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Monday, February 28, 2005

Who you gonna call...?

It seems that the days of the common or garden red telephone box are numbered. British Telecom have announced that they are going to lobby OFCOM to abandon the social obligation imposed on the telecommunications company to keep open 70,000 loss-making phone boxes.

I suspect that this has something to do with BT's abortive attempt to close thousands of rural phone boxes last year. In many instances they were foiled because Community and County Councils lodged statutory objections which, under their social obligations, BT were obliged to conform with. Roger Williams MP and Kirsty Williams AM certainly managed to save nearly 1100 phone boxes in Brecon and Radnorshire in this way.

BT's problem is that it costs them about £2,000 a year to keep each of the 70,000 phone boxes open. At the same time the growth of mobile phones and the fact that most people have a landline in their own homes has led to a massively reduced use of these phone boxes. However, as Roger Williams points out:

"Whilst mobile phones might have replaced call boxes in urban areas, payphones still represent a vital lifeline in regions with poor or no reception. Brecon and Radnorshire is such a huge and often isolated area that it is essential for people to have access to call boxes in the case of an emergency or for general day-to-day use (especially when it takes the BT engineer twice as long as it should to repair a faulty landline!)."

The fact is that there are large tracts of rural Wales where it is impossible to get a mobile phone signal and some of these areas boast the most beautiful and most treacherous landscapes in the UK. Whatever happens OFCOM must not give into this pressure. Local Councils should retain a veto on the scrapping of a phone box on social and economic grounds.

Sunday, February 27, 2005

Helena Kennedy on house arrest

Helena Kennedy writes in today's Observer on Government proposals to introduce 'control orders'. It is worth quoting her conclusion in full.

What we should be reaffirming is that people should be detained only pending a criminal charge. If people are suspected of terrorism, they should be investigated thoroughly and if there is evidence they should be put on trial. If not, but suspicion remains, they should be kept under surveillance. Instead we have a misconceived suggestion by some decent parliamentarians that all will be well if a judge authorises the house arrest or control order.

Sugar-coating the unpalatable by suggesting all will be well if a judge makes the order is to forget that it may not feel significantly different if it is Mr Justice Floggem or the Home Secretary who issues an order if you still don't know the nature of the allegation or the evidence on which it is based.

Sometimes, judges can be unwittingly collusive in the erosion of the rule of law by allowing themselves to be co-opted into processes where the genuine balancing of the security of the state and human-rights considerations becomes impossible. Often they, too, do not have access to all the information. By taking on the role of control-order dispenser in camera, the judges would provide a veneer of legitimacy to processes which fall short of international standards of human rights. Judicial authorisation doesn't improve bad law.

Another liability.

According to The Observer Government Ministers believe that Tony Blair risks becoming an electoral liability as he faces fresh accusations that his 'presidential style' is starting to affect Labour's support. Private Labour polling reveals that one of the most important sections of the electorate - married mothers - are deserting the Prime Minister and that the Tories are closing the polling gap.

How much of this is Labour spin to galvanise their core vote, it is difficult to say. These private polls do not leak by accident. Certainly, Labour strategists will not be unhappy to see headlines like these at this stage of the pre-election campaign, when they still have plenty of time to put their plans into action and to amend them if necessary. I would be astonished anyway, if they had even contemplated the sort of presidential campaign that this poll rejects.

The clue is in the sub-text: 'Over the course of the campaign it will become clear this is as much a team effort as it is presidential,' said one senior strategist'; and 'Brown is due to make a key speech in Wolverhampton tomorrow, pledging to put education and adult skills at the heart of his Budget. Three senior women ministers will also unveil new pledges on maternity pay, leave and part-time working........Brown's friends, however, insist he is not sulking and has done 'everything he has been asked to do and more'.

The General Election campaign is well and truly underway.

Compassion by-pass hits Prince of Wales

Somebody should tell Prince Charles that the so-called "divine right of Kings" ended with the English Civil War and that if you want compassion and sympathy then you have to earn it. Given his behaviour over the years I am astonished that most people in Britain can even accept him as a future monarch. He certainly should not expect such an endorsement. More to the point, perhaps he should show some self-awareness and realise that if people are demonstrating disapproval of his forthcoming marriage they are merely following the example set by his mother.

Saturday, February 26, 2005

France 18 Wales 24

Outstanding!!!

Sheer poetry

As most of Wales looks to the rugby field this afternoon for its poetry, the Western Mail reports that the Arts Council of Wales have found some money to appoint a Welsh National Poet. The appointment will be a yearly one and it is envisaged that it will alternate between writers who work in English and Welsh.

Academi intend to give the role to a poet who will write about the political and cultural life of Wales. The National Poet's work will form the focus of verse writing in Wales. He or she will also take part in readings and in ceremonies and official occasions.

...."The poet will boost the profile of poetry, benefiting audiences throughout Wales and encourage participation in literature activities amongst young people by visiting schools and taking workshops."

The paper lists a number of poets who might be considered for the role including Gwyneth Lewis, Grahame Davies, Menna Elfyn, Gillian Clarke and Porthcawl-based Robert Minhinnick. There is no mention of Swansea poets, Nigel Jenkins or Peter Thabit Jones however. Let us hope that whoever sits on the panel to choose this person each year has a slightly deeper knowledge of contemporary Welsh literature than the Western Mail.

Educational dilemmas

I really do not want to get drawn into the controversy over school closure and merger plans in either Denbighshire or Carmarthenshire, but one does have to ask whether words are being used in the strict context of their meaning when Cwmdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg call for better standards of consultation on these issues.

It seems that Carmarthenshire Council, who are consulting quite widely on the strategic and detailed aspects of their plans are in the wrong, whereas Denbighshire, who failed to consult properly and were forced to withdraw their proposals are a model of good practice. Cwmdeithas education spokesperson, Fffed Ffrancis explains (I think):

Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg has called on Carmarthenshire County Council to follow the example of Denbighshire County Council which has withdrawn the threat to close a number of Welsh medium village schools.

"It (Denbighshire) has decided instead to consult fully with local communities."

In Carmarthenshire, bosses have promised consultation but Cymdeithas says it fears this will be a "sham" as decisions have already been made.

This is a no-win situation for Carmarthenshire. They promise to consult but are suspected of having already made up their mind. What happens when Denbighshire carry out their consultation and then come back with fresh proposals? Will they then be accused of pre-empting the statutory consultation process by having made up their mind?

Cwmdeithas seem to be using the word 'consultation' in an absolutist way - there is opposition so the plans must be abandoned. Unfortunately that is not how the real world works. Proper consultation is used to test proposals to see how sound they are and to modify or change them before they can be implemented. Sometimes it does result in a return to the drawing board. Consultation cannot, however, change the hard economic and policy realities that public bodies have to deal with and which lead to these proposals in the first place.

An ASBO too far?

Is it only me who finds this small piece in today's Guardian rather bizarre? The paper reports that magistrates have attempted to ban a woman from committing suicide after police complained about her repeated bungled efforts to take her own life. They have issued an anti-social behaviour order banning her from going near railway lines, rivers, bridges and multi-storey car parks. She can only go to car parks if accompanied and to park a car. The order is for two years and Ms. Sutton faces jail if she breaches it. The Guardian reports that:

The bench was told that Kim Sutton, 23, had attempted suicide four times.

She was rescued from the river Avon three times, had been found "hanging by her fingertips" from a railway bridge, and was repeatedly spotted loitering at the top of multi-storey car parks.

The court heard that Sutton caused panic when she was spotted in the Avon last summer. Two bystanders were about to jump in when police arrived and hauled her to safety.


In August she was found clinging to the parapet of a railway bridge. Train services were halted and she was rescued.

