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Together For Carmarthenshire Labour Party Manifesto 2017 The design on the front page of the manifesto is not designed to accurately portray the geographical position of each town and village.

Hyrwyddwyd gan / Promoted by: Rob James on behalf of Carmarthenshire Labour. Contents

Foreword Page 2

Delivering Excellence in Education Page 3

Always Caring, Always There Page 5

A Green Future For All Page 9

Building For The Future Page 11

Promoting Sustainable Communities Page 15

Driving Carmarthenshire Forward Page 19

Building The Future, Restoring The Past Page 21

Promoting The Next Generation Page 23

Leading A Modern, Transparent Council Page 25

OREWORD

FWe are very much aware of the uncertain times that lay ahead for us all, not only due to the austerity measures forced upon us by the Conservative Government in Westminster, but also the decision of the to leave the European Union.

It is vitally important that we ensure the council accounts for every penny it spends along with giving excellent service. With that in mind, we are proud to present to you, the people of Carmarthenshire, our manifesto.

In this manifesto we aim to lay out our priorities for the next five years. We will create a modern, transparent Council, bringing greater openness and transparency to council business, engaging with our electorate, consulting appropriately and taking the necessary action in an honest manner.

We willreview the way we deliver services to the most vulnerable in our society, putting service before profit within social care. Our priority will be to put the care of the individual at the very top.

We will continue where we left off in housing, by re-starting our council house building programme. We are proud of our record in power, being the first Council in to end right to buy, first Council in Wales to build council homes since the 1980s and investing £220 million on improving our housing stock. A Labour-led Carmarthenshire Council will continue this work.

We want to build a future for all our young people in Carmarthenshire, giving them an opportunity to secure a good education and future employment opportunities. We will aim to build strong cohesive bilingual communities throughout Carmarthenshire, seeking to create a municipal bus company in collaboration with neighbouring authorities to improve the transport links between communities.

We ask all our citizens to take more pride in keeping our streets and open spaces free from litter and dog fouling, but our resolve will be to take all necessary action to support this vitally important aim.

We believe that Carmarthenshire will succeed when working people succeed, and we will work tirelessly to grow our local economy, by creating more in-house jobs, employing more apprentices and attracting inward investment. These are our promises in the upcoming Council elections, and together for Carmarthenshire we will deliver for our local commmunities.

Cllr. Jeff Edmunds Leader of Carmarthenshire Labour Group

- 2 - Delivering Excellence in Education Ensuring that all children in our County achieve their full potential, regardless of their background, remains a key priority for Labour in Carmarthenshire.

Labour is proud of its record in building new schools in Carmarthenshire and we are pleased that Carmarthenshire is one of the leading Counties in Wales as far as education provision is concerned. The “Modernisation of Education Programme” has revolutionised education in Carmarthenshire, and Labour intends to continue with the good work. There still remain a number of decrepit school buildings, some dating to Victorian times, and Labour will ensure that the programme of replacing these buildings continues.

Carmarthenshire Labour supports the ’s bold strategy for there to be one million Welsh speakers by 2050. To support this goal, Labour in Carmarthenshire will seek to improve access to Welsh-medium education across the County. We believe that parental and pupils’ choice to study in their preferred language is an important right that must be protected. Where there is a need for increasing the provision of Welsh-medium education, Labour will seek to work with communities to reach a consensus on how this should be delivered.

We understand that schools must be adaquetely funded to deliver excellent education to our children. Labour will ensure that schools are properly funded in Carmarthenshire, with a view to maintaining the financial support given each year to schools, so as to make certain that school budgets do not diminish: that is to say that school budgets will be ‘inflation proofed’.

We understand the importance of children eating nutrious meals throughout the day, aiding their development and attention. Hard-pressed families are finding it difficulty to keep up with the yearly increases for school meals and Labour will support these families by WHAT WE ACHIEVED freezing the price of school meals for the next three years. - Investment of £231m in the modernisation of our schools. In a large rural county such - Significant expansion of the flying start as Carmarthenshire, many programme to support most vulnerable children spend long periods across Carmarthenshire. travelling to schools, many - Supported the Welsh Government’s Free missing breakfast, and others School Breakfast programme. may come from homes where a breakfast is not supplied. Labour will encourage the take up of our free breakfasts.

- 3 - We believe that the teaching of music to children OUR PLEDGES and young adults can provide children with essential skills that will aid their development in other areas. Modernise our schools, so that Labour will support peripatetic music provision in every pupil in Carmarthenshire is our schools. Labour is also concerned at the damage taught in a 21st Century school. that can be caused by the abuse of social networking Protect parental and pupils’ sites and we believe schools play an important role choice to study in their chosen in educating children in safe uses of the internet and language (Welsh or English). technology. Protecting school funding across Carmarthenshire Labour are extremely proud our County. of our Flying Start programme, which offers Freeze the price of school meals prevention services in geographic areas of to protect hard-pressed families deprivation in Carmarthenshire. Currently there are in our County. twelve areas in the County and Labour will seek to support and expand this programme going forward. Encourage take up of Welsh Labour’s free breakfast in primary schools. Nearly a quarter of learners in Wales have some form of additional learning need (ALN), with Support peripatetic music outcomes for these learners often being lower provision in our schools. than the average. Labour are passionate about improving educational attainment for those Support Welsh Labour’s Flying students with ALN and will ensure that Start programme in the County, and where possible expand it. Carmarthenshire Council will begin the adoption of the new statutory framework for supporting Reform the way education children and young people laid out in the is provided to students with Additional Learning Needs and Education Tribunal additional learning needs. (Wales) Bill. Support the growth of life- long learning courses across Carmarthenshire Labour recognises the many Carmarthenshire. benefits connected to lifelong learning for adults. Language, IT and arts classes have been cut Build upon Labour’s record of in Carmarthenshire by the Plaid-led Council. working with unions to protect Going forward, Labour will seek to collaborate with services and jobs across County. partner organisations to support the growth of adult learning courses in the County.

