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Politics

Manifesto Destiny #2: The Conservatives

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THE WELSH Conservatives have delayed their Manifesto’s launch for May 6’s elections to the Welsh Parliament.

After the Duke of Edinburgh’s death, the Conservatives delayed their Manifesto’s launch for a week.

The UK Government announced eight days of national mourning leading up to and including the day of Prince Philip’s funeral on Saturday, April 17.

The Manifesto will launch on Wednesday, April 21, in North Wales. In this area, the Conservatives hope to make significant gains at Labour’s expense.

Although political campaigning continued between Tuesday, April 13 and Friday, April 16, the Conservatives’ decision gives the Party the best chance to trail its Manifesto in the period after Saturday the 17th.

It will also give Labour and Plaid Cymru less time to take pot-shots at it before polling day.

WHAT’S IN IT SO FAR?

Before the announcement of the Manifesto’s delay, the Conservatives gave a good idea of some of the policies it is likely to contain.

An underlying thread of the Manifesto, and the Conservative campaign, will be the length of time Labour has been in power in Wales. Either on its own, in combination with others, or propped up by rag-tag and bobtail, Labour has held power in Cardiff Bay for twenty-two years.

Both the Conservatives and Plaid have homed in on Labour’s ever-presence in government. To date, both principal opposition parties suggest Labour is tired and warming over old pledges without any sense of direction.

On policy, the Conservatives’ most significant risk is allowing Labour and Plaid to box them in on the charge of ‘for Wales, see England’. Labour needs to tread carefully on that point. One of the criticisms both Plaid and the Conservatives have made is that the Party has cut and pasted Westminster legislation into its own proposals for the much-talked-about and constantly delayed Agriculture Bill. Agriculture is an area of policy on which both Plaid and the Conservatives call for bespoke Welsh legislation.

On Tuesday (April 13), the Conservatives placed even more clear blue water between their proposals for Wales and those pursued by the Westminster government.

A PLAN FOR YOUNG PEOPLE

The Conservatives’ plan for Wales’ young people includes a promise to deliver 150,000 apprenticeships by 2026 and scrapping the Welsh Baccalaureate. Those are long-term ambitions flagged previously; however, the Conservative proposals contain radical changes to higher education and access to training, education and employment.

Those changes include:

  • Helping young people access education, training and employment with free bus travel and discounted rail travel for 16-24-year-olds
  • Refunding tuition fees for those who choose to work for at least five years as doctors or nurses in the Welsh NHS, or as teachers in Welsh Schools after their studies; and
  • Cutting tuition fees in half for Welsh students studying STEM and modern foreign language subjects at Welsh universities in recognition of their value to the Welsh economy

Looking at the lessons learned throughout the pandemic, the Conservatives also plan to ensure all of Wales’ schools, colleges and universities have mental health services for learners to access.

OLDER PEOPLE

At the other end of the age spectrum, Welsh Conservatives will introduce an Older People’s Bill in the next Senedd. That proposal includes a legal requirement for public sector bodies to consult with older people when making decisions that affect their lives.

The Party’s pledges of support for older people in Wales include:

  • Maintaining free prescriptions.
  • Keeping Free bus travel.
  • Promote Free entry to CADW sites for the over 75s.
  • Pilot free rail travel for over 75s.
  • Run annual national awareness campaigns against elder abuse, age discrimination and scams and swindles; and
  • Ensuring older people can access Welsh Government-funded work programmes.

THE WELSH NHS

On the Welsh NHS, the Conservatives announced plans to put into law fundamental guarantees through an NHS Covenant.  

The Covenant would ensure that Welsh NHS staff and volunteers are treated with fairness and respect by future Welsh Governments.

The Conservatives say the NHS Covenant would provide guaranteed support in several ways, including:

  • Increased investment in the NHS, with at least an extra 2% uplift in the NHS budget each year
  • Staff receive the pay as recommended by the independent NHS Pay Review Body
  • Guaranteeing the NHS remains in public hands and is free at the point of use
  • Improved staff well-being with more flexible working hours, increased holiday, greater access to childcare and mental health provision
  • Stamping out abuse of NHS staff

The NHS Covenant Bill would also put an NHS Reservists programme in place to enable public and former healthcare professionals to volunteer at their local NHS team during periods of high demand.

