http://www.kirstywilliams.org.uk/articlearchive.php Recent Press Articles from Kirsty Williams AM en-GB Kirsty Williams AM http://www.kirstywilliams.org.uk/ Prater Raines Ltd http://www.praterraines.co.uk/ (c) 2010 Kirsty Williams AM 2010-09-10T13:42+01:00 United Kingdom http://www.kirstywilliams.org.uk/articles/000108/health_care_in_powys_20092010.html 2009 has at long last brought some much needed triumphs for our Powys health service. We have seen the announcement of a rural health plan which will ensure that the very particular needs of Powys patients are addressed by the Welsh Government. We successfully lobbied the Minister to keep the two separate Montgomeryshire and Brecon and Radnorshire CHCs in Powys under the new NHS structure. Following ongoing delays in ambulance response times we are seeing the establishment of a WAG-Ambulance Trust group to specifically focus on how the emergency response times in Powys can be improved. We have had confirmation of proposals to merge Powys Local Health Board with Powys County Council, which is great news for patients who will benefit from greater efficiencies, collaboration and joined up service provision between social services and the LHB. Following a forceful campaign, whereby Mr Chapman and I lobbied the Welsh Government and presented a 730 strong petition to the Minister, we are finally to see the sighting a desperately needed new kidney dialysis unit in Llandrindod Wells. But despite these very welcome improvements there still remains much to be done. One of my greatest hopes for 2010 is that we will see a regular Tenovus mobile cancer unit in the county. The Bracken Trust is carrying out outstanding work in Llandrindod Wells, supporting and helping cancer patients and their relatives but with 1 in 3 of us facing the terrible battle with cancer during our lifetime, they too need support in the work they are doing. 2010-01-08T00:01+00:00 http://www.kirstywilliams.org.uk/articles/000109/mountain_rescue.html We all know of the heroic work that Mountain Rescue do and they are an essential service when people fall ill or are injured in the moorlands and mountains; when people go missing and at times of major civil emergencies. These live-saving teams have to respond in all weathers and all situations and provide an exemplary service in areas such as ours. But all the equipment and vehicles that they use to save lives, protect and rescue people are paid for by voluntary donations. They provide a service which is estimated to save the taxpayer £6 million a year, yet Mountain Rescue teams still have to pay VAT and vehicle excise duty (VED) on most of their equipment and vehicles, which costs them an estimated £200,000 per year. The Lib Dems in Westminster and Cardiff are campaigning for the Chancellor to exempt all Mountain Rescue Services in the UK from paying VAT and VED. The cost to the Treasury would be relatively small, but that money would be a major boost to Mountain Rescue teams. At present, the only way in which the government provides financial assistance to Mountain Rescue teams is through gift aid; but in reality the majority of donations come from collection boxes, flag days and 'tin rattling' outside supermarkets, none of which fall within the government gift aid guidelines. Mountain Rescue teams have to use equipment and vehicles that are expensive to buy, maintain and run, so surely the Government should agree to exempt them from these taxes as a means of supporting a vital emergency service. We hope that you will join Roger Williams MP and I in calling on the Chancellor of the Exchequer to exempt Mountain Rescue Teams form VAT and VED, by signing Rogers online petition at www.rogerwilliams.org.uk 2010-01-07T00:00+00:00 http://www.kirstywilliams.org.uk/articles/000106/business_rates.html Our many small and local Mid Wales businesses are crucial to ensuring that we make an early recovery from the recession and that we emerge with an economy with sound foundations, which is fit to carry us into a strong and prosperous future. With 99% of businesses in Wales being Small and Medium Enterprises (SME's) they are not only important in serving and preserving our local communities they are also the backbone of our national economy. At a time when businesses are struggling to balance high energy bills, a shortage of cash flow, excessive red tape and a downturn in consumer confidence it begs the question why is the Plaid-Labour Government adding to these burdens with increased business rates? Business rates are the only fiscal tool the Welsh Government has control over and is therefore an essential way for them to directly help small businesses. With business rates often being a company's third largest expense, easing their burden would have a hugely positive impact. 2009-12-03T00:00+00:00 http://www.kirstywilliams.org.uk/articles/000107/conventional_wisdom_lets_seize_the_momentum_towards_a_referendum.html In 2004 The Richard Commission gave a clear signal of an effective future for Welsh political life. However the Labour Government, either through deliberate inaction or unfortunate distraction, allowed the report to sit on the shelf for long enough to squander momentum. Five year later we face the risk of history repeating. 2009-11-21T00:00+00:00 http://www.kirstywilliams.org.uk/articles/000105/copenhagen.html We are now less than a month away from the Copenhagen climate change conference, which will see the world's leading nations attempt to negotiate a successor to the Kyoto Treaty. In the lead up to the conference we are hearing warm words from Government but it is crucial that this is translated into decisive action to adequately tackle one of the biggest challenges facing humanity and the planet earth today. 