Economic Renewal Programme consultation response

The aim of the Welsh Assembly Government’s Economic Renewal Programme is to establish a “renewed approach to economic development in Wales that will encourage a stronger and more sustainable economy; to meet the challenges of climate change and increase the prosperity and long-term well-being of the people of Wales”.

Our response has recommendations for the renewed approach to economic development, including the need for it to have as its focus the delivery of the vision of a sustainable Wales in the sustainable development scheme, One Wales: One Planet, and seize the potential that this presents for the creation of new ‘green jobs’.

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Response to the Sustainable Development Commission's request for input to their Low Carbon Regions report

The SDC asked for contributions to address the question of ‘When can a region call itself a Low Carbon Region?’ In our response, we referred to our recommendations on the Wales Spatial Plan (WSP) consultation in 2008 and we considered how the definition should relate to the UK and Wales targets, the powers and influence of the WSP regions, approaches to a carbon reduction strategy and carbon-impact appraisal. We also highlighted the importance of public engagement and useful low carbon case studies.

The SDC’s final report has now been published, and can be accessed here.

Response to the consultation on a ‘National Energy Efficiency and Savings Plan’

This Welsh Assembly Government document has the extremely important aim of reducing energy use and greenhouse gas emissions in Wales, and ensuring that everyone in Wales can access help and support to enable them to do this. Amongst some of the comments made in our response we:

- welcome the focus on practical, short term actions that can have an immediate impact, but suggest that there should be greater clarification as to how these actions will sit alongside longer term, more significant actions;

- welcome the fact that the Plan seeks to contribute to addressing both priorities of tackling climate change and promoting social justice, but question whether both of these are equally and adequately addressed in the document;

- suggest that a fourth key objective be added in relation to energy security and the need for all households and sectors to become resilient to future energy challenges such as ‘peak oil’;

- welcome the use of the ‘energy hierarchy’, where reducing energy demand is prioritised

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Green Jobs for Wales Response

Our response to this consultation welcomes the acknowledgement that the Welsh Assembly Government has a “responsibility to the people of Wales to direct economic growth in a way that will meet the needs of their future”; and that this will provide new opportunities for existing businesses and for creating new jobs. The Strategy is a timely and appropriate approach to creating new jobs given the economic and ecological crisis faced; but needs to impart a greater sense of importance and urgency in terms of the need to restructure, future-proof and build resilience. Amongst the other recommendations made in our response, we suggest that:

- this Strategy must not be regarded as presenting a ‘niche’ of the economy, but as the overarching employment and economic strategy supporting the WAG’s central organising principle of SD;

- there is a need for the Strategy to speak to a broader range of stakeholders;

- support must be provided to develop the necessary skills, education, training and enable infrastructure in order for the Strategy to be achieved;

- A positive sense of opportunism is needed, stressing the exciting potential for Wales to lead on a new kind of economy.

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Defining a Sustainable Economic Future for Wales - Collected Essays

The 20 essays are from a broad range of contributors and contain a rich diversity of opinion and outlook. There is concern for both the present and the future: economically, environmentally and socially. Yet the overwhelming perspective is one of optimism. There appears a widespread belief in the creativity, industry and culture of Wales. More prominent still is a belief in all that Wales and its people offer.

Cynnal Cymru-Sustain Wales response to 'One Wales: One Planet', the Welsh Assembly Government's consultation on a new Sustainable Development Scheme for Wales

The response is a synthesis of comments and suggestions gathered from our members, friends and directory-registered projects; Transformation Nation partners, board members and staff. It follows on from Cynnal Cymru-Sustain Wales’ Transformation Nation report, which was submitted to WAG in September 2008 in order to inform the remake of the Scheme at an early stage.

In our response we welcome the desire to position SD as the "overarching strategic aim" of the Welsh Assembly Government (WAG), and the Scheme's evolution from a legally required and internally-focussed document, into one that WAG believes "should be seen as a sustainable development scheme for the people of Wales" and "will allow organisations in Wales to align their activities to".

We recommend improvements with regard to clarity of purpose, delivery, focus and ambition; and suggest how we as an organisation could support WAG achieve the desired wider involvement and engagement in the Scheme.

Transformation Nation

We've recently submitted a report to the Welsh Assembly Government on the Sustainable Development Scheme and Action Plan, which focuses on the actions that can be taken to drive the SD agenda forward in Wales in next 4 years and beyond. Find out more about our report and the Government's progress with re-making a new Sustainable Development Scheme for Wales.

Wales Spatial Plan response

Earlier this year Cynnal Cymru responded to the Welsh Assembly Government’s consultation on ‘People, Places, Futures - Wales Spatial Plan 2008 Update’. The response drew on a series of workshops with Cynnal Cymru members, as well as evidence gathered during the research for our ‘Transformation Nation’ report. The response concluded that the Update presents an opportunity for a mature, evidence based, inclusive and well thought through Spatial Plan to physically deliver SD in Wales. It includes 14 recommendations to make the Wales Spatial Plan reflect the challenges of sustainable development, and to progress our understanding and delivery of sustainable development through spatial planning and partnerships.

You can view the full report here.

A Sustainable Economy for Wales

This report was published by Cynnal Cymru in June 2006, but its content is still just as relevant today – particularly in light of forthcoming WAG consultations on the Sustainable Development Scheme and Green Jobs Strategy. It was the result of a workshop held by Cynnal Cymru specifically intended to consider sustainable development from an economic perspective. The report provides some background on how we might think of sustainable development, and how this relates to the Welsh context; considers what a ‘sustainable’ Wales would look like, and what kind of economy would underpin such a region; and illustrates how the acceptance of sustainability criteria for policymaking might involve short-term economic pain, but also gain us ‘first mover’ advantage that could translate to long-term gain.

You can read the full report here.