Ken Skates gets top government job

Ken Skates AM has been appointed as the new chair of a committee which oversees the monitoring of European Structural Funds in Wales.

 

The All Wales Programme Monitoring Committee (PMC) is responsible for monitoring the effective delivery of the £1.9bn Convergence and Regional Competitiveness and Employment (ERDF and ESF) programmes 2007–2013, as well as any future EU programmes during 2014-2020 in Wales.

 

Mr Skates (pictured right) replaces former chair, Mark Drakeford AM, who was recently appointed the Welsh Government's Health Minister.

He will now lead the PMC which comprises 16 members drawn on a representative basis from partners and statutory bodies, and five members selected on merit via the public appointments process.

The composition represents a balance of interests across Wales, as well as relevant expertise, to ensure effective delivery of the programmes for the benefit of businesses, people and communities across Wales.

Mr Skates will also chair the European Programmes Partnership Forum (EPPF) - a key stakeholder group that provides strategic direction on the development of 2014-2020 EU programmes in Wales.
The EPPF is made up of members from across the private, public and third sectors.

The Forum advises on how best to harness European funds to deliver on Welsh Government and EU priorities for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth.

Appointing Mr Skates, First Minister of Wales, Carwyn Jones, said: "I attach great importance to the role of the All Wales Programme Monitoring Committee and the work of the Chair and Members.  In partnership with the Welsh Government, they all play an important role in building upon the success of the current and previous programmes, paving the way for the future programmes during 2014-2020 and continuing to support our policies for sustainable growth and jobs."

Mr Skates said: “I am delighted to be appointed as Chair of the All-Wales PMC and I’m committed to ensuring the effective implementation of the current Structural Funds programmes in Wales. I also look forward to chairing the European Programmes Partnership Forum as we prepare for the successful launch of the next programme period during 2014-2020.”

Statement from health campaigners

Campaigners in Keep Llangollen Health Services issued the following statement today:

Llangollen treated with contempt by Health Board Llangollen Hospital has now been closed against the wishes of the people of Llangollen.   Does that mean that we give up the fight? NO!   A public meeting will be held at the Hand Hotel, Llangollen, on Tuesday evening, 26 March, at 7pm. Please join us.   The Health Board will hold a meeting in Llangollen sometime in April with 'stakeholders'. Who are the most important stakeholders? Us, the residents of Llan and the Dee Valley. How come we haven't heard about the meeting let alone been invited to it?!   The Health Board made several promises.   1) To build a new health centre by 2015. Having spoken to key figures in authority within the County Council and the Health Board we have found that they haven't even got a business plan. Remember, they consulted on these plans back in August - without even a business plan! 2) To provide a Home Enhanced Care Service Again this was in the consultation document back in August 2012, yet those charged with planning this service had their FIRST meeting only a fortnight ago! It isn't due to be in place until the end of May - that's 3 months without any hospital service in Llan. They don't have the staff to provide this service and are struggling to fill rotas. 3) That patients needing hospital beds will go to Chirk Hospital or a private care home. According to freedom f information data we've received during 2011-12 Chirk hospital was working flat-out at 98% capacity. They do a fantastic job in difficult circumstances, but there's no room there for more! We've spoken to the care homes in the Dee Valley and NONE of them have been contacted by the health Board to see if they could accommodate NHS patients! They are also concerned that they might have to re-register, as they are governed by the Care and Social Services Inspectorate Wales, and have different standards from the health needs of patients - they provide elderly care not paliative care. The care home option is therefore NOT an option. 4) Close the hospital. They've kept this promise. The health board have broken their promise! They have treated us the people of Llangollen and the Dee Valley with complete contempt and have let us down.   Please attend the meeting at the Hand on Tuesday to help us plan our next steps. We need to unite to insist that the new Health centre will include at least 10 hospital beds as well as improved health services.   Thank you.   Mabon ap Gwynfor Keep Llangollen Health Services

PUBLIC MEETING... Hand Hotel, Llangollen Tuesday 26 March 7pm WHAT'S COMING? Lobby new Health Minister Venue Cymru, Llandudno Saturday 23 March 2pm Forward this email to a friend

http://llangollenhospitalcampaign.wordpress.com/

"Disappointing budget for Wales" says Minister

Wales' Finance Minister Jane Hutt has responded to the UK Government's Budget.

 

She said: "This is a disappointing Budget for Wales. We have repeatedly called on the UK Government to boost infrastructure investment to stimulate the economy.

"In response they have reduced our revenue budget  - these revenue cuts are on top of those in last year's Autumn Statement.  In total we will now have to find savings of £32 m in 2013/14 and £81 m in 2014/15.

"The price for additional capital investment is high and will be paid for by cuts to our revenue for the next two years. This is a real blow and will place our crucial public services under further pressure.

"The UK Government has given  us  back  some capital  allocations,  which we welcome.  However there are many strings attached  - the capital can only be used for loans or equity investment and a proportion will have to be repaid.  Although we are committed to boosting the housing sector in Wales,  this falls far short of what we called for and urgently require.

"At a time when we are trying to support the Welsh economy and boost growth, this level of cuts is unacceptable.

"Despite the recent loss of triple A status, borrowing costs remain very low and we would like to see the UK Government take advantage of this to support capital projects.  Analysis by the IM F  concludes that the right time to reduce debt is when the economy has recovered.  The time now is right to boost the economy - especially with the disappointing jobs figures today.

