AND JUST LIKE THAT…

Driver training on the Gaer spur (Photo: Ian Brewer)

And just like that it was gone as if it had never been, blink and you might have missed it... Now that the extensive maintenance in and around Cardiff has finished normal service has been resumed, with trains on the Ebbw Vale line running directly to and from Cardiff. Between May 1^st and May 18^th services ran into Newport with regular services ferrying passengers into our capital city. For 18 days is was entirely practical for potential commuters in the Ebbw valley to make connections to Bristol, Gloucester, Cheltenham and beyond rather than put up with the nonsensical idea of riding the train westward into Cardiff and then picking up a connections eastward. No more, normal service has been restored, which raise the question as to who exactly is making the decision to run services direct into Cardiff, ignoring the potential economic benefits to commuters and to the region – Network Rail? Arriva Trains Wales? The Department for Transport or the Labour in Wales Welsh Government?  My money is on the latter, despite loud and persistent calls for over a number of years for the completion of the long promised permanent rail link from the Ebbw Vale into Newport, nothing has been done. This whiff of inertia and duplicity has Labour in Wales written all over it. The South Wales Argus valiantly took up the gauntlet and actively backed the campaign to restore the rail link from Ebbw Vale to Newport, which would complement the rail link from Ebbw Vale to Cardiff. Our local Labour in Wales elected representatives have gone been awfully quiet foe some time, whether they represent us or their party, may be debatable, but their silence is I feel particularly telling. 

GONGS AND TAXES

No doubt much to the irritation of David Cameron and Ed Milibland tax evasion is back in the news – this time in relation to Take That singer Gary Barlow. At the end of the day it is a matter of semantics and legality when it comes to the differences between tax evasion from tax avoidance, one is a criminal act and one is permitted under the law.  

It is a matter of public record that the PM is against aggressive tax avoidance schemes. He has also been pretty forthright in stating that tax evasion is illegal, and that people can be prosecuted for that, and people can go to prison.

It is also a matter of public record that the Con Dem government ill-advised and perhaps ideologically driven public sector spending cuts have seriously cut staffing levels in HM revenue and Customs. The PM interestingly enough was pretty firm when it came to rejecting calls for particular individuals are stripped of public honours for wrong doing. If you started stripping individuals of titles and honours for wrong doings heaven knows where you might end up even the possibility of party donors ending up embarrassed not to mention devaluing legitimate honours awarded to deserving recipients.

Previously various Westminster governments have been a little half-hearted when it comes to clamping down on tax avoidance. The current PM may have slagged off celebrities, for using a tax avoidance scheme in Jersey. Yet he has seemed to be acutely reluctant to deal the tax havens that happen to be UK Crown Dependent territories. 

Most reasonable people accept that there is a real need to deal on a global basis with the problem of off-shore companies and those individuals who are actively engaged in tax avoidance, tax evasion and / or money laundering. It’s all a little embarrassing as the problem is that the UK is at the heart of the problem and has chosen not to regulate its own crown dependencies let alone the periodically iffy if not criminal goings on in the City. 

The scale of the on-going off-shore tax avoidance problem may leave you breathless. The Cayman Islands were home to some 12,000 corporations yet have a resident population of 50,000. They were home to around 70% of the planets hedge funds (as of June 2012). The British Virgin Islands with a population of some 22,000 people just happens to be home to some 823,502 registered companies.

General Electric who paid no tax in 2010, made a $14.2 billion dollar profit. Barclay's had 181 subsidiaries (as of June 2012) registered in the Cayman Islands and paid little UK tax on its worldwide profits. News Corp managed to base 152 subsidiaries in tax havens across the planet (according to the US Government) and yet managed to pay no UK corporation tax between 1998 and 1999.

US President Obama was 100% right to suggest that the governments of the world should jointly tackle the issue of tax evasion and tax havens. By tackling the tax havens, the tax avoidance and the questionable dealings of the derivative traders, hedge funds and the off balance sheet trading then we might go so way towards dealing with the consequences of the worldwide financial crash. Yet that nice Mr Cameron and the other 18 millionaires in the cabinet have pretty much stalled when it comes to closing the tax loopholes.

