Tidy Town Team celebrates another successful year

* Members of Llangollen Tidy Town Team at their annual lunch in the Corn Mill.

Members of the Llangollen Tidy Town team met for their annual lunch at the Corn Mill yesterday (Sunday).

In his latest annual report the voluntary group's co-ordinator David Davies said: "The 18-strong team has continued to meet at least once a month come rain or shine during this our twelfth year of operation.

"2017 has seen the continuation of some annual events together with some new challenges.

"Ongoing has been our litter clears, with a total this year of 25 full sacks collected,  around the Wharf and canal side, especially pre-Eisteddfod week,  along the A5, around Dinas Bran School and on the Castle Hill.  Finds on Castle hill included garden seating and a porta loo!

"We have continued our third year tree clearing and opening up of Cemetery Woods, including felling a large tree dangerously overhanging Llangollen Railway's offside station platform. The bonfires at this location demonstrate the team's pyromania abilities.

"Hill Street cemetery also benefitted from a vegetation clearance.

"Various seats around the town have been repaired during the year and, after much negotiation and with the support of the Canal & Rivers Trust, we provided and installed a new seat on the canal side opposite the Llangollen Basin. 

"This arose as a result of an idea from senior residents of Cwrt Glan Y Gamlas who have limited walking ability. The seat in such a position was just right for a short stroll turnaround point and has since been much appreciated by them and many visitors.

"At Plas Newydd we completed the project of clearance of laurel growth from the steep sided bank of the Cyflymen.    

"Enjoying wading in water, we also this year cleared the water channel of the stream flowing down Dinas Bran hill past the school.  This had been lost under overgrowth for a few years.

"We assisted at the Town Christmas Festival in our usual capacities of stall erection/dismantling and traffic control for the parade and fireworks.  

"The Town Hall also received our attention with the kitchen and one dressing room being deep cleaned and then ceilings and walls repainted.

"Together with thanks from the Town Council it was good to receive a letter of thanks from a hall user who noticed the significant difference following our work.

"A big thank you to all our supporters  and  to all members of the team for over 500 hours of voluntary work during the year."

Plaid fights for Real Living Wage

Plaid Cymru claims more than a thousand low-paid workers could be in line for a pay boost if the party gets its way.

Denbighshire County Council should become a Real Living Wage Employer says the Plaid group as the authority prepares to vote on its annual budget later this month.

The minimum wage as of April will be £7.83 per hour for those aged over 25. The Real Living Wage Foundation has calculated that the Real Living Wage for all those living outside of London should be a minimum of £8.75 an hour.

Denbighshire County Council employs over 1,200 people on less than the Real Living Wage.

Plaid Cymru Councillor Mabon ap Gwynfor (pictured) said: “Denbighshire County Council has a chance to show that we value our workforce by ensuring that each and every person employed by the council received the real living wage.

"Earning a Real Living Wage has many proven benefits – the number of absences and sick leave falls; staff turnover decreases meaning less money spent on advertising, hiring and training new employees all the time. It results in a happier and more dedicated workforce.

“Around a quarter of Denbighshire County Council’s workforce earn less than the Real Living Wage, the vast majority of them women.

"In-work poverty is on the rise, and many people are having to double-job in order to make ends meet. Denbighshire Council should not be part of a system that forces people into poverty.

"We in Plaid Cymru have called for this policy to be adopted before, and we believe that the time has come for us to treat our workforce with respect and dignity by ensuring that they all receive at least the Real Living Wage.”

Cllr ap Gwynfor went on to say that the Plaid Cymru Group will not support any budget that sees cuts in frontline services: “We understand that Denbighshire Council has been given a poor settlement by the Welsh Government and that there is a squeeze on finances.

"But we will not support any budget that proposes to cut frontline services. Our Social Services, Education services, and public transport have been crying out for funds, and we will do everything that we can to protect them and if possible boost them.”

New chief executive for county

Denbighshire County Council has announced the appointment of its new Chief Executive.

Judith Greenhalgh (pictured), who was previously the Director of Corporate Resources at Derbyshire County Council, is from Manchester and is also a former Deputy Chief Executive of the Manchester Probation Service.

Leader of Denbighshire, Councillor Hugh Evans OBE, said: “We are delighted to be welcoming someone of such high calibre to Denbighshire.

“There were strong contenders in the running for the post and they all performed to an extremely high standard in a rigorous selection process”.

Judith said: “I’m delighted to have been offered the role. I cannot wait to take up the challenge and join Denbighshire. It is such a beautiful county, which is very close to my heart. I have often stayed in the Clwydian Range and I’ll relish the challenge of coming to work for such a progressive authority”.

The new Chief Executive will replace Dr Mohammed Mehmet who is due to leave his post in April.

Councillor Hugh Evans added:  “We would like to take this opportunity to publicly thank Mohammed for 10 years of loyal and committed service to Denbighshire.

“During his tenure, the Council has continued to improve services to residents, has become closer to the community and is now consistently amongst the best performing authorities in Wales.  He is leaving a lasting legacy and we wish him the very best for the future."

 

EE signal lost again in Llan

2.45pm update: The EE signal has now been restored


People in the LL20 area are reporting that their EE phone signal is down yet again.

The company says it is aware of the problem and its engineers are investigating.

