PROFESSOR DYLAN JONES-EVANS

A friend in North East Wales sent me this link which relates to the protest against the expansion of the A55. What will the new red-green Assembly Government do about this?

In 2000, the future of farming as a viable business sector was questioned by Christine Gwyther, the then agriculture minister for the Assembly when, in examining the impact of farming on Wales, she controversially stated that it made almost no contribution to Welsh prosperity. Since then, there has been a recovery of sorts. Whilst the contribution of farming remains very low in overall terms, the amount of prosperity generated by agriculture itself has grown by 26 per cent in the period 1998-2004, as compared to only 1.5 per cent for our manufacturing sector. In certain parts of Wales, such as Powys and South West Wales, it still accounts for over 6 per cent of the overall business prosperity generated by those two regions. According to Assembly statistics published last week , the beef industry has expanded by 31% in the last decade and the dairy sector by 10 per cent, although sheep farming has declined in numbers. To some extent, the industry has been helped in its recovery by the...

After everything that has been said today about the Red-Green Alliance, perhaps the whole agreement between Labour and Plaid is summed up by the late great Bon Scott . 'Nuff said....

Given tomorrow's big day and tonight's decision by the Labour Party, I thought it would be timely to reprint a story from BBC Wales on March 1st. "Peter Hain has ruled out Labour governing in coalition with Plaid Cymru if there is a hung assembly after the elections in May. He said coalitions were a matter for First Minister Rhodri Morgan, but Labour would not accept one with Plaid..... Asked by Plaid's Adam Price to clarify his position on a Labour-Plaid coalition, Mr Hain said: "I'm ruling it out. There is no prospect of that at all. This is a matter for Rhodri Morgan and his fellow Welsh Labour Assembly Members. But I don't think Welsh Labour would accept that." Oh well - seems like four months is a very long time in politics. p.s. did you see the piece by the independent film-maker Jamie Campbell on Newsnight tonight when he followed Gordon Brown trying to get him to answer a few questions with no success - unbelievable but also quite scary.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing in politics. With Plaid Cymru trumpeting their narrow loss in 2003 to Denise Idris Jones in Conwy as the reason for them being the only party who could beat the Labour Party in the constituency, we decided to run an advert in the local paper saying that the Conservatives were in second place to Labour in the last general election, were the only rational choice against Labour and that Plaid would prop up the government if elected. The reaction from the Party of Wales was immediate, with senior Plaid officials phoning our party HQ in Cardiff accusing us of lies and demanding a public apology and retraction which, of course, we refused to do. Unfortunately, we ran this campaign only two weeks before the election and should have focused on this issue earlier and harder. There we go - lessons to be learnt for future battles, especially as the two main parties vying for the anti-Labour vote saw their vote increase in the constituency, albeit with Plaid Cymru wi...

More twists and turns than the Nemesis ride at Alton Towers... First of all, we have Martin Shipton stating that Plaid have been selling the Red-Green pact to members across Wales (whilst not giving them the opportunity to vote on which the party should go) whilst a BBC poll now shows the Rainbow Coalition is the one most favoured by the Welsh public. If Plaid do go into power with Labour, it will be interesting to see whether there is a backlash in rural areas of Wales. Certainly, when Brynle Williams and I visited Llanrwst market before the Assembly election, we listened to the views of farmers who felt obliged to vote Plaid, even though they held staunchly conservative views. Their comments on Labour and Rhodri Morgan cannot, for public decency, be repeated here on this blog. If the red-green alliance goes ahead, what then for the 'Party of Wales' in its rural heartlands when, despite spending thousands of pounds vilifying Labour and its policies, it ends up being their mino...

Shock Horror! The UK national business press is actually carrying a story about a successful Welsh business. In today's Sunday Telegraph , there is a very good article on Tinopolis - Llanelli's TV company turned UK creative industries major player - demonstrating what can Welsh businesses can do with the right leadership and drive. Ron Jones- the executive chairman - certainly has demonstrated that Welsh businesses can go out and take on established London-based firms at their own game and, more importantly, win. A vital lesson for many other of our medium-sized firms in Wales when they are considering taking on the competition across the border - the bigger they are, the harder they fall...

Thanks Gwe for being tagged for this one.... I have just come back from a great night out in London with my best mate, Dr Quan Li (head of RBS in China) only to find that I have to do this pop quiz. Oh well, easier to digest than the szechuan fish soup (with six large red chillis) that I had to eat last night in Chinatown! Two things Gordon Brown should be proud of: 1) Independence for the Bank of England 2) Trying to establish an enterprise culture through projects such as the National Council for Graduate Entrepreneurship Two things he should apologize for: 1) The massive pensions deficit which he created by not listening to his own civil servants 2) Destroying the enterprise culture by raising the corporation tax for small firms in his very last budget whilst, in the very next section, benefitting his large corporate friends in the city with a tax cut Two things he should do immediately when he becomes Prime Minister: 1) Apologise to all the pensioners in the UK who have suffered be...

