Latest news with #HughJones
Leader Live
08-07-2025
- Business
- Leader Live
Lead member defends Tŷ Pawb as jewel in Wrexham's cultural crown
That was the core of an impassioned defence of the cultural market by Hugh Jones, Wrexham Council's lead member for Strategic Planning and Public Protection. Wrexham County Borough Council's Employment, Business and Investment Scrutiny Committee was examining a report into Tŷ Pawb's finances which showed the centre is improving it's financial position, but is still making significant losses. This year it is projected to make a loss of £89,000 – it's lowest loss for four years. Labour group leader Dana Davies led the probe by councillors. 'We're in a better position than we've seen previously and overspend is coming down year-on-year,' she said. 'Where are we sitting with our repairs and maintenance? I know we've had issues with the roof but I want to understand the future R&M costs. 'We also need a breakdown of the premises cost – R&M, utilities, rates, cleaning and waste removal come to £374,000, that seems high.' Cllr Jones said he would ask finance to provide that breakdown, but Plaid Cymru Cllr Andy Gallanders of Rhosnesni criticised the lead member. 'I'm disappointed in the reply you gave to Cllr Davies,' he said. 'You should know the finances inside out. 'It's also interesting Hugh, as lead member, that you've now admitted that the building once highlighted as the 'Crown Jewel' is not so sparkling anymore. 'Are the losses just the price for culture or a project that wasn't done right in the first place – i.e the building not being watertight? 'If this was a school, we'd be putting it into a three-year plan for deficit recovery. So what's the difference between this and our schools – where our headteachers are losing staff left, right and centre? Is it simply the cost of culture?' Read more: Popular arts centre still struggling to make profit Cllr Jones and Amanda Davies, city centre arts and culture lead, highlighted progress that had been made to reduce energy costs through solar power and challenges, including the allocation of 50 corporate car parking spaces at Tŷ Pawb for council staff. Cllr Jones defended Tŷ Pawb – arguing that the value of its contribution to culture and society in Wrexham far outweighed the costs it continued to incur. 'There is a cost of culture. There is a cost of fulfilling the council priorities, there is a cost to fulfilling the Welsh Government priorities in terms of community engagement and involvement,' he said. 'That's never going to come for nothing. 'When the Quarterbridge report first came out people were skeptical about our ability to get 100,000 people a year through the door at Tŷ Pawb, we've actually got 471,000 people through the door in the last 12 months. 'Tŷ Pawb is still the jewel in the crown for Wrexham. We have to realise the contribution that Tŷ Pawb makes to the community of Wrexham. Particularly to those communities that are difficult to reach. 'This doesn't cover the contribution Tŷ Pawb makes to improving people's lives across a wide section of the community in Wrexham. You can't put that down in pounds, shillings and pence. It delivers a huge community benefit and a benefit to us all. 'Yes we've got problems with the building but we're dealing with that. Overall, I believe Tŷ Pawb has been a success. You can't put a price on enriching people's lives so I would defend everything we do.'
The Guardian
04-07-2025
- Science
- The Guardian
Pot-plant trade is ‘hitchhiker pathway' for invasive flatworms, say UK experts
They have been invading the UK for years; small mucus-covered animals which hunt in gardens, allotments and greenhouses. The number of sightings of non-native flatworms has risen sharply over the past few years, and experts have warned they can decimate earthworm populations and degrade soil quality. Land flatworms are non-segmented worms, which feed on a range of soil organisms from woodlice to worms. In the UK the number of non-native species has risen from two in the 1950s to 14 in 2020. Only a few of these can really be categorised as 'invasive', according to the planarian specialist Hugh Jones, because of the 'measurable damage' they inflict on ecosystems. 'There are three in the UK which I'd loosely call invasive, two of them definitely: the New Zealand flatworm, the Australian, and the Obama all eat earthworms,' he said. Once established you cannot eradicate them, only mitigate the worst of the harm. Earthworms are ecosystem engineers. They enrich soil by passing it through their digestive systems, moving organic matter into deeper layers, and their burrows help stop compaction. According to the ecology professor Rene van der Wal, from the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, invasive flatworms drive down the numbers of earthworms 'to extremely low levels'. The knock-on ecosystem effects include a reduction in mole populations as their earthworm diet disappears. There is no definitive research on the extent to which this is affecting agriculture. Populations of the New Zealand flatworm are growing in Scotland and northern England, while the Australian flatworm is spreading out from its strongholds in Lancashire, south Wales and south-west England. The sharp increase in non-native species