08/10/2013 BBC Wales Today

Welcome to Wales Today. Our top story. How would you spend it?

Tonight the draft budget sets out the future for your school, your

hospital and your local council services. The big winner is the NHS,

but cuts for education and council services to pay for it. Our other

headlines, they call it the bedroom tax. To some people, it appears like

a huge black hole, money pours in and you are never quite sure what

you have got out of it as a result of all that money.

Are the headlines, they call it the bedroom tax. A Conservative MP tells

a tenant the changes to housing benefit are not working here. And

it's full time. Wales forward Craig Bellamy confirms he's to retire from

international football. Good evening. Councils will see the

amount of money they have to spend next year decrease significantly

after the draft budget was announced earlier today. The Welsh Government

have £15 billion to share between health, education, social services

and local government. The biggest chunk of the budget is for health,

almost £6 billion, an increase on last year's budget. It was also

announced that an extra £750 million will be reinvested in the NHS over

the next three years. But spending on local government has been cut to

just under £4.5 billion. To ensure the budget is passed, they've

already struck a deal behind the scenes with Plaid Cymru and the

Liberal Democrats. We can got live now to our political editor, Nick

Servini, who is in the Senedd. Up until now, Welsh councils have had

an element of protection, certainly in comparison with their

counterparts in England. It appears that is now going to change. The big

story from today is a shift in emphasis and funding priorities away

from councils and towards the NHS, which by any measures have had a

desperately tough year. The big question is as a result of today, is

it an admission in a way that the Welsh Government has got it wrong

and what is it now mean for council budgets? Midway through the Cardiff

half marathon this weekend, blood sweat and tears for many runners to

get to this stage and plenty of hard yards to go. It is also the halfway

mark for the current Labour run Welsh Government and today it

introduced what it says is the toughest budget since the junction

of devolution. Council spending will fall by 5.8% in real terms. That is

after taking into account the impact of inflation. Cuts like these are

far higher than any Welsh councils have had to deal with so far. To

date, we have been able to cushion local authorities from the impact of

the severe cuts from the UK government. They have received

higher funding levels than their counterparts in England. Welsh NHS

spending is going to rise by around 1.5% in real terms next year,

breaking the recent trend which has left the health budget trailing

behind inflation. The Welsh Conservatives say this comes too

little too late. Even under these new plans, the NHS budget is not

being protected, it has been brought to the brink of crisis. And I have

to put it to the Minister that the year-on-year real term cuts to the

Welsh NHS by this government is now coming back to haunt us today. These

runners are only six miles into the Cardiff half marathon and there is a

long way to go. The question is, how far is the country into the current

round of public sector cuts. The budget being discussed at the

assembly behind me would suggest that for local authorities in Wales

in particular, they have still got to go through the pain barrier. Ten

years ago, Neath Port Talbot council could see that running leisure

centres was expensive. They arranged for a trust to take over. They now

save money by not paying rates for the buildings. We have now found

that the cause of the additional cuts put on as, that figure has now

become 41 million. That means we stop doing things. And even the

trust is under pressure in having half £1 million taken out of them

over the next four years. We have to find ways of saving. The Welsh

Government does not have an overall majority so it has 2/ a deal to get

the budget through. Even before the budget was sorted out, it did do

this with the Liberal Democrats and Plaid Cymru. They secured £100

million for some of their priorities. It is about protecting

people in need and we know there is a crisis in the health service, that

there are grave problems within the education system and in the

economy. Being able to secure a deal that hits all of those three

priorities is something I am proud to have achieved today. There is no

point in having a row just for the sake of dragging this process of.

People out there look aghast at politicians not being able to put

some of their differences aside to do what is ride for the country. The

more time people have two plan and prepare for this, the better. This

is all political parties working together in the national interest to

agree a budget and allow displaced function. Getting agreement was the

easy bit. There is a long, hard road ahead now to bring these cuts in

without affecting services. I am joined by the finance minister who

set out the draft budget this afternoon. And as we mentioned, a

big change towards the NHS. Is this an admission after an awful lot of

criticism that you do not put in a full -- and of money into the

budget? This is the toughest budget that we have had to set. We have had

cuts from the UK open to -- UK government to handle. Our priorities

have always been schools, health, but also recognising that we have to

look at the particular needs in the health service. The Francis review

was a really strong call for us to health service. The Francis review

respond and we are responding accordingly. This was after the

scandal but you carried out your own review of this summer and it came to

the conclusion that it needed around £500 million more. That is an

admission in itself. No, it is a response. It is a responsible

government responding to the needs and recognising that supporting

staff and care has to be number one. Everyone in Wales would recognise

that. We have to make a decision about the budget that we are putting

money into local services. There is no question that extra money for

schools, protecting schools, the money going into our young people,

it is vital and sold local government will benefit. It is going

to be tough for councils though. We have protected the local government

over the last three years. We have worked with them and they will

recognise that it will get tougher. Of course, it is our priorities but

it is about working together. And recognising today they are going to

benefit from this budget, investment in schools. Tomorrow, we will be

announcing capital investment, working together, I think we can

come through this time. Back to the studio.

