BlogCymru.com

Everybody in the media and the general public knew of the riff between Mr Brown and Mr Blair. Even though Peter Hain, Don Touhig and Wayne David would all call it nonsense. They lied to the public, so how can we trust any New Labour MP again. New Labour New Lies.

Thanks to Labour for making the tax system more complex, the taxman overpaid £1.8billion to 4million people.

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg is getting rid of the house which put him at the centre of an embarrassing expenses gaffe. It cost the taxpayer almost £84,000 over four years in expenses claims. He got his mortgage interest paid (not even people who lost their jobs get that help). He is due to make a very healthy profit on the sale.

This morning’s Independent suggests that all the pressure around the News of the World mobile phone hacking case may have led to a u-turn by the Metropolitan Police.

They say that Assistant Commissioner John Yates has asked the New York Times to provide any new material it had relating to the matter, including an interview with former reporter Sean Hoare, who has claimed that Downing Street communications chief Andy Coulson knew about News of the World staff eavesdropping on private messages when he was editor of the paper.

Meanwhile former Liberal Democrat MP, Lembit Őpik has stepped into the row by questioning Mr. Coulson’s competence and calling for him to stand down:

Mr Őpik, who believes that he too was a victim of phone tapping by Mr Coulson’s former paper, the News of the World, said the Government communications director’s professed ignorance of what his employees were doing is damning in itself. “To take Coulson at his word, it’s breathtaking to discover that the man in charge of a newspaper did not know what was going on,” he said.

“The News of the World says it has a policy of zero tolerance of wrongdoing, but that means nothing with people like Coulson in charge because they don’t know what they’re tolerating. If Coulson wasn’t able to discover what was going on in his office when he was an editor, why should anyone believe that he is displaying any greater competence in Downing Street?

“If the Government wants to avoid the compromising stories its predecessor got mired in, they have a right to expect Coulson to stand down until his name is cleared.”

Lembit believes that much of the information obtained on him and his relationship with a Cheeky Girl could only have been obtained by breaking into his voice mail and has consulted lawyers with a view to getting paperwork off the Metropolitan Police so as to resolve the matter once and for all.

As we have just embarked on the start of a new school year, I thought it would be good to celebrate the extension of Welsh-medium education, as a number of new schools have either opened or moved to larger premises.
 

Ysgol Bro Helyg, Blaenau Gwent

Pride of place this year goes to a brand new school at Nantyglo/Blaina, built to replace the appallingly bad accommodation that Ysgol Brynmawr has had to put up with until now. The appallingly bad pictures are the best the Council have to offer, it is much better in the flesh.

However this is still the only WM school in Blaenau Gwent, and its new location is such as to make it a few more miles remote from the major population centres in the county. It highlights, and in fact will increase, the need for new WM schools in Ebbw Vale and Tredegar. However, BG are still thinking terms of this being the only WM school in the county, as this quote from their website indicates:

A competition was held at the existing school, and pupils were invited to suggest possible names for the school. 30 entries were received, and after careful consideration, it was decided that the new school would be called “Ysgol Gymraeg Bro Helyg”. Reasons for this choice are outlined below:

•  the name makes reference to the roots of the existing school – the original name for the Brynmawr area being “Gwaun Helygen” – “Meadow of the Willows”.

•  “Bro” is Welsh for “area”. The name therefore represents the whole catchment area of Blaenau Gwent, and not only the Brynmawr and Nantyglo areas.

So it looks like education officials at BG still have the same old intransigent attitude, and begs the question why it was only built as a 1.5 FE school with a capacity of 315, rather than as a 2FE school with a capacity of 420. The old Brynmawr school was at bursting point with 253 pupils, plus 50 in the nursery which is itself more than the admission number of 45 that this new school could accept. So even though this new building is very welcome, it will still be inadequate to meet demand.

