18/04/2013 BBC Wales Today


18/04/2013

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Wales's biggest housebuilder hit out at the Welsh government after it

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Also tonight. Round-the-clock support for

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terminally ill patients. A promise of better care.

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Parents and pupils find out Cwmcarn Comprehensive could reopen in

:00:36.:00:45.
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September after an asbestos scare. We are so happy that it is opening

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back up again. Calls for better protection for our

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trees after one of the oldest oaks in Britain is brought down by strong

:00:54.:00:59.

winds. And the �20 million Hollywood drama

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filmed in South Wales. We're on the red carpet at its UK premiere in

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The directors of Redrow have told Wales Today they're disturbed that

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the Welsh Government has scrapped a scheme designed to help people buy

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homes. Wales' biggest house-builders say they've invested time and money

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in the plan and feel they've been treated in a shabby way. Caroline

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Evans reports. The scheme was meant to help people

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like Ian. 49 and divorced, he is looking to get back on the housing

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ladder but a deposit of 20 % is out of the question. He was pinning his

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hopes on the scheme which offered a chance to secure a home with around

:01:57.:02:03.

a five % deposit. This scheme was a great opportunity for me to get back

:02:03.:02:09.

as a first-time buyer. A �5,000 deposit would have been affordable

:02:09.:02:14.

to me but sadly �20,000 is not feasible. The scheme was due to

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start in June. The Welsh government said the housing industry has

:02:19.:02:21.

withdrawn support after similar plans were announced by the UK

:02:22.:02:28.

government. Since the UK government made its announcement, there have

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been doubts whether the scheme can continue so we are reviewing that.

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But today, Wales's biggest housebuilder said they could not

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believe it is not going ahead as promised. They have already started

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training staff and have booked a radio advertising campaign. Shocked

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and very saddened to receive the news. The Welsh government want to

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drop the initiative. They have actually said developers will not

:02:57.:03:05.

support it. They did not support -- talk to read no -- Redrow and we

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would like to see it reinstated. this estate agent, they believe they

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will have to be a rethink. market is improving and it is time

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another initiative is announced, sooner rather than later. The scheme

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was agreed as a deal with the Liberal Democrats to get the budget

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approved. People in Wales have not had the same advantages as the

:03:33.:03:43.
:03:43.:03:44.

people in England in terms of having helped as a first-time buyer. That

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is one of the reasons why house-building in Wales is so

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repressed. The housebuilders were going to put around �27 million into

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the scheme. They say they are still committed to the scheme but they are

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now exploring what they can put in place to Welsh -- help Welsh

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homebuyers until the scheme comes into force.

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People with incurable illnesses should have access to

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round-the-clock support and the best possible care leading up to their

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deaths. That's one of the commitments of a new plan by the

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Welsh Government. It also says patients should be fully supported

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if they choose to die at home. Our health correspondent, Owain Clarke,

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reports. Since Ken Fletcher from North Wales

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was diagnosed with an into rubble condition, he values every second he

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has with his wife. He needs constant care, but he's determined, given the

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right support, to stay at home until the end. Whatever happens, yes. We

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don't want to be separated. I don't see the point of going to a nursing

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home if I can carry on at home. Wales's biggest residential hospice

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run by Murray Durie in Penarth, medical staff give round-the-clock

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care to 30 patients at any one time who are dying. But the plan says a

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similar level of cake should be available across Wales for those

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people who do not want to spend their last days at a hospice like

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this one but would prefer to be at home with their families. Something

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like 70 % of people in Wales would prefer to die at home. At the

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moment, something like 65 % of people die in hospital. And to

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deliver that, the plan launched in Bridgend today pledges that the NHS

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social services and charities will work together to provide good end of

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life care in the community. What these services bring to the table is

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the message of the plan. Then there is the message about working more

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closely together. Today was a very good example but there is more we

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can do and there is more we need to do. Few questioned the aims but some

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doubt how achievable they are at a time when budgets are being severely

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squeezed. This plan is worse nothing -- worth nothing if it is not backed

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up. I am very concerned that we don't have the hospice at home

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movement in some parts of the country that is available in others.

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The Health Minister admits that in an age of austerity, delivering

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services will be a challenge, but a lack of resources should not detract

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from the aim of delivering the best possible care for individuals like

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Ken Fletcher. Joining me now is Baroness Ilora

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Finlay, an expert in end of life care. We have talked about this on a

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number of occasions. Do you think this plan is going to make a

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difference? I do, because this is building on what we have already

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done. We have a network across Wales of seven-day specialist palliative

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care nurses. We also have 20 47 advice available from consultants to

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other healthcare professionals if they have a patient with this rest.

