Plaid Cymru has pledged to increase spending year on year for culture, arts and sports after over a decade of ‘underinvestment’.

Today (August 8) Plaid Cymru’s spokesperson for Culture, Heledd Fychan MS, will deliver a lecture at the National Eisteddfod on the future of culture and the arts in Wales – outlining how a Plaid Cymru government will make these sectors a central part of its mission to make Wales a healthier, wealthier nation as part of a new, innovative, preventative health agenda.

Plaid Cymru has stated that it will ensure a whole government approach to a healthier Wales – in which culture will play a vital role in terms of wellbeing, economic growth and social cohesion. In 2023/24 alone, every £1 invested in the arts in Wales generated an economic return worth £2.51, in addition to the social benefits.

A spokesperson for the party said: “Following over a decade of underinvestment in both culture and the arts sectors in Wales, Wales ranks second from bottom of European countries in terms of spending per person for cultural services.

“Recognising the importance of the arts in Wales, and as part of its commitment to increase the preventative budget, a Plaid Cymru government will increase spending on culture, arts and sports year on year as a percentage of the entire Welsh budget over the course of its first term in office.”

Ms Fychan said that ‘arts, culture and sports are not a luxury but integral to who we are as a nation.’

She said: “Culture, the arts and sports will be central to a Plaid Cymru government’s ambition to create a healthier, wealthier Wales. Not only does that mean increased funding, but a new whole government approach to ensuring culture is at the heart of everything we do.

“Culture is the heartbeat of Wales. It’s how we tell out stories, preserve our language, celebrate our history, and express our values. It connects us with each other, and with the past.

“But under a Labour Welsh Government, arts and culture in Wales has been left to wither on the vine, and become increasingly exclusive.

“Plaid Cymru is clear: arts, culture and sports are not a luxury, but integral to who we are as a nation – and access for all is a vital part of supporting people to stay well both physically and mentally.”