As the Senedd election fast approaches, serious concerns have been raised after Plaid Cymru leader Rhun ap Iorwerth struggled to defend his party’s gender identity policy in a national TV interview, appearing unable to clearly explain or justify it.

It has been nearly a year since the Supreme Court made it clear that “sex” in law means “biological sex”, yet women and girls across Wales are still being left in limbo. That is unacceptable and it is putting people at risk.

Time and time again I have asked the Welsh Government to provide clarity. Yet Labour and Plaid Cymru are set on biological males being allowed to compete in girls sports, being allowed in women-only hospital wards and being allowed into women-only domestic abuse refuges. It’s not ok. Women and girls in Wales deserve to be safe, have dignity and to have fairness in sports.

Plaid Cymru cannot even defend their own policy, let alone explain it. When their leader is put on the spot, he dodges the question. That tells you everything. They do not know what a woman is, and they do not care about the impact this is having on women and girls across Wales. Mr Ap Iorwerth dismissed it as “not a central issue in this campaign.”

Eyebrows have also been raised after Rhun ap Iorwerth appeared to downplay independence in a national TV interview, despite it being central to his party’s purpose.

Independence is Plaids reason for being, yet their leader is clearly trying to hoodwink the electorate into thinking it’s not the policy all their policies are centred around.

When pushed, their leader could not explain how it would work, how much Independence would cost and could not answer basic questions on tax.

According to independent figures, independence would cost every Welsh family an extra £7000 a year. Breaking away from the UK, Wales would immediately inherit a share of the UK’s £2.9 trillion national debt. That would risk bankrupting Wales overnight, with higher taxes, cuts to services, and massive economic uncertainty.

Reform UK would oppose any moves towards independence and instead focus on the people’s priorities of growing the Welsh economy, strengthening public services, and keeping costs down.