31/10/2013 BBC Wales Today

Welcome to Wales Today. Our top story.

Lilian Williams was seriously neglected at two hospitals before

she died - an independent review is promised into care at the health

board. The Prime Minister prepares to make

a major announcement on further devolution. We'll be speaking to

David Cameron in the studio about that and the challenges facing

Wales. Lilian Williams was seriously neglected at two hospitals before

she died - an independent review is promised into care at the health

board. It is incredibly frustrated when you

know that individuals are suffering. They are in pain, they are

suffering, they are crying out, they are being ignored.

Also tonight. 180 jobs to go at the biggest mine

in Wales. It's an American idea - producing

milk on a massive scale. Now a mega dairy's given the go ahead here

despite local opposition. And it's the first ever South Wales

derby in the Premier League - we'll be looking at the rivalry between

our two biggest cities. Good evening. A major announcement

is expected tomorrow by the Prime Minister on the future of devolution

in Wales. It follows a wide-ranging commission which recommended that

the Welsh assembly should be given more powers. Our political editor

has more details. Major changes could be on the way

for devolution in Wales. The UK government is likely to give its

response to proposals to give Wales tax varying and borrowing powers. By

Minister David Cameron joins me now. What can we expect tomorrow? I

believe in devolution. I believe it is right to give Wales more power

over the future. Within three years, we have already had that referendum,

given the Welsh assembly lawmaking powers and now we are looking at the

issue of how we are make sure the government in Wales is responsible

for raising some of the money it spends. I think that makes for good

government. We will be making announcements tomorrow. The Deputy

Prime Minister will be joining me in Cardiff. To pick up on borrowing

powers, does that mean there will be an M4 relief road around Newport? I

know we need these investments in Wales. It is the British government

giving the money for the electrification of the railway line

to Swansea. I know we need to fix the M4 issue as well. But borrowing

powers matter because the Welsh government needs the capacity to get

things done and if you are going to borrow, you need sources of income

to help pay the interest to make sure you can manage things

effectively. When it comes to tax, what do you think is acceptable? If

we move on income tax, there has to be a referendum. That would be for

the Welsh people to decide whether they want to take that power. But

the general principle is, you get better government if the government

is responsible for raising some of the money it spends because then it

is not just receiving a block from Westminster and spending the money,

it has got to make decisions about how they raise the money, who they

raise it from and how to best spend it. My final question on this issue,

why has it taken you so long to come up with a response to this? It takes

time to get these things right, to think everything through, to make

sure you have consulted and listened. I reject the idea this

government has been slow on this issue. We came along, you had the

referendum on lawmaking powers straightaway. Big things like the

electrification of the railway line to Swansea and now a big

announcement tomorrow but I want to make it with the Deputy Prime

Minister in the proper way. We have an announcement tonight about a

major summit coming to Wales next year. This is a massive summit, the

NATO summit which is going to take place in August next year. It

includes the president of the United States who will be coming to Wales.

But as many as 60 countries will be coming and it is a great opportunity

to showcase the modern, successful Wales. We will be hosting it in

Celtic Manor but using other sites as well, including Cardiff. Just as

the G8 was a great opportunity to show Northern Ireland in its best

light, this will be a great opportunity for Wales. It is

important because it is at the end of our Afghan mission and it is

important to reflect on that and look to the future of NATO. To pick

up on another announcement today on making it easier for people to

switch energy providers, what do you say to people who need help now,

bearing in mind that official figures show people pay more for

their energy in Wales than any other part of the UK? We want to give help

now which is why we are legislating so that companies have to put people

on the lowest tariffs. We have maintained winter payments and

obviously we want to help by trying to get people's bills down by making

this market more competitive so all these steps can make a difference.

But switching is important because that is one option for customers and

people can save as much as ?250 by switching their suppliers.

Everything takes time but what the energy Secretary announced today

that is we are going to try and enable people to switch within 24

hours and I think that is an important thing to make this market

more competitive. If you want to get prices down, you have got to get

costs down and to do that you need a more competitive market and it will

all back the costs of some of these regulatory charges. And when it

comes to the economy, clearly there is an economic recovery underway.

How can you get that recovery spread from the south of England to places

like Wales? 180 minus found out today that they pick is going to go

into administration. It is essential that every part of the UK shares in

this growth. If you look at the figures since the election, there

are 65,000 more people in work than they were three years ago,

unemployment is down by 12,000 but I know we have got a lot more to do.

