Those 'big' ideas we had, have run out! Over to you...

Is it time for a change of coalition in time to embrace a new UK government?

The Voice of Unemployed Reasoning

Unemployment in Wales has risen sharply in the three months between July and September, latest figures indicate.

The Welsh jobless total increased by 14,000, more than half the increase for the UK as a whole, to 125,000.

It was the second consecutive three month period when Wales lost more jobs than any other UK nation or region.

Over to the comforting bureaucratic soul of WAG:

The Welsh Assembly Government said the quarterly rise was "disappointing" but a spokesperson said it did not reflect the trend over the year.

WAG is bad for business

Forty thousand businesses in Wales will be hit by higher rates next year, Welsh Conservatives have learned.

The Assembly Government's own figures suggest firms across the country will be hit with bigger bills from April, despite ministers claiming to help businesses during the recession.

Welsh Conservatives have also warned that a rise due to revaluation will come on top of a planned 1.5% rise in rates due to the Assembly Government's decision to phase in a 5% rise over three years.

Shadow Minister for the Economy David Melding AM described the Assembly Government's decision to lower the level at which business rates bills are calculated as "a smokescreen".

He repeated the party's call for the rates revaluation to be postponed until at least April 2011, and said ministers should consider Conservative plans to scrap or reduce the level of business rates for as many as 90,000 firms.

And he warned that the overall uncertainty about the impact of business rates next year was having a destabilising effect on the SME sector.

David Melding AM said:

By the Assembly Government's own admission 40,000 businesses will pay more in rates next year. Instead of helping small businesses during the recession Labour and Plaid Cymru ministers are making life more difficult for them.

The announcement to lower the level at which rates are calculated, while welcome, is nothing more than a smokescreen. If ministers really were on the side of Welsh businesses they would do everything in their power to postpone the rates revaluation planned for April and deliver a meaningful relief scheme to lift thousands out of rates altogether. They also need to end the uncertainty about the impact of revaluation and possible rates rise so businesses can plan for the future.

Businesses want real support from the Assembly Government at a time of economic difficult. I acknowledge and welcome the fact as many as 64,000 businesses could see a rates reduction next year. But for tens of thousands more their rates will rise.

For those businesses the increase will make life even harder as they struggle to cope with the impact of the recession. And for some it could determine whether or not they remain trading, lay off staff, or shut up shop altogether.

Rhodri Morgan's legacy: The failure of a government department

While we hear news that the number of unemployed people in Wales has gone up by 24,000 - the largest rise of any part of the UK [There are now 130,000 jobless in Wales. The unemployment rate is 9.1%] and the only regions with a worse figure are the North-East of England and the West Midlands, the Welsh Assembly Government's business promotion arm is showing muscle fatigue of the worst kind.

International Business Wales (part of the Welsh Assembly Government) has been targeting the wrong companies in the wrong marketplace and must be overhauled, Deputy First Minister Ieuan Wyn Jones said yesterday.

Two major reports yesterday dealt a blow to IBW’s reputation as a champion of Welsh business overseas.

A study by independent inward investment expert Glenn Massey highlighted areas where it was delivering poor value for money and warned:

1. The IBW brand is not strong or well recognised.
2. Clearly, the performance of IBW and its predecessor over the past 10 years has at best been mixed.
3. Wales has spent more than £3m a year on overseas offices but out of the 12 UK regions came last in the rankings for safeguarding jobs.
4. In 2008-09, the number of new jobs created by foreign direct investment was the lowest ever recorded for Wales.
   

The report also reveals that the member of staff stationed in IBW’s Munich office cannot speak German.

A major concern it highlights is that IBW has no responsibility to encourage the 500-plus foreign-owned companies in Wales to reinvest in the nation.

Conservative Shadow Minister for the Economy David Melding AM said:

The report into the effectiveness of IBW is disturbing and raises serious questions about whether the organisation is delivering value for money. The Assembly Government needs to review its programmes regularly and not only in response to a crisis as it did in this case over expenses. It is clear we have underperformed on inward investment compared to other parts of the UK. We were once the market leader.

How many of the Assembly Government’s programmes are underperforming badly?
That is the question ministers must now answer.

