Step out of the darkness

Judith Woodman for PCC

Judith now has a web page showing her track record and pledging improvements to policing in South Wales if she is elected.

Vote for Welsh Liberal Democrats and Peter Black on the regional list

These are the results of the Welsh General Election for the South Wales West region in 2011, the last time the seats were fought:

[Additional Member System] (4 Seats)

Lead candidate and party               Votes for party and %age          Seats allocated

Alana Elizabeth Davies, Labour         71766 46.49%                         (0)*
Suzy Davies, Conservative                 27457 17.79%                         (2)
Bethan Jenkins, Plaid Cymru         21258 13.77%                         (1)
Peter Malcolm Black, Lib. Dem.         10683 6.92%                         (1)
David Maybery Bevan, UKIP           6619 4.29%
David Leonard Davies, Socialist Labour Party 5057 3.28%
Clive Bennett, British National Party     4714 3.05%
Keith Malcolm Ross, Green                  3952 2.56%
David Philip Griffiths, Welsh Christian Party 1602 1.04%
Ronnie Job, TUSC                              809 0.52%
John Stephen Morrissey, Communist Party of GB  464 0.30%

Totals                                        154381                                (4 Seats)

*allocation filled from constituencies

Both the Green Party and the Welsh Nationalists are using social media to encourage Labour supporters to use their otherwise wasted vote for them. However, the table above shows that there is great danger from UKIP, a party which denies both climate change and Welsh identity. The Green vote is too far behind and the chances of a second seat for Plaid Cymru are remote. UKIP vote is on the increase according to the opinion polls, so the only safe switch is to the Liberal Democrats and Peter Black.

Even UKIP doesn't back UKIP

Peter Black launches energy-saving initiative

Peter Black today outlined the Welsh Liberal Democrat party's plans for a £100-a-year discount on Council Tax for households that improve the energy efficiency of their homes by two bands. This will have the effect of both encouraging a reduction in energy usage and giving support to hard pressed families by cutting their council tax bills.

Peter said: "Wales desperately needs to improve the energy efficiency of its houses, which are some of the most poorly insulated in western Europe, but too often the upfront cost puts families off getting that work done.

"Our plans will help ease that burden, ensuring families feel the benefit through a double bill cut: once on your Council Tax, and once on your energy bill.

"Welsh Liberal Democrats have the fresh ideas Wales needs to help people get on in life, as well as do our part to help tackle climate change."

Health survey

You have just a few days to complete Peter Black's health survey, if you have not already done so.

Peter Black repeats call for government action in Port Talbot

Speculation that the Tata steel board will not approve a rescue package for the Port Talbot plant has underlined the urgent need for the Welsh Government to build on the new Enterprise Zone by setting up an urban regeneration company for the area, the Welsh Liberal Democrat Assembly Member for South Wales West, Peter Black has said.

Mr. Black called for such a company to be set up shortly after the announcement of 750 job losses at Tata in Port Talbot, however little progress appears to have been made by the Welsh Government on this. When the steel works closed in Newport in 2003, the Welsh Government had acted decisively by setting up Newport Unlimited, an Urban Regeneration Company, to help counter the impacts of the decline in heavy industry and manufacturing. Mr. Black asked the Minister in the chamber to actively consider a similar response to job losses in Port Talbot.

“During the ten plus years that Newport Unlimited was in place it contributed to attracting £230 million of private investment to the area and^] was credited with the transformation of the city's river frontage and attracting the Ryder Cup golf tournament to Newport in 2010,” said Mr. Black. “It is my view that a similar initiative could make a massive difference in helping to revitalise Port Talbot. It is now urgent that the Welsh Government act on this.

“The new Enterprise Zone for Port Talbot is very welcome, but I believe that we need to go the extra mile and that the additional funding and focus that an urban regeneration company can bring to the area could make a huge difference.

“The Welsh Government needs to put its money on the table by investing in Port Talbot through such a company and by providing the business rates relief that Tata needs to reduce its costs and to help it become viable.”

Kirsty Williams' reaction to budget speech

Welsh Liberal Democrat leader Kirsty Williams responded to George Osborne's budget announcements:

Frankly, the proposed cut in the tolls is pathetic. Once back in public ownership, there is no need whatsoever for there to be tolls on these bridges. The Chancellor is cynically acting as if he is doing commuters a favour, but the fact is that he wants to keep this unfair tax on entering Wales. Only the Liberal Democrats will completely scrap these tolls.

