Latest news with #Senedd
South Wales Argus
10 hours ago
- Politics
- South Wales Argus
Controversial 'Great Wall of Clydach' to be removed
The so-called "Great Wall of Clydach," a 200-metre structure erected last month along Pwll Du Road in the Monmouthshire village, will be removed following public outcry. Peter Fox, Member of the Senedd for Monmouth, said: "This fence has been a huge topic of conversation for local residents and has certainly gained some national attention. "I think everyone agreed the intentions behind the fence were correct, but the execution was somewhat wrong." Monmouthshire County Council has agreed to replace the fence with stock fencing that will be lower in height and painted to better blend with the surrounding countryside. Mr Fox thanked council officers for their engagement with the community but criticised council leadership. He said: "The recent meeting in the village of Clydach was well attended, and I am grateful to the officers of Monmouthshire County Council for attending. "They stood there for a number of hours, held their hands up to getting it wrong, responded to concerns, and began to look for a solution. "I was disappointed at the meeting by the Labour Leader of the Council, Mary Ann Brocklesby, for not standing up herself to take even some of the criticism and feedback from residents. "As a past leader myself, that is your job." He welcomed the council's revised approach, saying: "I am pleased to see the community have been listened to."
Yahoo
13 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Senior Labour MSs face three-way selection fight
Welsh Labour risks losing at least one more big hitter at next year's Senedd election because of a three-way fight for selection in a south Wales constituency. Arrangements for the new Afan Ogwr Rhondda constituency mean three significant figures are being pitched against each other, including the deputy first minister and the woman that won Rhonnda for Labour in 2021. Huw Irranca-Davies and Buffy Williams will also face the deputy presiding officer David Rees in the party ballot to decide who will get the best spots on the area's Labour list. Welsh Labour said it would not comment on the selection battle. Ex-Plaid leader's 2026 re-election bid in doubt Plaid Cymru pledges independence referendum Row over where cash from Tory office sale went Labour is already facing a major shake-up after the next Senedd election, with more than a third of current Labour MSs having made the decision not to stand for re-election next year. Former first ministers Mark Drakeford and Vaughan Gething are among those standing down. Parties are currently in the process of drawing up lists for each of the 16 new constituencies for the next Senedd election. They can nominate up to eight candidates per constituency, with parties to be rewarded with seats according to the percentage of the vote they win. While Labour would expect to win two of the six seats available in Afan Ogwr Rhondda, it might struggle to win a third. Winning three of the six seats in any given constituency would roughly require around 36% of the vote. Local party members will now vote again to decide who will take the first, second and third place on the list in the constituency, with a result is expected in the coming weeks. There are already indications from some within the party of a degree of anger were Williams, one of the party's highest profile women politicians – to miss out. There would be "fury", said one source. Williams claimed one of the biggest scalps of the 2021 Senedd election, winning Rhondda back from the former Plaid Cymru leader Leanne Wood with a 19% vote swing. The previous year she had been awarded the British Empire Medal for services to communities in Rhondda. While Welsh Labour said it was committed to a "diverse slate of candidates" in its selection across Wales's 16 new Senedd constituencies, the Welsh Labour government abandoned plans last September to force parties to ensure at least 50% of candidates were women. There were concerns about their lawfulness and whether the Senedd had the power to make the change. Ogmore MS Irranca-Davies has emerged as an important figure in the current government set up, taking on not only the duties of deputy first minister under the leadership of Eluned Morgan, but also the rural affairs brief in which he has sought to placate protesting farmers. He said last November that he had "listened" after making changes to controversial tree-cover requirements to qualify for subsidies. A former MP, he has served as a minister at Westminster. Rees has been MS for Aberavon since 2011 and deputy presiding officer for the past four years. His current constituency contains the Port Talbot steelworks. Under normal circumstances Labour would have realistic hopes of winning three seats in the constituency, but as another source put it: "These are not normal circumstances." Senior figures in Welsh Labour are very concerned about losing voters to Plaid Cymru, while some of the recent announcements from Reform leader Nigel Farage suggested they were now also turning their attention to wooing traditional Labour supporters. A poll last month suggested that Labour had fallen to third behind Plaid Cymru and Reform. Previous polls had suggested the three parties were neck and neck. At the next election there will be 16 new constituencies made of up of mergers of existing seats and a system of proportional representation. Afan Ogwr Rhondda takes in the former Aberavon, Ogmore and Rhonnda constituency party areas. Each of the three MSs are on the party ballot because they were nominated by their respective areas: Rees in Aberavon, Irranca-Davies in Ogmore and Williams in Rhondda. A Labour party spokesperson said: "Welsh Labour has committed to putting forward a diverse slate of candidates, including women, people from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities, those identifying as LGBTQ+, and Welsh speakers amongst other underrepresented communities."
