Questions to Leighton Andrews RE Local Government Reform

First of all, can I very much welcome the general power of competence, something that local authorities have asked for for decades? I think that that will be a great step forward. These proposals are very similar to the eight county councils pre-1995. The major differences are caused by the cross-county boundary changes that took place in the 1995 reorganisation. This is what the county councils and county councillors such as Gwenda Thomas and myself were asking for back in 1993 and 1994. I am happy with the creation of West Glamorgan—a county council, as I said, both Gwenda Thomas and I served on pre-reorganisation. 

The challenge for any local government reorganisation is to create a body large enough to provide key services effectively, but small enough to be considered by residents to be local, rather than creating sub-regional bodies. 

I’ve got six questions for the Minister. [Laughter.] I could have taken it to 10, but I stuck on six. If population size is all important, why is Powys left unchanged? Fire and rescue was run by the county councils, and is run by county councils in England. Will it be returned to county council control? Council tax varies, sometimes significantly, between the proposed merging authorities. How is that to be resolved? Will there be a proposal, on the new councils, to set a duty for the new councils to set up area committees? Will councils be merged or closed and then new councils set up? I believe that will lead to external contracts being treated differently, depending on the methodology used. And, finally, I’d produced my own suggestions, based on the pre-1995 smaller district council structure. Did the Minister consider that option?

Speech at the National Assembly Plenary - Public Service Reform

This motion is the first I can remember to discuss public services as a whole, as opposed to dealing with individual service areas. Every Wednesday, one silo after another has been discussed without looking at public services as a whole, so I really welcome this.

For local government, the challenge is to be large enough to effectively run the major services, but be small enough to be local rather than creating a layer of sub-regional government. When I first became active in politics in the late 1970s, the structure of public services in Wales was very different to those we have today. County councils were the basic building blocks of local services, and further education colleges, polytechnics, institutes of higher education and the fire service were all directly run by county councils, whilst services such as probation and health were organised on a county basis with direct county councillor involvement. Beneath the county council were district councils, which provided the bulk of local services, including almost all public housing. Some county councils actually organised themselves—their services—on a district basis; Mid Glamorgan was a classic example of that.

Today, we have a far more fragmented public service, with 22 unitary authorities replacing the former county and district councils, with a proposal to reduce that number back to the original eight or nine—a case of back to the future. Further education colleges, institutes of higher education and the polytechnics of Wales have all left local authority control. The fire service is currently split across Wales into three, and these are controlled by local authority joint boards. Can I say that, for those living in Swansea, being in the same joint board as Machynlleth doesn’t work for us?

speech at National Assembly 14 May 2015

3th May 2015 Plenary Session at 18:38

Mike Hedges

Firstly, can I thank Suzy Davies for giving me a minute in what I think is a very important debate? I’d like to talk about the role that further education colleges have traditionally played for 14 to 16-year-olds and not just 16-year-olds. Perhaps the Deputy Minister can tell us the current position of the 14-19 pathway.

 

I have three quick case studies from my teaching experience: a pupil who refused to attend school, because he was being bullied, attended college, passed several GCSEs to grade A and then passed one A-level at grade A, had a distinction at BTEC national, leading to acceptance at Aberystwyth University; a pupil who had difficulties in school and was a school refuser, who passed a first diploma, then a national diploma and then moved on to full time employment; a pupil who was asked to leave school for hitting a teacher, who wouldn’t let him leave the class. He completed four GCSEs at grade C, progressed to training and became a plumber. Although, when I was teaching, I did tell him that if he ever wanted to leave, I would not stop him.

 

The point I’m trying to make is that education other than at school should not mean that pupils cannot be successful. I think that really is the key: we want them to succeed. Schools don’t always suit everybody, but we want every child to fulfil their potential.

 

 

Speech at National Assembly on Legal High's

Legal Highs

Thank you presiding officer..