The Labour Party are proud of its historic links with the trade union movement and we will seek to work closely with our unions to improve education in Carmarthenshire. We are committed to cover the cost of Education Workforce Council registration for our workforce.

- 4 - Always Caring, Always There. We are committed to providing tailored compassionate social care that will meet the growing demands of those living in Carmarthenshire, under the founding ethos of our National Health Service.

The Labour Party was the architect of the National Health Service introduced in the 1940s. Such has been the improvement of the health of the nation over the years that social care has become just as important as health care. Labour has an enviable history in the provision of social care in our country, and we intend to build on such achievements as the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act, and the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act.

In recent years we have seen growing pressures on social care budgets across Wales as a result of demographic changes and UK Government cuts. In meeting these demands, Councils sought the support of the independent sector to provide vital care to those in need. We believe that care should be provided without a profit margin in mind, and as a result, we will seek to backsource domiciliary care contracts, providing this care with Council employed staff members.

Care workers are the front line staff in all care settings. They are extremely committed, knowledgable and caring individuals that provide an essential service to those living in our communities. Carmarthenshire Labour are committed to tackling failures by care providers to pay the national living wage and travelling time, and will take strong action on any exploitation of care workers in our County.

With the projected increase of elderly individuals requiring care in the County, Labour will conduct a comprehensive assessment of our current care homes, with the ambition of increasing capacity and modernise homes to dementia-friendly standard. WHAT WE ACHIEVED Carmarthenshire Labour will - Set up a rapid response domiciliary care work with unions to end the service to prevent hospital admission, use of zero hour contracts for reducing demand on local hospitals. care workers in our County, - £13 million Cartref Cynnes extra care scheme instead encouraging the use of in Johnstown. flexible working contracts with - 20 convalescence beds to facilitate hospital increased wage security for discharge and prevent hospital admission. those employees that require - £25 million extra-care housing facilities flexibility in their contract. across Carmarthenshire. To support vulnerable adults

- 5 - living independently in our , we believe more needs to be done to prevent people becoming isolated and supporting adults to have a hot meal every day. A Labour-led Council will continue the Council’s hot meals on wheels service and will not accept any reductions in this service during our term of office. We will also oppose any attempts to increase prices for recipients of our meals on wheels service for three years.

Demand for psychological therapies (or ‘talking therapies’) is ever rising, yet access to these types of treatments is one of the biggest issues facing those of us with mental health problems in Wales. A Labour-led Council would collaborate with University Health Board to improve capacity in talking therapies through the medium of Welsh, and to actively offer Welsh speakers treatment through their language of choice. “Illness is neither an indulgence for which A truly intergrated health and people have to pay, nor an offence for which social care requires a strong they should be penalised, but a misfortune focus from local authorities and the cost of which should be shared by the health boards to work together community.” in the benefit of our citizens. We Aneurin Bevan, Founder of the NHS remain committed to increasing partnership working between Carmarthenshire County Council and Hywel Dda Health Board. Integrated Community Resource Teams are playing an important role in tackling delayed transfers of Care (DToC), also known as bed-blocking, yet we must go further. Labour will seek to adopt the concept of discharge to assess, ensuring that resources are in place to support those that no longer require acute care to be discharged to their own home (where appropriate) or another community setting. Assessment for longer-term care and support needs will then be undertaken in the most appropriate setting and at the right time for the person.

We support the Welsh Labour Government’s focus on Direct Payments and will ensure that individuals that meet the criteria are aware of their options to receive the payment, enabling the individual to tailor their care package to their own needs. We realise that for many elderly people they would prefer to remain in their homes with support, rather than move into a care home. Carmarthenshire Labour realise that the adoption of Direct Payments has fundumentally altered the local market for social care provision and will ensure that our community support packages are competitive in relation to the independent sector, with the aspiration of increasing our share of Direct Payment contracts.

Carmarthenshire Labour are committed to protecting vulnerable adults from exploitation and scams. A Labour-led Council would continue the Financial

