MP welcomes £650m support from UK Government for Wales

Clwyd South MP Simon Baynes (pictured) has welcomed the announcement that the UK Government has provided the Welsh Government with an additional £650 million to support people, businesses and public services affected by Coronavirus.

He says the funding brings the total allocated to the Welsh Government since the start of the pandemic to £5.85 billion. 

That, he says, is on top of all of the other UK Government support packages including the furlough scheme, the Eat Out to Help Scheme and the different business loans.

In recognition of the exceptional circumstances of the pandemic and in response to calls for flexibility, the Welsh Government will also be able to carry over any of the £650 million not spent this year into the 2021/22 financial year on top of their existing tools to transfer funding between years.

However, Mr Baynes has called on the Welsh Government to now re-examine its proposed Local Government Funding Settlement for 2021-22, in which he says Wrexham Council is set to receive the second lowest funding increase in Wales of 2.3%.

Mr Baynes commented: “I’m very pleased that the UK Government continues to support Wales through the pandemic. This additional funding boost highlights the value of our United Kingdom. 

"It’s important now that this funding gets to businesses and individuals in Clwyd South and across Wales as we look to rebuild the UK economy.

“I would urge the Welsh Labour Government to spend some of this money on a more generous support grant for Wrexham Council which currently has the second lowest settlement in Wales despite having to deal the Covid crisis. The proposed increase of 2.3% for Wrexham compares to an average increase in South Wales of 4.17%, thereby reinforcing the unfairness of the North-South divide.

“This means that, with the heavy burdens of Covid-19, flooding, snow, increased social care and many other factors, Wrexham County Borough Council will be forced to increase Council Tax on residents by 6.95%, despite being a well-run Council. I therefore hope that the Labour Government in Cardiff will look again at the funding settlements for Wrexham Council.”

Latest Covid vaccination update from Llan Health Centre

Llangollen Health Centre have this evening put out a further Covid vaccination update on social media.

Their post on Facebook says: "We have now moved onto the next priority group which is patients aged 65 to 69 years old and yesterday held our first Covid vaccine clinic in Glyn Ceiriog.

"We have a very limited supply of vaccines over the next couple of weeks and so it may well be early March before we can complete vaccinating this group. Please bear with us – we will arrange clinics as soon as we are in receipt of sufficient vaccine.

"Also, we are being inundated with enquiries from patients who want to know if they fall into group 6 which is patients aged 16 – 64 with under underlying health conditions.

"Again, please be patient, we do not yet have a contract from the Health Board to vaccinate this cohort. When the contract comes it is likely to contain further guidance on who is included in this cohort."

Senedd Member praises NHS's 'monumental' Covid jab efforts

* Ken Skates MS with Thomas Halpin, project lead for the vaccination programme (East) and Karen Evans, Assistant Area Director and vaccination programme lead (East). 

Member of the Senedd Ken Skates praised the “monumental” efforts of NHS staff after a visit to Wrexham’s vaccination centre. 

The MS for Clwyd South was invited to join Mark Polin, Chairman of Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, at the Catrin Finch Centre at Glyndwr University on Monday (February 15). 

The facility opened on January 26 as one of the health board’s Local Vaccination Centres and has already seen thousands of priority patients given their jabs. 

Mr Skates said: “The team are doing an incredible job and I’m really grateful to the health board for inviting me to go and see how things are going first-hand. I’ve had a lot of feedback recently from constituents saying how impressed they’ve been with the organisation and efficiency at the Mass Vaccination Centre in Deeside and here in Wrexham, and it’s clear to see why.” 

The centre has been open six days a week as the roll-out programme across North Wales continues to accelerate, and Plas Madoc Leisure Centre has also been lined up as a second LVC in Wrexham.

Mr Skates’ visit followed the news that Wales had become the first UK nation to reach the milestone of offering jabs to everyone in the first four priority groups. 

He said: “It really has been a monumental effort by everyone involved and it’s something we can all be immensely proud of. Betsi Cadwaladr was the first health board in Wales to hit 100,000 and it’s fantastic to see the roll-out up here going from strength to strength. They deserve huge credit.” 

Mr Skates added: “We hit our first milestone ahead of schedule, but no one is resting on their laurels. The next phase is already under way and the health board has begun offering appointments to people in priority groups five and six as well as arranging second dose appointments to all those in the first four groups.” 

The next phase of the roll-out will see vaccinations offered to people aged 65-69; people aged 16 to 64 with an underlying health condition; younger adults in residential care settings and unpaid carers who are looking after vulnerable people. 

