Latest news with #JamesEvans
Powys County Times
a day ago
- Health
- Powys County Times
Powys Patients 'treated as a second-class citizens' says MS
Patients have been 'treated as a second-class citizens' in A&E and face two-year operation waits says a Powys MS. Brecon and Radnorshire MS, James Evans, slammed Powys Teaching Health Board's (PTHB) decision to continue with reduced opening hours for Minor Injury Units (MIUs) in Brecon and Llandrindod Wells. 'I fail to see how the Health Board's evaluation found 'positive impacts',' said Mr Evans. 'I hear of people having to travel out of county, considerable distances to access A&E departments, waiting hours and hours, only to be then treated as a second-class citizen because they are 'out of area'. 'The so-called improvements in service reliability and patient safety quoted by PTHB has only improved because the MIUs are closed. 'And any cost saving as a result will be nullified by the cost of other Health Boards treating Powys patients in their A&E departments.' The decision to extend the 'temporary changes' to the units was made in a meeting of Powys Teaching Health Board earlier today. It was heard that the decision had reduced staffing issues at the unit and reduction in the reliance on agency staff. Chief Executive of Powys Teaching Health Board, Hayley Thomas confirmed that further 'unpalatable' decisions were being considered in other area as the board tries to reduce its budget deficit. This financial pressure has also seen the board vote in March to intentionally increase wait times for Powys patients being treated in England. 'The decision made a few months ago, to delay Powys patients' treatment in English hospital settings is already starting to cause serious suffering and harm to patients,' added Mr Evans. 'I am hearing from constituents who, prior to this disastrous policy decision, were expecting to have operations in August, but instead they are now receiving letters telling them they will now likely wait two years for the operation. 'This is two years in pain waiting for a knee or hip operation, not being able to work, seeing their mobility reduced. All because of the Health Board's finances, not because of capacity issues or lack of nurses. 'Having no major hospital of our own in Powys, we cannot afford to lose any of our healthcare services here in Powys and I urge the Health Board to look again at our MIUs and expand the services they can offer.' Help support trusted local news Sign up for a digital subscription now: As a digital subscriber you will get Unlimited access to the County Times website Advert-light access Reader rewards Full access to our app Executive Medical Director at Powys Teaching health Board, Kate Wright said the recent changes had 'improved outcomes' She said: 'Our priority is always to provide care that is safe, effective, and compassionate. 'The evaluation shows that these changes have helped improve patient outcomes and reduce delays in care. 'We will continue to monitor the impact closely, learning from the experience of patients and staff.'
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Most expensive bird's nest in history! Ospreys leave Welsh Labour with useless £4m farm that can't hold festival spin-off amid fears for wildlife
The Welsh government has been accused of spending over £4m on 'the most expensive birds' nest in history' after buying land for a music festival – which cannot be used due to ospreys. The Labour-run administration paid out £4.25m for a farm to host a spin-off event from the annual Green Man music and cultural festival held each August. The land, at Gilestone Farm, near Brecon, Powys, has even lost £500,000 in value since it was purchased in 2022 – and not a single note of music has been played there. Now a Welsh Parliament committee has raised 'serious concerns' over the purchase and demanded a full review. The Senedd's public accounts and administration committee said the decision to buy the farm was taken with a 'lack of thorough due diligence'. The report said plans were 'not sufficiently robust and had not been communicated effectively to the community'. The proposed festival spin-off, which would have been held alongside events at its current base at Crickhowell, near Abergavenny, caused opposition from conservationists. And when the pair of ospreys – a protected bird of prey – landed in 2023 and built a nest in an oak tree, it scuppered the plans. Labour Ministers had faced questions over their friendships with festival chief Fiona Stewart, amid claims a business plan for the festival had not even been submitted. James Evans, Conservative Welsh assembly member for Brecon and Radnorshire, said: 'The next time the Labour government reaches for the cheque book, they should listen to local concerns and act with far greater transparency. 'In the meantime, Gilestone Farm remains the most expensive publicly owned 'bird nest' in history.' Plaid Cymru's Adam Price, who sits on the public accounts and administration committee, said: 'This whole saga, that has unravelled under the chaos of three Labour first ministers, serves as proof of the extent of this Labour Welsh government's mismanagement of the public purse.' The committee said there was a lack of adequate record of meetings between ministers and Green Man officials which meant politicians were 'unable to fully scrutinise and evaluate decisions taken by the Welsh government'. It said the 'haste' in completing the purchase may have inhibited the ability to identify risks - including the presence of wildlife 'that would affect its proposals for the site, and potentially, its value'. The report added: 'This is particularly notable as the site has now been valued at £3.75m, meaning that the Welsh government's asset has lost half a million pounds in value'. Committee chairman Mark Isherwood said: 'The arrival of the ospreys on the site was unexpected and it's acknowledged that the Welsh government has responded positively to this development to preserve their habitat, albeit there was evidence of other protected species being present at the site at the time of purchase. 'However, the future of the site now appears to be very uncertain, with the most recent valuation showing that the asset has decreased in value by £0.5m compared to the purchase price. This is highly regrettable.' The land is currently leased commercially. An earlier report by auditors for the Welsh government found the 'most significant factor' for the farm purchase was using up unspent money by the end of the financial year. A Welsh government spokesman said: 'Gilestone remains one of the Welsh government's property assets and is being managed on our behalf as a working farm. 'We continue to explore potential opportunities for its future use, in keeping with our commitment to seek a sustainable outcome that helps local communities thrive. 'We will read the committee's report with interest and respond in due course.'
