The Welsh Affairs Select Committee has said that a dedicated new armed response unit is needed to police what they call the "strategically vital" energy sector in Pembrokeshire.
The recently opened LNG terminals and pipeline at Milford Haven, along with the nearby refineries, serve the energy needs of the whole of the UK, rather than Wales.
Aside from the point about policing, what economic value would these facilities generate if Wales was an independent country?
English-language National Theatre delivered by Plaid
Posted by Welsh Ramblings on Thursday, 5 November 2009Credit to the indefatigable Syniadau for drawing attention to today's official launch of the National Theatre Wales.
An English-language National Theatre for Wales is long overdue. It was first announced in 2007 as part of the One Wales deal, and will now run as a touring theatre to different venues across the country, like Scotland's National Theatre. Another feather in the cap for Wales' creative industries.
It took Plaid Cymru's insistence to get this into the One Wales deal- it was lifted from the Plaid election manifesto into the coalition programme- and it is especially important that this has been delivered by a Plaid Minister. Rhodri Glyn Thomas deserves a huge amount of credit for this, as it shows Plaid looking out for both of our languages.
It's news to us, but Wales apparently holds the chair of the 'Network of Regional Governments for Sustainable Development' with Jane Davidson able to be involved on the fringes of the Copenhagen Summit. A good article at Wales Home has alerted us to this, it's quite a coup for Wales to be leading this international alliance, though i'm sure even Jane Davidson doesn't want us to be a 'Regional Government' forever! It's a shame that this isn't common knowledge. The Welsh media has failed to report this pretty important body for Wales to be leading. Fair play to Wales Home for that contribution.
Yet it should be asked, why didn't the Labour Minister demand that Wales get a full say at the Summit like her Scottish counter-part did? I don't expect that Westminster would listen, but we would still have sent out a clear message and maybe given people a bit more confidence in the Welsh Government's ability to stand up for Wales.
So sadly we won't be heard at the heart of the summit, and indeed we are only at Copenhagen at all in our hard-fought devolved capacity. This is something of a response to whose who argue that devolution will 'cut Wales off from the rest of the world'.
It's a similar situation Labour's Finance Minister Andrew Davies did not sufficiently hold the UK Government to account over the cuts to the Welsh budget, when the Scottish Government was taking a much stronger line. At first Andrew Davies and Rhodri Morgan made some promising comments in the Chamber about fighting for Wales' interests, but when the massive real terms cuts to our funding were announced they tried to spin it as a 'good budget for Wales'. Even though Labour's Welsh Ministers are very agreeable with progressives in Wales on all the main policy issues, at the coal face of things they are more likely to defend Labour's interests than Wales' interest.
For what it's worth, the Copenhagen Summit will probably recommend a climate deal based on carbon trading and shifting the burden of guilt on to the rest of the world.
Still, you can't help think that we might get somewhere if Wales was entitled to more of a say than just being there as a 'Regional Government'.
Daran at Wales Home made an interesting charge against fellow blogger Guerrilla Welsh Fare earlier in his piece about likely cabinets post-Rhodri. Che had written that Huw Lewis' nominating AMs are not fit for purpose in taking on ministerial roles, as it has been argued that he has been backed by the most anonymous and incapable Assembly Members. Daran's interpretation is that GWF "takes a swipe at some women politicians from working class backgrounds who might be appointed to the Huw Cabinet". Ramblings enjoys reading both Wales Home and GWF, and the Welsh blogosphere is enriched by both of them.
GWF doesn't need defending, but it goes without saying that Assembly Members are subject to any kind of performance judgement we, the people, deem necessary. There is a time for being cosy with everyone and generating consensus, but it's clear that GWF's central charge remains correct- the effectiveness of Lynn Neagle, Irene James, Joyce Watson, and possibly Ann Jones is being questioned on the basis of merit, not on the basis of gender or class.
The fact that very little is known about them outside of the commentariat is an immediate indication of their lack of standing. Let's be honest with ourselves, these are ineffective, loyalist AMs simply there to prop up their chosen party's rule.
To see an example of working class women who are doing a great service to the people of Wales look no further than the likes of Lesley Griffiths for Labour, Leanne Wood for Plaid and even in the Cabinet you have Edwina Hart. You might not agree with everything those women do, but they get their names about through campaigning on issues and taking a stand, with all three of those examples not afraid to go against party line. As far as Ramblings is aware Jane Hutt also comes from a working class background, and though she has been criticised for her Ministerial performances in the past you can't take it away from her that she is well respected.