In November Sutton was rescued from the Avon twice in two hours. On the second occasion she told the gardener who had dived in to rescue her to leave her alone.

I am sure that the Police and Magistrates are acting to protect the public from putting themselves at risk in seeking to rescue Ms Sutton but one has to ask if this is the most appropriate course of action. Somebody who is that intent on killing themselves may not particularly care about the threat of imprisonment on the basis that she will not be around to suffer the consequences. Alternatively, if Ms. Sutton is doing all this to attract attention to a particular issue in her life then it would seem that perhaps she needs medical help rather than to be criminalised.

In the old days surely, this sort of attention-seeking behaviour would have led to the perpetrator being sectioned for treatment. It is no wonder that ASBOs are getting a bad name.

Friday, February 25, 2005

Council Tax blues

The Secretary of State for Wales tries to justify Labour's pre-election capping restrictions on local government by arguing that people are at their limit with regards to Council Tax increases. He is right of course, but as I have said previously, capping has been brought in specifically to try and save two Labour MPs in Cardiff and has nothing whatsoever to do with Peter Hain's concern for the wallet of the ordinary person in the street.

If Mr. Hain is so concerned then perhaps he will look again at introducing a local income tax, which at least has the merit of being based on people's ability to pay. His argument that it will lead to cuts in services has no merit at all. If anything services are being cut around Wales because of Labour's spending restrictions and under-funding.

Breakfast farce

The Western Mail reports another episode in the on-going farce of the Labour Assembly Government's pledge to deliver a free breakfast to every primary school child in Wales. It seems that the Government were advised that they did not have the powers to tell schools to bring in the measure so they made it voluntary instead.

A letter from a senior official in the Assembly's education division confirmed Education Minister Jane Davidson had received legal advice over the matter and that further advice had been provided to an official by the Office of the Counsel General.

The letter says officials "volunteered a submission in May 2004 which examined the details of the manifesto commitment to provide free breakfasts, in particular as regards legal powers".

After considering the submission, the Minister decided to make the scheme optional.

This is the problem with throwing together a manifesto from the backs of several envelopes and doing the costing and legal work later.

Thursday, February 24, 2005

The return of Dr. Pangloss

The Welsh Liberal Democrats used one of their debating slots yesterday to raise the crisis in accident and emergency units around South Wales. However, it was Conservative AM, David Melding, who got the real measure of the Minister with a devastating contribution:

David Melding: Like many other Members, I was struck by how the First Minister described his visit to the accident and emergency department at the University Hospital of Wales. He said something along the lines of it being the most interesting half-hour of his political life, that he was pleased that his visit confirmed that his Government’s policies were the right ones, and that they were on track to sort out the health service. The First Minister probably found it fascinating because, in his interpretation, it confirmed that he was doing the right thing. There was not much intellectual curiosity or analysis happening; it was as if the famous Dr Pangloss had visited Lisbon in the 1750s after the earthquake and said, ‘I am happy to confirm that we do indeed live in the best of all possible worlds’. However, most people in the outside world regard this as fairly flimsy thinking and not what we need to firm up the health service, to make it excellent and able to manage the flows through secondary care.

Despite some prompting and a bit of a gaff when he said that it was just such a situation as you would expect in January, at least the First Minister went to the accident and emergency department in question. Brian Gibbons also spent a fair part of last week visiting various accident and emergency departments—I am not sure how many, but he was pictured in the local evening paper that I read, and I suspect in others also. I do not knock it, because I am glad that he is doing it. I have been told by some health staff that you can now see a queue of ministerial cars outside each accident and emergency department, and that that queue is only outnumbered by the number of ambulances waiting to disgorge their poor patients. At least when Brian visits, given his professional background, he can lend a hand, whereas I do not know what people must say when they cannot get a hospital bed and then they have Rhodri Morgan gawking at them. That is something for us to think about.

In his reply today, the Minister for Health and Social Services must tell us whether these problems are somehow going to be tackled by current general policies, that the solution is inevitable and will come piecemeal and fairly soon, or whether he has to have a special policy, consider the current situation in accident and emergency units, acknowledge that it is dysfunctional, acknowledge that the current state of patient flows cannot be sustained, and that we need to take corrective action now. Unless you give us the assurance that that is your diagnosis, Minister, you will certainly not have the confidence of this side of the Assembly that you are taking this problem seriously.

There really was no way back after that.

Throwing down the gauntlet

The problem with challenging Ministers to do something in Plenary sessions or Committees is that sometimes they will take up the invitation. So it was yesterday with David Davies on Communities First:

David Davies: Despite Communities First projects, there are still significant areas of poverty in Wales, including in rural areas such as Monmouthshire. Do you have any plans to visit Monmouthshire over the next few months, and, if so, will you allow me to show you the poverty that exists there?

Edwina Hart: I would be delighted to accept any invitation from the Assembly Member for Monmouth to visit the area.

As he sat down David muttered under his breath, "I suppose I will have to find somewhere for her to visit now."

One gauntlet that has been thrown down far too many times to mention since 1999 is the challenge to Ministers to justify the funding of the Government's Objective One programme. Yesterday was no exception, but Ieuan Wyn Jones' challenge was reinvigorated by documents released under the Freedom of Information Act. Nevertheless, there was a strong feeling of deja vu:

The Leader of the Opposition (Ieuan Wyn Jones): I think that you have acknowledged, Minister, that levels of economic inactivity are at their highest, and stubbornly high, in those areas where we should have benefited from Objective 1 funds. I would have expected, given the massive injection of over £1 billion during the period that you have indicated, that those areas would have benefited more substantially than you seem to suggest. We know that you were a key member of Alun Michael’s Government that was negotiating for those structural funds in 1999, during the time leading up to the vote of no confidence in Alun Michael, in January and February 2000. We regularly made the case that, in order to make the maximum use of Objective 1 funding, the European component had to be over and above the block and that there had to be additional funds for match funding. Now we hear that that was also Alun Michael’s view, because in a letter that he sent to Andrew Smith on 24 January 2000 he states: ‘we could then consider the additional match funding cover we need by way of an addition to the block.’ Did you agree with Alun Michael at the time?

Andrew Davies: It is interesting that Plaid Cymru is a party based in the past and is condemned to live in the past. You seem to be constantly rehearsing events of five or six years ago.

Presumably for next week's questions we will be reliving the Labour Leadership contest of 1999.

Is this a dagger I see before me?

Like Banquo at the feast the Labour MP for Blaenau Gwent, Llew Smith, appears to delivers a parting shot at his New Labour colleagues. Mr Smith has blasted the Prime Minister for creating a Labour Party so "in tune" with Conservative policy it amounted to "dumping so many Socialist principles". He branded his party's agenda as "Thatcherism with a human face".

I was struck by how closely his analysis resembled that of the Liberal Democrats:

Mr Smith rounded on a party he believes is increasingly in step with the Conservatives, by introducing top-up fees for university students, house arrest for terror suspects and privatisation of public services.

He said, "This Government hasn't even the courage or good political sense to tax those earning over £100,000 at a modest 50% rate.

"So inequality is safe in New Labour's hands."

Mr. Smith is, of course, standing down at the next election and is to be succeeded as Labour candidate by the product of an all-female shortlist. This has brought great disquiet to Blaenau Gwent and split the constituency Labour Party down the middle. It is strongly believed that local Labour AM, Peter Law, a close ally of Mr. Smith, will stand as an independent.

It is just possible that Llew's outburst is the first salvo in the battle for him to be succeeded by his favoured candidate and that it was designed to help set the agenda for Peter Law's campaign.

