THE HERALD FRIDAY JANUARY 27 2017 Like us on Facebook facebook.com/thecarmarthenshireherald


3 News City Deal “could be signed within weeks”


NEGOTIATIONS to secure the


biggest investment for South West Wales in a generation are nearing a conclusion, councillors heard this week.


Leaders of the Swansea Bay City


Region are preparing to pitch their bid for a ground-breaking City Deal worth more than £1.3 billion – an investment that will transform the economic landscape of the area with high-spec digital infrastructure and world-class facilities in the fields of energy, smart manufacturing and innovation in life science. If successful, the City Deal will


deliver nearly 10,000 new jobs and increase the value of goods and services produced in the region by £1.8 billion. The Swansea Bay City Region


includes the local authority areas of Carmarthenshire, Swansea, Pembrokeshire and


Neath Port Talbot, joined by Abertawe Bro Morgannwg and Hywel Dda University Health Boards, Swansea University and the University of Wales Trinity St David’s, and private sector partners.


Partners have worked together


for over a year to develop and submit a detailed City Deal proposal to the Welsh and UK Governments, with 11 specific projects spread across the region.


Following an intensive period of


challenge and negotiation with Welsh Government, the City Deal team will now make the final bid to the Secretary of State for Wales, other UK Ministers and their advisors within the next few weeks. It is hoped that Welsh and UK


Government will be in a position to sign the deal by the end of February, signalling the start of investment and development on an unprecedented scale.


£241m of central government


funding, split between the UK and Welsh Government, would be added to £360m of other public sector funding and £673m of private sector contributions to make up the total investment package. Speaking to the Executive Board


on Monday (Jan 23), Chief Executive Mark James said that the area which made up the Swansea Bay City Region ‘has done pretty poorly since 1999’. He added that if nothing was done, it would take the region until 2030 to return to the position it had been in in 2010.


Mr James explained that the bid


put in had been for £240m, which would be added to £300m existing, and £3/4bn of private sector investment. “The aim is to transform the


region’s economy and skills base,” he added.


Carmarthenshire County Council’s


Executive Board and Full Council have agreed to delegate authority to the Leader, or Chief Executive, to sign a City Deal agreement on behalf of the council. In doing so, they said, they would


be securing a ‘once in a generation opportunity’ to increase prosperity and opportunity within the region. Cllr Emlyn Dole, Leader of the


Council, said: “Our City Deal is unashamedly bold and ambitious – designed to truly transform the fortunes of the region and take it forward as a beacon of enterprise and innovation for future generations. The scale of investment we are hoping to secure has not been seen in the Swansea Bay City Region before. “We have the vision, the ambition,


and the commitment of all partners – all we need now is the backing of the UK Government, and we’re hoping the strength of our bid will deliver just that.”


He added: “We are fortunate and


very grateful that we have already secured great support for this deal - firstly from the Welsh Government, who were amongst the first to recognise the potential this investment would bring to South West Wales, and secondly from fellow members across all political parties at Carmarthenshire County Council who have shown great


Police had to ram drink-driver A DRINK-DRIVER who led


police on a high-speed chase across South-West Wales and was only stopped when police rammed his car was jailed for a year this week. The court heard that Cardiff


resident Kristian Wilsher had come to the attention of police in the St Clears area when his Audi was noticed weaving across the road. He ignored signals from officers to stop, and attempted to escape -


reaching speeds of 110mph - and even continuing to drive after all four tyres were punctured by police using a ‘stinger’. Wilsher rammed a police car


near the Llandarcy junction of the M4, before officers eventually forced him off the road near Port Talbot. He was found to be more than two-and-a-half times the legal alcohol limit. More than £30,000 of damage was caused to police vehicles during


the chase. Appearing at Swansea Crown


Court, the 43-year-old pleaded guilty to charges of dangerous driving, drink driving and failing to stop for a police officer, and was jailed for 12 months. The Judge, Geraint Walters,


told Wilsher that the speed he was driving at was ‘ridiculous’ even had he been sober. He was also disqualified from driving for two years.


enthusiasm about the opportunities we hope to bring.” In Carmarthenshire, the City Deal


would support three key projects – a Life Science and Well-being Village in Llanelli; a creative industry project at Yr Egin in Carmarthen; and a skills and leadership programme. The Life Science and Wellness


Village, planned for Delta Lakes, is being led by the County Council, and delivered as part of the ARCH project. Proposals include an Institute of


Life Science; laboratory and clinic space; business start-up facilities and commercial office space; a wellness hub which will house leisure and


sports provision; a wellness hotel and an assisted living village. Yr Egin involves the construction


of a creative and digital hub and the development of a creative industry sector cluster. It will create around 203 jobs and help the local economy, along with boosting the Welsh language. A skills and leadership programme


will provide educational and training pathways to support the next generation workforce. It is thought, given the response


to a question from Cllr Dai Jenkins on Monday, that all of these projects are dependent on the success of the City Region bid.


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