- 6 - OUR PLEDGES Exploitation Safeguarding Scheme, a multi agency initiative set up to detect and prevent the financial Backsource social care services, exploitation of vulnerable people by others. We are and provide care using Council employed staff members. also committed to lobbying the Welsh Government to simplify the process of setting up No Cold Calling Crackdown on exploitation of Zones, enabling Carmarthenshire to be the first No care workers in Carmarthenshire Cold Calling County in Wales. Modernise our Council-run care Carmarthenshire Labour believes that for those homes, expanding capacity and utilising dementia friendly who want to live independently but in a smaller, design. easier-to-manage home, with support, then sheltered housing is often an attractive option End the use of zero hour for adults. We believe that scheme managers contracts in the care sector (wardens) provide a valuable service to those living in locally. sheltered accomodation. A Labour-led Council Support ‘Meals on Wheels’ would reverse the cuts to scheme managers and programme, freezing prices for will ensure that each sheltered housing complex will next three years. have an onsite warden at all times. Collaborate with Hywel Dda Labour will fight tooth and nail to keep all of the Health Board to increase existing hospitals in the County and to maintain availability of talking therapies. the levels of care they provide. Carmarthenshire Collaborate with Hywel Dda Labour believe that acute services in Prince Philip Health Board to tackle delayed hospital need to be maintained, and where possible transfers of care. expanded. We also believe that the parking issues in Glangwili hospital requires capital investment and Make Carmarthenshire the first we will campaign for a multi-storey car park to meet No Cold Calling County in Wales. the growing demand. We will ensure that each shel- tered housing complex will have Carmarthenshire Labour would recommit to an onsite warden. UNISON’s Ethical Care Charter. The Charter places the needs of care users, dignity of clients and Campaign to ensure acute investment in the care workforce above profit- services remain in the County and lobby for improved parking making considerations. for Glangwili.

To ensure that Carmarthenshire County Council are Recommit to UNISON’s Ethical in a strong position to collaborate with Hywel Dda Care Charter. Health Board to deliver quality care and support, we believe that our Council should be a permanent Campaign for permanent membership for the Council on independent member on the Health Board. the Health Board.

- 7 - “ support vulnerable adults living independently ”

- 8 - A Green Future for All We are determined to bring civic pride back to our local communities and address the proliferation of litter and flytipping in this region.

Our town centres, communties and countryside have, in recent times, become bestrewn with rubbish, coupled with an increase in fly tipping. Dog fouling also continues to be a serious problem in our County. To tackle this issue, we will expaned the current cleansing team, creating a new mutli-skilled department that will conduct grounds maintenance, grass cutting, culvert maintenance, dog fouling elimination and street cleaning. To meet the increasing demand on this area, as a result of a lack of funding from the current administration, we will provide additional ring-fenced funding of £250,000 to clean up our communities. In combination with additional funding, we will also be tough on those that seek to mindlessly destroy our precious environment and increase awareness within schools. We will ensure that there are more Enforcement Officers, conducting increased patrols and handing out greater fines to culprits. We will also launch a new awareness campaign within schools to educate children and young adults on the negative impact that litter and dog fouling has on our environment and wildlife.

We will reflect public concerns through the return of a Council-run and delivered pest control service ensuring a safe environment for the health of the public.

Reasonably accessible recycling facilities are important for the citizens of our communities, as well as a recycling scheme that seeks to remove the barriers for residents to recycling. We are aware of the problems that elderly people have, as well as those with mobility issues or no personal transportation, in disposing of their glassware. Carmarthenshire Labour are committed to the collection of glassware monthly from homes directly. We will require that all retail outlets and We will concentrate resources WHAT WE ACHIEVED on Coastal and Inland Flood - Reducing the amount of waste sent to Prevention which have been landfill by 60% recycling, higher than the neglected in recent years. national target of 56%. Labour believes that no- - Tackling litter across Carmarthenshire with one should have to live with over 272 fixed penalty notices between 2014- the constant worry that their 15. homes might be flooded. A - Investment in green energy with the Labour-led Council will make installation of solar PV panels for our schools, concerted efforts, actively seek generating 229,652 kWh of electricity during funding, and work with the 2014/15. Environment Agency, Welsh Water, Natural Resources

- 9 - Wales and other partners, to protect people’s homes OUR PLEDGES from flooding and sewerage spills, through better maintenance, more flood defences, and speedier Creation of a new department action in an emergency. to clean up our communities

Return of Council-run pest We will seek greater investment in the ageing control service. sewerage system to reduce the amount of raw sewage spilling out into the Burry Inlet and Making recycling easier, with the Bay, so we can protect our fishing introduction of doorstep glass industry and gain and retain the blue flags for our collection. beaches. No parent should have to worry about Protecting homes from flooding whether the seaside is clean and safe enough for with increased focus on Coastal their children to play there. and Inland Flood Prevention.

We are deeply concerned with the continuing loss Seek greater investment in our of green spaces across Carmarthenshire. As more ageing sewerage system. green spaces are built upon, future generations Retention of our precious green lose the opportunity to exercise and learn through spaces through change in play. Carmathenshire Labour are committed to the planning policy. retention of our green spaces and a Labour-led Council will seek to amend Council policies to Collaborative investment into ensure that the retention of our green spaces renewable energy projects, are given the same level of consideration as the creating Wales’ largest local energy scheme financial cost of a project. We believe this change in approach will ensure that Council developments in the future will utilise more brownfields sites, protecting our precious green spaces.

We believe that Wales’ greatest resource is its ability to generate clean energy. To ensure that future generations have a cheap, readily-available and clean supply of energy, a Labour-led Coun- cil will embark on the ambitious task of creating Wales’ largest local energy scheme. In collobration with neighbouring local authorities, we will invest in large-scale energy projects. The projects will supply energy to local residents, as well as the national grid. The additional revenue stream that will be created by the investment will result in the local authority being less reliant on the block- funding from the Welsh Government.

- 10 - Building For The Future Carmarthenshire requires strong leadership to harness the potential within our diverse local economy and make it the economic powerhouse of .

Town centres across the country are in decline, with our local centres in Carmarthenshire being just one example of the issue with which we are faced. To tackle this long-term trend, Councils need to be bold in their decision-making and provide vital support to entrepreneurs to grow our centres once more. A Labour-led Council will seek to adopt a radical “town centre first” strategy that will encourage employers into town centre offices and seek to restrict out-of-town retail planning permission.

