07/04/2016 BBC Wales Today


07/04/2016

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On BBC One, we now join the BBC's news teams where you are.

:00:00.:00:00.

The race is on to rewrite the 350 million

:00:00.:00:07.

pound deal that would bring motorsport to Ebbw Vale.

:00:08.:00:11.

The company behind the Circuit of Wales tell us in an exclusive

:00:12.:00:14.

For her purse on the table we would like to explore an option that sees

:00:15.:00:26.

the government guaranteed to 80%. Delivering a five year freeze

:00:27.:00:29.

on council tax - the promise from the Welsh Conservatives

:00:30.:00:33.

if they win power in the Assembly. The First Minister

:00:34.:00:36.

Carwyn Jones rules out means-testing for university tuition

:00:37.:00:38.

fee grants if Labour retains power And after more than

:00:39.:00:40.

a decade of trying, can new coach Robert Croft achieve

:00:41.:00:43.

promotion at Glamorgan? A new deal is on the table for

:00:44.:00:59.

the financing of Circuit of Wales. Michael Carrick the man behind

:01:00.:01:03.

the regeneration project on the Heads of the Valleys says

:01:04.:01:10.

the latest proposals would bring local authorities back on board,

:01:11.:01:20.

retain Aviva investment at ?357m and reduce the amount underwritten

:01:21.:01:24.

by Welsh Government Our economics correspondent

:01:25.:01:26.

Sarah Dickins has had an exclusive It has been high adrenaline, like

:01:27.:01:39.

the bikes themselves. Every twist and turn of the financing of Circuit

:01:40.:01:49.

of Wales has been moving. The Welsh government said they could not

:01:50.:01:53.

underwrite the money from a fever. Now a new offer on the table keeps

:01:54.:01:59.

the further investment, with less risk to the government. They may be

:02:00.:02:06.

able to be more comfortable. Is this 180%? We have put the table we would

:02:07.:02:12.

to explore with government and option which reduces the government

:02:13.:02:17.

guaranteed to below 80%. How far below? Below 80%. The reason we go

:02:18.:02:27.

below 80% is a nuance, it becomes much easier for all parties to get

:02:28.:02:34.

comfortable with the potential risks of a challenge from a perspective

:02:35.:02:39.

from government. There are state aid issues looming in the background?

:02:40.:02:45.

More than 80% may invoke state aid complaints? There will always be

:02:46.:02:50.

state aid challenges whenever governments provide guarantees. It

:02:51.:02:55.

would be less of a challenge if we were below 80%. That is what we have

:02:56.:02:59.

reverted back with. These are the plans of the company hopes will

:03:00.:03:06.

become a reality. If it fails in construction no taxpayer money would

:03:07.:03:10.

be used to underwrite it. The Welsh government underwriting which would

:03:11.:03:16.

be less than 80% would only kick in once it opened and hit financial

:03:17.:03:18.

troubles. The garment would gain the assets. Investing in a start-up

:03:19.:03:24.

venture like this, something as popular as motorsport, meets the

:03:25.:03:29.

risk and reward balance. This is not a frightening risk for a major

:03:30.:03:36.

investor. The new proposals have only been the Welsh government's

:03:37.:03:39.

desk for a few hours, and maybe still too risky for them to support.

:03:40.:03:44.

The company hopes to bring you support from local authorities who

:03:45.:03:49.

dropped out last month. It is hoped that the project will bring other

:03:50.:03:53.

locomotive companies to the area and bring much needed jobs. Sports car

:03:54.:04:01.

company said they would make their latest car next door. They hope to

:04:02.:04:07.

have an announcement in the next few weeks. The Welsh government has said

:04:08.:04:13.

it is important they keep the door open to negotiations.

:04:14.:04:18.

The doubts hanging over the Circuit of Wales have been most

:04:19.:04:20.

keenly felt in Ebbw Vale and the surrounding area.

:04:21.:04:22.

With the promise of thousands of jobs - many in the area have seen

:04:23.:04:26.

the project as real opportunity to transform an area which has

:04:27.:04:28.