Government civil servants pile on the expenses

While MPs are experiencing a further grilling over expenses, we find ourselves revisiting a former blog post regarding another development over an old WAG civil servant expenses scandal.

An investigation by expert auditors KPMG found 11% of expenses – totalling more than £290,000 – by staff at International Business Wales staff may have been in breach of policy.

The experts uncovered unusual expenses at the body, which promotes Wales as a destination for businesses.

They included:

• the purchase of a first class flight (£6,125.63);
• a monthly mobile phone bill of £1,946.83;
• the electricity bill for a residential address (£345.22);
• AA membership (£203.54);
• furniture items including vases, candles and towels (£380.06);
• an item of “personal care” (£45.30).
• This is in addition to £150 spent on football kits and £553.87 paid for children’s textbooks in the 12 months to March.
• A further £3,394.44 was spent on overseas hospitality for a Wales vs South Africa rugby match.
  

The follow-up investigation into the 781 transactions where there may have been breaches of policy will report by Christmas.

It is not expected that the police will be called in, but disciplinary action is likely and staff may be asked to repay expenditure.

The expenses revelations came on the same day that a major report by independent inward investment expert Glenn Massey strongly criticised the performance of IBW and its forerunner, the Welsh Development Agency, describing its record as “at best mixed”.

Permanent Secretary Dame Gillian Morgan said the Assembly Government would work “urgently” to address the issues raised in the report.

She also acknowledged the expenses investigation had an impact on staff morale.

The KPMG investigation team were not able to decide whether a further 817 transactions – worth more than £280,000 – were within the rules, due to vague policy or a lack of documentation.

The Permanent Secretary pledged to address ambiguities in expenses policies. Dame Gillian said the international wing of the Assembly Government was the area where the opportunity for misuse of expenses was highest.

It’s our highest risk area because people are travelling overseas, they work independently, and therefore if you were going to have things going wrong it’s
the sort of part of the organisation you would expect to have the biggest issues.

In short, not only was Rhodri Morgan lied to, but it appears that Gillian Morgan is knee-deep in a public money expenses scandal brought on by unscrupulous civil servants. Her quote "Arguing that it did not point to chronic failure in the organisation...This is not a sick part of the system. There is some stuff that needs doing and there are some further questions to be asked but it was not a report that made me have all the flesh falling off my bones and whatever." is a perfect example of someone not willing to face facts.

But Kirsty Williams, leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats, said fears about the expense claims of IBW staff were well-founded.

In July we asked whether the huge amount of money being spent on expensive flights, top-class hotels and fine-dining was delivering a return for Welsh taxpayers,” she said.

The performance report confirms IBW’s failure to deliver adequate investment but the separate expenses report makes for astounding reading.

This report on the expenses of civil servants in IBW has proved our fears that there was a runaway culture of spending in the IBW, which Government was failing to monitor.

What we found most worrying about the expenses review is the amount of claims that have been made by IBW civil servants that are not part of the work that they do in promoting Wales as a destination for business.

The report shows that Government failed to implement effective policies, that policies on expenditure were not followed and that around 800 claims can still not be accounted for.

Together, the reports amount to a damning indictment of [Minister for Economy and Transport Ieuan Wyn Jones’] oversight of IBW.

We’re left wondering why this was allowed to happen for so long and what would have happened had we not raised our concerns earlier this year.

Two reports were commissioned into the assembly government-run International Business Wales (IBW) after a row over staff expenses which has led to further revelations.

Come in card number XXX [take your pick], your time is up

The civil service spending scandal contd.

As this news resulted from a Liberal Democrat freedom of information request, Kirsty Williams, leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats had lot to say on the matter (slowing down a little, Western Mail - move your ar*e):

I am extremely concerned by the information I have seen. Every taxpayer in Wales deserves an explanation from the Labour-Plaid Government. While we’re in the middle of a recession, it’s disgusting to know that public officials are flying first class, staying in the most expensive hotels, eating in the best restaurants – all at the swipe of the Welsh credit card.

Of course we should sell Wales overseas, of course that costs money, but these figures suggest a runaway culture of credit card spending.

