberal Democrats."

While leader of the Welsh Conservatives, Nick Bourne AM said: "This is staggering hypocrisy from a party which sends MPs to Westminster and benefits from all the salaries and allowances that come with it.

"Welsh Conservatives intend to fight this election on the real issues affecting the people of Wales," Mr Bourne said.

Plaid Cymru's campaign was launched at Stradey Park in Llanelli.

With a Labour majority of just 21, or 0.1%, Llanelli is Plaid's number one target seat.

Targets two and three are the new constituency of Aberconwy, with a notional Labour majority of 0.3%, and Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire, where Labour enjoys a 2.2% majority.

Party leader Ieuan Wyn Jones said it was launching its election battle with a full 100 days to go to polling day because it was "impatient to make a difference".

The Plaid manifesto is set to offer every primary school child a free school meal, every secondary school pupil a free computer laptop and first time buyers new grants.

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