The NHS Reservists would operate on a part-time basis and create a structured environment for people to give back to the NHS, enabling the NHS to call up reservist skills when needed, including non-clinical roles such as drivers, electricians and people to be there to ensure no-one faces the end of their life alone.

COUNCIL TAX

The Conservatives – like Plaid Cymru – have promised to freeze Council Tax for the first two years of the next Senedd term. However, and like Plaid Cymru, the promise of tying Council funding to the headline rate of inflation ignores the fact that costs to Council increase at a compounding rate far beyond the Consumer Price Index.

Freezing Council Tax – unless the whole shortfall is made up by the Welsh Government (unlikely given the NHS spending pledge) – will mean cuts in Council services and a reduction in local authorities’ ability to bankroll the Conservatives’ other pledges.

THE CLEAREST OF BLUE WATER

The one element of any Conservative Manifesto upon which the clearest blue water will be evident relates to the Senedd, its powers, its make-up, and the question of further or total Welsh autonomy. In a speech delivered on April 7, the Conservative leader Andrew RT Davies could not have been clearer. He pledged, ‘no more powers, no more politicians, no more taxes, no more constitutional chaos’.

He continued: ‘Independence would put our recovery after coronavirus at risk.

‘A strong economic recovery is dependent on being part of one strong United Kingdom.

‘And home rule is just another excuse to mask Labour’s failings.

‘A referendum would plunge Wales into chaos at a time when we need to focus on recovery.

‘We already have the tools to change course and build a better Wales.

‘After the devastation of covid to our economy and people’s livelihoods we can’t afford to focus on the constitution’.

That’s not only turning his Party’s back on any change to the current constitutional arrangements; it hits at Labour’s windy wish to renegotiate Wales’ status within the UK and a rejection of a critical element of Plaid’s appeal to voters. As a proposition, it’s carefully calibrated to suggest that Cardiff Bay’s parties’ priorities don’t match voters’ needs. It’s an either/or line: concentrate on rebooting the Welsh economy or focus on Wales’ and the UK’s constitutional settlement.

The water couldn’t be clearer or bluer. The open question is how many voters are prepared to take the plunge and whether Labour – on the hottest political issue in Wales – will end up stranded on a shrinking and increasingly untenable middle ground between Plaid and the Conservatives.

News

Welsh Conservatives urge Labour to scrap ‘family farm tax’

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THE WELSH CONSERVATIVES have announced plans to bring forward a Senedd debate next week (Nov 27) calling on the UK Labour Government to abandon its proposed “family farm tax.”

The tax, introduced by the UK Labour Government, is being criticised as a move that will harm Welsh farming, threaten food security, and increase food prices. Alongside the Welsh Government’s Sustainable Farming Scheme and perceived “anti-farming agenda,” critics argue this new tax amounts to a coordinated effort to undermine the future of agriculture in Wales.

Shadow Minister warns of consequences
Ahead of the debate, Welsh Conservative Shadow Minister for Rural Affairs, James Evans MS, condemned the proposal, stating:
“Labour’s family farm tax will put family farms out of business, threaten our food security, and lead to food prices rising. Only the Welsh Conservatives will stand up for our farmers, and that’s why we’re bringing forward a Senedd motion calling on Labour to reverse this decision. No farmers, no food.”

NFU Cymru expresses alarm
NFU Cymru President, Aled Jones, echoed these concerns, highlighting the widespread opposition from the farming community. Speaking about the impact of the tax on Agricultural Property Relief and Business Property Relief, Jones said:
“Earlier this week, hundreds of farmers from across Wales journeyed to London to meet with their MPs and register their deeply held concerns about these misguided and ill-thought-out reforms.

“The proposals unveiled by the Treasury last month to introduce a tax on the passing on of our family farms to the next generation are a massive added burden. They will leave many farmers without the means, confidence, or incentive to invest in the future of their business.

“NFU Cymru reiterates its call for the UK Government to halt these changes.”

The motion to be debated
The motion, set to be debated in the Senedd, reads:
“To propose that the Senedd:
Calls on the UK Labour Government to reverse its decision to impose a family farm tax on agricultural businesses.”

This debate is expected to attract significant attention, with Welsh farmers and rural communities keenly watching for the outcome.