Ms Williams added:

One credit card holder spent nearly £70,000 in a year on air travel alone. Welsh taxpayers have paid the very luxurious Oberoi Hotel group in India £6,590 this year alone. Staff at the New York office spent £3,537.79 at Macy’s department store and £6,036 at Ikea. The Sydney office spent £5,722 on taxis.

At the same time we can see somebody claiming for 89p spent at McDonald’s in Swansea, and claims for coffees at Starbucks cafes all over the world. Every Welsh taxpayer deserves to see this document, just as they should see politicians’ expenses. It’s a lack of transparency that leads to the sorts of activity these worldwide credit card bills reveal.

Ms Williams called on the Assembly Government to explain why taxpayers’ money was being spent in this way.

The Minister for Economy and Transport has some serious questions to answer: What, if any, procedures are in place to monitor and police spending? What kind of guidance allows civil servants to take first class flights and live this superstar lifestyle? How can we be sure that all of this activity directly generates investment into Wales? Quite frankly, what on earth is going on and what will be done about this?

The spending details revealed included:

“Card Holder 181” (Hong Kong) spent nearly £22,000 in 12 months on luxurious hotels all around the word including cities like Tokyo, Sydney, Mumbai, New Delhi, Bangalore and Cardiff, staying in hotels like the Hilton, the Oberoi, Westin, Grand Hyatt and the Ritz Carlton. The card holder also spent nearly £70,000 in 12 months on flights.

“Card Holder 708” (New York) spent £9,071.13 in various stores including Ikea, The Land of Nod (children’s bedroom furniture), Macy’s and West Elm (affordable modern furniture). They
are all soft furnishing stores. Card holders at the New York office, based in the Chrysler Building, spent over £3,500 at an Irish pub and Restaurant (‘Clancy’s’) just a few streets from the office building itself.

“Card Holder 314” (New York) spent £2,500 in the teen section of the famous Pottery Barn department store. PBteen is described as “a new catalogue in the Pottery Barn family.” The brand offers products in five key categories: furniture, rugs, lighting, bedding and accessories. PBteen includes hip, exclusively designed lifestyle collections bedrooms, study and lounge areas.

“Card Holder 450” (New York) spent £7,092.73 on air travel, £1,042.33 on taxis, £3,912.07 on hotels across the United States, £2,056.60 on food in restaurants across the US including high-end NewYork eateries. One example involved a bill of £599.42 in Margarita Murphy’s. The same card holder spent £347.11 at Duane Reade, a chain of drug and convenience stores in NewYork. In total, this card holder spent £17,265.71 over 12 months.

“Card Holder 459” (Dubai) spent £26,179.99 with Horizon Tours LLC, a tour operator, as well as £5,786.87 on hotels.

A spokesman for the Assembly’s top civil servant, Permanent Secretary Dame Gillian Morgan, said: “Any claim incurred on behalf of the Assembly Government must fully comply with strict authorisation and audit requirements.

Given the global nature of their role, International Business Wales (IBW) staff based overseas need to travel to pursue every viable business opportunity. Over the past few years, the number of offices in America and South East Asia has been reduced, and officials now cover a number of countries from their base. While this has led to a significant reduction in the cost of offices, it has inevitably led to an increase in travel associated costs.

However, we are clearly aware of the need to restrict any expenditure to ensure absolute value for money, and overall travel and subsistence costs for IBW are over 30% below the level incurred by the former WDA.

IBW exists to attract job-creating investment from around the world to Wales. It also supports Welsh companies in winning overseas business. Just this year alone, IBW has organised 37 trade missions for Welsh companies, including the recent successful trade mission to Washington DC which was attended by 80 companies from Wales.”

As we have proved with the recent first Ashes Test in Wales, it is essential that we seize every opportunity to raise our profile and generate business opportunities for Wales – particularly during the current global recession

Without demonstrating what may or may not have been achieved for money spent... cost... £750k.

Laying claim to the recent success in staging the first Ashes Test in Wales... cost... priceless cheek.

Blaming the level of credit card bills on a 'necessary expenditure' without evidence of any real benefit, and backing it up with 'it's lower than what the WDA would've spent' ...cost... PRICELESS AND SPEECHLESS.

The Government that likes to say YES...YES...YES*

Civil servants promoting Welsh business abroad charged nearly £750,000 to 35 assembly government credit cards in the past year, it has emerged.

