25/08/2011 BBC Wales Today


25/08/2011

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A search is suspended for a man missing off Anglesey. The body of

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his friend has been recovered. is terrible to they this could

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Our other stories this evening. The gap in GCSE performance narrows

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with the rest of the UK and the number of A stars is up. They ease

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are hardened criminals postop Cracking down on metal thefts.

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We're out on patrol with a special police operation. We had just had a

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call about a scrum dealer but the police want to check out.

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And this is the devastation metal thieves leave behind. Now the

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charity running this miners institute has to find money for the

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repairs. And cockles, Welsh cakes or even

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the corned beef pasty - what should be our national dish? Let me try

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Good evening. The search has been called off for the night for one of

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two friends who went into the sea off Anglesey. Last night, an RAF

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helicopter and the local lifeboat were called out to Cable Bay near

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Aberffraw. They winched one of the men - a 22-year-old who was from

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the island - from the sea, but he was later pronounced dead on

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arrival at Ysbyty Gwynedd in Bangor. The search for the other man has

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continued throughout the day. Roger Pinney is there. Roger.

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Yes, up the coast guard told me this afternoon that they were

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suspending research until they have new information. Let me take you

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back 24 hours. A group of four de people came here, three men and a

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woman, all in their early twenties, carrying fishing gear. There was a

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lot of light hard to talk about going for a swim. It seems that one

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of the men did go for a swim and got into difficulties. His my right

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honourable friend went to help them, both were lost. They searched well

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into the night. The first man was found almost immediately. He was

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taken to hospital but could not be revived. The winchman on the

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helicopter jumped him to get to the man and drag him out. It was very

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close to the rocks and put the crew in considerable danger. This woman

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was here last night and saw the group set off. Just two of them

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returned. The car behind you put up just after 7pm. Four Magnum people

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got out, all happy and joking around.. -- four young people. Then

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50 minutes later, I young lad other goal came back. She said she had

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witnessed her two friends go over the side, she was hysterical. An

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ambulance turned up and within 20 minutes, RNLI and helicopters were

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up. That search have resumed in daylight. By lunchtime, the

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helicopter was back in the air, searching for a body. Any chance

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that the missing man has survived was long gone. It is a very popular

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part of Anglesey with visitors. But the weather can be dangerous, the

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waves are treacherous and it is a dangerous piece of coastline.

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Searchers worked along the coastline searching for the body. I

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understand both young men are from Anglesey. This is a stunningly

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beautiful part of Wales. But there are dangers here. The search team

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tell me they are exhausted and devastated. They do the job to save

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lives, but on this occasion, they were not able to help.

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It has been another year of records in Wales' GCSE results. 6.6% of

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entries received an A star, more than ever before. It means the gap

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with the rest of the UK at the highest grades has closed a little.

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But Wales is still behind England and Northern Ireland on every

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measure. The percentage of A star to C grades in Wales was 66.5%, a

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record 3.3% lower than the rest of the UK. And the overall A star to G

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pass rate was 98.7%, the same as in 2010. Here's our education

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Years of school, hours of painstaking revision. But for the

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16-year-olds at Oakdale Comprehensive, it has been worth it.

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I had 10 A stars, 2 As and a B. As, 5 Bs, 2 A stars and a

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distinction in media. Across Wales, there was much to celebrate. More A

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star grades, more getting the all important A star to C. We do a lot

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of work after school. You have to work if you want to get a good

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result. A more over the moon. I am really happy. We have achieved a

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pass rate of 98.7 per cent, we have improved A star grade to C grade. I

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am pleased with the performance of young people in Wales. We can

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always do better and we will always try to do better. Throat this year,

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-- a rare this year, the minister has spoken of needing to improve

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port results. Particularly in comparison with the results of

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England. There is much more that the Government should be doing to

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narrow the gap. There was government hopes that results will

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pick up if inconsistency is stamped out. It expect similar schools like

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all Dale and Barry comprehensive to be performing at the same level.

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Last year, the dead. -- Glastir the We have a very good behaviour

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system that pupils understand that we expect good behaviour in lessons.

