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?

No administrators were culled during Welsh NHS restructuring

A storm erupted last night after it emerged that not a single administrator’s job was lost when the NHS in Wales was reorganised in October.

Although the number of Local Health Boards shrank from 22 to seven and dozens of highly-paid top management posts disappeared, no-one has been invited to apply for voluntary redundancy
or otherwise been forced to take it.

Welsh Conservative Shadow Health Minister Andrew RT Davies said:

We were promised NHS restructuring would deflate Labour’s bloated health service bureaucracy and refocus delivery on to frontline patient care.

People pay tax and National Insurance to receive first-class healthcare, not to bankroll administrators and bureaucrats.

David Rosser, director of CBI Wales, said:

This is a situation that a lot of people in the private sector and a lot of taxpayers will be angry about.

Nobody likes to make people redundant, but sadly there are times when efficiency savings have to be made.

It is inconceivable that a reorganisation along these lines could take place in the private sector without a reduction in head count.

This does not augur well for the savings the Assembly Government will need to make in the coming years.

The Assembly Government said:

We expect to see a reduction in management costs over time but this was never the primary purpose of the reform programme. The main savings of the reforms will result from reducing the transactional costs associated with the internal market.

Hart attack: NHS 'spends £1bn of budget badly'

A billion pounds of the annual Welsh health budget is not being spent properly, according to finance chiefs. Full story here.

Welsh assembly members have been told that some patients are taking up beds needlessly, while others needed to be in hospital but were not.

Paul Davies, of the All Wales Directors of NHS, said a fifth of the £5bn annual health budget was not used correctly, with "extremely costly" mistakes.

The Welsh Assembly Government has been asked to comment.

Mr Davies told the assembly finance committee:

Far too many patients end up in the wrong place, either being hospitalised when they shouldn't be, or they stay in hospital too long, or they stay in primary care, and they should be in hospital.

All these mistakes .... [are] extremely costly, very expensive.

We believe there is at least 20% that we are not doing appropriately within the total budget, that if we did then we would see that improvement come through.

There's £1bn that we're not utilising appropriately.

Did anyone notice?

His Lordship has been attempting to deflect attention away from the negative press on withdrawing the Assembly's first landmark decision on the Welsh language, by regurgitating his annual attempt at dissing the Conservative party when it comes to devolution.

Did anyone notice his constitutional mistake? Answers on a postcard, or simply in the comments section.

Meanwhile a Labour-Plaid Cymru led national discussion - A last public question time session on more possible powers for the Welsh assembly will be held later at the National Eisteddfod in Bala, Gwynedd.

The meeting will be the final public event held by the All Wales Convention to gauge views on whether there is an appetite for more powers.

The session follows 23 events across Wales attended by almost 2,000 people since they began a year ago.

A report on the consultation process will be presented to ministers.

We can't wait for the 'report'.

Alliance vs The Welsh Assembly Government

Friends of the Earth may be happy with the recent update to Welsh Assembly Government transport policy, and business leaders angry at the recent announcement - worried about the economic impact of a decision to scrap the proposed M4 relief road. Meanwhile Ieuan Wyn Jones will enjoy the break of recess as he tries to juggle the two balls of his brief.

In another part of town, an alliance of Welsh organisations had already called on the Assembly Government to perform a U-turn on transport policy.

1. BayTrans
2. Bevan Foundation
3. British Heart Foundation Cymru
4. BMA Cymru
5. Bus Users UK Cymru
6. Campaign for National Parks
7. Confederation of Passenger Transport Cymru (CPT)
8. CTC Cymru
9. Energy Saving Trust
10. Passenger Focus
11. Physical Activity Network for Wales
12. Railfuture Wales
13. Severn Tunnel Action Group
14. Snowdonia Society
15. Sustrans Cymru
16. Traveline Cymru
17. Wales Council for Voluntary Action (WCVA)
18. WWF Cymru
19. YHA Cymru

The long-awaited National Transport Plan is put out to consultation and an unprecedented coalition has come together to call for a shift away from road building to fund a bold package of measures to help tackle climate change.

For the first time public transport operators have joined passenger watchdogs, health groups and NGOs to press for greater priority to be given to a range of initiatives that promote green transport.

Lee Waters, Chair of Sustainable Transport Cymru:

We’re fed up of strategies promising greener transport when half the transport budget is tied up in road schemes. From past experience we know this will result in more people driving further and faster.

If we are serious about tackling climate change and creating a healthier Wales, we urgently need a bold shift in transport policy. Projects which cut car use should be given priority.

The Sustainable Transport Cymru coalition has agreed a list of measures which command widespread support to cut car use and reduce carbon emissions:

• Measures to promote integrated transport, for example, multi-modal ticketing, bus / rail interchanges, Smart Cards and secure cycle parking.


• A range of ‘Smarter Choices’ measures. For example, Travel planning, Car Clubs, Car sharing, Bus Real Time information systems, Park & Ride, showers and lockers in workplaces.


