MP says hunting ban should stay

Clwyd South MP Susan Elan Jones (pictured below) says Members of Parliament should be prepared to "vote through the night" to stop David Cameron's Government bringing in legislation that would repeal the Hunting Act.

Speaking on the day she took her oath in Parliament in Welsh and English, she said: "The Conservatives and Plaid may be keen to bring back fox hunting, but I and the bulk of people around here are certainly not. 
"As someone who comes from and is proud to represent a rural area in Parliament, I support population control of foxes. But what I am totally against is that so-called sport where a pack of dogs chase foxes and then rip them from limb to limb.

"A previous Labour Government was right to ban that cruel practice - and I promise local residents that I will join other Labour MPs and I hope some MPs from other parties who care about animal welfare to make sure that foxes, hare and deer are protected from the kind of abuses that sadly used to be legal in this country."

Help available with superfast broadband says AM

Welsh Government help is available for residents and businesses struggling with slow broadband speeds, says an Assembly Member.

Ken Skates, the Labour AM for Clwyd South, has been distributing details to households in some of the more rural parts of his constituency to make people aware that support is available while they wait to be connected to the Superfast Cymru network.

Mr Skates said anyone who lives in Clwyd South can contact him for more information about what is on offer from the Welsh Labour Government.

He said: “If your home or business can’t yet access high-speed broadband, the chances are it’s on its way as a result of the Welsh Government’s Superfast Cymru programme.

“We are investing record sums in North Wales and most exchanges in Clwyd South are now live – such as Brymbo , Rhos, Ruabon, Cefn Mawr and Llangollen – or soon will be, like Chirk and Glyn Ceiriog. Few other nations have adopted such an ambitious plan, and we are on track to deliver it with the help of European money.

“If you are still waiting, there is other support available from the Welsh Labour Government. 

“Access Broadband Cymru is a grant of up to 90% of the costs of installing a fast broadband system, for example a satellite connection, and is also available for community solutions. If your current connection speed is slower than two mega-bits per second, you can qualify.”

Anyone based in Clwyd South who is interested in seeking the support is asked to email ken.skates@assembly.wales for more information and an application form.

Mr Skates added: “You can visit www.superfast-cymru.com/where-and-when to see when you will be connected to the network.

“Superfast Cymru is a pioneering £425m project which aims to address the market failure of telecommunications companies, who have invested in urbanised areas where profits can be maximised instead of connecting homes in rural areas.

“We are on target to have 96% of homes and businesses linked up to the network by next summer – making us one of the best-connected countries in the world.”

Councillor's concerns over pass road closure

* A council map showing the closure and alternative route.

LLANGOLLEN county councillor Stuart Davies says he has “grave concerns” about the temporary closure of a stretch of the Horseshoe Pass just as the busy summer season begins.

Cllr Davies has learned that Denbighshire County Council recently made an order banning vehicles from using a length of the A542 pass – one of the main approach routes to the tourist town – between the Ty Cerrig/PIas Norway junction and the White Hart/Pentredwr junction to allow carriageway reconstruction and resurfacing work to go ahead.

The county council public notice detailing the order says it will come into force on June 8 and remain in place for 18 months or until the completion of the works, whichever is the earlier.

However, the county says it is anticipated that the works will take about five weeks to complete.

The altemative route available for traffic will be via the A542, A5104, A494, Castle Street, Abbey Road and A542 and will be signposted accordingly.

Pedestrian access will be maintained throughout the period of closure.

Cllr Davies said: “I have grave concerns about this closure leading up to one of the busiest times of the year for the town.

“It will mean people having to divert through Corwen adding six miles or so on to their journey.

“I will be getting in touch with officers to make sure that the works are done as quickly as possible and to ensure that the closure is kept to a minimum period of time.”

Dog fouling campaign gathers pace

Denbighshire County Council's campaign against dog fouling is gathering pace, with 97 people receiving fixed penalty notices for allowing their dogs to foul in public without cleaning up the mess since January 2015.

Ninety-five people paid their fine within the given time period.

Action was taken after an individual failed to pay their fixed penalty notices for allowing dogs to foul in public.

This meant that the council needed to pursue the matter through the courts process.

A case heard at Llandudno Magistrates Court where the matter was proved in their absence. The defendant was fined £75, costs of £145 and a victim surcharge of £20.

There were also 43 prosecutions against people who had received a Fixed Penalty Notice for littering by dropping cigarette butts. The amount of fines issued by the court (including court costs and victim surcharge) totalled over £9,000.

Councillor David Smith, Cabinet lead Member for Environment, said: "The majority of the residents of Denbighshire act in a responsible manner by cleaning the mess left by their animals.

"However, there continues to be this anti-social behaviour from a minority of people who think it's ok to leave dog mess. Not only is this anti-social but it also affects the visual image of the area and the quality of life for residents.

"That is why the Council has been running a campaign, to educate the public about the dangers, but also to enforce the law where people are willingly refusing to clean up after their animals.

"Littering is also a problem that has been highlighted as a concern by residents and we are asking people to take their rubbish home with them or use the bins provided on the county's streets.

"Taking action through the courts is very much a last resort - we would prefer not to need to issue fixed penalty notices in the first instance."

* To report problems with dog fouling in Denbighshire, go to: www.denbighshire.gov.uk/dogfouling or call the Customer Services Centre, on 01824 706101.

