Local precept to rise by 3.65%

The town council is to increase its share of the county's council tax bill by just over 3% from April.

At their meeting on Tuesday night members agreed an increase of £3,100 in the council’s annual budget to a total of £87,000 for 2014/15.

This means increasing the precept - the amount added to the county council tax bill to cover the town council’s running costs –  by 3.65% for 2014/15.

This will add £1.82 to the bill for the average Band D property.

Town clerk Gareth Thomas said the budget would cover expenses such as maintaining the town’s CCTV system and Christmas lights.

Cllr Sheenah Burrell, who was one of the sub-group of members which worked on the budget, said: “We want to remain effective and active and to do that we have had to increase the precept. None of our decisions were taken easily or lightly.”

Isherwood questions council merger plans

Questioning the First Minister in the Assembly this week over plans to merge councils in Wales, North Wales Assembly Member Mark Isherwood highlighted the concerns of local authorities in North Wales.

 

The Williams Commission proposes merging local authorities to reduce numbers from 22 to between 10 and 12, but Mr Isherwood stressed to Carwyn Jones in the Assembly Chamber yesterday that councils in North Wales fear this would weaken accountability.

 

Speaking in the chamber he said: “You may be aware that the Communities, Equality and Local Government Committee recently completed an inquiry into progress on local government collaboration.

 

"How do you respond to the evidence to that inquiry from Conwy council, on behalf of north Wales councils, that working across organisational and geographic boundaries could bring complexity and ambiguity that could generate confusion and weaken accountability, paralleled by Cardiff Business School, which said ‘there is no simple answer to the local government sized conundrum because you have hundreds of different cost curves, all behaving differently.

 

"Whereas, for one service, the right scale may be regional or even across Wales, another may well be best delivered at an incredibly local level’”.

 

The First Minister replied: “What the Williams Commission identifies is a need for change now and it identifies a need for change in order to benefit the public. It also identifies the problems that have arisen due to the lack of collaboration between many local authorities in Wales.”

 

Mr Isherwood added: “To embark on a reorganisation at a time when Local Government is enmeshed in driving through significant financial savings is fraught with hazard, with the Welsh Local Government Association saying that the cost of merging councils in Wales could cost £200 million, double the Williams Commission estimate.

 

"All precedent in both the public and private sector indicates that even if mergers eventually prove effective, it takes a minimum 5 – 10 years to cover the merger costs and deliver the integrated systems required. Rather than freeing funds for service delivery, this threatens to reduce them even further.”

National Eisteddfod gets an extra £90,000

First Minister, Carwyn Jones, has said that an additional £90,000 will be awarded to the National Eisteddfod this year to enable it to implement several of the recommendations made by the Eisteddfod Task and Finish Group.

The announcement forms part of the Welsh Government’s response to the Group’s report, which outlines ways the national festival can modernise and increase its impact.

 

The Eisteddfod Task and Finish Group, chaired by Roy Noble, was established following the Eisteddfod in 2012. The Group was asked to consider the future location of the Eisteddfod, its appeal to new visitors and ways to increase visitor numbers.

The First Minister said that he was pleased to accept all of the recommendations in principle and that the Welsh Government will support any operational steps that can be taken.

Further considerations will need to be made to some of the recommendations due to their financial implications.

The recommendations include, that the festival continue to travel to different parts of Wales each year, that the Eisteddfod creates a plan to attract more young volunteers, and that it establishes a Group of experts to create an ambitious Digital Strategy.

The First Minister said: "The National Eisteddfod is a cornerstone of Welsh language and culture. From the day that the Eisteddfod announces it will visit a certain area, excitement builds and there are many opportunities for people of all ages to take part in a variety of activities in their local community.

"We established this Task and Finish Group so that we would be fully informed of public opinion and of the best options available to widen the festival’s appeal and increase visitor numbers. The recommendations in the report are reasonable and offer a clear vision on how the Eisteddfod can develop and modernise.

"We will now continue to work closely with the Eisteddfod as they consider their response to the recommendations."

Roberts welcomes fall in JSA claimants

Aled Roberts, Liberal Democrat Assembly Member for North Wales, has welcomed figures released today showing that 617 fewer people in Denbighshire’s two Parliamentary constituencies are claiming Job Seeker’s Allowance compared to a year ago.

 

This coincides with figures released today showing that Wales’ unemployment rate has dropped by 0.9% over the last three months.

 

“Today’s figures are excellent news for Denbighshire,” commented Aled Roberts.

 

“Liberal Democrats in government are working tirelessly to get our economy moving in the right direction.  Since taking over the economic mess left by Labour, we are now seeing more people in employment than ever before.

 

“While these figures are very positive, there can be no room for complacency.  There is still a long way to go.

 

“The Welsh Liberal Democrats will continue to fight for a stronger economy and fairer society, enabling every person to get on in life.”

Watchdog "disappointed" at operation suspension

The health service watchdog for North Wales has today spoken of its disappointment about the decision made by health board managers to temporarily suspend ‘non-urgent’ operations at the three main hospital sites - Ysbyty Gwynedd, Ysbyty Glan Clwyd and Ysbyty Wrexham Maelor.