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When they are in lessons, they are there to work. We have instilled in

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all of our pupils that work is not a four-letter word. And it is not

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geeky to be successful. Absolutely brilliant! For many pupils and

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parents, this is a day to celebrate. The statistics will show that while

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results have improved, compared to the rest of the UK, there is still

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some way to go. Ciaran is at Barry Comprehensive

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tonight. What a day for teenagers and their parents. I am sure they

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were celebrating here. Some great results. But could you have done

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better? For many students, they have exceeded expectations. But we

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cannot stand still, we have to improve the standards. We will

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always strive to achieve higher results. The government in Wales

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are now expect schools to be performing at roughly the same

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level. I am sure there are schools out there who did better than you,

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and you did better than other schools. Why this variability?

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Schools reflect the area that they are in. But schools have to have

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the highest expectations of their pupils. We are one of only two

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schools in Wales that are all boys. We do feel strongly that our

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performance is very good and we are constantly trying to improve it.

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Well done to all the children. Your members, local councils, are

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running schools across the country. Can you answer me this question?

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Why is it that a pupil in Wales, on average, will get worse GCSE

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results than a people in England? Today is a day of celebration. We

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need to credit the young people who have done so well in their GCSEs.

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It is a day to celebrate success. We must pay tribute to ever go

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teachers, students and schools. we are not celebrating the fact

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that if you are a parent in Wales, your child will go to a school that

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does worse than one in England. are right to point the fact that

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there is too much variation in the system. Every child should have the

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same chance. But in Wales, I do not thing we are sharing good practice.

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An initiative that we are developing is looking at the best

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practice that exists with them Wales and that opportunities to

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share that practice. -- that exist within a Wales. Thank you very much.

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A former county councillor who held the economy portfolio on Gwynedd

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Council has been jailed for 16 months for stealing more than

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�53,000 from the village sub-post office that he ran. 55-year-old

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Dewi Lewis admitted stealing the cash after an audit was undertaken

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at the shop in Penrhyndeudraeth. An inquest has heard how 45-year-

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old Darren Williams was found hanging in woodland just hours

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after shooting his estranged wife in a Newport hair salon. Two other

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women were also taken to hospital with gunshot wounds. Police

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investigations are continuing. Ministers in the Labour government

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are being accused of targeting independent-run councils for

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criticism. The charge comes from John Davies, the leader of the

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Welsh Local Government Association who says ministers are playing

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politics. Mr Davies is leader of Pembrokeshire Council which has

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been involved in a public row with the Welsh Government this week. Our

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Welsh Affairs editor Vaughan Roderick joins us now.

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It is extraordinary. I told you last night that I had never seen

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such a bitter spat as that. It could even more bitter today. I

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have to say that I have not find many people who agree with the

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analysis of Mr Davies. Councils like Pembrokeshire and Anglesey are

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not councils that Labour would hope to win. But it does reflect the

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degree of bitterness and ill feeling that there is between the

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Government and local council leaders. I spoke to the leader of

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another local council and he said that the relationship has gone

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downhill very badly off the last month and he does not remember it

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being as bad The minister has spoken of systemic failure in the

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does anybody else support his stance?

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There is a lot of support. There is no doubt that there is deep

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unhappiness in the council's and amongst the opposition parties in

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the Assembly about the way the government is acting. But what the

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government was say is that they have received these critical

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reports about vitally important issues such as child protection and

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the government would be remiss and Labour will bring to pass a vote of

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no confidence in the leader of the Ebbw Vale have votes. Still to come

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on the programme this evening - What should be our national dish?

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Get stuck in there. Just as good? at his beautiful. It is disgusting.

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Why don't you like that? It is horrible.

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First, the growing problem of metal theft. Thieves are taking bronze

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plaques, manhole covers even statues and that is costing our

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local authorities almost �680,000 a year. But the impact of the thefts

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for some communities is far more than purely financial. Sian Lloyd

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can tell us more. I am at St Mary's Church in St

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Fagans and they know all about metal theft here. It has been

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targeted twice in the last fortnight. Thieves made off with

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lead from the church roof and vestry. I will be talking to the

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vicar here in a few minutes about the toll it is all taking, but

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first what is being done to crack down on metal theft? In

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neighbouring Rhondda Cynon Taf the council faced a bill of �250,000

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over the past two years to replace stolen items. I have been following

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a special operation there today. These are hardened criminals to

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make a living out averse and our communities by taking the metal.