Daran insinuates in a comment on Wales Home that a sexist agenda against women politicians is evident from "a few quarters". He should explain where he has detected this agenda, being very switched on to new media he is probably referring to the blogs. Let's make it even more clear, although we have not been accused, that there is no gender basis on this blog. We have shown that there are excellent women AMs from working class backgrounds operating in Wales and this is something we celebrate. If an AM is not doing their job very well we will say so. It does not serve the cause of democracy in Wales to have elected Members falling asleep in the Chamber and mouldering away in unassailable safe seats.
The truth that Labour supporters might find difficult to swallow is that it is their party that has the highest quota of deadweight, be it male or female. This is not a good thing or something we are crowing about, it needs sorting out straight away.
Huw Lewis has launched a new campaign website to replace his old one. It's definitely worth a read. This blog has already pointed out that Huw's "Mythbusters" section is weak and actually ducks most of the charges against Huw, although despite being defensive it is a clever part of the site. Huw has toned down the "Mythbusters" section in his new lay-out, giving it less precedence.
Lewis has also used the new site to confirm that he no longer lives in Penarth, as has been widely alleged throughout the Welsh media. According to the new site, Huw now lives in Merthyr Tydfil, with no mention of a second home.
We aren't (for once) knocking Huw on this. It would be good to have a First Minister who lives outside of Cardiff and surrounds. A few people are saying that the leadership race has been a good thing for Welsh Labour internally.
But leadership race aside, the bigger picture is that after the next General Election, according to the Yougov poll, Merthyr is going to be the northernmost part of Wales with a Labour constituency representative.
The Scottish branch of the Liberal Democrats have bottled their idea of supporting their alleged "democratic" principles by announcing that they will in fact not vote alongside the SNP to allow the Scottish people a referendum to determine their future.
The Scottish Lib Dems are apparently divided on the issue with a number of principled MSPs wanting to take the position of backing a referendum and then campaigning for the 'no' vote. Although this blog disagrees with such a position, it is an entirely valid and just one, and is in keeping with the ideals that Lib Dems talk about.
However, as is so often seen with Liberal Democrats, the leadership are more intent on doing the bidding of their London-based masters. They will now vote to deny the Scottish people the right of self-determination. This is a right enshrined in international law. If the case for the Union is so strong then the Scottish people should be allowed to make their choice and put the question to bed for now.
Obviously, the case is not as strong as they would like people to think.
One of the Western Mail's better columnists has a disappointing piece in his column in yesterday's Wales On Sunday, although it does now seem that Tony Blair's bid for the new Presidency role in Europe is dead in the water.
The pro-Blair hype from all quarters of the media has been lazy and weak. Ordinary people are being expected to somehow support Mr. Blair's ascendancy simply because he is "British", is a "high-profile figure" and has international clout, presumably from his support for costly illegal wars. This consensus is at odds with what ordinary people think of Blair, and it's about time this consensus was challenged.
Other potential candidates for the role are from Luxembourg and the Netherlands. On this week's Question Time the journalist John Sergeant derided Luxembourg's Prime Minister, stating the "obvious" British point of view, that surely a politician from a tiny country can't be taken seriously?
As Elfyn Llwyd said on the same programme, Blair's destination should not be a Presidential role, it should be the courts. He should be tried for war crimes.
Convention set to say 'Yes' as True Wales man gets the nod
Posted by Welsh Ramblings on Friday, 30 October 2009The rumour mill is now solidly predicting a "go for it" style message from the All Wales Convention when it gives its report on November 18th. The flaws of the Convention have been well documented, but it does seem that the Parry-Jones report will provide an accurate and comprehensive picture of how things stand. There has also been genuine public inolvement, though limited.
As John Dixon and others have noted, it won't really matter what noises the Labour leadership candidates make about the report, as all three of them are signed up to fulfil the One Wales pact and will not want to destabilise the Welsh Government. Even Huw Lewis might have a chance to bust the anti-devolutionist "myths" that he has acknowledged affecting his candidacy by championing a "Yes" campaign. Becoming the leader of Wales and leading the nation to direct law-making powers is a prospect that could see the currently unknown Merthyr backbencher become a statesman of considerable stature.
Ramblings takes issue with Gareth Hughes' charge that Carwyn Jones is lukewarm on a referendum- in Jones' latest article in the Agenda journal he clearly spells out the need not only for law-making powers but for an independent Welsh legal system. His credibility, and Plaid's support if he was First Minister, would disappear if he did a u-turn against the democratic will of the people of Wales.
