Skates backs Wrexham/Flintshire Enterprise Zone

* Ken Skates with Sam Rowlands MS and Ashley Rogers, Chief Executive of the North Wales Business Council, at the recent Theatr Clwyd event. Picture: Mandy Jones.

Former Welsh Economy Minister Ken Skates believes a joint Wrexham and Flintshire Enterprise Zone could be a ‘game-changer’ for North Wales.

The Clwyd South MS welcomed the recent announcement by his successor Vaughan Gething that the Welsh Government is backing the bid. But the final decision – and funding – rests with UK Government Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove.

During a statement in the Senedd on Tuesday, Mr Gething said: “It is important to note the UK Government will still need to make a decision on the support it will provide to Investment Zones in Wales as part of the Autumn Statement process. However, I can confirm the Welsh Government Cabinet has met to discuss the proposals that have been in development.

“As a result, I have written to the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities following our constructive engagement to indicate our willingness to use our devolved levers and expertise to support Investment Zones in Wales.

“Based on our analysis of opportunities for growth in high-potential clusters we agree that there is a clear case for two Investment Zones in Wales. Our preference would be for one Investment Zone in South-East Wales and one in North-East Wales, covering Flintshire and Wrexham.”

Mr Skates said: “Minister, on behalf of Members across parties in north Wales, can I thank you for this announcement today. You have already delivered for the people of north-west Wales with the agreement over the freeport, which is immensely important for the economy of Anglesey and Gwynedd, and right across north Wales for that matter.

“Today, you've delivered for the communities of north-east Wales with the announcement of a successful bid by regional partners there to help ensure that Wales, along with the south-eastern cluster, can continue to keep pace with those sectors where we are strongest.”

Mr Skates recently spoke at an event at Theatr Clwyd in Mold to back the cross-party campaign, along with business leaders, councillors and fellow Labour, Conservative and Plaid Cymru MSs. He was one of six Members of the Senedd to sign a joint letter of support to the Welsh and UK governments backing the Wrexham and Flintshire bid.

He said: “I believe there’s huge potential, through an Investment Zone, to play to our strengths in advanced manufacturing and the creative industries across two local authority areas which are the engine of the regional economy of North Wales and the Mersey Dee area.

“Economic growth in Wrexham and Flintshire, in terms of jobs created, is far higher than both the Welsh and UK average, so something special is happening in this region. We want to make sure we turbo-charge it – and we do that through an Investment Zone. It could be a game-changer.”

Investment Zones already exist in parts of England, where £80m in funding for each will be used over five years for innovation, infrastructure and skills and training projects in the sectors being targeted.

A local consortium including Airbus and JCB; the North Wales Business Council and Wrexham and Flintshire councils; Wrexham University and the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC) Cymru, based in Broughton, is spearheading the bid – and believes it can help leverage and secure an additional £1.7bn in investment.

In the Senedd yesterday, Mr Skates said the wide-ranging support for the Wrexham and Flintshire bid ‘demonstrates the value of collaboration, both across political parties and across institutions’.

He added: “Minister, finally, would you also agree that we now need swift agreement from the UK Government over the two zones along with assurance that equivalent funding will be made available to those zones as is happening across the border in England?”

The Minister concluded: “The decision on whether to provide the funding and reserved levers to support Investment Zones in Wales now rests with the UK Government.

“For our part, we have indicated a willingness to work towards ensuring devolved and local tax levers are available to Investment Zones and to work in partnership with the UK Government on delivering a package of investment support, subject to the agreement of plans from each Zone setting out how the support will be used to deliver net benefits for the people of Wales.”

Diversion alert for Bryntysilio

Latest local roadworks alert from one.network is:

Bryntysilio to St Tysilio Church, Llangollen, Denbighshire 09 November - 10 November   Delays likely - Diversion route   Name: Diversion   Location: Bryntysilio To St Tysilio Church   Description: Streetworks / License - Streetworks   Responsibility for event: Denbighshire County Council   Current status: Planned

Butlers Hill closed for urgent repair of leaking water main

In its latest local roadworks bulletin, issued this afternoon (Tuesday), one.network says that the road known as Butlers Hill, Llangollen, has been closed to facilitate urgent works to repair a leaking water main.

 

Tendering process for Four Great Highways project re-opens

 

* Lower Dee Mill Park is included in the Four Great Highways project.

Llangollen’s 4 Great Highways project has reopened its tendering process following a "re-scoping" exercise to bring the project within budget.

The Denbighshire County Council scheme aims to enhance the landscape and improve accessibility, interpretation and signage in Llangollen.

The project is part of investment by the UK Government’s Levelling Up Fund that was secured through a joint application between Denbighshire County Council and Wrexham County Borough Council for the Clwyd South Constituency.

The application was supported by Simon Baynes MP. £3.8 million was allocated to Denbighshire to invest in the communities of Llangollen, Llantysilio, Corwen and surrounding areas.

The tendering process to find a contractor for the project was previously opened in August. However, due to the current market and general levels of construction inflation, all tenders submitted to deliver the original design proposals were significantly overbudget, says the council.

The Project Team has been re-scoping the project over the past few weeks to ensure that the project objective to deliver 960m² of public realm improvements is still achievable within the budget.