To encourage footfall into our town centres, we need to ensure that there is a diverse range of shops for shoppers to visit. Labour support the introduction of a Local Development Order for our town centres, which would remove the need for developers or applicants to make a formal planning application for change of use.

The Labour Party has always recognised the importance of small businesses to our local economy. One of the most common complaints local businesses located in our town centres have raised is the issue over car parking charges. Carmarthenshire Labour have listened to these concerns and will work to remove the burden placed on shoppers by modernising ticketing machine to allow for card payments at all council-owned sites, as well as encourage drivers to pay using their phone. We will also offer a 15-minute grace period, removing another barrier for small businesses.

To support the shopping experience in our town centres, we are committed to providing capital funding to WHAT WE ACHIEVED improve the town centre infrastructure, enabling it to - £11m Carmarthenshire Physical Regeneration scheme, improving the appearance of our town be an entertainment hub. centres. We will also work with local - £1.5m Opportunity Street project aimed at business leaders to deal with regenerating Llanelli Town Centre. derelict town centre buildings. - Investment in branding identity and hertiage boards for Carmarthen Town. Carmarthenshire is bless- - Began work on the Carmarthen West Link Road, which will deliver primary school, employ- ed with a breathtaking ment space, a small retail centre, open space and landscape, with 80 miles of affordable housing coastline, and steeped in history.

- 11 - Tourism is vital to the local economy, worth around £326m a year locally. A Labour-led Council will seek to increase the support it provides to this sector, encouraging growth over the next five years. In partnership with neighbouring authorities, Sustrans and other interest ed partners, we will seek to increase our share of the cycling holidays market in the UK, providing advertisement and developing an app that would allow users to discover all that Carmarthenshire has to offer. Labour will also source funding to develop our national parks to support tourism in our County.

Carmarthenshire has an enviable record of inward investment, the leading Council for its size in Wales. To build on this success and encourage further business into our County, we believe that the local infrastructure requires significant investment. A report from the National Infrastructure Commission found that the UK was ranked 54th in the world in terms of 4G mobile coverage, with many areas of rural Carmarthenshire having poor or no 4G coverage. We will continue to press the UK Government to ensure 4G mobile reception for at least 95% of Carmarthenshire customers by the end of 2018, and the rollout of 5G mobile reception by the end of the term. We will also engage with the Welsh Government’s consultation on the relaxing of planning laws concerning taller masts to tackle ‘notspots’, areas with no mobile signal, in Carmarthenshire.

In conjunction with our ambition to make Carmarthenshire digitally connected, we also strongly believe that we need greater connectivity within our transport infrastructure. We welcome the Welsh Labour Government’s annoucements on the £50m Llandeillo bypass and the £300k feasability study for the - Carmarthen railway. Rail users that wish to travel between the two towns currently have to travel six hours via Shropshire. The return of the railway line would have a similar economic impact for West Wales, as the proposed Metro will have for eastern Wales. Carmarthenshire Labour is committed to providing full Council backing to the restoration of the Carmarthen-Aberystwyth rail link.

The rural economy is vital to Carmarthenshire and we will stand by farmers and rural communities, whilst the Prime Minister seeks to continue the negotiations concerning Britain’s exit from the EU. We will identify, in collaboration with our partners, the likely impacts of further reductions of Common Agriculture Policy (CAP) support to our rural communities. During these times, we must fight to ensure that there is no decline in entry numbers into farming. Carmarthenshire Labour is committed to supporting the retention of the local authority’s small holdings, spread over 1,000 hectares of land, which provides an avenue for young people and those not from farming backgrounds to enter into the industry. With the capital requirements of agriculture, it is a difficult industry to enter, and coun- ty council holdings remain one of the only entry routes in the industry. Through a new “Rural Economy Development Plan”, Labour will seek to support and develop new initiatives for our farming and rural communities.

- 12 - The economic potential of the Bay City OUR PLEDGES Region City Deal for Carmarthenshire is well Adopt a “town centre first” documented. Research conducted by Swansea policy, restricting out-of-town University suggests that the city deal could retail developments. potentially create 33,000 jobs over the next two Diversify shopping experience decades, with an estimated £3.3bn boost to the in our town centres to increase regional economy. We are excited by the footfall. Internet Coast programme, which seeks to achieve 100% coverage and access to the next generation Modernise our carpark ticket broadband service in rural and urban commu- machines, allow for contactless nities. The Creative Digital Cluster, involving the card payment and paying via mobile. construction of a creative and digital hub within the Carmarthenshire region and the new home of S4C, Develop entertainment hubs will be essential in developing the creative sector within town centres to improve in this region. The £200m proposal to build a Life shopping experience. Science and Well-being Village at Delta Lakes seeks to pioneer new ideas for improving the health of Build on the successes of our County’s tourism sector by the entire region. Carmarthenshire Labour supports iincreasing Council suport. the aspirations of the City Deal. We believe that the economic benefits that will be produced by this Demand 4G reception for 95% of ambitious plan must be felt by all communities in Carmarthenshire customers by Carmarthenshire. We will also carefully scrutinise 2018. the involvement of private investors into the project Support the restoration of the at Delta Lakes to ensure it complies with our public Aberystwyth to Carmarthen rail health ethos. link.