"We welcome the acknowledgement in the Budget of the need for funding improvements to the M4 in South Wales , the intergovernmental talks on this need to be concluded quickly - I look forward to reaching agreement on this major infrastructure project.

"We want to see the Welsh economy returned to full strength, today’s Budget will not make that task  easier."

Budget main points

Main points from the Chancellor's Budget this afternoon are:

Growth forecast for this year halved to 6%

Further £11.5 billion of cuts in government spending ordered in public spending, with schools and NHS exempt

Public sector pay limited to 1% except the military

£3 billion a year extra for infrastructure from 2015/16

Fivefold increase in government procurement contracts

Corporation Tax slashed from 21 to 20%  from April 201

Working families to receive up to £1,200 per child for child care

Launch of two-fold Help to Buy Scheme (1) £3.5 billion for shared equity loans up to 20% of the value of a new home up to £600,000 (2) Mortgage Guarantee to lenders for people who can’t afford big deposits, with £130 billion available over three years starting in 2014

Fuel duty rise for September scrapped

Beer duty escalator scrapped with a further 1p cut in duty on beer from Sunday night

Personal tax allowance raised to £10,000 from April 2014

Up to £2,000 cut from employer National Insurance contributions

Capital Gains holiday extended

Bank of England keeps 2% inflation target

Chancellor called it a “budget for an aspirational nation.”

Read the full Budget statement at: http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/budget2013_statement.htm

 

New Health Minister speaks out

Mark Drakeford AM (pictured below right) has been sworn in as Minister for Health and Social Services and has begun looking at the wide range of issues in his portfolio, including NHS reconfiguration, the legislative programme, and the financial position of the NHS in Wales.

On service change, which includes the future of health services in Llangollen, he said: “The process of reconfiguring health services in Wales is underway. My aim is to bring that process to a conclusion so we can move on and ensure services are safe and sustainable for the future.
 

“My job is not to renew the process or interfere with the process underway, but I will bring a fresh mind to decisions that are being made within that process.

 

“What I can promise people is that I’ll consider everything that is on my desk as thoroughly as I possibly can.  I will weigh up the arguments, look at the evidence, and then I will make a decision.”

 

On the legislative programme, he said: “In terms of the Human Transplantation Bill, we will soon receive the Health Committee’s Stage One scrutiny report, which I expect to raise some important questions and issues for discussion.

“I am keen to steer the legislation we have underway to a successful conclusion.”
On NHS finances, he said: “This week I will look in detail at the position Health Boards are in as they come to the end of the financial year. I want to learn the lessons of this year, so I can apply them to next year. I will be looking at the way the money is used, against the pressures the NHS experiences.

“All NHS organisations must work to deliver services within the budget available to them and I want to be fully briefed on their progress.”

Art and craft fair at Town Hall this Saturday

An art and craft fair will be held at Llangollen Town Hall on Saturday (March 23)

 

Doors open at 10am and the fair runs throughout the day until 3.30pm.

The fair will showcase the work of local artists and crafters, whose skills, creativity and sheer quality demand greater recognition than their own friends and family.

 

Tea, coffee and home-made cakes will be available.

 

Pull the plug on local TV plans, says Skates

Clwyd South Assembly Member Ken Skates has called on the UK Government to scrap plans for Local TV and reinvest the funding in other areas of the Welsh media.

 

Last week Ofcom invited interested parties to bid for local TV services in 30 areas across the UK, including Bangor and Mold. The watchdog has also re-advertised the Swansea Local TV licence, which failed to secure an operator in the first round of bidders.

 

The AM said Local TV would do nothing to address the structural deficiencies in the Welsh media scene.  He criticised money being ‘wasted’ on a model of Local TV whilst funding for BBC Wales and S4C has been cut back and the future structure of the Channel Three licence in Wales is yet to be decided.

 

The AM called for the money to be put to more productive use such as funding journalism apprenticeships in Wales.

 

Mr Skates said: “Unfortunately the story of Local TV in Wales has been a difficult one from the very start.  Vital money has been top-sliced off the licence fee to pay for a vanity project that doesn’t address any of the fundamental problems in the Welsh media.

 

“The farce over the Swansea licence, which produced no bidders at all first time round, highlights the problem with the core idea.  If nobody thinks a station can be commercially viable in a large urban area such as Swansea, how can it then be a viable success in Bangor or Mold?

 

“Local TV is in no way a substitute or adequate replacement for Welsh commercial television.  We have a deficit of coverage of national Welsh issues in our media and it seems wrong that at a time when funding for BBC Wales and S4C has been cut back and the future structure of the Channel Three licence in Wales is yet to be decided, attention is being directed towards Local TV.

 

“I’ve spoken to quite a few senior media figures with years of experience and the vast majority of them tell me that this will not work, particularly when advertising revenues are making it tough even for the established players.

 

“It’s heart-breaking in a way, when revenue is declining in all areas of the media and good people in broadcast journalism, local newspapers and the creative industries are losing their jobs, that public money is being wasted in this way.

 

“I’d much prefer the funding be used to strengthen the Welsh media in ways that will last such as funding more apprenticeship schemes for journalists or increasing the amount of dedicated Welsh programming on our screens.

 

“Developing top-down local television services at a time when advertising revenue in the commercial Welsh media is haemorrhaging really is an idea only Jeremy Hunt could have dreamt up.”