Giving Wales more power “is not the answer” according to the author of a UK Government report on “strengthening” the union. Andrew Dunlop told State of the Union, that he “isn’t calling for more powers to be devolved” and that he believes the answer is to make devolution “work better”. […]
Gareth Williams, local democracy reporter A decision to double the council tax rate on second homes in Gwynedd has been described by one Tory politician as “taking a wrecking ball through the county’s visitor economy”. Approved during a full council meeting on Thursday, the move means that the owners of […]
Gareth Williams, local democracy reporter Fears have been raised that north west Wales could lose out on millions of pounds of infrastructure funding after being judged not to be priority areas when applying for a share of the £4.8bn pot. The UK Government’s new Levelling Up Fund has been designed […]
Saul Cooke-Black, local democracy reporter Plans for a £7.1 million upgrade of Pontypool and New Inn railway station have taken a major step forward after Torfaen council agreed to contribute its share of funding to the project. But councillors have also urged that the number of trains stopping at the […]
Gareth Williams, local democracy reporter Councillors in Gwynedd have backed calls for the county to become a pilot area for universal basic income (UBI), offering residents a non-means-tested fixed sum paid by the government to cover the basic cost of living. Such a state financial support system, which would replace […]
Katy Jenkins, local democracy reporter A council leader has said that some second home owners “take a chance” and travel to Ceredigion despite Covid-19 lockdown restrictions. People in England are also required to stay in their local areas, and “some are caught, and some others do arrive,” Cllr Ellen ap […]
After a fiscal boost next year to deal with Covid-19 Wales faces a £600m funding squeeze due to cuts to Treasury spending, a report has revealed. After a further boost to the Welsh Government’s ‘fiscal firepower’ to deal with the pandemic, cuts to non-virus spending from 2021-22 will reduce the […]
Wales’ Health Minister has hinted that people will be asked to stay local following next week’s review of the current lockdown restrictions in Wales and said the government would continue its cautious approach to lifting the measures. The current “stay at home” message is expected to be lifted as figures […]
Police have warned people not to go walking in the mountains alone during the Covid-19 pandemic after a 15 minute stroll turned into a “terrifying” six hour ordeal for one walker. The experienced hiker, who said she is usually prepared for all eventualities, has thanked Dyfed-Powys Police and Western Beacons […]
A Welsh MP received Six Nations rugby tickets from a company he thanked in the Commons. Cardiff South and Penarth MP Stephen Doughty accepted two VIP tickets to Wales’ match against France in the 2018 Six Nations tournament from Veezu Ltd. The match came months after Doughty had spoken about […]