The infrastructure we build is going to help, the railways, the roads,

the nuclear power station proposal in Anglesey, we need to pursue that,

and we have got to make it easier for companies to employ people and

grow. I will be talking to Carwyn Jones about that tomorrow. The UK

government will be doing everything it can to share in this recovery. We

know we have some of the communities in Wales have the highest dependency

on welfare payments, what do you say to people in those communities who

are seeing their benefits cut and yet they are not seeing the new job

opportunities in the areas where they live? We are seeing six to 5000

more people in work in Wales compared with three years ago. Just

over the last quarter, in 11,000 extra people in work. The jobs are

coming and it is right to reform welfare to make sure it is always

better to work than to be on welfare because I don't want people to miss

out on the opportunities coming in our economy. And if those jobs are

not there in those communities? We are creating these jobs and that is

why the railway investment is important, the road investment, that

is why the nuclear power station is important, that is why the big

announcement of the new prison in North Wales is going to bring

hundreds of jobs to Wrexham. There are a lot of investments that we are

making but we need a private sector led recovery. We all know we have a

big budget deficit, we can't spend our way out of difficulty. We have

to set the conditions where businesses can set up and employ

people. Can that happen in Wales? Wales is an incredibly enterprising

part of the UK economy and there are great industrial and economic

success stories. That is why the NATO summit is not just about

talking about defence and security, it is a chance to have a whole world

looking at Wales and what Wales offers. I want Wales to put its best

foot forward and say it is a great country to invest and growing

because you have got a government in the UK that is business friendly.

It was a case described as tragic for the patient and her family. In

July, we reported on the care given to pensioner Lilian Williams. She

was seriously neglected at two hospitals run by Abertawe Bro

Morgannwg University Health Board and died in hospital last year. Now

the Health Minister has pledged an independent review into care

provided by the health board. India Pollock has this exclusive report.

The review will look at how medication is administered to

patients, particularly those such as Lilian Williams who find it

difficult to take medicine orally. The full details and scope of the

review are still to be finalised but there are calls for a Wales wide

enquiry into care. It is looking at what is good practice but also

identifying bad practice. Many patients have a good experience

through our NHS but there are an increasing number of people that are

not having that positive experience. Abertawe Bro Morgannwg Univrsity

Health Board says it has already seen positive results after putting

robust measures in place at this hospital to improve standards of

care. It welcomes this new review but also says it commissioned its

own external review earlier this year. Gareth Williams has described

the enquiry as bittersweet. More than 180 jobs have been lost at

Wales' largest drift-mine. Unity Mine in Cwmgwrach in the Neath

Valley went into administration three weeks ago. The company said

the falling price of coal meant its operations were unsustainable. Our

reporter Cemlyn Davies is in Cwmgwrach.

This is a community that has been bracing itself for today's news for

several weeks now. They have been concerns about the future of Unity

Mine but now there has been a blow to this area and to the 180 people

who have lost their jobs. For ten weeks, workers at Unity Mine

have been sharing shifts in an effort to prevent redundancies.

Today it became clear that effort has been in vain. Bitterly

disappointed but as we spoke earlier, at least there is now some

clarity and the workforce actually know exactly what is going on. I

don't think I am going to find work around here. I am 57 years of age.

It is the young men I feel sorry for. The miners say they would have

preferred to hear this news sooner rather than living in hope the

outcome would be different. They are now asking why they have been

allowed to work for so little for so long. Some of these individuals have

not been paid a day's wage in ten weeks. Could this have been going

eight or nine weeks ago? That is the question I have got today. Could

different strategies have been pursued? According to the

administrators, the company is looking to implement a new mining

plan and to do that it needs to buy new equipment. The administrators

say there is not any funding available to do that and so while

they seek investment, a team of 30 staff will be kept on to maintain

the mine. But for the rest of the workforce, the job search has

already begun and in an area where there is little work on offer, there

are real concerns about the knock-on effect these job losses will have on

the community. This is a savage blow to the Valley. The men and their

families and the whole community. To have 180 men forced on redundancy

with good wages, setting that spending power out of the local

community is terrible. In a statement the administrators said it

is intended sustainable opportunities can be achieved at the

mine in the long term. That will be of little comfort to the dozens of

miners who now find themselves out of work.

There is a glimmer of hope this evening and that is because the

administrators have said there has been a high level of interest from

potential investors and discussions are ongoing. In the meantime, the

local Assembly Member has called for talks between the Welsh government,

the local authority, the administrators and the company and

she says she has been reassured by the Welsh government that everything

is being done to support the workforce.

You're watching Wales Today. Plenty still ahead.

