See you in 2012!

It's been an eventful year for Wales, the UK, Europe and the rest of the World. 2011 has been a groundbreaking year of change for billions of people around the planet for better and for worse. Next year promises to be just as eventful. There's the Plaid leadership election, the local elections in Wales, Scotland and parts of England (including Boris vs Ken Round 2), the build up to the London 2012 Olympics, Euro 2012 and no doubt the economy...

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Top 300 and GVA figures - grounds for cautious Welsh optimism?

In The Boardroom The Western Mail published it's list of the Top 300 companies in Wales on Wednesday. Although the same faces tend to be in the list year after year it does highlight how strong the private sector in Wales really is. It can always be better of course and the Welsh and UK governments should be working tirelessly...

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The Assembly's First Bill - Local Government Byelaws

Just before the Assembly went into recess, the Welsh Government laid the first bill since the successful March referendum in front of the Senedd. The Local Government Byelaws Bill will "simplify procedures for making and enforcing local bylaws". Byelaws are pieces of delegated legislation passed by local authorities that can "provide an effective and flexible method of addressing a variety of local problems." But I bet you already knew that,...

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What do we do with Cardiff Airport?

Hat tip to Andrew Davies AM and Click on Wales. Cardiff Airport is in a hell of a state. Passenger numbers have plummeted over the years from a peak of around 2.1million in 2007 to threatening to fall below the 1 million number this year – the lowest passenger figures for the best part of 15 years. That's a catastrophic turn in fortunes for the airport and something that should concern Welsh politicians. Niches, needs and propensity to fly We...

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Perfidious Albion and where it leaves Wales

Cameron's veto was ballsy but do we really want the UK on the fringes of Europe? Did Cameron call it right? Being the only EU member not to sign up to a new accord makes the UK look like a socially awkward accountant, walking like "Rain Man" around Brussels looking in vain for sandwiches with the crusts cut off. Of...

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Welsh Government's reprioritised National Transport Plan

Local Government and Communities Minister Carl Sargeant (Lab, Alyn & Deeside) has unveiled the Welsh Government's reprioritisation of the National Transport Plan (NTP). Transport has been one of the areas where, in my opinion, successive Welsh Governments can point to some success. We've seen multiple road schemes delivered after long waits, rail lines and stations reopened and a clear commitment to sustainable development. Unfortunately I...

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Senedd Watch - November 2011

Business Minister, Edwina Hart (Lab, Gower), confirmed there will be no public money used to establish a Welsh internet domain name. Two not-for-profit companies : Nominet based in Oxford and Welsh company dotCYM are both seeking to create the new domain name. Health Minister, Lesley Griffiths (Lab, Wrexham), set our her five-year plan for the Welsh NHS. She also rejected accusations by Plaid Cymru that hospitals were set to be "downgraded", however,...

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Has Neil McEvoy hit too close to the bone?

Plaid Cymru's leader in Cardiff Council has been suspended by the party after posting comments on Twitter and Facebook that implied that certain organisations were "complicit" in child abuse for apparantly helping mothers breach court orders regarding access to children. It's not as if he hasn't said something along these lines before. It's there in black and white in a Wales Home article back in July 2010. Why has it suddenly taken 18 months for...

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Saving the Welsh press

(Owen: I have to say my heart isn't in it to write new blogs at the moment, but due to some of the content I have to make it clear that this was written before Sunday's news.) I've been critical of the Western Mail in the past, but it's still the best source of detailed Welsh political and economic news. It's closure or "downgrade" would be a sad loss to Welsh civic life. However, the print media as a whole is in decline and it's an even worse...

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Gary Speed 1969-2011

I was going to post an "Independence Minutiae" blog today but that can wait due to the - to be frank - utterly devastating and shocking news that Wales football manager and Premier League legend Gary Speed has died. I'm not going to speculate on how or why. Utterly shocking. I'm speechless. He was only 42. ======================================================= UPDATE 29/11/2011 S4C's Sgorio tribute to Gary Speed is now on Clic for the next...

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Labour and Lib Dems agree budget deal

As I predicted last week, Labour and the Lib Dems have broken the deadlock to agree a budget that will now surely pass the Assembly. The deal includes: An extra £20million for the "Pupil Deprivation Grant". A £38.9million economic stimulus package over the next two years to be spent on capital investment in schools, skills, and an increase in funding for the Arbed energy efficiency scheme. Any consequentials resulting from the UK Government's...

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At last! The sensible argument against Team GB

At least it's a Welshman that's come out and said it....... World hurdling champion Dai Greene is quoted on BBC Wales as saying: "I don't think the football team should be there in the first place. I hope that those big names don't overshadow those people who have trained for four years to be there for that one moment. These guys have four to five weeks off in the summer then become an Olympian. It does seem a little bit out of place. These guys...

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Back on track - Network Rail's long overdue "devolution" to Wales

Network Rail, the company responsible for rail infrastructure in England, Scotland and Wales, has finally created a new all-Wales division. They announced the move many months ago off the back of the Department for Transport's McNulty Report, which suggested "devolution and decentralisation" to improve efficiency. This week, the First Minister formally launched their new operation near Cardiff Central station. Why is this such an important development? Railways...

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Assembly Budget Deadlock - Who will blink first?

Carwyn, Andrew, Ieuan and Kirsty -budget negotiations continue with no sign of agreement yet He might not have a magic pot of money. He might be struggling to pass his government's budget. However Carwyn Jones checked his wallet and £38.9million fell out. Realistically, £38.9million isn't going to go very far, and unlikely...

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Cardiff's illiberal approach to combating alcohol-related crime

LOL!..........sorry.......FOR SHAME! Cardiff's saturation zones policy doesn't extend to transvestites. (Pic: Maciej Dacowicz via Perthnow.au) Cardiff Council and South Wales Police (SWP) are taking strong measures to curb alcohol-related crime in and around Cardiff city centre. Cardiff Council and SWP are using "saturation...

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The Welsh Government's white paper on organ donation

Wales currently has high rates of organ donation, but 51 people still died waiting for a transplant in the last year. (Pic : The Guardian) It's been a rough week for them, so I think it's time I cut the Welsh Government some slack and focus on one of their boldest (and potentially controversial) moves - probably in the...

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Carwyn clobbered on the economy

Well it was gloves off in the Senedd at First Minister's Questions yesterday. Carwyn Jones found himself and his government's record under attack from three directions - probably with an eye on budget negotiations - but suffered a particularly harsh attack from Ieuan Wyn Jones over Labour's handling of the Welsh economy. Labour have pointed to several examples of their commitment to capital spending, but as IWJ quite rightly pointed out, a large...

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