The lack of any real progress on the Swansea Tidal Lagoon is yet another nail in the coffin of the Tories’ green credentials. The Liberal Democrats ensured that the Coalition Government fully backed the Swansea Tidal Lagoon project. With the Tories on their own, all we have seen is minister after minister talking this project down. The Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon must go ahead. It will lead to thousands of new green jobs and supply energy for 120 years – over three times as long as a nuclear plant.

The Port Talbot enterprise zone is good news and I hope will go a long way in helping rejuvenate the area. The Labour Government must pull its weight and set up an urban regeneration company for Port Talbot to help counter the impacts of the decline in heavy industry and manufacturing.

It’s clear for all to see that North Wales has been neglected for too long and has not been getting its fair share of infrastructure projects. I welcome any progress in improving transport links in the area, however the people of North Wales need more than a sentence of warm words ahead of an election.

Reasons for remaining IN

Posted by Liberal Democrat Federal Executive member Antony Hook on Liberal Democrat Voice:

An excellent new resource has been launched that will help with [effective factual information for the EU debate].  Infacts.org  is a well presented website that contains briefings on key factual questions relevant to the referendum and rebuttals to the misrepresentations of the Quitters.  It is set up and run by a group of journalists, listed on the website and many of their names you will recognise from the quality press.

If I have one constructive criticism it is that the bulk of their briefings are responses to claims of the other side.  We need to set the agenda and debate on our terms, not their terms, to win.

Nonetheless, it is a very helpful site. Some of the briefings include:

The UK net contribution is £6.3bn

The EU hasn’t prevented deportation of terrorists

EU migrants into the UK

Canada shows that Liberalism is not dead

Liberal International celebrates 100 days of the Trudeau-led Liberal government in Canada. It seems that it has not run out of energy and continues to serve as an inspiration for Liberal parties round the world. Those who have written off Liberal Democrat chances of being in power in this country again should also take note.

With numerous progressive, liberal values implemented in the Trudeau government’s first 100 days – here is just a small selection. 

• Gender-balanced Cabinet
• Providing safe haven for refugees
• Unmuzzling government scientists

The Canadian Liberals won a huge victory in the October 2015 parliamentary elections, ending almost 10 years of Conservative rule. There is more here.

Labour cuts anti-paedophile service

The Welsh Liberal Democrat Assembly Member for South Wales West, Peter Black, has condemned the decision by the Welsh Labour Government to withdraw funding for the Disclosure and Barring Service checking of those involved with children’s’ sports and activities.

The Welsh Government presently funds the Wales Council for Voluntary Service to provide a free service to clubs and charities in Wales who need to make sure that people who volunteer to work with children and vulnerable adults in all kinds of sporting and other settings are properly vetted by the Disclosure and Barring Service. This funding is being withdrawn as of 31^st May this year.

Mr Black said: “This senseless Labour cut will make it harder to safeguard children and the vulnerable properly. Some organisations may not now carry out the checks to the right standards, and others simply won’t have the cash to be able to check every single coach or helper, which will mean the withdrawal of activities.

“Everybody agrees that playing sport where possible, and having decent leisure and volunteering activities are vital for children and young people as they grow. Yet at the same time, it is vital that our children, and other vulnerable people, are protected from those few who would do them harm.

“That is why we have a Disclosure & Barring Service, and that is also why this cut is mistaken and misguided. Labour need to consult organisations such as St John Ambulance, and the WRU further about this and think again.”

Ian Sherwood MBE

Ian Sherwood, long-standing member of the Liberal Democrats, former assistant to Simon Hughes MP and an ex-mayor of Briton Ferry received his MBE at Buckingham Palace yesterday.

Welsh Liberal Democrats deliver on patient safety

Yesterday, Welsh Liberal Democrat leader Kirsty Williams' More Nurses Bill passed in the Assembly and became law. This will mean Wales is the first country in Europe to have a legal requirement for nursing staff numbers on our wards.

Welsh Lib Dems deliver for Neath Port Talbot

The Welsh Liberal Democrats have today secured, amongst other things, £14,783,250 extra investment in schools in the Swansea, Neath Port Talbot and Bridgend areas.