Tens of thousands of pounds were spent on flights and visits to top hotels by International Business Wales (IBW).

The Liberal Democrats said every Welsh taxpayer "deserves an explanation".
The assembly government said officials had to pursue "every viable business opportunity" and were now covering a number of countries from fewer offices.

But the Liberal Democrats, who obtained the figures from a freedom of information (FOI) request, said it suggested a "runaway culture of spending".

The assembly government said every claim had to "fully comply with strict authorisation and audit requirements".

The details, from 35 different corporate credit card accounts for the year June 2008 to end of May 2009, were revealed in response to the FOI request.

The cards were used by civil servants working for International Business Wales (IBW), which has offices in major cities including New York, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Paris.

IBW's role is to attract inward investment to Wales, and to create opportunities for Welsh businesses overseas, by leading trade delegations and creating links between senior decision makers and business people from Wales.

The money spent included:

• More than £24,000 with the Cathay Pacific airline on one credit card account.


• The most expensive individual purchase was £6,606 from a staff member in Hong Kong, again paid to Cathay Pacific.


• The cheapest was 89p, by a member of staff from the New York office, which is listed as being paid to the McDonald's restaurant in Swansea.


• Over the 12 months, more than £36,000 was spent with Virgin Atlantic airlines, with another £25,000 on other Virgin flights.


• There were nearly £250 worth of purchases at various Starbucks coffee houses around the world.

Deputy First Minister, Ieuan Wyn Jones, should allow his department to look into 0% balance transfer deals which could help out during this recession. There are a lot of offers on the table at the moment.

* with credit and acknowledgement going to a certain banking institution from the 1980's.

Blow the whistle and they don't come running

The Western Mail's latest leaky story concerns CLAIMS made by an Assembly Government civil servant raise serious concerns about the running of the Department responsible for the Welsh economy, according to the Conservatives.

In a letter to the Western Mail, the whistle-blower lists a series of alleged shortcomings, claiming they illustrate how the Department for Economy and Transport is letting Wales down, and which include:

• Recent Ministerial refusal to meaningfully engage with the UK Government on stimulating bank lending to Wales’s businesses in favour of WAG lending of public money direct to business;


• hundreds of millions of pounds of European aid being diverted from the private sector into the continuation of longstanding, re-branded public sector schemes with poor track records;


• the much-trumpeted Single Investment Fund and WAG’s SME (small and medium enterprises) relationship manager support is only reaching a minuscule number of Welsh businesses;


• millions of pounds of funding intended for SMEs not being used and handed back;


• an expensive IT project to develop a customer relationship management system not delivering;


• major problems with the public transport concessionary fares scheme;


• ministers’ decision to reject connecting with the highly praised Business Link and Direct Gov websites, helping millions of individuals and businesses elsewhere in the UK, on the grounds that they are “too English” and would make the millions of pounds invested in WAG’s site look embarrassing;


• expensive staff events continuing at some of Wales’ best hotels regardless of the recession; and
• the department’s staff having the least faith in senior management, according to staff survey results.
  
  

Shadow Minister for the Economy David Melding said:

Businesses and workers across Wales are looking for leadership and support as the recession tightens its grip. They need to have confidence that after five economic summits and countless policy announcements the Assembly Government is delivering on its promises.

These claims, however, suggest the Assembly Government is failing to match words with delivery. They also highlight poor morale among staff at the heart of the Assembly Government and underline the concerns we have raised about ministers’ failure to implement a proper package to help businesses survive the recession. They also raise questions about the performance of [Plaid Cymru leader] Ieuan Wyn Jones as the Minister responsible.

The Assembly Government needs to satisfy the public it is doing all it can to help businesses and workers overcome the growing economic difficulties – not just in terms of words, but also by providing tangible evidence of delivery on the ground.


An Assembly Government spokesman would not respond on a point-by-point basis to the allegations, but said:

This is merely a list of unsubstantiated and spurious claims [that we wouldn't like to talk about] from an anonymous individual [coward] claiming to work for the Department for Economy and Transport [contradiction in terms]. If a member of the Department has any legitimate concerns [and are not bothered about advancement] then they are encouraged to raise them through the proper channels. *

* Correct course of action: Express concern to senior manager - senior manager rejects your concern and explains that you don't have sufficient experience in such matters - senior manager reports to colleagues - discussion takes place behind closed doors while alarm bells are silenced, hoping that no one else will stir up a fuss - problem solved.

