Tag: Welsh Government

The press release issued by the Welsh Government on 27 November 2022.

The Deputy Minister for Arts and Sport, Dawn Bowden has announced £4.5m over the next three years to support the delivery of the culture, heritage and sport goals and actions in the Welsh Government’s Anti-Racist Wales Action Plan.

The Deputy Minister for Arts and Sport, Dawn Bowden has announced £4.5 million over the next three years to support the delivery of the culture, heritage and sport goals and actions in the Welsh Government’s Anti-Racist Wales Action Plan.

The Action Plan is part of the Welsh Government’s Programme for Government and the Co-operation Agreement with Plaid Cymru.

More than £2.8 million has been shared between 22 local, regional, national or independently run culture, heritage and sport organisations across Wales.

All projects receiving funding have a focus on co-production, demonstrating a commitment to placing lived experience at the centre of policy, service development and delivery.

The Deputy Minister, said:

Our national and local museums, galleries, libraries, theatres, and sporting venues need to be inclusive of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic people and places. Our culture, heritage and sports services must be culturally competent and reflective of the history and contribution made by Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic people to Welsh society.

I am committed to delivering the goals and actions in the Anti-racist Wales Action Plan and the Programme for Government commitments within my portfolio. I look forward to our continued progress as we deliver meaningful change with and for Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic people across Wales.

Designated Member, Sian Gwenllian, said:

When launching the Anti Racist Wales Action Plan we committed to take clear and pointed action to deliver our vision. This funding represents an important step towards realising the vision set out in the plan, and the breadth of organisations across Wales who have been awarded funding reflects an exciting opportunity to embed change through all of the projects and initiatives that will be supported.

Sports and the arts can be powerful vehicles for creating meaningful change as we strive to reach our vision for an anti racist Wales. I am glad that through the Co-operation Agreement between Plaid Cymru and the Welsh Government that we have been able to fund so many schemes in all parts of Wales.

The Deputy Minister recently visited Monlife Heritage in Aberavenny and Tŷ Pawb in Wrexham, to hear how they will use the new funding.

MonLife Heritage has received funding to improve interpretation of collections so they honestly tell their complex stories, better representing their links to slavery, colonisation and empire and respect their impact on communities past and present.

Cllr. Sara Burch, Monmouthshire County Council’s cabinet member for Inclusive and Active Communities, said:

We are proud to be part of the Welsh Government’s Anti-Racist Wales Action Plan. Ensuring that our heritage collections are truly representative and reflective of our diverse community is very important.

We are determined that all Monmouthshire’s places of culture, arts and sport should be inclusive places and reflect the tremendous contribution of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic members of the community. We are grateful for Welsh Government funding that will enable MonLife Heritage in Abergavenny Museum and Chepstow Museum to continue this work.

Ty Pawb has received support for the future development of the recently established Multicultural Hub and the funding will support Tŷ Pawb’s Useful Art Space to host a range of activities led by Wrexham’s diverse communities; these will be directed by participants, and will include arts and crafts, music and dance, culinary exchanges, cultural celebrations and other exciting activities.

Cllr Hugh Jones – WCBC Lead Member with responsibility for Tŷ Pawb:

The grant funding award is fantastic news and will be key in supporting us to deliver the outcomes of the Anti-Racist Wales Action Plan.

The funding will support the excellent partnership work being undertaken by Tŷ Pawb, our Community Cohesion team and Race Council Cymru, reaching out to local and regional diverse community groups and empowering them to actively lead and take advantage of cultural, arts, heritage and sport opportunities.

I wish the teams every success with the project and look forward to seeing the development of the exciting new North Wales Multicultural HUB pilot.

£1.67 million has also been awarded to the Welsh Government’s cultural and sport arm’s length bodies.

Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales, the Arts Council of Wales, the National Library of Wales, the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historic Monuments of Wales and Sport Wales will use the funding to build on existing and new programmes of activity, accelerating their work on anti-racism at a national level.

Funding for Sport Wales will focus on the development and delivery of anti-racist training over a three-year period. The funding for the National Library of Wales will support several projects, including The Communities of Wales, which tells stories through the lens of people who moved to Wales. And the funding for Amgueddfa Cyrmru will enable more cultural programmes and events to be co-designed with community-based organisations, individuals and artists.

Funding for the Arts Council of Wales will enable the appointment of more Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic creative practitioners and funding for the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historic Monuments of Wales will develop the Places We Remember project, which records the heritage of Welsh Asian communities in Wales.

