Yesterday in the Senedd Chamber during questions to Jane Hutt, Plaid Cymru’s Rhodri Glyn Thomas and Lib Dem Peter Black asked for updates on the investigation into Naz Malik the Chief Executive of AWEMA and although Jane Hutt couldn’t go into details, her answers revealed the scale of the investigation taking place into the allegations made against him, with the Welsh Government involved along with European funding body WEFO, the Big Lottery Fund and South Wales Police.
The full exchanges from the record are below
Rhodri Glyn Thomas: You were in the Chamber earlier when I asked the First Minister about the inquiry into the All-Wales Ethnic Minorities Association, specifically the Government’s confidence in the ability of the association and its chief executive, Nas Malik, to be responsible for European projects worth £8.4 million. I would have expected to see a timetable for such an inquiry, with a date for its conclusion and for a decision to be made. Can you give an assurance that there will be space on the Assembly’s schedule for the First Minister to inform Members about the Government’s confidence in this association’s ability to undertake this work, together with the other important work that it is undertaking.
Jane Hutt: I can give Rhodri Glyn Thomas and the Assembly an assurance that that will happen.
Peter Black: I would like to raise the inquiry mentioned by Rhodri Glyn Thomas regarding AWEMA. You have said that you will provide time for a statement. Do you have any idea of the timescale for this inquiry, and roughly when the statement will come before us? It is important that those who have a stake in AWEMA, and those who depend, in particular, on the European funding that is being given to it, have an idea as to when that will be resolved.
Jane Hutt: I very much appreciate the concerns that have been raised by Peter Black and Rhodri Glyn Thomas in terms of a timeline for the investigation in relation to AWEMA. I assure Members that the Welsh Government, including the Welsh European Funding Office, are co-ordinating an investigation, along with the Big Lottery Fund. It is also important to recognise that Welsh Government officials have been liaising with South Wales Police regarding the allegations. Therefore, you will appreciate that it would be inappropriate for me to comment further at this time.
The initial exchange between Rhodri Glyn Thomas and Carwyn Jones at FMQ’s is below
Rhodri Glyn Thomas: First Minister, I asked you a question last week about the internal inquiry into the All Wales Ethnic Minority Association. I asked you specifically whether you now had confidence in the ability of that association and its chief executive to be responsible for European projects worth £8.4 million. You acknowledged that the allegations against the chief executive, Naz Malik, were serious, and said that an inquiry was under way. However, you did not say when you would be able to make an announcement in this Chamber to Assembly Members about those projects. Can you enlighten us about that this afternoon?
The First Minister: I cannot give a date, but a review is under way. The allegations are very serious, and it is very important indeed that everything is reviewed so that the public can have confidence in this organisation in the future.
The full record from yesterday in the Senedd is here
UPDATE
In another twist the man who blew the whistle on Naz Malik’s financial affairs has been suspended from AWEMA, while Naz Malik remains in post.
AWEMA was also advertising for 3 new staff funded by the Big Lottery Fund the closing date was last week, do the Big Lottery know about the Welsh Governments investigation?
Naz Malik was nominated as a torch bearer for the Olympic relay by his daughter, more from Jac o the North
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Have Plaid Cymru got a plan or not?
Plaid Cymru’s review of what went wrong last May and what to do next seems to have achieved the opposite of what it was intended to do, it’s given the other parties lots of sticks to beat them with and confirmed old prejudices along the way, while at the same time the report doesn't provide an overall coherent plan for reviving the party under a new leader, just ideas for members to debate further.
Leanne Wood, Elin Jones, Simon Thomas and Dafydd Elis Thomas could be forgiven for reading the 95 recommendations in the 80 page report in the days ahead and having a few second thoughts about why they decided to stand for the leadership after the party grandees aired so much of the party’s dirty laundry in public yesterday, putting Plaid Cymru on the back foot weeks before one of them is due to take over and has to immediately energize the party in the Council election campaign.
