Partnership is working

Whilst the Spinning around Swansea website rather predictably scoffs from the sidelines it is worth reflecting that the 1200 Amazon distribution jobs coming to Swansea have not just come out of mid air.

The partnership working between the Council, the Assembly Government and local businesses have played a significant role. The growing confidence in the Swansea Bay area has helped tremendously in attracting this investment. As Swansea Council's own strategy for transforming the area comes into play we can expect more announcements soon.

Labour must now cough up the dosh

Like the Spinning out of Swansea website we are puzzled by the small amount of coverage given to the stock transfer ballot. After all the behaviour of some opposition Councillors in spreading misinformation and downright lies should come in for some scrutiny.

In compiling our own response we can do no better than this on the South Wales West Liberal Democrats website:

"Swansea tenants have made it very clear that they wish to remain with the Council as their landlord and that view must be respected.

We believe that it was right that the option of stock transfer was put to them as the only one that could have delivered the resources to improve their homes. However, the Council has always been clear that it was the democratic right of tenants to reject that solution if they wished.

The problem facing the Council now is that they still have a £195 million shortfall in the money needed to bring homes up to the Welsh Housing Quality Standard. A 'No' vote does not change that fact, nor will it get tenants the new windows, kitchens and bathrooms that Tawe Housing would have delivered. It is now likely that many will miss out on having their homes improved.

It is our strong view that the campaign conducted by Defend Council Housing and the local Labour Party was dishonest and misled tenants into believing that they could have the benefits of stock transfer whilst remaining with the Council. That is not the case. Both the Welsh Assembly and the UK Governments have ruled out the possibility of a fourth option.

Labour has let down Council tenants. They have set housing standards which cannot be paid for and restricted Councils to a single choice in how to meet them. Their behaviour during the recent ballot was a disgrace. At a Welsh Assembly and UK level they are advocating stock transfer, they supported that solution in Torfaen, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Monmouthshire and Bridgend and yet in Swansea they jumped on the opportunist bandwagon and campaigned for a 'No' vote. It is now up to Defend Council Housing and the local Labour Party to get the resources they promised to improve tenants' homes."

All Kinds Of Everything

Further to the last post it appears that Eurovision Fever has hit Castle with two ageing sitting Councillors facing their Waterloo in a selection re-run.

The Puppet on a string and her counterpart the Sandfields Lordi have reportedly had second thoughts about Making their minds up and are withdrawing their names before the poll ratings reach Rock Bottom and their reputations go Boom Bang a Bang.

Congratulations!!!

Eurovision

It is the time of year for selecting candidates. Some say that the spotlight is on Llansamlet at the moment.

This particular contest has a history. It has always provided amusement to the trained onlooker as it normally involves deselecting sitting Councillors.

Those with long memories will recall 2004 when the outcome was that Labour's head count went down from 4 to 3 in the big game.

Early indicators point to a re-run of the Eurovision result announcement chaos.

This term's spectacle is bound to provide many with more free entertainment - if it hasn't happened already (guffaw, guffaw)

Follow the Money

A new political independent club has opened in the city. In the frenetic build up to the unveiling somebody let slip that it wasn't so politically independent after all.

Apparently, it was funded by a local Labour Party that had the misfortune of being exterminated in 2004. It appears now that all references to this donation have disappeared without trace.

(Or have they?)

Same old refrain

Tory leader Rene Kinzett does not appear to have been paying attention in class. He claims in today's Evening Post that he has not been kept up-to-date on the Council's e-government scheme. Yet a Council spokesperson points out, he is chair of the Councils' e-government working group, which body receives monthly updates.

Kinzett seeks to use this alleged shroud of secrecy as an excuse for confusion over issues such as cost:

He said: "In these circumstances, where information is given out on a less than timely basis and where members are kept in the dark and given half the picture, is it any surprise that the media print stories which may not be entirely accurate?"

Well actually Rene, the real reason why recent media stories have been inaccurate is because you have been feeding them misinformation. Maybe the problem is not that nobody is telling Kinzett what is going on, but that he does not understand it.

Bus Station will be built

As at least one contributor to the Evening Post's on-line comments reminded us, if Labour had been on the ball the new bus station would have been built in 2004. Instead the Administration has been left to pick up the pieces again.

Despite the scepticism shown by the Evening Post today's news is a step forward. The moment that the Labour Transport Minister decided the Council could only have half the money it needed to build the bus station and that it must bring some private cash to the table then a delay was inevitable. After all, no Council can jump those sort of hurdles overnight.

However, what is positive is that the Council is determined to overcome those obstacles and make a start at some stage in the next financial year. The new bus station has been a long time coming, not least because of Labour's incompetence at the start, but it will be delivered.

Losing It...