Does anyone seriously think that Blaenau Gwent, with a population of 70,000, has such an unusually low concentration of parents wanting a WM education for their children, when Torfaen immediately to the east now has three WM Primaries for a population of 90,000 and Caerffili immediately to the west has nine WM Primaries for a population of 170,000?

Blaenau Gwent badly needs another couple of WM primaries: one in Ebbw Vale and one in Tredegar. I had hoped that an announcement about a second school in Ebbw Vale would be made last month at the Eisteddfod. Watch this space, I’ll present a proposal I’ve got in mind soon.
 

Ysgol Panteg, Torfaen

Griffithstown Infants School has been amalgamated with the junior school on the junior school site, leaving its old building for use as a new WM school. These are some pictures:

This is now the third WM primary in Torfaen, and although the school will only have room for about 150, this does represent a very welcome increase in capacity which Torfaen must be congratulated for providing. However it does need to be offset against Ysgol Bryn Onnen reducing its intake slightly in order to increase its own age range from 4-11 to 3-11.
 

Ysgol Nant Caerau, Cardiff

Caerau Infant School, Caerau Nursery School and Cwrt yr Ala Junior School have been amalgamated into a single English-medium primary school with nursery on the Cwrt yr Ala site. This frees the existing Caerau Infants and Nursery buildings to become the permanent home of a new WM primary called Ysgol Nant Caerau.

The previously established starter classes at the Holy Family RC Primary School have been transferred to these buildings, and this will enable the new school to expand to a one form entry school with a capacity of 210, plus nursery. There will be a transition period while some children in the EM sector continue to use part of the building.
 

Ysgol Pen y Pil, Cardiff

The pattern here is similar to Nant Caerau. Trowbridge Infants and Junior Schools have been amalgamated on the Junior School site, leaving the Infants School building to become a new WM primary.

In this case the starter classes at Oakfield Primary will transfer to the new school, which will also have a capacity of 210 children, plus nursery.

All in all Cardiff have responded in a half-decent way to the increase in demand, but there are still areas of the city where the demand for WM education is much greater than the places available: Canton being the most obvious example, with Whitchurch not so far behind. The proposal for a new WM secondary on the old St Teilo’s CiW site is currently on Leighton Andrew’s desk, but the funding package for it has already been approved.
 

Ysgol Rhyd y Grug, Merthyr Tudful

In this instance a brand new English-medium school has been built in Aberfan to replace Ynysowen Primary. This leaves the old Ynysowen building available for the existing small school to move from Quakers Yard to larger premises. There will be room for about 100 more children.

Yes, hand-me-downs aren’t ideal, but they’re better than “t’corridor” or a “small shoebox in middle’t road” with no green space and a tiny playground half taken up by temporary classrooms. So the children who go there will in due course come to realize that this is more than “luxury”, it’s “paradise” … as these veterans of Yorkshire-medium education can tell them in no uncertain terms.

These are the ones I know of, but if anyone can tell me of any more, please do. I would guess that on top of this there would be at least half a dozen WM schools that have had to bring in additional temporary accommodation over the summer.

That’s what international development minister Alan Duncan MP, had to say about claims by former News of the World reporter Sean Hoare that Andy Coulson was aware his staff were involved in the unlawful news-gathering technique. This is presumably in response to a statement by the Metropolitan police that they would look at reopening investigations if new evidence cames to light.

His [Duncan’s] first governmental position was as Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Minister of Health, a position he obtained in December 1993. He resigned from the position within a month after it emerged that he had used the right-to-buy programme to make profits on property deals. It emerged that he had lent his elderly next door neighbour money to buy his home under the right-to-buy legislation. The neighbour bought the 18th century council house at a significant discount and sold it to Duncan just over three years later.

As part of the British Parliamentary expenses scandal, the Daily Telegraph reported that Duncan allegedly claimed more than £4,000 over a three year period in expenses for gardening costs until he agreed with the Commons Fees Office that such claims “could be considered excessive” and stopped. Duncan quickly responded by suggesting that the reports in the Telegraph were “misleading”, and that all his claims were “legitimate and approved by the fees office”.