• Traffic calming and speed restraint in residential areas to encourage walking and cycling


• An extensive network of shared paths for walking and cycling (segregated from traffic)


• Congestion charging allied with extra investment in public transport


• Parking control (including low parking standards for new developments, charging, use of workplace parking levies, re-development of parking space for more productive uses);


• An extension of safe routes to schools (for example, by using traffic-calming measures near schools and by creating or improving walking and cycle routes to schools).


• Reallocation of road space towards sustainable modes of transport


• An integrated marketing strategy to target information on those who are susceptible to change the way they travel;


• Demand responsive services, including community transport, to tackle social exclusion in rural areas and other areas of transport poverty.


• A wide reaching awareness raising campaign educating the public in the techniques involved in more efficient driving, for journeys where sustainable modes of transport are not an option.

These measures to reduce car dependency should be funded by a shift away from road building.

Sustainable Transport Cymru is an alliance of Welsh organisations from the private, public and voluntary sectors. They support efforts to reduce the environmental impacts of travelling and to create an environment where people have access to essential local services without the need to use a car.

Wales prepared for 'swine flu'?

The BBC has reported that there are NINE more cases of swine flu have been confirmed in Wales, taking the total to 26.

Among the latest cases is a 25-year-old local man who works at the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff.

Health officials said this case is not connected to that of another hospital employee confirmed at the weekend, but was travel related.

The man is no longer at work and there is no further risk to patients or staff at the hospital, they said.

Everyone who has been confirmed with swine flu in this latest batch - involving people in their early twenties from Cardiff, Swansea and Caerphilly - have been offered antiviral medicine and are recovering well.

So far 201 people have been investigated for swine flu in Wales and only one person has been taken to hospital. Sixteen cases are still under investigation.

New cases:

• A 21-year-old man from Cardiff who is a direct contact of a confirmed case in Leicester.
• A 19-year-old woman from Swansea who is a direct contact of a confirmed case in Exeter.
• A 20-year-old woman from Swansea who is a direct contact of a confirmed case in Exeter.
• A 20-year-old woman from Cardiff who is a direct contact of a confirmed case in Exeter.
• A 19-year-old woman from Cardiff who is a direct contact of a confirmed case in Exeter.
• A 19-year-old woman from Cardiff who is a direct contact of a confirmed case in Warwick.
• A 19-year-old woman from Bridgend County Borough who is a direct contact of a confirmed case in Exeter.
• A 22-year-old woman from Caerphilly who is a contact of a confirmed case in Oxford.

All are recovering.

While Dr Roland Salmon from the National Public Health Service for Wales added: "Because this particular type of swine flu is new, people have little or no immunity to it. For this reason, we know it will spread across the country eventually."

... the Welsh Assembly Government's Chief Medical Officer, Dr Jewell has said the authorities were prepared for the virus outbreak and have "robust procedures" in place. "While we are prepared for this, we are not complacent and people must be vigilant."

How can you prepare for something that is new, particularly as each outbreak may be different in terms of strain, and each person will respond to the virus in a different way to another? It seems that Dr Jewell has been in management posts for longer than he cares to remember.

NHS Direct can be contacted on 0845 46 47.

Welsh Assembly Government: Money for old rope

Couldn't help but post on news that has proved me, and many others right when posting back in October 2008.

The new civil service layer of Director General civil servants have now been appointed in the Welsh Assembly Government. As previously mentioned, this is part of the new Permanent Secretary's [Gillian Morgan] managment structure, which does have some merits and has seen some backing of those higher up and lower down in the Cathays Park food chain.

But of these new posts that bring an ample award of around £130,000 a year, three have rather strangely (hint of sarcasm identified) gone to internal candidates, some of who it has to be said are not exactly showered in management praise and glory. For some unknown reason a £55,000 + recruitment exercise has ended up employing three people already employed internally at the next grade down in the senior civil service [Head of Department].

One appointment does disturb me slightly.

Civil Servants are not perfect, but to appoint a man who has masterminded and single-handedly steered the staff of the Welsh Assembly Government towards a largely disappointing performance management system; the ASPB merger which led to unequal status among civil servants of the same grade; not to mention equal opportunities and other fiascos (take your pick), is largely a disgraceful act.

It is generally agreed among staff that Human Resources policy has been a disaster and particularly since 2006 - in short, a disaster since appointment. If this was a newspaper headline it would read, "Overall Head of Recruitment Gets Recruited". Surprise!

If it wasn't for my planned family holiday, this unwelcome news of neo-nepotism would have me sick to my Welsh core.

The Welsh Assembly Government has announced the appointment of new Director Generals and a Non Executive Director to its new senior management board - known as the Strategic Delivery and Performance Board.

Clive Bates (aged 47) is currently Head of the United Nations Environment Programme in Sudan and has been appointed Director General for Sustainable Futures.