Thank you. We've already heard that this is a tough budget for your

council. Steve Thomas is chief executive of the Welsh Local

Government Association. What does this mean for people using council

services? It is a very tough budget. There is money coming out of council

services. It will impact. We cannot keep delivering the range of

services that we are delivering. It will impact on libraries, reference

collection, leisure services, the condition of the roads. There will

be a massive impact. But you are not the number one priority. We are not

the number one priority and clearly what has happened is that with a

mixture of Westminster cuts and the prioritisation of health spending,

local government has in effect become the poor relation in terms of

this budget. We have heard all the politics and the economics and the

finance and all the rest of it. If you are watching this in Holyhead or

Swansea or Newport, what does it mean for people using council

services? We are already seeing that leisure services are getting badly

hit. There are announcements around leisure centre closures around

Wales. Consultation is going on around the library services. There

will be a range of changes going on. But it will affect the workforce in

local government. Councils can find the race of raising money. -- other

ways. I suspect the council taxes will not see easy races. You must

have spoken to colleagues. We have yet to see the local government

settlement but I think that when we do see that, there will be more

pressure on the council tax. It is a source of income that we have to see

what services the public want to prioritise. Isn't the first thing to

do to look at the back office costs? They can be more efficient. There

may be a reorganisation of local government but at the end of the

day, we have three years to make these cuts and it will be a very

tough period for local authorities to do that. Thank you very much. If

there was a winner in a budget described by a Welsh Government

source as the toughest since devolution, then it was health. The

NHS will get £570 million extra over three years, with £150 of that

pumped in between now and next April. The announcement follows a

summer of negotiations between the Health Minister and Finance

Minister. So where the money go and is it enough to solve the problems.

Here's our health correspondent, Owain Clarke. It is hard to reach

for the stars these days but at least we can take a look at them

here. At the centre of it all is health. Dwarfing most other

departments. But for the first time in years, its budget just got

bigger. It is getting £570 million over three years, starting now. The

health service needs more money just to stand still. The other key thing

about health service funding is though that to some people it

appears like a huge black hole. Money pours and you are never quite

sure what you got out of it as a result of all that extra money. For

politicians, it is dangerous and frustrating. But where does the

money go? Replacing this equipment would cost £1.5 million. But it is

not only about the big unconjugated machines. Take these two bits of

equipment, they are put inside the body to deal with weaknesses in

blood vessels. They might not look like very much but this one costs

£6,000 and this one costs £10,000. At the end of the day, you will have

major pieces of equipment that need to be funded as big one-off

payments. And to try and find out in your everyday running expenses is

very difficult. It is like trying to run a house and buy a car at the end

of the week. Costs can also go up to two salary increases and new drugs

are also expensive. But too many end up in the bin because patients do

not use them. But extra money has been found. £9.5 million for robotic

equipment like this. Until now, dozens of Welsh men including Kevin

Davies have paid £15,000 each to get treated across the border. As a

nurse as one as an army commander, he says the new equipment will

benefit hundreds. Shorter stays in hospitals, less infection, less

blood loss. And greater mobility. And in my experience, a pain-free

surgical experience. Other patients are angry because the NHS still

cannot afford to treat them. This man served with the RAF during

nuclear tests in the Pacific in the 1950s. He is now paying for

treatment for his own liver cancer. Why have I paid my taxes and

National Insurance all my life? When I actually need the NHS, they are

not there. It has virtually bankrupted us. But there will be £50

million extra to make sure that those who can get treated in the

community not in hospital. We could see more health centres like this

one in Builth Wells, which brings beds, GP care, dentist care and

council social services together. But despite the extra investment,

there are worries. The NHS is notoriously inefficient and we are

living longer, putting it in more strain but the key question is, does

today's extra money and that the NHS here is better placed to face the

huge challenges on the horizon? Much more to come before 7pm. She was

beaten up. Why women like Michelle say they want to know more about

their partner's past. First the rest of the day's news. A

senior Welsh MP has told BBC Wales one of the most controversial

changes to housing benefit, what critics call the bedroom tax, isn't

working as well here as in other parts of the UK. David Davies says

although he supports the reforms, some people will lose out, because

there aren't enough one bedroom properties available outside the

main cities. Tim Rogers reports. He is, he says, an enthusiastic

supporter of what he calls the under occupancy charge and David Davies

agreed to join us to meet tenants where they call it the bedroom tax.