Rumour has it that the Mayals Conservative isn't too happy with the content of this blog.

It is reported that he has even paid a special trip to the leader's office to claim that we are scoring goals that are offside(r).

It is also rumoured that he is claiming to know the identity of our contributers. Of course it is common knowledge that Silent Witness is not Paxton, whilst Davros will always be Davros.

Sounds like too much pow wow juice to me.

New Library

As the Evening Post reports tonight work on providing a new Central Library for Swansea is well underway. So much so that the task of moving the books is due to start within weeks.

The failure to address the provision of a modern central library is yet another legacy left to us by Labour. The Administration has responded by opening up Labour's County Hall citadel to the public and creating a real civic centre.

The investment that the current Administration has put into libraries is being noticed outside the City as well as in local communities. As Peter Gaw comments on the Evening Post site:

Last May a new library opened in Killay and Clydach library had a major refurbishment in July. St Thomas library will be replaced with a purpose built public library within the new St Thomas Community School. The new library is due to open at the end of April. All these projects have seen an increased level of use both in terms of book, film and music borrowing and use of internet services.

There has also been a major refurbishment of Oystermouth Library and improvements have also taken place elsewhere.

Partnership

We have already reported here how some Labour politicians have been seeking to associate themselves with initiatives on crime in Blaenymaes and Portmead, despite running down the community elsewhere.

Now it transpires that news of the successful partnership that has led to a 20% cut in crime across the City has spread as far as Number 10 Downing Street. The Council has had an important part to play in that turn-around as is evident from the comments of the interim head of community regeneration.

If the Prime Minister can learn that proper cross agency working is more effective than demonising young people and overfilling prisons then the visit of Jeremy Marlow will have been worthwhile.

Shameful Act

For once the Evening Post editorial has summed up the situation regarding Ioan Richard's bid to be next year's Lord Mayor perfectly.

For all their squawking about who is and who is not to blame, the fact is that a large number of opposition Councillors banded together last Thursday to deny Ioan Richard the position of Lord Mayor for purely spiteful and personal reasons. In doing so they denied a long-standing and hard-working local Councillor his reward for decades of hard work on behalf of the people who elected him.

The Evening Post correctly points out that the vote was contrary to the protocol adopted by the Council. They say the attempt by one Labour councillor to blame the coalition for failing to drum up enough support for Councillor Richard is a contemptible and pathetic smokescreen - 'shame on him, and the others involved in this spiteful episode.'

Rather predictably this article has caused Tory Leader, Rene Kinzett, to unleash yet another flame-mail. His diatribe is full of the self-serving arguments that the Post condemns. As usual he tries to put the blame onto others rather than accept responsibility for his own actions. The editor must be shaking in his shoes at the threat to involve the office of Nick Bourne and Tory Central Office.

Investing in the future

Whilst the PLC coalition play games in Council the Administration are getting on with the job of running Swansea and putting right Labour's neglect.

This investment in a new Morriston Comprehensive School's new £3 million science and maths block is one of a number of projects where we are seeking to improve schools across Swansea.

Guest Contributor

Todays guest contributor is the editor of the South Wales Evening Post. Writing in last night's paper, he said:

The council leader stood in front of a room full of property developers. Behind him, alluring images of his city, as imagined by artists, shone out. "This is our time," he said. "This is Swansea's time. This is the developers' time."As bids to flog off chunks of public real estate to private developers go, this was a pretty brazen effort. And no apologies should be made for it.

We all know that Swansea has been ridiculed in the past as the city of artists' impressions. The suggestion has been made - too often to be dismissed as coincidence - that developers' visions have foundered on the rocks of planners' intransigence and councillors' parochialism.

So, what is different about the Swansea Strategic Plan launched by Chris Holley at the Dragon Hotel this week? Quite a few things. Take the venue, for a start.

Once, The Dragon was at the heart of the city. That profile has been restored. Outside, The Kingsway is being transformed for a new transport system. Some people dismiss this as a waste of time and money. I think it is essential to turn Swansea into a proper city.

Walk down Princess Way and you pass Thurleigh Estates' redevelopment of David Evans, and the Longford Group's Excelsior hotel and apartments building.

On the shoreline side of Oystermouth Road - to be turned into a "European-style boulevard" in the strategic plan - Earthquake are building Meridian Quay on the marina, Persimmon Homes are at Swansea Point, and a number of companies are working on different projects in SA1.

My point is the developers are already here and delivering results. So, while I understand why Swansea Tourism boss Geoff Haden was yesterday calling for "the biggest incentives possible" to lure developers, I believe there is already a momentum behind the city's regeneration to justify Councillor Holley's optimism about this being Swansea's time.