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-- distressed. But the other thing we have got to remember is that bad

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care costs more than good care. We want to join up the pieces of the

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jigsaw puzzle, get social care, healthcare and the voluntary sector,

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and it becomes more efficient, and it meets the needs of the

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individual. We want people to have the conversation early, to talk

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about where they want to be looked after, what they want and what they

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don't want to happen, talk about their fears. Normally those fears

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can be allayed, but talk about where they want to be because that is the

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way we can give them the care they want. It is not necessarily an easy

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conversation to have. Funding is very tight, isn't it? Why should

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this be a priority? When somebody dies, the way they die lives on in

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the memory of those left behind. If children are being bereaved, they

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will carry that memory for the whole of their lives. They need support if

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they are facing losing someone they love. It is a huge investment and it

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is like preventative medicine. If we get the dining rights, the next

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generation will cope better. -- the dying right.

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The number of cases of measles in the epidemic centred in the Swansea

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area has increased to more than 800. Officials say 43 new cases have been

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reported in the last 48 hours. Public health officials say they've

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been disappointed at the uptake of MMR jabs being offered at schools in

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Swansea and Neath Port Talbot. Sessions at schools in Cardiff and

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Powys will start in the coming weeks.

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Cwmcarn High School pupils could be returning to their old classrooms

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this September. Councillors have unanimously approved a million

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pounds worth of work to treat asbestos at the site. It was closed

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six months ago after a report said the asbestos posed a potential

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health risk. Pupils are currently being taught 12 miles away. Jordan

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Davies reports. A Champagne moment for parents

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fighting to reopen Cwmcarn High School. They have been waiting six

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months for this and now they will be returning to the school they call

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home. We are so happy it is opening back-up. We can be a family again.

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We need to come back. But why has this taken half the year to resolve?

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Cwmcarn High School was closed last October after a report found that

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what's best is posting health risk but in February this year, the

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health and safety executive report said the site was essentially

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contamination free so another report was commissioned in March. It found

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there was little difference between the two apart from the conclusions,

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which were profoundly different. The council believes the only safe

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option is to remove the asbestos in time for September. This has caused

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concern but we knew we did the right thing in gaining those reports that

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came through, even though they were conflicting, we were not happy at

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that point to go forward until we knew exactly what level of risk

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there was the school. But some parents have been unhappy. Two

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months ago they marched through Cwmcarn calling for the school to

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reopen. Parents and pupils also attended special health clinics

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because of concerns about potential asbestos exposure. We were at a

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stage coming up to our January exams and it could not have been a worse

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time. We had a lot of tears along the way. �700,000 will be spent on

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removing the asbestos and making the building safe. 300,000 will be spent

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on hiring temporary classrooms. Pupils could be back behind these

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gates by September but the planned work will not upgrade the school in

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anyway. That will be considered on the wider ongoing debate.

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Still to come tonight. A rare collection of Welsh banknotes

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dating back to the 18th century go under the hammer.

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And it has stood tall for more than 1200 years but Wales's oldest oak

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has finally been felled by last night's strong winds.

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Farmers' unions say they're angry about a massive backlog of dead

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animals waiting to be collected after being killed in the recent

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snowstorms. Today, dozens of ponies in Snowdonia were buried after they

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froze to death. Sheep farmers are also counting the cost of losing

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their animals in the middle of the lambing season. You may find some

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pictures in Rhodri Lewis' report disturbing.

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A dreadful sight as 35 Carneddau ponies wait to be buried this

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afternoon. They've lived for hundreds of years in Snowdonia and

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have always been left to wander freely. But dozens were killed by

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the freezing temperatures, drifts and blizzards and farmers say there

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could be more grim discoveries to come. These have just come from a

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very small piece of this mountain. What is up there, I could not tell

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you. There are 35 there from this little piece. How many we have lost,

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we know it is over 50. But I am thinking it might be closer to 100.

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Over at Glyn Ceiriog, south of Llangollen, Eryl Morris keeps more

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than 1,000 ewes, roaming his 700 acres. He knew he'd lost 140 of them

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already, but as the snow thaws he's now found dozens more. He'll have to

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pay to dispose of them and says it'll take years to recover.