Residents may get speedguns combat rat runners

A story on the Denbighshire Free Press website today (Monday) says residents of Maesmawr may be given speed guns to counteract the "rat running" traffic they are enduring as a result of roadworks on the A5.

For the full story see: http://www.denbighshirefreepress.co.uk/news/148070/llangollen-rat-run-makes-residents-lives-hell.aspx

Llan school triumphs in arts competitions

Llangollen schools have done well in county-wide creative arts competitions.

For the first time ever, Denbighshire schools entered competitions covering art, creative writing, film-making and music composition as part of the festival, Denbighshire Enrichfest 2015 - Get Inspired! 

Staged in collaboration with the Arts Council of Wales, the festival aims to showcase the talents of children and young people across Denbighshire who have been challenged and inspired to produce a wide range of work, adding value to their work in the classroom across the curriculum. 

This unique Denbighshire initiative reflects current thinking that the creative arts can have a beneficial knock-on effect on children's well-being and self-esteem and can engage them in a new and innovative way and get them inspired as never before. 

Having been inspired via enrichfest.2015, many of these children and young people, it is anticipated, will go on explore careers opportunities in the increasingly important creative arts industries sector in Wales and further afield.         

No sooner has the competitions phase of Denbighshire Enrichfest.2015 reached its climax in May and a glittering Awards ceremony staged, the exciting performance elements get underway, involving 200 Primary, Secondary and Special school pupils in performing arts workshops and masterclasses, tutored by leading practitioners from the world of musical theatre, led by Mark Puddle, a native of North Wales and a leading West End London performing arts entrepreneur.

The climax to these week-long workshops, which are being held in the north and south of the county, will be Showcase Performances at Llangollen Pavilion on Friday June, 19 from 5-6:15 pm and Rhyl Pavilion Theatre on Friday June 26, from 5-6:15 pm, when the public, including parents, teachers, governors, councillors and other organisations can see for themselves the fruits of all the hard work undertaken by the children and young people.

Overall Schools Competition winners are:

Young Artist: Daniel Bailes, Year 7, Blessed Edward Jones High School, Rhyl
Young Writer: Alexander Whetstone, Year 6, Ysgol Bryn Collen, Llangollen
Short Film Competition:  Ysgol Bryn Collen (KS1), Llangollen
Young Musicians: Ysgol Dewi Sant (Year 6), Rhyl 

Councillor Eryl Williams, Cabinet Lead Member for Education, said: "We have been thoroughly delighted with the response to the Enrichfest initiative.  It has captured the imagination of our children and young people and shows that there is a real interest in Denbighshire in the creative industries sector in Wales." 

Full competition results: 

Young Artist Competition 

Reception/ Year 1 and 2:
1st  Alice Jackson, Year 1, Ysgol Bodfari.
2nd Sasha Davies-Jones, Year 1, Ysgol Bryn Collen, Llangollen
3rd  Ryan Jones, Year 1, Ysgol y Parc, Denbigh 

Years 3 and 4
1st Courtney Cox, Year 3, Ysgol Clawdd Offa, Prestatyn
2nd Alex Davies, Year 3, Ysgol Pendref, Denbigh
3rd Tom Priestley, Year 3, Ysgol Bodfari. 

Years 5 and 6
1st Ioan Beating, Year 5, Ysgol Mair, Rhyl
2nd Lori Roberts, Year 6, Ysgol Emmanuel, Rhyl
3rd  Jan Ranci, Year 6, Ysgol Mair, Rhyl 

Secondary
1st  Bayley Wilkinson, Year 9, Rhyl High School
2nd Daniel Bailes, Year 7, Blessed Edward Jones High School, Rhyl
3rd  Kieron Nolan, Year 7, Blessed Edward Jones High School, Rhyl 

Young Writer competition 

Reception, Years 1 and 2
Winner: Danielle Jones, Year 2, St Asaph Infants 

Years 3 and 4
Winner: Matilda Cook, Year 4, Ysgol Bryn Collen, Llangollen 

Years 5 and 6:
Winners: Libby Morrissey, Year 5, Ysgol Clawdd Offa, Prestatyn & Alexander Whetstone, Ysgol Bryn Collen, Llangollen 

Short Film Competition;
1st Ysgol Bryn Collen (KS1), Llangollen
2nd Ysgol Caer Drewyn, Corwen
3rd  Ysgol Bryn Collen (KS2), Llangollen 

Young Musicians: Music Composition On-line Contest:
1st  Ysgol Dewi Sant, Year 6, Rhyl
2nd Roan Pritchard, Year 6, Ysgol Emmanuel, Rhyl & Christopher Jones, Year 10, Rhyl High School. 

Major music event coming to Pavilion

Details of the programme are:

Both evening concerts begin at 7.30pm and will finish about 11.30.

Tickets are limited and you can buy from the website. (£15)

Friday eve.  7.30 pm
Whitefern Mountain String Band
Blossom Hill Bluegrass band
Baker's Fabulous boys
Ruben and Matt & The Truffle Valley Boys

Saturday eve. 7.30pm
Mind The Step (Appalachian Dance)
Kentucky Cowtippers
Grass Snakes
Ruben and Matt & The Truffle Valley Boys

WORKSHOPS
Sat (10 am - 12 noon)
Workshops - Banjo/Guitar/Mandolin/Fiddle/Dobro/D.Bass

1-30pm  - Vocal Harmony
2pm  - Appalachian Dance
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2.30 pm    OPEN MIC

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