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The majority of homes purchased through Help to Buy Wales were to first time buyers, accounting for 75 per cent of total completions.

Communities and Children’s Secretary Carl Sargeant has welcomed the figures, saying the Welsh Government’s ambitious housing programme is about providing people with affordable, safe, warm and secure homes in sustainable communities.  

Carl Sargeant said:

“I am pleased that our Help to Buy Wales investment has given many first time buyers the help they need to get their foot on the property ladder.

“The scheme has also helped provide the Welsh housing market with essential momentum and created valuable jobs.

“Last year we announced we would invest up to £290m in a second phase of the scheme to support the construction of more than 6,000 homes which will be part of our target of an additional 20,000 homes during this term of government. This reflects the success of the scheme in providing a route into more affordable home ownership, especially for first-time buyers. It has played a huge role in generating confidence within the housing sector and supporting private housing development.”

Co-operative housing is a model where groups of people collectively own and manage their accommodation, often with support from a registered social landlord. The approach offers affordable housing in a climate where mortgages are difficult to get and house prices too high for many buyers. Co-operative Housing provides another choice of housing and contributes to the Welsh Government’s target of providing 20,000 affordable homes during this term of government. 

The funding will help to scale up the project which has already helped to deliver 99 homes across Wales and is supporting the delivery of a further 75 by developing expertise in different co-operative models and providing advice to developers and co-operative groups. 

The Cabinet Secretary said:

“This funding will allow the Wales Co-operative Centre to build on the progress they have already made in supporting the development of housing co-operatives in Wales. It is just one of the innovative models of housing the Welsh Government is supporting that will contribute to our ambitious target to deliver 20,000 additional affordable homes in Wales over this term of government.” 

Derek Walker, Chief Executive of the Wales Co-operative Centre, said:

“The funding from the Welsh Government is critical to building on the excellent progress that has already been made with co-operative housing here in Wales. It is clear to see that the people and communities across Wales have grasped with enthusiasm the opportunity for co-operative housing.

“The Wales Co-operative Centre will use this funding from the Welsh Government to pay for experts to work with local co-operative housing projects and help them with the range of support they need.”

During this week’s annual TAI Conference held in Cardiff, the Wales Co-operative Centre has also launched a Co-operative Housing Pilot Toolkit, developed with funding from the Welsh Government during the last financial year. It is aimed at helping community groups, housing associations, co-ops, local authorities and others in the initial stages of considering how to develop new co-operative & community-led homes (CCLH). You can download this pilot toolkit by visiting: http://wales.coop/a-guide-to-developing-housing-co-ops/ (external link).

The Co-operative Housing in Wales project has also published its new strategy this month ‘Building homes, creating communities, changing lives’, which outlines how the programme will continue to promote and support an increasing role for co-operative housing in meeting housing need in Wales. The strategy can be viewed at: http://wales.coop/helping-people-set-up-housing-coops/ (external link).

The Cabinet Secretary has taken this decision based on an updated veterinary risk assessment conducted by the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA). However, the temporary suspension on gatherings of some species of birds will remain as additional evidence is considered.

The Cabinet Secretary said:

“Last December I declared the whole of Wales an Avian Influenza Prevention Zone in response to Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza H5N8 outbreaks being reported across Europe, North Africa and the Middle East.  This was a precautionary measure to minimise the risk of poultry and other captive birds being infected by wild birds. 

“We have been closely monitoring this situation and APHA has been preparing updated outbreak risk assessments.  The most recent evidence-based veterinary risk assessment concluded there remains a Low – Medium risk of resident wild waterfowl being infected with H5N8. Meanwhile, the exposure assessment risk for poultry farms is Low, but heightened, and will depend on the biosecurity measures on each farm.  This level is consistent with November 2016, when disease was present across Europe in sporadic outbreaks and occasional wild bird findings were being reported.

“Therefore, I am pleased to announce, following the expiry of the current Avian Influenza Prevention Zone on 30 April, this will not be replaced. Whilst I am sure this is welcome news it is important to remember avian influenza remains a constant and real threat to our poultry and other captive birds.”

The Chief Veterinary Officer for Wales, Christianne Glossop added:

“I would like to stress the need for all keepers of poultry and other domestic captive birds to remain alert for signs of the disease and to contact their private veterinarians if they have any concerns. If anyone suspects disease they should contact the Animal and Plant Health Agency immediately.

“It is essential all keepers maintain effective biosecurity practices, such as considering and updating self assessment forms, cleansing and disinfecting all clothing, equipment and vehicles (using approved disinfectants) and implementing effective pest control measures to minimise the opportunities of contact between their birds and wild birds and wild life.

“We can all play a part in supporting the ongoing surveillance by reporting any findings of dead wild birds to the GB helpline on 03459 335577.  In particular, any wild ducks, wild geese, swans, gulls or birds of prey and where more than five birds of any species are found dead in the same location.   We must also ensure we all comply and respect the biosecurity measures put in place by poultry or other captive bird keepers.

“I would also like to take this opportunity to remind all poultry keepers with 50 birds or more they must register their flocks on the Poultry Register and strongly encourage all poultry keepers, including those with fewer than 50 birds, to register. This will ensure they can be contacted immediately, via email or text update, in an avian disease outbreak enabling them to protect their flock at the earliest opportunity.

“If poultry or other captive birds are being let outside after a prolonged period of being housed I would recommend keepers consult their private veterinarian on the health impacts.”

The special event will address concerns about the supply and creation of Welsh-medium and English-medium text books for the new created in Wales qualifications and the new curriculum that is currently being developed.

It will bring together representatives from the Welsh Government, WJEC, Qualifications Wales, Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol, educational consortia, CYDAG and others to look at the issue of providing the right text books and materials for Wales’ education system.

The summit will look at:

“These latest occupancy statistics show a strong picture for tourism in Wales, and continue to reflect the success  we have experienced over the last two years.

“Figures for the first 9 months of 2016 show a substantial increase of 12% in the number of overseas visitors coming to Wales and a 9% increase in the amount they spend while they are here. We have also seen a significant increase in the number of day visitors coming to Wales.   

“In what is an extremely competitive market place, tourism in Wales is in a strong position.  We’ve had two record breaking years and our aim is to sustain growth – being aware that global events and competition will mean that not every year will be a record breaking one. The overall picture – taking into account tourism day visits, international visitors as well GB overnights visits – indicates that Wales saw an increase of almost 16% in overall tourism volumes during the three quarters of 2016, which includes the important summer peak.”

“We are working hard to sustain these levels of success in 2017 through continued investment in marketing and product development. Our Year of Legends 2017 has also got of to a great start with Wales being named as one of the top must-visit destinations globally from the likes of Lonely Planet Trip Advisor, Wanderlust and Rough Guides.”