Return of the Blair casts a shadow over Brown

Tony Blair is to co-host a summit on the global financial crisis with President Nicolas Sarkozy in January, in a move likely to infuriate Gordon Brown.

Mr Blair's office has been in in touch with the Prime Minister to invite him to the Paris conference, but Mr Brown has so far refused to accept the invitation, with an official saying last night he was still considering his "diary commitments".

Sources said that Mr Brown was "relaxed" about the event taking place. However, any attempt by Mr Blair to overshadow Mr Brown's efforts on the world stage is likely to anger Downing Street aides. He has rebuilt his political reputation by claiming to lead the world in tackling the global financial crisis – most recently with a "road map" for financial reform he presented at a G20 summit last weekend.

But he may now have to contend with Mr Blair taking on a formal role in the global response to the economic crisis.

The summit will come days before Barack Obama is sworn in as US President on Jan 20, and threatens to upstage a follow-up G20 summit that Mr Brown is expected to host in London in April.

Lower-grade recruitment has started and finished

Team Supports (North Wales) - Ref:1083092
Team Band £15,500 - £19,000
Division: DE&T, CISD, DCELLS, Rural Affairs & Heritage
North Wales various - Majority will be relocating to Llandudno Junction 2010
Actual starting salary : £15,500

Work Pattern:
Applications from candidates who wish to work full-time, part-time or on a job-share basis will be considered.

Purpose of post:
Individuals recruited will have a flexible approach and a willingness to contribute to the business of the Welsh Assembly Government. The postholder will provide administrative support to the team. This may include dealing with clients, liaising with partner organisations and professional advisors, and carrying out the administrative functions such as maintaining databases, managing enquiries, producing reports and raising the required Purchase Orders and processing invoices. The Welsh Assembly Government values diversity highly within the workplace and welcomes applications from individuals of all genders, ages, ethnic backgrounds, sexual orientations, disabilities, faiths and religions so that it can be more representative of the people whom it serves. The Welsh Assembly Government is committed to the employment of disabled people and is fully committed to the ‘positive about disabled people’ two-tick scheme it employs. Applications from Welsh speakers and under-represented groups are particularly encouraged.

Key tasks:
The key tasks will depend on the post to which the successful candidate will eventually be appointed. Jobs could be available in any of our North Wales offices based in and around St Asaph Business Park, Colwyn Bay or Caernarfon initially with the post and postholder required to relocate to the new Llandudno Junction Office in 2010. Most team supports working in the Welsh Assembly Government undertake the following tasks: Undertake general administrative activities such as drafting emails; letters; filing etc; Use a variety of Microsoft Office packages such as Word, Outlook and Excel; Respond and offer solutions to customer queries quickly and effectively; Undertake projects as delegated by their line manager; Arrange meetings and undertake the role of minute taker;

Don't rush to apply as the deadline was 31 October 2008. The jobs were previously advertised here.

A picture paints a thousand words

Welsh Economic Summit

Welsh Assembly Government met business and union leaders in a yesterday between 9 and 12, with 15 mins for coffee.

First Minister Rhodri Morgan said the summit was "remarkable" and showed Wales was "stepping up to the plate".

There was me thinking that they've had the responsibility for doing something for some time, after all, to be forewarned is to be forearmed.

Switzerland is known for chocolate, cheese, taxation, and banking

In light of the Icelandic issue, Nick Bourne AM recalls a question from a recent meeting of the Assembly Finance Committee that was raised by Labour AM Huw Lewis.

"Astoundingly, though money tends to be drawn down from Whitehall, neither the minister nor his officials did not know in response to questions from Huw Lewis where WAG banked nor how much was held in the accounts - reassuring isn’t it?"

This has unexpectedly prompted Rhodri Morgan to take action, and could it be the reason why he's taken a trip to Switzerland days before an All-Wales economic summit meeting? After all, he doesn't seem to be there for the joyous singing of hymns.

What's that pin number again?