Christine Daws is being promoted from her current post as Director of Finance to the Welsh Assembly Government to the new Finance Director General position.

Emyr Roberts will take up the post of Director General for Public Services and Local Government Delivery. He is currently Director of the Department for Social Justice and Local Government and has extensive experience which includes a period as Chief Executive of the Welsh European Funding Office.

Bernard Galton has been appointed as Director General for People, Places and Corporate Services following five years as Director of HR at the Welsh Assembly Government and a long career as an HR professional, primarily within the Ministry of Defence.

James Turner will replace Sir Adrian Webb as a Non Executive Director. Mr Turner has had an international business career and joined the Welsh Development Agency in the mid 1990’s as International Managing Director. Ten years ago, he established his own consultancy business undertaking board-level interim assignments and in this capacity was interim Chief Executive at the Arts Council of Wales during 2007. An experienced Non Executive Director, James Turner has served on the boards of a number of private companies and public sector organisations.

The appointments follow a tough recruitment process involving external assessors and complete the new, smaller and more focused Strategic Delivery and Performance Board which Permanent Secretary Dame Gillian Morgan announced in October 2008.

Gill Morgan said:
I’m really pleased to have completed recruitment to this new, smaller Board with the appointment of very high calibre people. I believe a smaller senior team will help us reduce complexity in the organisation and make it easier for us to join up across portfolios. Now more than ever we need to be able to support Ministers in tackling the things that make the most difference to the people of Wales.

First Minister Rhodri Morgan said:
My warmest congratulations to Emyr and Bernard. Their appointments complete a line-up of strong management serving the Welsh Assembly Government through the challenging times we face.

The new Board will be in place by the beginning of April. Chaired by the Permanent Secretary, the Board will include six Director Generals (DGs), together with the Chief Executive of the NHS.

The changes will be accomplished within existing resources and there will be no additional cost to the organisation's running cost budget.

Final words ringing in deaf ears

Before Sir Jon Shortridge retired from his position as Permanent Secretary to the Welsh Assembly Government [April 2008] he had a few words to share with staff:

Since I became Permanent Secretary, we have worked hard to become more responsive to democratic political leadership, more focused on delivery and more dynamic in the way we operate. This has been underpinned by strong governance and there has never been any significant criticism of our organisation for the way in which we have spent public money or undertaken our responsibilities.

As was explained by one observer at the time, "Spending time with your head in the sand is not marginally better than with it up your own ar*e".

[Pippa Wagstaff is currently on a blogging break]

Are the Senior Civil Service in Wales earning their salaries?

This post has been in my inbox for some time. Other events have taken over and we seem to forget - far too quickly - how much our public servants earn in relation to the majority of the population. Since Amanwy has now pointed out the latest in the Assembly Government hierarchy, which is the brain-child of new Permanent Secretary Dame Gillian Morgan, I've decided to finish this post.

The Welsh Assembly Government have announced a major re-organisation at Senior level of the civil service in Cathays Park. A new layer of senior civil servants will be created in an effort to join-up government. A policy-performance-bridge between the existing heads and the Permanent Secretary. They are to be called Director General posts, with each earning a salary of £130,000 (I expect there to be a tagline of 'more available, depending on experience' added in somewhere). Expected themed responsibility will cover: Sustainable Futures; Public Services and Local Government Delivery; People, Places and Corporate Services; and Finance. Under each Director General will be the corresponding existing departments, divisions, and branches.

In an ideal world, the Assembly Government will look to outside the Assembly in order to fill these new roles, and not look to reward those that are already stagnating in their current roles within the Cathays Park-based civil service. I can only imagine how many of the existing heads will be rubbing their hands with glee at the prospect of promotion. This may prove to be a consolation prize for some, and only time will tell how many of them will be positioning themselves for these new roles. There are a few that had their noses put out of joint when Dame Gillian Morgan - an outsider - was put in charge back in May.

Not taking into account that dreaded word 'bonuses', the 30 highest-paid civil servants in the Welsh Assembly Government together earn at least £3.3m, the Western Mail revealed in August of this year. This new announcement is - in no doubt - partly a way to reinvigorate our perception of the civil service by bringing in 'a welcome relief' at the same time as a fresh approach, far removed from the old management style of Sir Jon Shortridge. There's no more mileage in the romantic mantra of "Don't go changing to try and please me, I love you just the way you are." Dame Gillian Morgan wants to be seen as a manager promoting something radical within the civil service - concentrating on delivery with a different approach to her predecessor, and putting to bed the theory and rumour that she's going to concentrate too much on health in Wales, given her background.

Whatever the reason, laden with good intention, some will see this as an extra layer of bureaucracy and pure empire building of old-school proportions; or even a career-laden structure to progression for senior managers within Cathays Park. I'm a healthy cynic and also believe that Dame Gillian thinks that there's too many at the top table. Weekly/monthly meetings are taken up by too many items on the agenda, and wants to keep the talking to the few. Departments are difficult to downsize, so are kept the same. The Director General 'bridges' should be able to carry forward the right messages to the top-dog in each, and via these new bridges, the message should be carried forward without fuss to the department heads below. Sadly, as noses will be put out of joint in the process, people will largely forget that those that lead the divisions will remain the same, subject to any knock-on promotion.

