14/05/2014 BBC Wales Today

risen, over 200 dead and 120 are still trapped.

Tonight, the fallout from a damning report into elderly patient care

Those responsible for carrying out spot checks say

I think we all have to take responsibility for looking back and

thinking about how we may possibly have been able to identify and make

a difference earlier in the process. This car crashed into children and

a lollipop lady outside a school. A court hears

the driver's flip-flops may have got Colin Jackson - the latest famous

face to have invested in a company Warren's family say they should be

exempt from the so-called bedroom tax due to his disability - they

take their battle to the high court. It affects the lives of not only

ourselves that there is a lot of other people around the country who

have disabled children and people don't realise looking after a

disabled child is very hard work. And celebrations

in Pembroke Dock to mark 200 years A day on from the publication

of a damning report into elderly care failings

at the Princess of Wales and Neath Port Talbot hospitals, questions

are being asked about the Welsh Government's response to it and the

system of inspecting the Welsh NHS. Plaid Cymru claim Wales-wide

spot-checks announced yesterday are simply a rehash of

a plan introduced three years ago. And the Older People's Commissioner

has called into question the effectiveness of Health Inspectorate

Wales after it raised no serious concerns during an inspection of the

Princess of Wales Hospital in 2012. Here's our Health Correspondent,

Owain Clarke. Yesterday we joined the families who

claimed their loved ones had been victim of a health system that

didn't care enough. It talks about a further independent

investigation in a year's time and yet it shows problems over several

years. It is not going to address the real concerns. It seems to

pinpoint elderly care alone but if somebody has lost a loved one that

should never have died that day, they should be included in this

report. The Welsh government and health

board issued an unreserved apology to those effective and the

hospitals. The health minister went further.

Each hospital in Wales will be visited by a small group of

independent experts, overseen from outside Wales by Sir Ian Carruthers

and Professor Andrews. They will carry out spot checks.

There are claims tonight the announcement was similar to the

Welsh government's response to another damning assessment three

years ago. In 2011, the then older people 's Commissioner claimed some

elderly patients had been created -- degraded.

They introduced spot checks. A spot check system was announced in 2011

to deal with concerns around care of the elderly in hospital. The 12

checks occurred by Health Inspectorate Wales following that.

Seven had concerning results and no spot checks were undertaken in 2013

at all so yesterday we had a rehashed, re-announced spot check

policy that really, if it had been properly in place since 2011 as was

announced at the time, some of the issues that we have been hearing of

in this report may not have ever happened in hospitals in Wales.

The difference this time according to the Welsh government is the new

spot checks will be targeted at four specific areas- and this time they

won't be led by Health Inspectorate Wales but instead a team hand-picked

by the Welsh government. Health Inspectorate Wales will restart its

own spot checks six months later. The question is has the inspector

had been sidelined? It was certainly criticised in the review yesterday

which claims concerns must be raised about the effectiveness of Health

Inspectorate Wales, who seem to have last visited two years ago and not

seen or reported on what would have been at the time highly visible

issues of poor practice. At a time when standards of care are under the

spotlight like never before, the question is is the body responsible

for upholding itself up to the job? Earlier I spoke to Kate Chamberlain,

the chief executive of Health Inspectorate Wales, and I

asked her if the organisation should I think at any point where failures

of the magnitude that have been highlighted in this report have been

missed, we all have to take responsibility for looking back and

thinking about how we may have been able to identify and make a

difference earlier. Let's talk about identifying problems. The report

said that at the time of the 2012 inspection, there would have been

highly visible issues of poor practice. How were they missed?

Looking back at the report that we did in 2012 on the issues found at

the Princess of Wales Hospital, it is clear the report flags up some of

the issues but not all that were highlighted by the report. There

were issues about retrospective depletion of documentation and there

are issues about some of the ward environment. But the overall tone of

your report was generally positive, wasn't it? The report said that care

was being provided in a sensitive manner.