Of course, the opinion of Labour's MPs in Wales is even more important. They will be looking to preserve their own careers and generous lifestyles by blocking Wales from making progress.
At the same time, the divisions within the Labour Party in Wales are very apparent. Leading "True Wales" figure Cllr David Rees, who probably doesn't even believe there should be an Assembly at all, is rumoured to have been selected as Labour candidate for the Labour-held seat Aberavon at the 2011 Assembly Election.
Update- the rumours have been confounded. It is in fact an Aberavon-based Dave Rees who has been selected, rather than the Risca-based "True Wales" nut.
Today's Yougov poll has created alot of excitement in the Welsh blogosphere and has also made the news today, with the media mainly reporting the previously inconceivable advances being made by the Tories as Labour in both its "New" and "Welsh" guises continues to collapse as a political force in this country. That Plaid is on the rise is some consolation, but the poll still does not make comfortable reading for the future, as it means Wales would be inflicted with a Tory UK government it did not generally vote for.
But there is another story buried in the poll findings that could have even more of a dramatic impact on Welsh politics.
The Liberal Democrats are on the verge of disappearing as a political entity of any credible size in Wales.
This blog has been highlighting the Lib Dems' problems and difficulties in appealing to the electorate for some time. But the damning indictment of them as a party is that their party leader in Wales, is vastly unknown according to the poll, and lacks support amongst those people that do recognise her, including Liberal Democrat voters.
There are serious problems with the Lib Dems, with their standing at UK level in disarray after constant u-turns and swivellings and a dreadful performance by Clegg as leader, with his political positions and image being indistinguishable from that of Cameron.
It does beg the question, what are they for? A perennial bloc of 6 Assembly Members, allegedly deeply divided, advocating no particularly consistent vision for Welsh policy-making except from their consistency in opposing everything Plaid or Labour does. Their paranoia and short-sightedness in aiming their attacks at Plaid Cymru unwittingly tells more voters that Plaid is involved in wielding power (something Plaid's opponents should not be doing) and lets the UK Government off the hook. They now face wipe-out in Wales at the next General Election, and could be reduced to just a single Parliamentary seat. That is a very serious position for them to be in.
The Lib Dems became the 5th party in Welsh politics at the last European Elections. Being pro-European is not an excuse for this performance, Plaid is a pro-European party and although this blog will NOT claim Plaid set the world alight in those elections, they certainly did not collapse.
It is a little-kept secret in UK politics that the Lib Dems are accused of being opportunists, centrists and "all things to all people", and more quietly it is claimed that they have a tendency to engage in dubious and sometimes distatesful electoral tactics. But there are some good Lib Dems amongst their MPs, and they do consistently win constituency seats all over the UK. Furthermore, because Westminster is so right-wing, it is often Lib Dem figures that do a great job in shining a light on the failures of the two bigger British political parties. For example, socialists can't deny that Vince Cable did offer a good view on the economy, even though his social democratic theory is surely at odds with the centre-right Orange Book clique of economic liberals around Nick Clegg.
Here in Wales the story is different, and there is simply no point in them. The Welsh Lib Dems don't have a Vince Cable, and the respected Mick Bates, their most dependable Member, is retiring. They are the annoying and pointless uncle at the family gathering that is Welsh politics.
The only significant treatment of the Welsh Lib Dems in recent times was a generous piece from Daran Hill, but even his most optimistic assessment could only see the Lib Dems running local councils, and potentially gaining two list seats in the future if the UK political conditions swung the right way. The direction of travel in both Welsh and UK politics is not currently pointing towards any such advances, but is instead predicting reversals.
Liberalism is a valid and proud political tradition that has just as glorious a history as the tradition that Ramblings hails from. Liberal politics changed the course of human history. Today, it is a sad fact that this once-proud tradition is now represented in Wales by an MP who writes for a soft porn publication, and an unknown centrist career politician. The Welsh Lib Dems' failure to do justice to those that have gone before them is not funny or edifiying, it is simply shameful.
With the new series of the always excellent "The Thick of It" starting on Saturday I thought I'd have a look at some of the old clips and stumbled across this...
Although it's a big week for the debate about fascism, probably the biggest since the Euro elections, isn't it true that the BBC and the media in general are overdoing it a bit with their incessant coverage of the British National Party?
It can be appreciated that the Nazis are so dangerous that their activities must be put under the media glare. But isn't a slot on Question Time enough? Must we have constant BBC blogs, articles and radio phone ins about them? After all, the Green Party got more votes than the BNP did on a UK level, have got more councillors than the BNP and have had MEPs for longer. Where is the increased coverage for Greens?