The BVI has incorporated more than a million such offshore entities since it began marketing itself worldwide in the 1980s. Company owners' true identities are never revealed. Even the island's official financial regulators normally have no idea who is behind them. The British Foreign Office depends on the BVI's company licensing revenue to subsidise this residual outpost of empire, while lawyers and accountants in the City of London benefit from a lucrative trade as intermediaries, claiming that the tax-free offshore companies provide legitimate privacy.

THE ECONOMIC BENEFITS OF A ‘YES’

Plaid Cymru Leader Leanne Wood has welcomed a commitment from Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond to initiate a Welsh-Scottish Economic Forum following a 'Yes' vote in this September's referendum. 

Following a meeting with Alex Salmond during which both leaders discussed common economic goals, Ms Wood said:

“Plaid Cymru has consistently argued that the emergence of an independent Scotland would be in Wales' economic, social and political interests. Scotland is already an important trading partner and with the full tools of independence our common aims of boosting the economies of our two countries will be enhanced.

“The commitment to building closer economic ties between our two countries has been demonstrated by First Minister Salmond's intentions to establish a joint economic forum between Wales and Scotland. Such a forum could bring together our businesses and universities to collaborate on a range of economic opportunities such as renewable energy projects and natural resources.

“Our countries enjoy a strong relationship and following a 'Yes' vote in September this will be renewed and strengthened further.”

Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond said:

“The SNP values our friendship and long-standing relationship with Wales. Independence for Scotland offers us all a chance to rebalance the economy of these islands and to do so in a way that ensures we can all benefit from our strengths and resources.

“Following a Yes vote this September, the Scottish Government will seek to build on this relationship by establishing a special economic forum to ensure that we maximise opportunities for business and trade between Scotland and Wales.”

WHEN MINORITY MEANS YOU…

Friday 9^th May 2014 was Victory Day in Russia and the Crimea, a day which is traditionally marked by ceremonies to remember the end of the Great Patriotic War. Ceremonies took place in Moscow and elsewhere including controversially in the Crimea. While many people respectfully remembering the end of the war, and the terrible price paid for final victory over fascism, not everyone was celebrating.

Crimean Tatar leader Mustafa Dzhemilev

For the Crimean Tartars, ominously there may be little to celebrate – the Tartars many of whom served bravely in the then Red Army, were repaid for their loyalty by finishing the war in detention in Central Asia and Siberia. Since the Russian occupation of Crimea, things have not been easy. Last week a senior member of  the Crimean Tatars' self-governing body (the Mejlis) was beaten up by a so-called Russian self-defense group.

The head of the Mejlis department for external ties, Ali Hamzin, told Radio Free Europe / /Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) that unknown individuals in military uniforms had stopped Abduraman Egiz in Simferopol on May 6th and demanded his identification.  Abduraman Egiz who refused to produce his documents, demanded that police be present at the site. The men, who called themselves members of the "Crimean self-defense force" then attacked Egiz and beat him up and searched his vehicle. 

Upon discovering that Egiz was a member of Mejlis, he was released. Ali Hamzin stated that the incident would be reported to the police. It is expected that in the run up to the 70th anniversary of the Crimean Tatars' deportation to Central Asia to be marked on May 18^th that violent attacks against Crimean Tatars will likely intensify. The Crimean Tartar Mejlis has refused to recognize the annexation of Ukraine's Crimea by Moscow in March.

On May 4th, Natalya Poklonskaya, Crimea's de facto prosecutor-general, warned Mejlis leader Refat Chubarov that his organization will be liquidated if it engages in "extremist" activities. This action came amid protests by local Tatars over the authorities’ refusal to allow their veteran leader, Mustafa Dzhemilev, into the region on May 3^rd. Mustafa Dzhemilev, a famous if not legendary Soviet-era dissident and Ukrainian lawmaker, told RFE/RL on May 5^th that Crimean Tatars will continue to fight for their Human rights by peaceful means. 