With a potential global audience of billions, we'll asses the rivalry

between Swansea and Cardiff ahead of their first Premier League derby.

Plans to build a super-dairy near Welshpool have been given the

go-ahead despite the Public Inquiry Inspector saying it should be

refused. Planning Minister Carl Sargeant said the economic benefits

out-weighed other considerations. More from our environment

correspondent Iolo ap Dafydd. They already milked 300 cows at this

farm. Today's decision arouse the finer -- allows the farmer to triple

the size of his herd. I think it is important that private investment

takes place and the ministers could seek this is a considerable private

investment, it is busily a big investment in a declining industry.

A campaign group against the expansion has been formed in the

village. The main concerns are about orders will stop and the wider

environmental impact on the area. I will be writing to the Minister

immediately asking him to take those things on board now that the

decision has been finally made. They are real fears. In the letter

explaining his decision, Carl Sargeant acknowledged the adverse

effect the dairy would have on the landscape and local heritage but he

disagrees with the planning inspector who wanted the super dairy

application refused because of the weight the inspector gave to the

economic benefits. While the Minister acknowledged the concerns,

Carl Sargeant's statement says the economic benefits of the proposed

element outweigh the social and environmental objections. This

decision has been described as a dark day for Wales and Welsh dairy

farmers. It also represents a threat to the existence of small-scale

dairy farmers who are already struggling to survive in the current

market. I think there are a whole host of other harms this can cause

as well, hamster the environment, the landscape, animal welfare.

Super-sized dairy herds are more common in the US and some Asian

countries. But this would not be the first of its kind in Wales.

According to the latest government figures, there are six farms in

Wales with over a thousand dairy cows.

Lecturers and university staff have been on strike in a row over pay and

conditions. Classes were cancelled as lecturers took to the streets in

Cardiff, Swansea, Aberystwyth and Bangor. Unions say the proposed 1%

pay rise is actually a 13% real-terms cut. The body

representing university employers says the offer is a good outcome for

staff. A jockey has been cleared of

indecently assaulting teenage girls at his stables. Stephen Cashmore,

who is 49 and from Swansea, was accused of three counts of indecency

with a child and four of indecent assault against three different

victims between 1988 and 1991. A man is critically ill in Morriston

Hospital after being attacked by a stag. Crew from the Wales Air

Ambulance performed surgery on the man from Llandysul at the scene,

before airlifting him to hospital for further treatment.

Swansea City have announced profits of ?15.3 million for the year ending

in May. The figure was boosted by the sale of players such as Joe

Allen and Scott Sinclair. The news comes days before the first ever

Premier League derby at the Cardiff City Stadium. Our reporter Matt

Murray has been finding out more about the rivalry between our two

biggest cities. Two cities, two football clubs, just

separated by 40 miles. But now joined together by the Premier

League. Cardiff City and Swansea City have an historic rivalry which

dates back over a century. But the competition between these two cities

goes back a lot further. Swansea built on copper, while Cardiff was

built on coal. There's long been a divide between the two. At the

cities' newspapers, a rivalry also exists. The Evening Post is now the

biggest selling paper in South Wales. While Media Wales sees itself

with a growing online presence as well as its publications, The

Western Mail and Echo. But is there still an attitude of them and us? I

dread to say it but it is a slight envy Dan West that Cardiff gets

everything. All the money seems to come into Cardiff and all the

investment so maybe there is a slight inferiority complexes in

Swansea. Swansea is Wales's second city and there will always be that

city library between the capital and the second city. I don't think that

will ever go away. But with the success of Swansea, it has cemented

Swansea's place on the world map and it is up to Cardiff to catch us up.

It was not helped when the people of Swansea voted for the assembly and

Cardiff voted against but the building was located in Cardiff Bay.

One thing the Premier League has brought is a boost in profits, not

just for the clubs but also business. Whatever your taste it

seems there's an appetite for two very Welsh delicacies. From cockles

in Swansea to Clark's Pies in Cardiff. Before a big match both see

a major increase in trade. Now they have gone up to the Premier League,

the pie sales have rocketed, which is really good for business. Cockles

and laver bread, the Swans, great football, you can come into Swansea

market. It is great. Peter Stead is a historian with his foot in both

camps. . He's now that rare find. If both our sites can stay there and

maintain that level, South Wales can become recognised internationally as

a centre of world-class football. And when the two clubs meet on

Sunday, whatever the result, there will be one winner, and that is

Wales and Welsh football as this game will be broadcast to 220

countries. The eyes of the world will be on the oldest of rivals.