 

Geoff Ryall-Harvey, Chief Officer for the North Wales Community Health Council, said "I am very surprised and disappointed to learn of this decision, in particular as the CHC has had no prior warning of this measure.

 

"The CHC has always quizzed the health board closely on plans for temporary changes if pressures on services increase and we have always been clear that if such plans proved necessary in the future, the board should give notification of such changes as far in advance as possible.

 

"I have asked the health board for more information behind these decisions and about the demands on emergency medical services across North Wales. It is worrying that none of the ‘usual’ causes for high levels of emergency admissions to hospitals – such as icy weather, causing trips and falls; flu and other respiratory infections – are an issue here.

 

"We will be seeking a detailed plan that will ensure that the suspension on planned operations will be lifted in the very near future – a promise to keep the matter under review on a daily basis is not good enough."

 

Mr Ryall- Harvey went on: "It is unfortunate for patients and their families that this suspension of services is happening every winter. Delays in planned operations could well result in those conditions becoming emergencies and it is my concern that there will be a real cost in terms of pain, suffering and worry for patients whose operations are delayed. We want people who are affected by this decision to tell us of any problems they have as a result.

 

"The CHC will be voicing its significant concerns about the possible impact of changes, temporary or not, on patients and will continue to monitor the impact of the changes across North Wales. The CHC supports the health board’s plan to undertake an urgent review to establish how this situation has developed so quickly and what can be done to ensure it is not a regular occurrence."

No need to cancel ops if community hospitals had stayed open says doctor

Operations would not have been cancelled had the Health Board kept community hospital beds open.

 

That is the view of Dr Phil White, secretary of the North Wales Medical Committee.

 

On Tuesday the Health Board announced that they would cancel non-emergency operations this week in their three district general hospitals, claiming that increased pressure for urgent care has placed added strain on the hospitals. The Health Board said that many of their patients were elderly and frail which has meant them staying in hospital for longer which has increased calls for hospital beds.

 

Dr Phil White, speaking on BBC Radio Cymru said that doctors had said that this would happen from the start, and that the Health Board had not listened to their warnings. He added that the Health Board had cut the number of beds but had not put other provisions in place. He said: “This is not something that’s happened over night, we’ve been warning about this for nearly five years because of the fall in the number of available beds”.

 

His comments were echoed by health campaigners in the Dee Valley.

 

Mabon ap Gwynfor of Keep Llangollen Health Services said: “This is why we didn’t want to see the Health Board close Llangollen hospital. It’s not because we want to keep out-dated buildings, but because we want to see a first lass health service provided to the people of this area.

 

“We warned them that closing Llangollen hospital beds would put pressure on Wrexham Maelor. We warned them that added pressure due to community bed closures would result in superbug and Norovirus outbreaks. And we warned them that patients would have to travel further away from their family and friends. This has all happened within less than a year of the hospital’s closure.

 

“We welcome the development of a much needed new health centre in Llangollen, but not at the expense of losing hospital beds. We continue to call for hospital beds to be included in the new development.”

 

107 positive tests in Christmas drink drive campaign

Over 460 drivers in Wales were caught over the drink drive limit during the All Wales Christmas Anti Drink and Drug Driving Campaign.

 

Throughout the month-long campaign 35,255 drivers throughout Wales were breath tested between 1^st December 2013 and 1^st January 2014.

 

North Wales Police carried out 18,159 breath tests with 107 being positive. In Dyfed Powys a total of 11,281 breath tests were carried out, with 161 being positive. In Gwent officers tested 2,470 drivers, with 39 being positive, and South Wales Police administered 3,345 tests with 158 positive results.

 

Some of the highest readings recorded during the campaign in North Wales were 133, 129 and 124 – the legal limit is 35 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath. All three individuals have been charged and have appeared/are due to appear before the courts.

 

The campaign was launched with support from the family of Kieran Lea Arnold, who was tragically killed following a road traffic collision by a drink driver who was twice the legal limit last June.

 

The 21-year-old plumber sustained fatal injuries during the two-vehicle collision which happened on the A541 Pontblyddyn to Caergwrle road.

 

As a result of the collision 48-year-old Robert Bryn Williams was sentenced to five years four months imprisonment and was banned from driving for three years.

 

Speaking on behalf of the Welsh forces, Deputy Chief Constable Gareth Pritchard said: “Although warnings were issued throughout the campaign 465 drivers throughout Wales chose to ignore those warnings by risking their own lives and the lives of others by breaking the law. This is very disappointing.

 

“It is also astonishing to see that some were almost four times the legal limit. It is clear that these individuals showed a complete disregard for the safety of other road users as well as their own.

 

“Driving with excess alcohol or under the influence of drugs is not just a criminal offence but also completely unacceptable. 

 

He added: “However, drink driving is not just about Christmas. It ruins lives all year round. Perpetual drink drivers will choose to drink and drive any day of the year so we need support from the public 365 days a year to help us take these people off the roads of Wales.”

 

If you have information relating to someone you think is driving whilst under the influence of alcohol or drugs, please contact North Wales Police on 101 or via Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. In an emergency always dial 999.