Mr Skates added: “Arrangements are in place to make sure no one is left behind. If someone missed an appointment because they were ill, or they changed their mind about having the vaccine, a new appointment will be made for them."

Tidy Town Team's 500 unpaid hours for Llangollen

* Tidy Town Team members in their high viz jackets donated by McDonalds.

Llangollen's Tidy Town Team has had another busy year despite the constraints of lockdown.

The band of volunteers' varied programme of activities has included tasks ranging from clearing litter from the path to one of the town's iconic landmarks to helping with the delivery of flu jabs to hundreds of residents.

The team's 500 hours of unpaid work on behalf of the community is detailed in its annual report, prepared by co-ordinator David Davies, which will be presented to the Town Council at its meeting tonight (Tuesday).

His report says: "Despite the shambolic variation of Covid rules and regulations since March, the team has still managed to undertake a significant amount of work during the year.

"Our litter picking activities this year specifically targeted Ceiriog top road/the Gwernant and the canalside opposite Dinas Bran School plus litter picking at all other work locations.

"We have continued to thin timber and clear scrub in Cemetery Woodlands and with DCC Countryside Services, cleared out the stream and tidied around the Army Cadet HQ off Wern Road. 

"As this is a key area clearly visible adjacent to the footpath to the Castle, we hope that the new lease between DCC and the Army will now clearly identify who is responsible for the on-going grounds maintenance.

"During the dry months of the year we have painted or re-varnished a number of seats around the town along Riverside Walk and in Riverside Gardens behind the Ponsonby.

"Our maintenance of the Centenary Town Square continues with weeding the beds and tidying especially for Remembrance Sunday. This year we also refreshed all the seating with a new coating of wood preservative.

"A couple of the team have cleared local footpaths and repaired broken stiles whilst others have cut the hedging at the Health Centre and tidied around the Hawthorn.

"At the request of the Llangollen Health Centre, we embarked on a special venture this year. Over two and a half days we provided traffic management duties for their drive-thru flu vaccination clinics at the Pavilion.  A successful operation vaccinating some 2,500 people.

"Regretfully this year three long-serving members have left us - Alan Williams has sadly died, and Bill Saunders (95) and Les Potts (89) have decided to retire from active duties.

"A big thank you to them, and all the other members of the team for still contributing over 500 hours of voluntary work this year.

"Our thanks also to all our supporters for their help and encouragement including McDonalds this year for our new hi viz jackets and grass cutting equipment."

Health centre holds Covid-19 jabs clinic in Glyn Ceiriog

* Volunteers guide people into the community centre car park.

* People waiting in the car park for their turn.

* Going inside for the jabs.

Llangollen Health Centre has been holding a Covid-19 vaccination clinic for people aged 65 and over and Glyn Ceiriog Community Centre, where it also has a surgery, today. 

Those receiving their jabs have once again praised the efficiency of the staff  and volunteers involved both inside and outside the centre.

People were parking up, going into the building three at a time and receiving their injections from staff manning three separate inoculation areas. 

They then had to wait for 15 minutes before driving off to ensure there had been no adverse reaction to the injection.

County councillors outline changes to town centre parking

* Market Street car park where changes are due to take place. 

County councillors Graham Timms and Melvyn Mile have been successful in getting Denbighshire to lift the ‘one size fits all’ parking regulations in the county to enable Llangollen’s own problems to be addressed, they say. 

“We have been asking the county for 30 minutes free parking in Llangollen’s town centre car parks for a while, but we were told that car parking rules don’t allow for local changes.  

"But in a recent committee meeting we’ve been successful in getting the county to agree to relax the rules in Llangollen," they say in a joint statement. 

The two councillors add: “Parking continues to be one of Llangollen’s biggest problems and we are determined to work with the community on solutions that will improve the current situation.

"Parking rules will be better able to respond to local needs. This will help nearby residents who 'pop and shop' to support local businesses in the town centre more easily. 

"It will also allow Llangollen to adapt its parking regulations to make it easier for residents in the centre of the town to park closer to their homes.

“We want to strike a balance between local residents who live and shop in the town and the large number of visitors who come to visit. 

"The widely-consulted Llangollen 2020 plans aim to provide a good deal for residents so that the parking works for them whilst continuing to encourage visitors to spend time in the town centre.

"Changes in the Market Street car park will also provide extra spaces to increase capacity and we also need free parking for ‘pop and shop’ visits. 

“The emphasis will be on providing more short stay parking in the centre. Town centre businesses rely on both locals and visitors and so we need to have a plan that supports them too. 