Wednesday, February 23, 2005

The Rooney effect

I am sorry but this does not wash. A Teacher's union is claiming that because Wayne Rooney gets away with bad language on the football pitch then he is setting a poor example to children and undermining the authority of teachers.

In my limited experience of young people, they will use any excuse to justify bad behaviour but no adult will accept that youngsters can abrogate responsibility in this way and nor should they. There have always been sports people who are considered to act in a manner that may be believed to be inappropriate, whether it is Ille Nastase, John McEnroe or Stan Collymore. No doubt young people have used them as an excuse for bad behaviour too.

Teachers and parents either have authority or they do not. It is not easy I know, but they must be able to counter these so-called role models by instilling appropriate values in their charges. Just as children should not be able to cite Wayne Rooney to justify misbehaving, so teachers and parents should not use poor refereeing as a reason for the greater ills of society, it goes much deeper than that.

Sudan 1

Suddenly, journalists are lining up to go onto the broadcast media and talk about their sources. Unfortunately, they do not wish to refer to deep throat. Instead they are more preoccupied with Worcester Sauce. Well it was very early in the morning.

Tuesday, February 22, 2005

Is there life on Mars?

A team of European scientists have discovered a huge, frozen sea just below the surface of Mars. Speculation now is that this is the most likely place to find life. Rumours that George W. Bush will be sending an expeditionary force to impose democracy on the Martians are so far unfounded.

Pull it down!

The BBC reports that residents of Cumbernauld have voted to demolish their own town. It seems that Cumbernauld town centre was, in its day, an internationally recognised example of best practice in architecture and planning and the world's first multi-level covered town centre. However, it is now viewed by some as a poor example of sixties architecture and a nightmare to live in.

I cannot comment as I have not been there, however the premise behind the Channel 4 series,"Demolition", is intriquing. It seems that the idea is to identify Britain's worst eyesore and then to actually pull it down.

The Western Mail enters into the spirit of things this morning by asking various "personalities" to nominate their personal eyesore. I found it difficult to agree with the choice of AM, Alun Cairns. Swansea County Hall has its detractors but it is actually quite attractive in a quirky sort of way. Plans to open it up as a proper civic centre could well seal its fate as a popular destination for the citizens of Swansea.

I certainly agreed with Sian Lloyd about Neath Civic Centre. This is an appalling example of sixties architecture that should have been demolished years ago. Plaudits are due to Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council for their plans to replace and, hopefully, pull it down in due course. Equally, the DVLA is hardly the Guggenheim and, in its present location, dominates the north of Swansea and the M4. I understand that this building is due to be refurbished soon and that relocation to another part of Swansea may be one alternative option.

Finally, the issue of Toys R Us. Former Neath Mayor and Liberal Democrat Councillor John Warman, is right, as buildings they are unattractive and functional. They also attract a lot of trade. Like McDonalds, Toys R Us seem to have uniform buildings that they will plonk just anywhere, regardless of the context. These examples of nineties architecture have already cast a blight on the urban landscapes of the future. Let us not pull them down just yet but could we please have a compulsory re-education course for those responsible for creating them?

Monday, February 21, 2005

Public Service Announcement

For those wishing to keep track of all the information being released by the Welsh Assembly Government under the Freedom of Information Act there is a webpage here. As yet the Assembly Parliamentary Service do not have a comparable source.

Oops!

I am sorry that I cannot find an on-line link to this as it illustrates perfectly the hazards one faces in following the party line. I have already blogged on the so-called "noddy file", a Labour campaign guide for their candidates containing template press releases, letters, telephone scripts and other materials. At the time I commented that it was standard fare for most mainstream political parties including the Conservatives. However, the key to success is to use it effectively.

One Labour candidate who may require training in how to use such material is Sue Hayman, who is fighting Preseli Pembrokeshire. When she posted a letter to voters in her prospective constituency she forgot to fill in the blanks properly. She wrote to tell the good people of Pembrokeshire about Tory plans to cut £35m from public services and suggested that they think about "what they would mean here in Clwyd West". She put a contact address on the leaflet that was situated in the North East of England and she printed it in Surrey.

Basic errors in literature are easy to make and sometimes they can draw attention to the content and make it more interesting. In this case, I suspect that Ms. Hayman wishes she had employed the services of a good proof-reader.

Sunday, February 20, 2005

Setting the standard

Plaid Cymru, the Party of wails are to fight the General Election campaign with the slogan, "Labour lied, vote Plaid". At least it has the virtue of rhyming.

This descent into yah-boo politics so early on does not bode well for a constructive and adult disussion of the issues. Nor does the predictability of Welsh Labour's defence. They have hit back by saying that Plaid are "whingeing for Wales".

As slogans go neither come anywhere near matching that used by the Liberal Party in October 1974, when they urged the British electorate to go for "one more heave". Still at least the latter was positive and optimistic, the current crop are almost guaranteed to alienate a large number of voters.

Roll on March 19th!

The Wales on Sunday this morning report that popular combo, Westlife, are to spend three nights, including St. David's Day, playing the Cardiff International Arena. The only problem is that the official tour T-shirt lists Cardiff as being in England. So, who are Westlife again?

Hunting and opportunists

This item says more about the opportunism of the BNP than it does about fox hunting, so if your idea of a good time is to spend a Saturday watching a pack of dogs rip apart a defenceless creature from atop a horse, please do not think I am pointing the finger at you. Nevertheless it appears that the BNP have jumped onto the Countryside Alliance bandwagon in the name of defending the "British way of life".

The Observer reports today that, "During a hunting demonstration outside the Labour party spring conference nine days ago, far-right activists handed out literature talking about halting the 'assault on rural Britain'. The leaflets referred to a pro-country lobbying group called Land and People, which is the rural affairs circle of the BNP. They read: 'The preservation of our natural environment is a fundamental principle of British nationalism.'"

Clearly some very loose definitions are being used with regards to "natural environment" and "fundamental principle".

Saturday, February 19, 2005

Updates

Some follow up to two long-running stories that I have featured on this blog. Firstly, it seems that the signs for Llanddewi-Brefi have rematerialised. The three signs went missing before Christmas, presumably taken by fans of the show Little Britain. It now appears that they may have been stolen by people wanting to fleece the aforesaid fans. Apparently, they appeared for sale on e-bay in early January. Police inquiries are continuing but so far they have failed to recover them.

Secondly, I note that the First Minister has joined in with Tony Blair in calling on Ken Livingstone to apologise for his 'Nazi' comment to a Jewish reporter. The Mayor of London though seems to be resolute in his refusal to comply with his party leader's request and it may be up to the Standards Board of England to resolve the matter. The Culture Secretary, Tessa Jowell, and Jewish community leaders have also said that Mr Livingstone should apologise. However, Tory MP, Boris Johnson, has taken a contrary view. He believes that Mr. Livingstone should not say sorry but "stick to his guns". Well that is a turn-up for the books, Boris and Ken agreeing on something. Perhaps when Ken does relent he can ask Boris for a loan of the sackcloth and ashes that the MP took to Liverpool with him.

Friday, February 18, 2005

On-line and wired

The academics have struck again, this time with a public opinion survey of British citizens' use of the Internet and political representation. The results can be found here but their main conclusions are:

There is also a list of AM websites. Exploration of some of these reveals that they vary in quality.


Smiler Blair

The Guardian reports that the Prime Minister has eschewed spin and the normal tools of political debate during elections in favour of a new softer, more cuddly Tony. Out go the battlebuses, mass party rallies and playing political chess with Jeremy Paxman. In Labour's view such things are relics of how politics used to be played out. Instead Tony will be spending more time with the likes of Richard and Judy, Kirsty Young, Matthew Wright, June Sarpong and a host of people that most in Westminster have rarely heard of. The paper tells us that the aim is to rebuild the prime minister's relationship with the British people by proving with his wide smile, natural charm and relentless willingness to listen and engage that he is still the Tony Blair the nation fell in love with in 1997.

