One step closer to rail electrification

The Minister with responsibility for Transport, Carl Sargeant, has announced that the Welsh Government, working in collaboration with the regional transport consortium, Taith, is to develop a business case for the electrification of the North Wales line.

 

The Minister has confirmed that a robust business case will be developed that will capture the full social, economic and environmental benefits for north Wales.

The business plan for modernisation will build on previous work done to date, including the important North East Wales Area Based Transport Study.

Carl Sargeant said: “I want to see North Wales properly connected to the UK electric infrastructure, with effective cross-border links.

“I want to see rail operations across Wales developed to achieve enhanced services with efficiency savings leading to a fairer deal for passengers and taxpayers.

“Our prioritised National Transport Plan recognises that transport is an enabler for many aspects of the Welsh economy and we will continue to focus on improving the capacity and reliability of the main east-west road and rail corridors in Wales.

“Modernising the North Wales rail line is a key element of this ambition and has the potential of greatly improving the rail services and unlocking economic growth for the region, which will in turn help tackle poverty.”

In addition to the North Wales Coast Main Line (from Holyhead to Crewe), consideration will be given to the rail network in north-east Wales (including the Wrexham to Bidston line, the line from Wrexham to Chester, and the line from Chester to Warrington Bank Quay) in order to maximise the social, economic and environmental benefits to the region resulting from modernisation.

Work now begins on establishing the strategic case for investment, which will define the scope, objectives, benefits and long-list of options for the project. This in turn will lead on to a robust case for change, which will be complete this summer.

Politicians' fury over benefit changes

Local Labour politicians have reacted with fury to the numbers of people who have been told by HMRC that they could lose their child benefit.

Clwyd South MP Susan Elan Jones and AM Ken Skates have condemned the changes which have seen 440 households across their constituency receive letters from HMRC saying their benefit could be cut.

Families with one parent with a taxable income of more than £50,000 will lose some of the benefit, and it will be withdrawn entirely if one parent earns above £60,000.

Across the UK, HM Revenue and Customs said it had written to nearly 800,000 people but it estimates 1.1 million will be affected by the move.

Susan Elan Jones said: “The Government have made a complete mess of these child-benefit reforms. A family with two children could lose up to £1,752 a year in child benefit, an important and valuable top-up to the monthly household income.

“In particular these changes are unfair because they penalise single-income families, who will be put under additional financial strain at the same time that heating, household food and other living costs are set to soar even higher.

“There are many people in my constituency who have not had a pay rise for two or three years and the added costs of childcare and transport on top of all this is pinching working families very hard.” 

Ken Skates said: “Means-testing child benefit is simply mean spirited. The gradual withdrawal of benefit from people earning more than £50,000 a year will only increase the enormous financial pressures faced by families in Clwyd South.

“It is ridiculous that single earners on £50,000 will see their child benefit cut whilst couples earning £98,000 could end up keeping theirs.

“What a terrible new year gift for families in my constituency. A letter from the Chancellor saying that he is taking money away from them at exactly the time when they need it most. That’s not fair and it’s not right.”

The UK Government does not have precise information on how many households in Wales should lose child benefit, but it has written to 20,630.

The highest number were in Cardiff North (1,530), followed by Monmouth (1,300), the Vale of Glamorgan (1,110) and Cardiff West (1,090).

The fewest letters were sent to households in Rhondda (130), followed by Blaenau Gwent (140), Merthyr Tydfil & Rhymney (190) and the Cynon Valley (210).

According to the Silk Commission launched by the Wales Office to examine devolution, in 2010-11 there were 89,000 higher rate taxpayers in Wales.

Campaigners hit back at health changes survey

Keep Llangollen Health Services campaigners have slammed Betsi Cadwaladr’s consultation process on closing Llangollen Hospital as “meaningless and designed to say what the Government and the board wants to hear”.

The consultation gathered thousands of responses from public meetings, petitions and questionnaires but it’s been criticised for favouring the findings of one group of questionnaires rather than another.

KHLS campaigners say open questionnaireresponses, which are far more hostile towards the planned closure of Llangollen Hospital, have been ignored.

Mabon ap Gwynfor, of KLHS said: “This consultation has been flawed from the start. We were given only one option – to close the existing community hospital and then wait for a new health centre to be built somewhere sometime in the future.

