Welsh Liberal blogs

New bursaries aimed at increasing the number of Welsh graduates remaining in or returning to Wales to study a Master’s degree have been announced this week by Kirsty Williams, Welsh Liberal Democrat Education Minister. Funding is available for degrees in Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics and Medicine. Additional funding will be available for those undertaking a Master’s degree in Welsh. Up to £17,000 will be available for postgraduate students starting a course this autumn, and £1.3million will be allocated to the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales for the scheme. Postgraduate applications have already seen a sharp increase of 58%, following student finance reforms that mean Wales has the most generous package of financial support anywhere in the UK. Kirsty Williams AM commented: “ Providing accessible postgraduate study is essential in meeting Wales’ current and future skills needs. The bursaries are aimed at high-demand areas and add to th

Boris Johnson can "deliver for Wales" because of his time as Mayor of London, according to the Conservative leader in the Welsh Assembly. Paul Davies is backing the former foreign secretary to become the next prime minister. The assembly Tory leader said Mr Johnson, who once stood as a candidate in Wales, "understands devolution". He would the best candidate to "keep Jeremy Corbyn out of Downing Street", Mr Davies sai d. Mr Johnson is widely seen as the frontrunner to win the ballot for the Tory leadership of about 160,000 party members against his opponent, Jeremy Hunt. The two contenders are taking part in 15 hustings across the UK with the result expected on 23 July. Pushed three times to say what plans Mr Johnson had for Wales, Mr Davies refused to give details. He insisted that private conversations between the two should not be made public but that "we had a very positive conversation about infrastructure here in

A by-election to choose an MP for Brecon and Radnorshire will be held on 1 August. Tory chief whip Julian Smith moved the writ in the Commons to trigger the contest after Conservative MP Chris Davies was unseated by a petition. More than 10,000 people signed the recall petition following Mr Davies's conviction for a false expenses claim. He had been the area's MP since 2015, when he ousted incumbent Liberal Democrat Roger Williams. His majority then was 5,102, which he increased to 8,038 at the 2017 general election. Mr Davies has been re-selected for the contest. He will face Jane Dodds, Welsh Liberal Democrat leader, and Labour's Tom Davies in the election. The Brexit Party is also expected to stand. Plaid Cymru has been considering whether it should agree to a pact with other pro-EU parties and not take part in the poll. The count will take place at the Royal Welsh Showground in Llanelwed. By-elections take place betwee

The future of Powys's first council house development in 40 years is in doubt amid troubles at the building firm hired for the project. Port Talbot-based Jistcourt said on Friday it was going into administration with 47 of its 66 jobs being lost. Powys council officers say they will move "very swiftly" to secure a site in Newtown where 26 flats are to be built. Administrators say the firm's directors are working with clients to bring "live projects" to a "workable conclusion". On Monday, councillors heard that £695,000 had been spent so far on the £3.5m scheme. However, a source told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that none of this money had gone to Jistcourt. Nina Davies, head of housing and community development, told members that the council had not yet been officially notified that Jistcourt had gone into administration. But she confirmed that her team was preparing for the worst. "Officers a

A former MP that lost his seat after 10,005 people signed a petition to trigger a by-election has been reselected by his local party. On Sunday, local Conservative members met and decided Mr Davies should be the party's candidate in Brecon and Radnorshire. The recall petition was held after he admitted two charges of making a false expenses claim. The Lib Dems, Labour and the Brexit Party are expected to stand. Mr Davies was convicted of a false expenses claim in March after trying to split the cost of £700 worth of pictures between two office budgets by creating fake invoices, when he could have claimed the amount by other means. He was fined £1,500 and told to carry out 50 hours of community service. 'Second chance' Glyn Davies, the MP for neighbouring Montgomeryshire, gave Mr Davies his backing earlier on Sunday. "He's made a mistake. He's apologised for the mistake," Glyn Davies told BBC Sunday Politics W

