According to David Deans, Political reporter, BBC Wales News
The UKâs next prime minister will be Sir Keir Starmer, the leader of Plaid Cymru has said.
In the Panorama interview with Nick RobinsonRhun ap Iorwerth predicted that Labor will win the general election regardless of how Wales votes.
He asked Welsh voters to support pro-independence parties to prevent Labor from having a âhuge majorityâ that would allow them to act with âimpunityâ.
It comes after Conservative Grant Shapps warned Labor could win a âsuper majorityâ.
Mr ap Iorwerth also claimed that âtaxes are goodâ when asked how Plaid Cymru would handle the economy.
Plaid Cymru won four MPs at the last election. Following re-organization of boundaries for 32 seats it can be difficult for the party to repeat their performance.
Mr ap Iorwerth previously said the election would be difficult for the party. The former BBC Wales political reporter has been in charge of Plaid Cymru since last year.
âThey forgot Walesâ
In the interview, Mr ap Iorwerth said he wanted Wales to be able to adjust âvisa numbers to get more people workingâ in health and social care.
Party leaders say concerns about migration are being exploited, and say they should not be blamed for cuts to public services.
âKeir Starmer will be prime minister in four weeks,â Mr ap Iorwerth said.
âI think the evidence points in that direction.
âHe will be prime minister regardless of how Wales votes. That is a key factor for people to consider in Wales.â
âDo you want a big Labor majority, which allows them to act with impunity and allows them to continue what they are doing now which ignores Wales?â
He accused some senior Welsh Labor Westminister figures âof acting as if they have forgotten that they represent Walesâ.
Mr ap Iorwerth criticized the Welsh shadow secretary Jo Stevens, who said Labour cannot be subject to part of the funding of the HS2 rail project.
The scheme is defined as England and Wales, although it does not reach Wales, meaning Wales does not get any extra money because of the project.
The leader of Plaid Cymru said the party had âa number of proposals to increase taxesâ and called for an âhonest debateâ on the issue.
He said the UK needed âtaxes to bring inâ to âpay for public servicesâ.
The Senedd member for Ynys MĂŽn said the partyâs ideas included âensuring that oil and gas companies pay more wind taxâ, and âthose with a lot of wealth are targeted through wealth taxâ.
But he said he would not âincrease the burdenâ on low- and middle-income earners.
In March, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt extended the 35% tax on these companies â the Energy Profits Levy â until 2029.
It was introduced by Mr Sunak when he was chancellor after Russiaâs invasion of Ukraine sent demand and prices soaring.
Plaid Cymru wants Wales to become an independent state, but has abandoned a previous promise for an independence referendum in 2026.
Mr ap Iorwerth said his job was to âget people interested, interestedâ in the meaning of freedom.
âIf we are to remove the shackles of child poverty, the economic stagnation we are experiencing in Wales, we need to take change into our own hands,â he said.
But he said the country was ânot there yetâ.
âWe are in the English system, we are making the case for fair funding for Wales so that we can make the right decisions about public services and growing the economy and other things that can lead us to a positive trajectory,â the Plaid leader added.
But he said Wales âcannot fulfill our potential as a countryâ until it is independent.
âItâs Right for Hate to Goâ
Asked if there should be a trade border with Britain, he said: âDo I want that kind of barrier? Absolutely not.â
Plaid Cymru is in a co-operation agreement with Labor until the end of the month.
Mr ap Iorwerth has ended the initial deal due to a dispute over the first ministerâs leadershipâs campaign contributions.
He said when Vaughan Gething became first minister, he âshowed a change of direction, a change of attitude towards the kinds of radicals that would come through the cooperation agreementâ.
Mr. ap Iorwerth added: âWhen there is a scandal at the top (there is) a lot of noise, now is the time to separate.â
He said that âthe thing to do is for the first minister to quitâ.
Leaders rejected suggestions that Plaid Cymru was a party for Welsh speakers.
âWe are about the whole of Wales. We speak the language of the people in terms of health, education and the economy, and that is key,â he said.
The BBC interviewed all the main party leaders during the election in Panorama Interviews with Nick Robinson. You can watch the interview with Rhun ap Iorwerth at BBC iPlayer.