Latest news with #PoliticsWales
BBC News
11-04-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Reform UK: Leading figure in Wales not a Senedd candidate
The man who represented Reform UK in Wales during last year's general election campaign is "not a candidate" for the Senedd election in 2026, the party has Lewis also confirmed he is no longer the party's Welsh spokesperson, following an apparent rift between Lewis and party chair Zia Yusuf over comments Lewis made on to the BBC's Politics Wales programme in January, Lewis said immigration in Wales had been "very limited" and "arguably has been very positive for the economy". Responding to a clip of the interview on X, Reform UK Chairman Zia Yusuf said "this is not the Reform position". Reform UK has now said that "Oliver Lewis is not a spokesman for Reform and is not a candidate for 2026".Lewis himself agreed that he is "not a spokesperson any longer" as he is "now based abroad for work."Asked about the apparent rift on S4C's Y Byd yn ei Le programme, Reform UK's communications lead in Wales, Llyr Powell, said "that was Oliver's opinion."He disputed Lewis' title as spokesperson for Reform UK in Wales saying "I'm not sure that was his title".Powell also denied that Reform UK had demoted Lewis for his comments."There wasn't such a role so I'm not sure where this is coming from."Next year's Senedd election looks set to be the most open since the institution's creation 26 years ago, as Reform is polling neck-and-neck with the ruling Labour Party and Plaid Cymru, ahead of the Conservatives. Plaid has warned Reform could win the summer, Oliver Lewis represented Reform UK in Welsh debates and media interviews during the Westminster election campaign, alongside other Welsh party stood for the Montgomeryshire and Glyndŵr seat, coming second to Labour's Steve was still doing media interviews as Welsh spokesperson for Reform UK until January this year, when he spoke to BBC Politics told the programme: "Wales has had really very limited levels of immigration and the immigration that we have had arguably has been very positive for the economy."So immigration is much less of a factor for politics in Wales than say England."In a statement to BBC Wales on Friday, Reform UK said "Oliver Lewis is not a spokesman for Reform, and is not a candidate for 2026."Lewis confirmed he is "not a spokesperson any longer" but says "I am still a member and deputy chairman of my branch and supportive of the Reform movement". "The reason the Reform release said I am not a candidate for 2026 is because we have no candidates yet for 2026."Additional reporting by Adrian Browne
Yahoo
31-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Welsh Government refuses to release letter about impact of PIP and Universal credit changes
The Welsh Government has refused to share a letter sent by the UK Government responding for more information about planned changes to welfare payments. On March 16, Eluned Morgan wrote to work and pensions minister Liz Kendall asking for her to provide details about the impact her proposals would have on people in Wales. By the time the Spring Statement was made, no response had been received. In interviews after chancellor Rachel Reeves confirmed the changes in her Spring Statement on Wednesday, March 26, the First Minister said a lack of response was "disappointing". In an interview with WalesOnline the following day, the chancellor said it was not "usual" for such information to be shared with Welsh Government but said the UK Government was looking at "what it could do". You can read her interview in full here. For our free daily briefing on the biggest issues facing the nation, sign up to the Wales Matters newsletter here READ MORE: First Minister Eluned Morgan to appear in live WalesOnline Q&A READ MORE: DWP confirms payments and voucher scheme extended until 2026 When Mrs Morgan appeared in front of a Senedd committee on Friday, there was an awkward exchange when it was put to the First Minister that the Welsh secretary Jo Stevens had said she welcomed the changes. The First Minister refused to commit until she had more details. In her letter, the First Minister had said: "I am writing in response to your plans to reform the sickness and disability benefit system. I agree the system needs to ensure it is effectively supporting people into work and offering an effective financial safety net for people who are unable to work. "I would be appreciative if you could share with me, before the publication of your plans, any analysis which has been undertaken by your department, on the impact of changes to the benefits system as they will apply to Wales. "I look forward to our continued dialogue as I know the Green Paper is the beginning of the conversation and not its end point. I am copying this letter to the Chancellor of the Exchequer." In an interview on the BBC Wales Politics Wales show, Vale of Glamorgan MP Kanishka Narayan said: " understand that she's received a response." Plaid Cymru has called for the release of the letter, with leader Rhun ap Iorwerth saying it should be published "in full, without delay." The Welsh Government has refused our request to see the letter, the Department of Work and Pensions has also been asked.