Supportive comments

Professor Uzo Iwobi CBE, Founder and CEO Race Council Cymru:

Race Council Cymru is delighted that its Wrexham Multicultural Hub had worked with partners to propose a brilliant initiative which will make a huge difference to the lives of our front line and grassroots ethnic communities. We are looking forward to the transformational change this grant will bring

Iolanda Viegas, Race Council Cymru, North Wales Representative:

We are very thrilled and grateful for this funding that will support the Multicultural Hub to engage and work with the diverse communities from North Wales.

The press release issued by the Welsh Government on 22 November 2022.

“Recycling is what we do”. Those were the words of Climate Change Minister Julie James as she set out major steps Wales will take to combat the climate and nature emergencies.

The Minister announced plans to increase the quality and level of recycling from businesses, the public and third sectors in Wales, ensuring they separate key recyclable materials in the same way the majority of Wales’ householders already do.

They will build on the vast improvements Wales has seen in recycling rates thanks to Welsh Government investment of £1bn since devolution.

The results speak for themselves with municipal recycling rates growing exceptionally from just 4.8% in 1998-1999, to more than 65% in 2021-22.

Wales can also be proud that our recycling efforts already make a significant difference to emissions, saving around 400,000 tonnes of CO2 per year from being released into the atmosphere.

Minister for Climate Change, Julie James said:

Every person in Wales has played their part in increasing our recycling rates exponentially. It has been a real Team Wales approach and recycling is now a part of who we are.

In the World Cup of recycling, as the third best recycling nation, we’d be a shoo-in for the semi-finals. But taking a page out of Cymru’s book, we want to go further.

These proposals will deliver significant carbon savings, increase consistency in the way recyclable materials are collected across Wales and bring significant positive benefits for the economy.

During this cost of living crisis especially, ensuring high quality material can go back into the Welsh economy is a key way in which we can improve the resilience of our domestic supply chains.

Quite simply, these reforms are a key part of how we can build a stronger, greener economy – creating a more prosperous Wales, now and for future generations.

Learning from the recycling success to date, the proposals support the Welsh Government’s ‘Beyond Recycling’ ambition which has set a bold target to achieve zero waste in Wales by 2050 by keeping resources in use.

These recycling reforms not only help to move away from single use, but also decrease emissions and improve supply chain resilience, benefiting the economy as well as the environment by turning what was waste into recyclable commodities and reducing the damage to nature and biodiversity caused by the extraction and processing of raw materials.

For individual businesses and organisations, the reforms will help support the move away from waste disposal being a significant cost, to one where that waste material is instead effectively captured and returned into the economy.

The consultations will be open for 12 weeks, closing on Wednesday, February 15 2023.

The press release issued by the Welsh Government on 21 November 2022.

The first meeting of a new Tenancy Working Group has taken place with the aim of ensuring the Welsh Government’s Sustainable Farming Scheme (SFS) is accessible and suitable for tenant farmers across Wales.

In July the Welsh Government published its most detailed proposals so far on future support for farmers.

The SFS is being designed to support farmers produce food sustainably, alongside taking action to lower their carbon footprint and benefit nature. Importantly, the scheme is being designed so all farmers can access it.

The newly established Tenancy Working Group is made up of a number stakeholder organisations, including the Tenant Farmers Association, CLA, NFU Cymru and FUW.

It will be exploring aspects of the SFS proposals such as contract length and practicality of the Universal Actions, which are designed to be met by all farmers including tenant farmers, as well as any other issues which would impact tenant farmers’ ability to join the scheme.

The findings of this Tenancy Working Group will contribute to the final consultation on scheme design in 2023. Farmers will start transitioning to the SFS from 2025.

Minister for Rural Affairs Lesley Griffiths said:

Tenanted land makes up a significant portion of farmland in Wales and if the SFS does not work for the tenanted sector then it does not work at all.

We must keep farmers on the land and all farmers should be able to access the scheme

Engagement with the new working group we have established will help us make sure the scheme is accessible and suitable for tenant farmers across Wales.

I am grateful for the ongoing support of our stakeholders in the continuing development of the scheme to support farmers in the sustainable production of food and helping to tackle the climate and nature emergencies.

The outline proposals include a series of actions separated into three layers:

The first layer is a set of Universal Actions – actions that every farm should be able to deliver to receive a Baseline Payment. To prevent a barrier to scheme entry, all Universal Actions are being designed to be delivered by farmers on tenancy agreements.

Farmers who want to go further, can receive extra payments by choosing from a range of Optional Actions depending on what suits their farm. Actions which cannot be delivered on short-term or restrictive tenancies will be in the optional layer unless there are suitable exemptions for tenant farmers.