Pembrokeshire Herald
17 hours ago
- Politics
- Pembrokeshire Herald
Fight gains momentum to save historic Pembrokeshire school
Politicians, tv celebrities and national farming icons are all gathering forces to help safeguard a north Pembrokeshire school that's threatened with closure. For almost 200 years, Ysgol Clydau has taught children living in, and around, the village of Tegryn. But now, following a 34% drop in numbers, its classrooms could be closed for good by the end of the next academic year. Now, in a full-on effort to save the highly respected school from closure, a campaign is being endorsed by some of Wales' most prominent entertainers including the Welsh Whisperer, Gareth Wyn Jones and local politicians Ben Lake, MP, and Senedd Member Paul Davies. Meanwhile, a petition launched by concerned parent Sarah Farnden has already secured over 800 signatures in just two weeks. 'This just proves the strength of feeling that we have here in north Pembrokeshire, where people are prepared to do everything they can to save Ysgol Clydau from closure,' said Iwan Ward who is the local county councillor. 'But it's not just the children at the school who will be affected – the entire community in and around Tegryn is going to be hit. You only have to look at other villages which have lost their local primary schools, and you'll see that the majority of their residents are retired. Young families are choosing not to live there because the villages no longer have schools.' There are currently 36 children on Ysgol Clydau's register which represents a 34% enrolment drop from 2015 to 2025. As a result, Pembrokeshire County Council's School Modernisation Working Group has recommended a statutory consultation on closing Ysgol Clydau. 'It doesn't add up,' continued Iwan Ward. 'There's a school in Carmarthenshire which has only eight pupils, and this school has been told that it needs to attract an additional 10 or 12 children to remain open, which will bring it up to 20. Yet here we have Tegryn school with 38 pupils threatened with closure, and this figure is expected to rise with plans to build 30 affordable mixed housing units in the area which will obviously bring in more young families with children.' Cllr Ward believes that if the local authority's proposal is implemented, up to 50% of Ysgol Clydau's pupils will choose to be educated at home. 'And this is something I strongly disagree with,' he said. 'Many parents choose to teach their children only what they want them to learn rather than a wider, more all-embracing education. 'And the children are also in danger of missing out on a lot of social awareness and communication skills.' A recent Estyn inspection described the school as being 'happy, caring and welcoming' while its teaching standards are, according to Iwan Ward, exemplary. 'Its ALN support (Additional Learning Needs) support is absolutely first class – you really couldn't find better, and a lot of children are benefitting hugely from this. But if those children are suddenly made to go to a much bigger school, in this case Ysgol y Frenni in Crymych which has class sizes of around 30 children, they're going to feel lost. 'Ysgol Clydau is a real family concern where its teachers know the children's quirks, their strengths and their weaknesses, and these can all be taken on board in how the children are taught. 'To take all this away from them and to take the heart of the village away from Tegryn is unacceptable. 'Parents are starting to worry about whether they should be pulling their children out of the school now, before the consultation takes place in September, or should they continue in Ysgol Clydau hoping that it doesn't close the following July. Unfortunately these are questions I can't answer. 'Let's start fighting, and show the county council exactly how strongly the community feels about ensuring that Ysgol Clydau remains here in Tegryn, where it belongs.'