To ensure that the City Deal and future large Retention of local authority scale projects benefit the local economy, we will smallholdings for farmers and develop The Local Procurement Strategy taking a fight for continuation of CAP support. holistic view of public procurement as a driver of social, economic and environmental benefits, as Support the £1.3bn City Deal to well as focusing on maximising local procurement, boost the regional economy. including manufacturing, employment and training. Working with the Welsh Government, local further Seek to identify local supply education institutions, the chambers of trade and chain capabilities and maximise Community Benefits with the trade unions, the strategy will seek to indentify the new local procurement strategy. relevant local and regional supply chain capabilities for each sector, and maximise Community Benefits for major projects. We will also monitor the EU exit discussions and future legislation to evaluate the impact on Public Contracts Regulations 2015 per- mitting preferential treatment of Welsh suppliers.

- 13 - “ we will stand by farmers and rural communities ”

- 14 - Promoting Sustainable Communities Strong local government services are the beating heart of healthy communities.

We believe that our County needs caring Labour councillors who will stand up and fight against the damage being caused to our communities by vicious austerity measures. Our Councillors will work with local communities, neighbouring authorities and the Welsh Government to improve services and deliver social justice.

Libraries are the lynchpin of our local communities. We realise the important service libraries provide to many in our communities and believe that Councils must make every effort to retain our local libraries. The library service in Carmarthenshire continues to be recognised nationally, with Llanelli library recently being named by CIPFA as the third highest lender in the UK. This is down to our fantastic workforce and their enthusiasm to modernise our service. Whilst Carmarthenshire library service has undergone substantial restructuring in recent years, we believe that there are areas in which we can safeguard the future of libraries in Carmarthenshire. Firstly, libraries are where so many children discover the wonders of literature and reading. We are determined to provide additional support to children visiting our libraries by reinstating children’s librarians in Llanelli, Ammanford and Carmarthen.

Our libraries are also an essential service to support those seeking employment, yet many users require additional support during their visit to complete applica- tions. We will work collaboratively with the DWP, Welsh Government and the part- ner agencies to create and joint-fund Employment Coaches, who will be available in our main libraries to assist users returning to the job market.

Carmarthenshire has a rich and diverse heritage that our Council must protect. We will support the fund- WHAT WE ACHIEVED ing and the transfer of the County Archives to the new - Delivered the £15 million Ffwrnes theatre purpose-built building, be- in Llanelli, voted the best public services hind Carmarthen Library. We building in Carmarthenshire. will also seek to capitalise on - Refurbishment of Llanelli, Ammanford and the expertise of our staff by Carmarthen library. organising regular workshops - Hosted the Commonwealth Games ‘Queen’s and one-to-one sesssions Baton Relay’ to teach residents how to - Hosted the 2014 National in research their personal family Llanelli. history. The Who Am I? workshop will bring in vital revenue.

- 15 - Building safer communties requires a police force that is well-financed, with strong leadership to tackle crime. Community safety has always been at the heart of Carmarthenshire Labour’s aspirations for the well-being of our citizens. We are committed to holding our police force to account on their progress in tackling crime in Carmarthenshire. It is disappointing that following a review of effective policing levels in England and Wales, Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) singled out Police in Wales to state that it must improve how it keeps people safe and reduces crime. A Labour-led Council will ensure that our representatives on Dyfed Powys Police and Crime Panel holds the force to account and demands improvements in the areas they are currently failing. We will also support Neighbourhood Policing Teams promoting Partnerships and Communities Together (PACT) meetings, as a tool to communicate with local communties.

To support our police force in tackling crime within our area, we will continue to introduce new by-laws, in line with the Welsh Government’s initiatives, to reduce anti-social behaviour in our communities. This includes making the consumption of alcohol illegal in public areas, such as parks. We will also continue to encourage the growth of new Community Safety Groups.

Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service provides an invaluable service to the communities of Carmarthenshire. In the last five years, Labour members on the Fire Authority have worked with Officers to make efficiency savings within their budget and are now the cheapest fire service in Wales. Carmarthenshire Labour is proud of the dedication demonstrated by each employee and volunteer to keep those living in Carmarthenshire safe from injury. We believe that our service must be supported by Carmarthenshire Council to ensure that no fire stations in Carmarthenshire close as a result of budget cuts.

Being physically active is essential for good health and well-being and we believe more needs to be done to tackle weight-related illnesses. This was said to be a golden decade for sport, with the 2012 Summer Olympics significantly increasing grassroot participation. Due to the ideological-driven austerity measures from the UK Government, the legacy of the Olympics is sports and leisure being starved of funding, with many local sports teams struggling to keep afloat. Good access to sport and leisure facilities is essential to ensuring that we tackle the rise in weight-related health conditions in our County, with 61% of adults in Carmarthenshire being classified as overweight or obese. Carmarthenshire Labour is committed to lobbying the Welsh Government to increase funding to the Council’s leisure budget, which will create a long-term saving for our NHS. We will also improve the Council’s consultation with sports teams on pitch fees, working with community/town councils to create a long-term pricing structure that seeks to support our local teams.