There will be a by-election in Brecon and Radnorshire after a petition to recall Tory MP, Chris Davies, secured enough signatures. Davies pleaded guilty in March to providing false or misleading information on allowances claims. He was fined £1,500 and ordered to carry out unpaid community service. Almost 20% of voters in the constituency signed the petition calling for him to lose his seat. The result was announced on Friday 21 June by Powys County Council, who confirmed the petition was successful. There will now be a by-election in the area. Davies is expected to stand for his seat. 10,005 out of 53,032 signed - 19% of the total Labour called the recall result "another huge blow to Chris Davies" credibility to serve as a Member of Parliament' and said the Conservatives must call an immediate by-election. This is a mess all of his making. The Conservatives must not drag their feet. They should listen to the wishes of the voters of Breco

A Welsh Tory MP convicted over a false expenses claim will find out later if he has been unseated by a petition. In March, Brecon and Radnorshire MP Chris Davies admitted faking invoices, at Southwark Crown Court. A by-election will be triggered if 10% of the electorate in the constituency, 5,303 voters, have signed the petition. The recall petition, which closed on Thursday , will be verified and counted at 10:00 BST, at Powys County Hall in Llandrindod Wells. The result is expected soon afterwards. A petition officer will notify House of Commons Speaker John Bercow of the outcome before the outcome is made public. Recall petitions are launched when MPs receive a custodial sentence - including suspended sentences, are barred from the Commons for 10 sitting days or are convicted of providing false information about their expenses. Peterborough's former Labour MP Fiona Onasanya became the first MP to be unseated from the Commons in a recall pe

  Thursday is the last day voters in Brecon and Radnorshire can sign a petition which could lead to a by-election after Tory MP Chris Davies was convicted for a false expenses claim.  Mr Davies admitted faking invoices, at Southwark Crown Court, in March and faces a recall petition to keep his seat. A by-election will be triggered if 10% of the electorate - 5,303 voters - sign it. The petition closes at 17:00 BST. The verification of the petition and count will take place at 10:00 on Friday at County Hall in Llandrindod Wells, Powys. A petition officer will notify House of Commons Speaker John Bercow of the outcome before the result is made public. Recall petitions are launched when MPs receive a custodial sentence, including suspended sentences, are barred from the Commons for 10 sitting days or are convicted of providing false information about their expenses.

48 people were arrested in SThe Welsh Liberal Democrats have called on Wales’ police forces to stop using a 200-year old law to arrest and prosecute rough sleepers, after a senior police officer admitted there was no consistent policy on its use. Jeremy Vaughan, Assistant Chief Constable of South Wales Police, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme this morning that “we don’t have an arrest policy” on use of the disputed Vagrancy Act, despite the force arresting 48 people under the Act in the 12 months to April 2019. Liberal Democrat MP Layla Moran has led the campaign in Westminster to repeal the Vagrancy Act (1824), which many forces in England choose not to use and which has already been repealed in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Jane Dodds, Leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats , said: “It’s quite frankly shocking that a police force as large as South Wales has no consistent policy on using this outdated law, despite dozens being arrested because of it in the last ye

A call for every school pupil in Wales "without exception" to be taught the history of the country will be debated in the Senedd later. Plaid Cymru's Sian Gwenllian said she wants Welsh history to be central to a new curriculum introduced from 2022. Ms Gwenllian and Tory AM Suzy Davies have proposed a motion on the issue. A Welsh Government spokesperson said " learning about the histories of Wales will be essential to achieving the purposes of the curriculum" . Arfon AM Ms Gwenllian, her party's spokesperson on education and the Welsh language, said teaching Welsh history was a "key component of helping the next generation to become informed and engaged citizens of not only Wales but of the world and the new curriculum for Wales is a real opportunity to do just that". "Currently it is history, rather than Welsh history, that is in the list of subjects to be taught under humanities, " she said. &quo

Plaid Cymru assembly members are opposed to Neil McEvoy's application to re-join the party, BBC Wales understands. New details have emerged of allegations that led the party's AMs to expel him from their Senedd group last year. A document seen by Newyddion 9 alleged Mr McEvoy had accused a colleague of racism based on an untrue allegation and made staff feel uncomfortable. Mr McEvoy said he could not reply to the claims because of confidentiality. The South Wales Central AM was expelled from the party's assembly group in January 2018. He was later expelled from Plaid for 12 months following an investigation into his conduct. It is understood that his former colleagues in the party group oppose his bid to be reinstated as a Plaid member, although leader Adam Price has not been involved in any discussions between the assembly members. One AM said it would be "impracticable" for Mr McEvoy to rejoin the party and not the Welsh Assembly

