Our coverage of the launch of Welsh Labour’s 2026 Senedd election manifesto has come to an end.

Welsh Labour leader Eluned Morgan set out her party’s vision to supporters in Swansea, saying a Welsh Labour government would:

• Freeze income tax rates in Wales
• Spend £4bn on building new hospitals in Wrexham, Cardiff and west Wales
• Extend free school meals in secondary schools “at least to all households receiving Universal Credit”

• Create an extra 20,000 childcare places, expanding provision from nine months old
• Work towards "an energy-independent Wales"
• Making council tax fairer
• Take the "final steps" towards a new national park in north-east Wales
• Provide support to make 100,000 homes more energy efficient over the next Senedd term

You can read more about today's launch and what Welsh Labour is promising in our story here.

Thanks for joining us.

Not all women in Wales currently served by health hubpublished at 11:29 BST 30 March

11:29 BST 30 March

Jenny Rees
Wales health correspondent

This manifesto from a sitting party in government also points out Welsh Labour's achievements in health.

While it's true that the "first major reform of NHS dentistry in 20 years" comes into play later this week, claims that it will improve access are premature.

The British Dental Association in Wales has been raising concerns that dentists weren't given sufficient time to weigh up the changes.

In one region of Wales, a fairly sizeable proportion of dentists plan to hand back their NHS contracts as a consequence of these changes, according to the health board.

Elsewhere, the 10-year women's health strategy has certainly been welcomed and has big ambitions.

Though when you read claims that women's health hubs in every part of Wales have been opened, bear in mind that doesn't mean all women in every part of Wales are served by a health hub yet.

It's a minor footnote, but an important one.

Image source, Athena Picture Agency

Pledge to 'take final steps' towards new national parkpublished at 11:18 BST 30 March

11:18 BST 30 March

Steffan Messenger
Wales environment correspondent

The environment section of the manifesto pledges are largely building on work in progress - such as finishing setting up new organisations to manage coal tip safety and regulate the water industry.

Existing targets like a net zero public sector and protecting 30% of land and sea for nature by 2030 are reaffirmed.

The party also says it will "take the final steps" towards a new national park in north-east Wales, after a public local inquiry was announced last week.

The manifesto does confirm plans to increase restrictions on the shooting of gamebirds, and there's talk of a "dedicated Nature Investment Summit" and the creation of an "urban rewilding taskforce" to help nature in towns and cities.

Pledge to make 100,000 homes more energy efficientpublished at 11:15 BST 30 March

11:15 BST 30 March

Felicity Evans
Wales money editor

Eluned Morgan knows the cost of living is a major issue in this Senedd election, so she is emphasising her plans for cheaper bus travel and expanding childcare.

But she’s also talking about “cheaper energy bills” - a very topical issue given the impact of the war in Iran on oil and gas prices.

The manifesto talks about using renewables to make Wales more energy self-sufficient and keep bills low, but such projects will take time and are unlikely to impact bills in the short term.

But the manifesto also promises support to make 100,000 homes more energy efficient over the next Senedd term, which could have a more immediate impact for some bill-payers given Wales’ older housing stock.

No solution on offer here for those without urgent health needspublished at 11:07 BST 30 March

11:07 BST 30 March

Jenny Rees
Wales health correspondent

The big health promise in this manifesto had already been teased - a £4bn pot for new hospitals, both in Wrexham, Cardiff and west Wales.

That's got to be seen with the big caveat that new hospitals take years to plan, approve, fund and build.

When surgical and diagnostic hubs, as well as care closer to home, are also among the promises in this Labour manifesto, exactly what is included in a "hospital of the future" may not be as obvious as it once was.

In the meantime, there's around £1bn in repairs backlogs required to the existing estate for the next government to contend with.

The new promise here about guarantees to be seen within 48 hours if you have a pressing primary care need are a further acknowledgement that not all GP practices have been able to do away with the 8am bottleneck.

But it doesn't really get to the heart of the frustration for many: urgent needs are often dealt with well, particularly as pharmacies or minor injuries units can be alternatives.

It's those whose symptoms can wait a little longer who will see no solution on offer here.