in recent decades is attributed to global trade, particularly in potted plants and soils, David Smith, advocacy and social change manager from the charity Buglife, told the Guardian. Over recent years, this regulatory framework has been shifting. Post-Brexit, Britain can import potted plants from Europe, but only export bare-root. That could change with the new UK-EU trade deal, which will revise 'phytosanitary' plant health regulations, including in ornamental plants. The deal has been agreed in principle, but details are still being negotiated. The National Farmers Union has welcomed it, suggesting that with Britain poised to re-enter the European plant health area, we could soon see an end to border control checks and phytosanitary certification for most plant products traded with the EU. Others, however, are concerned this could accelerate the spread of invasive species, including flatworms. Of particular concern is the New Guinea flatworm, the only flatworm that features in the International Union for Conservation of Nature's 100 of the World's Worst Invasive Alien Species list. It has extirpated entire snail populations on some islands, and poses a threat to snails across Europe. So far, sightings have been reported in France but not yet in Britain. It is, says Smith, 'a ferocious predator'. 'It's been found in greenhouses in Europe but not yet in the wild. It wouldn't take much climate change for it to move out and succeed, or to be transported to a place that's more suitable to it – some micro-climates within the UK, for instance.' Unlike flying insects, flatworms 'rely entirely on human activity for dispersal, typically arriving hidden in soil or potted plants', Smith said. 'Current biosecurity measures are insufficient to detect and intercept them, enabling their escape into gardens and the wider countryside.' Sign up to Down to Earth The planet's most important stories. Get all the week's environment news - the good, the bad and the essential after newsletter promotion The soil was not policed, van der Wal said. Plants are checked at borders 'but they're being checked for what's on their surface, and on the soil's surface. Sometimes they may look into the soil itself, but essentially they're looking at the health of the plant, and not at hitchhiker species.' Instead of deregulating the pot plant trade, which risks opening the door even wider to more harm, the trade deal could go the other way, and help close major entry points by banning all imports of soil and products containing soil. The horticulture industry opposes this. 'They say it's easier to move plants in soil, and to sustain them whilst they're being transported and in warehouses,' Smith said. But this was how non-EU imports were already managed, and to extend the practice to the EU would be straightforward, he said. While the invasive flatworms already in Britain are here to stay, the UK-EU trade deal offered a rare opportunity to close off a 'hitchhiker pathway' for the arrival of more invasive species, Smith said. If this is not done, he warned the risk would grow of British-based invasive flatworms being unwittingly exported to other parts of Europe, and of other species moving to Britain. Buglife encourages anyone who finds a flatworm to submit a sighting via its PotWatch survey.
The Hindu
26-04-2025
- Sport
- The Hindu
Cheptegei, Chepngeno lead the field in TCS World 10K run
The 17th edition of the TCS World 10K run, with nearly 35,000 enthusiastic participants, is set to liven up an idyllic Sunday morning here. The streets of central Bengaluru will wear a festive look bright and early, as the event commences at 5.30 a.m. with the elite World 10K Women. The World 10K Men will be flagged off from Cubbon Road at 6.08 a.m., followed immediately by the Open 10K. The early start for elite runners is bound to quicken the pace, given that the sun will not be out in full force. The route, meanwhile, has undergone some changes to accommodate faster timings. 'The course is in good shape, and we have taken feedback from last year to navigate a less intimidating route. The inclined stretch on Kamaraj Road that was at the final stretch of the route is now at the middle of race, making it more accessible and friendly to all participants,' race director Hugh Jones said. Reigning Olympic 10,000m champion Joshua Cheptegei will lead the field in the World 10K Men category. Gabriel Gerald Geay, who finished seventh in the World Championship Marathon three years ago, will challenge Cheptegei. Uganda's Stephen Kissa, who finished third here in 2017, is another notable contender. Nicholas Kimeli holds the course record for men at 27:38s. Kenyan runner Cintia Chepngeno is one of eight women who have clocked personal bests faster than the course record of 30:35s, held by her compatriot Irene Cheptai since 2022. Eritrean athlete Rahel Daniel, who finished fifth in 10,000m in the 2022 World Championships, will be Chepngeno's primary challenger. The Indian elite men's field will be spearheaded by Sawan Barwal, who recently set a 10,000m meet record at the Federation Cup. Sanjivani Jadhav, 2017 Asian Championships 5,000m bronze medallist, starts as favourite among Indian elite women. The World Athletics Gold Label Race offers a total prize purse of $210,000.