Police boss welcomes cannabis on prescription move

A Senedd vote in favour of making cannabis available on prescription to ease pain has been hailed as “victory for common sense and compassion” by a police boss.

North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner Arfon Jones (pictured) spoke out after a majority of Assembly Members backed calls for cannabis for medicinal uses to be legalised.

Mr Jones is a long-standing supporter of the idea and he believes public opinion has now swung in favour of legalisation.

He believes it is unfair and cruel that people living with conditions like multiple sclerosis who use cannabis are putting themselves at risk of being prosecuted.

As things stand, the UK Government has no plans to change the law and legalise the Class B drug.

The debate in the Senedd was triggered by Welsh Conservative AM Mark Isherwood, Labour AM Mike Hedges, and Plaid AMs Ms Wood and Rhun ap Iorwerth.

They argued there was "clinical evidence of the effectiveness of cannabis for medicinal purposes".

In the vote, 31 AMs backed calls for the Welsh Government to lobby their UK counterparts to reschedule the drug for medical use. Two voted against and 18 abstained, including the Welsh Government.

Even though the vote has no standing in law Mr Jones believes it is a step in the right direction.

He said: “This vote is a step in the right direction and a victory for common sense and compassion.

“I have a real sense the tide of public opinion has turned on this issue and now there is increasing pressure on the UK Government to take action.

"The debate around drug policy has moved on considerably in recent years and the view that cannabis for medicinal purposes should be legalised is not only held by me but is shared by many Police and Crime Commissioners of all political hues.

“My stance on drugs is a matter of record and was a part of my manifesto when I was seeking election as Commissioner, an election that I won with a significant majority.

“An All Party Parliamentary group has called for the drug’s legalisation for medicinal use and there is significant research that signposts that its use is of considerable benefit to sufferers from MS and other forms of illness and that at least 30,000 people use it daily in the UK.

“I fully support Paul Flynn's 10 minute rule bill to legalise medicinal cannabis which is due to have its Second Reading on February 23.

"Illness can be an isolating experience, especially if your medicine is illegal, and it is surely wrong that people seeking relief from suffering should be criminalised."

Young musicians score in Rotary competition

* Elizabeth Mwale receives her certificate from President Lyn Pinel.

* Joel Brown is presented with his certificate.

Each year the Rotary Club of Llangollen asks local young people if they would like to take part in a music competition. 

This year there were two entries, Elizabeth Mwale and Joel Brown, who both play in the Llangollen Silver Band.

Elizabeth, 15, has played the euphonium for the past eight years and she chose some challenging pieces to play. 

Adjudicator Eulanwy Davies congratulated Elizabeth on the way she played both My Grandfather’s Clock and Song for Ina.

Elizabeth also sang Il mio bel foco, and was commended for her "beautiful and mature" voice.

Joel, 14, who has played the baritone horn for the last seven years, gave two recitals, including Cavalier and Autumn Leaves. 

These again were commended by Eulanwy and after some deliberation she announced that both candidates would be put through to the next round. 

Both young people were presented with certificates by President Lyn Pinel.

The next round of the competition will take place in Poulton Hall, Wirral, on February 3.

Those members of the Rotary Club and Llangollen Inner Wheel present on the night felt the evening was a great success and wished both competitors the best of luck for the following rounds.

Budget goes up for discussion

Delivering a balanced budget and making a final recommendation for the council tax levels for 2018/19 were some of the items on the agenda for Denbighshire County Council’s Cabinet, meeting in Ruthin today (Tuesday).

Members were asked to consider the implications of the local government budget settlement for 2018/19, which saw Denbighshire’s budget allocation from the Welsh Government continue to reduce.

The Council is now considering how to set a deliverable budget and the resulting level of council tax. Denbighshire is proposing to increase the council tax to a level that recognises specific pressures in social care and continues to support schools.

Denbighshire is not alone in considering how to fund an increased demand for funding education and, particularly, social care.  The proposed budget includes an increase of £1.8m (2.7%) in budgets for schools, and an additional allocation of £1.5 million (3.2%) to social care.  Pressures exist across the organisation and further efficiencies in all services have been identified to help deliver a balanced budget.

To support this year’s budget, Cabinet discussed a proposal to increase council tax by 4.75%. For the average Band D property, this would mean an increase of £56.58 which equates to £1.08 a week.

This will be discussed by Full Council on January 30 when it meets to set and approve the budget.

Councillor Julian Thompson-Hill, Cabinet Lead Member for Finance, said: “Over recent years, Denbighshire has planned for the budget cuts well in advance and this has helped us to carefully allocate our resources, maintaining key frontline services as much as possible.

“Whilst the actual reduction from Welsh Government is not as bad as first feared, we need to take into account a number of other factors, such as pressures in pay, pension and the National Living Wage, as well as price/energy inflation, 1% in fire service levy and allowances for increases to the Council Tax Reduction Scheme.

“The financial climate continues to be challenging and staff across the Council have found savings that will help us balance the books.

“We know that residents of Denbighshire demand that we protect the most vulnerable members of our society, while continuing to deliver the best possible services across the rest of the Council.  In order to address the increasing pressures in Social Care we are therefore recommending that the average Council Tax will increase by 4.75% allowing the council to invest an additional £1.5m in this area to support our most vulnerable residents".

“However, we also know that all our residents are finding the current economic situation challenging, which is why we must keep any increase in Council Tax down to the minimum necessary."