There will also be opportunity for farmers to work together on Collaborative Actions at a local or regional scale to deliver outcomes that cannot be delivered on a single farm.

Working groups are also being established to explore other themes in relation to the SFS such as common land and new entrants.

 

The press release issued by the Welsh Government on 18 November 2022.

Households across Wales can collect their tree, free of charge, from tomorrow as part of an ambitious Welsh Government giveaway to tackle the climate and nature emergencies – an initiative called My Tree Our Forest.

Over 50 collection hubs facilitated by Coed Cadw, the Woodland Trust in Wales, are set to open their doors to the public. Behind them is an army of dedicated volunteers ready to share expert growing advice in choosing the right tree for the right space.

A whopping 295,000 trees are up for grabs and their planting will contribute to the National Forest for Wales. Ten different species of native and broadleaf trees are available to choose from. These are:

• Hazel,
• Rowan,
• Hawthorn,
• Silver Birch,
• Crab Apple,
• Sessile Oak,
• Dogwood,
• Dog Rose,
• Field Maple,
• Elder.

As well as sucking carbon from the air, improving our mental health and cleaning the air we breathe, broadleaf trees are a haven for birds and wildlife.
Speaking at a visit to Bedford Park in Bridgend where the first trees were being collected, Deputy Climate Change Minister, Lee Waters said:

Trees are a lifeline to us and all of the amazing life that they support. Where would our birds, insects and animals be without them… where would we be without them?

I want everyone in Wales to check out our website to find your nearest tree giveaway hub and pick up your free broadleaf tree from tomorrow. On site, our wonderful volunteers will be ready with their expert advice to help you choose the right tree for your space and situation.

As COP27 draws to a close in Egypt, our continued Team Wales effort in fronting up to the climate and nature emergencies is essential.

By growing a beautiful tree in your own backyard, you can kickstart your contribution and help grow a healthy and happy Wales for us and our future generations to benefit from.

In order to become a Net Zero Wales by 2050, experts have advised that Wales must plant 86 million trees over the next decade.

I would like to thank all involved at Coed Cadw for partnering with us to deliver this project and I look forward to seeing its impact on our environment.

Natalie Buttriss, Director of Coed Cadw said:

Trees have always offered simple and cost-effective solutions to the challenges we all face and through the My Tree Our Forest initiative, we hope to inspire people from all backgrounds, regions and walks of life to get involved, and as a result, feel more connected to the multiple benefits that trees can bring.

Members of the Welsh public are encouraged to collect a tree, free of charge, from a regional hub near them. On collection they will receive advice from trained volunteers on how to plant and care for their new tree.

For those unable to attend a hub to collect a tree, from the 21st of November, one can be ordered online and delivered to their door. Alternatively, a tree can be planted on their behalf, helping to grow a National Forest for Wales, home by home.

The press release issued by the Welsh Government on 18 November 2022.

As the cost-of-living crisis continues to affect families, schools across Wales are playing a vital role in supporting their local communities.

A Community Focused School is one, which builds a strong partnership with families, responds to the needs of their community and collaborates effectively with other services to ensure all children thrive.

In March this year, the Minister for Education and Welsh Language, Jeremy Miles announced almost £25m investment in delivering Community Focused Schools, to fund practical ways of improving school facilities in order to enable greater community use. This includes providing equipment storage for community groups running extra-curricular activities and improving external lighting in sports areas. This funding will be allocated to local authorities across Wales on a formula basis based on pupil and school numbers.

One school already helping their local community is Blaenymaes Primary School in Swansea. The school established a parent council in order to gain a parent perspective of their needs in terms of partnership working and parent support.

The school also continued building links with the housing association POBL which led to family engagement activities with community groups, such as Room to Grow and Swansea Community Farm.

Room to Grow aims to upskill families in growing their own produce at home to support the increasing cost of feeding a family. Pupils at Blaenymaes and their families take part in sessions in the school grounds. These sessions included building planters and providing the material to grow produce at home.

“Come cook with me” sessions run in school by Helen Spencer, Family Inclusion Officer, offer families the opportunity to learn how to cook tasty and healthy recipes on a budget. All recipes and ingredients are provided to families so that they can replicate them at home. In addition, the group were provided with cooking equipment that they may not have at home such as digital scales and measuring spoons.

Emma Amirat, Acting Deputy Head at Blaenymaes Primary School, said:

Through engagement with our Parent Council, it was clear that parents enjoyed the support given to help them with their child’s learning, however, they also had challenges that worried them outside of the school day. We made the decision that in order to enhance our capacity to support families holistically, we needed to further develop links with community groups.