Being seen to look outside the Assembly and advertise externally for new talent may be seen as forward thinking, however, the wind is taken out of its sails when you find out this is not new thinking, but common public sector practice.

The salary may very well reflect the roles, but more emphasis needs to be placed on measuring whether a good job has been done in each senior civil service role. At the moment this is only carried out internally, and sometimes by the media taking pot shots - occasionally in the dark.

The obligatory public relations guff that follows the installment of these new top-dogs will soon disappear, and when the air clears, all we're left with is a layer of 'strategic geniuses' that, in time, turn out to be another layer in the silo that make little difference to policy ideas and performance when those that command the middle ranking troops remain the same.

The data shows top civil servants continue to earn significantly more than the Assembly Government Ministers responsible for policy.

The First Minister receives £78,355 on top of a basic AM’s salary of £50,692. Cabinet members are paid a top-up of £40,645.

Corin Taylor of the Taxpayers’ Alliance said: “If you’re spending a great deal of taxpayers’ money you should be accountable for what you do and how you are remunerated. If people are doing a good job and their details are out in the open we won’t begrudge them.”

Ten of the 30 civil servants with the largest salaries work in health divisions:

At the top of the list

1. Dame Gillian Morgan, the Permanent Secretary (between £160,000 and £165,000)

2. Ann Lloyd, Chief Executive of NHS Wales (between £160,000 and £165,000)

3. Dr Tony Jewell, Chief Medical Officer (between £155,000 and £160,000)

4. Gareth Hall, Director of the Department for the Economy and Transport - former WDA (between £135,000 and £140,000)

5. Dr Gwyn Thomas, who, as director of Informing Healthcare, is charged with encouraging better use of information in the NHS.

6. Jeff Buggle (£130,000- £135,000) and Bob Hudson (£120,000-£125,000) – both directors in the department for health and social services.

8. Dr Christine Daws Finance Director (between £115,000 and £120,000)

9. Simon Dean, Director of Service Delivery and Performance Management, Health and Social Services Department. (between £115,000 and £120,000)

10. Derek Griffin, Chief Executive of CAFCASS Cymru, the body which looks after the interests of children involved in family law proceedings (between £115,000 and £120,000)

11. Bernard Galton, HR Director (between £110,000 and £115,000)

12. Martin Sykes, Chief Executive of Value Wales (between £110,000 and £115,000)
13. Richard Davies, Director of the Department for Public Services and Performance, Mike Hopkins, head of the lifelong learning and providers division, and Dr Jane Wilkinson, deputy chief medical officer, are all paid between £105,000 and £110,000.

Of the next 15 top-paid officials, six are on between £100,000 and £105,000, and the remaining nine, between £95,000 and £100,000.

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.

Free drugs don't work

Welsh Conservative Glyn Davies hinted that something big was going to be covered in the London-based media this weekend, that will be so juicy that it will run for a week. He wasn't wrong.

Today, he gives us his take on the story that has been published by a former Welsh-based journalist in the News of the World. Yes, I know it's the News of the World, but this is a warning that plenty in Wales have been aware of for some time. Described by many as an absolute disaster in policy making, the story has also been covered recently in the Welsh press. This new article takes it a step further - pulling the plug on free prescriptions.

I've said it once, so I may as well say it again. The Welsh Assembly Gimmick Government's main gimmick - in order to make it stand out from Westminster - isn't quite going to plan. We all know that the majority of those that need a regular prescription, or are frequent users of the service, were entitled to free prescriptions under the old system. However, if something is FREE then it's open to abuse from others.

People tend not to think twice when it comes to taking items when free of charge. After all, it's only human nature. This is why it needs to end, or at the very least a nominal charge be placed on prescriptions (except for those covered under the old system). Not sure how the coalition partner is going to handle this challenging part to collective responsibility. They supported the policy in the first place with little reservation, and we all should be in agreement that it's going to be an interesting week in the Senedd. The usual arguments will be made, and what are the odds on the government dismissing the idea of 'pulling the plug' at first, only to change their mind at a more suitable date?

If only we could put an end to the freebie and first-to-do culture of the Assembly Government. More thought is needed when it comes to policy ideas, not 'What would make us look good in the public eye and provide a headline grabber that will run all term?'.

Welsh End Free NHS Drugs

HEALTH chiefs are set to pill the plug on free prescriptions in Wales—because they are too EXPENSIVE.

The free-for-all policy was only brought in by the Welsh Assembly 18 months ago—but has cost far MORE than the anticipated £30MILLION.