The report highlights the interactions with patients that were

observed that it does highlight failings in the way some of those

were being delivered. The response we had from the health board

indicate the issues were being addressed. During the past year, we

have certainly been looking again at the approach we take to our dignity

and essential care inspections. New inspections took place in February

and March this year, based on the tools. The first report has now been

issues. We have been drawing up issues relating to leadership and

culture. New spot checks are going to be

carried out by a ministerial team. Is your organisation being

sidelined? No. Our organisation is not being

sidelined. We are talking to the Welsh government about how the

approach taken through the spot checks can be aligned with our

inspections and the programme of our inspections we conduct through the

remainder of the year will be focused through those spot checks.

It is important to say that they will be focusing specifically on the

four issues in the Andrews report and three of those are already

covered in the inspections we undertake.

In the light of the criticism in this report, which was between

December 2013 and April 2014, very recent. What can you say to people

who are in hospital or going into hospital shortly to reassure them

that it is after all your job to protect them?

I think I would say to those patients who are about to go into

hospital that there is a whole system in place to protect them. It

is important to encourage staff to do so as well for us. We have all

got a part to play, whether it is ourselves in the regime, whether it

is the community councils in helping to support and advise patients and

also to support them when they don't feel they are getting their services

and importantly, the health boards have an important part to play in

listening to the concerns that are raised and acting on them.

A court has heard how the accident in which a car crashed

outside a school, hitting five children and a lollipop lady,

may have happened after the drivers flip flops got under the pedals.

62-year-old Robert Bell denies driving without due care

and attention and says he cannot remember

the crash which happened last year at Rhoose in the Vale of Glamorgan.

It was just before 9am as children were pouring into Rhoose Primary

School when the accident happened. Five children and three women were

injured. One of them was the lollipop lady, Karen Williams. She

received an award for her actions trying to protect the children.

62-year-old Robert Bell denies driving without due care and

attention and today he told a court how he could recall nothing of the

accident. Fighting back the tears, he said the first thing he

remembered was hanging upside down in the car. When he got out and saw

the scene, he said he thought he'd killed three people. Some witnesses

that they said he had been driving his car along the road outside the

school when it appeared to Spira -- speed up, veer across the road and

hit collards before flipping over. Karen Williams said she saw Mr Bell

gripping the wheel with his eyes open as the car came towards her.

Another witness said he was coughing and his eyes were closed. His lawyer

told the court he was on medication which caused coughing. The

prosecution lawyer put it to him that the flip-flops he had been

wearing had ended up under the pedals and that could have caused

the accident. Vista Bell said he thought they'd come off as he tried

to free himself. -- Mr Bell. Two we court will hear expert evidence from

two doctors. -- tomorrow the court will hear.

The latest official figures show the number of people out of work

in Wales fell by 5,000 in the three months to March.

The unemployment rate here has stabilised remaining at 6.8% -

which is now the same as in the UK as a whole.

Wales is one of only two areas where the number of people in or looking

for work has fallen compared with the same period last year.

Seven pupils from Pembroke Comprehensive School needed

hospital treatment this afternoon after experimenting with what's

Police and the air ambulance were called after a group

None are thought to be in a life threatening condition.

It's emerged the Olympic hurdler, Colin Jackson, is involved in

running a company that's invested millions of pounds in the same tax

Revenue and Customs is expected to pursue

those involved to get the money that should have been paid in taxation.

Our business correspondent, Brian Meechan, is here.

This is about aggressive tax avoidance. That is not illegal but

it is against the spirit of the law, if not the letter of the law. Colin

Jackson has been involved in a company which reported losses of

?9.4 million as part of this game. There are a number of solicitors

that are involved, some dentists, some medics also involved with this

company. What the tax tribunal judge has said is that there were no real

loss is attached to this scheme and basically it was just many circling

around and it was there to offset some of the many coming in and to

reduce taxation. We have spoken to Mr Jackson's agent but they say

there is no statement coming today. What will happen next? All the

people involved in this scheme will be receiving quite hefty tax bills.

Think of this as ?10 million, quite a large tax bill to have to pick up

from that. People are quite annoyed about this because they are paying

taxes and people are finding it hard. When they see people not

paying what they feel they should be playing, it is a bad reaction.