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Education

Pembrokeshire free school transport call to be heard at County Hall

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A CALL to allow school pupils from Johnston and Tiers Cross access to free school transport to the nearby Haverfordwest high school is to be heard by councillors next week.

Due to a change in catchment areas the pupils are no longer able to access free transport to Haverfordwest, instead coming under the Milford Haven catchment area.

A petition calling for the reinstatement of the former catchment area to access free transport for pupils to Haverfordwest was recently started in the county.

The e-petition, which ran from September 18-November 1 on the council’s own website, attracted 351 signatures, meeting the threshold for a debate at the relevant Pembrokeshire County Council overview and scrutiny committee, in this case the Schools And Learning Overview And Scrutiny Committee meeting of November 28.

The petition, started by Kirsty Coaker, reads: “We call on Pembrokeshire County Council to change Johnston and Tiers Cross School Catchment back to Haverfordwest.

“Children of Johnston and Tiers Cross are now ineligible for free school transport to Haverfordwest High due to the areas no longer being in ‘catchment’.

“Both Johnston and Tiers Cross are Haverfordwest postal codes and are classed as Haverfordwest, yet the school catchment is Milford Haven.

“Please help our children access suitable transport to and from secondary school.”

The e-petition will now be considered at the November 28 meeting.

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Climate

Pembrokeshire group plans for larger community wind turbine

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A NORTH Pembrokeshire group which has raised more than £76,000 from its community wind turbine for local projects is hoping to expand with a bigger turbine.

In an application to Pembrokeshire County Council, Abergwaun Community Turbine Ltd, through agent Machynlleth-based Dulas Ltd is hoping to get permission for a larger turbine to replace the existing Abergwaun Community Turbine.

The proposed turbine, in a pasture field at Trebover Farm, to the south of Fishguard, would be 67m tall, the existing 2015 one being 45 metres.

In supporting statements, parent company Transition Bro Gwaun said: “The Community Climate Fund (CCF) is the mechanism by which Transition Bro Gwaun (TBG) is fulfilling our ambition of funding projects in Fishguard, Goodwick and across North Pembrokeshire, using income from the community wind turbine.

“The core themes for grants are climate change mitigation and adaptation, enhancement of biodiversity and improvements to community resilience through promotion of community engagement and resource sharing.”

In 2015, TBG raised its 50 per cent share of capital funding for the project by means of loans from 28 local individuals and four community groups, contributing a total of £286,500, the other 50 per cent contributed by landowners Parc-y-Morfa Farms Ltd.

The statement added: “Profit generated by sale of electricity from the turbine is split 50:50 between TBG and Parcy-Morfa Farms Ltd through the jointly owned trading arm, Abergwaun Community Turbine. By the end of 2022, all loans had been repaid, allowing the launch of TBG’s Community Climate Fund.  This year we have awarded our third round of grants bringing the total amount granted to £76,036.”

In 2022, £15,274 was awarded to seven projects, including Fishguard Sports AFC to install solar panels on their clubhouse as part of their Tregroes Park development, Ysgol Bro Gwaun for their Increasing Biodiversity and Bees project, and Nevern Valley Veg / Llysiau Cwm Nyfer to install a solar powered vegetable  irrigation scheme.

In 2023, £39,85 was made available for seven projects, including Sea Trust Wales to part fund the installation of solar panels on the Ocean Lab roof and to produce a display on solar technology, Letterston Memorial Hall to part fund the installation of an air source heat pump heating system, and Fishguard and Goodwick Rugby Club to install solar panels on their clubhouse.

2024 awards of £20,917 were made to six projects, including Theatr Gwaun to insulate their loft to reduce heating loss, Parc Cerrig Growers for developing a rainwater harvesting system with a pond to irrigate their allotments, Caerhys Organic Community Agriculture for an electric cargo bike for delivering organic vegetables in the Fishguard and St Davids areas, and Nevern Valley Veg to develop wildlife ponds and rainwater harvesting for food production.

The supporting documentation concludes: “The repowering of the existing turbine at Trebover would require a limited increase in turbine size which would result in a very limited change in landscape and visual effects in comparison to the existing Trebover turbine.”

The application will be considered by planners at a later date.

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