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can't put a value on them because they are breeding ewes and you lose

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the breeding. This year, I will be very surprised if I get 50 % on the

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:13:57.:14:01.

rest of the lambing flock. A lot have aborted their lambs. We get

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numerous calls of that nature. It shows that the problem is growing

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rather than going away at this point in time. As the search for more

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animals goes on, Ministers have given farmers more time to bury

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their livestock. They've rejected calls for direct financial help, but

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have made �500,000 available to charities working with the industry.

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A lack of aspiration by teachers in Wales means fewer pupils here end up

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going to top universities. That's according to the man tasked with

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increasing the number of our children going to Oxford and

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Cambridge. Paul Murphy told BBC Wales more pressure needs to be put

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on schools and colleges to address the situation.

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They are the elite, world renowned for their quality. Presidents and

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prime ministers have studied here. So why are so few Welsh pupils

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getting to Oxford and Cambridge? The number of pupils who get to the top

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institutions have been falling. In 2008, 96 pupils got into Oxbridge

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but by last year the number had fallen to 76 and according to the

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man tasked by the Welsh government to bump up those numbers, a lack of

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aspiration could be at fault. think it mainly teachers. When I

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went to Oxford, the people who taught me had been to Oxford and

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Cambridge. I am not convinced so many of our teachers have been to

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those universities and so have less knowledge about how you get in and

:15:34.:15:39.

what it is like when you get there. This pupil has been accepted to

:15:39.:15:49.
:15:49.:15:49.

Cambridge. There were some schools which were all about widening

:15:49.:15:53.

participation. That was good because I got to see the range of different

:15:53.:16:02.

people who would be there. Paul Murphy spoke to admission directors

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at Oxford and Cambridge last year and they said the Welsh

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baccalaureate was part of the problem. That a pupil studying that

:16:11.:16:15.

qualification and just two A-levels would be disadvantaged and could not

:16:15.:16:20.

compete with English students fairly for a place. They said it was clear

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it was not valued as appropriate academic preparation. In response,

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the Welsh government said it is in the process of revising the Welsh

:16:29.:16:34.

baccalaureate to make sure it is robust and fit for purpose. Recent

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research shows that part of the south Wales valleys and north-east

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Wales have the lowest application rates for Oxford and Cambridge in

:16:42.:16:47.

the whole of England and Wales. Paul Murphy says the interest is there

:16:47.:16:51.

and the ability is certainly there but perhaps more needs to be done to

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harness it. Schemes like this one could help. At Gower College in

:16:56.:16:59.

Swansea they have extra lessons for the brightest students who might

:16:59.:17:05.

want to go to Oxford or Cambridge. You have to be able to think

:17:05.:17:10.

critically. It also helps with things like writing a personal

:17:10.:17:15.

statement and what they look for in applicants. It can be very

:17:15.:17:21.

intimidating to apply for Oxford given it is one of the most famous

:17:21.:17:27.

universities in the world. The tutorial has explained what to do.

:17:27.:17:33.

Unions say they are always keen to help the brightest. We want to do

:17:33.:17:38.

their best by our pupils in all circumstances. Teachers do encourage

:17:38.:17:41.

pupils who they think may be able to get into Oxford or Cambridge to

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apply. For these pupils, and Oxbridge education will offer an

:17:48.:17:52.

opportunity only available to a few. But with needs to be done to make

:17:52.:17:56.

sure more students with similar abilities get the same

:17:56.:17:59.

opportunities. There have been calls for greater

:17:59.:18:02.

protection for our ancient trees after one of the oldest oaks in

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Britain was knocked down in strong winds. The Pontfadog Oak, near

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Chirk, is believed to have been more than 1,200-years-old.

:18:08.:18:09.

Conservationists had been campaigning to improve its

:18:09.:18:19.

stability. Matthew Richards is in Pontfadog tonight.

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It stood here during the Battle of Hastings, the birth of Shakespeare

:18:23.:18:27.

and the great Fire of London, but unfortunately the heavy winds last

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night proved too much for it to take. I spoke to the people who live

:18:33.:18:36.

here and they were rudely awakened by the tree falling down just after

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two a.m. This morning. They say it feels like the village has lost an

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icon. Most of the people who live around

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here know the tree. It is on the badge of the local school. People

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say the village will never be the same. My mother-in-law is so upset,

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she came here this morning and she was devastated. She said she feels

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like she has lost a friend. With me now is an engine to treat

:19:10.:19:17.

specialist. What is the significance of this tree? You can see from the

:19:17.:19:25.

size of it, even in the situation it is at the moment, it is a massive,

:19:25.:19:31.

agent oak tree, possibly one of the most agent on the planet. What was

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your reaction when you came here this morning? A bit of devastation

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for me. I know we have got to get things in context because people

:19:40.:19:46.

have not been hurt but people have come up from the village today and I

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can see how even more embedded in the psyche of the local area this

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tree was. People say trees to get old and die. Is there anything you

:19:58.:20:07.

can do to protect them? This has been a managed tree all its life.