To an extent all of the party leaders are playing this game. Tone was followed onto the set of Coronation Street by Michael Howard, whilst Charles Kennedy, rather unwisely in my view, appeared briefly in the Eastenders Christmas panto. But how does all this help people to take their politicians seriously? For that matter, how does the dumbing down of politics in this way advance political debate in this country?

It is my view, for what it is worth, that people want to be engaged in discussion on the issues. They want to feel that they have a real choice when they come to elect a Government and that this choice should not come down to which party leader is the most effective mannequin. Yes, they want to feel that they can relate to the Prime Minister but more importantly they want to be able to trust him or her and have some confidence that when it comes to important decisions he or she will do the right thing. How does this new approach deliver that confidence?

Not so smart

I don't know, I come home after a long hard slog exploring smoke-free Ireland only to find that the world as we know it is changing for good. It seems that Nestlé is to replace the traditional cardboard tube that holds smarties with a new-look hexagonal tube complete with a re-sealable flip-top lid on which the familiar lettering on the lid is to be replaced by constantly updated, quirky messages, stickers or images inside each tube. Is nothing sacred?

Thursday, February 17, 2005

Day three

The third day of our fact-finding tour saw us speaking to Trade Unionists. These included representatives of Amicus, representing tobacco workers, and Mandate, representing workers in the hospitality industry.

One of the Trade Unionists lives near the border with Northern Ireland and he reported that when the ban first came in, his local pubs suffered a fall-off in trade on a Sunday lunchtime as families went North instead. However this has now been largely corrected. He also told us that people have been travelling to England or to the North and finding it difficult to adjust to smoking in the pubs there. Most of them prefer the fresh air in the pubs even if they smoke themselves.

Mandate produced some very useful survey results. They told us that since the ban opinion polls had found 82% support for it. 95% say that it is a positive health measure, 90% say that it benefits workers, 82% say that it benefits everybody and 78% said that their experience of restaurants had improved. 70% told pollsters that their experience of pubs had improved and 53% are more inclined to eat in pubs. It seems that trade has actually increased in pubs that serve food.

Wednesday, February 16, 2005

More smoking stuff

The smoking in public places sub-committee spent today ensconced in a Dublin Hotel taking evidence from a range of Irish Government agencies on the ban they have implemented here. This was preceded by an early morning flight from Cork to the capital City.

Some useful statistics were offered that provided a counterweight to the evidence offered by the Licensed Vintners yesterday. We were told that pub sales in Ireland peaked around about 2001 and that there has been a downward trend ever since, regardless of the smoking ban. That trend did not change because a workplace ban was put in place. We were also told that tobacco sales had declined by 10% in 2003 and by 16% in 2004 and that the number of people in the Republic who smoke was also falling. In the last tax year there was a drop of 100 million Euros in tax revenues from tobacco.

We were anxious to discuss the economic impact of the ban but what was becoming clear was that there were other factors involved in the closure of pubs and job losses. In many instances, we were told, the hospitality industry had failed to adapt to people’s expectations and that drink prices in pubs are substantially more expensive that off-license prices. Clearly we are going to have to do a fair amount of research to verify the contradictory statements that witnesses have given to us.

One thing that was said to us today rang true. That is that the main factor that influences expenditure in the hospitality industry is the level of disposable income available to customers. Other factors such as smoking bans are secondary to this and are by no means as significant. The other interesting feature of the visit was the way that, having finally accepted the ban, Dublin pub landlords sought to make the most of it. They organised an advertising campaign with the slogan:

"The atmosphere has just got better here – Dublin pubs, the best in the world."

IT issues

Although I am writing this blog contemporaneously I am being forced to post it retrospectively. That is because I have been lugging an Assembly laptop all around Ireland with me and have so far failed to get it to connect to the server and hence the internet. This is very frustrating. I had a long conversation this morning with the help desk but they do not know what the problem is and nor do they seem able to suggest anything more than to bring the laptop in for them to look at next week.

Tuesday, February 15, 2005

The Irish Experience

The long awaited field trip to Ireland to look at their ban on smoking in public places kicked off this morning with a flight from Cardiff airport to Cork. I have not flown over Swansea before so I fully enjoyed the magnificent view of the City and of Gower. The new stadium in particular forms a very handsome landmark from the air and looks very impressive.

On landing in Cork the parting shot from the air stewardess was to inform us all that "Smoking is prohibited in public places in the Republic of Ireland". There was little time to reflect on this, as once we had deposited our luggage in the airport hotel, we were straight onto a bus and heading for the town of Mallow.

The eleven members of the Vintners Federation of Ireland we met were keen to explain how they perceived the ban on smoking in the workplace had hit their businesses. They told us that in Cork and Kerry, 80 licensed premises had gone out of business since the ban was brought in. They told us that they had not been consulted on the changes and they explained how they were seeking to accommodate smokers outside their pubs with shelters and heaters.

Their case was summed up by one of the publicans who said that at Irish weddings these days most of the guests would be singing in the garden whilst the non-smokers minded the bags. They also suggested that the ban had led to an increase in drinking in the home and that this had, in turn, resulted in more domestic violence and house fires.

Tomorrow we are going to Dublin to hear the other side of the story and perhaps get some statistics to validate or otherwise what we were told today. We are also going to be joined by HTV who are keen to do a feature on the issue, based around our visit.

Valentine

It seems that the earth moved on Valentine's Day for the whole population of Colwyn Bay and surrounding communities. If only the Assembly had been able to claim the credit. They would never accuse us of ignoring North Wales again! Who am I kidding? Of course they would.

Monday, February 14, 2005

Clark bows to the inevitable

The sound of brakes being applied in the Home Office over the last few days must have been quite palpable as Charles Clarke rowed back from his illiberal and frankly, dangerous proposals to introduce house arrest for suspected terrorists. Such measures are of course the tools of totaliarianism and have no place in a democratic British society.

The Home Secretary is now saying that he has "never actually used the phrase house arrest". Strictly speaking he is correct. However what he did say about these control orders is a matter of record and amounts to the same thing:

"There would be a range of controls restricting movement and association or other communication with named individuals; the imposition of curfews and/or tagging; and restrictions on access to telecommunications, the internet and other technology. At the top end, control orders would include a requirement to remain at their premises. The controls to be imposed under the new scheme will not include detention in prison, although I intend that breach of a control order should be a criminal offence, triable in the usual way through the criminal courts and punishable by imprisonment."

The proposals were, of course, unworkable and impracticable and this has been demonstrated by the fears of the security services that suspects' homes could become recruiting centres for Islamist fundamentalists.

The Home Secretary is now to hold talks with the Conservative Party and the Liberal Democrats on a way forward. Charles Kennedy's view on this matter are also a matter of record. He is quoted as saying: "We must never have the position in this country where a politician can decide whether you walk free or are put under house arrest. That must be a judicial decision." Civil liberty and security are not mutually exclusive and once you try fighting the latter by compromising the former then you are capitulating to terrorism.

Sunday, February 13, 2005

Wooden spoon territory

England have gone down to their third successive defeat whilst Wales are on the crux of something great. Things are really looking up!

A duty to enforce the law

The Observer reports this morning that Britain's most senior police officers have raised grave concerns that the imminent hunting ban is unenforcable, will erode morale, and could precipitate large-scale civil unrest. Well what is new?