On 15 May 2009, the satirical BBC programme Have I Got News For You showed footage of Duncan’s previous appearance on the show in which he boasted about his second home allowance, denied that he should pay any of the money back and stated it was “a great system”. The show then cut to footage of David Cameron announcing that Duncan would return money to the fees office, followed by Duncan’s personal apology, in which he called for the system to be changed.

On 14 August, Duncan said (whilst being filmed without his knowledge by Don’t Panic), that MPs, who are paid around £64,000 a year – within the top four percent of the population – were having, “to live on rations and are treated like shit. I spend my money on my garden and claim a tiny fraction on what is proper. And I could claim the whole lot, but I don’t.”

 These remarks attracted the attention of the press, and were criticised by commentators from all sides. Duncan apologised once more, and Cameron, though critical of Duncan’s comments, denied that he would sack him from the Shadow Cabinet. Despite these assurances, on 7 September 2009, Duncan was “demoted” from the Shadow Cabinet, to become Shadow Minister for Prisons, after he and Cameron came to an agreement that his position was untenable.

In 1989, Duncan set up the independent Harcourt Consultants, which advises on oil and gas matters. He made over a million pounds after profiting from the need to supply oil to Pakistan after Kuwait’s supplies had been disrupted in the Gulf War.

He has maintained his connections with the energy industry as a MP. He declares that he still owns Harcourt Consultants. In 2008 it emerged that Mr Duncan’s private office was being funded by donations from the chairman of Vitol while Duncan was shadow business secretary with responsibility for Conservative energy policy. He later declared the funding in the register of MPs’ interests.

Helo pawb!  Fel post cyntaf, o’n i’n bwriadu rhoi fy ateb i’r hen gwestiwn, “pam ydw i’n dysgu’r Gymraeg?”.  Ond mae’n troi allan bod gwneud hyn mewn unrhyw fath o drefn synhwyrol yn anoddach nag y mae’n ymddangos (pwy fasa’ wedi meddwl?).  Felly, tan i mi sortio’r esboniad allan yn fy mhen, dyma cofnod bach am rywbeth nes i prynhawn ‘ma.  Ymddiheuriadau os ydy o’n rhy ddiflas neu geeky, ond…

Es i i weld awyren fasnachol fwya’r byd, yr Airbus A380, ym Maes Awyr Manceinion heddiw.  Dim plane spotter ydw i, ond dw i wedi bod yn dilyn hanes datblygiad yr A380 ers i mi ddarllen amdani yn ôl yn 2004 (sef blwyddyn cyn iddi hyd yn oed gael ei ehediad prawf cyntaf).

Yn anffodus roedd y prif ddigwyddiad eisoes wedi digwydd pedwar diwrnod yn gynharach.  Glaniodd yr A380 ym Manceinion am y tro cyntaf bore dydd Mercher diwethaf, a minnau’n gorfod blydi gweithio!  O’n i’n siomedig iawn – yn enwedig ar ôl darllen am y torfeydd mawr a’r cyfryngau y trodd allan i’w chroesawu.  Felly o’n i’n benderfynol o fynd i weld y peth heddiw.

Do’n i ddim yno mewn pryd i weld yr awyren yn glanio (wel, come on, dach chi ddim wir yn disgwyl i mi adael y fflat yn y bore ar ddydd Sul? ); nes i gyrraedd mewn pryd i’w gweld hi’n dechrau tacsïo cyn iddi godi.  Mae gan Faes Awyr Manceinion “viewing park”, sef lle gwelltog efo siop, bwyty ayyb, yn ogystal â golygfa dros y llwybr glanio, wedi’i ddarparu er mwyn i’r spotters gael gwilio’r awyrennau.  Hyd yn oed 4 diwrnod ar ôl y glaniad cyntaf, roedd ‘na dorfeydd eithaf mawr ar y bryniau bach artiffisial, yn cynnwys nifer o blant bach yn llawn cyffro.