The new plans were presented to the Project Board for approval on October 26. No additions have been made to the project design as the main priority is to ensure that the project can be delivered within the allocated budget.

The tendering process for the re-scoped project is now open until midday on November 27. Anyone interested in tendering for the work can do so via Sell2Wales.

Cllr Barry Mellor, Lead Member for Environment and Transport, said: “The Four Great Highways project team has undertaken a rigorous re-scoping exercise to ensure that we can deliver a worthwhile project within the budget allocated by the UK Government.

“We are pleased to now have started the tendering process to find a suitable contractor to complete the works needed to deliver this project and we look forward to appointing a suitable candidate to bring the plans to fruition. Once completed, we hope that these improvements enhance the resident and visitor experience and help to encourage people to spend more time in the town.”

* The latest information about Denbighshire County Council’s 4 Great Highways project can be found here: https://www.denbighshire.gov.uk/four-great-highways

Winter Warmer Wellbeing Day planned for November 30

South Denbighshire Community Partnership is hosting a Llangollen Winter Warmer Wellbeing Day at St Collen’s Community Hall on Thursday November 30, from 10am-2pm.

It will feature a variety of wellbeing activities for people to take part in and enjoy, along with the serving of homemade soup and refreshments.

People can take advantage of a mini health check while they are there.

They will also be able to chat to organisations that can support them to keep well and warm this winter.

A limited number of free goodie bags will be available and everyone who attends will be entered into a free prize draw with the chance to win an airfryer, heated blanket, Aldi voucher or slow cooker.

 

S-Cross is unsung hero of the Suzuki range

Suzuki S-Cross drive by Steve Rogers

How can something be big and small at the same time?

Bit of a conundrum but not necessarily in the case of the Suzuki S-Cross hybrid. It is one of those cars that sits in a league of its own, classed as a small SUV but big compared to its rivals. Puzzle solved.

If we discount Swace and Across, both rebadged Toyotas, S-Cross is now the halo model although if asked to name a Suzuki most would likely say Vitara, Swift or Ignis before S-Cross.

Yet this is a car not without its merits and in many ways is the unsung hero of the range. Suzuki is not a big player in the UK market so has to rely on its enviable reliability record and value for money, even base models are packed with standard kit and S-Cross is no exception but I would probably avoid the flagship Ultra, tested here, and save money by going lower down the range.

The Ultra name sums up the car because it has a long spec sheet that includes an automatic gearbox and the highly efficient all wheel drive system. I could not help comparing S-Cross with the MG HS. This is a £24,000 SUV that could take a £30k price tag while the Ultra does not feel like a car nudging £33,000.

The cabin is bland with a lot of hard black plastic finishes, yet everything is solidly put together; you will find no trim creak or rattles here.

The tech has been updated with new graphics for the nine inch touch screen, along with a surround camera which is exclusive to S-Cross. Navigation is also standard on Ultra but all models come with Smartphone mirroring so mobile direction apps can be displayed on the screen.

I was also glad to see a digital speedometer in the driver's binnacle something badly needed  given the European style 20mph increments in the main dial which are not that clear on the silver background.

S-Cross does well on space front and back although headroom could be a tad tight for six footers as the rear bench sits higher than the front seats. All the seats are firm but supportive.

That firmness carries through to the ride which smothers bumps and thuds as well as controlling body roll, but you could not describe the car as super comfortable, probably a bi-product of the all wheel drive system and the need for stiffer suspension.

Although it pushes up the cost Suzuki's Allgrip is an exceptional four wheel drive option compared with big money alternatives. Let's not kid ourselves that this is a full blown off roader but it has settings for three surfaces and I know from experience that it will get you out of gluey mud and give peace of mind in snow and slush, and it comes with hill hold control.

A six speed auto box is standard on the Ultra and helps give S-Cross terrific economy. Using the economy setting I coasted past the official combined figure easily topping 50mpg, and that is a big selling point particularly for four wheel drive. The only drawback in economy is a slowish response pulling away and I found myself slipping into manual for a faster getaway.

Safety is well catered for with adaptive cruise control, lane assist and cross traffic alert which is so useful when reversing out of supermarket parking bays. I would like to see that on all cars. The 360 degree camera is a worthwhile addition and there are front and rear parking sensors.

Interestingly the better performing S-Cross has the smaller 1.4 litre engine but I would stick with the hybrid because of the economy benefits even though it is not that quick and a bit coarse when pushed.

Fast facts

S-Cross Ultra Allgrip

£32,649 (starts £26,099)

1.5 litre hybrid 113bhp

0-62mph 13.5secs; 108mph

48.7mpg combed (54mpg tested)

132g/km. First tax £245

Insurance group 16

Llangollen company lands major national contract

A story in the Leader says that a Llangollen-based outdoor activity company is expanding its operations across the whole of Wales after being awarded a prestigious contract with the YHA.

Safe and Sound Outdoors, established in 2007, has been given the task of providing activities for youngsters at the Youth Hostel Association's sites in Wales and Chester. 

* For the full story, see: Youth Hostel Association contact for Llangollen company | The Leader (leaderlive.co.uk)