Any law can become difficult to enforce in the face of mass disobedience and those who support hunting are counting on that fact to try and force a rethink from the Government. However, I believe that they will be gravely disappointed. Whatever their reservations the Police have a duty to enforce the law. Even if the Police are unable to catch everybody, those who are found to be in breach of the new legislation must be prosecuted and the courts must ensure that the penalties imposed on them are sufficient to deter others.

It may take some time to sink in, but I believe that, in due course, those defying the law by hunting with dogs will become the exception rather than the norm. To achieve that the law enforcement agencies need to play their part.

Saturday, February 12, 2005

Labour and anti-semitism

The Labour Party are not having a particularly good time wooing the Jewish community at the moment. First, there were the anti-semitic posters featuring Michael Howard and Oliver Letwin as flying pigs and a second one showing the Tory Leader as a Fagin-like character, now we have the Labour Mayor of London likening a Jewish newspaper reporter to a Nazi concentration camp guard. They must really work hard to achieve such a high level of ineptitude.

FE sector under siege

13 of the 23 Further Education Colleges in Wales face a combined deficit of over £7 million this year. In the Assembly on Wednesday the Education Minister sought to defend her funding regime for these colleges arguing that the FE sector had received increases of 21% since ELWa was formed about four years ago, yet her arguments were flawed.

When the Education and Lifelong Learning Committee went to see ELWa it was made plain to us that the vast majority of this funding had gone into achieving pay parity between lecturers and teachers. Indeed this money had been earmarked for that with all-party agreement. What did not have all-party agreement however was the failure to provide sufficient increases for colleges on top of that funding so as to enable them to meet other pay and inflation demands and to allow for the expansion in numbers being promoted by the Government. Inevitably, that situation was going to throw up deficits and this is what has happened.

Many of the Colleges who have deficits have been given a financial clean bill of health in the way that they are run. This is not the problem. ELWa officials told us that they did not believe that the present level of funding for FE is sustainable in the long-term. It seems that publicly at least the Minister is not prepared to accept that despite the evidence presented to her.

On Wednesday the Minister sought to hide behind the new planning and funding framework, but all that does is distribute the same amount of cash in a different way. If more money is diverted to FE then it is at the expense of sixth forms or work-based training. The Welsh Assembly Government seeks to portray itself as committed to lifelong learning and indeed, have met a number of their targets in that field, and yet that commitment has to be called into question when they underfund an important sector like FE.

Friday, February 11, 2005

Politics for adults

Secretary of State for Wales and Leader of the House, Peter Hain, tells the Western Mail this morning that childish political debate is turning voters off. He is right. However, he has been one of the most consistent practitioners of yah-boo politics over the last few years. Even in an article in which he condemns this style of debate he cannot resist having a go:

Mr Hain said the Tories were failing to tackle Labour on "bread and butter issues," branded the Liberal Democrats "shamelessly opportunistic" and accused Plaid Cymru of losing its way altogether.

As always Mr. Hain just cannot help himself. Perhaps if he was sincere in what he was saying then we could make a real start on discussing issues in a more grown up way.

A tale of two weddings

A thought that struck me this morning as I skipped past page after page of newspaper coverage of the forthcoming royal wedding, was that if we had had the same attitude towards a divorcee partnering the monarch in 1936 as we do now, then history would have been very different. It is likely that Charles would not now be heir to the throne, he might have married Camilla the first time around and Diana may still be alive.

In an effort to upstage the royal couple (or was it the other way around), Lembit and Sian revealed their wedding plans on the same day. Apparently, they will be tying the knot on October 5th in Powis Castle. The Western Mail carries full details but alas, I cannot find a link.

The two points of interest include the fact that Mari Thomas from Llanelli, a National Eisteddfod gold medal winner, will create the wedding bands and Sian's accessories. Sian will inscribe words in Estonian for Lembit's ring and he will inscribe similar words in Welsh for her's.

A love song, Bugeilio'r Gwenith Gwyn will be sung at the wedding by a friend of Sian. I am told that this choice of song is interesting as it is about unrequited love and death. I am sure that it is a very beautiful and haunting ballad though. Meanwhile, spare a thought for poor Charlotte Church. She has split up with her live-in boyfriend and moved back in with her mam.

Thursday, February 10, 2005

Plaid Cymru hit socialist brick wall

Plaid Cymru got themselves in a bit of trouble yesterday when they tabled an amendment to a motion on child poverty stating their belief that New Labour has abandoned the socialist principle of redistributing wealth. Their Deputy Leader, Rhodri Glyn Thomas, was in full flow, when he was interrupted by Neath AM, Gwenda Thomas:

The Minister tells us that the UK Government is successful in its actions to eradicate child poverty. Can she therefore explain why one of Tony Blair’s closest advisers, Lord Gidden, the architect of the third way, says that Labour has not done enough for the poor? He says, ‘New Labour should make a commitment to a renewed egalitarianism.’

Gwenda Thomas: Will you give way?
.
Rhodri Glyn Thomas: Let me just finish the quotation, so that you are in a position to respond to it. 'There is something out of kilter to New Labour’s perspective. It has given so much commitment to public services but there is no parallel integrated commitment really to secure a more socially just society.’ Perhaps you would like to respond to those comments, Gwenda.


Gwenda Thomas: Yes. On being socially just, I refer to your fourth amendment and to the views of a senior member of your party, Eurfyl ap Gwynedd, who was charged with the thankless task of reviewing your wish-list of a draft general election manifesto. He admitted that, under Labour, there has been significant redistribution. Was your senior party member wrong, or will you now vote against your own amendment?

Rhodri Glyn Thomas: I was not aware that Eurfyl ap Gwilym—and it would be nice if you got his name right, if you are going to refer to him—held any office in Plaid Cymru.

David Melding: He does not now. [Laughter.]

There was no way back after that.

Council Tax blues

Putting aside the Western Mail's obsession with Monty Python, their article today on Council Tax - "So, what has your Council ever done for you?" - threw up some interesting political points. They quote the Assembly's Economic Development Minister as saying that re-banding should not be used as "an excuse" for higher bills. This has been the mantra of a number of Ministers for some months now. However, for various reasons, the statement itself is financially illiterate, deliberately so.

Firstly, the fact of revaluation will lead to higher bills for approximately one third of Welsh Council Taxpayers anyway, regardless of what the local Council does. In Cardiff that figure is even higher, 86,000 households or two thirds of all Council taxpayers, have gone up one band or more as the result of the revaluation. If Cardiff Council were to deliver no increase on the Council Tax at all, those people would still face a ten or twenty per cent increase in their bills. There are no excuses, that fact is out of the Council's control and is directly attributable to the actions of the Welsh Assembly Government.

This is because Council Tax itself is flawed. It does not take into account ability to pay but concentrates on property prices, which can fluctuate out of all proportion to wage inflation. Regular revaluation is a feature of any property tax, that is why we would argue every time that it should be replaced by a fairer local income tax that relates to the ability to pay.

Labour are of course, desperate to avoid the blame for these higher bills, especially in the two marginal seats of Cardiff North and Cardiff Central, which will be the hardest hit by the revaluation. They are seeking to limit Council Tax increases so as not to pile on the agony, and they are seeking to shift the blame through disingenuous statements by Ministers such as that quoted above.

This brings us to the second reason as to why Andrew Davies' statement is financially illiterate. It is because his Government has threatened to cap Councils in an effort to limit the damage. The problem is that while they talk about keeping Council Tax bill rises below 5%, the basis of their capping criteria is the limitation of Council spending increases. As a result, a Council like Swansea is able to deliver a Council Tax uplift of 2.5% whilst raising spending by 4.5%. To achieve this they have had to cut £7 million from spending and put in £5 million from the reserves. The Labour opposition in Swansea want to restore some of those cuts, but if they do so then the Council will be capped by a Labour Minister. It is a no-win situation for them.