Among them is Gail. After 25 years in the same house, she is facing the

real possibility of losing her home. She is 59 years of age and has

always paid their bills and has never missed the rent. Since her

children grew up and moved on, she is on her own and for that reason,

the new law says she has two bedrooms or and she needs. Housing

benefit has been reduced and she is now in arrears. Her only option is

to find the extra money or move to a smaller property but you cannot find

anywhere else to go. There has to be recognition and maybe ministers are

reluctant to say this, when you change the law, there are going to

be unforeseen and unfortunate consequences. In other words, there

will be some people suffering and we should be upfront about that. Some

people do not deserve to lose out. He was less sympathetic when he met

this young couple. They are living in a two-bedroom flat and paying

extra for the empty room, despite getting £60 between them from a

training scheme. The MP met Amy at her grandfather 's house. Mr Davies

told her that she would do better to live back with her mother and her

boyfriend should go to London to find a job. I would not wait for

them to solve my problem. You cannot solve the problems. Thank you very

much. If there was a job available for me, I would go for it. I am not

expecting for you to give I don't know however much tax you pay but I

don't want your money. You obviously do once. And you want me to give it

to you in the form of housing benefit. Mr Davies is chairing a

House of Commons committee compiling a report on the effect of the new

law on Wales. I cannot see this being more of a problem. It is

something that we have to keep a careful eye on. Ed Miliband has

committed to the abolition of what he calls the bedroom tax if Labour

wins the next election. Mr Davies says the country cannot afford to do

without it. More on that story on Week In Week Out, 10.35pm on BBC One

Wales. Labour leader Ed Miliband has given two Welsh MPs new jobs in a

reshuffle of the party's spokespeople at Westminster. Delyn

MP David Hanson moves from Shadow Police Minister to take over the

immigration brief, previously held by Rhondda MP Chris Bryant. Mr

Bryant will move to work and pensions. The Public Services

Ombudsman for Wales, Peter Tyndall, is to leave his post for a new job

in Ireland. Originally from Dublin, he's held the post since 2008. Now

he'll return to Ireland, after being nominated to be the next Ombudsman

and Information Commissioner there. He's been one of the most exciting

and colourful figures in Welsh football over the past 15 years.