If things had gone to the original plan, this rugged field would now be

:04:29.:04:39.

a hive of building activity. Instead on the boundary of the proposed

:04:40.:04:43.

Circuit of Wales, one long-standing supporters says Welsh government

:04:44.:04:48.

ministers will be blamed if the scheme does not materialise. If you

:04:49.:04:52.

are going to have an investment of this size there has to be an element

:04:53.:04:56.

of risk. Who else will back it up other than the government? They are

:04:57.:05:00.

supposed to be representing the people, they need to put their money

:05:01.:05:06.

where their mouth is. At the end of last year the unemployment rate

:05:07.:05:08.

there was the highest in Wales, 9.3%. Nearly 43% of people don't

:05:09.:05:15.

have a job and are looking for one. They are economically inactive. That

:05:16.:05:20.

includes students and retired people, the second-highest in Wales.

:05:21.:05:25.

Local businesses are concerned that the latest setback. It has been very

:05:26.:05:30.

frustrating waiting for it to come to something. As far as we know, as

:05:31.:05:37.

we said earlier, private investment. All of a sudden the private

:05:38.:05:39.

investors want the Welsh government to underwrite it. Governments are

:05:40.:05:44.

not bottomless pits, they cannot do these things. It will pay for

:05:45.:05:48.

itself, don't know what the argument is about. The local MP was part of

:05:49.:05:53.

discussions four and a half years ago. He says all hope is not lost.

:05:54.:05:58.

There was a lot of goodwill to ensure the project takes off. We

:05:59.:06:02.

need to redouble our efforts and get people around the table. The Circuit

:06:03.:06:07.

of Wales have insisted all day this is not the end of the line for the

:06:08.:06:11.

project. We may have to wait another six weeks to find out if the

:06:12.:06:16.

development just over the hill will definitely go ahead. Taking time to

:06:17.:06:23.

speak to people here and across the valleys, you find most of them are

:06:24.:06:27.

in favour of this, not for the motorsport, but the chance to change

:06:28.:06:31.

the entire economy of this part of Wales. Hard to underestimate just

:06:32.:06:43.

how much hope is pinned on this. The UK Business Secretary has ensured

:06:44.:06:55.

unions that tata would be a responsible seller.

:06:56.:06:58.

Mr Javid was in Port Talbot today after a visit to Mumbai

:06:59.:07:01.

where he met with Tata bosses who want to sell their entire

:07:02.:07:04.

The Community Union said their talks with the business secretary

:07:05.:07:07.

We have been lobbying Parliament for a long time, it is a shame we had

:07:08.:07:14.

not been put on a level playing field. We have to move forward,

:07:15.:07:18.

hopefully find new buyers and investors for the plant.

:07:19.:07:19.

A Welsh Conservative government would offer a council tax freeze

:07:20.:07:22.

for five years if the Tories win next month's assembly election.

:07:23.:07:25.

It's happened in England and Scotland - but rival parties

:07:26.:07:27.

Our political correspondent Daniel Davies is here

:07:28.:07:30.

Andrew RT Davies, the Welsh Tory leader, says he'll deliver a tax

:07:31.:07:41.

freeze for people in Wales if he's elected first minister.

:07:42.:07:43.

If it had happened five years ago, he says, the average Band D home

:07:44.:07:47.

would have saved nearly eight hundred pounds by now.

:07:48.:07:55.

in some departments - for example, funding for students -

:07:56.:07:59.

giving them the ?17m they'd need to pay for the freeze.

:08:00.:08:01.

Then, local councils would decide whether to pass it on to taxpayers.

:08:02.:08:06.

But it's still lower than in England.

:08:07.:08:11.

In fact it's been that way for years - despite English councils having

:08:12.:08:14.

a chance to freeze the tax under the last coalition UK government.

:08:15.:08:25.

in Wales this year - more than thirteen hundred pounds.

:08:26.:08:40.

But the Tories say council tax here is rising too fast,

:08:41.:08:46.

and eats up too much of people's incomes.

:08:47.:08:48.

The Conservative Party sees themselves of the lower tax party.