With New Zealand looking odds on favourites to win the Rugby World Cup later this year, it is easy to forget that the “Land of the Long White Cloud” is also showing the rest of the world how to build a creative, innovative and sustainable economy that is based on the skills of its people and its natural environment. Many of the successful businesses developing within New Zealand today are based on the diverse and sophisticated talents of the multicultural Kiwi population. This has seen this island nation of four million inhabitants climb up the World Competititiveness Scoreboard to be ranked above the UK in 2007. It has also been consistently ranked as the most entrepreneurial country amongst developed nations by the GEM project. Agriculture has provided the base from which the economy has grown, with more than 90% of New Zealand sheep meat production exported, accounting for 53% of the world export trade. Even in the beef industry, New Zealand exports 85% of its production, making it...

Copy of a statement today from Nick Bourne on the future of Welsh politics which says it all really. Clearly, I am in agreement with Nick that the All Wales Accord, negotiated between the three opposition parties in Cardiff Bay, offers the best chance for generations for a fresh start for Wales, and that making the wrong choice could have consequences "for years to come". In particular, his emphasis on the new ideas and consensus-based politics contained in the All Wales Accord is to be welcomed. "Wales is standing at a political crossroads. It is incumbent on all parties to decide which way to turn. Take the correct path and we could usher in a new political era, one which I believe will bring about real and lasting changes to every community in Wales. Take the wrong route and there is a real danger that people could pay the consequences for years to come. I believe that the prospect of a non-Labour administration in Cardiff Bay can develop a new style of governing. I a...

The article below was written a week ago before I went to Finland (honestly!) Therefore, it is great to see the BBC reporting today that a scheme in my home county of Gwynedd is leading the way on the issue of affordable housing.

One of the most emotive issues raised on the doorstep during the Assembly election campaign was that of affordable housing. When canvassing in Betws y Coed, it was clear to me that many people were disappointed at the housing situation in the village where young people working there couldn’t afford to buy even a small terraced house in the area. The same is true in villages across the whole of Wales, and with young people moving out, small schools are dying, post offices closing and local pubs shutting their doors. The very essence of rural life is being eroded before our very eyes because of a housing crisis that could have been avoided. One of the key issues seems to be that of planning restrictions and local needs should be considered in any housing development plan. Rather than having large housing developments of hundreds of houses approved as many councils will do under pressure from developers, local authorities should look to release parcels of land within rural villages for sa...

Commenting on the "Going International" article below, Ordovicius points to an interesting Catalan programme which draws on a diaspora of successful businesspeople from the region. I wrote a similar article about this a couple of years ago, pointing out that Scotland has set up a great network known as Global Scot with over 900 executives available to help Scottish businesses. I am sure we can do the same in Wales - imitation is, after all, the sincerest form of flattery.

WHEN the new minister for economic development took up his post in the Assembly last week, he would not have been too happy about some new statistics. They provide information on the international level of attractiveness of Wales, not only as a place for doing business but also in terms of the demand for products and services from Welsh firms. The first piece of bad news came from Ernst and Young , which showed that since the WDA was absorbed into the Assembly, Wales’ market share of foreign direct investment projects into the UK has fallen from 6.2% to 2.3%. With London having captured more than 36% of inward investment projects last year, I think it is time we tried to analyse why this is so, and how we can attract niche projects based around the main requirement for any firm considering a new investment, namely the availability of highly trained staff who have the skills needed to develop the business. Personally, I believe International Business Wales – which promotes Wales to the ...

Interesting story in the Daily Post today about delays to the North Wales HQ of the Assembly. I am sure this has nothing to do with the rumours that the majority of the civil servants who will be transferred to Llandudno Junction want to stay in South Wales

Finland has always been at the cutting edge of using telecommunications and internet technology. That is why at the ICSB World conference on entrepreneurship, all delegates have been given access to the Turku School of Economics' wireless system (hence this blog entry). One of the advantages of being a visiting chair here in Turku is that I have been able to influence some of the sessions at this world conference. I am therefore delighted that Clark Evans, MD of Jester Interactive of St Asaph, will be taking part in a panel discussion of entrepreneurs at tomorrow's plenary. It will be good to see one our cutting edge companies being highlighted at such a prestigious event. Hopefully there will be a webcast of the interview at 9.30am tomorrow.

Whilst many of us seem to be obsessed about the politics of politics, the real world continues around us. Certainly, the new Minister for Economic Development will have been reminded of that yesterday morning and the massive task ahead of him if he stays in power. The latest labour market statistics for Wales show that 29.5 per cent of the adult working population in Wales is either unemployed or economically inactive. That equates to over 500,000 adults out of work, and at a time when migrant workers have been coming into Wales in their thousands. I await with bated breath for his department's strategy to deal with this, especially in getting the economically inactive back into the workplace which is an issue his predecessors in the job have completely ignored.