In Cardiff the Council are aiming for a 2.93% Council Tax increase but because their spending will rise by more than 5% they are under threat of capping. Capping will effectively deliver an overall reduction in Council Tax and yet Cardiff taxpayers will still face massively increased bills because of the revaluation. In this respect Labour have scored an own goal in the Capital City. When they go on the doorsteps and have to explain the big Council Tax bills to voters they will not be able to blame the Council, after all Cardiff will have cut the amount it levies. People will be very clear that the reason why they are being hit so hard financially is the unfair Council Tax and a Welsh Assembly Government who, instead of abolishing it as the Liberal Democrats argued at the time, decided to run a revaluation exercise instead.

Caught in a landslide - no escape from reality!



I have unashamedly stolen this reworked Labour poster from the Labour Watch website as it is so funny!

Posted by Hello

Wednesday, February 09, 2005

Horsing about

Yesterday we finally debated the heated issue of horse passports, so naturally the jokes and the puns flew around like confetti. David Cornock has already got in before me in asking how we are going to get the horse in the photo-booth so we will trot gracefully on to report the contributions of others.

The questions that were on my mind revolved around the impact of these proposals on the price of catfood and how some classic films might have had to be re-made if passports were in place at the time. Police would have been able to trace the owner of the horse's head in 'The Godfather' for example, 'National Velvet' might have become the story of one girl's struggle against European bureaucrats, and who could predict how D.H. Lawrence might have had to re-write 'The Rocking Horse Winner'?

It took Mick Bates, however to really enter into the spirit of things:

On the consultation, you stand there and tell us that work is ongoing to address our amendment 1. However, the consultation started in 2000, and the statutory six-week consultation on this regulation was undertaken at that time. The concerns raised during that consultation included additional bureaucracy, cross-border issues, welfare on commons, and the cost burden placed on owners. You did nothing until 17 January 2005, which is when you held a workshop—one month before the legislation is to be enacted. If that is not complacency, tell me what is. I once described you as Dr Dolittle, but you are now becoming Dr Do Nothing.

It seems that we were all talking to the animals yesterday.

Trophy

The one Assembly Member who always comments to me when I include him in a blog entry is Carl Sargeant, the Labour member for Alyn and Deeside. Carl is a very pleasant person who likes to effect a larger-than-life image. He seems to consider a mention here as a form of trophy. Yesterday, I accused him of going out of his way to be quoted, so frequent were the bloggable comments that he came out with in the chamber.

First off was the Business Statement:

Carl Sargeant: You will not get doom and gloom from me, Business Minister, but a little light relief. Could you find time to debate the provision of additional funding for sporting activities and facilities in Wales? Colin Jackson opened a new facility in Deeside College last week, which provides a wonderful opportunity for the constituents of north and north-west Wales. Could you also find time for us to debate free swimming and free bus passes along with everything else that is being provided for free by the Labour Welsh Assembly Government?

Carl then moved on from the free-for-all that is the Welsh Assembly Government to deliver some 'killer-lines' on free school breakfasts. Firstly in response to Mark Isherwood:

Although I thank my friend, the Labour Member for Alyn and Deeside, for his kind offer of a free breakfast this morning, he is using the price of a piece of toast to cover his modesty. [Laughter.] He has much to be modest about, because it is the primary school children and our mutual constituents in Alyn and Deeside and Delyn who receive the lowest funding in England and Wales.

Carl Sargeant: I thank the regional Member for north Wales for giving way. As for covering my modesty, he may have meant a bloomer, not a piece of toast.

And then to Nick Bourne:

Carl Sargeant, who is shaking is head, was on hand to demonstrate the value of a free breakfast in the Assembly restaurant today, we were told, at 11 a.m.. I have news for you, Carl—the restaurant stops serving breakfast at 10.30 a.m. Furthermore, I do not know when your flying start happens, Carl, but my staff and all my Assembly Members were at work far earlier than 11 a.m., therefore I am not surprised that you changed your mind about it.

Carl Sargeant: I was here at 7.30 a.m. and did not see you about. I thought that I would extend my breakfast period to 11.15 a.m. to open it up for all your Members. Not one of you showed up for a nutritional breakfast in the restaurant this morning. I hope that when you go home tonight Nick, and lay your head on the pillow, you will wake up to find the news headlines have changed from ‘Maggie Thatcher the milk snatcher’ to ‘Nick Bourne and the cereal killers’.

If he is not careful he will start to rival Lembit Opik for the number of mentions here.

Update: It seems Carl has pulled off a double. He is also quoted by Leighton Andrews.

Wot no Blog!

Roger Williams, the personable MP for Brecon and Radnorshire, has launched his new website. I looked long and hard but I could not find a blog. Oh, well, maybe when he has more time after being re-elected.

Tuesday, February 08, 2005

Five more years?

The Western Mail commemorates the fifth anniversary of Rhodri Morgan taking over as First Minister with a fairly cursory look at his record. They have listed 21 performance indicators adopted by his Government and measured the progress made against each. About half of the targets have been missed.

I think the key point I would like to make about Rhodri's reign is that the real period of activity and accomplishment came during the Partnership Government with the Welsh Liberal Democrats. It is only now, as the end of the second year of a Labour-only Government approaches, that they are beginning to pick up the pace again and start to make some impact.

As I read the article I also recalled one of the Freedom of Information requests that I did not report in my previous post. Apparently, a request has been submitted for a copy of Alun Michael's resignation letter. When this was reported to the House Committee last week officials were still looking for it.

Monday, February 07, 2005

A life in the day of

Busy, busy day with wall to wall meetings. Very little time to blog. Few opportunities even to form full sentences.

I started off the day by meeting the Swansea Bay Racial Equality Council to discuss historic issues relating to the local Council and its approach to race equality issues. This was very useful and I went away with a list of action points to take up with various officers in the local authority. The issue seems to be that nothing has moved forward since the Council's racial equality strategy, first drawn up in 2002. There is no action plan and funding for the SBREC has also been static. This has left a huge job for the new Administration to do, but it needs to be kick-started.

My second meeting of the day was in Plasmarl, Swansea, where residents have commissioned a study of local youngsters and their needs. The purpose was to thrash out a way forward for the ideas and issues that were highlighted by the survey. The collection of teachers, politicians, Council Officers and youth workers divided up into small discussion groups to see what they could come up with. Afterwards we devoured a very tasty buffet lunch put on by local volunteers.

Straight into the car to head for Crymlyn Burrows and a tour of the Materials Recycling and Energy to Waste plant situated there. This has been a very controversial development because of the incinerator attached at the end of the process. I spent a large amount of time fighting it in conjunction with local residents and that fight formed a major part of the backdrop to the Swansea East Assembly by-election in 2001.

The plant has been out of action for the best part of 18 months following a fire in the composting section and it is only now that operator HLC is getting it back on line. When I arrived the incinerator was still being fired up, a process that could take until the end of February. Newly arrived domestic waste was being sorted by a Lithuanian workforce but the sorting plant was temporarily out of action - diesel fumes had activated the fire alarms and automatically shut down the plant. This was sorted by the time our tour came to an end.

My purpose for going to the plant was to see where the recommissioning process was at but also to find out more about the Objective One application to extend it so as to take another 100,000 tonnes of waste. It was an educational experience but one that is worth keeping an eye on.

From here I got straight into my car and onto Neath to meet the Superintendent of Police to discuss Anti-Social Behaviour Orders and other matters and then back to Swansea for a meeting with residents in Landore to listen to their views on traffic matters. Tomorrow is just as hectic with non stop meetings from 9.30am to 8.30pm. It is one of the reasons why I enjoy this job so much.