BBC News
29-03-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Cycling plans in Wales at risk, warn campaigners
Campaigners have warned that changes to the Welsh government's cycling policies are putting efforts to get people on their bikes at "risk".The Welsh government has spent millions on encouraging people to walk and cycle, with councils bidding for cash to build new Transport Secretary Ken Skates said his priority was now inclusive travel - including fixing pavements to ensure they are suitable for people with disabilities and implying less of a focus on bike Labour minister said: "If our streets are safe for our most vulnerable, they'll be safe for all of us." Proposed cuts to funding triggered a spat among Labour Senedd members, with Skates' predecessor in the job Lee Waters accusing him of being "deeply disingenuous".Lobbying behind-the-scenes, by campaigners and others - including, sources say, by Waters during the recent Welsh government budget process - appears to have triggered a re-think on cuts to funding for the next financial 2026 funding will be devolved to regional transport bodies, with the Welsh government no longer ring-fencing the cash to be spent. As part of its action on climate change, the Welsh government has tried for years to encourage more people to get around by bike or to walk more under the umbrella of its active travel to Audit Wales, Welsh councils spent £218m from the active travel fund or its equivalent between 2018 and reports have suggested the Welsh government has struggled to encourage more people to walk and recent months Skates has told Senedd members his priorities on active travel have shifted. In January, he said: "We are placing an emphasis in 2025-26 on fixing streets, improving pavements, a focus on walking to and from school." Cycling UK's Gwenda Owen said there had been "consistent investment in active travel" over the last few years, with councils able to build capacity and "really plan for the future".She told the BBC's Politics Wales programme: "Without that investment in separate cycling infrastructure we risk missing the opportunity to enable more people to choose to cycle."She warned if funding was not ring-fenced "there will be other demands on the money"."We know that very often politically, walking and cycling does not come on top of the agenda," she said. Customers and staff at the Workhorse bike repair café in west Cardiff gave mixed views about the cycle network in the mechanic Jake Curran, 30, said more cycle paths would make him feel safer: "It's nice in Penarth because there's not a lot of road to cycle on but the closer you start getting to Cardiff the more traffic there is. You don't feel as safe when you're riding around Cardiff as I'd like to be."Jen Allan said she cycled in Cardiff. "For the most part it's OK, I can always find a route that gets me where I need to go in a pretty safe way," she said."There's a few where the route will just stop all of a sudden, or will change direction."Rich Morgan said the cycle network had improved since he began living in the city, but said: "There are definite gaps, disconnections, and cycleways ending." Skates told a committee in January that concerns from cycle campaigners were "unfounded, not least because we've recently implemented the biggest road safety initiative in 25 years with 20mph".The comment triggered a strongly-worded social media post from backbencher and cycling advocate Lee Waters."Using the drop in casualties on 20mph roads to justify cutting back on active travel infrastructure is deeply disingenuous," the Llanelli Labour MS said."Not least because the latest stats show an increase in casualties on roads where the speed limit is over 40mph".In January, John Griffiths, MS for Newport East, wrote to Skates on behalf of the cross-party group in the Senedd on active travel, expressing "considerable concern".In particular, it complained about mooted changes in the Welsh government's budget which they said meant the amount of active travel funding that could be applied for has been "effectively reduced by around 50%", because the number of schemes that could be financed had been told BBC Wales the government's position had now shifted: "We are very pleased that case seemed to have been listened to by Welsh government, because local authorities will be able to take forward more than one project". One source said they thought the Welsh government's strategy of outlining its "priorities" meant something that was potentially unpopular but the right thing to do was not at the top of their source - someone who works in the sector- said there was also concern active travel could get squeezed out when the funding is devolved to regional bodies - and not ring fenced - from 2026-27. Some groups have been pushing more inclusive design when it comes to active James, of the Royal National Institute for the Blind People (RNIB), said the RNIB was not "anti-cycling", but welcomed the new emphasis on said: "There has been a lack of consistency in inclusive designs in infrastructure and we want it to work for everybody."The policy and campaigners officer explained that some designs - such as floating bus stops, have been "dangerous for blind and partially sighted people". "You go into the cycle track and you have conflict," she said. 