The Assembly - and in particular Ieuan Wyn Jones, transport minister and deputy to Rhodri Morgan - will soon be presented with an opportunity to make a mark which will last a half-century or more.
Alternatively, the institution, its ministers and its civil servants could bust their chances through short-sightedness, inability to plan, and failure [...]
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Tags: Cardiff metro system·Great western mail line·Ieuan Wyn Jones·rail electrification·Sue Essex·Valleys electric trains
There’s a slight smell of 1978 wafting around the Assembly nowadays.
That was the time when the government headed by the MP for Cardiff South East launched a campaign to convince voters to vote-yes to the formation of a Welsh Assembly.
Except that they didn’t really set up a campaign.
And when the battle began, the government didn’t [...]
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Tags: Add new tag·david davies·devolution referendum·federalism·Ieuan Wyn Jones·james callaghan·Rhodri Morgan·true wales
Trust a journalist to make something out of nothing.
We have been briefed that environment minister Jane Davidson will this week launch a nice-tasting initiative from Arriva Trains Wales. The company is to start serving Fair Trade coffee on its services.
In order to provide a “photo-opportunity” - Ms D being handed a cup and [...]
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Tags: coffee·ebbw vale branch·Ieuan Wyn Jones·Jane Davidson·llantrisant·reopened lines·Welsh trains
Once upon a time, Plaid Cymru used to hold an annual conference which attracted nationalists from all corners of the country to debate ideas and to decide policy. But not now.
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Tags: annual conference·coalitions·conference·Huw Lewis·Ieuan Wyn Jones·lynne neagle·Merthyr·NHS reorganisation·Plaid Cymru·Torfaen·Y Byd
We all know the Western Mail (otherwise Llais y Sais) is losing readers, and that their reporters sometimes can’t find stories (after all, it is still the “silly season“).
But today’s effort on the future leadership of the Welsh Labour Party in the wake of Rhodri Morgan is peculiarly off-centre.
So peculiarly off-centre that it’s worth examining, [...]
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Tags: Andrew Davies·Carwyn Jones·Edwina Hart·Gwenda Thomas·Huw Lewis·Ieuan Wyn Jones·Karen Sinclair·leighton andrews·Nicholas Bourne·Rhodri Morgan·Welsh labour leadership
Wales is in grave danger of being considered a nation of narrow-minded hypocrites in the wake of the Rev Rhodri Glyn Thomas being forced to resign as culture minister after mistakenly walking into a Bay public house with a cigar in his hand .
Apparently, the resignation followed a tete-a-tete on his future with party leader [...]
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Tags: adam price·assembly ministers·Carwyn Jones·Edwina Hart·Ieuan Wyn Jones·plaid cymru leadership·political arrogance·Rhodri Glyn Thomas·smoking ban·welsh language daily·welsh literary prize·western mail
Plaid are hopping mad that Tory Alun Cairns is grabbing credit for giving free transport to pupils attending Welsh-medium and church schools.
A Measure setting out new Welsh laws on school transport has begun its passage through the Assembly, and Mr Cairns is furious because it is not strong enough.
A Measure is a law within [...]
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Tags: Alun Cairns·church schools·Ieuan Wyn Jones·one wales·schools free transport·Welsh schools
So, there is life beyond the political grave - and it as a result might mean widespread cuts in speed limits on Welsh roads.
Alun Pugh was hardly the most successful culture minister, and now all of his controversial Labour-fuelled talk of absorbing the Arts Council into the civil service has totally vanished - successor Rhodri [...]
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Tags: alun pugh·Ieuan Wyn Jones·Nick Bourne·one wales·snowdonia society·speed limits·Welsh Tories
Good news for Anglesey, as well as for its AM, in one of today’s papers.
We all know that the economic future of the island revolves around its large aluminium works near Holyhead - and that this in turn revolves around the nuclear power which provides the enormous amount of electricity that is required.
Currently, [...]
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Tags: Anglesey·British Energy·Ieuan Wyn Jones·Wylfa nuclear power