Council tax in Wales is unfair because it charges proportionately

more for cheaper houses than expensive ones - that's according to

the economist Gerry Holtham, who chaired the Commission

In a paper for the Institute for Welsh Affairs he suggests that

council tax for people in the lowest band should be halved

while bills for the highest band would almost double.

Our Economics Correspondent Sarah Dickins looks at what it would mean

Dale Aston lives in Church Village near Pontypridd.

He pays just more than ?1,100 a year in council tax.

Under the proposals his bill would fall and he could

Nigel Roberts lives on the outskirts of Cardiff.

His bills would rise and in fact almost double.

Dale Aston, a retired colliery electrician, has lived here

The poor people always pay more than their fair share of tax so it does

not surprise me. He argues it is right that bills for large houses

should be larger. The value of the house and income is greater than

mine. I'm an OAP and I am on a small pension, hailing tax. -- paying tax.

Nigel Roberts owns a group of companies based in Cardiff

This perpetuates a culture of envy. I was born in the buffer in Cardiff.

I have worked hard for it. Gerry Holtham took his proposals for

changer to the home of politicians. They'll is paying nearly 2% of the

value of his body every year in council tax. Nigel is probably

paying half a percent so it is not a proportional tax. But Nigel is

paying more in numbers of pounds for his large house. He is. People are

always saying you should pay proportionately more if your value

is higher. But for people living alone in a

large house but a small income Gerry Hotham suggests payments could be

delayed until the house was sold. And for the well-off who would pay

much more, he has an incentive. If Wales gets powers to alter income

tax, he'd give high earners So they see Wales

as a good place to do business. Still to come - some good news

on the weather front. High pressure is working it's magic,

the sun is shining and the next few days will bring the

warmest weather of the year so far. The

in Wales says a "whole generation of young people"

won't be able to access further education - because of cuts to

public transport spending. The majority of learners in further

education in Wales rely on some form of public transport or dedicated bus

to travel to and from college. Our education Correspondent,

Arwyn Jones, has more. Stefan Thomas is studying for a BTEC

in personal fitness development. The only problem is the course is in

Llanelli, 30 miles away. It takes about an hour and a half every

morning and every night. I leave the house at 6:45am and I would be that

until 5:30pm. When you do that in a day, it takes a lot out of you. He

is one of the luckier ones because the college pays for his transport

costs and according to research today by the National Union of

Students, 69% of similar students who receive that support rely on it

to get to college and back and the same research shows nearly a third

of further education students in Wales don't receive any financial

support to cover their costs. Last year the worst government reduced

bus service was fought by a quarter. It is looking at different ways of

running and financing route but some bus operators have announced that

they might have to cut routes and the fear is it could have a

devastating effect on students. We are going to have a generation who

can't get to college and for many of these students, further education is

their second chance. We talk about college education as a second

opportunity for vulnerable learners and if these students can't afford

to get to college, we are removing that opportunity. At the annual

conference, the concern is that since each council has its own

policy on students transport, students from different areas get

different support in the same college. I wouldn't say it's a

postcode lottery but there are different practices so levels of

subsidy might be different. There are issues around 19 plus students

cost in some places they are not supported by local authorities and

others they are. It needs to be consistent. Further education

colleges are seen as a route to employment or university but the

concern is a lack of groups to get to college might undermine that.

Councillors have voted in favour of closing an arts centre and museum

The Muni Arts Centre, in Pontypridd and the

Cynon Valley Museum in Aberdare will both close as part of Rhondda Cynon

Taf council's plans to cut ?70 million over the next four years.

The family of a severely disabled teenager

from Pembrokeshire have been to the High Court today to challenge

Paul and Susan Rutherford say the so-called

"bedroom tax" discriminates unlawfully against severely disabled

children, such as their grandson Warren, who need overnight care.

