THE Welsh public sector spends £4.3 billion every year buying goods and services from the private sector, which supports some 98,000 jobs.

This sum is four times larger than that which Wales raises in business rates and almost three times as much as corporation tax.

At present, close to 52 per cent of that is spent in Wales, compared to Germany, which spends 99 per cent of its procurement budget within its own borders, and France, which spends 98 per cent.

When taxpayers’ money is being spent, it is important that every single possible added value be squeezed out of it and it is vital that we spend as much of possible of it as we can to support Welsh businesses.

For every one per cen increase in the proportion of money being spent in Wales, we could grow 2,000 new jobs.

Plaid Cymru plans to add 25 per cent to the current percentage of 52 per cent and create 50,000 new jobs.

Jonathan T Clark, Plaid Cymru Parliamentary Candidate for Monmouth Constituency