:08:49.:08:58.

They want to see themselves as a low tax party to make them more

:08:59.:09:01.

competitive with other parties, perhaps wanting to hold taxes where

:09:02.:09:02.

they are. The Tories aren't the only party

:09:03.:09:05.

talking about tax cuts. Plaid Cymru would cut up

:09:06.:09:11.

to four hundred pounds for the lowest valued homes -

:09:12.:09:13.

paid for by a tax rise for people publish plans soon which will reduce

:09:14.:09:17.

the unfair burden of council tax. UKIP told us that they

:09:18.:09:33.

wanted to "support reductions in council

:09:34.:09:35.

tax wherever possible". And Labour, who've

:09:36.:09:37.

overseen council tax levels since devolution,

:09:38.:09:39.

say they've kept bills lower here than in England,

:09:40.:09:41.

and say the Tory freeze has The Welsh Liberal Democrats say

:09:42.:09:43.

they would create an extra 140 thousand new apprentices over

:09:44.:09:47.

the next five years - if the party wins power in next

:09:48.:09:49.

month's Assembly election. in Wales each year -

:09:50.:09:54.

the Lib Dems say their plan All the main parties are promising

:09:55.:09:58.

to increase the number of apprentices - or have equivalent

:09:59.:10:01.

schemes to reduce unemployment. A father from Connah's Quay has

:10:02.:10:05.

admitted the manslaughter Sean Michael Mullender,

:10:06.:10:07.

who is 23 shook two month old Daniel with such force that he experienced

:10:08.:10:13.

bleeding and swelling on the brain. From Mold Crown Court,

:10:14.:10:16.

Matthew Richards reports. Sean Mullender arrived at court

:10:17.:10:21.

facing the prospect of a murder trial but his defence team told

:10:22.:10:27.

the judge Mrs Justice Nicola Davies that he would be prepared to admit

:10:28.:10:30.

a lesser charge of manslaughter. Following an incident at the family

:10:31.:10:34.

home in Connah's Quay his two month old son Daniel

:10:35.:10:44.

was taken to hospital in Chester on 2nd October 2014 after receiving

:10:45.:10:47.

injuries including fractured ribs and bleeding on the brain

:10:48.:10:50.

caused by violent shaking. He was Moved to Alderhey

:10:51.:11:02.

children's hospital Concerned Staff alerted

:11:03.:11:03.

north wales police. The prosecution barrister Told

:11:04.:11:06.

the court that the extended bereaved In his short life Daniel had

:11:07.:11:08.

received earlier rib fractures some fairly recently before he died

:11:09.:11:12.

which the court heard may have been Sean Mullender was remanded

:11:13.:11:15.

in custody and is due to be You're watching wales

:11:16.:11:19.

today, still to come: new optimism at Glamorgan,

:11:20.:11:25.

bosses tell us their finances are in a better shape,

:11:26.:11:29.

after a deal to write-off like weather for cricket

:11:30.:11:31.

at the moment. Hail and a spectacular double

:11:32.:11:37.

rainbow on Anglesey. The First Minister Carwyn Jones has

:11:38.:11:45.

ruled out means-testing for university tuition fee grants

:11:46.:11:48.

if Labour retains power It follows accusations

:11:49.:11:53.

that the policy has become unaffordable because tens

:11:54.:11:58.

of millions of pounds ends up in the coffers of

:11:59.:12:00.

universities in England. In the latest in our interviews

:12:01.:12:03.

with the party leaders, our political editor

:12:04.:12:06.

Nick Servini caught up with him in a restaurant in Barry

:12:07.:12:09.

in the Vale of Glamorgan. Welcome to Wales Today. Best laid

:12:10.:12:22.

plans, you were clearly heading into the assembly campaign on an economic

:12:23.:12:28.

development ticket, we have had well-documented problems in the

:12:29.:12:32.

steel industry. Last night, a huge regeneration economic scheme for the

:12:33.:12:38.

racetrack in ever fail looks dead in the water, were very difficult

:12:39.:12:46.

position. We an economy in crisis? The steel issue can be resolved. We

:12:47.:12:49.

need the UK Government to do its bit. There needs to be a financial

:12:50.:12:55.

package put on the table, pensions, tariffs, and energy prices. A lot of

:12:56.:13:03.

work to be done. The Circuit of Wales, the model put forward would

:13:04.:13:08.

not work. They were looking for two big a guarantee, no government would

:13:09.:13:14.

ever agree to that. The king of the model in more detail. When did that

:13:15.:13:19.

happen? In the last few days. You have signed cheques for ?9 million.