Doctors have been dishing out prescriptions for normal over-the-counter products such as vaseline, milk of magnesia and aspirin. And thousands of English people have also taken advantage of the scheme by registering with Welsh doctors.

Figures this year showed there were 100,000 more people on Welsh GPs’ lists than actually lived in the country. It has all led to the NHS there being overwhelmed by the spiralling bill for the drugs, with it draining resources from the rest of the health budget.

The Assembly has admitted that it has no idea how much it will have to shell out this year—but it’s expected to be MILLIONS more than last year.

The crisis will spark fears in Scotland and Northern Ireland over their own plans to scrap charges.

Scotland is phasing them out by 2011, and Northern Ireland last week announced it would cut charges before abolishing them in 2010.

That would leave England as the only part of the UK where patients would still have to pay. A senior Whitehall source said: “In Wales they are running out of money for this and can’t continue.

“They are going to have to pull the plug on it. It’s the last thing anyone wants to do but the financial realities are so serious that they’re having to consider it.”

First Minister proved wrong within 72 hours

As if by magic, a comprehensive example has been given in today's media which inadvertantly responds to a previous post of mine, and point the finger firmly in the direction of Rhodri Morgan's Welsh Assembly Government.

Just days ago, First Minister Rhodri Morgan was quoted as saying "If you look at our record I have led a government without any scandals" 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.

An official report by the Wales Audit Office [note the word AUDIT Mr Morgan] now reports that the £13.5m bail-out of the Wales Millennium Centre followed "severe deficiencies" by assembly officials and ministers. A "Wholly inadequate record-keeping" by the assembly government added to its lack of understanding of the venue's finances.

Former Labour Culture Minister Alun Pugh claims he inherited a "flawed" plan from his Lib Dem predecessor, which has been rebutted by Peter Black in a post earlier today:

What was equally bizarre was the performance of the former Culture Minister, Alun Pugh on the radio this morning. As far as he is concerned it was all the fault of his predecessor, Welsh Liberal Democrat AM, Jenny Randerson. He pointed out quite correctly that the centre's original business plan underestimated the cost of running the facility.

Putting aside the issues of collective responsibility which makes the Labour Ministers at the time as equally culpable for this business plan, any proper examination of the facts reveal that Mr. Pugh is being fairly conservative in his choice of facts.

The Centre opened in November 2004, over a year and a half after Jenny Randerson had ceased to be Culture Minister. Alun Pugh had had ample time to get his feet under the table by then and sort out any problems he may have inherited. According to the auditor's report he clearly failed to do so. Instead he has tried to pass the buck, something that does him no credit at all.

The Auditor General's report on the Wales Millennium Centre reveals some very major weaknesses in the way that the Assembly Government has managed its huge investment in the facility. In particular, Ministers and officials failed to keep an eye on the business risks once it opened:

Auditor General Jeremy Colman reported:

The Wales Millennium Centre was a high-risk, complex project, and although the public bodies funding it followed good practice in many areas, particularly through joint monitoring, there were some fundamental weaknesses. The project would have been better served if the Welsh Assembly Government had paid equal attention to addressing the risks involved in funding a successful business as they did to addressing the risks in funding the construction.

He said the Assembly Government had failed to keep up-to-date records on the WMC’s performance. He added: “The civil servants took a view the material they would otherwise have to hold was commercially sensitive and therefore was at risk of having to be disclosed under the Freedom of Information Act if anyone asked for it.“Well, we think that is an extremely bad reason for not keeping proper records; an extremely bad reason for not carrying out effective monitoring.

Conservative culture spokesman Paul Davies said:

This is a damning report that highlights in no uncertain terms the failings of the assembly government. The report clearly states the assembly government did carry out detailed reviews of the WMC's business plans, plans which highlighted several key risks. But crucially, it then stopped short of assessing and addressing these problems. This beggars belief.

He said the assembly government "effectively washed their hands" of the centre once it had been built, and added: "The assembly government have now got some very difficult questions to answer."

An assembly government spokesperson said:

The Minister for Heritage [Alun Ffred Jones] will consider the Wales Audit Office report on the Wales Millennium Centre, and the recommendations made, and will respond in due course.

Peter Black AM goes on to question on his blog:

This report states: “Although officials told us that they could access records held at the WMC on request, we have seen no evidence that they did so.”

The fact that officials failed to keep proper records because they were afraid of the Freedom of Information Act is just bizarre. How many other projects are they taking the same approach to? We need some answers.

Mr Morgan. The Welsh public will need you to greatly improve, not only in areas of policy proposals, competence and delivery, but also in the area of excuse making.

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.

What nasty attack?

The Conservatives were accused of being “the nasty party” after marking Rhodri Morgan’s 69th birthday tomorrow by publishing a highly personal attack on every aspect of his leadership – right down to his dress sense and hairstyle [join the queue].

What nasty attack? Rhodri Morgan and his government have never liked criticism, not even constructive criticism, but who does? The Welsh Conservatives are simply describing something as it really is!