- 16 - Despite talk of an economic recovery, the living OUR PLEDGES standards for many living in Carmarthenshire have not improved in recent years. We will work tirelessly Reinstating children’s librarians to eradicate poverty in Carmarthenshire through help- in the three main libraries. ing to enhance the prosperity and well-being of all Work in collaboration with our citizens. Our new anti-poverty champion will work partners to create Employment with community and town Councils to identify assets Coaches to support people that can be supported by the Community Facilities seeking employment Programme, a Welsh Labour Government capital grant fund aimed at developing and improving facilities for Support the transfer of the County Archives to a new communities in order to tackle poverty and its effects. purpose-built building in The anti-poverty champion will also identify excellent Carmarthen. local schemes under the current Communities First programme to apply for the the new legacy fund and A new workshop programme we will make fuel poverty a priority through our local providing genealogical advice energy and home improvement schemes. and support to the public. Strong leadership on Dyfed The is integral to the identity of Powys Police and Crime Panel. our county, and nation. It is essential that we make every effort to protect and advance its use in society. Introduce new by-laws to tackle Welsh Labour are proud of our achievements in the drinking in public places, such as promotion and facilitation of the use of Welsh language parks. in everyday life. In the last decade, we have passed the Support MWWFS to ensure there Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011, which makes will be no fire station closures in Welsh an official language in Wales. This gives Welsh Carmarthenshire. the same legal status as English and means it must be treated no less favourably than English. We have also Lobby Welsh Government to successfully campaigned to allow MPs to speak the increase funding for leisure facilities to tackle local health language when the Welsh in Westminster. Our work crisis. has not finished though. Work to eradicate poverty in Carmarthenshire has the highest number of Welsh Carmarthenshire. speakers in Wales and we support the Welsh Government’s ambitious goal to have a million Welsh Providing support for a billigual County. speakers across our country by 2050. Carmarthenshire Labour are committed to making Carmarthenshire a bilingual county, supporting our staff to attend Welsh language courses, improving access to Welsh-medium education and increasing the use of the language in the family.

- 17 - “ Carmarthenshire has a rich and diverse heritage ”

- 18 - Driving Carmarthenshire Forward Affordable transport solutions for rural communities have never been more essential.

Buses are important, especially for those living in rural Wales. The lack of bus services have left rural communities feeling isolated, with the elderly, young and unemployed who rely on public transport struggling to reach hospitals, schools and job centres. In recent reports, Carmarthenshire is ranked the worst but one, for overall satisfaction about the state of the transport system in Wales. Due to cuts in the subsidies to bus companies, there are now fare increases and service reductions – making Wales the only part of the UK where passenger numbers are falling.

Carmarthenshire Labour believes that our local bus services are no longer fit for purpose in our county. We will seek to increase our collaborative working with partners to improve our local bus service. Our popular Bwcabus service, launched in 2008, continues to grow and support rural communities in Carmarthenshire and across West Wales. Bwcabus is continuing to reverse the trend on declining bus patronage, yet we must go further. A Labour-led Council will explore the viability of creating a municipal bus company, in collaboration with neighbouring Councils to serve South West Wales.

The Council has an excellent record of road gritting in the winter months. We would like to see that record extended to pavement gritting and we will continue to work with Town and Community Councils to ensure that the gritting of pavements is similarly undertaken. In particular, we would like to see more gritting take place in our town centres and on routes to schools.

Camarthenshire Council needs to do more to support adults and children to walk and cycle more. We believe WHAT WE ACHIEVED that lowering traffic speeds in our residential areas will - Successfully campaigned for the £50m decrease the number of road Llandeilo bypass. casualties and increase the - Delivered £2.7 million Bwcabus scheme number of people cycling. in north rural Carmarthenshire, providing There is strong evidence vital bus services to residents via a booking that 20mph speed limits are system. effective in making our roads - Retained free school transport for faith safer for children and young schools. people, and increasing - Initiated the Carmarthen West Link Road. walking and cycling. A Labour-led Council will create

- 19 - OUR PLEDGES safer streets by continue the roll-out of 20 mph zones. Conduct a viability assessment for creating a municipal bus We will seek to complete the £5 million company in collaboration with Carmarthen West Link Road by 2018, supporting neighbouring Councils. S4C’s new headquarters in Carmarthen, Yr Egin. We will also recover the £3 million cost to the Support road and pavement gritting in the winter months. Authority, through Section 106 agreements with the housing developers. We will continue to press for Safer streets by continuing the work to begin on the 2nd phase of the Ammanford rollout of 20 mph zones. Distributor Road, which will relieve the congestion in Ammanford Town Centre. Completion of the £5 million Carmarthen West Link Road by 2018. It is imperative that we continue to improve our infrastructure to create better transport links Press for work to begin on between communities and attract inward 2nd phase of Ammanford investment. We also need to focus on maintaining Distributor Road. the highway network that we currently have. The length of our highway network in Carmarthenshire Develop a Highway Asset Investment Strategy to tackle is the second largest in Wales, and is more than potholes and road maintenance. double the Welsh average. The proliferation of potholes across our county is having a significant Call for the introduction of lane impact on drivers and we must act now to address rental schemes, charging utility this issue. Studies show that the cost associated with companies to work on roads. planned highways work is considerably less than reactive repairs and demonstrates the importance of proactive long-term planning. We will develop a Highway Asset Investment Strategy to improve efficiencies with diminishing budgets.

Roadworkers can be extremely frustrating for drivers, yet local authorities currently do not have all the powers to support drivers. We will work with the WLGA and LGA to support lane rental schemes, where utility companies have to pay a daily rate for the work they do on key roads during busy periods. We believe making it easier to charge utility companies would give an added incentive to finish work as quickly as possible, therefore reduc- ing headaches for commuters.