'We've listened to people across Wales' The Welsh government said it had assumed initially the funding for local government grants would be "significant reduced due to the need to continue investing in rail upgrades".After additional funding was secured, it was able to restore the fund to a similar level from the year before - from £45m to £50m. It said it did not have to invite more than one scheme application, but additional funding meant more could be brought Secretary for Transport and North Wales, Ken Skates, said: "Better transport is a priority for this government, and we've listened to people across Wales and their concerns. We are maintaining the level of funding in 2025-26 to local authorities for transport schemes and I will provide more detail on these next week."It was always my intention to protect budgets across the portfolio if funding allowed and given the additional investment made available to me, we can maintain the core funding for active travel at £15m and keep the overall funding to almost the same level as last year."He said that "60 per cent" of core funding must be spent on "actual change on the ground"."Rather than spend tax payers' money on administration and consultancy fees, councils will be able to invest in fixing pavements, dropping kerbs, installing seats, improving bus shelters and making streets safer for all, he added. Watch Politics Wales on BBC One Wales on Sunday at 10:00 BST, or catch it later on BBC iPlayer.
Yahoo
16-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Company retraining Tata steelworkers shuts office
A company which provided retraining courses to dozens of steelworkers affected by Port Talbot redundancies has closed its office in the town. It comes ahead of cuts to some UK government support, with Welsh colleges and councils also calling for clarity on ministers' long-term funding plans. Tata Steel announced last year that it was cutting 2,800 jobs, mostly in Port Talbot. The UK government said it had extended a wider fund, and that steelworkers would be able to access upskilling support via a separate transition pot for those impacted at Tata. 'Port Talbot won't be the same - it breaks my heart' Workers leaving steel town as 2,000 job cuts loom Q&A: Tata Steel's decarbonisation plans Over the past two years Whitehead-Ross has provided courses to 1,200 adult learners across south Wales. The work has been funded by the UK government's Multiply programme via local authorities. However, Multiply - which is aimed at adults wanting to develop their numeracy skills - will end in March. As a result Whitehead-Ross said it had closed its Port Talbot office and was making 16 members of staff in Wales redundant. "It gets to the point how far can you cut?" the company's chief executive, Ian Ross, told the BBC's Politics Wales programme. "We know there's the need out there, and there's a need in Wales to get economically inactive individuals back to work. "But the support needs to be there and you can only tackle those challenges by investing in those services, not cutting them." Mr Ross said his company had helped reskill about 40 people in the past six months who were being made redundant at Tata. Sioned Williams, Plaid Cymru's Senedd Member for South Wales West, said Whitehead-Ross's situation was "very concerning". "We know that this is something that works," she said. "We need a whole mix of ways to get people back into the workplace and to reskill and retrain them and this was one element of that." Colleges Wales, which represents Welsh further education institutions, also said there was concern within the sector over how organisations would be able to "support ongoing community aspirations and expectations" after the funding ends. Multiply is part of the Shared Prosperity Fund (SPF), set up to replace the money Wales and other parts of the UK used to receive from the European Union before Brexit. Whilst Multiply is being wound up, SPF as a whole has been extended for another year. A UK government spokesman said that while the "ringfenced" funding for the Multiply programme was ending, Welsh local authorities would "have the flexibility to spend their [Shared Prosperity Fund] allocation however they wish, including on adult numeracy programmes". That was welcomed by councils, with the Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA) saying the Multiply funding had been "tightly restricted" to numeracy schemes. "We consistently pushed for more flexibility so funding could support other initiatives," a