Much more on the big game tomorrow night. In the meantime, the Home

Office is investigating the visa terms of Cardiff City's new interim

head of recruitment Alisher Apsalyamov. The 23-year-old from

Kazakhstan had been on work experience at the club. Cardiff City

have also been charged by the FA with failing to control their

players after an incident at the end of Saturday's Premier League match

at Norwich. Both clubs have been charged with the same offence. They

have until Monday evening to respond.

Gareth Bale scored twice for Real Madrid after starting his first home

match at the Bernabeu Stadium. The Wales star opened the scoring in the

7-3 victory over Seville and later added a second thanks to a deflected

free-kick. The Prime Minister has told us

tonight that a major announcement about devolution in Wales is

expected in the morning. I believe in devolution. I believe it is right

to give people in Wales more power and control over their future and

their government. This was a government that within three years,

we have already had that referendum and given the Welsh assembly

lawmaking powers and now we are looking at this whole issue of how

we make sure that the government in Wales is responsible for raising

some of the money it spends. I think that makes for good government,

accountable. -- government. The Deputy Prime Minister will be

joining me in Cardiff tomorrow and we will make the announcement in the

proper way. Our political editor is back. This is the official UK

government's response to the Silk Commission which was set up to look

at the future of devolution and the financial powers of the Welsh

government. There has been criticism that over the years the Welsh

government is just a spending body and one of the weaknesses is that

the Assembly Members, the Welsh government is not responsible for

raising enough of its revenue so as a result, to try to improve the

governance in the future, what we will expect is that the Welsh

government will be given control over stamp duty and potentially in

the future over income tax. There are a number of caveats on income

tax. It would need a referendum in the future. Also, crucially, on

giving the Welsh government the power to borrow to fund major

capital projects. Politically it is a significant moment and it is

change the dynamic, moving it from a spending authority to an authority

that is now responsible for raising money and sharing the responsibility

that we all face on a day-to-day basis. What will businesses be

looking out for? We know what business was because it is only in

the last week or so we had a statement that involved a number of

business leaders including from the CBI, the Federation of small

businesses and the trade unions saying they want the full increment

Asian of these proposals, including borrowing. But the interesting thing

about borrowing is that there is a split within the business committee

because you have CBI Wales which was to see borrowing devolved because it

was that new M4 relief road whereas the Federation of small businesses

says that money can be better spent. Thank you both very much indeed.

It's Halloween. Hopefully the weather is not too scary out there

tonight Derek. I am not expecting any ghoulish fog

but if you are out trick or treating watch out for a few spooky showers.

A bit wet in places this evening but not everywhere. Parts of Powys and

the north dry. However, rain will arrive later in the night. The wind

easing with lowest temperatures in the north around seven Celsius.

Here's the picture for eight in the morning.. Outbreaks of rain for most

of the country. Moderate bursts in places too. And feeling cool. Nine

degrees in Lampeter with a light breeze. So not a great day tomorrow.

Damp if not wet. Turning misty too with hill fog. Top temperatures

between ten and 13 Celsius with a light to moderate breeze. Cloudy and

damp. Outbreaks of rain and feeling cool. At least the wind will be

light. Tomorrow evening, a damp and misty start but the rain will clear

so drying up overnight. The cloud clearing and turning chilly with

some ground frost. The chart for Saturday shows low pressure moving

in from the Atlantic across Ireland and Britain. And that means more

windy weather. Saturday will start dry followed by a spell of rain

lasting a couple of hours clearing to sunshine and blustery showers.

Becoming windy too with strong to gale force winds. Severe gales on

exposed coasts in the south and west. It will remain windy into the

evening and night so if you're planning a firework or bonfire

party, conditions will not be ideal. Sunday, the wind will ease but it

will remain brisk with a mixture of sunshine and scattered blustery

showers. Feeling chilly in the wind. Some big, messy waves are likely on

the Bristol Channel coast on Saturday afternoon with gale force

onshore winds combining with an increasing swell. Good news for

surfers but take care if you're on the coast around high tide. Our

picture tonight is from Heather Harris. Have a good evening. Enjoy

Halloween. Prime Minister David Cameron has

told this programme that he will be making a major announcement tomorrow

on the future of devolution in Wales. He also announced that next

year's NATO summit will be held at the Celtic Manor in Newport. World

leaders including Barack Obama are respected to attend.

There's an update at 8.00pm and a full round-up of the day's news,

sport and extended weather forecast at 10.25pm. From all of us here,

have a good evening.