NHS LEADERS have welcomed the new Welsh Government’s health and care priorities, saying they are ready to work with ministers to help turn the plans into action.

The Welsh NHS Confederation said many of the priorities set out by the Cabinet Minister for Health and Care reflected the concerns of NHS leaders across Wales.

Darren Hughes, director of the Welsh NHS Confederation, said the organisation particularly welcomed the proposed ten-year digital strategy, describing it as “an essential lever for improvement”.

He said: “NHS leaders welcome the new cabinet minister’s statement on health and care priorities, and we look forward to the minister’s response to our offer to convene leaders to take these priorities forward.

“Many of the minister’s priorities chime with those of NHS leaders and we especially welcome the 10-year digital strategy as an essential lever for improvement.”

Mr Hughes said a whole-government and whole-system approach would be needed if Wales is to make progress on integrating health and social care.

He added that workforce planning, performance frameworks and financial arrangements should cover both the NHS and social care sectors.

He said: “Although targeted intervention to reduce waiting lists is welcome, truly sustainable progress will be driven by looking at the wider NHS estate as key to unlocking productivity and efficiency gains.

“The new government is certainly saying a lot of the right things. Time will tell as to how intentions will turn into delivery and NHS leaders look forward to working with the Welsh Government and wider partners to transform health and care for the people of Wales.”

The Welsh NHS Confederation represents all organisations making up the NHS in Wales, including the seven local health boards, three NHS trusts and two special health authorities.

WELSH LABOUR has challenged Plaid Cymru to set out how it will turn billions of pounds of inward investment into jobs, higher wages and stronger communities across Wales.

The call came after the Welsh Government’s Cabinet Minister for Enterprise, Connectivity and Energy made a statement in the Senedd on the future of economic development, connectivity and energy policy.

Labour said Wales had attracted £4.6bn of inward investment in the twelve months before the recent Wales Investment Summit, arguing that the figure was the result of the previous Welsh Labour Government’s work to bring jobs, businesses and major investment into Wales.

Shav Taj MS, Welsh Labour’s spokesperson for Economic Transformation, said Plaid Cymru must now explain how it intends to build on that record.

She said: “Wales attracted a staggering £4.6bn of inward investment in the twelve months prior to the recent Wales Investment Summit, thanks to the previous Welsh Labour Government’s commitment to attracting more jobs, businesses, and investment to Wales.

“Plaid Cymru must now urgently show how they will capitalise on this and the difference their plans will make to people’s day-to-day lives. How many jobs will they create? By when and where? And how will they build on the successes of Welsh Labour’s Young Person’s Guarantee?

“People across Wales don’t need plan after plan or structural changes made for the sake of it, they need high-quality, fair-work jobs.”

The comments mark one of Labour’s first major economic attacks on the new Plaid-led Welsh Government, with the party seeking to frame the debate around delivery, jobs and measurable outcomes.

Labour is expected to press ministers on whether new economic policies will maintain previous commitments around fair work, youth employment and regional investment.

The Young Person’s Guarantee, introduced under Labour, was designed to ensure everyone under 25 in Wales had access to work, education, training or self-employment support.

Welsh Labour said any new economic approach must show clearly how investment will reach communities across Wales, rather than simply being presented through new strategies or government structures.

The row comes as Wales faces continuing pressure over productivity, wages, transport links and the need to attract long-term private investment into key sectors including energy, manufacturing, digital industries and infrastructure.

Plaid Cymru ministers are now under pressure to demonstrate how their programme for government will translate into new employment opportunities and improved living standards.

Labour said the key test would be whether people in towns and communities across Wales see practical benefits from investment announcements, including secure jobs, better training and fair pay.

CALLS for permission to replace a decayed spiral staircase preventing access to the top of one of Pembrokeshire’s historic castles have been given the go-ahead.

Trustees of the T O Lewis Trust sought listed building consent to remove a deteriorating timber spiral staircase and replace it with an aluminium structure at the Grade-II-listed Hean Castle near Saundersfoot.

The application, submitted to the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park through agents Acanthus Holden Architects, also included proposals for pointing and masonry repairs to a flue turret, stair turret and south bay of the historic mansion.

A supporting statement submitted with the application said the works are intended to restore access to the castle’s main tower while reducing moisture damage affecting the narrow stone turrets.

The existing spiral staircase, believed to be original and standing around 13 metres high, has deteriorated significantly, particularly in its upper section.

The statement said: “The upper third of the wooden treads in the existing and very possibly the original spiral staircase are now badly decayed where they slot into the equally rotten stringers at this level, to the point that safe access to the turret top is no longer safe.”

Costly replacement

Applicants said replacing the staircase in timber would be difficult and expensive, with much of the original fabrication likely carried out on-site.

They added that accessing the turret externally at high level for repairs is extremely difficult, meaning only limited repointing work would be possible.

The statement warned that continued water ingress into the turret could quickly damage any new timber staircase.

Two replacement options were considered — aluminium and galvanised steel — with both carrying similar costs.

However, aluminium was selected as the preferred option.

The statement added: “An acceptable quote has been received for the supply of a sectional staircase with made-to-measure hardwood timber treads bolted to the newel brackets. The made-to-measure treads will allow us a degree of flexibility with regard to any variance in the diameter of the tube.”

Applicants said the proposed works would secure the building’s long-term sustainability, improve accessibility and address urgent structural concerns.

Saundersfoot Community Council raised no objections to the scheme.

The listed building consent application was conditionally approved by planning officers.