ADAM Price is MP for Carmarthen[...].

Byline: DAFYDD WIGLEY

ADAM Price is MP for Carmarthen East and Dinefwr. He is the star performer amongst Plaid Cymru's younger generation. He announced last week that he will leave Westminster at the next election in order to stand for the National Assembly in May 2011.

Adam is a native of the coal-mining valleys of East Carmarthenshire. He is an outstanding orator - the best of his generation in Wales. He is also a trained economist with an incisive mind.

Adam made an early name for himself in Parliament, campaigning on issues such as compensation for disabled industrial workers and for the future of Wales' steel industry. He led a crusade against the Iraq War when other parties were hedging their bets. He even tried to impeach Tony Blair for taking Britain into an illegal war.

Adam Price has become disillusioned with the House of Commons, its "old-boy" networks and its detachment from the real world. Brought up in the Welsh socialist tradition, he watched with dismay as New Labour sold out on its principles.

Adam has been awarded a prestigious Fulbright Scholarship for 12 months in America, to study how the US federal structure helps local economic development. He starts immediately this Parliament disbands next April.

In no way is Adam turning his back on Welsh politics. He has found a mechanism which enables him to step down honourably from Westminster, without creating an unnecessary byelection; to spend 12 months broadening his horizons; and to be available for election to the National Assembly in May 2011.

Adam Price has taken a considerable risk. He is stepping down from a seat where he has a 7,000 majority, with no certainty of a constituency to contest for the Assembly - still less a safe seat. It is an indication of tremendous political courage and of his commitment to Wales, that he has taken such a step.

It would be a tragedy if Adam Price was lost to Welsh politics. There is a need for a charismatic voice to inspire the younger generation to shoulder the responsibility for governing our country. Plaid's leaders must endeavour to help Adam get selected for a winnable seat.

If he succeeds in returning to active politics in 2011, Adam will make a major impact in the next Assembly and will become a significant player in the government of Wales.

There is one further consideration. Adam Price may not be the only bright young person who has had enough of the House of Commons and the way it currently fails to function. We may see, over coming months, a wave of MPs announcing their departure.

Many of those who stand down will be untainted by Westminster's allowance scandal. They will be decent Members who have just had enough of the climate within which Parliament operates.

Adam Price's decision to leave the Commons, in favour of the Assembly, is a strong message to the people of Wales. It is also a wake-up call to everyone concerned for the future of Britain's democratic institutions.