"People locally are rightly sceptical of these plans – a new health centre would cost more than £5 million and Betsi Cadwaladr health board admits it’s in financial trouble.

"The way the findings have been presented proves that the Government and their puppets at the health board have got what they wanted through this sham exercise to tick the boxes.

"Many of the questions were loaded and, where the opposing view is clear and concise, they choose to ignore it. This is very shoddy work.”

To support his claim, Mr ap Gwynfor noted that the survey states: “Significantly higher proportion of residents who live within 10 km of Llangollen Community Hospital disagree with proposal to move inpatient beds (74%).”

However, in its conclusions the report authors say: “Divided opinions on removing inpatient beds 35% for, 29% against (HS).”

Mr ap Gwynfor said: “They have based their conclusions on the household survey, of which there were no more than a dozen respondents, because the result suited their agenda.

 

"The Open Survey shows the polar opposite! So those dozen people carry more weight than the 1,200 people who signed our petition and the hundreds who sent representations in the post or on-line.

“The report cannot be trusted. They also say that there is an ‘Absolute majority support for primary care centre in Llangollen’ – of course there is!

 

"Who wouldn’t want to see local health services improved in Llangollen? That is why we formed our group because these proposals threaten to diminish health care in Llangollen.”

Mr ap Gwynfor said his group was also concerned about the way the report authors seemed to dismiss petitions out of hand.

The board will consider recommendations at a special meeting which will take place in the Optic Centre, St Asaph at 10am on Friday, January 18.

* The report can be found at http://www.wales.nhs.uk/sites3/docopen.cfm?orgid=836&id=204213.

Health chiefs to discuss big shake-up on January 18

* Issues surrounding Llangollen Cottage Hospital will be discussed by the health board on January 18. 

Results of a test of public opinion are said to reveal that an “absolute majority” supports plans for new primary care centre in Llangollen.  

But there were said to be “divided opinions” on removing in-patient beds from the town’s closure-threatened Cottage Hospital. 

These results will be considered when the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHB) discusses a major shake-up in health services across north east Wales at a special meeting on January 18. 

News that, as part of the major changes it is proposing, the board intends to close the Cottage Hospital and replace it with a new health centre – possibly on the site of the derelict River Lodge off the A539 – and move its in-patient beds either into the community or to Chirk Hospital caused a storm of protest last summer. 

This led to the staging of two packed public meetings in the Hand Hotel.

Ahead of any decision being made, the health board carried out a comprehensive public consultation on its plans over the autumn.   

To allow board members to make up their minds on the entire change package, consultants have produced an exhaustive interpretation document. 

Running to 127 pages, this reveals that a total of 1,899 people across the region filled in an open questionnaire on various aspects of the package. 

A total of 683 people (14%) took part in a household survey on the issues involved. 

Denbighshire had the largest number of people in the region - 42% - taking part in the questionnaire, while 14% of people from the county took part in the household survey. 

In their interpretation document the consultants, Dale Hall and Kester Holmes, say that there was “absolute majority support” for primary care centre in Llangollen in the household survey and open questionnaire, while there were “divided opinions” on removing inpatient beds – 35% for and 29% against in the household survey.  

Full results were: 

Question: Do you agree or disagree that an extended primary care centre be developed in Llangollen? 

Household survey: 57% agree, 30% neither, 12% disagree

(38% of respondents answered this question) 

Open questionnaire: 52% agree, 24% neither, 23% disagree

(35% of respondents answered this question) 

Question: Community inpatient beds should be moved from Llangollen Community Hospital to local care homes or Chirk Community Hospital? 

Household survey: 35% agree, 35% neither, 29% disagree

(37% of respondents answered this question) 

Open questionnaire: 27% agree, 23% neither, 50% disagree

(35% of respondents answered this question)  

The consultation document also reports that a petition containing 1,240 signatures was sent into the board about Llangollen Cottage Hospital.

This called on the board to ‘draw up several alternatives for discussion’ rather than only status quo or closure.

A total of 89 people turned up at the three public consultation sessions held on the board’s proposals at Llangollen Town Hall in September and October, which was amongst the highest number recorded in the region.

Concerns were voiced over:

·       Transport

Distances to travel, the cost of transport and overall access

·       Transition

Current services would cease before new services in place

·       Remaining Llangollen service

Will they cope with future demand increases?