The Welsh Liberal Democrats have called on the UK Government to ensure the Shared Prosperity Fund delivers for Wales ahead of this afternoon’s Senedd debate. The Welsh Liberal Democrats are calling for the fund to ensure Wales receives not a penny less than it currently receives from the EU and for the Welsh Government to control how the money is spent in Wales. A Shared Prosperity Fund was proposed in the Conservative Party’s 2017 general election manifesto and featured in the UK Government’s Industrial Strategy white paper later that year. Since then there have been precious few details about the proposed fund. This is despite the fact a consultation was supposed to have taken place last year. Independent analysis from Communities in Charge has calculated that Wales would lose out by £743.11 per person if the fund was allocated in the same way as UK Government funding instead of the way EU funding is distributed. Welsh Liberal Democrat Leader Jane Dod

Powys's head of education has resigned from his post just nine months after being appointed following a cut in senior management roles at the council. Alec Clark took over running education after the post of director of education was scrapped, in favour of a new role of director overseeing both education and social services. The council cut eight of 24 leadership posts last year to save £1.3m. The previous director left the council after failing to get the top job. Ian Budd had been Dr Clark's boss when the two of them went for the new head of education role after the post of director was deleted. Dr Clark is to take a new job as director of an education trust in southern England. The leader of the Liberal Democrat and Green group, James Gibson-Watt, called for a crisis meeting of all group leaders with chief executive Caroline Turner to discuss the future of the schools' service. He said there were a number of schools falling into serious bu

The Welsh Liberal Democrats have responded to Ford Europe’s decision to close their Bridgend plant; claiming it is another example of the destructive consequences of Brexit for the Welsh economy. he decision means the factory’s 1,700 workers will lose their jobs. Workers were still reeling from the decision in February this year to cut a total of 990 jobs at the plant. Trade union leaders are being told the news this morning at a meeting at Ford’s Essex headquarters. Welsh Liberal Democrat Leader Jane Dodds said: " his is devastating news for workers, their families and the wider community. The effects of this decision will be felt across the Welsh economy, but nowhere as acutely as in Bridgend. The Welsh and UK Governments must urgently do all they can to support employees, help them find new work and protect Bridgend’s economy. However, we must accept that nothing can stop this being a dark day for Bridgend and the Welsh car industry. Ford

ssembly members have backed a call for a new referendum on whatever terms are proposed for Brexit, with the option of staying in the EU on the ballot paper.  Labour AMs supported the successful Plaid Cymru motion against Tory, Brexit Party and UKIP opposition. Plaid Cymru's Delyth Jewell told the Senedd: "The most democratic thing is to give the people a final say." But Tory Darren Millar said "you cannot call for another vote because you don't like the outcome" of the 2016 poll . he vote on the motion, which is purely symbolic, came as contenders to replace Theresa May as Conservative leader and prime minister set out their Brexit positions, with the UK due to leave the European Union on 31 October. It follows a decision by the Labour Welsh Government to support a further vote, after an EU election result where the party came third in Wales. A total of 36 AMs backed the Plaid motion, versus 16 against. Mrs May ha

The Welsh Liberal Democrats have welcomed the announcement by the First Minister that the M4 relief road will not go ahead and called on the money saved to instead be spent on public transport, the green economy and affordable housing. The decision by the First Minister was announced today and follows a year-long public inquiry. The Welsh Liberal Democrat 2016 manifesto opposed the ‘black route’ M4 relief road and urged alternative approaches to tackle congestion in South-East Wales. Welsh Liberal Democrat Leader Jane Dodds said: “I’m pleased the M4 relief road will not go ahead. We need to tackle congestion in South East Wales, but the M4 relief road is not the answer. The financial and environmental costs are just too high. “As the predicted costs of the M4 relief road continue to rise, it is right the Welsh Government looks to spend this money instead on projects that offer better value for money. “We urge the Welsh Government to invest the money