:00:00. > :00:16.the papers on the BBC News Channel in a few minutes. Now we
:00:17. > :00:21.Good evening. We will go on strike - that's the message from unions
:00:22. > :00:24.tonight, angry that some council workers in Wales are facing a pay
:00:25. > :00:28.freeze - when all other local authorities are giving their staff
:00:29. > :00:30.pay rises. At a meeting tonight at Bridgend Council, union officials
:00:31. > :00:41.have been urging bosses to change their minds.
:00:42. > :00:45.It was all calm on Porthcawl beach today, but inland there is a storm
:00:46. > :00:48.brewing. And it's all to do with Bridgend Council's pay negotiations
:00:49. > :00:52.this financial year. The deal on the table is to freeze its pay of all
:00:53. > :00:59.but its lowest-paid staff. A deal affecting some 6000 of its workers.
:01:00. > :01:06.A librarian earning less than ?15,000 would see their pay rise by
:01:07. > :01:09.one percent. A binman, whose salary is above that threshold, would also
:01:10. > :01:15.be hit by the freeze. It's the same for this woman. She is on a
:01:16. > :01:19.full-time secondment with Unison at the moment, but receives her ?19,000
:01:20. > :01:21.salary from her job as a council tax inspector.
:01:22. > :01:25.If there are individuals who are being paid a better wage just across
:01:26. > :01:33.the border, then that is going to be a huge incentive to look out for
:01:34. > :01:36.alternative employment. Because Bridgend council is acting
:01:37. > :01:39.alone in offering the pay freezes, the remaining Welsh councils
:01:40. > :01:42.negotiate pay deals jointly with the vast majority of English and
:01:43. > :01:45.Northern Irish councils. They are offering all staff a rise of 1%, and
:01:46. > :01:53.the lowest-paid a slightly higher rise. Local Assembly Member and
:01:54. > :01:57.First Minister Carwyn Jones has told BBC Wales he is willing to meet both
:01:58. > :02:01.parties any bid to resolve the matter, after receiving a letter
:02:02. > :02:04.from Unison. The unions concerned at the Labour-run council will start
:02:05. > :02:08.the ball rolling on regional pay. A policy opposed strongly by the
:02:09. > :02:14.Labour Party and Mr Jones. It is a concern shared by a former Labour
:02:15. > :02:18.leader of Bridgend Council. The Conservatives would like to see
:02:19. > :02:21.UK pay bargaining broken up. They'd like to see benefits broken up. And
:02:22. > :02:25.here we have a Labour-controlled authority in an area represented by
:02:26. > :02:27.the First Minister, who rightly has come out against regional pay.
:02:28. > :02:35.Everybody knows that regional pay would really hit Wales hard.
:02:36. > :02:38.Unions met the council's Cabinet this evening to try and convince
:02:39. > :02:41.them to reverse their decision. They are threatening to strike if they
:02:42. > :02:44.refused to do so. I think there will be a precedent,
:02:45. > :02:51.if Bridgend do carry out this decision. And then we would have
:02:52. > :02:55.this dispute on a yearly basis. I hope other authorities do not see
:02:56. > :02:58.that as a way forward. But the Council is sticking to its
:02:59. > :03:02.guns, saying taking the decision means it will be able to limit job
:03:03. > :03:03.losses as much as possible while continuing to provide and protect
:03:04. > :03:04.essential services. But the Council is sticking to its
:03:05. > :03:07.guns, saying taking the decision It added, the proposals had arisen
:03:08. > :03:13.because of the need to deliver savings of ?36 million in the next
:03:14. > :03:14.few years. These savings on the horizon require tough decisions,
:03:15. > :03:23.which could have big consequences. which could have big
:03:24. > :03:26.Staying with council budgets, there'll be changes to bin
:03:27. > :03:29.collections in Gwynedd from October. The council has become the first in
:03:30. > :03:32.Wales to approve refuse collections every THREE weeks. The council says,
:03:33. > :03:41.the changes will save money and help the environment - but some residents
:03:42. > :03:45.aren't happy. For many parts of Wales this is becoming a less
:03:46. > :03:51.frequent sight. Kerb-side refuse collection for non-recyclable waste.
:03:52. > :03:56.In Gwynedd, though the pick-ups are being reduced to one every three
:03:57. > :04:00.weeks. The council says it is facing fines from the Welsh Government if
:04:01. > :04:05.it sounds too much to landfill. It has had to make changes. We have to
:04:06. > :04:08.recycle more. The days of throwing things any hole on the ground are
:04:09. > :04:15.passed, I'm afraid. The council cannot afford the fine but we get
:04:16. > :04:20.from the Welsh Government. Gwynedd is the first council in
:04:21. > :04:25.Wales to introduce this, although Falkirk in Scotland is introducing
:04:26. > :04:30.the scheme. There are limits on the amount of waste people can leave. In
:04:31. > :04:34.Swansea it is up to three bags of reforming. There is also a two bag
:04:35. > :04:38.limit every fortnight in Monmouthshire and Cardiff Council is
:04:39. > :04:42.considering a collection. In Gwynedd, there will still be
:04:43. > :04:48.recycling collections as well as bigger bins for households of more
:04:49. > :04:57.than six people. There will be facilities to dispose of nappies as
:04:58. > :05:01.well. I ran out of space after a fortnight so three weeks will not
:05:02. > :05:04.make any difference. I don't think a three-week collection is often
:05:05. > :05:17.enough really. They should stick to two weeks. Some people put them out
:05:18. > :05:21.too early. Seagulls. The council says the annual saving
:05:22. > :05:25.of ?350,000 will mean fewer cuts elsewhere. It is urging all
:05:26. > :05:32.residents not to throw out its new plans.
