"I would have thought the Scottish Government would have tried to iron some of these crucial matters before they set the date for the new force to begin operations."
- Feb 22, 2012:
- SNP failing to deal with key issues over police centralisation
- Call for clarity over Borders rail
"The SNP have already wasted time and money in an abandoned procurement process before turning the project over to Network Rail."
- No need for referendum 'go slow'
"Both Governments should work through the issues we don't agree on and produce a referendum that is legal, fair and decisive."
- Peacocks sale positive despite job losses - Jenny Willott MP
Commenting on the news that Edinburgh Woollen Mill is to buy Cardiff based clothes store Peacocks Cardiff Central's Liberal Democrat MP, Jenny Willott, said: "I am very pleased that a buyer has been found for Peacocks and that so many of the jobs that were under threat have been saved, particularly at the company's HQ in Cardiff. "Of course, for those who will lose their jobs, including the 249 staff at the HQ who have already been made redundant, this will come as little comfort. These job losses are a personal tragedy and we must now work hard to help build the economy, especially here in Wales, to create new opportunities for those made redundant. "We also need to learn the lessons of the collapse of Peacocks, including looking at the role of KPMG, who acted both as advisors on possible buy outs to creditors beforehand and as the administrators later on, and whether the Welsh Assembly Government were as involved as they could have been in trying to save the company." Eluned Parrott, Shadow Minister for Enterprise and Business and AM for South Wales Central, added: "The outcome for Peacocks could have been so much worse and a pooling of resources with Edinburgh Woollen Mill is a very good fit, avoiding the danger of asset stripping and hopefully the closure of adjacent stores. "I will keep a close eye on Peacocks in the hope that it maintains its Welsh identity and success." Published and promoted by Welsh Liberal Democrats, Freedom Central, Blake Court, Schooner Way, Cardiff, CF10 4DWPrinted (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
- Welsh Liberal Democrats pay tribute Emlyn Hooson
Commenting on the death of Lord Emlyn Hooson, former Liberal Democrat for MP for Montgomeryshire, Kirsty Williams, Leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats said: "Emlyn Hooson was respected in the House of Lords and the wider political community for his passionate liberalism, his love of Wales and his sharp intellect. Not only will he be remembered for his high profile legal work, he will also be remembered for establishing the Welsh Liberal Party in Wales - something we are still proud of today. "He was a steadfast Liberal who cared for the people of Montgomeryshire and Wales. Emlyn was also a fervent advocate of Welsh culture and music having been President of both the national and international Eisteddfod. "My thoughts are with his wife and children at this very difficult time." Roger Williams, Deputy Leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats said, "This is incredibly sad news; Lord Hooson was a great servant of liberalism and to the people of Montgomeryshire and Wales. He was a great friend and family man. He will be sorely missed in Westminster and in his beloved home town of Llanidloes. My thoughts are with his family at this difficult time." Published and promoted by Welsh Liberal Democrats, Freedom Central, Blake Court, Schooner Way, Cardiff, CF10 4DWPrinted (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
- Jeremy Browne: Re-election of Edward McMillan-Scott excellent news
"I am delighted at Edward's re-election. He has proved a passionate, determined and highly effective campaigner for human rights and democracy.
"As the British Foreign Minister responsible for human rights and a fellow Liberal Democrat, I am greatly looking forward to working with Edward to pursue this agenda, which is so central to the enlightened interests of the UK and Europe as a whole.
"With the Arab Spring continuing and tentative steps towards political reforms in Burma, the presence of strong and credible voices, fighting for human rights and democracy at home and abroad, is absolutely essential.
"I am convinced Edward is the right man to help ensure that we maximise the collective weight of the European Union in defending and promoting human rights and democracy." - Conference Guide - Spring Conference 2012 - Cardiff
The full guide to what's on at the Welsh Liberal Democrat Spring Conference including all the motions which will be debated, the key-note speeches, the Fringe and the Exhibition. Published and promoted by Welsh Liberal Democrats, Freedom Central, Blake Court, Schooner Way, Cardiff, CF10 4DWPrinted (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
- SNP failing to deal with key issues over police centralisation
- Feb 21, 2012:
- Disappointment at Ryanair decision
"It is hugely disappointing that Ryanair has decided to cut five routes from Edinburgh. This is bad news for tourism, business and of course passenger choice."
- College mergers are politically motivated
"the Education Secretary is hell-bent on grabbing as much control as he can over Scotland's colleges"
- Action needed to prevent further rural bank closures - Roger Williams MP
ACTION NEEDED TO PREVENT FURTHER RURAL BANK CLOSURES- WILLIAMS Brecon and Radnorshire MP Roger Williams used today's Westminster Hall debate to highlight the damaging effect bank closures have on rural communities. The debate has been widely seen as a success having achieved cross party consensus stressing the need for a Banking Summit and the consideration of pilot schemes for Community Banking facilities, in order to maintain access to financial services in rural areas. Having secured the debate, Roger said "I am not prepared to allow the closures to go unnoticed. By bringing the issue to the attention of the Government and right hon. and hon. Members, I intend to bring it to the attention of the big four banks, and a number of other banks. These large organisations have a social duty to which they should attend." Commenting, Mr Williams said: "The closure of HSBC in Presteigne is a great shame as the branch is still widely used. Commercial pressures, for example reaching mortgage sale targets has meant that the major banks have forgotten the responsibility they have to rural towns and communities." "All banks have benefited from Government action-quantitative easing, for instance-and just about all banks are dependent or have depended on measures that the Government have brought forward. It is time to sit down and see what can be achieved to help these communities." Ends/diwedd Links: Roger's speech: http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/hansard/commons/todays-commons-debates/read/unknown/6/ Published and promoted by Welsh Liberal Democrats, Freedom Central, Blake Court, Schooner Way, Cardiff, CF10 4DWPrinted (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
- Questions remain over single police force plans
"Scottish Liberal Democrats have consistently argued against the creation of a single national police force. This move will be bad news for locally accountable, community policing."