:20:07.:20:12.

Perhaps, given a small amount of funding, this tree could have been

:20:12.:20:17.

saved from this fate. I don't think anybody could have predicted it but

:20:17.:20:22.

we could have tried to do something. At the moment these trees are not

:20:22.:20:32.

protected to the degree they need to be protected will stop --. It is all

:20:32.:20:36.

to be decided what will happen to this incredible ancient monument.

:20:36.:20:39.

A rare collection of banknotes from across Wales went under the hammer

:20:39.:20:43.

today and sold for nearly �150,000. They were part of a large, private

:20:43.:20:47.

collection dating back to the 18th century. The most valuable lot of

:20:47.:20:50.

the day was a five pound note from Lampeter Bank, as Kate Morgan

:20:50.:20:55.

explains. It's not quite the deal the makers

:20:56.:21:00.

of this 18th century money had in mind. But they'd probably be pleased

:21:00.:21:04.

with the price. A collection of banknotes from across Wales and the

:21:04.:21:14.

UK sold at auction for a total of more than �154,000. To get an

:21:14.:21:18.

auction with so many Welsh notes, good-quality notes, is quite rare.

:21:18.:21:24.

You will get notes in auctions all the time, but to get such a large

:21:24.:21:27.

collection is not common. They belonged to David Kirch, a

:21:27.:21:30.

millionaire who's selling off 4,000 notes, including these. A seven

:21:31.:21:35.

pound note from Carmarthen and a rare ten pound note from Chepstow.

:21:35.:21:38.

But the star seller was a five pound note from Lampeter dating back to

:21:38.:21:48.
:21:48.:21:50.

1905, going for 1,400 pounds. one is interesting because it is in

:21:50.:21:59.

beautiful condition for its age and it is printed by a firm we owe so

:21:59.:22:03.

much of our currency to. Back in the 18th century, it was much easier to

:22:04.:22:07.

start a bank and print notes thanks mostly to a lack of regulation.

:22:07.:22:10.

Anyone, anywhere could set one up. The notes could only be used in the

:22:10.:22:14.

local area and made the men who signed them very rich and, in some

:22:14.:22:23.

cases, very famous. They are signed by recognisable names. Mr Lloyd, Mr

:22:23.:22:26.

Berkeley. These banks were taken over eventually by very recognisable

:22:26.:22:30.

names. Hundreds of years on, they may have found themselves in a

:22:30.:22:33.

London auction house, but staff here say many of the Welsh notes have

:22:33.:22:37.

been bought by collectors here. And they may now be heading home to the

:22:37.:22:41.

different corners of Wales they were made for.

:22:41.:22:44.

Cricket, and an unbeaten half-century has helped Glamorgan

:22:44.:22:49.

take control of their championship match against Worcestershire.

:22:49.:22:56.

Glamorgan have reached 234-7. In a moment, the latest from the

:22:56.:22:59.

premiere of a Hollywood blockbuster, filmed here in Wales. First though,

:22:59.:23:09.
:23:09.:23:14.

The north and northwest bore the brunt of the gales last night. On

:23:14.:23:17.

the Lleyn Peninsula and in Snowdonia, the wind reached storm

:23:17.:23:24.

force ten with a gust of 84mph at Aberdaron. While at Hawarden in

:23:24.:23:31.

Flintshire, a gust of 67mph was recorded. In the next 24 hours, the

:23:31.:23:34.

brisk wind will slowly ease with a calmer day in prospect tomorrow and

:23:34.:23:39.

on Saturday too. This evening may start dry, but a front will move

:23:39.:23:45.

southeast, bringing a spell of rain. Breezy, but the wind easing once the

:23:45.:23:51.

rain clears. Lowest temperature around five degrees Celsius.

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Tomorrow's chart shows a front moving across Britain followed by a

:23:54.:24:00.

ridge of high pressure. Here's the picture for eight in the morning.

:24:00.:24:07.