(Source: RFE/RL's Tatar-Bashkir Service)

A BITTER TASTE…

The Business Secretary Vince Cable’s assurances in the House of Commons to MPs this afternoon that the Westminster Government won’t let Pfizer make use the UK as a tax haven and will secure guarantees for British science jobs have a hollow ring to them. Public concerns have rightly been raised about the proposed hostile takeover of UK pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca by its US rival Pfizer. We have been here before, whatever Vince says by way of comfortable assurances, MP’s would do well to remember Cadburys, which was taken over by Craft (aided and abetted by UK City banks). Cadbury’s Bristol factory was closure announcement came within a week of the takeover, regardless of any assurances from the company. It is worth noting that Pfizer has pledged that if the deal goes ahead, 20% of the combined company's R&D workforce would continue to be based in the UK. While this sounds good, the US firm has said that these commitments would be valid for five years, or unless circumstances changed significantly... 

WAITING FOR A TRAIN

Driver training on the Gaer spur (Ian Brewer)

"The train on platform 4 is for Ebbw Vale Parkway, calling at Risca, Rogerstone, Cross Keys…"

The announcement took me by surprise, especially as I was standing on Platform 2 on Newport Station. No they have not gone and done it, trains from Ebbw Vale to Newport and vice versa are not up and running. The only reason why these trains are running via Newport is because of a programme of improvements (running between 1st May and 18th May). 

There have been loud and persistent calls for many years for the completion of the long promised permanent rail link from the Ebbw Vale into the City but no concrete action.  The South Wales Argus took up the gauntlet and actively backed the campaign to restore the rail link from Ebbw Vale to Newport, which complimented the rail link from Ebbw Vale to Cardiff. In the last 18 months things have gone ominously quiet, with the silence from the Labour in Wales Welsh government and our local Labour representatives becoming particularly deafening. 

Now in relation to the completion of the final stage of the Ebbw Vale to Newport line, my advice would be not to hold your breath. I have begun to suspect, and here I hope I am wrong, that there is and has never been any real intention to complete it. The line as is works perfectly well for the proposed Cardiff City region – perhaps it’s time for the Labour in Wales Government in Cardiff to come clean and admit it? 

TALKING THE TALK...

The Wales Bill 2014, despite its flaws, will go some way (despite Peter the Pains selective moaning) towards strengthening our fledgling democracy.  That said, having read through the draft bill and its amendments I find myself left thinking that the bill remains a missed opportunity when it comes to making devolution work for Wales.

The London based parties having repeatedly and regularly stated that they are committed to further meaningful devolution, yet they have failed to demonstrate any real ambition for Wales. So it comes as no surprise that Labour in Westminster, nominally a party that makes much of its claims to be focused on strengthening the Welsh economy, has tabled nothing but wrecking amendments.

It should have been possible to suggest relatively widely supportive and positive changes which could have delivered some of the tools to do the job of making Wales a more prosperous place. Plaid tabled a wide variety of amendments to improve and strengthen the bill including:

·        Devolving control over setting the number of Assembly Members,

·        Reforming the UK funding formula which sees Wales lose out on £400m a year, and

·  Granting the Welsh Government the power to issue bonds (similar to the Scottish Government).

Most reasonable observers would probably agree that the National Assembly needs more powers to help deliver a sustainable recovery for the Welsh economy and ensure that it becomes a more accountable institution. Whatever is said about the current Wales bill when it is eventually passed it will deliver some more powers, but, nowhere near enough to deliver the real and significant economic change that Wales needs.

Too many powers still remain with Westminster and too many aspects of Welsh people's lives are decided by largely indifferent Westminster based and Westminster focused political parties. We in Wales have to jump through far too many hoops (and there may be many more hoops yet to come) simply to gain the tools needed to deliver for our country economically. 

The Wales Bill could have been Labour in Westminster’s opportunity to show its support for devolution. The choice was a simple one either stands up for Wales or supports the Con Dem Government's attempts to dismantle our welfare state, justice system and meddle with other matters that remain controlled from London.