Welsh business not confident in Assembly Government

Since we grow deeper and deeper into despair as the weeks roll on, it seems that the Welsh Assembly Government has taken on board the ideas of a Welsh Conservative, Dylan Jones-Evans in his review of 2007, as highlighted by a renowned commentator on the Welsh economy.

Dylan Jones-Evans (29 December 2007)

Finally, we have a new Minister for Economic Development whose party has always supported the notion of creating a strong indigenous business base in Wales.

As discussed, the challenges he faces in turning round the Welsh economy are enormous but by encouraging enterprise and innovation, especially within our academic and private sectors, he could start delivering the type of change that has been sorely needed here in Wales.

In particular, I would urge him to consider calling an economic summit in early 2008 to bring new ideas to the table from the successful entrepreneurs and businesspeople we have here in Wales. At worst, it would be a wasted few hours for those attending but, at best, there could be the emergence of a whole new approach that finally turns around the fortunes of the Welsh economy.

The Welsh Assembly Government announced on the 8th October 2008 that it would be holding an All-Wales economic summit to discuss the present financial crisis and its impact on the Welsh economy. The meeting, which will take place next Thursday, will be chaired by First Minister Rhodri Morgan and attended by Deputy First Minister Ieuan Wyn Jones with responsibility for the economy and transport plus Secretary of State for Wales Paul Murphy.

If there was ever proof that this Assembly Government is seen as reactive rather than proactive, then this is a prime example.

First Minister:

I have convened the economic summit meeting next Thursday because I want to hear at first hand from businesses on how the current financial crisis is having an impact on them. The aim is to discuss in detail the challenges that are facing us as a result of the credit crunch and to examine how we can respond further to its impact on Wales.

Deputy First Minister:

The Assembly Government is already taking wide-ranging action. In the draft budget announced on Wednesday, more than £290m has been allocated to fund the Flexible Support for Business programme – to provide businesses in Wales with more effective and straightforward access to Assembly Government backing. We have also recently introduced a £7m package of rate relief to help smaller businesses.
We will also be announcing a series of measures over the coming weeks to help individuals and companies deal with the current economic challenges.

But we want to make use of next week’s summit to bring together the widest possible range of views and experiences and to explore in detail every single possibility that we in Wales may be able to reinforce or add to measures to help our businesses overcome the challenges they are now facing.

I happen to agree with Valleys Mam when she sees Ieyan Wyn Jones as looking "all cliches and no substance" and "... it really made me realise what an uniformed, blinkered team we have at the top of WAG. They really have to step up their game."

I couldn't have summed it up better myself, and it makes a change from pointing out the incompetence of top officials.

Moving on to the heading of this post 'Welsh businesses not confident in Assembly Government' it appears that businesses in Wales are now accusing the government of stifling the business end of the economy. The fact that reserves [rainy-day money] is now being spent on areas already 'provided for' in the coalition agenda isn't going down well in the business community. The Assembly Government only has one pot. For reserves, read, money that has been held back over time from worthy areas that are devolved in case the proverbial hits the fan.

When it comes to the economy and business, it's clear from the following that confidence in the Assembly Government is not full to the brim in Wales.

European funding is being taken by the Welsh Assembly Government and kept for itself.

The West Wales Business Initiative is calling for a full investigation into the Assembly’s use of European aid money.

On Tuesday, its representatives will present a petition backed by more than 40 companies asking the Assembly’s petitions committee to instigate an inquiry.

The Assembly Government’s Welsh European Funding Office website shows that of £127.7m allocated under the Convergence programme so far, £102.1m has gone directly to the Assembly itself.

A further £17.4m has gone to local authorities while the voluntary sector has had £5.5m. Only two private sector projects with grants totalling £2.8m have been approved – one by a subsidiary of Corus to redevelop the former steelworks site at Ebbw Vale, and another to create a centre of excellence for Welsh food in the Conwy Valley.

In a letter to businesses seeking support for the petition, West Wales Business Initiative secretary Wyn Price said little, if any of the new funds would reach “the sharp, business end of the economy.”

He said,“An example of what is happening is in Carmarthenshire, where the local authority is in control of Convergence Fund monies allocated to economic development and, in particular, the funds for the building of new factories,which are in short supply.