·       Funding

Is funding for the new service secure?

BCUHB chief executive Mary Burrows said: “We were very pleased and encouraged that so many people took the time and trouble to give their views.  

“The consultation feedback will be a significant element alongside other evidence that the board will consider on how best we can provide safe, effective services for the people of North Wales as a whole.” 

The board will consider the recommendations at a special meeting which will take place in the Optic Centre in St Asaph at 10am on Friday, January 18.  

The full interpretation document can be viewed at: http://www.wales.nhs.uk/sites3/Documents/836/2012%2012%2024%20ORS%20BOARD%20PRESENTATION%206.pdf.pdf

Call for direct local rail link to London

Clwyd South Assembly Member Ken Skates has called on the UK Government to restore a direct rail link between Wrexham and London.

Following the collapse of the franchise process for the West Coast Main Line last year, Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin announced in December that Virgin trains had been awarded a two-year extension to its franchise on the line while a new tendering process was developed.

The stop gap solution also saw the UK Minister announce a new direct rail service between London and Shrewsbury, but said that the service will not carry on to Wrexham.

The Clwyd South AM, a member of the Welsh Assembly Transport Committee, said the arrangement ‘short changed’ his constituents and called for an urgent re-think.

Mr Skates said: “The fiasco over the West Coast Mainline franchise is turning out to be very damaging to passengers and businesses across North East Wales.

“We do not know what West Coast services to Wrexham will look like in the long-term and while they clear the mess up we will also be denied a direct rail link to London because the new service will stop at Shrewsbury and go no further.

“Proposals for a direct service to Shrewsbury without an equivalent service to Wrexham short changes passengers and businesses in my constituency. The previous Wrexham to Marylebone open access service was rated one of the best on the network by passengers proving there is a viable market for such a route.

“Virgin had previously stated that they would develop a Wrexham to London direct service three times a day, and the chaotic mismanagement of the West Coast franchise has now seemingly scuppered this with only a direct London to Shrewsbury service being promised out of the mess.

“The UK Government and the Department for Transport seem to have an on-going policy of ignoring North Wales when it comes to strategic rail investment. We have no plan for electrification of the North Wales mainline, we’ve missed out on a Wrexham to London direct service and we have no concrete timetable for the introduction of either.

“Other areas are much better served when it comes to rail, with serious investment being ploughed into other parts of the regional rail network. It’s time for the UK Government to start playing fair by passengers and businesses in North East Wales and start planning long-term investment and services for the area.”

The original franchise process for the West Coast Main line fell apart in October after it was discovered officials had made mistakes in their calculations over the £5 billion process.

A damning report attacked the Department for Transport over its handling of the franchise process.

Former Dinas Bran pupil bids for national fame

* Former Dinas Bran pupil Natalie Timmins is a finalist in Britain's Next Top Model.

A young actress and model who went to school in Llangollen is bidding for national fame.

Twenty-three-year-old Natalie Timmins, who attended Ysgol Dinas Bran, has reached the grand final of the 2013 Britain’s Next Top Model competition.

Born in Wrexham, Natalie grew up in Trevor and Garth and moved Oswestry in her late teens, later living in Plas Madoc.

She took A Levels in drama and theatre studies, dance and media studies at Yale College in Wrexham.

After finishing her studies last year, Natalie moved to Liverpool to enable her to attend professional acting classes.

She is also currently appearing in The Love Machine on Sky Living TV and is a main “picker” on the dating show presented by Chris Moyles.

Natalie said: “I auditioned for Britain's Next Top Model to gain a little bit of exposure and recognition to try and encourage my acting career.

“I am visiting Hollywood in the summer to audition for agents and to get work over there and at the moment I am trying to arrange some charity events to help raise money for Children with Cancer UK as part as being a candidate for the competition.”

The online voting system is now open and you can vote for Natalie on www.topmodeluk.com 

She is in the natural beauty category under Natalie T from Liverpool.  

It costs £1 to vote and all proceeds go to Children with Cancer UK.

Temporary lights on the A5

According to Denbighshire County Council, contractors Parry Construction are carrying out stone wall repairs on the A5, from the area boundary to Queen Street, Llangollen, until January 18.

 

Temporary lights will be in operation to control traffic duing this period.