 “The council committee agreed that Llangollen could have an exception to the current rules and introduce a pilot project where parking charges could be varied but on the basis that, where possible, there should be no net loss in car park income from all the car parks in Llangollen town centre. 

"Changes to the parking regulations are expected to be introduced over the winter 2021/2 and will coincide with the much more extensive street works in Llangollen’s town centre, many of which were outlined in the Arcadis Llangollen 2020 report."

High tech revolution to keep bobbies on the beat

* Police Crime commissioner North Wales Arfon Jones (Right) with superintendent Paul Jones of North Wales Police.                                          

A police boss has revealed a high tech revolution will help to keep bobbies out on the beat.

North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner Arfon Jones has described the project to equip every frontline police officer with a sophisticated mobile communications app that cuts form-filling and even checks fingerprints as a “game-changer”.

The app will be loaded on mobile phones and laptops as part of the four-year digital communications strategy which also aims to keep communities across the region and their local policing teams in close contact.

It will mean that officers will be able to spend more time out on the streets catching crooks and helping the public and cut lengthy bureaucracy back at the police station.

The project is one of the last flagship programmes of Commissioner Jones, who has announced will be standing down at the next election which is due to be held on May 6.

His final precept-setting proposal for a 29p weekly increase, a 5.5 per cent rise costing Band D Council Taxpayers just £14.94 extra a year, has just been approved unanimously by the North Wales Police and Crime Panel.

Superintendent Paul Jones is said: “The development of this frontline app for mobile phones and laptops will revolutionise the way we work.

“It will bring North Wales Police to the forefront of the Forces in the UK when it comes to digital frontline capability.

“We aim to have an all-encompassing app that enables us to do everything we need to do out there - it will even check someone’s fingerprints.

“It will be very user-friendly and as easy to operate as any commercial app– one function on it will search all the different computer systems that we need to access simultaneously, including the Police National Computer. It will all be quicker, more intuitive and more accurate.

“If an officer can do all their paperwork at the scene electronically, without duplication and without having to go back to the station, it’s a big saving of time which can then be spent on the front line.

“At the same time if the control room contacts an officer, a lot of  the information needed will already be on the mobile phone or laptop, even including satnav directions. This means that the officer won’t have to waste time taking notes, speaking to control or conducting lengthy computer searches.

“It is a significant investment but the time we will save and can reinvest in the community makes it money well spent.

“We have worked with app providers to ensure we will have the same connectivity as other forces who have similar apps.

“We have also worked with our officers to prioritise their needs and we hope to have the system finalised for rollout towards the end of the year.

“We do need to undertake a competitive tendering process, conduct functionality tests and make a final assessment, but the plan is to have the app rolled out as soon as we can.

“We want everyone on the frontline whose job will be made more efficient, more accurate and more effective, to have this.

“That includes Community Support Officers and Crime Scene Investigators for example, in addition to response officers and detectives.

Mr Jones, a former Police Inspector himself, said: “As someone who knows what it’s like to be on the frontline of policing, I welcome this and the part played in its introduction by the Chief Constable, Carl Foulkes, who is the National Police Lead on innovation and technology.

“It’s really exciting to be making this announcement because it’s something we’re really proud of and it something that our frontline officers really want and will find of huge benefit to them. It’s going to be a gamechanger.

“This is part of the connected officer’s project which is about giving our officers more time out on the streets by equipping them with devices like laptops, notebooks and mobile phones that can do everything they would once have had to go back to the station to do.

“Instead, they can now do this while they’re out, in the street or even in the local café which means more time with the public.

“It’s a much more efficient use of their time and means they only have to do things once rather than two or three times.”

The project is one of a series of measures set out in the Commissioner’s policing plan.

It’s being launched against a backdrop of £2.9 million of savings identified by Force despite the £33 million a year cuts inflicted on North Wales Police as a result of Conservative austerity cuts since 2010.

The Force’s digital communications project also aims to keep communities and their local policing teams in closer contact and Superintendent Helen Corcoran said: “It will enable members of the local community to get online to reach their local policing teams with any concerns they have.

“At the same time, we can warn the public of specific local threats and keep them up to date with what we are doing, where and when.”

North Wales Police will also be bolstered by 62 new officers with 20 of joining a new task force to spearhead a crime prevention drive helping and another ten bolstering the fight against Serious and Organised Crime in the region.

* For more information on the work of the North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner go to https://www.northwales-pcc.gov.uk/en/home.aspx