Victory

A belated reference to Wales' historic rugby victory over England I know, but everywhere I go today people seem to be happier. They are smiling and there is a definite spring in their steps. Is it really a Monday morning?

Sunday, February 06, 2005

Money talks

The Sunday Times reports that the Labour party is facing a multi-million-pound shortfall in its election campaign fund amid disillusionment in some trade unions and anger among Jewish donors over its allegedly anti-semitic advertisements.

Lord Levy, the party’s chief fundraiser and a leading figure in the Jewish community, has warned that important New Labour donors are “disturbed” at the party’s recent use of anti-semitic images in posters.

Accentuating the positive

Andrew Rawnsley has an excellent column in today's Observer in which he excoriates the puerile and unoriginal quality of the propaganda emanating from the two bigger political parties. He argues that the negative and predictable attacks on personalities, on each other's record and even on each other's policies will turn off voters and undermine further the status of politicians in the minds of the public.

He also comments on the incredible sight of a Labour Government, six points ahead in the polls, adopting defensive tactics and negative attacks to deflect attention from its own vulnerabilities:

The Labour campaign has so far been characterised by negative attacks on Michael Howard and 'Tory cuts' and defensive tactics designed to blunt the saliency of issues where the government feels vulnerable. The Conservatives promote a change in the law on the degree of violence a householder can mete out to intruders, so the government produces a new good-housekeeping guide about how to bash a burglar.

The Tories go large on immigration; this week, Labour will make its own noise on the subject. The Conservatives make an issue of school discipline; so does Labour. The Prime Minister's allies are quite frank about it: 'The strategy is to try to close down weak areas before moving on to the more positive areas.'

Although I dislike negative, personality-based campaigning, like Andrew Rawnsley I recognise that it is a fact of life, simply because it is effective:

The character of the opposing leader is fair game. I will be amazed if the Tories do not unleash a sustained assault on Tony Blair as a man who cannot be trusted. It is equally legitimate for Labour to attack the record of the Tory government of which Michael Howard was a prominent member. For many years after the winter of discontent, the Tories went on using it to bash Labour. I am neither surprised nor shocked that both parties are seeking to exploit the freedom of information legislation to dig up stuff to hurl at each other. Politics, especially at election times, is not for wusses.

His most telling point however is on the state of the Conservatives:

Both parties originally planned to fight this election in new ways. Both are already falling back into old habits. The Tories were supposed to have learnt the errors of William Hague's catastrophic 2001 campaign. The consensus among Conservatives after that landslide defeat was that they were massacred because they had failed to understand and engage with the voters' concerns about public services.

They would not make the same mistake again, so the Tories told themselves. It is true they have moved on in some respects. They go into this election saying that they can match Labour spending on hospitals and schools. But it is not health and education that the Tories have chosen to big up. They have returned to those favourites of Mr Hague last time around: to crime, to immigration and, more modestly, to tax cuts. It is to those subjects that the Tories have devoted most energy and attention since the new year.

It is difficult to argue with Andrew Rawnsley's conclusion. The use of negative and personality based campaigning techniques is wearing out voters and in turn the methods themselves become less effective. We need some originality and zest in our slogans and messages, not tired predictability. When, as Guy Fawkes and Honourable Fiend point out, Labour's main campaign slogan is not even grammatically correct, you must wonder what politics is coming to.

I know that it is unfashionable and that it does not fit well with the focus groups and marketing methods that ensure that the message is delivered to the maximum number of people as often as possible, but it would be nice to return to the days when politicians argued their case and treated the voters as adults.

Hello Magazine strike again

The Observer reports that Lembit Opik and Sian Lloyd are to appear in another photo spread for Hello magazine. The last time this happened was shortly before a Bridgend Liberal Democrat Dinner at which Lembit was the guest speaker and Sian, his escort. Accordingly I bought two copies and got the couple to autograph them. I then managed to auction off one of the copies for £30.

Unfortunately, my attempt to replicate this feat a few months later at a Welsh Liberal Democrat dinner fell flat and I struggled to get to the winning bid of £1.50. Even then the successful bidder failed to pay up.

If Lembit and Sian are to make a habit of this photoshoot thing then I suspect that even the party faithful will consider the published outcome to be devalued. This will leave me with having to think of some other fundraising ideas. Perhaps I could auction off pieces of meteorite.

Saturday, February 05, 2005

Digging for victory

The Guardian reports today that all of the political parties are using the new Freedom of Information Act to dig for dirt against their opponents in time for the General Election. Reference is made to Norman Lamb's success in getting a list of those who have dined at Chequers but this seems to be tame compared to some of the other requests.

Labour diggers are trying to discover if Mr Howard fast-tracked a passport for a family friend when he was home secretary. They are also seeking the help of gay campaigners to uncover Mr Howard's record on section 28, the notorious clause banning the "promotion" of homosexuality in schools.

In the other corner, the Tories have their own targets. A Tory press release, being circulated by Labour, lists questions submitted by Mr Lewis including: "When was Gordon Brown told that Tony Blair wanted a third term and what was his reaction?"

Mr Lewis also wants to know "what the government really thinks" about the Butler and Hutton inquiries, if there was a cover-up over the foot-and-mouth epidemic and other "unsavoury and embarrassing" incidents.

The leaked Labour memo suggests that a former minister, Peter Kilfoyle, was being encouraged to pursue inquiries about the release of a relative of Mr Howard who had been charged with drug offences.

No wonder people are put off politics. Perhaps if we all concentrated on debating the issues and less on the personalities concerned we might encourage voters to turn out and vote.

Friday, February 04, 2005

Freedom of Information

The Freedom of Information Act is becoming a valuable tool in the armoury of journalists and politicians to find out what is going on. As a matter of interest I have now had the reply to a written question detailing the information requests received by the Assembly Parliamentary Service in the first month of the Act's operation. These include requests for:


Where's Big Ears?

I am rapidly coming to the conclusion that Tory AM, David Davies, has an Enid Blyton fixation. This would certainly explain his decsription this morning of a Labour General Election campaign pack as a "Noddy File".

The Western Mail describes this pack as "An astonishing idiot's guide to general election campaigning, which treats Labour candidates like children." It goes on to describe this important campaigning tool as containing letters, press releases and telephone scripts for the party's election hopefuls, telling them just to fill in the blank spaces left for their own names and constituencies.

Somehow David Davies finds it more "reminiscent of Toytown, home to Noddy and all his friends," though, long time ago as it was, I cannot recall any of the characters of these books ever delivering leaflets or doing anything remotely democratic. His view that Labour treats their candidates like little kids however does not surprise me. New Labour have always talked down to the voters in this way.

Anybody who has been politically active will know that these sorts of packs are standard fare in most of the parties nowadays. Having all the templates published in the press however was a stroke of genius as it has the effect of neutralising them if they are used by candidates.

The issue with Labour's campaign pack it seems to me is that it does not appear to be very devolution friendly. That is their problem of course but it does highlight a major beef in their attitude to Wales.

Thursday, February 03, 2005

A cultured moment

One of the joys of the Assembly Plenary meetings is that occasionally we get a glimpse of more cultured times. It is no coincidence that these often originate from the erudite Conservative AM for South Wales Central. Yesterday it was on public art:

David Melding: Do you not agree that one of the more regrettable consequences of the reformation is that we lost great visual culture and the glories of public art in so many cathedrals, monasteries and other places of worship and public areas? Today, far too many public places look bleak and drab. They are calling out for art and to be regarded as blank canvasses, and for the modern equivalent of icons to saints, which would be statues to public figures. We want to revel in the glory of Welsh culture.