2009-11-20T00:00+00:00 http://www.kirstywilliams.org.uk/articles/000104/border_business.html Border Business 2009-11-20T00:00+00:00 http://www.kirstywilliams.org.uk/articles/000103/park_homes_legislation.html Whilst there are of course many decent and honourable mobile park owners, sadly there remain a number of less than scrupulous individuals who bully and take advantage of the often elderly and vulnerable residents who have chosen to live out their retirement days in a beautiful setting, within the safety and community of the park home site. 2009-10-30T00:00+00:00 http://www.kirstywilliams.org.uk/articles/000102/tenovus_mobile_unit.html 1 in 3 of us will face the terrible battle with cancer during our lifetime. Thanks to dedicated research many forms of the disease are now more treatable and patients can make full recoveries. But those of us who have had cancer or who know friends or relatives who have, know all too well, the road to recovery can be a very difficult one. 2009-10-16T00:00+01:00 http://www.kirstywilliams.org.uk/articles/000101/welsh_heritage.html Living in Mid Wales we are lucky to be surrounded not only by a spectacular natural landscape with rolling hills and sparkling streams but also by a rich tapestry of cultural and human history. We have castles sprinkled throughout the marches, forts topping our hilltops and ancient settlements in our lakes. We have beautiful spa towns and battle field sites from the age of Owain Glyndwr - we are indeed fortunate to have such a full and visible history. 2009-10-01T00:00+01:00 http://www.kirstywilliams.org.uk/articles/000100/patient_transport.html This week I was appalled to learn of the case of a lady in her nineties who had suffered a fall in her home in Radnorshire. If the trauma of the accident wasn't enough to deal with, another nasty shock awaited her following her treatment at A&E Department. 2009-09-11T00:00+01:00 http://www.kirstywilliams.org.uk/articles/000099/kidney_dialysis.html It is great news for the Powys that the Welsh Government has finally identified the county as a top priority for a new Kidney Dialysis Unit and that the Renal Advisory Group and Renal Networks are currently undertaking an "option appraisal" which will consider various locations, including Llandrindod Wells Hospital. A business case is to be submitted to the Welsh Government by September, after which a decision on the location will be made by the Minister. 2009-08-28T00:00+01:00 http://www.kirstywilliams.org.uk/articles/000098/crosfield_house_rhayader.html We had all hoped that after the very widespread and public campaign last year to keep Crosfield House in Rhayader open that the care home had been saved, at the very least for another year. After the successful campaign the Royal British Legion (RBL) reviewed their closure plans and committed to giving the home a year to address its 'issues', promising to keep local people informed of developments. Since that time the only 'communication' has been in the form of a formal report in March stating that Crosfield House was set to meet all of its targets and therefore confirmed that the home was indeed resolving the mainly financial concerns that had put it's future on the line. Yet last week with absolutely no prior warning the RBL made the unexpected announcement that it intends to put the home on the market in 30 days time and if an alternative provider is not found to buy the home then it will put the site on the open market. 2009-08-07T00:00+01:00 http://www.kirstywilliams.org.uk/articles/000097/digital_switchover.html I'm sure you will all have become familiar with 'digit Al', the switchover robot, who has for the past few years smiled out at us from his pink background on signs and TV ads helping to prepare us for the big switchover. Well his job is almost coming to an end as we fast approach the switchover here in Powys. Across the UK, analogue channels are being switched off region by region and replaced with free-to-air digital TV and radio services, such as Freeview. In Wales this will happen between August this year and March next year. The Switchover will also release airwaves for new services such as fast wireless broadband and viewers will have access to more channels, advanced features and better reception. 2009-07-31T00:00+01:00 http://www.kirstywilliams.org.uk/articles/000096/lung_disease.html With one in five people in Wales living with a lung condition it is shocking that healthcare services to help sufferers, such as pulmonary rehabilitation, are only available in half of the country and waiting times for treatment can be as high as 18 months. In Powys we do not have any pulmonary rehabilitation services at all. Pulmonary rehabilitation is a course, delivered by a combination of doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, dieticians and occupational therapists which helps people to manage their lung condition. As part of the programme, which can be held in hospitals or in the community, patients are educated about their lung disease, learn breathing exercises, stress management and relaxation therapies. They also receive diet advice and occupational therapy help. 2009-07-03T00:00+01:00 http://www.kirstywilliams.org.uk/articles/000095/still_births_and_neonatal_deaths__why17.html One of the most poignant moments I have experienced in the Assembly came at the recent Still Births and Neonatal Deaths (Sands) reception, where Sands Welsh Network Convenor Shirley Gittoes, of Llandrindod Wells, talked of the pain and devastation she, her husband and family had suffered at the loss of their stillborn daughter Heulwen. As Shirley spoke bravely and passionately about the emotionally and physically harrowing experience, no one in the room could not have felt sadness for what must be the worst experience any parent can go through, the loss of a child. The stillbirth or neonatal death of a baby is no less a death than the death of any other child and it must not be treated as such. Since supporting the campaign I have been amazed by the number of people who have been affected by stillbirths and neonatal deaths, but who have not previously talked about it. I have been surprised by the number of friends and colleagues who have either suffered a loss directly or whose family have had a tragic experience. I cannot begin to imagine what a devastating thing it is to go through and it is time that we acknowledge this as a society and start to address both the grief that a loss brings and to tackle the causes of this significant occurrence. 2009-06-26T00:00+01:00