So perhaps we can dispense with the usual cynicism over this week's launch, which identified some of the city's current weaknesses, and offered them up as golden development opportunities.

The strategic plan for the city centre is part of a jigsaw that includes other strategies for the bay and the river corridor. Together, they show how Swansea could finally begin to exploit its glorious setting. We have a chance here to unite bay and city in a way that Cardiff, for example, cannot match.

Stuffed of Swansea

If the Labour lot over at Inside Out think that the Administration 'got stuffed in two successive debates over school sprinkler systems and housing stock transfer' then perhaps they need to stop and think what exactly they are achieving on the Council.

Our recollection was that so incompetent were the drafters of the two motions that they were forced to run with heavily emascualated versions after the intervention of the Council's legal eagles.

Despite the fact that the Adminstration's amendment to the Housing Stock Transfer motion failed to pass, the fact is that what was eventually voted on was a meaningless and inaccurate mish-mash that will not stop the ballot. In fact the only person it is likely to embarrass is the Labour Minister for Social Justice, who just happens to represent Gower and is clearly out of step with her local party. Even her cousin voted against her.

PLC Coalition politicise mayoralty

There were disgraceful scenes in the Council chamber this evening as Labour Councillors joined with Plaid Cymru and some Tories to scupper the chances of Ioan Richard becoming Lord Mayor.

Members of the PLC Coalition ignored a protocol they had all voted for only weeks before to settle a personal score against the Mawr Councillor.

Attempts to occupy the moral high ground were effectively abandoned when Tory Leader, Rene Kinzett, stood up and admitted that he and the other opposition parties had tried to do a deal behind closed doors.

As Councillor Peter Black pointed out, he was effectively seeking to bring party politics into the mayoralty. Was this really what it was all about - trying to secure better sinecures in return for supporting a particular candidate? No wonder the Administration refused to go along with such a grubby deal.

Update: I have been forwarded a lengthy. self-justifying e-mail from Councillor Kinzett to all Councillors in which surely he protests too much about this post. What he fails to mention is that he demanded of the Council Leader that in return for the support of his group for Ioan Richard, he wanted the Administration to back Lady Pennard as the Deputy.

This was unanimously rejected by the Adminstration Group, including the Leader. Despite claims by Kinzett that Chris Holley cannot command the support of his group, the evidence demonstrates the contrary view to be correct. Keep digging Rene.

Humble Pie

Following the Evening Post's faux pas of printing unsubstantiated allegations regarding the relationship between Capgemin and the Council we understand that the newspaper are about to eat humble pie.

An e-mail has been circulated to all Councillors this evening to say that a meeting has taken place between Council Officers, Cap Gemini and Evening Post editor Spencer Feeney to discuss the article. 'The Post has agreed to print an apology/correction in tomorrows edition which we understand will be on page 3'.

No clue as yet as to what action if any will be taken against the perpetrator of these serious allegations.

Pow Wow Frolics

Watching the aftermath scenes of the Valencia - Inter tie tonight reminds me of events at the Licensing Committee today - or more to the point, the heated words in the members lounge afterwards.

Labour had called for an election to fill the job of chair and to supposedly implant Fairwood Conservative into a Special Responsibility allowance.

Unfortuneately the FC had other ideas and decided to go AWOL for the meeting staying at home on the farm. Together with two Labour absentees, this resulted in a five a side match taking place. The vice chair duly held on and Nasty Nick ended up usurping the throne. Nasty Nick's record in the game is a quite impressive won 2 out of three.

Rumour has it that David Phillips was questioning the morality with some animation of those who had bothered to turn up. He was totally oblivious to the fact that the real reason behind his rancour was FC's absence.

This leaves the Tories in a rather asymetric format. One has two jobs, another has one and the FC is crying wee wee wee all the way home.

Now that I have dealt with the prolitariate wing who could forget Lady Pennard viewing the frolics from the farmhouse. It appears that an overdose of pow wow juice has lead her to issue an ultimatum. Give me the Deputy Mayorality or I'm orff!!

Moving forward

Although the Insider Outers continue to talk down the City Centre, plans to enhance and develop it continue. In particular, their predicted demise of the new bus station project looks to be premature. The Administration will do everything it can to use the money available to it to deliver this scheme as soon as possible.

We believe that the Evening Post's editorial is also significant. They recognise that yesterday's announcement was not reheated pottage. but a genuine step forward:

The challenge, which the latest framework addresses, is to build upon that success and maintain that momentum. At the heart of the vision is a scheme to link the city centre with Swansea's fantastic waterfront, while at the same time providing desperately needed improvements to that centre.

The framework has correctly identified some of the City's most glaring weaknesses and turned them into development opportunities. This is not the time to let the cynics dominate the debate.