Naeth yr awyren dacsïo heibio’n araf, yn gadael i bawb dynnu lluniau.  Roedd 747 yn ei dilyn, a nes i synnu bod y dwy awyren yr un mor hir â’u gilydd – yr hyn sy’n gwneud y gwahaniaeth ydy’r ffaith bod gan yr A380 ddau lawr ar hyd y fuselage, tra bod y Jumbo yn ddeulawr dim ond tua’r blaen.

Roedd yr awyren fawr yn edrych yn rhyfeddol o araf pan naeth hi godi; sgil-effaith o’i maint, dw i’n dychmygu.  Ac wedyn i mewn â fi i’r ciw mawr o bobl yn trio gadael y parc – rhaid bod nhw i gyd wedi dod dim ond er mwyn gweld y peth mawr sgleiniog…

Cysylltiad Cymreig gorfodol, jyst i orffen: mae adenydd yr A380 yn cael eu gwneud yn Sir y Fflint.

I saw an article on the Welsh web this evening, where the Welsh Local Government Association(WLGAL) were complaining about a few boundary changes in some Council wards. I realise that they are funded by the Councils and have to be seen to be standing up for them, but don’t they realise the whirlwind that is coming their way?

The cuts that all 22 Welsh Councils face are going to be catastrophic and any argument of maintaining 22 versions of every service after these cuts, is pure fantasy. If I was a little more cynical, maybe I would suggest that the WLGA are fully aware that the political parties with enough honesty, are going to ‘tell it how it is’ over the coming months and state what it will take to afford public services, post-cuts. Their position is understandable, but is not fooling anyone.

When it comes to delivering critical public services to vulnerable Welsh communities, or maintaining administrative County boundaries - I believe I know where Plaid’s priorities lie.

For obvious historical reasons, water and the ownership/management/stewardship of it is an emotional issue for Plaid. In fact, it should be important to anyone who believes in devolution and a Welsh Parliament because without Llyn Celyn, we would certainly have no Senedd in 2010. Maybe we should thank the Scousers?

Many are under the impression that with the creation of Glas Cymru and it’s ‘not for profit’ constitution, Wales now has complete control over the water that falls on its soil but guess again. Many of the larger dams in North and Mid Wales are actually under the ownership/control of Severn Trent Water and United Utilities, multi-national PLC’s. When the Tories in their last incarnation sold off water, Dwr Cymru missed out on a chunk of Mid Wales, but did inherit a chunk of the southern Midlands; the boundary being based on river catchments rather than national borders.

The whole arrangement is a bit of a mess, where Llyn Efyrnwy is owned by United Utilities, Severn Trent owns Llyn Clywedog and although the Elan Valley dam complex supplies Severn Trent’s largest market (Birmingham), the dams are actually owned by Dwr Cymru, although the treatment of the drinking water is carried out by Severn Trent. Llyn Celyn still supplies Liverpool, as does Lyn Brenig and to an extent Llyn Tegid.

Let me complicate things further by giving a brief explanation about what makes up your water bill. Approximately 50% of your bill is made up of clean water supply, which includes the dams/borehole extraction, treatment and pipe supply and maintenance. The other half includes sewerage and its treatment.

The idea that because Wales has plentiful rainfall then our water bills should be tiny, is adrift of reality. Our bills are far more influenced by the length and condition of sewerage per customer and the very high standards Wales has set itself of clean beaches. Our largest sewerage treatment plant cost more to build than any dam in Wales, and costs one hell of a lot more to run.

However, there is an issue that needs to be raised and that it how much DCWW are being paid for the water supplied to England, what do companies outside Wales pay for water originating in Wales and why the hell we do not have ownership of all our reservoirs and catchment water?

Our land and water are natural assets and particularly with the British Government clearly intent on avoiding a funding formula based on need, I believe that a future Welsh Government has an obligation to pursue not only the devolution of water, but the ownership of every drop of water that falls on Wales, whether directly from a dam or via a river.