29/03/2017 BBC Wales Today

Welcome to Wales Today, After the Prime Minister

triggers Article 50, First Minister Carwyn Jones says

the effects of Brexit here could be minimal.

A search operation is underway in the Caernarfon Bay area

for a missing helicopter.

Five people are on board.

And the chairman of Sport Wales, sacked by the Welsh Governmen,

says he's been 'hung out to dry.'

Good evening.

On the day the Prime Minister triggered Article 50,

starting the process of the UK leaving the European Union,

First Minister Carwyn Jones has told BBC Wales there's no reason why

Brexit should be "disastrous" for people living here.

Mr Jones said, if done properly the effect can be minimal.

Meanwhile, Theresa May has told MP's Brexit will mean

a "significant increase" in the Welsh Government's

decision-making powers.

Our Political Editor, Nick Servini, reports.

After a hugely symbolic day when the Brexit process

finally became real, the question marks remain.

The warnings are still coming in thick and fast but tonight,

the First Minister Carwyn Jones struck an unusually upbeat

tone when he said that while there were dangers,

there was no reason why Brexit should be disastrous for Wales.

If this is done properly, then actually, the effect can

be minimal actually.

The effect can be such that it won't cause us any difficulties at all,

minimal difficulties.

If it is done badly, then it is a potential disaster.

It makes Wales and the UK look as if we are out

on a limb somewhere, a group of islands off the coast

of Europe that isn't part of a very large market.

Earlier today in the Senedd, he had expressed frustration

that the Welsh Government had not been allowed to contribute

to the letter sent by Theresa May notifying the EU of the UK's

decision to leave.

Meanwhile, in the Commons, the Prime Minister told MPs that

Brexit will mean a significant increase in the Welsh Government 's

decision-making powers after a consultation.

It is the expectation of the government that the devolved

administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will see

a significant increase in their decision-making power

as a result of this process.

Plaid Cymru welcomes that commitment but a big focus for the party

was to warn about the possibility of tariffs for Welsh firms exporting

to the European Union.

It doesn't take a genius to work out that if you put a 10% tariff

on parts coming into a company and the finished product going out,

that many Welsh businesses are not going to hang around

and face those costs.

In contrast, the leader of Ukip at the assembly, Neil Hamilton,

said that even if the talks between the UK and the EU collapsed

and industries like farming then faced a big increase in the cost

of trade, the impact could still be managed.

Given the Brexit dividend, we will get back from the EU

?8 billion more than currently the EU spends in Britain,

the UK Government will have money in its pockets to ensure that

farming incomes don't suffer, whatever the trade terms

are of our relationship with the EU.

There was a sceptical note struck by the Liberal Democrats

about the time frame of the deal and about the proposal for

the assembly to have further powers.

She talked about the powers to the National Assembly

coming after consultation.

Some of those powers will reside in Whitehall still,

others will come to Cardiff.

Which ones?

We are in the preliminary stages now that the phoney war has ended,

the real world, as this issue really hits the country.

And so the clock starts ticking on a two-year time frame

in a process that will change the relationship of the UK and Wales

with the EU forever.

So what are the key issues for Wales in the upcoming Brexit negotiations?

We're more reliant on EU funding and trade than anywhere else

in the UK, so expect both to be high on the Welsh Government's agenda.

So too, agriculture.

Our Economics Correspondent, Sarah Dickins, reports.

A day of new beginnings.

13 of them.

And a new dawn for the Welsh economy.

Ken and Sian hand rear pedigree pigs.

They are among the 84,000 who work in Welsh agriculture.

Food and farming is worth ?6 billion per year to our economy,

so this Brexit deal will affect many rural livelihoods.

Ken thinks it will end cheap pork imports.

When you look at the quantity that we bring into the country,

you know, it is colossal.

We produce in Wales 5% of what we eat in Wales

and regulations have gone to the point where we have got high

welfare pork in the country and what comes into the country

is not same standard.

It is subsidised.

We just need to be able to compete on a level playing field

against what is coming in.

Not everyone is as confident.

Will Westminster replace the farm payments Wales has had

from the European Union worth almost ?200 million per year?

And what about exports?

90% of Welsh red meat goes to the European Union.

So, this is the finished product.

A free-trade deal is what Karen John wants.

She runs a glass recycling company on Swansea docks.

Wales exports more goods to the European Union

than any other part of the UK.

It is Karen's biggest market.

So, in terms of Brexit, what do you want to get from it?

I would love to have tariff free-trade and it is highly unlikely

that we are going to get that, I know.

But that would be the best outcome for us.

Has the relationship you have had with your customers

changed since Brexit?

Most definitely.

They have said that whereas I would normally get a five -

ten year contract, that is impossible

until we know the status.

That is directly affecting you?

Without a doubt.

That is the norm.

And what can you get now?

One.

3% of the Welsh workforce comes from other countries

in the European Union, a much smaller proportion

than almost anywhere else in the UK.

But for those like Karen, who has four Polish employees,

a priority is to learn whether they can stay.

They want security.

They have been here for eight years.

They have worked for us for eight years.

They have experienced their neighbours treating

them differently.

Which is so sad.

And if they could stay here, they will.

Do you need them?

I would love to keep them.

At the other end of the docks is the new Swansea University Bay campus.

It cost ?450 million to build, half from European Union funds.

Since 2000, Wales has had more than ?5 billion from this

pot of cash designed to make us wealthier.