Last year the Welsh Liberal Democrats agreed to a two year deal, worth £223m, to allow the Welsh Government’s budget to pass in exchange for the implementation of Welsh Liberal Democrat policies.  Assembly Members today voted on that budget.

Amongst other achievements, the Welsh Liberal Democrats secured an increase in the Pupil Premium (also known as ‘Pupil Deprivation Grant’) so every school receives £1,150 per pupil on free school meals, a Young Persons’ Bus Pass so young people can travel for free to work and training, and 5,000 new apprenticeships.

That means that next year Neath Port Talbot schools will receive £4,532,150 targeted on the most deprived pupils.

The Welsh Liberal Democrats Assembly Member for South Wales West, Peter Black said:

“I’m delighted we have secured this extra investment for our area.

“Let’s be clear: the positives in this budget are because of Welsh Liberal Democrat influence.

“Whether it is securing over £200m investment for education, delivering funding for thousands of new apprenticeships, or supporting young people getting to work and training, the Welsh Liberal Democrats have a record of delivery for our communities.

“The Welsh Liberal Democrats continue to punch above our weight and today’s budget, which delivers on a number of priorities which have a positive impact on people’s lives, is evidence of that.”

END

The Welsh Liberal Democrats secured:

• an increase in the Pupil Premium (aka Pupil Deprivation Grant): in 2016/17 each school will receive £1,150 for every pupil eligible to receive free schools;
• the extension of the Pupil Premium to include under 5s, worth £300 per pupil on free school meals;
• a Young Persons’ Bus Pass for 16-18 year olds worth nearly £15m;
• funding for around 5,000 new apprenticeships;
• £95m capital investment in infrastructure that will provide a strong boost to jobs and the economy;
• an agreement that no construction of the M4 relief road will start before the next Assembly elections alongside a detailed Environmental Impact Study;
• extra childcare investment for further education students in Wales who are parents, investing in a pilot scheme promoted by the National Union of Students.

Spring conference, Llandaff 2016

Conference opened on a high note with a speech by Eluned Parrott AM. There were further rousing speeches by federal leader Tim Farron MP and by our leader in Wales, Kirsty Williams AM.

Further reports are on Liberal Democrat Voice and our Facebook page.

Conference closes tomorrow.

Why I joined the Liberal Democrats, by a former Labour mayor

In a post on Liberal Democrat Voice, Tod Sullivan, a former mayor of Lowestoft, explains why he sees his future as a social democrat in this party:

The simple fact is that my heart is a liberal-minded Social Democrat, I was reminded by Social Democrats in the Lib Dems that they have a powerful place in the party. After all, it is a merger between the Liberal and SDP parties. They described a party which believes in markets but not unrestrained capitalism, government that is effective but not intrusive, but is compelled to intervene where liberties, fairness, safety or opportunity are being threatened. A party that believes in individual freedoms and opportunities, particularly for people who want to help others. A party committed to being proud of Great Britain, maintaining our influence on the world and being a member of the European Union, NATO and the United Nations, outward looking and welcoming to those who need sanctuary as well as those who can contribute to our society.

A retro greeting

and a good New Year to everyone!

Affordable housing, Tory-style

Tim Farron's response to the Autumn Statement

This was a deeply political budget from a deeply political Chancellor.  It looks good in the theatrics of the Commons, with Labour divided, weak and inept, but the budget will unravel.

It will unravel in schools next year when they see funding slashed; it will unravel when local councils have to cut services and increase taxes just to get by; and it will unravel when projects can’t be built because of the skills shortage caused by the attack on further education.

The brighter outlook has given Osborne room for manoeuvre, yet he continues an ideological crusade to slash spending and attack working families on welfare.

Today, was supposed to be a Long Term economic plan, but it was a short term economic scam.

Most popular Welsh Liberal Democrat autumn conference ever

The conference committee reported that more people had subscribed to the 2015 AGM and conference held in the Dylan Thomas Centre in Swansea yesterday than at any time in the Welsh Liberal Democrats' history.

There were lively debates on policies for next year's election on rented housing, agriculture, disability, mental health and economic policy, as well as inspiring speeches from federal president Sal Brinton, Westminster MP Mark Williams and Welsh party leader Kirsty Williams. Against a divided Labour party, a Conservative government which is revealing itself in its true colours and UKIP suffering a catastrophic loss of income there is a great opportunity to make progress, though all warned against complacency.