Time to give the BNP a hammering

Only back in January, the BNP claimed that they were the only party able to solve the economic crisis across the UK. Fascist parties have always made stringent efforts to prosper in difficult economic times. It is highly unlikely that fascist parties headed by both Adolph Hitler and Benito Mussolini would have dramatically risen if it were not for the Wall Street Crash of 1929, of course, other factors did contribute towards their rise in popularity, but using scapegoats for Germany and Italy’s difficulties was significant.

Just like the Nazi’s of the past, the BNP will look for scapegoats as services are hit and unemployment may rise. They will target disenfranchised workers with racist bile and misdemeanor. The bottom line is can we trust thugs with our health, education, environment and employment schemes – the message I am receiving on Bridgend and Porthcawl doorsteps is a firm no!

Notwithstanding their obvious political inability, their claims that they are the only party who could solve the economic crisis is equally laughable given the dire financial mess that their own party have find themselves in.

With decreasing membership, the party is increasingly in debt and was fined £1,000 by the Electoral Commission for the late and inadequate submission of their 2008 accounts. Indeed, they were fined no less than five times over a two year period for financial irregularities.
Even more farcical, their resent Treasurer has no reclamation of local branch funds of £90,000, which is presumably lost while the party is being crippled by numerous court costs including the inappropriate use of Marmite in an election broadcast.

I hope that the people of Bridgend and people across South Wales West will create a further financial headache for the BNP, by giving them a hammering in the polls and making sure they lose their deposits.

Porthcawl Regeneration shambles

It certainly looks like Bridgend County Borough Council will drag their shambolic handling of the Porthcawl Seven Bays Regeneration Project well in to the year and beyond.

Citizens of the town have every right to voice their concerns over BCBC’s shortfall in meaningful public consultation, the lack of planned public facilities and not to mention the arrogant handling of the local town council and campaigners, which included county councillors voting to exclude community groups from the a recent Regeneration Forum meeting.

I support Porthcawl SHOUT in their decision to call in the Welsh Audit Commission to look into the financial handling of the sale of land to retailers Tesco. The Council’s lack of business acumen was exposed when it was revealed that ratepayers would only receive 30% of the £6.5m profit. The remaining 70% or £4.7m will go to the Evans family despite the fact that the family only own 20% of the land area. All of these discussions were conducted during secret cabinet meetings, when the Council are only custodians to local land.

I recently met a number of people when I set up a street stall on John Street and the overwhelming number of people I spoke with was extremely disgruntled over the lack of facilities on offer in the town. Examples included a cinema, a theatre and a swimming pool. Of course, the demand for a local swimming pool is well documented with the annual Pool-less swimming gala and a petition containing in excess of 5,000 signatures. Alas, these valiant efforts have been ignored by County Councillors.

Porthcawl is an attractive town with the potential to become Wales’ premier seaside tourist venue – if not the UK’s. With stunning sandy beaches, attractive coastlines and ample green land surrounding the town, the natural resources ooze potential for a buoyant tourism industry. However, the regeneration should provide facilities for local people and to draw in a wider number of tourists. Compare the project with the proposed development of Barry a few miles down the road. The Barry regeneration project will bring a major improvement to the town; children’s play facilities, improved transport infrastructure and facilities to improve local health through sport initiatives.

Building a better Bridgend town centre

While talking to people on their doorsteps across Bridgend and Porthcawl, one of the major themes that they want to discuss is the future of our County Borough town centres, which have often been sadly neglected by our Council’s administrations. I believe a Plaid driven government could deliver a better Bridgend town centre and restore similar areas to their former prosperity.

In discussion, one resident described Bridgend town centre as ‘going to the dogs’ and like a ‘ghost town’, which saddened me as this is the town where I live and have chosen to bring up my family in. While I am somewhat more upbeat on the area’s future, town centres like Bridgend would benefit from Plaid’s plans to improve access for local people and visitors, use empty shops as commercial offices, promote local produce, and create more living space in town centres. This would give the area a more vibrant feel and promote small businesses.

If regeneration investment is directed to include facilities for residents and tourists, I believe Porthcawl can unlock its potential to be a major tourism hub pulling in thousands of jobs and boosting the local economy. I am also positive that following the work of Plaid’s Deputy Housing Minsiter, Jocelyn Davies, who succoured a £9m EU backed funding package for Bridgend town centre, we can create a more prosperous, more vibrant and quite simply a better Bridgend town centre.

Improving Bridgend's business potential

One of the main challenges facing, Bridgend, is improving the business infrastructure to help local businesses flourish and grow.

With this in mind, I was slightly disappointed that the UK Government has announced that the electrification of the Swansea to Paddington line will end at Cardiff, missing out Bridgend completely. The people of Bridgend will miss out on quicker, cleaner and quieter transport, while local businesses will also lose out.

Plaid have been proactive in developing an approach to adapting a 21st century business infrastructure for Wales including better mobile, broadband and free Wi-Fi as well as a modern transport system to move Wales forward. Our technological improvements include linking every business and home to fast broadband and creating Wi-Fi hotspots across the country.

Implementing broadband lines will enable speeds of 100 Mbs, which will help make Wales a truly wireless nation, giving Welsh businesses the tools to be competitive. Plaid also has plans to improve mobile reception and to electrify many of our rail lines. Improving Broadband is fundamentally essential in developing the Welsh knowledge economy, which involves economists, computer scientists, engineers, mathematicians, chemists and physicists and any other information based service. Our plans will ensure businesses and individuals can network and innovate.

Bridgend’s geographic location nestling between both Wales’s two major cities, Swansea and Cardiff, often means that businesses overlook Bridgend to favour locating their businesses to areas that have a more advanced infrastructure. However, our plans will open up new opportunities and will make more Welsh communities appealing to businesses. We also have plans to establish a voluntary scheme called Wi-Fi Wales, where social areas such as train stations, pubs, cafes and libraries will sign up to providing Wi-Fi for the community. In a relatively densely populated area like Bridgend, this could allow many businesses and individuals to benefit.

Mobile phone reception has also been identified as a problem. A Plaid Government would lend money to local community groups in order to give them the power to tackle mobile phone signal problems. This has already been a major success in Ceredigion, which is home to the university town, Aberystwyth. A local community not for profit group has received a £164,542 grant to pay for a signal mast, which will benefit 1,500 people. This is an exciting opportunity, which I hope can be put to use in Bridgend and Porthcawl.

With a local train station and nearby motorway, which connects the people of Bridgend to Cardiff, London and to the west, Swansea, Bridgend is already well equipped to support business’s transport needs. We will improve this experience with a new stock of trains and buses that will include free Wi-Fi making commuting in and out of Bridgend an enjoyable experience.