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8:30am and Operation Magnet is under way. Officers from Rhondda

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Cynon Taf Council, South Wales Police and Trading Standards need

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to find out what the day has in store. This is what it is all about.

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Stopping vehicles for spot checks. The driver of this van is asked to

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take it to the base to be tested and searched. The aim is to be seen

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on the streets and target metal thieves on the move. It is very

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widespread and very isolated locations. It is better for us to

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catch them on the move. It is difficult if you don't catch them

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on the move to identify where the property has come from. We're out

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on the road again, this time heading up into the Rhondda Valley.

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It is where it is taken to that also counts. We have had a call

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about his scrap dealer that the police and council want to checkout

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and we're on our way there. We follow a team of officers into an

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industrial estate in Maerdy. They want to investigate reports of

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activity at one of the units here. Trading Standards will be taking

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the lead. It will be offences for them to check. We will search the

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premises and. We have asked the owner, they are not happy for you

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to going and film. We will search the premises. We later find out

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that the business was not properly registered, the owner was fined

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�100 on the spot and told to file the correct documents to trade.

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Back to the vehicle inspection yard and other van gets searched. This

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is just one of scores of drivers questioned by enforcement officers

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today and the message is clear. have poured a lot of vehicles over

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and issued fixed penalties. We have had a number of a arrests. We have

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got to wave a legal scrapyard and dealt with that. All in all, an

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excellent exercise. It is not just metal theft under the spotlight in

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this operation. While this van was empty it was found to be unfit for

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the roads and was impounded. Its occupants had to walk home.

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When thieves broke into a miners' institute in the Gwent Valleys they

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ripped almost every copper pipe from the building. Now, the charity

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running the institute is facing huge repair bills as Carwyn Jones

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reports. It opened in 1911 and paid for by

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local miners. But there will be no centenary celebrations for the

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Fleur De Lys Institute near Blackwood. The building isn't even

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open to the public. A few weeks ago thieves broke in and ripped the

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place apart, stealing every copper pipe they could lay their hands on.

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The institute's run by a charitable trust. Its chairman was first on

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the scene after the break-in. the copper that was in the building

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had been stolen, just ripped out and they did not give a damp about

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what they had done. They destroyed everything. The trustees now face a

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repair bill of more than �10,000 and they couldn't afford the delay

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in getting the builders in. After the robbery the heating and

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plumbing systems were useless. It has caused a lot of damage

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throughout the building because of the water, water causes damage.

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They didn't think to turn everything off and then rip it out.

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Pages ripped it out. -- they just. The Institute had recently been

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restored and refurbished and was used by the community as a venue

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for dance classes and coffee mornings. That has been put on hold.

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There is also concern for the heritage of the building itself.

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is an historical building. It is a legacy of the mining industry. The

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people who worked hard to put that building via originally, it's a

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degrees their memory. -- it degrades. It is thought the sale of

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the store and copper might have netted the thieves just a few

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hundred pounds. But the cost of repairing this century-old building

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has run into thousands and it is the local community who have had to

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pick up pieces. Anthony Wintle is rector here at St Mary's. What has

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happened? The thieves have taken the lead from the ridges. On

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Tuesday of this week, lead was taken from the lynch gate --

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litigate. What concerns me is the human it impact. It was restored in

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memory of the young man from the parish. I take a serious view of

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this because this constitutes an attack upon the community, upon our

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heritage, this is a wonderful church and look what they have done

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to it. It is an attack upon the congregation, brides and grooms who

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want to be married here. I was talking to a groom who was to be

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married here two weeks tomorrow. When funerals are held also, it

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means the rain could so easily have been pouring into that building.

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Thanks to a local builder we were able to put some polythene on the

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roof. It is an historic church, valued very much here in the

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community. People are very upset. That set and annoyed. Before you

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ask me, I am going to pray for the thieves, I certainly am, I am going

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to pray that they are caught. Thank you. We have seen the effect

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metal theft is having and how at least one area is attempting to

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tackle it. Forces across Wales are working on this but they face an

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uphill struggle at the moment. Wales manager Gary Speed has named

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his squad to face Montenegro and England in the Euro 2012 qualifiers

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next month. Gareth Bale and captain, Aaron Ramsay, are in the 24 man

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squad along with Aston Villa defender, James Collins, who is

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suspended for the first of those matches.

