A local lockdown has been ordered for:
- Newport
- Bridgend
- Merthyr Tydfil
- Blaenau Gwent.
This will be coming it at 6pm tomorrow.
More details below:
On the Merthyr lockdown - cases appear to be mainly focused around two distinct clusters, linked to a large employer and a pub.
Two new, smaller clusters have also been identified.
In Newport, the rise in cases appeared to start with a house party at the end of August and was subsequently linked to a number of pubs.
There is a wide spread of cases across the city, which are not linked to a particular cluster or showing links with existing cases.
In Blaenau Gwent, there were cases linked to pubs and a lack of social distancing but there have also been cases in care home staff (gulp) and in secondary schools in the area.
Bridgend is a growing concern because there has been a sharp rise in cases in a short space of time.
PHW found a small number of clusters in the borough but are worried the pattern is similar to what we have seen in RCT.
Mobile testing will be introduced in Bridgend this week.
The restrictions mean:
- People not be allowed to enter or leave these areas without a reasonable excuse.
- People can only meet outdoors. People will not be able to meet members of their extended household indoors or form an extended household for the time being.
(Cont)
- All licensed premises in these areas will have to close at 11pm.
- Everyone over 11 must wear face coverings in indoor public places – as is the case throughout Wales.
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There's a growing row brewing in Wales over the recent benefits cuts.
Wales' First Minister Eluned Morgan said she'd written to Liz Kendall (Sec of State for Work and Pensions) calling on a Welsh specific assessment of the changes.
Then it starts getting weird...
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The Welsh Gov now have a response from Ms Kendall.
However they have not published it...
This has made Plaid very angry with their leader Rhun ap Iorwerth saying:
"The FM promised that transparency would be a 'watchword' of her government—yet when given the chance to be open about the impact of welfare cuts on Wales, she chooses secrecy instead."
So I approached the Welsh Gov and asked if they were refusing to publish the letter and, if so, why?
The Welsh Gov said that it wasn't about secrecy but rather courtesy. They said as it came from the SoS office it was for them to publish.
Wales has been screwed over by its own Labour MPs.
The 27 Welsh Labour MPs voted to deny Wales millions of £ in the coming years.
When I approached them they gave very weak excuses for their actions.
Stay with me here because it's a bit fiddly but really matters.
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This is all about the Crown Estate.
Never heard of it?
Don't worry, many haven't .
The Crown Estate is a company which is owned by the monarch and controls over £600m of Welsh land including 65% of the coast, the sea bed 12 miles out to sea, 50k acres of land and gold or silver. In 2023/24 the Crown Estate announced a record £1.1bn net revenue profit.
Tidy eh?
Of the annual profits from the Crown Estate, 25% go to pay for the monarch’s official duties with the rest going to the Treasury in London.
He is likely about to become the leader of the Welsh Conservatives.
In addition to being a Member of the Senedd he also has another job.
He runs the evangelical Christian organisation - Pocket Testament League.
If he becomes leader Mr Millar is going to have his hands full because not only will he be the official leader of the opposition in the Senedd - he will also be the chief exec of the Pocket Testament.
He is clearly good at juggling his time because in addition to his £72k a year MS role, he has managed to fly to Ukraine in 2022 to distribute 150,000 bibles.
The new constituency boundaries have been proposed for the next Senedd election in 2026.
They are making 16 seats by pairing the current 32 Westminster seats.
You can see the map of the pairs below (same colour = one seat).
Let's break down the seats...
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These are just proposals at this point.
The Democracy and Boundary Commission Cymru has published them today along with justifications for them and why they chose the Welsh language name.
One of the conditions for pairing seats was that they must connected by road.
Bangor Aberconwy Ynys Môn (Blue)
Created by combining: Bangor Abercowny and Ynys Môn.
Ynys Môn only has road connections to the mainland via the Bangor Aberconwy.
The Commission believes that combining the areas as proposed is appropriate due to the good transport and communication links within the proposed constituency.
This is the leader of the Welsh Conservatives Andrew RT Davies.
I think there is a very strong argument to be made that he is the worst political leader in the UK.
His leadership is a gift to the Welsh Labour Government.
Let me explain why he is so bad...
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Before I explain this, we need to deal with a far more basic question - is Andrew RT Davies actually the Welsh Conservative leader?
This might seem a bizarre thing to ask but it is actually quite pertinent.
Because technically he isn’t the leader of the Welsh Conservatives because there isn’t actually a distinct organisation called the “Welsh Conservatives”.