Little detail on protecting universities and collegespublished at 11:01 BST 30 March

11:01 BST 30 March

Bethan Lewis
Wales family and education correspondent

Many in education may well welcome the fact there aren’t any big eye-catching announcements on schools in this manifesto.

That’s because recent reforms to the curriculum and the additional learning needs system have brought huge pressures which are still working their way through the system.

Welsh Labour are promising a “relentless focus” on literacy and numeracy, but their critics would say that major concerns about the basics in Welsh education are an indictment of their record.

There is a pledge, however, to extend free school meals in secondary schools “at least to all households receiving Universal Credit”.

On higher education, there's a promise to “protect the long-term futures” of universities and colleges but with little detail.

And prospective students and their families will also be keen for more information about how a Wales-only repayment plan for student loans would work at a time when student finance is high on the agenda.

Childcare is an area where all parties are promising to act and, in this Senedd term, Labour have focused on extending free childcare to all two-year-olds.

They haven’t completed that roll out, but now say they would phase it in for children from nine months if they got back in government.

Welsh Labour offering both stability and changepublished at 10:52 BST 30 March

10:52 BST 30 March

Gareth Lewis
Wales political editor

"This election is about who is serious enough to take Wales forward," Morgan says.

She makes the pitch that it is Labour which has the experience to do this compared to the other parties, and warns voters against "change for change’s sake".

Both Morgan and her deputy have tried to claim that Labour offers both stability AND change through a "new chapter".

Will voters buy that?

Polls suggest that many people are looking for a different party after 27 years of Labour rule.

Apprenticeships claim previously criticised by watchdogpublished at 10:48 BST 30 March

10:48 BST 30 March

Felicity Evans
Wales money editor

The manifesto repeats a claim that has been criticised previously by the statistics watchdog that the Welsh government has beaten a target of creating 100,000 apprenticeships.

Ministers have changed the way they count apprentices by including those who dropped out in the first two months of their course.

But Penny Young, interim chair of the UK Statistics Authority, said those apprentices would have been excluded from "the well-established 'rigorous' measure" and could be perceived as “cherry-picking the data”.

At the last Senedd election in May 2021, Labour promised 125,000 apprenticeships, reduced to 100,000 in 2024.

David Deans
Wales politics reporter

The NHS is by far the biggest thing, in terms of spending, that the Welsh government does.

As we've heard, Welsh Labour says it would guarantee you will be seen by a member of the primary care team within 48 hours if you have a pressing primary care-related health need.

It does not clarify what the "member" of the team would be.

Labour says it will continue cutting long waits and meet the 26-week waiting time target over the course of the next Senedd.

The party says it will "work with" Betsi Cadwaladr health board in north Wales to "restore timely access to high-quality NHS services".

The organisation has had a range of problems in recent years.

Some way to go with renewable energy targetpublished at 10:39 BST 30 March

10:39 BST 30 March

Steffan Messenger
Wales environment correspondent

With the future of our energy supplies a big talking point after the wars in Iran and Ukraine pushed up oil and gas prices, Welsh Labour says it wants to work towards "an energy-independent Wales".

The current Labour-run government in Cardiff Bay has already set a target for 100% of the country's electricity needs to be met from renewable sources - like wind, solar, hydro and tidal power - by 2035.

As of 2024, we were at 54% - so there's some way to go.

Electricity demand is also forecast to increase significantly in the coming decades with the switch to electric vehicles, heat pumps, the growth of data centres and the use of AI.

The other challenge the party may face politically during the campaign is considerable backlash against onshore wind and solar farms - as well as the associated pylons - in parts of the country at the moment.

Manifesto doesn't explain how it will make council tax fairerpublished at 10:36 BST 30 March

10:36 BST 30 March

Felicity Evans
Wales money editor

Council tax is one of the biggest bills facing households. Welsh Labour's manifesto promises to “make council tax fairer” but doesn’t say how.

The current government delayed a plan to go ahead with a revaluation which could change bills for hundreds of thousands of households until 2028.

It would be the first such shake up in more than 20 years, but it will be up to the next Welsh government to decide whether to go ahead with it and there is no mention of it in the manifesto.

There has been a small pilot scheme offering help to eligible households in council tax arrears which Welsh Labour say they will “explore” expanding if they form the next government.