- 20 - Building The Future, Restoring The Past There is an acute need for affordable housing and we pledge to deliver homes for our county.

Carmarthenshire Labour are proud of our record in delivering for the people in this area. Under our leadership, Carmarthenshire Council was the first in Wales to build new properties since the 1980s and we were also the first in Wales to suspend the Right to Buy policy in order to protect our housing stock. To ensure that we build for the future, a Labour-led Council will draw up a 15 year housing development plan to address the need for affordable housing in our county.

Carmarthenshire has over 5,000 people on our waiting list for council properties, whilst many in our communities are being punished by the UK Government’s Bedroom Tax. Carmarthenshire Labour will use our experience to re-start our successful programme of building new council properties, delivering new low energy homes and bungalows for our citizens.

Empty properties affect the county as a whole, causing concern for the public and are a serious blight on local areas and amenities. Carmarthenshire Labour insured that Carmarthenshire was the first Council in Wales to use Empty Dwelling Management Orders and also the introduction of a Social Lettings Agency to help owners bring their properties back into use as well as to help us prevent homelessness.

The scale of the problem has become worse, with the number of empty properties increasing to over 2,500 empty homes in our County. We will address this social ill with increased Council tax levies on empty private properties, encourage private home owners to bring their properties back into use and purchase properties to turn into council homes. Carmarthenshire Labour will WHAT WE ACHIEVED require suitable Section 106 agreements, negotiated by - The first Authority in Wales to suspend the the County Council, to include right to buy the Council houses. parks and leisure facilities as - The first Authority in Wales to build part of any new development properties since 1980s, building bungelows in agreement. This will ensure Llanelli and Kidwelly. that we continue to protect vi- - One of first in Wales to employ a dedicated tal public services. We will also empty homes advisor to tackle empty homes. encourage developers to sign - Completed the Carmarthenshire Homes Section 38 agreements, so that standard programme, spending £220 million the local authority can adopt improving our vital housing stock. the road after development.

- 21 - The Conservative’s Bedroom Tax has been a OUR PLEDGES disaster for many living in our county. We believe it is fundamently unfair to tax council and housing Draw up a 15 year housing association tenants, who are already claiming development plan. support from the state, when there little to no suitable properties in their local area. Carmarthen- Re-start our programme of shire Labour will adapt Council properties currently building new council properties. vacant to create one and two bedroom properties, Increase tax levies on empty saving communities from this heartless policy. private properties.

Homelessness carries a significant cost in both Purchase houses on the open human and financial terms. The Housing (Wales) market to turn into Council Act 2014 has fundamently changed how local houses. authorities react to reports of homelessness. To Include parks and leisure support our goal to ending homelessness in facilities in future Section 106 our county, we will shift resources away from agreements to safeguard vital administration and towards the frontline. We will public services. work closely with Shelter Cymru to identify regions of our county most at risk. Although enormous steps Support those hit by Bedroom Tax have been made over recent years to regenerate our town centres, with many jobs being created, Work with partner agencies to there remain many derelict buildings throughout end homelessness in our county. the county. A Labour-led Council will explore op- tions for turning derelict buildings into communi- Effective planning to deal ty assets, including centres for supporting those in with lack of infrastrucutre and flooding risks when considering need of accommodation. developments. The limited provision of affordable housing in rural areas is a threat to the social, cultural and economic sustainability of many small communities in Wales. It also poses a significant threat to our ambitions of growing the Welsh language. We believe that Rural Housing Enablers (RHE) play an essential role in evaluating the viability and sustainability of rural communities. We will seek joint funding from the Welsh Government to appoint a RHE to support our aims outlined in this section.

When seeking to address the lack of affordable homes in Carmarthenshire, Labour will be mindful of the risks associated with flooding and lack of in- frastructure in place in many areas of our county. Swift action to deal with flooding threats, coupled with proper planning is essential going forward.

- 22 - Promoting The Next Generation Children and young adults have the most to gain and lose from the decisions that we make, so we must ensure that their voice is heard by those that serve.

Quality apprenticeships offer the opportunity for young people to learn, whilst earning a salary in a wide range of jobs. We are committed to ensuring that there is good opportunities for those living in Carmarthenshire to access an apprenticeship. We will consult with the Welsh Government on their proposed specific apprenticeship plan for local authorities. We will also work with the Welsh Government and trade unions to encourage a greater up-take of apprenticeships.

Many young adults leaving higher education are often full of exciting ideas that could revolutionise this county, yet they are often met with a lack of funding opportunities. We welcome the Welsh Government’s announcement that the new Development Bank for Wales aims to provide and leverage £1bn of finance to invest in Welsh SMEs. A Labour-led Council will work with businesses and the Welsh Government to ensure vital finance is brought in to support SMEs across Carmarthenshire. We will also create an Entrepreneurs Fund, a capital scheme that will joint fund ventures for graduates.

Our County’s family and children’s service provision is something for all of our citizens to be proud, and Labour intends to make sure that Carmarthenshire continues to provide state of the art children’s service organisation in local government in Wales. We will also seek to raise awareness in relation to early help provision available across the county.

