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Top story
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Hyder gets Holyhead cruising
Engineering group Hyder Consulting has been chosen by the Welsh Assembly Government to draw up plans for a cruise liner berth, which would attract wealthy tourists to North Wales. Ten cruise line operators have expressed an interest in docking at Holyhead. At present liners have to anchor in Holyhead port and transfer to the land by boat. Hyder will develop plans to convert an industrial jetty nearby to take liners. Leighton Andrews, deputy minister for regeneration, said marketing by the Assembly Government’s International Business Wales team and the Mon a Menai development project had raised interest. He said: “It helps puts Holyhead, Anglesey and North Wales firmly on the global map and offers terrific potential to encourage these visitors to come back and spend a longer time discovering the region.” The tender bid was co-ordinated by the Assembly Government on behalf of a partnership including Stena Ports, the port authority and Anglesey Aluminium, which owns the jetty that could be converted.
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Finance
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Years of plenty over, says Davies
Finance minister Andrew Davies has warned that year-on-year Assembly Government spending increases are over and that efficiency savings must be made if services are to improve. Estimates indicate public services in Wales may have £500m less to spend next year, partly because UK government cash has been diverted to rescue the economy. Davies said on BBC TV: “The years of plenty have come to an end and we need to be planning for some lean years ahead. There has been significant progress, but clearly we've got just over a year to plan for a very difficult financial environment and we need to make some significant progress.” Davies suggested savings could be made by removing duplication of effort between Wales’ 22 local councils, and a clearer focus by Assembly Government departments on services rather than budgets.
Transform services call
Public sector services need wholesale transformation if they are to balance the threat of falling revenue with rising costs and public expectations, according to a report by advisory firm Deloitte. Falling income tax, business tax, stamp duty and charge revenues will be made worse by private-sector partners hitting trouble, the “Turning the Tide” report said. Bill Cooper, the partner heading Deloitte’s public-sector practice in Wales, said: “There is an underlying requirement for government organisations to reduce their cost base. To address this challenge public-sector leaders may need to increase their use of collaboration across policy areas and regional boundaries in Wales, and may need to consider a more fundamental shared service transformation.”
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Enterprise
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Language network invites tech companies
Bangor University is to set up a research network for speech and language technologies, which will bring together academic researchers and industry to share information and promote research and development. The SALT Cymru network is one of the first to be supported by the Assembly Government’s £70m Academic Expertise for Business (A4B) programme. Companies developing electronic commerce, educational software and multimedia and communications technologies have all been targeted to join the group. Microsoft and the BBC already use language technology developed by Welsh academics.
Downturn advice sessions
The Welsh Assembly Government plans a series of seminars to advise companies on how to get through the economic downturn. The Weathering the Storm events will provide information on UK-wide help schemes as well as those exclusively for Wales. Each event will include a keynote speaker, workshops, a question-and-answer session and a knowledge fair where employer groups, banks and councils will exhibit their support services.
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Development
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Drain solution to get Connaught motoring
The first cars to be built entirely in Wales could roll off the production line early next year after Carmarthenshire Council and other agencies agreed to sort out a drain problem. Car company Connaught unveiled plans for a factory two years ago but they were put on hold because of the drainage problem, which held up development. Planning officers in Carmarthenshire are understood to have recommended the plant be approved. It will build environmentally friendly sports cars and is expected to get help from the Welsh Assembly Government.
Admiral takes SA1 space
Insurance group Admiral is due to sign a 15-year lease on the £7.5m Ellipse building on Swansea’s SA1 development, part of the Welsh Investment Strategic Partnership between the Assembly Government and Babcock and Brown. The £2m expansion is expected to create 119 jobs. Admiral occupies the Cyprium building nearby, where 1,170 people work, and will take 12,160 sq ft at the Ellipse with support from an Assembly Government grant. Deputy first minister Ieuan Wyn Jones said: “The Assembly Government has worked closely with Admiral since it opened its first centre in Cardiff and has supported its continued rapid growth. It is very much a flagship operation for Wales with a track record of profitability.”
Anglesey development deadline looms
Anglesey Council is looking for proposals for land to be considered for new developments for its local development plan candidate site register. The authority wants land that may be developed to be registered by 27 February. Inclusion on the register does not mean the council will decide on it, but will inform choices about future land use.
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