With dozens of property developers lining up to get involved, the future has never looked so bright for Swansea.

The Silence of the Bland...

OK, I know I've asked this before, but I'd really like one of the Plaid/Lab/Con Coalition across at Inside Leg to address themselves to three questions that arise out of their shambolic performance over Scrutiny Chairs.

Firstly, now that we all know that the letter inviting them to take up Scrutiny Chairs sent in June 2004 is real, why did they not do so?

Secondly, why not just ask if the offer was still open? Was it that the PLC Coalition needed to win a victory - however unnessary - in order to look like an Opposition? If so, it's really not working that well.

Thirdly, why does the Labour element of the Coalition now believe that it is so important that Scrutiny should be in the hands of the Opposition? They never did when they were in power, so what can possibly have changed their minds?

Fourthly, will they turn up? They never bothered much before.

Progress unlimited

The Inside Outers may well scoff but the City Centre Strategy launched this morning is far more than another off-the-shelf document. In fact it is the sort of document they have been asking us to produce for some time.

The importance of this strategy is that it is based on realistic aspirations following consultation with developers. It also draws on the new confidence in the City being shown by investors.

Having got the first City Centre shopping development for two decades off the ground we are anticipating more announcements in the next few months that will demonstrate the how effective our approach is.

A matter of law

For somebody who repeatedly refers to his chairmanship of the Council's e-government working party, Councillor Kinzett displays an incredible lack of knowledge as to what is going on in that programme. Not only does he constantly display a fundamental misunderstanding of the finances but he has now resorted to inventing events so as to get publicity.

The Upside Downers are speculating as to why the Evening Post article on this alleged scandal has been taken down from their website. Perhaps they will find the answer in the e-mail sent to all Councillors by the Cabinet Member for e-government this afternoon. Councillor Mary Jones writes:

You may have seen the article in today’s Evening Post on Page 2, which claims that the Council is being sued by Capgemini.

I would like to make it clear that the Council is NOT being sued by Capgemini. We are liaising with Capgemini to issue a joint statement firmly rebutting this allegation.

The idea that the relationship between an internationally respected company such as Capgemini and their client has broken down irreparably so that they must resort to legal action is clearly damaging to that company's reputation and may affect their ability to win contracts in the future. This is especially so when that allegation is untrue. It is likely that the enormity of their gaff has dawned on Evening Post and they are doing everything possible to limit the damage. It may be too late.

The Evening Post has consistently misrepresented the e-government programme in their articles. Even when their errors have been pointed out to them they have persisted as if they were facts. That stance has also been adopted by the opposition who have also consistently and deliberately distorted what is going on. Their opportunism on a programme that they started has been startling and outrageous.

Today's article is a good example of the Evening Post's campaign of misrepresentation. They start off by referring to the project as being worth £170 million even though it has been pointed out to them on numerous occasions that it is in fact worth £98 million. They then proceed to say that phase two will not have a call centre. That decision has not been taken and it is still the Council's intention to deliver that.

The most bizarre claim in the article is that the 'whole Service@Swansea saga has been an embarrassment to council officers who failed to heed warnings given by council staff when they took strike action against the plans in 2004.' The only embarrassment is the Evening Post's coverage. They obviously do not know what the strike action was about nor that the project is delivering what it was designed to do and officers are proud of the efforts they are putting into it and their achievements. Essentially, the journalist has made up that passage to gild the lily. It is appallingly bad journalism, even by the Evening Post's standards.

Finally, the reporter repeats once more the untruth that the second phase has been dropped. It has not. It is proceeding with a different contractor.

What is actually happening is that an enormously complex contract is being played out between the two parties. Failure to meet savings in the current year are likely to lead to claims by the Council for Capgemini to pay the penalties detailed in the contract. Capgemini are seeking to off-set those costs by counter-claiming for delays they allege are the Council's fault. In a contract of this size that is normal and healthy. It is not something that we would expect the Evening Post and their cub-journalists to understand. In running to the press in this way Councillor Kinzett has managed to place himself in dunces corner alongside them.

Bullshit @ Swansea

It is of course entirely up to the Inside Outers what they write on their blog, but it really might help if they stopped pretending that they know what is going on with the Administration group and the Liberal Democrats.

Their record in attributing motives and in understanding the various relationships within the Liberal Democrats in particular is dire to say the least. Of course that has never stopped them expressing an opinion but frankly they are just embarrassing themselves.

In future they should just try to remember one simple rule: the Labour Party is unique, no other party has anything like the same experience of back-biting, petty jealousies and conspiracies. In other words don't apply your standards to us.

In any case surely the Swansea Labour Group have their own problems. By all accounts they are split three ways, so much so that they were stymied into complete impotence and inaction at the recent Council budget meeting.