The 39-page document, ‘Rhodri Morgan: Leadership Without Purpose’ rakes through the Labour leader’s career, laying into everything including: his stewardship of the economy; unique dress sense and hairstyle; erratic and unusual behaviour; claims he had “undermined the role of First Minister and embarrassed the National Assembly and Wales"; and the fact he once posed for a picture with TV presenter Timmy Mallett.

.

[which was posted HERE orginally and republished above]

A spokeswoman for the First Minister said:

What a shocking state the Welsh Conservatives must be in if they have to stoop to this level to gain attention during what should be the party’s showcase week.

Resorting to petty personal attack, rather than putting forward their policy ideas, seems to suggest that, true to form, they have very little to offer the people of Wales other than negative campaigning.

We recently delivered the most momentous change to early years education in Wales since devolution, with the Foundation Phase, a radical new vision to ensure our youngsters get the very best start to learning. But where were the Tories during this process? Offering support to help make it work?

No, carping from the sidelines as usual.

Talking about the speculation Mr Morgan may stay on after next year, the spokeswoman said:

Perhaps Nick and his colleagues ought to spend less time gossiping in the Bay and more time talking to the people they represent. Perhaps then they might come
up with some serious proposals for Wales’ future. Theresa May, when she was Chairwoman of the Conservative Party, said that they needed to shed their image
as the ‘nasty party’. Nick Bourne has undermined all the good work by his party leader David Cameron since then, by proving that they are, after all, still the nasty party.

The document draws attention to many of Mr Morgan’s gaffes, describing him as the “Clown Prince of Wales”.

It says: “In the last eight years the behaviour and comments of Rhodri Morgan have become increasingly erratic and unusual. “They have added fuel to the fire of critics, both within and outside the Labour Party, who believe he is not up to the job of First Minister”.

It includes his failure to attend the D-Day celebrations in 2004 in favour of a golf tournament and the two occasions he has turned up late to meet the Queen.

It also attacks him for his “unique dress sense and hairstyle” – drawing attention to an occasion four years ago when he failed to take the right shoes to the Labour Conference in Brighton – and for posing for a picture alongside “zany TV entertainer Timmy Mallett”.

And the document single-handedly blames Mr Morgan for Wales’ economic woes in the past nine years, saying the wealth gap between Wales and the rest of the United Kingdom had widened under his leadership and manufacturing jobs were being lost at a faster rate than under the last Conservative government.

Mr Bourne said:

Rhodri Morgan’s time in office has underlined the need for a long-term vision not short-term opportunism to lead us through uncertain times.

His leadership without purpose has held Wales back, and left our country ill-prepared for future challenges.

We have had no big ideas, no vision, and no delivery. What we have had is giveaways, gimmicks and gaffes.

Long after he’s gone people will still be paying the price for his freebie culture. Instead of preparing for the future Rhodri Morgan has looked to the past.

Instead of long-term investment he has squandered record levels of funding for short-term gain. Instead of admitting his own short-comings he has repeatedly blamed others.

What we have seen is a leader storing up trouble for the future, for his successors, and for Wales.

As he celebrates his 69th birthday tomorrow it’s time for Rhodri Morgan to tell us about his plans for the future.

This endless speculation about his future is damaging and destabilising. For the sake of our country he needs to recognise that before it’s too late.

One surprising response was the Welsh Labour spokesperson admitting that David Cameron had turned things around for the Conservative party by making mention of all the good work that they've done.

Some say A' level, others say Welsh Baccalaureate

If the Welsh Baccalaureate Qualification is here to stay, then why haven't we heard much about this 'change to the way things are done in England'? The Welsh Assembly Government have recently made this announcement - the only one to be seen!

As young people across Wales eagerly await their results, Education Minister Jane Hutt today [Wednesday 13 August] met some of the first Welsh Baccalaureate graduates at the Senedd.

Graduates had the opportunity to speak to the Minister about their experiences and how studying the qualification helped them get ahead at University.

Minister for Education, Jane Hutt said:

It was fantastic to be able to meet with a few of our first Welsh Baccalaureate graduates. We are extremely proud of our student’s achievements and of our unique Welsh Baccalaureate Qualification, which is proving to be a popular choice amongst young people. It is encouraging to hear students saying how their experiences in studying the qualification helped them with their studies at University.

The Welsh Baccalaureate is increasingly being recognised by both Higher Education Institutions and Employers for the way it develops students into confident, well-rounded individuals, with the skills they need in both Higher Education and employment. I warmly congratulate Hannah, Rhys, Daniel and Michael - their hard work and dedication will stand them in good stead for the future.

The world of Wikipedia offers this citationless description. There's not much of a news update on the official website either. Back to the drawing board for some if 'the powers that be' intend for this qualification to be taken seriously as originally planned.

Health gimmick taken up in millions

As the BBC and Western Mail have reported, the Welsh Assembly Gimmick Government's main gimmick - in order to make it stand out from Westminster - isn't quite going to plan.

