Waiting lists and bureaucracy

While the Assembly Government continues to wrestle with the Wales Office over housing and its many issues, it falls to a local government - Cardiff Council - to take a more common sense approach to housing issues in the capital city.

A single application process for waiting lists has been developed by the council, in partnership with eight housing associations. Just one form now needs to be filled out by anyone looking for housing in the city. This is then entered into a single database which is used by both the council and all housing associations involved. The new common waiting list is administered by the council on behalf of itself and the housing associations and currently has in excess of 6,000 applicants. In total the new waiting list, which covers social landlords, has over 22,000 properties.

Executive Member for Housing Councillor Judith Woodman said, "This has been a long process and has been developed in partnership with all local Housing Associations. It has created a service which makes sense to everyone and probably none more so than those applying for social housing. "I believe the new common waiting list brings common sense to a system so many of our citizens rely on."

A Welshman's home is his castle, and a last chance for Dr Gibbons to prove some worth

"et domus sua cuique est tutissimum refugium"

The Western Mail reports that a 76-YEAR-OLD man has been on hunger strike at the doors of the National Assembly for 15 days and vows to remain until he wins an inquiry into his planning dispute.

This is the latest protest by Iorwerth Jones, from Llandovery, who was found not guilty of causing £30,000 of damage to council offices in Llandeilo during a rooftop protest in 2007.

He has been locked in conflict with the council since 1979 when a lorry park was sited near the home he was building. This has been replaced with a pet food factory and he claims his house has been devalued.

Carmarthenshire County Council said it was “beyond belief” last year when a jury at Swansea Crown Court found him not guilty of breaking roof tiles with a hammer.

He met Jane Davidson, Assembly Minister for Environment, Sustainability and Housing, last week but was not satisfied with her response.

Mr Jones said: “I had an hour with her. It seems she is trying to push it aside.”
“I want an inquiry. I want the truth to come out. As long as she keeps on saying she is not going to do anything I’ll be here.”

A spokesman for the minister said: “Ms Davidson met Mr Jones with his constituency AM Mr Rhodri Glyn Thomas and Welsh Assembly Government officials out of concern for his health. During the meeting Ms Davidson listened to Mr Jones’s issues but made it clear that her statutory role in the planning process meant she could not intervene in an individual planning issue.

“Ms Davidson’s private office staff continue to discuss Mr Jones’ health and welfare with officials from the National Assembly for Wales (very noble but impractical - why not send in the resident GP), who are responsible for the T Hywel building where Mr Jones is protesting.”

The Assembly Government argues no evidence so far suggests the local planning authority acted in such a way to justify an inquiry.

The Assembly Government can hold a public inquiry into a planning issue if it believes the original decision was “grossly wrong” and the public interest is at stake.

Mr Jones’s case has been referred to the local government ombudsman on four separate occasions but a basis for an investigation has never been found. However, Mr Jones is adamant he suffered an injustice.

Chris Burns, assistant chief executive of Carmarthenshire County Council, said: “All his complaints have been dealt with in the proper manner and in line with the appropriate rules and regulations.

“The council’s offer to purchase his property was flatly rejected by Mr Jones.”

Let's hope that his health doesn't take a turn for the worse and that he's given a proper meal in the heavily subsidised staff restaurant. One thing's for sure, he's in the wrong place for snacks.

Senedd Circular w/b 20 Oct 2008: Opening Old Wounds

This article appears in The Wardman Wire:

This week, Miss Wagstaff has been excited and down in the dumps at the same time, if that’s at all possible. On the one hand, she’s unwell, and on the other she has the opportunity to write a Senedd Circular post that is long overdue.

We can safely put leadership elections on the back burner for a while, the Welsh Labour leadership election has been talked to death [well, nearly!] and the Welsh Liberal Democrat election is a two-horse race that is slowly gaining momentum – and both always seem to be topical on Welsh blogs.

Plenty has happened since my last post to this column, though it appears that nothing changes when it comes to a rift between the Commons and Assembly, MPs versus AM’s in what one leading Welsh blogger has described as “…the Welsh Affairs Select Committee’s response to the housing LCO suggests that it is, illegally, attempting to make itself the Assembly's upper house.” and by another as a constitutional stand-off between the National Assembly and the Welsh Affairs Committee of the House of Commons.