If anyone needed a reason for a rainbow alliance, read this arrogant statement from the First Minister in the Western Mail today which suggests that, regardless of the majority in Wales, when Labour is in power in Westminster, they and not the AMs, control the powers of the Assembly (Rhodri Morgan)said, “If they(Plaid) have a deal with us they may not get everything they want but they’ll get a much bigger percentage than with the rainbow alliance.” He added, “I have considerable powers of persuasion with the Labour Welsh group, the Labour Secretary of State and the Labour Prime Minister.” So much for democracy.

Back in Turku for the ICSB Annual World Conference with around 800 other delegates. About to go off to a big European policy event - the European Day of the Entrepreneur - where academics, policy-makers and small business owner-managers get together to plan a way forward for the future. If only we could the same at a regional level in Wales.

E-politix have published the thoughts of Alun Michael on the potential of a rainbow coalition government. An interesting article, especially his advocacy of an 80 seat Assembly, although his comments on the rainbow coalition are as expected.

Many Daily Post readers will have seen the recent story about my hometown of Pwllheli and the decision by a planning inspector to allow an appeal from a major supermarket to allow it to sell non-food items. In his wisdom, the inspector said that there was no evidence that the sale of clothes, CDs, DVDs and books by this supermarket would affect other retailers in this small market town. Unfortunately, the evidence will only become clear when the ‘for sale’ sign goes up on small independent shops in the area. What on earth is going on? Only earlier this year, Welsh councils were rightly criticised by the Farmers Union of Wales for not doing enough to encourage shoppers to buy local products and cut down on food miles. Can you think of any local campaign that is encouraging you, the consumer, to buy from your local shops? This in sharp contrast to the situation five years ago, when the ‘Think Local, Buy Local, Act Local’ campaign was launched at the 2002 Anglesey Show to encourage local ...

An interesting news story is developing on the BBC about the Communities First programme. It would seem that despite Wales having one of the highest rates of deprivation in areas such as the South Wales Valleys, the Assembly Government has underspent its budget by £6 million. Having spoken to various community groups over the last few years about this programme, there is general disappointment over its management, with accusations of individuals being 'parachuted' into communities rather than the programme working with community groups which are already established on the ground. That seems to be reflected in a comment by Professor Dave Adamson in the story, who states that "The programme was launched in effectively 142 partnerships across Wales in one big bang if you like to use that term - and inevitably there weren't the trained and qualified workers on the ground...Many people moved into it from kind of related areas in local government and health et cetera and I ...

I am sure that Carl Sargeant would love the Not Cheshire website , which has been set up last year to name and shame those companies in Flintshire who seem to prefer to be associated with Cheshire rather than North Wales. It also demonstrates how proud everyone should be of this country, regardless of geography or language. Keep up the good work!

Earlier this week, I attended the ‘ Developing the Future 2007’ conference at the British Library in London. Organised by Microsoft , the aim of the event was to examine the impact of the knowledge sector on the UK. It was a fascinating and thought-provoking day with some excellent speakers and, most importantly, raised a number of essential questions for the development of the Welsh economy. A key finding was the estimate that the knowledge sector – defined as financial services, IT, business services and creative services – today employs 41 per cent of all British workers and will account for 50 per cent of UK GDP by 2010. For Wales, one of the worries in this development of the sector is that London is rapidly becoming the main hub for developments for knowledge industries and unless positive interventions can be made by the more peripheral regions to attract these value-added industries out of the capital, then that trend looks set to continue in the immediate future. So how can th...

With the National Assembly reconvening this week in Cardiff Bay in the company of Her Majesty, I am sure that people from all political persuasions across Wales will be reflecting on the astonishing events that have occurred during the last month since the May election. In particular, the adjectives ‘shambolic’, ‘amateurish’ and ‘disastrous’ have peppered conversations on the failure by the Liberal Democrats to support an anti-Labour ‘rainbow coalition’, leaving Rhodri Morgan to be re-elected by default as First Minister of a minority administration without a clear mandate. With 24 hours having become an eternity in Welsh politics, things were not going to stay the same. Only one day after Rhodri’s coronation, the Lib-Dem special conference was transformed into the fictional land of Oz, with Mike German’s troubles 'melting like lemondrops' as he secured the vote of his grassroot members for resurrecting talks with Plaid Cymru and the Conservatives. For the time being, the rainb...

Have been away for the week and seemed to have missed all the excitement over Rhodri's cabinet appointment. There have been some great comments on the Welsh blogosphere, but the surprise isn't that he has circled his wagons from any potential assault from the rainbow warriors, but that he still feels unable to break out of the kitchen cabinet mentality that has cursed Welsh politics since his appointment as First Minister. The 'Glamorgan cabinet' or 'M4 crew', as described by opposition leaders and AMs , has certainly reinforced the impression that Wales is dominated from a small part of the world (although I do disagree with Blamerbell that any rainbow cabinet would be excluding representation from the South Wales and the capital city - I am assuming that both Jonathan Morgan and Jenny Randerson would be strong candidates for cabinet posts). A couple of new faces round the kitchen table would at least have given the idea that Rhodri had listened to the elector...