Whilst not a member of the committee I did attend a meeting during the discussion of this problem and I live in an area where legal highs are on sale

I intend pressing for the Irish solution of banning new psychoactive substances based upon effect not on chemical composition. We will never win a battle with the chemists

 

I accept that legislation will not completely solve the problem as it has not solved the problem of cannabis, heroin and cocaine.

I also accept that education is very important

I find it amazing that people will buy items of unknown provenance and of unknown composition and then put it into their body

Sometimes with tragic results

A father was killed by a new legal high found for the first time in Britain - and an inquest in Cardiff heard it was five times stronger than heroin.

Dad-of-three Thaker Hafid, 37, was found dead by his wife after trying the legal high bought online from China.

He collapsed in the study after experimenting with the white powder delivered to his home.

The hearing was told it was analysed as acetyl fentanyl - described as having the same effect as morphine and heroin.

Owain Vaughan, from Glynneath, was rushed to Morriston Hospital, Swansea suffering fits and being violently sick. The substance he took is not banned — indeed a quick search on the internet can identify where it is on sale in South West Wales.

I could continue, but I am sure the Presiding officer would not let me, listing people taken seriously ill after using legal highs in Wales for over an hour.

FOLLOWING five recent cases of people in South Wales needing hospital treatment after taking so-called legal highs, the Post asked journalism student DANNY GALLAGHER to find out just how available they are over the counter in our shops. Here's what he found

The legal high he was searching for goes by the name of Exodus, a popular underground synthetic cannabinoid or herbal incense. A quick browse online showed the product is "strictly not for human consumption". Users of the substance had left reviews, one simply warned: "never again".

It was soon clear that he was delving into a clouded and unregulated industry

In October 2013, 17-year-old Matt Ford lost consciousness and suffered a heart attack in his Canterbury bedroom after inhalation of Exodus. Another man from Kent had sustained severe brain damage after a heart attack.

Two years on and it is still on the streets, sold legally.

Before setting off, he checked online the kind of prices . Most sites agreed on around £8 for a one gram sachet of the product, or up to £55 for nine grams.

It was early morning when he approached the shop in Neath, which had two men in the doorway. After informing the lady behind the counter I wanted Exodus, she signalled to a male by the door who promptly came over to serve him.

The man quickly asked to see identification before locating a shoulder bag from beyond the counter — inside, a collection of herbal incenses. He wasn't asked for a specific cash sum, instead he just looked at me as though he was intended to know.

He then visited a shop in Swansea city centre. The store said it did not stock herbal incense, but was happy to provide a product called Salvia.

Derived from the sage-like plant salvia divinorum, the substance is known to produce strong hallucinogenic experiences. The cashier gave the options of different strengths.

A moment later and £9.75 out of pocket he had bought a gram. Clearly labelled on the packet were the words: Not approved for human consumption

Finally can I turn to Woodfield Street in Morriston where a shop selling legal highs exists.

Where you can find people collapsed on the floor

People who are described colloquially as out of it

We have Elderly Residents in fear of walking on the pavement.

A bike with Sat Nav is used for delivery

Whilst making it illegal will not stop it being used

It will stop it being sold on the streets and on the Internet

 

Speech on Further Education in Wales April 2015

Further Education

I taught in a  Further Education College for over 25 years

Firstly as part of Mid Glamorgan County Council at Pontypridd College, then Pontypridd College, then Coleg Morgannwg and the college is now called Coleg Cymynoed

I didn’t change my college

Just the result of the changes that took place

I also spent 10 years as a governor of Swansea College

Further Education is a microcosm of what has happened to public services over the last 30 years

Firstly having been organised and structured since its inception by the County Councils of Wales it was decided that each college should be incorporated, run by local business people.

Terms and conditions deteriorated

The “Silver book” terms were “negotiated” away

New staff were employed on the new flexible contracts

Student contact hours were cut

Class sizes increased

All in the name of efficiency

It moved from educating to completing the syllabus

Budgets were cut and are still being cut

Jobs have been lost

The resolution

Notes the importance of further education institutions to the provision of post-16 education;.