Whenever the BNP do rear their heads they should be opposed. That's why it's right that there won't be empty seats on Question Time. We should also remember that in Wales they do not have the same electoral mandate that they do in England, having not ever won a contested seat here, European or otherwise.
comments (8) Links to this post
Labels: BBC, BNP, publicity, Question Time
The idea that public transport should be free is one that sections of the left have woken up to in the past few years, although it is a reality in many places on the European mainland.
The most notable advocates for free public transport in the British Isles have been the Scottish Socialist Party, though their idea looks unachievable unless Scotland could raise all of its own resources.
In Wales, it would also be impossible to deliver free public transport within a fixed Assembly budget. However, it is good to see that Plaid Cymru is now delivering free buses in the centre of Cardiff, as part of Plaid's policy to make Cardiff a sustainable city. It is notable that it has taken Plaid coming into government both nationally and locally for this to happen.
Both of the national governments in Scotland and Wales support affordable housing and are opposed to the extension of the 'Right to Buy' law which, although good for individuals, has decimated the stock of affordable and social housing in both nations and contributed to a housing crisis.
Scotland's Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon made an eye-catching announcement at the SNP Conference that they will abolish this law for all new tenants in social housing, first introduced under Thatcher's rule. This means that up to 18,000 homes in Scotland will remain available for the poorest in society, rather than disappearing into the property market. The Labour opposition will probably support this, having been wrong-footed.
In Wales we have a slightly less strident approach, with the Welsh Government's Housing Minister Jocelyn Davies (a Plaid Cymru AM) having launched the neccesary legislative bid to suspend the Right to Buy in areas of pressure on social housing (surely the whole of Wales?). Yet because of our limited devolution settlement MPs at Westminster have the say on this and are already delaying the bid. Tory MPs have indicated they won't support giving Wales the final decision on something which was originally their law, placing party politics as more important than constitutional rights.
Affordable housing in Wales has been in decline for decades now and its about time things were turned around.
The upcoming referendum is extremely important. Even though it won't change much and we will still be short of what Scotland has, we will be able to legislate on issues like housing without having our laws blocked and delayed by yesterday's men at Westminster.
Anti-racists have won another victory as the demoralised Welsh Defence League have called off the Newport demonstration that this blog warned about. But, in anticipation of some protestors still turning up, we have been told that the counter-demonstration (a 'Day of Celebration' celebrating Newport's multi-culturalism) will still go ahead.
The scale of their demoralisation is revealed by this report from a particularly articulate EDL activist who went down to the failed Swansea rally:
"(it)Was a joke. Descended into nothing more than a NF rally. No organisation from [our] side it ended up with the UAF actually protesting in the area we were given. When we mobbed up to go and tell them to f**k off the police helds us all for the duration of are alloted protest time. There was more white power there along with idiots who just thought we were bnp/nf than there were E/WDL. Racist comments sieg heil salutes and the burning of an anti swastika flag ensued."
After being humiliated in Swansea, the WDL made the following statement on their internet group:
"Newport demo is now OFF spoken to the police and they expect a lot of violence from local blacks, who it seems are convinced we are the klan or whatever, as we dont want to be responsible for a riot, by people we would expect to support what we are doing, we are cancelling until we are able to get message out there that we are not a racist group. "
Update- to clarify, people will still be attending the counter-demonstration as planned, in case the demo cancellation was a ploy to get the opposition not to turn up.
The so-called Welsh Defence League were pleasingly outnumbered by anti-racist demonstrators in Swansea yesterday, according to reports.
Let us be clear- these football hooligan connected organisations are not specifically fascist formations, but do have fascists and Nazis (including BNP activists) in key positions, and are effectively a front for the far-right.
Credit to the myriad of organisations and political parties that supported the counter-demonstration, including Assembly Members Leanne Wood, Bethan Jenkins and Huw Lewis.
Evidently, the WDL's brand of extremism was not welcome in Swansea. Their planned rally in Newport next week may well be called off as the demoralised racists realise that the anti-racist cause has more support than their own.
Wales is a nation that luckily does not have a problem with religious extremism of any kind. The extremist problem here seems to stem from 60 knuckleheads who were under the delusion that their ideas would be welcome here.
Swansea did us proud.
Edit- More information from journalists who attended tells of "anti-Islamic extremism" demonstrators openly daring to give Nazi salutes in our communities. Shame on the Welsh Defence League.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
