:00:00. > 3:59:59League final. That's all from us. A first look at
:00:00. > :00:28.the papers on Is Good evening. After seven years
:00:29. > :00:31.of economic uncertainty, businesses in Wales say they're more confident
:00:32. > :00:34.about the future. In a survey by the South Wales Chamber of Commerce of
:00:35. > :00:37.660 small and medium sized businesses across the country, 61%
:00:38. > :00:41.say they expect their profits to increase in the next year. 95% of
:00:42. > :00:44.them say they are looking to retain their existing workforce or recruit
:00:45. > :00:47.in the next three months. But the survey also found more than half had
:00:48. > :00:50.problems recruiting, especially in computer technology and engineering.
:00:51. > :00:53.Here's our Business Correspondent Brian Meechan.
:00:54. > :00:56.At this engineering company in Newport, they're putting the
:00:57. > :00:58.finishing touches to their latest product. IEC make control systems
:00:59. > :01:04.which operate heavy machinery in industrial plants like steel mills.
:01:05. > :01:10.I asked the managing director, Peter Lewis, what he made of the
:01:11. > :01:15.increasing confidence. We haven't seen it yet. Big industry is still
:01:16. > :01:19.looking after the billions that they have in the bank and we are waiting
:01:20. > :01:22.for them to share some of that out and place some orders. But
:01:23. > :01:26.construction seems to be picking up. But it's not all good news. The
:01:27. > :01:31.survey found a shortage of skills, particularly in the areas of
:01:32. > :01:36.engineering and technology. IntaPeople is a recruitment agency
:01:37. > :01:40.that specialises in these areas. There are engineers that are looking
:01:41. > :01:43.to retire at the moment, and engineers at graduate level, but
:01:44. > :01:46.there is a gap in the middle for 25-45-year-old engineers. On the IT
:01:47. > :01:54.side, technology is moving so fast, at an unprecedented rate, and there
:01:55. > :01:58.just aren't enough developers. How is Wales doing in the export
:01:59. > :02:02.market? More than half of what is made at IAC is exported. This unit
:02:03. > :02:05.is being shipped to Dubai. The survey shows that 85% of Welsh
:02:06. > :02:08.businesses trading internationally have seen sales remain constant or
:02:09. > :02:14.increase, but the chamber warns this figure is not as high as in other
:02:15. > :02:17.parts of the UK. I think there is more businesses
:02:18. > :02:21.with good products and services that could explore those opportunities.
:02:22. > :02:30.We have seen inroads being made into the Middle East and into southeast
:02:31. > :02:31.Asia. But there are massives market there for quality products, and
:02:32. > :02:38.quality services that people want. Increasing confidence is a good sign
:02:39. > :02:42.for the economy, it makes it more likely that businesses will invest
:02:43. > :02:48.and take on extra workers. But the warnings over skill shortages and
:02:49. > :02:49.sluggish exports will be ringing alarm bells. Most realise that we
:02:50. > :02:54.are not out of the woods yet when it comes to recovering from the worst
:02:55. > :02:58.economic crisis in generations. The biggest bus operator in Wales is
:02:59. > :03:02.to close one of its depots in the Gwent valleys in July putting 77
:03:03. > :03:05.jobs under threat. Stagecoach is blaming a misguided drop in support
:03:06. > :03:10.from the Welsh Government and reduced local authority investment.
:03:11. > :03:15.The government says it's extremely disappointing news. Blaenau Gwent
:03:16. > :03:18.council says it has not reduced its subsidy to Stagecoach despite having
:03:19. > :03:26.to find millions in savings in the current financial year.
:03:27. > :03:29.We are hoping very much to avoid as best we can redundancy situations by
:03:30. > :03:35.offering relocation to depots close by. Looking probably, when we close
:03:36. > :03:41.the depot, to have a small out station here, taking up to 20 staff.
:03:42. > :03:45.Staying with transport, passengers in Mid and West Wales will soon be
:03:46. > :03:47.able to use new peak-time hourly train services between Aberystwyth
:03:48. > :03:51.and Shrewsbury. It's being paid for by the Welsh Government and will run
:03:52. > :03:55.from May next year. The services are part of a number announced for the
:03:56. > :04:01.Cambrian and Heart of Wales rail lines.
:04:02. > :04:04.A former mine manager at the Gleision colliery has told a jury
:04:05. > :04:08.how he warned his successor about water in the mine. Ray Thomas, in
:04:09. > :04:14.the dark suit, ran the pit before it was taken over in July 2011 by
:04:15. > :04:18.Malcolm Fyfield. Four men drowned when the Swansea Valley mine flooded
:04:19. > :04:20.two months later. Mr Fyfield denies four counts of manslaughter through
:04:21. > :04:28.gross negligence and the mine operators deny corporate
:04:29. > :04:32.manslaughter. The judge in the trial of the former
:04:33. > :04:35.Shadow Welsh Secretary Nigel Evans has told the jury his good character
:04:36. > :04:39.is something they should take into account. The Swansea-born MP, in the
:04:40. > :04:45.middle of your picture, denies nine charges including rape and sexual
:04:46. > :04:50.assault. The judge is summing-up the case before the jury considers its
:04:51. > :04:53.verdicts. They risk their lives to save
:04:54. > :04:56.others, but one of the mountain rescue teams covering north west
:04:57. > :04:59.Wales is warning it'll struggle to survive unless it gets money from
:05:00. > :05:04.Government. The Aberglaslyn Rescue Team was called out more than 50
:05:05. > :05:07.times last year. Almost all the money it needs comes from donations.
