Welsh energy independence

It is already an established fact, under today's mostly non-renewable energy sources, that Wales is already a net exporter of energy. Wales produces more energy than it uses and exports the surplus to England which is an energy and water-hungry economy.

Today brings even more news of our potential, that Wales' abundant tidal resources could power more than our entire country's needs on their own.

So although we are already self-sufficient in energy, we could be self-sufficient another time over in clean, renewable energy.

This is easily more sustainable than Scotland's oil reserves, which their case for independence was traditionally based upon. Europe is projected to have exponentially growing energy needs in the coming decades and Wales could export its masses of excess energy to the rest of Europe and become a world centre for the development of renewable energy.

But we'd need the powers over energy generating stations first- they are deliberately kept away from our influence at Westminster, so that Welsh energy policy can be dictated by politicians from outside Wales.

In Scotland the story is different because all energy is devolved there. Alex Salmond has thus been able to promote a vision of Scotland fuelling the rest of Europe with its vast array of renewables, and in Scotland the percentage of renewables as part of the larger energy mix is rapidly growing, whereas in Wales it is growing very slowly.

Unfortunately there is a common story all over the world of resource-rich nations being exploited by their neighbours. This is what is happening at present, because Wales does not really see any financial benefits from our vast energy resources.

Surely there is a case for Wales as a sovereign state controlling all of its own natural resources?