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Also in that squad is striker Craig Bellamy and BBC Sport understands

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he could be on the brink of a return to Liverpool. However the

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32-year-old would need his current side, Manchester City, to agree to

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release him on a free transfer. The directors at Wrexham Football

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Club say they hope for a speedy conclusion to the deal to sell the

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club to Wrexham Supporters Trust. Last night more than 400 members of

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the Trust unanimously voted to If you had to choose a national

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dish for Wales, what would it be? What about some Penclawdd cockles,

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we've got some laverbread here, Or what about the corned beef

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pasty? It may not be the first thing that springs to mind but

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would you believe it there's a petition actually trying to get it

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Welsh food traditions are rooted in our historic culture. From Welsh

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lamb to laverbread. It dates back centuries and even today the boiled

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down seaweed is proving popular in Swansea market with another

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Penclawdd delicacy. Cockles and laverbread. You could

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fry the cockles in onions. In Wales, there's only two foods which are

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protected food name status. That is Welsh lamb and Welsh beef. Now

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there is a drive to get the corned beef pasty recognised as a Welsh

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national dish with a petition handed in at the Assembly.

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But what do people here think should be our national dish? I have

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the tree of variety here. We have got the Penclawdd cockles on the

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laverbread, we have got eight faggot and the Welsh cakes. What

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are people's favourites? What had they like? Good. Always good. A win

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and? Definitely. The Welsh cake. is disgusting! Can I get you to try

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one of these? Know, you need to capture the best! Cockles. Lovely.

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Nice and big and you see today. Welsh cakes. Those are the

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Penclawdd cockles. Very good. You can taste the sea and the salt.

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has not been the most scientific of experiments, in last place it is

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the faggot. The winner, it was close between the cockles and the

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Welsh cakes but at Swansea market, the Welsh cakes worthy winner.

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It has burst talking in the office. The stormy weather and high winds

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this afternoon has caused some damage. A fire crew went to

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Pontypool after a flat roof was blown off the building and hit an

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adjacent roof. It Newbridge, a large tree fell damaging offence

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and the roof of a house. Nobody was injured. Some dramatic weather

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It has a mixed picture across Wales. If we look at the radar picture,

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eastern Wales state dry but we had some heavy thunder showers in the

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West and then in a line through the Gwent Valleys down to Cardiff where

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we had those reports of a high wind and even tornadoes. Heavy showers

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are focused -- forecast overnight. The Met Office is issuing a warning

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for south-west Wales. Through this evening, the showers persist

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further west and we could see up to 40 mm, two inches of rain, falling

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overnight. It is remaining cloudy. Temperatures staying in double

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figures overnight so it is not going to be a particularly cold

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night. Tomorrow is another day of sunshine and showers. Don't take

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the graphics too literally. Hit and miss scattered showers. Not as

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heavy as today. Some bright spells and it will be bright in the West.

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A changeable day and a change in wind direction bringing in cool air

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from the Nov. Temperatures are down on today. 15 degrees Celsius the

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highest in Anglesey. The good news is that it is an improving picture

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through the weekend. Showers turning more isolated on Saturday,

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drying up later. It is not particularly warm and still quite a

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brisk breeze. Unsettled as we head into the weekend. High pressure

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pills for Sunday and Bank Holiday Monday so we should be dry and

0:26:560:27:05

bright. Not necessarily warmer. This photograph is taken at

0:27:050:27:09

Pembrokeshire looking West that the storm clouds gathering. We will see

0:27:090:27:17

a few more of those before it Tonight's main use. A man has died

0:27:180:27:22

and another is still missing after going into the sea off Anglesey. An

0:27:220:27:26

RAF helicopter recovered one of the two friends last night's from the

0:27:260:27:31

waters off Cable Bay. He was later pronounced dead. The search for the

0:27:310:27:36

other man has been suspended. G CSE results in Wales have

0:27:360:27:39

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