:13:20.:13:24.

It is not money wasted, the land is available. We cannot take on board

:13:25.:13:32.

an enormous risks of the Welsh taxpayers. Any rational government

:13:33.:13:38.

would make sure there is not an unacceptable risk to the people of

:13:39.:13:42.

Wales. Let's talk about the NHS. What has emerged in January, if you

:13:43.:13:48.

were waiting for a hip replacement operation. On average you are

:13:49.:13:55.

waiting 200 days. In England, 70 days. A lot of these people will be

:13:56.:14:00.

waiting months and months longer than they would in England. People

:14:01.:14:06.

have a right to say, what is going to happen to improve things?

:14:07.:14:09.

Entirely fair question. We spend more money for head then England. 7%

:14:10.:14:18.

more in emergency services. We are seeing waiting times coming down. If

:14:19.:14:23.

you look at cancer, cancer treatments in Wales are more readily

:14:24.:14:27.

available than England. The same for stroke. Some areas we don't do as

:14:28.:14:34.

well. Let's get the facts right. Not some, most. Most of the main

:14:35.:14:37.

indicators on some, most. Most of the main

:14:38.:14:44.

England, we are longer. Your officials told us we could not

:14:45.:14:48.

compare for five years, then we found the figures in January, and we

:14:49.:14:53.

could directly compare, showing striking differences between the two

:14:54.:14:57.

countries. The OECD, independent body says there are very little

:14:58.:15:02.

difference between all four countries. They did not look at

:15:03.:15:06.

waiting times. But that is what they said. People want to see

:15:07.:15:12.

improvements, and we accept that. In some areas things have not gone as

:15:13.:15:16.

they should, and we have taken steps to correct that. At the start of the

:15:17.:15:20.

assembly, we spent 42% of our budget on the NHS, it is now 48%. You bring

:15:21.:15:26.

down waiting times, more resources, more doctors to carry out

:15:27.:15:33.

operations. The gap between Wales and England has been getting longer,

:15:34.:15:37.

not getting shorter on things like orthopaedics? You are picking up one

:15:38.:15:43.

particular aspect. Not just orthopaedics, twice as long for a

:15:44.:15:48.

heart surgery, cataracts, pneumonia, those of the figures? We have been

:15:49.:15:53.

ensuring that people, when they need operations quickly, we're paying for

:15:54.:15:58.

those who happen in England. It comes down to making sure the money

:15:59.:16:02.

is in the health of this, we have increased the resource overtime. To

:16:03.:16:07.

be honest the demand has gone up. Tuition fees, people say it is

:16:08.:16:12.

unaffordable in the current form. There is a sense that Labour will be

:16:13.:16:15.

looking at means testing element being introduced. Subsidies for the

:16:16.:16:20.

costs of universities. Is that where you are going? No. We have the

:16:21.:16:26.

Diamond review, reporting in the next few months, looking at what the

:16:27.:16:31.

report suggests. The other thing we have to be aware of rough, if

:16:32.:16:35.

England gets rid of the cap on tuition fees, it causes problems for

:16:36.:16:40.

us. What we will never do is put Welsh students in the same financial

:16:41.:16:43.

position as their colleagues in England. That is a fundamental

:16:44.:16:49.

principle of what we do. You cannot afford it without means testing? I

:16:50.:16:56.

don't like means testing, you create haves and have-nots. You want to

:16:57.:17:01.

keep a universal? Means testing is not where we are going. We will look

:17:02.:17:07.

at the Diamond review. I am not attracted to simply doing what

:17:08.:17:10.