The number of prescription items dispensed in Wales rose by 2.9m in the first year of free prescriptions, official figures show.

The number of dispensed items rose 5% from 59.1m in 2006/7 to 62m in 2007/8, the
equivalent to 20 items per person.

The chief medical officer said it showed there was more preventative work and more cancer drugs prescribed. But the Lib Dems said the figures proved their concerns of introducing free
prescriptions.

The figures follow a five-year general trend of an increase in items dispensed.

The National Statistics on GP prescribing showed the net cost of the prescribed items was £584m - an increase of 1% on the previous year - and equivalent to £188.90 per head.

Wales' £3 prescription charge was abolished in April last year by the Labour and Plaid Cymru run assembly government.

Wales' Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Jewell said:

We know that in Wales we have more people with long term illnesses than England. These figures reflect the fact that more preventative work is being undertaken, with GPs prescribing medicines which are helping people manage their chronic conditions and keeping them out of hospital, reducing the cost and pressure on the NHS.

We are also issuing more medicines used to treat cancers, as cancer therapy has improved to a point where, for a number of patients, it is now a chronic condition, plus GPs are helping more patients with diabetes manage their condition under the new enhanced contract.

The figures also show we are increasing access while reducing costs. The net cost per prescription item decreased from £9.80 to £9.42.

But Welsh Lib Dem health spokesperson Jenny Randerson said:

We warned the (assembly) government that giving free prescriptions for all would be disastrous and today's figures have vindicated our position. A 5% increase (in items claimed) is disastrous when the (assembly) government is refusing to fund vital lifesaving drugs. The cost of this gimmick will be with Welsh patients for generations.

While millionaires claim their free paracetamol, the health service will continue to be to stretched to provide life saving services.

Shadow Health Minister Jonathan Morgan, Tory AM, said the figures showed people in Wales were becoming increasingly reliant on prescribed medicine:

The number of prescriptions being issued for cardiovascular problems for example has risen by 141.5% and these are often for the largest, most expensive items. Rather than micro-managing the NHS, the assembly government should be looking at improving the nation's health. Only then, as we become a healthier country, will costs fall.

Opposition politicians immediately said the figures were evidence that the Welsh Assembly Government’s flagship £30m-a-year policy had been a disaster. But doctors said the 2007-08 increases were in line with previous year-on-year rises in prescriptions in Wales and reflected the ongoing poor health of the nation.

Poor Policies on Poverty

The impact of government policy in reducing poverty in Wales in the past 12 years has been “at best marginal”, a leading anti-poverty adviser has claimed.

In an essay entitled Still Living on the Edge? published in the University of Wales Press academic series Contemporary Wales, Prof Dave Adamson, who helped shape the Welsh Assembly Government’s Communities First initiative, claims:

1. There has been little change in poverty levels in many communities since 1996;
2. Many adults in deprived areas expect to be limited by illness and this illness is not always due to industrial disease;
3. Educational failure is the foundation of poverty in Wales, and;
4. It was difficult to see any specific impact from WAG policies on poverty.

Prof Adamson, of the University of Glamorgan, has also cast doubts on whether the Communities First programme – which has spent millions on seeking to regenerate Wales’ poorest communities – could achieve its stated aims.

In an update to his groundbreaking 1996 essay Living on the Edge, Prof Adamson says:

Specific localities still bear the hallmarks of deep poverty, and the impact of government policy is at best marginal. For the residents of those communities there has been little change since 1996 and they can be seen very clearly to be still ‘living on the edge’.

In reference to statistics which suggest that 25% of the population in Wales at any one time will have failed to achieve five GSCEs, and will continue to fail to benefit from adult educational opportunities, Prof Adamson says:

This educational failure is the foundation of poverty in Wales and relegates a significant proportion of the population to labour market failure and consequent patterns of low income, unemployment and benefit dependency.

The geographical concentration of this population in the most disadvantaged localities in Wales presents an almost insurmountable barrier to the regeneration of our poorest communities.

On the disproportionate health problems of certain Welsh communities, Prof Adamson says:

Contrary to stereotypical expectations, these statistics are not solely the result of injury and industrial disease inherited from coal mining, steel production and heavy manufacturing. Limiting long-term illness is evident in all age groups at higher rates than elsewhere in the UK. Communities First areas I have had first hand experience of include Maerdy (62.2% with long term limiting illness), Penygraig (57.5%), Penywaun (60.8%) and Treherbert (57.9%).

Health aspiration is extremely low and local populations expect adulthood to include illness as a feature of life. Many young people carry caring responsibilities from an early age, with devastating impact on their educational achievement and their own health expectations.

To sit in a public event in such communities is to observe community members in their 30s and 40s with severe mobility problems, respiratory difficulties, obesity, visible dental damage and no expectation that things could be different. The overall impact on the quality of life is immeasurable.