 

 Notes the importance of providing adult learning opportunities for adults wanting to acquire new skills

Both of which I fully agree with

 

Reviewing Education questions and opposition debates Further Education comes a very poor third after Schools and Higher Education

It has always been the “Cinderella” service in terms of Education

It has suffered since it was removed from Local Authority control

It has like many other areas suffered from merger mania

 

So we have a college covering Neath Port Talbot and Powys

I am not sure who believes that Montgomeryshire and Port Talbot have a community of interest

 

The college where I used to work covers Aberdare, Pontypridd, Rhondda and Caerphilly

 

Senior staff especially Principals have had very large salary rises

From below that of Assistant Director of Education

To in many cases above that of Directors of Education

They have benefitted by the ever increasing average salary model

Should Further Education be better funded

Instead of what

Where we have a system

Agreed by almost everyone here that Health must have a substantial year on year increase

And an in year payment

To be spent almost exclusively on Secondary care

 

Then the inevitable consequence is a reduction in almost all other areas of the Assembly expenditure

Glad to see further education being discussed today

I believe it is important

Giving many a second chance

I hope others are also convinced

 

 

 

 

 

 

Speech on Fracking - Gowerton Workingmens Club 20 March 2015

Fracking

First thing to say is that I am opposed to Fracking

I support an unequivocal, point-blank ban on shale gas exploitation for reasons that I will shortly outline.

I also support a moratorium, but I’m under no illusion that the moratorium is anything other than a delaying tactic and not, in itself, opposition to fracking.

Secondly I will read out the Resolution passed by the National assembly during its Plenary Session on Wednesday the 4^th February

1. Notes that Wales has historically made a substantial contribution to the UK's energy portfolio.

 

2. Regrets the provisions within the UK Government's Infrastructure Bill that will allow fracking companies to drill beneath Welsh homes without permission from property owners.

 

3. Believes that energy should be fully devolved to the National Assembly for Wales and that the Welsh Government should have the power to block fracking.

 

4. Calls on the Welsh Government to do everything within its power to prevent fracking from taking place in Wales until it is proven to be safe in both an environmental and public health context.

 

For my part, I consider there are three key considerations. Firstly, is it safe? Secondly, what will be the community impact or benefit, and, thirdly, what is the consequence of reliance on another fossil fuel?

 

Firstly, I am not convinced that there are no safety implications. The Environment and Sustainability Committee, which considered the issue of unconventional gas exploitation in 2012, was also unconvinced.

 

Secondly It is bound to effect house prices. Would I buy a house with fracking taking place, going to take place or having taken place underneath it.

 

Of course I would not and without a substantial reduction in value I do not believe anyone would.

 

Thirdly, even if we can overcome these issues, I’m of the view that it would be the gravest of errors to proceed with and develop any dependency on shale gas as a carbon-emitting fossil fuel. This approach was supported by the environment committee again in 2012, in paragraph 76 of that report, when they stated:

 

‘the Committee considers that the development of another carbon intensive energy industry at this time is not appropriate and cannot be reconciled with EU and UK commitments to reduce emissions’.

 

That was as well as recommending a new and updated technical advice note to help planning authorities in Wales in dealing with planning applications for the exploitation and extraction of unconventional gas.

 

The House of Commons Select Committee on 21 January 2014 endorsed this view, saying,

‘Any large scale extraction…is…at least 10-15 years away.’

‘Continually tightening carbon budgets…will have significantly curtailed our scope for fossil fuel energy, and as a consequence only a very small fraction of the possible shale gas deposits will be burnable.’

 

The report further endorsed this view, supporting the position of the director of the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, Professor Kevin Anderson, who stated:

 

‘Emissions from a fully developed UK shale gas industry would likely be very substantial in their own right. If the UK Government is to respect its obligations under both the Copenhagen Accord and Low Carbon Transition Plan, shale gas offers no meaningful potential as even a transition fuel.