Looked after children and children leaving state care remain one of the most vulnerable groups in our society. Statistics show that 215 individuals were being looked after by the local authority last year, the ninth highest in Wales, with a recent study claiming that WHAT WE ACHIEVED children living in Wales’ - Created ‘Work Ready’ programme provid- most deprived areas are ing access to Work Experience, Apprentice- sixteen times more likely ship and graduate opportunities across the to go into care than those Authority. living in the most affluent - Successful fought off plans to close respite areas. A Labour-led Council centres in Caramrthenshire. will draw up a task force to - Effecitve Children’s services, receiving look at services for looked af- glowing reports from CSSIW for ‘strong, ter children to explore ways to strategic leadership’. reduce the number of children under the care of the authority.

- 23 - We support the Welsh Government’s Flying OUR PLEDGES Start service, which provides intensive support services to 0 - 3 year old children and their Work with the trade unions families who live in disadvantage areas within and the Welsh Government to Carmarthenshire. The Flying Start scheme encourage greater up-take of apprenticeships. consists of four core elements - free quality part time childcare, enhanced health Create an Entrepreneurs Fund visiting, parenting support programmes and to support graduate business early language development and play skills. We ideas in Carmarthenshire. strongly support the continuation of the Flying Start programme, and believe that children living in Raise awareness of early help provision for children’s service. poverty outside Flying Start areas should also have access to these enhanced services. Task and Finish Group to look into services for looked after We support the Welsh Government’s intention to children. provide 30 hours a week of free early education and childcare for working parents of 3 and 4 year olds Support the Welsh Government Flying Start programme across in Carmarthenshire. To support this aspiration, we Carmarthenshire conduct a capacity assesment to ensure that there is sufficient childcare provision in Carmarthenshire Conduct a capacity for the rollout of this scheme. Where there is a assessment and work with shortage of childcare spaces, we will work with childcare providers to ensure childcare providers to increase capacity to meet sufficient childcare provision in Carmarthenshire. demand. Create a Younger Person’s To promote the voice of the next generation, Champion on Executive Board. we will work closely with Carmarthenshire Youth Council and other partners to enhance the role Promoting the use of the Welsh of young people during the Council’s decision- Language within households. making process. We will also create a Younger Person’s champion within our Executive Board that will ensure that the voice of children and young adults is loud and clear.

All children, regardless of background, will have access to quality Welsh-medium education to become fluent in Welsh and English. To continue to grow the language in Carmarthenshire, we must also focus on the use of the Welsh language outside of the school setting. Carmarthenshire Labour are committed to contining support for Welsh language adult learning course in our county, and explore a new strategy for increasing the use of Welsh within households.

- 24 - Leading A Modern, Transparent Council With strong leadership and a clear vision, together we will deliver for all of Carmarthenshire.

We do not agree with the outsourcing of public services to the private and third sector in an attempt to deal with budgetary restraints. We are committed to working with our trade union colleagues to create in-house improvement plans where there is a need for service savings and improvements. To demonstrate our commitment to our Council-run public services, we will appoint an Executive Board Member for Finance & Backsourcing. The Member will be responsible for working to return previously Council-run services back in-house.

Our local authority workers deserve to be paid at least the Living Wage Foundation rate of £8.45 per hour and a Labour-led authority will work with trade unions to become a Living Wage Foundation accredited employer by the end of the term.

Transparency within our Council needs to improve and we will ensure that the public are able to hold all Councillors to account. We will seek to introduce webcasting of scrutiny meetings, after the success of our current webcasting policy. We will also seek to improve the written recording of scrutiny meetings to highlight the Member that has raised questions in the meeting and assess the cost associated with introduction of recorded votes for all agended items in Full Council meetings.

You can always judge the character of an administration by the manner in which they treat those in need. We believe in a compassionate and open Carmarthenshire that supports those fleeing persecution and danger. Those seeking asylum in Carmarthenshire are often in need of support and guidance on how to access local WHAT WE ACHIEVED services. We will seek funding to appoint a refugee - Improved transparency within the Authority coordinator to address hate with the introduction of webcasting. crime, community cohesion - Developed the structure to achieve phased human trafficking, refugee introduction of Living Wage. and immigration. We will also - Held Executive board meetings in local continue to participate in the communities across the County to increase resettlement programme for accountability. Syrian refugees. - Set up liaison forum meetings with Town and Community Councils across the County. We will seek to bring fairness into our pay structures within

- 25 - our Council. In addition to the publishing of our OUR PLEDGES yearly Pay Policy, we will hold quarterly meet- ings with trade union colleagues to discuss our To appoint an Executive Board workforce and provide regular updates on our Member for Backsourcing to return Council-run services back progress in tackling the wage disparity between the in-house. lowest paid employee within the Council and the Chief Executive. We will also work with our trade Deliver a real Living Wage for union colleagues to bring fairness into our pay the lowest paid in our Authority. structures, including bringing future senior salaries back in-line with the Welsh average. Seek funding to appoint a refugee coordinator.

This manifesto will be the blueprint for our Quarterly meetings with trade delivery as a Labour-led Council. The amount of union reps to discuss workforce. public money being spent on private consultants across Wales is a scandal. We pledge Implement a fairer wage that taxpayers’ money will not be spent on structure bringing senior salaries inline with the average employing private consultants to advise on across Wales. service delivery or managing financial pressures. We will also ensure that Improve transparency within Carmarthenshire Council once again becomes a our Council. Council that is led by the elected representatives, carrying out our manifesto promises laid out in Will not use taxpayers’ money on employing private this document. Under Labour leadership, we will consultatnts. run a transparent, modern and fair Council. Together for Carmarthenshire we will deliver the change that is needed for our County to prosper.

- 26 - “ this manifesto will be the blueprint for our delivery ”

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