David Deans
Wales politics reporter

Eluned Morgan has ended her speech with a round of applause from the activists that arrived in Swansea for the event.

This isn't a press conference - it's more like a rally really - so we won't get to ask questions right now, although interviews are happening later.

The pitch was heavy on a few key messages - that Labour is more serious than other parties, and that it is offering change and what Morgan calls "fairness you can feel".

The challenge for Labour is convincing voters who are aware they have been in charge for a very long time in Wales that it is the party that can make their lives better.

David Deans
Wales politics reporter

Morgan says there is "one issue people raise with me more than any other... the NHS".

"Our health service is one of this country's proudest achievements. But people are frustrated.

"Getting a GP appointment though can feel like a battle for some. For many families progress just feels too slow," she says.

The manifesto "sets out a new deal for the NHS," according to Morgan.

She promises £4bn over the next decade to build hospitals "for the future", and a clear commitment that under a Welsh Labour government people will be able to access a primary health care professional within 48 hours if they have a problem that "really can't wait".

"If something doesn't feel right you should be able to get help quickly."

A new workforce plan ensures we will have the right number of GPs, she says.

David Deans
Wales politics reporter

Morgan says Welsh Labour in recent years has protected "what matters".

She says the party needs to deliver "fairness you can feel".

Fairness shouldn't be an "abstract idea", according to the first minister. She says that starts with "being honest with people".

Morgan adds Labour is under pressure to "match easy promises".

"I'm not going to do that," she said. "I will never gamble with people's lives for political gain.

"We will not just say anything to get elected."

She outlines one of the party's pledges not to raise income tax should it form the next Welsh government.

And Morgan promises 20,000 new childcare places, expanding provision from nine months old.

David Deans
Wales politics reporter

First Minister Eluned Morgan arrives - telling party activists Labour is starting a "new chapter" built on "fairness you can feel".

She says the manifesto is "a story rooted in the challenges of today and full of hope for tomorrow".

"I think we've got to be honest where people are.

"You've all heard it on the doorstep... Underneath it all there's a feeling that something isn't quite right."

People aren't "asking for perfection" but what they do want is more certainty and a little "less dread", she says.

Labour finding it tough on doorstepspublished at 10:17 BST 30 March

10:17 BST 30 March

Gareth Lewis
Wales political editor

There is an acknowledgment from deputy FM Huw Irranca-Davies of how tough Labour has been finding it on the doorsteps.

He tells the audience that the party has heard "first hand" of "frustration" and a "loss of faith in politics".

He says that voters want stability.

Does that tie in with the promise of change or a "new chapter" emblazoned on the front of the manifesto?

David Deans
Wales politics reporter

"We protected what mattered," says Irranca-Davies, adding the party defended the NHS from "Tory cuts".

"This is a plan with fairness at its very heart," he says of the party's pledges for the election.

He says the manifesto is the "product of months of work by so many people".

"This is a serious plan for a new chapter.

"You cannot fix waiting lists with a hashtag. You cannot grow wages with TikTok.

"You need a plan and the determination to deliver it."

David Deans
Wales politics reporter

"It is tough out there", the deputy first minister says as he opens the event, admitting how hard it is for Welsh Labour right now.

Huw Irranca-Davies says people want more "certainty" and less "dread at the back of their minds".

"We will give them that," he says.

Irranca-Davies says Reform is "taking Welsh voters for fools" and that their candidates are "nothing more than recycled Tories".

Plaid Cymru, meanwhile, chooses constitutional rows over helping the vulnerable, says Irranca-Davies.

David Deans
Wales politics reporter

We've been handed the manifesto: a glossy pamphlet with Welsh Labour leader Eluned Morgan's face on the cover.

Labour, which has been in charge since the beginning of devolution, has titled its promises for the Senedd election "A new chapter for Wales".

They are trying to say that despite running things for over two decades, they are still the party of change.

In her forward, Morgan says families across Wales have "weathered too many storms", but that Welsh Labour has "protected what mattered the most".

"People are right to hope for more, and I share your impatience," she writes. "Your longing for change is my own".

Image source, Athena Picture Agency