- 'We need answers why Welsh Government refused to heed warnings about Awema' - Kirsty Williams
The Welsh Liberal Democrats are using their debate this week to call on the Welsh Government to publish a statement setting out in detail its reasons for maintaining funding for Awema despite repeated warnings of financial malpractice. Warnings regarding Awema's (All Wales Ethnic Minority Association) financial conduct were raised with the Welsh Labour Government in 2002, 2004 and 2007. Despite this, the charity continued to secure funding commitments for projects worth more than £8 million. The Welsh Liberal Democrat motion, tabled for debate this Wednesday, also calls for a protocol to ensure similar concerns regarding third sector grants are handled more effectively in the future. Kirsty Williams, Leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats, said: "The Welsh Liberal Democrats are using our debate this week to force the Welsh Labour Government's hand to detail why it failed to act despite repeated warnings of financial and managerial malpractice. The Government has so far remained virtually mute on the subject. "The Welsh Government has released feeble written statements on the issue, therefore completely avoiding the opportunity of being scrutinised in the Chamber. In spite of intense public and media interest, the Government still seems to think that it can wriggle out of being held to account. People want and deserve answers about why, despite repeated warnings, the Welsh Labour Government continued to throw tax payers' money at this charity. "Not only did the Welsh Government not heed warnings regarding Awema's project and financial management, it has come to light that the then Equalities Minister did not even bother to meet with officials to monitor Awema's spending following the 2004 critical report. "The 2004 report stated that no new projects at Awema should have been funded until it could demonstrate improved project and performance management. We now need a full disclosure by the Welsh Government of its monitoring arrangements since the report was first published. "The Welsh Liberal Democrats have tabled this debate because we believe it is important that the Labour Government is held to account over its decision making process regarding Awema. We also believe that there are wider issues about the governance of charities within Wales. We recognise that Awema is an unusual case, nonetheless we believe the Government's role in supporting and scrutinising the spending of grants needs to be looked at so the public can have full confidence that their money is not being misused." Published and promoted by Welsh Liberal Democrats, Freedom Central, Blake Court, Schooner Way, Cardiff, CF10 4DWPrinted (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
- Business Minister must understand that cooperation on inward investment is vital to Welsh economy - Parrott
Responding to the Welsh Affairs Committee's report on 'Inward Investment in Wales', Eluned Parrott, Shadow Welsh Liberal Democrat Business Minister said: "I welcome the report of the Welsh Affairs Select Committee into inward investment in Wales. Their recommendations prove that they have clearly been thorough in their questioning and research. It is of great concern, however, that the Business Minister didn't attend to give evidence on something vitally important to the Welsh economy. I believe that this was a great error on her part as she is key in promoting Wales as a country open for business. "The Business Minister may not be a great fan of the global capitalist system but I am interested in working with other administrations to promote Wales as a country where foreign businesses can invest. With people struggling to find jobs in Wales today, we must start putting people before ideology. "In 2012, Britain is going to be the country of the Olympics with billions of people around the world looking at us. We need to take advantage of this and the sooner the Welsh Government engages with the UK Government on inward investment the better for the Welsh economy and Welsh jobs." Published and promoted by Welsh Liberal Democrats, Freedom Central, Blake Court, Schooner Way, Cardiff, CF10 4DWPrinted (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
- Aled Roberts AM calls for clarification on Child Development Assessment Profiles
Welsh Liberal Democrat Education Spokesperson Aled Roberts has called on Education Minister Leighton Andrews' to provide more detail about his decision to scrap the Child Development Assessment Profile (CDAP) and replace it with a "tool that better supports children's early learning and development". Commenting, Aled Roberts AM said: "This crucial assessment forms the baseline for all children entering the Foundation Phase and it is essential that it is fit for purpose. "Although I welcome the Minister's late acceptance of the inadequacies in the current CDAP, I find it astonishing that the system could have been introduced last September only to be withdrawn and replaced just five months later. Quite clearly, there were major concerns at the outset. "If, as the Minister says in his Statement, he received a number of representations from teachers and headteachers about problems with the assessment profile, why was it implemented at all? "The Minister is keen to move quickly to a replacement, but we have no detail about what it is, how it will work or what contribution teachers and headteachers have made to the revised content. "The Government must be prepared to learn lessons from past mistakes and move on, engaging fully with the teaching profession to develop an assessment tool which holds the confidence of teachers and parents alike. "I will be putting a series of questions to the Minister today asking him to clarify this situation." Published and promoted by Welsh Liberal Democrats, Freedom Central, Blake Court, Schooner Way, Cardiff, CF10 4DWPrinted (hosted) by Prater Raines Ltd, 98 Sandgate High Street, Folkestone CT20 3BY
- Disappointment at Ryanair decision
- Feb 20, 2012:
- Concern over rise in gastric band operations
"Scotland's battle with the bulge is well known, but going under the knife for fat-busting surgery should always be a last resort."
- Concern over rise in gastric band operations
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