Analysis
The agreement has been seen variously as a first step towards independence, a sell-out on Plaid's part that props up a Labour government, and part of a wider shift towards nationalism in the British Isles. According to recent polling by the BBC, only 20% of Welsh voters favour independence, but 22.4% of Welsh voters supported Plaid Cymru — just one of a number of nationalist parties and candidates at the last Assembly election. This has been put down to more general dissatisfaction with Labour's Tony Blair in the media, suggesting that any growth in nationalist sentiment might be less important to the electorate's shift away from Labour than Westminster political scandals.
Read more about this topic: One Wales
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