Warren is 14 years old. A rare disorder means he cannot talk or

walk and needs 24-hour care. He lives with his grandparents in a

three-bedroom bungalow. This is the spare room. It is not really a spare

room. We need this for Warren's essentials. But under rules

announced last year it is a spare room, even if Warren's carers

sometimes stay in it. Disabled adults are exempt from what critics

call the bedroom tax but it has cost Sue and her husband Paul ?14 a week

in benefits. Paul has his own health problems and says it is unfair, even

though the council makes up the difference. I believe we have an

extremely good case. We've got an awful lot of support from other

housing associations and our own Pembrokeshire Housing people. All

over the UK. Today the Rutherfords took their case to the High Court to

try to get a judge to overturn the rules. The rules allow an extra room

for an adult who is disabled and needs an overnight carer but not a

child who needs overnight care. We say that defies common sense and is

unjustified. The UK government says the removal of the subsidy is a fair

and necessary reform. The Department for Work and Pensions says it has

made many available for councils like Pembrokeshire to help families

like the Rutherfords but that money is paid at the council's discretion

and will be reviewed every year. The judge says he will give his

judgement within weeks. Cricket,

and Glamorgan have been beaten They went down to Hampshire

on the final day of their Glamorgan were bowled out for 187

in their second innings, setting the home side

a slender target, which they reached The streets of Pembroke Dock were

taken over this afternoon for a parade to mark 200 years

since the town was founded. And, in honour of their proud Naval

history - Pembrokeshire's adopted ship - HMS Pembroke -

called in to pay a visit and inspire Led by the band of the

Royal Marines, 900 schoolchildren Dressed

in costumes reflecting the different I am a coal miner today. I am using

my uncle's old mining lamb. It is amazing the town has got so much

history. Pembroke Dock is the only town

in the UK to have been home to all three armed forces - but above all

its Navy links run the deepest. The submarine anchors off Pembroke

docks. At one time there was a royal

dockyard - 260 ships including The town was wealthier then -

today's guardians want to inspire these youngsters to dream big once

again. This is what we've done to remember

our heritage and remember what was done here 200 years ago. Hopefully

they will be carrying on the future for us.

To mark the celebrations HMS Pembroke has come to visit.

Her mission is to patrol using sonar to detect mines

Around the UK there are still many left over from the Second World War.

As a former member of the bomb disposal team race in Portsmouth, we

were called out on tasks five or six times a week, varying from large sea

mines and torpedoes. One of the types of bombs they are looking for

is set off by metallic contact so they have as little metal on board

as possible. Most of what you see is made from fibreglass.

Overseas the threat is less historic - the 40 crew here also work out

They've had a royal visit - now they can add a royal military

band to their list of presents for this their 200th birthday.

It looked glorious at Pembroke Dock today. We are in for a lovely few

days, aren't we? A few clouds in the sky this evening

but lovely sunshine with top temperature of 66 Fahrenheit. Over

the next few days we have plenty more settled weather, warming up

with sunny spells. Some cloud. The odd shower in places but no more

than that. Staying dry this evening and tonight with most of the cloud

in the North. Clearer in the south and turning cool. Lowest in pictures

around five or six Celsius. Mist and fog patches forming. The 11 Celsius

on the north coast. Tomorrow's chart shows high pressure across the UK

but high pressure doesn't always mean a blue sky. Tomorrow is a misty

start in places with hill fog in Snowdonia. Brighter in the South.

During the day more places will brighten up with a few sunny spells.

The best of the sunshine on the south coast. More cloud inland but

generally dry and warm with temperatures around 20 Celsius with

light winds. Tomorrow night the dry weather continues. If you clear

spells and mist and fog patches, perhaps some sea fog around Cardigan

Bay. On Friday mist and fog patches will lift, leaving a mixture of

cloud and sunny spells. I wouldn't rule out a shower in part of Powys.

A risk of see fog on some Irish Sea coasts. 22 Celsius in Flintshire

would make it the warmest day of the year so far. Saturday the best day

of the weekend. Dry and warm. Perhaps a shower in the south-east.

Sunday may start dry and bright but there is some rain on the way so

enjoy the fine and warm weather over the next few days while it lasts.

Thank you. A day on from the publication of a

damning report into failings at the Princess of Wales and Neath Port

Talbot Hospital, questions are being asked of the worst government

response to it. That was Wales Today. More at APN

and 10:25pm. From all of us on the programme, evening.