Powys County Times
23-07-2025
- Politics
- Powys County Times
Powys MS given new role after Reform's Royal Welsh Show news
Powys MS James Evans has taken on a new role in the Conservatives' Welsh Government shadow cabinet following another MS's defection to Reform. Nigel Farage used an appearance at the Royal Welsh Show on Tuesday that Laura Anne Jones had crossed the floor to join Reform UK. Now Brecon and Radnorshire MS James Evans has been awarded the Armed Forces brief that she previously occupied. It means he is now the Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Health, Social Care and the Armed Forces. Welsh Conservative leader Darren Millar MS also announced that Joel James will become the new Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Local Government and Housing, and Natasha Asghar is is taking on a wider portfolio and becomes the Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Children, Young People and Education. The Local Government and Housing portfolios were also part of Ms Jones' brief before she defected to Reform. Ms Ashgar was previously in charge of education for the Shadow Cabinet, and takes on the roles previously occupied by Mr James. Mr Evans has previously denied reports that he was set to defect to Reform, calling the claims "simply not true". Mr Millar said: "I am pleased to announce today's changes to my Shadow Cabinet team. "The Welsh Conservatives are the only credible alternative to the failing Labour Government here in Wales, and we are the only conservative party that will be on the ballot paper in the Senedd elections next May. "After 26 years of devolution under Labour, our country is broken, only the Welsh Conservatives will fix Wales." The full Conservative shadow cabinet in Wales. Leader of the Opposition - Darren Millar MS Deputy Leader of the Opposition, Chief Whip and Shadow Cabinet Secretary for the Constitution - Paul Davies MS Shadow Cabinet Secretary for, Children, Young People and Education - Natasha Asghar MS Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Culture, Tourism, Sport and North Wales - Gareth Davies MS Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Health, Social Care and the Armed Forces- James Evans MS Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Environment - Janet Finch-Saunders MS Shadow Counsel General, and Shadow Secretary for Delivery, External Affairs and Welsh Language – Tom Giffard MS Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Equalities and Social Justice - Altaf Hussain MS Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Local Government and Housing – Joel James MS Shadow Cabinet Secretary for the Economy, Energy and Rural Affairs - Samuel Kurtz MS
BBC News
23-07-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Reform's Laura Anne Jones has no principles, Tory MS says
Welsh Conservatives have rallied around to attack a former Senedd colleague after she defected to Evans accused Laura Anne Jones of having no principles, while Tom Giffard said Reform was welcome to someone who was "always in the news for the wrong reasons".It comes as two councillors in Conwy left the Tories for Anne Jones was unveiled by Nigel Farage as the party's first Senedd member at the Royal Welsh Show on Tuesday. Reform said Jones had made "a principled decision" to join the party. Jones told a news conference for the announcement: "I've just suddenly felt that the Conservative Party was unrecognisable to me. It wasn't the party that I joined over three decades ago."She said Reform "is listening to the people of Great Britain" and called party leader Nigel Farage "a great man".Speaking to BBC Radio Wales Breakfast on Wednesday, Evans said: "Laura Anne Jones is a close friend of mine."The Member of the Senedd (MS) for Brecon and Radnor said he first learned she was leaving for Reform at the time of the announcement. "Laura and I have spoken, and I've made my opinions very clear. I don't think she's made the right decision."I am a firm believer, if you are elected as a Conservative member of the Senedd, you owe it to the electorate, you owe it to your party, to see your term of office out as a Conservative.""Jumping to Reform, it seems that she doesn't have any principles."Evans added: "Everything about the Nigel Farage circus turning up here yesterday, I don't think he had the response he was expecting. "I heard him being booed. I heard him being jeered in some places, and a lot of people here don't trust what he's got to say."Because one minute he'll come here and say one thing, and then he'll go somewhere else and say something different.""They're not a credible option and they're not a credible party." Tom Giffard, MS for South Wales West, told BBC Radio Cymru's Dros Frecwast programme that one of the problems with Jones' defection was that the Senedd group