A Barack Obama-style campaign of optimism with the theme “yes Wales can” is the key to ending 100 years of Labour dominance and achieving independence by 2030, according to the new leader of Plaid Cymru.

In an interview with The Sunday Times, Adam Price, who ousted Leanne Wood in an election nine days ago, argued that two decades of economic stagnation had given Wales “a chronic lack of self-confidence” — despite history showing its people were among the most innovative on Earth.

“If the stories we tell ourselves are stories about poverty and loss and decline, then somewhere in our psyche that sinks in. It builds up like silt in your soul and you think, well, this is it then,” he said.

However, the Welsh