This approach has meant we can invite groups, such as Room to Grow and Swansea Community Farm, into our school to offer families purposeful opportunities.

Listening to our Parent Council is a key driver in what we offer families. We are developing plans to offer solutions to uniform costs, fuel poverty and providing family swap shops.

Minister for Education and Welsh Language, Jeremy Miles, said:

Community Focused Schools connect families, schools, and communities together. This helps provide a joined-up approach to learning, while ensuring that there are no financial or social barriers to a child’s education.

As a government we are clear that tackling the impact of poverty on attainment is at the heart of our national mission for education.  I have seen first-hand the fantastic initiatives schools up and down the country are doing to help both the school community and local area. Our new Community Focused Schools guidance sets out advice and information to help schools turn their vision into a reality.

The press release issued by the Welsh Government on 17 November 2022.

Rebecca Evans, the Welsh Government’s Finance Minister, has said today’s Autumn Statement will mean people are paying more for less.

The Chancellor’s statement confirmed tax rises for people across the United Kingdom along with deep spending cuts in future spending review periods.

Forecasts from the Office for Budget Responsibility have indicated the biggest fall in disposable income since records began, with household incomes not expected to get back to pre-pandemic levels until 2028.

Rebecca Evans, Minister for Finance and Local Government, said:

We should be under no illusions; this statement confirms we are in a deep recession. Real incomes are set to fall by 7% over the next 2 years, while inflation is at its highest rate in 41 years.

Today’s Autumn Statement is an invoice for the UK government’s failure to manage the economy over the last 12 years.

It provides pain today and pain tomorrow, with higher taxes and energy costs now and spending cuts to come. Ultimately, it leaves people paying more for less.

Throughout this process I have made clear to the Chancellor that Wales cannot afford deep and damaging austerity. I am relieved that the Chancellor has at least partially responded to my calls for more funding for public services in the here and now.

However, let me be clear that today’s statement doesn’t even come close to providing the funding needed to protect public service budgets against the immense challenges caused by record inflation.

We will be carefully analysing the detail of today’s announcements ahead of our December budget.

The statement made by Mark Drakeford, the Welsh First Minister, on 17 November 2022.

The 38^th meeting of the British-Irish Council on 10/11 November was hosted by the UK Government in Blackpool. I attended the meeting virtually.

The Summit programme was opened by the Prime Minister, who attended events on Thursday 10^th November. The Summit Plenary session on Friday 11^th November was Chaired by the Rt Hon Michael Gove MP, Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and Minister for Intergovernmental Relations.

Other attendees included Taoiseach Micheál Martin TD, the First Minister of Scotland the Rt Hon Nicola Sturgeon MSP, the Chief Minister of Jersey Kristina Moore, the Chief Minister of Guernsey Deputy Peter Ferbrache, the Chief Minister of the Isle of Man Alfred Cannan MHK, and the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Rt Hon Chris Heaton-Harris MP.

The theme of this Summit was Sustainable Growth and Regeneration. The Council focussed on efforts underway across BIC Member Administrations to stimulate and support sustainable economic growth, the development of more inclusive communities, and to address pressures on housing in particular. The Council also noted the recent Ministerial meeting of the BIC Social Inclusion work sector, which took place in Cardiff.

In addition, the Council discussed the latest political developments including: the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the impact of the rising cost of living, shared climate and decarbonisation objectives, and ongoing relations with the EU. The Council received an update on Northern Ireland and looked forward to the restoration of the devolved institutions. The Council also noted that 2023 would mark the 25th anniversary of the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement, and underlined the importance of supporting the effective

functioning of all of the agreement’s institutions, including the British-Irish Council.

In contributing to this discussion, I highlighted a number of areas that need to remain as high priorities for the BIC:

• working alongside communities to achieve sustainable growth, investing in infrastructure, people and places, to create the conditions in which businesses will invest;
• the role of direct Government investment in growth strategies, in areas such as climate change, research and innovation, and supporting nascent industries;
• the cost of living crisis and the need for significant further action to support vulnerable households struggling with rising costs, with a focus on practical solutions;
• the energy crisis and the need to focus on renewable energy, for the benefit of energy security, the climate crisis and to make household energy affordable;
• the concerning impacts of Brexit including on research, trade and Welsh ports, and the need for stability and improvements in the trading and the wider relationship between the UK and the EU.