had given Laura "a lot of support over the last few years"."This is the way she's chosen to do this, and it's not good enough."He said the Conservative Party in Wales "is pulling in the right direction. We have policies that I think are exciting"."The important thing now is that we've got rid of someone who was always in the news for the wrong reasons... Reform are welcome to have those headlines in the future." The defection comes just under a year since Jones apologised for using a racist slur about Chinese people in a WhatsApp has been investigated by the Senedd's standards commissioner Douglas Bain, a probe believed to be related to allegations of bullying by a senior member of that she is about to be cleared, Jones said she has seen the report and is confident "with the outcome".On Tuesday Farage said of the allegations facing her: "Let me assure you that she would not have come to us, and we wouldn't have accepted her, if we weren't confident that will all go away."A police investigation into complaints about her expenses found "no evidence of fraudulent activity". A Reform spokesman said: "Laura has made a principled decision to join a party that she believes truly represents her values and offers Wales a better future."It's clear from the reaction of Mr Giffard and Mr Evans that if anyone dares to challenge the establishment and their cosy status quo, they attack them personally rather than engage with the reasons people are leaving."Reform UK will continue to stand up for the people of Wales and push for a government that puts Cymru first." Who are the Conwy councillors who have defected to Reform? Meanwhile two Conservative councillors on Conwy Council have defected to Reform UK, the party has told Newyddion Montgomery and Louise Emery expressed "sadness" over their decision but said they "cannot stand by any longer" adding that "the two main parties have failed".Thomas Montgomery has served as the county councillor for the Tudno ward since 2022 and is currently deputy mayor of said: "Our politics and our country are broken. We need a party with vision, passion, and policies that deliver for working people and small businesses up and down Wales and the United Kingdom."Louise Emery has served as county councillor for Gogarth Mostyn since 2017, having previously been deputy leader and held other cabinet positions. She is also a current town councillor in said that Reform UK had a "manifesto of common-sense policies" and would "deliver change at local government, the Senedd, and in Westminster".The Welsh Conservatives have been asked to to a question on whether we can expect more defections from other parties, Reform UK said they "engage in regular conversations with members of all parties and independents," but that Reform "don't comment on private conversations".
Powys County Times
20-07-2025
- Health
- Powys County Times
Opinion: Labour has betrayed Powys patients over health
Powys residents are being treated as second-class citizens by the Welsh Government, writes James Evans MS. A £120 million fund announced to cut waiting times across Wales will not cover Powys residents receiving care in English hospitals. A recent Powys Health Board decision means that patients who have their care in English hospitals are now having operations intentionally delayed because Powys Teaching Health Board cannot afford to pay. This is a betrayal of border communities who rely on cross-border care. This is not about capacity or lack of doctors or nurses – this is about money. I've challenged the Cabinet Secretary for Health on this. People here pay the same taxes, they deserve the same treatment! This crisis doesn't stop at cross-border care. Our NHS in Wales is sadly in the worst state it's ever been. Nearly one in five people in Wales are on a waiting list. Thousands are stuck in pain for over two years. A&E targets are being missed month after month, with long waits and care in corridors. Ambulances are queuing outside hospitals not able to respond back to the communities for 999 calls. GP practices are struggling under immense pressure. NHS dentistry is close to collapse with less than half of the Welsh population able to access NHS dental care. In Powys, as in the rest of Wales, people are living in pain or giving up on trying to get an appointment altogether. However you look at it, things badly need to change in Wales. The staff do their best in challenging circumstances and my thanks go to each and every one on the frontline. Processes, procedures need to change, top level management need to be accountable for failures. That includes the Health Minister! What patients need is treatment, not hashtags, slogans, or spin. We need a clear recovery plan for the NHS with proper accountability and a long-term strategy to train and retain our healthcare workforce.