“The question is why the local authority has the power to determine private sector applications, while at the same time submitting its own plans to develop a new large industrial estate that it will then rent out to the private sector at so-called market rates.

“They have already limited the access to these funds by designating just one area of Carmarthenshire as a strategic priority, Cross Hands, where co-incidentally, it intends to develop the new estate.

"This effectively means that no direct benefit is derived by productive businesses. It does benefit the council which will derive future income to supplement its rapidly inflated size."

Since writing this post on the weekend, Dylan Jones-Evans has returned to blogging - if only for a day - to post his Western Mail article "The Assembly and saving the Welsh economy" in response to the current economic crisis.

Running the risk of being accused of being a Tory blogger by Nationalist bloggers - yet again [laugh] - at least Professor Dylan Jones-Evans is thinking outside the box, which is more than can be said of our Assembly Government.

Define "I have led a government without any scandals"

Scandal:

Offense caused or experienced; reproach or reprobation called forth by what is regarded as wrong, criminal, heinous, or flagrant: opprobrium or disgrace.

Speaking on BBC Radio Cymru discussion programme Wythnos Gwilym Owen, Rhodri Morgan said he had not heard the comments [The 39-page document, ‘Rhodri Morgan: Leadership Without Purpose’] himself but he had "heard from some sources that there is some really unpleasant political stuff going on and you just have to accept that".

"I've chosen to ignore them [the comments] completely," he said.

When pressed to respond to the criticisms, Morgan said his administration compared well with others throughout Europe.

"If you look at our record I have led a government without any scandals," he said.

Reacting to an accusation from Mr Bourne that he had "squandered" public money, Mr Morgan said the assembly government had consistently been given a clean bill of health by auditors.

I suggest the following for starters. I'm sure that others can think of more:

• Morgan speaks out on school buses [Wales urged to pave the way on school bus safety]
• Commissioner fears old people widely abused
• Wales going backwards over affordable housing
• End ‘confusion’ plea over first-time buyer scheme

This is only a conservative [small c] estimate of headlines over the last month. Just don't get me started on Culture, Economy, Education, Environment, Equal Opportunities, Finance, Freebies, Health, Heritage, Housing, Local Government, Policy Performance, Poverty, Quango, and Transport.

Balancing the books on public finances in Wales

Professor Dylan Jones-Evans kindly took me up on my offer of considering what has been the biggest waste of public money.

If I keep this to the field of economic development in Wales, we could be here all day. However, to be really naughty over this one, you could argue that the £200k or so that WAG spent on having a full-time North Wales Director and Director of Enterprise since 2006 was a monumental waste of money as she has now been replaced by another senior colleague doing this part-time on top of another major job (Director of IBW).

The spin over the new part-time position is that 'it gives North Wales a direct voice in Cardiff" although the real reason is that that the economic development division simply do not have the money for a replacement appointment having overspent by millions on transport (BBC, there's a story for you if you bothered to do any research!)

Worryingly, this arrangement seems to be working out extremely well than the previous arrangement, which may show that we have too many civil servants in the Assembly at a senior level.

I can certainly think of one or two who certainly would not be missed as they seem to spend more time counting paperclips than worrying about the fact that unemployment has increased by its largest amount since the last recession and Wales is facing its biggest economic crisis in years.

More significantly, this behaviour by senior civil servants in DET is certainly having an effect, quite wrongly, on the reputation of the Minister within the business community. He is being seen as weak and in thrall to his civil servants which is probably unfair to an individual who brokered one of the most significant political deals ever made in Wales.

Certainly, Andrew Davies may thank his old department for providing a potential solution to balancing the books on public finances in Wales.

This leads me nicely onto another topical post:

Wales' biggest winners: Criticism of bonuses awarded to top civil servants in Wales

Update 24 July 2008 07:57 from Dylan Jones-Evans:

Miss Wagstaff. Let me elaborate further.

Every day I deal with excellent civil servants, largely at a middle manager level who work extremely hard, care about their jobs and the effect they have on Wales. I doubt if any qualified for a bonus last year.

They are a credit to the Assembly and Wales and the work they undertake. However, they are drowning in a miasma of unnecessary bureaucracy and hierarchical decision making which is largely a result of prevarication, inaction and lack of vision by senior colleagues (with a few notable exceptions).