But we remain the poorest part of the UK.

Dr Ben Evans is developing the Bloodhound supersonic car

in Swansea's European Union funded laboratories.

He hopes Westminster will replace the funding but it's

not just about money.

Without the access to European funding we have had over the last

two years, the new campus at the University

would not have happened.

The research programmes, our collaborations,

the European Union has been critical for that.

So the thing that I would be asking our British negotiators

is to make sure that there are as few barriers to allow me

to continue the partnerships I already have in Spain,

France, Germany, as possible.

Despite different views of Brexit, most agree the Welsh economy

has been more reliant on the European Union

than most of the UK.

Particularly for trade and EU cash.

The battle is for a Brexit deal that helps us flourish.

Some breaking news - A major search operation is underway

this evening for a missing helicopter off the coast

of Caernarfon Bay.

UK coastguard are looking for a privately owned twin squirrel

red helicopter with five people on board.

It's believed to have left Milton Keynes earlier today--

heading to Dublin, via Caernarfon Bay.

The Coastguard says it lost radar contact with

the helicopter shortly after 4pm.

126 aerospace jobs are under threat in north east Wales.

Marshall Aviation Services has said it wants to close down

its engineering and maintenance site at Broughton in Flintshire.

The company will now start consulting with unions.

There are also reports tonight that up to 150 jobs could be at risk.

A Barry-based engineering company has gone into administration.

SHS Integrated Services also had offices in Port

Talbot and Doncaster.

It's been operating for 19 years.

The chair and vice-chair of Sport Wales have been sacked

by the Welsh Government.

Paul Thomas and Adele Bauwmgardt were suspended in November,

along with the entire Sport Wales board, following concerns

that the organisation had become 'dysfunctional'.

Tonight, in an exculsive interview, Mr Thomas has told Wales Today he's

shocked by how poorly he's been treated.

Here's Arwyn Jones.

From Olympic and Paralympic golds to training the next

generation of athletes.

There's no doubting Sport Wales has success in promoting elite

and grassroots sport here.

But over the last six months, there has been turmoil at the top

of the organisation, which gets over ?20 million

of public money every year.

Last November, the activities of the entire board were suspended

after infighting which led to a vote of no-confidence in its

chair, Dr Paul Thomas.

A few weeks ago, the other board members were reinstated

but the chair and vice-chair remained suspended.

Today, the minister who oversees the work of Sport Wales said

she decided new leadership was needed for the

organisation to move on.

Both exhibited considerable energy and dedication over the period

of time and I do consider though the need to secure fresh leadership.

In a letter to Paul Thomas, the Public health Minister Rebecca

Evans says, your conduct and behaviours that

you adopted to achieve what you felt to be necessary

change were counter-productive.

I think they have handled it pretty poorly, pretty shockingly actually.

I have had two formal correspondence in the last seven months.

And I am shocked by that.

That wouldn't happen in business.

It certainly wouldn't happen in normal organisations.

But the vice-chair, Adele Baumgardt, also sacked today, says...

But Paul Thomas has defended his work.

In your assessment, is Sport Wales fit for purpose?

It is not.

I think the staff are, I think the NGVs are,

I think the chief executives that supported it here in Wales are,

I just think the body itself needs to become

more efficient, effective.

One of the aims for Sport Wales is to secure success

for swimmers like Jazz Carlin.

At work will continue now with a new chair but many questions

remain about what went wrong at the top of Sport Wales.

BBC Wales understands the Welsh Rugby Union will inspect

Pontypridd's Sardis Road pitch tomorrow.

It follows the publication of pictures of burns suffered

by Merthyr RFC players on the artificial 3G surface

in their cup semi-final there at the weekend.

Pontypridd have declined to comment.

Whenever you land on it, you could feel how hard

it was and how dry it was and it was an instant burn on your skin.

Whenever you play on the pitch, it hurts your heels,

that is how hard it is.

It feels like you are running on tarmac.

It is horrible.

Time now for the weather forecast.

Hello again.

There's more rain and showers to come over the next few days

but we've got some dry weather and sunshine in the mix as well.

Tonight, it's a cloudy story.

Some patchy rain and showers.

Heavy in places.

Some dry spells too and a very mild night.

Tomorrow morning, cloudy and misty in places.

Potential for some heavy rain in the south-east.

Elsewhere, some dry spells in Newtown and Carmarthen.

Across the rest of the UK, further outbreaks of rain in parts

of the north and west.

Heavy in places.

The best of the weather tomorrow across southern England,

the Midlands and East Anglia.

Dry and bright here, hazy sunshine and warm.

20 Celsius or higher in London.

Breezy and cooler in the West.

14 in Belfast.

In Wales tomorrow afternoon, most of the country should become

dry and bright with hazy sunshine and quite warm.

17 in Monmouth.

More rain over Pembrokeshire, Northwest Gwynedd and Anglesey.

Tomorrow evening, dry for a while but there

is more rain on the way.

Again, some of it heavy.

Another mild night.

On Friday, it's an improving story.

Breezy, a few showers, but some dry weather

and sunshine as well.

As for the weekend, a mixture of sunshine and April

showers on Saturday.

Sunday though should be dry and settled,

thanks to high pressure.

That's the latest forecast.

I wish you a good night.

Nos da.

That's Wales Today.

We're back from around 6.25 in the morning.

From all of us here.

Goodnight.