England does, putting huge amounts of debt on students. Thank you very

:17:11.:17:13.

much. Carwyn Jones there

:17:14.:17:15.

talking to Nick Servini - and you can watch that interview

:17:16.:17:17.

again on our website - Tomorrow night, we'll be hearing

:17:18.:17:19.

from the leader of Ukip We have been hearing from the

:17:20.:17:32.

leaders of all the parties, but don't forget you want to hear from

:17:33.:17:37.

you, too. We have been asking you to tell us what you would do if you

:17:38.:17:41.

were in charge of Wales. If I were First Minister I would give schools

:17:42.:17:44.

more money for resources. I would ensure there were suitable care in

:17:45.:17:47.

place for the vulnerable and elderly. If I were First Minister I

:17:48.:17:53.

would make planning permission for small businesses fairer to the

:17:54.:17:54.

independent trader. small businesses fairer to the

:17:55.:18:01.

are coming in thick and fast. My Manifest the 20 16th is filling up

:18:02.:18:12.

with your ideas. -- my Manifesto. We have reporters ready to follow up

:18:13.:18:16.

with your suggestions. Stuart Jones runs a garage, is there how would

:18:17.:18:23.

e-mail us to say he would make life is easier for small businesses. The

:18:24.:18:28.

money I have to find just to open the doors is shocking. Catch

:18:29.:18:31.

Stuart's message to politicians tomorrow. If you want us to tell

:18:32.:18:38.

your story, make sure the people you want your vote listen to the issues

:18:39.:18:43.

that matter to you, get in touch. Contact us by e-mail. We are on

:18:44.:18:54.

Facebook and Twitter. You can also write to us.

:18:55.:19:00.

If you want to make sure your voices heard in this election, get involved

:19:01.:19:06.

with My Manifesto 2016. Its exactly four weeks to go

:19:07.:19:11.

until the assembly election - whatever happens on May the 5th

:19:12.:19:13.

the next assembly promises More than a dozen politicians

:19:14.:19:16.

are stepping down - many having served in Cardiff Bay

:19:17.:19:19.

since the assembly was set The Welsh assembly is a very

:19:20.:19:35.

different place today, compared to when many of the AMs were elected 17

:19:36.:19:43.

years ago. The building did not even exist in 1999. Mr Thomas is one of

:19:44.:19:48.

three like root AM 's -- Clive in Scotland face a devilish riding

:19:49.:20:06.

with revolution, here we set relative revolution. The revolution

:20:07.:20:13.

has been steadier. We have evolved further than other devolved areas.

:20:14.:20:26.

Ten Labour AMs stepping down, this AM is also leaving. What advice does

:20:27.:20:40.

he have? Get stuck in, don't worry about making mistakes, except people

:20:41.:20:44.

who don't do any thing. Come with enthusiasm, make a nuisance of

:20:45.:20:50.

yourself. Represent interests you believe in. William Graham has

:20:51.:20:55.

brought a splash of colour to the assembly since 1999. He did not plan

:20:56.:21:00.

to leave the vague at the election. After slipping down the Conservative

:21:01.:21:05.

candidate list, he accepts he will not be re-elected. Will you miss the

:21:06.:21:12.

assembly? Certainly. I cannot say I've enjoyed every minute. The

:21:13.:21:17.

interaction with individuals, politicians, journalists,

:21:18.:21:22.

constituents, it has been really very important to me. 14

:21:23.:21:27.

politicians, they know they will not be coming back. Likely that others

:21:28.:21:34.

will lose their seats. This election promises to provide us with the

:21:35.:21:43.

biggest intake of new AMs since it was set up. The next assembly

:21:44.:21:45.

promises to be very different. Promotion is a realistic aim,

:21:46.:21:47.

that's the message from Glamorgan's cricketers,

:21:48.:21:50.

ahead of the start That's despite only one team

:21:51.:21:52.

going up to County Championship Meanwhile, Chief executive

:21:53.:21:55.