In denial?

The fall-out from the new Health Minister's meeting with Welsh Labour MPs hit the Assembly yesterday, as he took questions for the first time. The most memorable phrase to come out of this meeting was that spoken by an anonymous Labour MP who declared that Brian Gibbons was less in denial about the state of the Welsh Health Service than his predecessor. This was alluded to by Mike German. Brian showed that he could see the funny side:

The Leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrat Group (Michael German): To explore this area where you are no longer in as much denial as perhaps others in your party are, could you tell us, if the second offer scheme could be implemented better, what do you intend to do to make it better in order that more can be included in it?

Brian Gibbons: I do not deny that I am not in denial.

The Leader of Plaid Cymru took up the cudgels a few minutes later but soon met his match:

Ieuan Wyn Jones: During a meeting with Welsh Labour MPs on Monday, you told them that you would be spending one day a week on cutting waiting lists in Wales. What will you do with the rest of your time?

Brian Gibbons: I anticipated that that question would arise. Given that this was reported in the press, it must be true. Therefore, I checked my diary to ensure that today was one of those days on which I could deal with waiting lists, and I am glad to confirm that I am free from my work commitments to do that. You should not believe everything you read in the newspapers, Ieuan. Although the meeting with the parliamentary Labour Party was a private one, it is my attention to give a considerable amount of my time to addressing waiting times and lists, and to protect time for tackling this challenge, so that it is given the amount of time it needs.

Wednesday, February 02, 2005

Punxsutawney Phil comes out of hibernation

Yes, it is Groundhog Day! And Phil is predicting that we will have six more weeks of winter. I won't be going to Pennsylvania anytime soon then.

No yolk

Meanwhile David Davies was on good form with his own use of the English language:

David Davies: Your last manifesto said that all primary school children would receive a free school breakfast. Did you cost that manifesto commitment? Will you implement it? Will we see pupils with egg on their plates or Ministers with egg on their faces?

Words, mere words

A lot of people dismiss the Assembly Plenary sessions as just a lot of politicians spouting hot air, and sometimes they are right. However, these meetings are an opportunity for genuine scrutiny and can often generate light as well as heat. This can be seen in the record of proceedings, but only if you read between the lines.

A good example of this was the exchange at First Minister's questions yesterday on the crisis facing accident and emergency services in Cardiff. Welsh Liberal Democrat Leader, Mike German, was on his feet demanding a report on Rhodri Morgan's visit to this unit last week. He started off though with a general point on the Welsh health service:

The Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group (Michael German): One of the areas where there is no shortage of diversity is the criticism of the health service by Labour MPs. Yesterday, the Minister for Health and Social Services, Dr Brian Gibbons, met Labour MPs in London. One of the MPs described Dr Gibbons as being less in denial than his predecessor. Are you less in denial now about the health service?

The First Minister: Those words mean nothing [long pause followed by laughter from opposition AMs] when you think about the real progress that we are making. I am more interested in figures and achievements than in words. If you consider the number of people who were waiting over 18 months in December 2003, around 5,700 people were waiting for in-patient treatment. That figure is now around 600, which is a welcome reduction. The number of people waiting over 12 months has fallen sharply from around 11,000 to 6,500. Likewise, the number of those waiting over 18 months for out-patient treatment has also fallen from around 8,000 to 6,000. Those are the figures. Do not worry about the jargon, Mike; no-one is interested in that. People are interested in what the NHS is doing to bring down waiting lists. I have given you the figures, and they are pretty impressive. They confirm what I said, namely that Jane Hutt came to the end of her period as Minister for Health and Social Services and handed on the baton to Brian Gibbons from a position of strength.

Michael German: You must still be in denial because if you add together the figures for in-patients and out-patients the total number is more than it was previously. You visited the University Hospital of Wales accident and emergency unit on Thursday, which was a panic visit to see what was going on. Do you still stand by what you said in the Chamber last week, which was that the situation there was normal for the time of year? What action will you now take to satisfy the nurses and the other medical professionals in that unit who are concerned that you gave no response other than saying that the situation was normal?

The First Minister: In answer to a question that you asked, Mike, I said that we were seeing a particularly acute version of the January problem—I am sure that you will have the text in front of you. I stand by what I said. I am sure that you will agree that that is what I said because it appears in the Record. I visited the University Hospital of Wales three times last week—two visits were to the accident and emergency unit. I learnt a great deal from the nurses and doctors and from the paramedics with whom I spoke on the forecourt. If I were to change my response last week, I would place considerably less emphasis on chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, as I do not think that that is such a major factor. The figures—and I think that we are only interested in figures here—indicate that peak periods, when the accident and emergency unit fills to bursting point, often happen in January as nine of the 14 such days over the past four years have occurred during that month. The facts are clear in that regard, and no amount of jargon or idiotic debating points of no interest to anyone can get you away from that. I would increase the emphasis that I placed last week on delayed transfers of care and possibly the dislocation caused by the new out-of-hours arrangements. I would also reduce the emphasis that I placed on the COPD problem.

Michael German: That is an interesting answer because, as you know, there were patients coming in and triaging at one end of the scale and there were delayed transfers at the other. The Assembly’s Health and Social Care Department has now told me that only two people had delayed transfers of care at the University Hospital of Wales as a result of social care issues. The line that you took last week was that Cardiff County Council was to blame for everything. The figures provided by your department show that that is not the case. What steps will you take and what will the Minister for Health and Social Services be doing on the days on which he will not be dealing with waiting lists—I do not know what he will be doing for six days of the week—to improve the situation at the UHW accident and emergency unit so that patients will not be left on trolleys out in the cold?

Laughter is the best medicine?

Today is healthy living day in the Welsh Assembly. Nobody is quite sure who designated it thus or what authority they had to organise it. Nevertheless, we have all been bombarded with e-mails, leaflets and posters heralding the advent of this ground-breaking event.

All of the meeting rooms have apparently been booked all-day, a feat that in itself is worthy of note. AMs, their staff and civil servants can avail themselves of diabetes testing and support, blood pressure checks and advice, smoking cessation advice and tests, lung function testing and advice (presumably this is akin to the old New Labour joke about the pager messages to Labour MPs to keep breathing), body mass index readings, binge drinking tests (No, I don't believe that this is a competition to see who can drink the others under the table), and advice on salt intake with 'Sid the slug'. This last one may be worth a visit, though I hope that there is not a real slug involved as it could prove fatal for it.

In addition there is also laughter therapy, Tai Chi, relaxation therapy and exercise help. All of this leads up to a policy talk and the launch of an All-Party Group on healthy living. It must amount to the most comprehensive launch of such a group in the history of the Welsh Assembly. All of this is being co-ordinated by the Caerphilly Labour AM, Jeff Cuthbert, the self-designated health guru of the Assembly, with a mission to get us all fit. Rumours that his previous job involved running a boot camp are unfounded.

Just to make sure that we all feel included, each Assembly Member has been given a rather garish pedometer/FM radio so that we can exercise to our favourite local radio station. I did point out that I cannot pick up Swansea Sound and The Wave or Bridge FM in Cardiff Bay but this did not seem to make a difference. My previous experience with pedometers has not been good. On an Assembly Day I have struggled to get about 5,000 steps. I do not intend to try and improve on that record today.

Tuesday, February 01, 2005

And on the seventh day...

The new Assembly Health Minister, Brian Gibbons, told Welsh Labour MPs last night that he will devote one day a week to cutting NHS waiting times in Wales. This led Welsh Liberal Democrat Health Spokesperson, Kirsty Williams, to ask what he will be doing for the other six days. If he were a creationist, Brian might argue that he should be allowed to use the seventh day to rest.

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