A joint Communiqué was issued after the meeting, which is available at:

https://www.britishirishcouncil.org/bic/summits

The next Council Summit will be hosted by the Government of Jersey.

The press release issued by the Welsh Government on 17 November 2022.

A Welsh Government spokesperson said:

Our NHS continues to face unprecedented demand and is seeing thousands of people every day. In hospitals alone, more than 361,000 consultations were carried out in September. Over 99,000 patient pathways were closed in September, back to pre-pandemic levels and 6% more than August, and an all-time record 13,856 people were seen and told they don’t have cancer.

Progress continues to be made on the longest waits. The number of patient pathways waiting more than two years for treatment has fallen for the sixth month in a row and is down by 19 per cent since the peak in March. Waits over 36 weeks also went down in September, by 3% compared to August.

Primary care, ambulance and emergency department staff remain under intense pressure. As an example, October saw the highest number and proportion of ‘red’/ immediately life threatening calls on record. A further indication of the complexity of patient need is the number of patients admitted to the same or a different hospital following attendance at a major emergency department, which was 27.1% higher than September 2022.

Whilst we acknowledge ambulance performance is not where we expect it to be, we are driving improvements, including extending same-day emergency care services to open seven-days a week,  managing calls better to reduce hospital admissions and recruiting more staff. Without all this the pressure on the system would be even greater.

The press release issued by the Welsh Government on 17 November 2022.

From today, motorists exceeding the 50mph speed limits between junctions 24 to 28 on the M4 could be fined, the Welsh Government has warned.

This is the final stage of a phased approach that the Welsh Government has taken to improve air quality on some of the most polluted roads across Wales, as well as reduce congestion and improve safety along this section of the M4.

Since the Welsh Government took the decision to introduce environmental speed limits to improve air quality levels at five different locations across Wales, the first of its kind in the UK, there has been a successful lowering of nitrogen dioxide levels in these areas.

Enforcement in four of the five areas began in October last year and today marks the completion of this rollout with M4 junction 24 to 28 going live.

Air pollution is considered to be one of the largest environmental health risks of our generation, according to the World Health Organisation. Driving at 50 will not only help us all protect our families from serious illnesses like heart disease, lung cancer and asthma, but it also helps manage congestion, improve journey times and reduce accidents.

Deputy Minister for Climate Change, Lee Waters, who has responsibility for Transport said:

We’ve made significant progress in bringing emissions levels down in recent years, but we now have to go further and faster.

We know that slower speed limits are not a popular choice, but we need to do things differently and be bold if we are to stand a chance of tackling climate change.

It’s clear that the speed restrictions we’ve introduced on our most polluted roads are working – the results speak for themselves – but compliance with these limits is essential if we are to achieve the reductions we need to make in the shortest possible time.

We need to act now to make Wales a safe place to live with clean air for everyone.

Superintendent, Michael Richards of Gwent Police said:

The environmental 50mph speed limits are playing an important part in tackling pollution on some of Wales’ most polluted roads, helping Wales and its communities build a cleaner, safer and healthier future.

All four Welsh Forces are supporting the enforcement of these speed limits.

Teresa Ciano, Partnership Manager at Go Safe added:

‘GoSafe fully supports the environmental 50mph speed limits. In addition to reducing NO2 levels and building cleaner environments for our communities, these zones will help to reduce collisions and make Welsh roads safer for everyone.

GoSafe will continue to support these environmental 50mph speed limits, through both education and enforcement, as we all work together towards cleaner and safer communities.

The press release issued by the Welsh Government on 16 November 2022.

Speaking ahead of the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement tomorrow, Wales’ Finance Minister has said the Chancellor must turn away from another round of damaging austerity.

Rebecca Evans said that instead of delivering deep spending cuts, the Chancellor must invest in growth, and must support people through the cost-of-living crisis.

She said:

The Autumn Statement is being delivered amid huge financial challenges for people, businesses, public services, and our economy.

People are struggling to pay their bills as the cost-of-living crisis bites. 41-year high inflation and record energy prices are shrinking public sector budgets, just as demand for services is soaring. The economy is faltering and we are facing the longest recession since the Great Depression.

The UK government has the financial fire power to meet these challenges – and it must do so tomorrow. This is the time to invest in people and public services.

The Chancellor must use his tax levers more fairly. By increasing the windfall tax and removing exemptions from capital gains tax, he can ensure that the burden falls on those with the broadest shoulders.

By turning away from austerity, the UK government could protect public services, honour its commitment to increase benefits in line with inflation, and boost infrastructure investment to stimulate and grow our economy.