Better than today. Much drier. The wind lighter as well with a moderate

:24:07.:24:12.

breeze on Anglesey. Not much sunshine first thing, but that will

:24:12.:24:17.

change. During the morning into the afternoon, the cloud will break and

:24:17.:24:21.

it will brighten-up with increasing amounts of sunshine. Top

:24:21.:24:26.

temperatures of 13 degrees Celsius. A little cooler on the north and

:24:26.:24:33.

west coast with a breeze off the sea. Tomorrow night will be dry and

:24:33.:24:36.

clear and with little wind it will turn quite cold with a widespread

:24:36.:24:42.

ground frost. Even a slight air frost in some rural spots inland. So

:24:42.:24:47.

a chilly start on Saturday but a nice day. Fine and dry with plenty

:24:47.:24:53.

of sunshine. Saturday will be a good day for a trip to the seaside.

:24:53.:24:56.

Temperatures not that high but feeling pleasant in the sunshine

:24:56.:25:01.

with light to moderate winds. The sea still pretty cold. Seven or

:25:01.:25:08.

eight degrees Celsius. Sunday will bring a change. A dry start but rain

:25:08.:25:12.

will spread from the northwest during the day. The wind picking-up

:25:12.:25:16.

as well. Saturday will be the best day of the weekend. Ideal weather

:25:16.:25:26.

for the Spring Flower Show in The Gwyn Hall in Neath rolled out

:25:26.:25:29.

its red carpet this evening for the UK premiere of a multi-million

:25:29.:25:32.

dollar Hollywood drama shot entirely in South Wales. Da Vinci's Demons,

:25:32.:25:35.

set in Renaissance Italy, is an eight-hour television series from

:25:35.:25:39.

the writer of the Batman films. Carwyn Jones caught up with the cast

:25:39.:25:49.

A year in production at a cost of around �20 million, Da Vinci's

:25:49.:25:53.

Demons finally takes flight. The series turns the early life of

:25:53.:25:57.

Leonardo into a swashbuckling adventure. Although it's set in 15th

:25:57.:26:02.

century Florence, it was filmed in Swansea, Port Talbot and Neath.

:26:02.:26:05.

That's why tonight, it was the Gwyn Hall, not London's Leicester Square,

:26:05.:26:11.

which hosted the UK premiere. The creative force behind the series is

:26:11.:26:15.

this man, David S Goyer. He's the Holywood screenwriter who penned the

:26:15.:26:25.

movie scripts for Batman, Blade and this summer's Superman film. As an

:26:25.:26:30.

American, Wales was unusual for me. We don't have castles, we don't have

:26:30.:26:36.

things like abbeys or things like that. For me, Wales was very exotic.

:26:36.:26:39.

The production spent most of last year transforming the landscape of

:26:39.:26:42.

South Wales into Renaissance Florence. The gothic splendour of

:26:42.:26:45.

Margam Castle stood in for the Medici Palace while the Duomo

:26:45.:26:48.

Cathedral and Ponte Veccio Bridge were built here at the old Ford

:26:48.:26:53.

factory in Swansea. In fact, the site became a fully functioning film

:26:53.:26:56.

studio and, at 265,000 square feet, that's made it the biggest sound

:26:56.:27:03.

stage in the UK. Bigger than even the 007 stage at Pinewood. The

:27:03.:27:06.

production also created nearly 3,000 full and part time jobs, from

:27:06.:27:16.
:27:16.:27:18.

craftsmen to caterers. We have got a lot of skilled personnel. We have

:27:18.:27:21.

taken the training issues very seriously. I am not talking about

:27:21.:27:26.

actors, I am talking about the backstage stuff. Da Vinci's Demons

:27:26.:27:31.

has proved a huge hit in the US. So much so that it's just been

:27:31.:27:35.

commissioned for a second series. And for Leonardo himself, that could

:27:35.:27:43.

mean returning to Wales for more filming later this year. We were

:27:43.:27:47.

just outside Florence for the Italian premier last week and the

:27:47.:27:52.

landscape was very similar. Having been there and seen it first hand,

:27:52.:27:56.

it is closer than you expect. is gaining an enviable reputation as

:27:56.:28:04.

the go-to location for TV dramas. Viewers can judge just how well

:28:04.:28:07.

Wales doubles for Renaissance Italy when the show hits our screens

:28:07.:28:11.

tomorrow night. A reminder now of the headlines. The

:28:11.:28:16.

moment a chemical plant in Texas explodes. People living nearby say

:28:16.:28:20.

it was like an earthquake. At least five people have been killed and

:28:20.:28:25.

hundreds could be injured. Redrow says it is disturbed by a

:28:25.:28:29.

Welsh government decision to halt a scheme to help people buy homes. The

:28:29.:28:33.

Welsh government says it is reviewing the scheme because a

:28:33.:28:35.

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