:05:33. > :05:35.A surveyor who examined parts of the Gleision colliery days after four
:05:36. > :05:38.men lost their lives underground, has told a jury - there were
:05:39. > :05:42.inconsistencies between his map of the mine and the one lodged with the
:05:43. > :05:45.coal authority. The miners drowned after breaching old workings nearly
:05:46. > :05:47.three years ago. Mine manager Malcolm Fyfield denies four counts
:05:48. > :05:50.of manslaughter through gross negligence - and the mine operators
:05:51. > :05:55.also deny four counts of corporate manslaughter.
:05:56. > :05:58.Plans to cut the number of people suffering from lung disease have
:05:59. > :06:01.been announced by the Welsh Government. They include raising
:06:02. > :06:03.awareness of the dangers of smoking, and making sure people have
:06:04. > :06:06.effective treatment. Tens of thousands of people in Wales live
:06:07. > :06:12.with illnesses like asthma and emphysema.
:06:13. > :06:16.A group of councillors in Wrexham say, areas of the county are
:06:17. > :06:19.becoming like 'jungles' because grass verges and open spaces are
:06:20. > :06:23.only being cut twice a year. They say, the decision to stop cutting
:06:24. > :06:26.eight times a year should be reversed - as it might put off
:06:27. > :06:28.investors and tourists. The council says, it's in an "extremely
:06:29. > :06:31.difficult" financial situation at its maintenance Budget was cut by
:06:32. > :06:39.three hundred thousand pounds this year.
:06:40. > :06:42.Hundreds of people have turned out to see the Queen and Duke of
:06:43. > :06:45.Edinburgh in Pembrokeshire. While Prince Phillip paid a visit to a
:06:46. > :06:48.potato packing plant in Haverfordwest, the Queen had a tour
:06:49. > :06:51.of the only horse hospital in Wales. The Queen then opened Pembroke
:06:52. > :06:58.Dock's heritage centre to mark the town's 200th birthday.
:06:59. > :07:02.Pembroke is a very new town, only 200 years old. It got a very strong
:07:03. > :07:05.server space and is still very pro-services and pro-royal. And I
:07:06. > :07:16.think it's very important in our bicentenary year for the Queen to
:07:17. > :07:19.visit. Football and Cardiff City defender
:07:20. > :07:22.Juan Cala has been charged with improper conduct by the Football
:07:23. > :07:26.Association. It's in relation to an alleged incident in the tunnel --
:07:27. > :07:29.after he was sent off during his side's 4-0 defeat at Sunderland last
:07:30. > :07:43.Sunday. Cala has until Thursday evening to respond to the charge.
:07:44. > :07:57.Gareth Bale has reached his first ever final. They will face Chelsea
:07:58. > :08:03.or Atletico Madrid. At the World Snooker Championship, Dominic Dale
:08:04. > :08:04.is trailing. The first to 13 wins. The match resumes tomorrow
:08:05. > :08:19.afternoon. Let's get the weather. More dry weather to come. But it
:08:20. > :08:24.will not stay dry all day. A few showers in the forecast. Some sea
:08:25. > :08:36.fog in the Irish Sea may affect Anglesey. Temperatures dropping to
:08:37. > :08:42.six Celsius in Terry Gilliam. -- Ceredigion. Across the rest of the
:08:43. > :08:48.UK, watch out for mist and fog patches. These will lift. Many
:08:49. > :08:53.places will brighten. But showers breaking out across the North,
:08:54. > :09:03.suntanning heavy and thundery. Some rain across Scotland. Dry, bright
:09:04. > :09:08.and cold in Shetland. But sunshine in Wales tomorrow afternoon.
:09:09. > :09:18.Although you may hear thunder in the North. Tomorrow evening, rain and
:09:19. > :09:23.showers will become more widespread across the country. Settled on
:09:24. > :09:31.Thursday, with showers or longer spells of rain. A risk of thunder.
:09:32. > :09:43.On Friday, much better. Drier, brighter and fewer strong winds. A
:09:44. > :09:48.touch of ground frost overnight. More dry weather to come over the
:09:49. > :09:57.bank holiday weekend. Thank you very much. News, Newsnight
:09:58. > :10:01.on BBC Two. Thank you for watching. Goodbye.