Leanne Wood, Elin Jones, Simon Thomas and Dafydd Elis Thomas could be forgiven for reading the 95 recommendations in the 80 page report in the days ahead and having a few second thoughts about why they decided to stand for the leadership after the party grandees aired so much of the party’s dirty laundry in public yesterday, putting Plaid Cymru on the back foot weeks before one of them is due to take over and has to immediately energize the party in the Council election campaign.
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Carwyn, UKTI and Wales Investment
First Minister Carwyn’s Jones latest thoughts on the future of the UK debate were unveiled in his Sunday Politics interview and he stated the case of Wales benefiting from inward investment from the UK overseas trade body UKTI as one of many reasons to keep the UK together.
A few things struck me about the statement, it sounds like a reasonable point until you realise that inward investment for Wales, like Scotland and regions of England was mainly handled by the Regional Development agencies for years and now in Wales’s case the Welsh Government since Rhodri Morgan's 'Bonfire of the Quangos' for starters.
Furthermore Welsh Labour and Plaid Cymru between them have presided over the abolition of the Welsh Development Agency, arguably the most successful development agency in Europe and is successor International Business Wales which was abolished after an expenses scandal. And since taking its functions ‘in house’ the Welsh Government has a poor record of securing jobs and investment for Wales as the Jaguar LandRover deal recently showed and its own figures and GVA have consistently proved over the past 5 years.
Not forgetting the relationship between Welsh Economic Development Ministers and UK Ministers has been frosty to say the least, with both sides ignoring or dismissing each others claims and counter claims over the Welsh economy since devolution began back in 1999. So it’s certainly stretching credibility to say that a relationship like that fully benefits Wales or the Welsh economy.
And finally as is so often the case with Welsh journalists they failed to follow up and ask Carwyn to justify his claims about how Wales benefits from UKTI which could well be correct and so your average viewer simply takes the First Minister’s words at face value – not a healthy situation for engaging voters with Welsh politics more regularly.
On a slightly different point I’m glad I’m not the only one who thinks Carwyn is exploiting this for his own ends as Duncan Reynolds states ‘With House of Lords reform back on the political agenda, Mr Jones chose a good time to air his thoughts, however I do not believe that they are the right way to be looking at the possible independence of Scotland, especially as only 30% of the Scottish population currently desire full removal from the union. The issues of timing, phrasing, number of options and possible outcomes in terms of economics whatever the referendum produces are the major issues at this time.’
A few things struck me about the statement, it sounds like a reasonable point until you realise that inward investment for Wales, like Scotland and regions of England was mainly handled by the Regional Development agencies for years and now in Wales’s case the Welsh Government since Rhodri Morgan's 'Bonfire of the Quangos' for starters.
Furthermore Welsh Labour and Plaid Cymru between them have presided over the abolition of the Welsh Development Agency, arguably the most successful development agency in Europe and is successor International Business Wales which was abolished after an expenses scandal. And since taking its functions ‘in house’ the Welsh Government has a poor record of securing jobs and investment for Wales as the Jaguar LandRover deal recently showed and its own figures and GVA have consistently proved over the past 5 years.
Not forgetting the relationship between Welsh Economic Development Ministers and UK Ministers has been frosty to say the least, with both sides ignoring or dismissing each others claims and counter claims over the Welsh economy since devolution began back in 1999. So it’s certainly stretching credibility to say that a relationship like that fully benefits Wales or the Welsh economy.
And finally as is so often the case with Welsh journalists they failed to follow up and ask Carwyn to justify his claims about how Wales benefits from UKTI which could well be correct and so your average viewer simply takes the First Minister’s words at face value – not a healthy situation for engaging voters with Welsh politics more regularly.
On a slightly different point I’m glad I’m not the only one who thinks Carwyn is exploiting this for his own ends as Duncan Reynolds states ‘With House of Lords reform back on the political agenda, Mr Jones chose a good time to air his thoughts, however I do not believe that they are the right way to be looking at the possible independence of Scotland, especially as only 30% of the Scottish population currently desire full removal from the union. The issues of timing, phrasing, number of options and possible outcomes in terms of economics whatever the referendum produces are the major issues at this time.’
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