:05:08. > :05:16.Our reporter Aled Hughes has been with them on a rescue exercise.
:05:17. > :05:20.This is what a mountain rescue team does. On this occasion, saving a man
:05:21. > :05:27.swept 1000 feet down Snowdon by an avalanche. Rescuers got him off the
:05:28. > :05:30.mountain on a stretcher. By comparison, a mock exercise was
:05:31. > :05:33.carefully organised and conducted with nothing but my safety in mind.
:05:34. > :05:36.I'm somewhere on the mountain. Tonight, I'm playing the role of an
:05:37. > :05:41.injured walker as the Aberglaslyn Mountain Rescue team go out and try
:05:42. > :05:50.and find me. I've just put the call in, they should be getting back to
:05:51. > :05:54.me soon. This man is about to put his son to bed. My call puts and end
:05:55. > :05:58.to that. He drops everything and makes his way to base. We have been
:05:59. > :06:01.paged by the police with an incident.
:06:02. > :06:04.They received 59 similar calls last year but practice makes perfect and
:06:05. > :06:10.these mock rescues keep their skills up to date. The team deploys. They
:06:11. > :06:15.have a rough idea of my location, but nothing concrete. The same goes
:06:16. > :06:23.for their funding. All this costs money. We can't survive without a
:06:24. > :06:30.lot more funding and relying on just donations from the public, we're
:06:31. > :06:40.struggling to achieve that. About half an hour since I put the call
:06:41. > :06:43.in. I can see the lights. Even though they do not know what they
:06:44. > :06:48.will face, it's still very rewarding work.
:06:49. > :06:52.It's nice to see the relief on someone's face when you get there,
:06:53. > :06:56.they see you and your team and they know they are going to be OK and
:06:57. > :07:03.help is with them. The relief on someone's face is the nicest thing.
:07:04. > :07:11.The Welsh government says it appreciates the work they do and
:07:12. > :07:15.will try and find ways to help. Meanwhile, the UK government said in
:07:16. > :07:17.the Budget that money could be available to voluntary organisations
:07:18. > :07:20.such as this. Getting into difficulties in the mountains in
:07:21. > :07:23.North West Wales happens regularly, but finding regular funding to help
:07:24. > :07:25.those who help them is a different matter.
:07:26. > :07:28.Football, and Newport have lost their League Two match against
:07:29. > :07:35.Plymouth at the Rodney Parade tonight. The final score 2-1.
:07:36. > :07:38.And in cricket on the third day of their County Championship match at
:07:39. > :07:41.Surrey, Glamorgan made 209 in their first innings. In their second
:07:42. > :07:47.innings, Surrey reached 50 for two, a lead of 121 runs.
:07:48. > :07:56.Some decent spells of sunshine today but will it last? Derek.
:07:57. > :08:01.I think tomorrow will not be quite as sunny as it was today because
:08:02. > :08:07.more cloud is expected. That goes for the next few days. Having said
:08:08. > :08:13.that, I can promise mostly dry weather. Dry tonight with a few
:08:14. > :08:18.breaks in the cloud and missed forming in some places. A touch of
:08:19. > :08:24.ground frost. Temperatures higher on the coast. High pressure over
:08:25. > :08:30.Brittany, more unsettled in the North, these fronts bringing
:08:31. > :08:40.moisture and brain to Scotland. -- and rain. Plenty of cloud around
:08:41. > :08:45.tomorrow, more cloud than today. Some sunshine in the north coast.
:08:46. > :08:58.Breezy in the North, rain for Scotland. Further south, the odd,
:08:59. > :09:02.late shower, but most places drive. -- dry. Four wheels, most of the
:09:03. > :09:11.country drive tomorrow afternoon. More cloud than today. Feeling
:09:12. > :09:17.milder, up to 14 degrees. Tomorrow night, generally dry with spots of
:09:18. > :09:23.drizzle. Not quite as cold as tonight. For Thursday, more dry
:09:24. > :09:29.weather. A few showers breaking out. This front could bring rain to the
:09:30. > :09:40.far north-west. Friday looks generally dry. More dry weather to
:09:41. > :09:46.come over the weekend. That's all from me. Good night.
:09:47. > :09:49.Thank you. Jeremy Paxman's got Newsnight starting over on two now,
:09:50. > :09:52.asking Martin McGuiness why he's toasting the Queen tonight. We're
:09:53. > :09:56.back in Breakfast from six tomorrow morning. That's Wales Today, thank
:09:57. > :10:02.you for watching. From all of us on the programme, goodnight.