 

The Welsh Government view as given by Edwina Hart AM

 

“Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is an issue that generates significant public debate and much discussion in this Chamber, and much discussion across communities in Wales, which are very fearful about the impact of fracking. That is why we have the precautionary approach to shale gas in Wales.”

 

The Welsh Government have introduced controls through the Notification Direction that will ensure that local planning authorities cannot approve planning applications where hydraulic fracturing would occur

 

Unfortunately this does not prevent test drilling

 

The scale of these new more intense methods are like nothing we have seen before. Up until now the largest onshore gas field in the UK, Saltfleetby in Lincolnshire, had only 8 wells. To produce the same amount of unconventional gas would require hundreds of wells to be drilled. To temporarily replace just one offshore North Sea gas field would require thousands of unconventional wells.

As well as requiring many more wells these methods also involve much more. Shale Gas and Oil require massive, slickwater hydraulic fracturing, to be carried out on every well. Millions of gallons of water, sand and chemicals are injected under massive pressure. CBM wells are also often fracked.

 

 These unconventional wells also have much shorter lifespans, with production from a typical shale well declining by 70 to 80 per cent in the first year alone. This means that large numbers of new wells need to be constantly drilled to maintain production, even for short periods. In many areas of the US unconventional gas is already peaking after less than a decade of exploitation.

 

Swansea situation

.

Possibly as concerning as the threat of colossal unchecked carbon emissions is the direct risk posed to the people and marine life of Swansea.

The most advanced UCG testing has taken place in Australia where groundwater contamination has been a major problem in almost all pilot projects (as it has wherever UCG has been trialled).

 

In conclusion fracking is unwanted, unnecessary and a threat to not only our country but through the additional carbon emissions the whole planet

Speech on Supplimentry Budget 10 March 2015

Supplementary Budget

Thank you Presiding Officer

The committees view on the draft budget was that the setting of priorities was a matter for the Welsh Government

This is a view held by the committee and fully endorsed by me on the supplementary budget

The role of both the committee and the Assembly is to scrutinise this expenditure and I intend to discuss two areas Health funding and invest to save.

Health funding appears to go through the same cycle each year.

First quarter substantial overspend

Second quarter a small reduction

Third Quarter serious end of year problems predicted

Substantial additional money given to health in the supplementary budget or just before it

Fourth quarter major hospital service cut backs

To be repeated next year

Three questions arise

Firstly the Assembly has granted health boards the ability to plan three year budgets so that overspends in some years can be offset be savings in other years.

Will we get an out turn report showing underspend or overspend this year and how that fits into the three year budget.

The second question is what is being done to ensure medical interventions that are in the opinion of NICE are either of no benefit or likely to do harm to a patient are not carried out

Thirdly is the split between primary and secondary care correct and is the funding for each fair.

General Practitioners are paid so much per patient whilst hospitals are paid per intervention

Is this a fair way of funding because what it has produced is a widening of the gap in both monetary and percentage terms between primary and secondary care expenditure

Finally on health two rhetorical questions

How much of the Welsh budget can be spent on health

If Social care is not adequately funded will that not have serious effect on health needs?

On Invest to Save

I believe this is an excellent scheme to use a capital funding injection to reduce future revenue expenditure

I also believe that the simpler the scheme is the more likely it is to succeed

I am also relaxed in schemes paying back over 5 years rather than 3

What does concern me is those schemes that are making no payment in the first year and the finance committee will be failing in its duty of scrutinising expenditure if it does not keep a close watch on those schemes in future years.

A major recipient of invest to save money has been Natural Resources Wales.

It has had substantial sums from invest to save since inception.

It has postponed payment from the year after the investment into future years.

If the problem is that the cost of merger is substantially higher than was predicted, which in my experience of mergers is normal.

Then a better way would be to fully fund the merger costs and not use invest to save as a method of filling the gap and allowing the invest to save money to be used to create future years savings especially in health.

Finally budgeting is about using resources as effectively as possible and this is the aim of this supplementary budget.