In his analysis of anti-poverty initiatives undertaken by the Assembly Government, Prof Adamson states:

Despite considerable rhetoric to the contrary, Government in Wales has not yet created a more unified and ‘joined up’ approach to poverty which recognises the articulation of education, health and housing within the overall dynamic of poverty.

Responding to UK and Assembly Government aims to halve child poverty by 2010 and eradicate it by 2020, Prof Adamson writes:

Clearly any assessment of progress toward that objective is premature and the 2010 review will be a critical verdict on WAG’s progress towards the 2020 target. It is difficult yet to see any specific impact from WAG derived policies.

On the impact of Communities First, Prof Adamson refers to criticisms made by the Wales Audit Office, which concluded that regeneration policy was over-complicated and had poor strategic links with other policy and funding streams, including Objective One.

Currently, it is clear that whilst many communities have responded with remarkable speed and confidence, this has neither been matched by Assembly Government funding or mainstream programme bending to assist them achieve regeneration of their communities.

A Welsh Assembly Government spokesman said last night that there were no quick fixes to a poverty legacy that stretched back decades:

We are making good progress in tackling poverty and disadvantage across Wales. Child poverty in Wales has declined from 35% to 29% since 1998-99, a steeper decline than the UK average.

However it remains unacceptable that more than a quarter of our children remain in poverty in the 21st century. We acknowledge that education has a tremendous potential to tackle poverty. It is for this reason WAG is implementing innovative programmes like Flying Start and the Foundation Phase in Wales. Communities First Partnerships across Wales are at the heart of regeneration projects in their communities. However they must not be seen as part of an isolated regeneration programme. They complement the considerable work that is going on elsewhere.

We accept that the rate of progress has varied between Communities First areas. This is not surprising as different communities have differing levels of disadvantage and have had varying levels of support over the years to address it.

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.

Rhodri Morgan's "Year of delivery"

Rhodri Morgan has hailed a “year of delivery” following Welsh Labour’s special conference decision to back the One Wales coalition deal with Plaid Cymru.

True to form, the First Minister has blurted out his usual defence:

“Tough choices had to be made this time last year: the choice between forming a coalition with Plaid Cymru or letting the Tories into government in Wales, with the resultant lurch in policy direction that would have been very adverse to the interests of Labour supporters all over Wales.

“I believe we made the right tough choices, voting with our heads not with our hearts, a decision based on the desire to honour Labour’s election pledges and deliver for the people of Wales to the maximum degree possible.”

Mr Morgan’s list of the items delivered during the past 12 months included:

1. New hospitals on their way in Porthmadog, Rhondda, Cynon Valley, Merthyr, Blaenau Gwent and Rhymney Valley; two opened this year in Pembroke Dock and Holywell;
   26 weeks from referral to treatment –– on course to delivering that target by the end of 2009;
2. more than £1bn investment in NHS infrastructure over the next three years;
   free car-parking in NHS hospitals;
3. £91m extra funding for social care, helping people live independent lives in their own homes;
4. a new £92m single investment fund for business;
5. £8m extra funding for Flying Start childcare;
6. £7.5m funding for Airbus R&D into composite wing technology;
7. £150m JEREMIE investment fund for small and medium-size firms being negotiated with the European Union;
8. new Foundation Phase, a pioneering roll-out across Wales of “learn through play”, backed by £30m of investment this year;
9. new law introduced giving 14 to 19-year-olds more choice in their studies;
10. £6.6m new funding for Appetite for Life improvements in school meals;
11. more than £7.5m for early years and schools in Wales to improve basic skill levels;
12. new social partnership agreed between trade unions and government to build world-class public services built on co-operation;
13. council tax rises kept to an average of 3.8%;
14. £9m extra funding for Community Safety Partnerships to help tackle crime;
15. free entry for pensioners and children to Assembly-funded heritage sites;
16. new law to modernise right-to-buy to increase social housing in rural Wales;
17. new £25m fund for the next phase of Communities First;
18. new law placing a duty on public authorities to tackle child poverty;
19. Wales becomes the world’s first Fairtrade nation;
20. a tree planted for every new baby born in Wales;
21. re-opening the Ebbw Valley rail line;
22. free rail travel for pensioners extended;
23. new law introduced to make school buses safer.

I'm positive that each and every individual in Wales has their own individual opinion on what has been a success, and their own distinguishing differences between the measurement of success and failure. Here's what the opposition parties say...

Welsh Conservative Assembly leader Nick Bourne said:

The Labour-Plaid government has been big on targets and low on achievements. It’s hard to judge performance when so little has been achieved and so many policies aren’t scheduled to be implemented for two or more years.

Welsh Liberal Democrat leader Mike German claimed:

...the coalition’s greatest success had been preserving the status quo: Keeping Labour hands on the levers of power in Wales; keeping the powers of the Assembly so limited and stifling initiatives to such a degree that no AM applied to make a law when given the opportunity to do so in the June ballot.