WLGA spokesman said. However, Colleges Wales and WLGA have called for clarity over how SPF will be replaced from 2026. Meanwhile, on a recent visit to Port Talbot, the Welsh secretary said there would still be significant funding available for local steelworkers to learn new skills. Jo Stevens was in the town to announce investment worth £8.2m in a new project that she said would create 100 jobs. The money is being made available from the UK government's £80m transition fund, set up to help the community respond to the job losses at Tata. Asked if UK ministers were giving with one hand but taking away with the other, Stevens said: "Not at all." "We're talking about hugely different amounts of money here specifically for people to retrain and if they want to do numeracy training they will be able to access that through the funds that we have." Stevens also said the UK government was "in discussions" with Welsh ministers about how SPF should be replaced. Politics Wales is on BBC One Wales at 10:00 GMT on Sunday 9 February and on iPlayer Tata job cuts 'devastating' for UK steel - union Steelworks is my hometown's North Star, says Sheen
BBC News
16-02-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Tata: Company retraining Port Talbot steelworkers shuts office
A company which provided retraining courses to dozens of steelworkers affected by Port Talbot redundancies has closed its office in the comes ahead of cuts to some UK government support, with Welsh colleges and councils also calling for clarity on ministers' long-term funding Steel announced last year that it was cutting 2,800 jobs, mostly in Port UK government said it had extended a wider fund, and that steelworkers would be able to access upskilling support via a separate transition pot for those impacted at Tata. Over the past two years Whitehead-Ross has provided courses to 1,200 adult learners across south work has been funded by the UK government's Multiply programme via local Multiply - which is aimed at adults wanting to develop their numeracy skills - will end in a result Whitehead-Ross said it had closed its Port Talbot office and was making 16 members of staff in Wales redundant."It gets to the point how far can you cut?" the company's chief executive, Ian Ross, told the BBC's Politics Wales programme."We know there's the need out there, and there's a need in Wales to get economically inactive individuals back to work."But the support needs to be there and you can only tackle those challenges by investing in those services, not cutting them."Mr Ross said his company had helped reskill about 40 people in the past six months who were being made redundant at Tata. Sioned Williams, Plaid Cymru's Senedd Member for South Wales West, said Whitehead-Ross's situation was "very concerning"."We know that this is something that works," she said."We need a whole mix of ways to get people back into the workplace and to reskill and retrain them and this was one element of that."Colleges Wales, which represents Welsh further education institutions, also said there was concern within the sector over how organisations would be able to "support ongoing community aspirations and expectations" after the funding is part of the Shared Prosperity Fund (SPF), set up to replace the money Wales and other parts of the UK used to receive from the European Union before Multiply is being wound up, SPF as a whole has been extended for another year.A UK government spokesman said that while the "ringfenced" funding for the Multiply programme was ending, Welsh local authorities would "have the flexibility to spend their [Shared Prosperity Fund] allocation however they wish, including on adult numeracy programmes".That was welcomed by councils, with the Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA) saying the Multiply funding had been "tightly restricted" to numeracy schemes."We consistently pushed for more flexibility so funding could support other initiatives," a WLGA spokesman Colleges Wales and WLGA have called for clarity over how SPF will be replaced from on a recent visit to Port Talbot, the Welsh secretary said there would still be significant funding available for local steelworkers to learn new Stevens was in the town to announce investment worth £8.2m in a new project that she said would create 100 money is being made available from the UK government's £80m transition fund, set up to help the community respond to the job losses at if UK ministers were giving with one hand but taking away with the other, Stevens said: "Not at all.""We're talking about hugely different amounts of money here specifically for people to retrain and if they want to do numeracy training they will be able to access that through the funds that we have."Stevens also said the UK government was "in discussions" with Welsh ministers about how SPF should be Wales is on BBC One Wales at 10:00 GMT on Sunday 9 February and on iPlayer