Sky News
18 hours ago
- General
- Sky News
New law to tackle 'nature emergency' in Wales - where 'one in six species at risk of extinction'
A new independent body could be created to oversee how environmental law is implemented in Wales, bringing the country in line with the rest of the UK. The Office of Environmental Governance Wales will be tasked with making sure public authorities, such as the Welsh government, Natural Resources Wales and councils are complying with the law. But campaigners say the legislation, which must first be approved by the Senedd, doesn't go far enough. England and Northern Ireland have been covered by the Office for Environmental Protection since 2021. The Scottish government set up Environmental Standards Scotland in the same year, leaving Wales as the only UK nation without a similar body. The Environment (Principles, Governance and Biodiversity Targets) (Wales) Bill has been laid before the Senedd on Monday. The bill is also set to enable Welsh government ministers to set "ambitious biodiversity targets". 2:50 Deputy first minister Huw Irranca-Davies said the bill was "crucial legislation that will empower us to address climate and nature emergencies". "With one in six species now at risk of extinction in Wales, it has never been more important to restore nature and preserve the natural environment for future generations," he added. The RSPB has said the bill is a "good start" but that it would like to see the government "go even further". Annie Smith, RSPB Cymru's head of nature policy and casework, said the bill "must drive the urgent actions needed to clean up the environment and restore nature in Wales". "Having declared a nature emergency, this Senedd must ensure its legacy includes a strong response for nature," she added.
North Wales Live
a day ago
- Politics
- North Wales Live
Former Plaid Cymru leader Adam Price faces uphill battle for Senedd re-election
Plaid Cymru's former leader Adam Price faces an uphill battle to be re-elected as a Senedd member after missing out on the top two spots in Plaid's selection process for Carmarthenshire. The Senedd election in May 2026 is being fought under a new system, and with less than a year to go, parties are currently selecting their candidates. Instead of the current combination of constituencies and regional lists, at the new election there will be 16 constituencies which will send six representatives to Cardiff Bay who will be chosen by proportional representation, making a total of 96MSs in the expended Senedd from next year. All the parties have to select a list of six politicians with the ones at the top of the list the most likely to make it to Cardiff Bay, depending on how many votes the party wins in the constituency in next year's election. Mr Price, the current Senedd Member for Carmarthen East and Dinefwr, has been selected in third place on Plaid's list in the new Sir Gaerfyrddin constituency. It means he will only win a seat if Plaid convincingly wins the most votes in the constituency and wins three or more out of the six seats on offer there. Ahead of him on the list for are his current colleagues - Cefin Campbell, the current regional Senedd member for mid and west Wales, in first place and Nerys Evans, a former Assembly Member for the same region in second place. The candidate selected in fourth is Mari Arthur. For our free daily briefing on the biggest issues facing the nation, sign up to the Wales Matters newsletter here. It is not impossible that Mr Price will be successful yet his hopes depend on a much more favourable result in May next year than he would have needed if he had won the first or second slots on the list. Plaid is hopeful given a recent poll put it as the biggest party, you can see that here. Plaid Cymru's process is ongoing with other seats currently being confirmed. The party's rules are that it will not give preferential treatment to any existing Senedd member and that party members were able to vote and give a ranked choice. To encourage female candidates, the party has selected eight constituencies where a woman will be selected top of the list. Mr Price was leader of the party from 2018 until 2023. He stood down after a damning report was published which found misogyny, harassment and bullying in the party. That report, called Prosiect Pawb, was commissioned in 2022, and written by Nerys Evans. It said too many instances of bad behaviour were tolerated, and said an anonymous survey of staff and elected members highlighted examples "of sexual harassment, bullying and discrimination". Mr Price initially refused to quit but then said it was clear he no longer had the support of his colleagues and resigned. Rhun ap Iorwerth then became leader. When Ms Evans announced her plan to run in April, she said on X. "It's been a very tough decision to make, and I've been humbled by the amount of Plaid Cymru members in that have urged me to do so. Now is not the time to sit on the sidelines, we all need to stand up for what we believe in these troubled political times." She was elected between 2007 and 2011 for mid and west Wales, she then set up public affairs agency Deryn, now called Cavendish. Mr Campbell said it was an "honour" to stand again. "It's an honour to once again stand for an area that means so much to me," he said. In a statement released by the party, Mr Price said: "I would like to thank the members that showed me support during this process and congratulate Cefin on topping the list. "The task now is for our team of candidates to work together and ensure our best ever result in Sir Gar at the next Senedd elections." Elsewhere in Wales, other selections include councillor Carrie Harper selected top of the Fflint Wrecsam list and former party chair Dafydd Trystan top of the Caerdydd Ffynnon Taf. Current Senedd member Luke Fletcher had hoped to be re-elected to Pen-y-Bont Morgannwg but has also come third.