I am hopeful, given her pronouncements to date, that the new Permanent Secretary will begin to deal with this issue, as Wales deserves a dynamic civil service that does the country credit. Certainly, if we began to see real and sustainable improvements in health, education and the economy, no-one would begrudge any bonuses to every civil servant in Wales.

Senedd Circular w/b 04 May 2008: Rounding Up the Blogs

Matt Wardman has been rounding up the daffodils earlier and Miss Wagstaff had a night on the tiles (allegedly). So this is “Matt” standing in this week with a special “link blog” Senedd Circular roundup.

Blog Snippets

• Coalition deals sideline Labour
• Lib Dem German to quit in autumn
• New language rule for 57 bodies: thou shalt deliver thy services in Welsh. (I have not yet found out whether the Wardman Wire is on list, but another 57 makes 493 ).

Rounding up the Daffodils/cennin Pedr

There’s a big kerfuffle happening about cennin Pedr and why they should be purchased in Wales and not imported from foreign climes such as Cornwall (for example). Read these links to understand:

• Cennin Pedr in Rural Wales .
• Cennin Pedr and the Professor .
• My take on Cennin Pedr and Free Trade.

I wonder whether someone is going to appeal for a European Union Protected Designation for daffodils as Welsh. If so - prepare to get sued by the Ghost of Wordsworth .

In would be more fun if the Welsh did “red-faced nationalists on the point of exploding”. Unfortunately they don’t; that’s just Tunbridge Wells, a certain brand of Conservative, and Alex.

The Gossip

And - on the gossip front - I only just tumbled to the fact that Blamerbell the Underpants is a sibling of young Ms Jenkins from the Senedd .

Ordovicius tells me that “everyone (apart from me, apparently - pity the English) knows about “the Jenkins Clan from the Rhondda”. [I thought they were from Merthyr]

Isaac Asimov had a race from outer space called the Jenkinsites who survived by carrying a cylinder of cyanide gas to breathe - as that was the atmosphere on their home planet. I’m sure there’s no connection - the Asimov Jenkinsites also had six legs and a carapace.

Wrapping Up

Ok - enough. Miss Wagstaff is back next week.

Buying Welsh vs Free Trade: Exploring the tension

Fellow blogger Matt Wardman's latest 'Welsh' offering is in response to Prof Dylan Evans-Jones' piece on Welsh procurement.

Prof. Dylan-Jones Evans is arguing that there should be a preferential option for local suppliers over to foreign suppliers. Examples Dylan quotes include foreign organisations from as close as Sheffield or Cornwall.

You can read Matt Wardman's article HERE, which is a balanced piece and includes a link to Dylan's article.

Matt is hoping to blog-interview an AM from each party to tease out the more serious points about a preference for Local Production vs EU Procurement Rules early next week. Let’s see if they will talk to him.

How to report the credit crunch...

Some light relief during the Assembly's recess about impending financial catastrophe:

A template for writing a TV news story about the credit crunch

1) “Huge falls in share indexes have left investors and traders in New York/London/Europe/Asia reeling...”

2) “...at one point in the day prices/shares in oil/gas/banks were as low/high as X pounds/dollars/euros...”

3) “...the Bank of England/Federal Reserve/European Central Bank has…”
i) “stepped in to inject X billion pounds/dollars/euros...”
ii) “assured everyone that this is normal” or
iii) “Cut interest rates by half/quarter/one percentage point”

4) “...but how much will this actually affect you?”

5) Enter analyst or business editor: “We don’t really know what the long term effect will be. You’ll definitely be paying more for food/heating/mortgages from now on though…”

Economic Development is lame

Peter Hain (maintaining a low profile) has told BBC Wales he is concerned Welsh Ministers are failing to plough enough investment into boosting private companies:

The assembly government had given too much priority to spending money on public services... I do not think Wales can compete with China and India in the future, let alone with Eastern Europe today, unless we have the best skills.

It's as if the general thought in Wales is one of the Welsh public having short memories. Transport yourself to 2011 and the next Assembly election - surely Peter doesn't think that he's starting the ball rolling when it comes to setting up the current Minister for the Economy and his party for a fall - Welsh Labour have been in power since 1999, and Labour (UK) since 1997.