Hugh Morris says Glamorgan will tackle debts of more

:21:56.:22:07.

than six million pounds, despite facing a possible

:22:08.:22:09.

loss this year. They will be hoping the weather

:22:10.:22:15.

improves before the season starts. After preparations in sunny Spain,

:22:16.:22:20.

back to reality today. Two months into the new job, coach Robert Croft

:22:21.:22:25.

is trying to achieve something which has eluded predecessors for more

:22:26.:22:30.

than a decade. Getting Glamorgan back to the County Championship

:22:31.:22:34.

Division 1. Something made more difficult this season, only one team

:22:35.:22:38.

will be promoted, not two. They finished in fourth place last year.

:22:39.:22:43.

It makes it clearer what you want to achieve. Last season we were on

:22:44.:22:48.

course for half the season, dropping off stop we have more resources in

:22:49.:22:57.

the squad this year. This year the county's finances and not been

:22:58.:23:01.

healthy, their chief executive tells me things are getting better. The

:23:02.:23:08.

club had debts of ?70 million, it has been reduced to 6 million after

:23:09.:23:12.

a deal with creditors. Cardiff Council, the bank and the former

:23:13.:23:18.

chairman greed for money owed to them to be written off, totalling

:23:19.:23:23.

?11 million. Five days of England against Australia matches last year

:23:24.:23:27.

helped the club make a profit of ?600,000. With fewer days of

:23:28.:23:33.

international this year, they have to look elsewhere to make money. We

:23:34.:23:37.

played cricket for 45-50 days a year. We have a lot of downtime, we

:23:38.:23:42.

focused on diversifying the business. We have international

:23:43.:23:48.

darts tournament, boxing. We are now for the first time giving our total

:23:49.:23:53.

into the music events. Good news for fans of Simply Red. They will

:23:54.:24:04.

perform here this summer. Until then to Glamorgan players to perform,

:24:05.:24:09.

they start the season in ten days. It doesn't feel much

:24:10.:24:11.

like spring at the moment. Showers, hail, sunshine and a double

:24:12.:24:20.

rainbow on Anglesey. This spectacular photo taken by Nick

:24:21.:24:23.

Jones. Tonight one or two showers

:24:24.:24:25.

here and there otherwise dry. Temperatures inland falling as low

:24:26.:24:28.

as 3 or 4 Celsius. Here's the picture

:24:29.:24:36.

for 8 in the morning. Certainty much drier

:24:37.:24:38.

in the north compared to today. Most of mid and south Wales dry too

:24:39.:24:41.

bar the odd light shower. So a window of better weather

:24:42.:24:48.

tomorrow. Some sunshine and lighter winds

:24:49.:24:59.

but rain will spread into western Top temperatures 9 to 12 Celsius

:25:00.:25:04.

and with lighter winds than recently Most of the day dry but rain late

:25:05.:25:10.

afternoon and evening. Tomorrow evening rain in the west

:25:11.:25:22.

will spread across the Followed overnight by clearer,

:25:23.:25:32.

drier weather with showers Temperatures inland falling low

:25:33.:25:35.

enough for a touch of frost. Saturday chilly with

:25:36.:25:39.

sunshine and showers. The air unstable so the showers

:25:40.:25:41.

heavy in places with hail and thunder and on high

:25:42.:25:43.

ground more snow. While if you're gardener, watch out

:25:44.:25:45.

for frost on Saturday night. The chart for Sunday shows low

:25:46.:25:48.

pressure shaped a bit like an onion And that will influence our

:25:49.:25:51.

weather next week. Sunday, though, should

:25:52.:25:55.

be a reasonable day. Maybe a shower in

:25:56.:25:56.

Pembrokeshire otherwise dry. Temperatures a little

:25:57.:25:58.

higher with a cool breeze. The wind freshening

:25:59.:26:01.

from the east or southeast. So a mixed bag for the weekend

:26:02.:26:08.

but some dry and sunshine as well. Next week more rain and showers

:26:09.:26:11.

and turning a little warmer. Thank you very much. Quick update at

:26:12.:26:25.

eight. More after ten. That is Wales Today. From all of us here, we hope

:26:26.:26:30.

you have a good day, and goodbye.

:26:31.:26:32.

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