Today Craig Bellamy announced his retirement from international

football. His last game will be in Belgium next week, the final game of

the World Cup qualifying campaign. Only two players have ever played

more games for Wales than him. Our sports reporter Ashleigh Crowter now

on an eventful career in the red shirt. With a quick brain, quick

feet and sometimes a quick temper, Craig Bellamy is a player who

demands to be watched. But in a weeks time, his appearances will

only be for club and not for country. The Cardiff City striker

has decided it is time to retire from the national squad at the age

of 34. I have to do what is best for the national team as well and this

group of players are the future. The next qualifier, I am not going to

see it. For this group of players will have a better opportunity for

qualifying if I cut myself short. He made his debut for Wales as a

teenager in 1998, coming on as a sub against Jamaica. It was the start of

something special. In his 15 years in the national team, he has played

76 time, putting himself third on the all-time list. He has also

scored 19 goals. Only four other players have scored more. And there

is no doubt about his signature moment. His goal to beat Italy in

2002 will long be remembered as one of the great moments in Welsh

sporting history. But that team still did not qualify for the

European Championships. Playing for Great Britain in last year 's

Olympics was the closest he came to featuring in a major tournament. His

last match for Wales in Wales will be on Friday against Macedonia. If

he avoids picking up a yellow card, the final farewell will come in

Belgium on Tuesday. His team-mates expect he will demand the best from

himself and then write to the end. There are a lot of people in this

squad myself included that if he does finish can hold our hands up

and say he has helped us improve because you listen to the way he

talks at the way he conducts himself around the hotel and everything like

that, he is unbelievable. Fans of Cardiff City will be hoping he can

continue to play for them for a little while yet. Its contract runs

out at the end of the season and he has hinted he is considering other

options. Whatever he decides, this is now his last week as an

international player. Wales has not had many better. The MMR jab has

been offered to pupils at a Neath Port Talbot school which has seen a

new case of measles. It's after tests confirmed a student at Cwmtawe

School has caught the virus. Four other people are suspected of having

contracted measles. Three months ago Wales' worst ever measles outbreak

was declared officially over. We have had a very positive response

from the community. We have informed parents via social media and the

school website and also through letters and those who we knew had

not been vaccinated have been sent an individual letter and the uptake

has been very positive today. The UK Government will look at how the

DVLA, which has its headquarters in Swansea, can save money and offer

better services in a three month review. They'll look at how to

increase its online services, as well as improving its website. The

PCS Union says it's worried it'll lead to cutbacks and job losses A

lollipop lady from the Vale of Glamorgan, who stepped in front a

car to protect a group of children, has been given an outstanding

bravery prize at the Pride of Britain awards. Karin Williams took

the full impact of the crash outside Rhoose Primary School, badly

injuring her legs, elbow and shoulder. What do you really know

about people's past when it comes to a new relationship? A scheme which

can tell you about a partner's violent past should be rolled out

across Wales. That's the view of a leading domestic abuse charity. The

process, often known as Clare's law has been tried out in the Gwent

Police force for the past 15 months. Paul Heaney reports. With my first

partner, it was mostly violence and he did take me can -- take control

and could be from everybody. He wanted to punch me in a shoe shop

because they could see my ankles when I was training shoes on.

Michelle says she would have benefited from knowing about her

ex-partner 's violent past and so with others in similar situations is

-- circumstances. You should still have the option. When Clare Wood

from Manchester was murdered by her ex-boyfriend in 2009, she did not

know about his history of violence. Her family campaign for what is

known as Clare's law which can lead people know about an individual 's

abusive past. In Gwent, 66 people ask for information, 13 disclosures

were made. We do not take them lightly. There has to be

proportionate law to protect those people and children as well. We do

inform perpetrators of domestic abuse at the point that they come

into the unit that they could potentially have their details given

to a future partner. Some want other areas to benefit too. There should

be clarity around the process and accountability. That is helpful and

it is something we would like to see rolled out. The Home Office will now

look at this scheme to see if it has been a success and whether to roll

it out across the country. Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale has been

voted the Football Association of Wales' Player of the Year for the

second time in three years. The 24-year-old has enjoyed an

impressive year, which culminated in his world record £85 million

transfer. Meanwhile Arsenal star Aaron Ramsey has been named the

Premier League's player of the month for September.

Let's return to our main story. The spending plans for next year. It has

been called the toughest budget since devolution. Let's talk to Nick

Servini in Cardiff Bay for us tonight. Beyond the politics and the

economic score what is it me on the ground? Well, I think the

calculation will be that if you are waiting for some kind of health

service, then you could benefit from today's announcement. On the flip

side, if you are a regular user of a council museum or a Council library,

the kind of local authority service at will come under severe pressure

as a result of the cuts in the coming years, then you may suffer as

a result of it. The Welsh Government do not want to see this as an either

or situation but frankly, other people will frame it in that light.

Local authorities say it has been a difficult couple of years in Wales

but the reality years compared to councils in England, they have not

gone through the same level of cuts. And then on the NHS, by any measure,

it has been a desperately difficult year for the health service in

Wales. Funding has not kept pace with inflation. The Welsh Government

is saying they are responding to need. Critics say they will be

backtracking and they should have done this a number of years ago.

Thank you very much. Time now for the weather forecast with Behnaz.

The numbers are dropping and the weather is set to bid much colder

over the next couple of days. There is a risk of Frost as well. These

are the impressive temperatures from today. Look at the drop by the time

we get to Thursday. Nine Celsius. You will certainly need your extra

layers tomorrow night and into the end of the week. This evening, a

fairly quiet night. The odd spot of light rain. But still mild.

Temperatures remaining in double figures for most of us. In the

countryside, it could get down to eight Celsius. Another cold front

pushing southwards tomorrow. A little bit more cloud and rain. But

behind that cold front is when we will feel the cold air from the

North. First thing tomorrow morning, a cloudy start with the wind getting

going from the North West. Taking the temperature -- taking the edge

off the temperatures. Look at the dropping temperatures. Around the

average for the time of year, which is around 13 Celsius. Tomorrow

night, we will start to see the cold, clear skies, a touch of frost

forming in clear areas -- southern areas. Overnight and bridges getting

down to around five Celsius. That will give us a cold start to

Thursday morning. But at least it is dry and bright. As long as you wear

an extra layer, it will be all right. The chief executive of the

Welsh local government Association has told this programme he suspects

council tax bills will go up as a result of the Welsh local government

-- Welsh Government strath budget. Spending on local government has

been cut to just over £4.5 billion. £570 million more will be spent on

the Welsh NHS over the next three years. We will have an update for

you at 8pm. Thank you for watching. From all of us on the programme,

good evening.