Plaid Cymru's Leanne Wood: I don't take leadership loss personally

The former leader of Plaid Cymru says she has not taken her defeat to Adam Price personally.

In her first broadcast interview following the result of her party's leadership election Leanne Wood said she would stay on the political stage.

But the Rhondda AM said it was a "step backwards" that the assembly had been left without a female leader.

"People know who I am and what I stand for and I want to put it to good use," she said.

Ms Wood served as Plaid Cymru leader from 2012 to last Friday. She said she would stand for election in her constituency again at the next assembly election in 2021.

• Adam Price replaces Wood as Plaid leader

• Plaid's Wood rejects centre ground

• Who is Adam Price?

She told BBC Wales she was disappointed with the result, but added: "I'm not allowing myself to feel bruised or anything like that.

"It's a case of trying to be level headed about it.

"I'm a democrat and I recognise the wishes of the membership of Plaid Cymru."

The election of Adam Price means party members want to continue "with a large element of what I put forward", says Leanne Wood

"I'm not taking this personally," she said. "I started out on a political project six years ago... and that project still goes on."

The AM argued that there was little difference between herself and the new leader: "We still have a socialist leading Plaid Cymru, we still have independence as one of our priority areas.

"The question of social justice and inequality are still going to remain important aspects of Plaid Cymru's core message.

"I think the election of Adam Price means that people want to continue with a large element of what I put forward."

But she said it was a "step backwards for Welsh politics" that the Senedd had been left without a woman leader.

Analysis

By Felicity Evans, BBC Wales political editor

Leanne Wood had served as Plaid Cymru leader for six years

Leanne Wood is a seasoned politician who knows how to take the rough with the smooth. Last week's result will have been a shock at the time, but says she doesn't regard it as a rejection of her socialist approach.

Perhaps she is reassured that the party will not veer a long way from the path she's been following.

Whether there are any residual personal issues between their two camps is something she has brushed aside. She says she won't allow herself to feel bruised, and I wouldn't expect her to say anything else.

She regularly polls as one Wales most popular politicians with a high recognition factor. The question of why, as leader, she struggled to convert that into electoral success for Plaid is now historical.

It is up to the new Plaid leadership to think about how best to use her.

And she's clearly up for it. She is no longer a party leader, but she's determined to continue as one of Wales' leading politicians.

Ms Wood said she had not been prepared to offer "populist solutions" as leader of Plaid Cymru, and admitted "maybe the time is not for the kind of measured politics I want to see".

"An awful lot of politics today is people reacting out of fear to whatever the problem is and then being offered a simple solution and maybe plumming for that," she said.

Pushed on whether that was a criticism of Mr Price, Ms Wood said she was thinking more of the Brexit vote.

She said her greatest achievement was making the party "more open now to be looked at by people who may not have been prepared to look at us before".

The former leader has been vocal over the abuse outspoken women face on social media.

"I'm not going to end my strong opinions," she said. "I can imagine that that abuse will carry on and I will do what I can to combat it."

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