You can always predict when disaster and controversy will strike at the heart of the Assembly, and it’s usually when Lord Elis-Thomas opens his bi-lingual mouth. Bi-lingual in terms of speaking - both as an Assembly Member and Presiding Officer - and occasionally mixing the two when convenient. Not this week. Though it has opened old wounds with a former adversary.

This week’s main tension comes from the to-ing and fro-ing of work by the House of Commons Welsh Affairs Select Committee and our own National Assembly. This has resulted in resident villain [usually], or as others call him, Presiding Officer Lord Elis-Thomas [Dafydd Elis-Thomas to his friends, I’m told] in having to stick his nose in where it needs to be for a change - in policing the remit of LCO's. His lordship has taken time out to write to two-time Welsh Secretary Paul Murphy, expressing concerns and accusing the Welsh Affairs Select Committee of MPs of "anti-devolution sentiment". Elis-Thomas is no stranger to offering his opinion on a whole range of ‘constitutional’ matters.

It may sound odd, but even other Assembly members have queued up behind the Presiding Officer, not just fellow Plaid members this time, and called for him to be heard as the voice of reason.

This fistfight between Commons and Assembly has happened before and was largely seen as a straight fight, with the Assembly’s proposal dumped from a great height without sound – simply no remit to turn this into law. This time it’s different.

The present bout over the Welsh Assembly Government's request for powers to legislate over the so-called right-to-buy-scheme. In short, the Welsh Ministers are asking for more than they originally sought and are being ticked off by the Welsh Affairs Select Committee. The committee’s jabbing response is one of - you do have the right to do both, but you only discussed suspension of the right-to-buy when you talked to us about it originally. Because of this we believe you should stay within the original draft.

On this occasion the common sense approach is needed as much agreed by those that generally take a step back from those MPs that it directly affects. MPs do seem to be interfering too deeply into matters concerning the remit of the WASC when it comes to dealing with LCOs. Their role as committee members is to work within the remit of the Government of Wales Act when it comes to guiding LCOs through their part of the process. Anything more, and they run the risk of being accused of standing in the way of devolution, the Assembly, sometimes their party colleagues, and what their future has in store for them.

Too much interference may stave off extinction of some of their numbers, and will – in some cases – harm their legacy as Welsh politicians. Common sense and mutual trust is a must, but sometimes hard to come by, even within members of the same party.

And finally…

A welcome back to blogging to my old friend, Matt Wardman after his short trip to Wales, where he took in the ‘To blog or not to blog’ debate. I hope it was all worthwhile after the blogging banter that arose beforehand, and that the best side won.

Since writing this article it seems that blogging won the day, although I turn my face as there was much stick for anonymous bloggers – “Not accountable? True enough. Not reliable sources? Fair enough. Malicious? Some can be. Unchristian? Now hang on ... “

I’m still not convinced that I should ‘out’ myself!

Poverty and housing laws planned: Anyone can make a statement!

First Minister Rhodri Morgan has outlined plans for new Welsh laws on child poverty, affordable housing and home care charging over the next year.

The assembly government's plans also include laws to help children with learning needs and to suspend the right to buy council homes in some areas.

He said he wanted "to make a practical difference to the people of Wales".

But Welsh Conservative leader Nick Bourne accused ministers of "failing to match ambition with delivery":

long on rhetoric, short on substance, and lacking in timescale. While there are some positives to consider in this legislative statement, there is little to give us confidence that the assembly government can deliver it.

I have to agree with this. Anyone can make a statement. I plan on becoming a millionaire over the next year. There!... I've made one! Somehow I don't think my ambition will match delivery.

One Wales: Not worth the paper it's written on

With an early call for more cash than expected for a Daily Newspaper in Welsh, the One Wales Agreement now has more cracks than my Grandmother's china. The upcoming local election will no doubt also add to the tension between the two coalition partners.

In the latest chapter from today's news, Ned Thomas, chair of Dyddiol Cyf, said they were "firmly of the opinion" the assembly government was not fulfilling a pledge in the coalition One Wales document to back moves to expand the Welsh-language sector, and set up a daily paper in the language.

This is just a short post on the subject, but considering the many events since July 2007, we can't help but think that this 'One Wales' document isn't worth the paper it's written on.