Covid has impacted on the whole health service

I TRIED to get my blood test results this afternoon from bloods taken two weeks ago.

The automatic answering service was mainly in Welsh and somewhere in it I think it said the surgery was closed. Results are only given out after 2pm and this has not happened in the past.

I have various problems with my health and regular blood tests are required to regulate the drugs I take. My regular check-ups at the hospital clinics have been cancelled – although one was done over the phone the others have disappeared.

Earlier today the Welsh Government announced that before you can attend the A&E department you should phone the hospital. When you have an emergency the last thing you want to do is get involved with the hospital switchboard (that’s if you know the number).

I thought it was the Conservatives we had to watch with the NHS but we have a Labour Government in Wales and they seem to be wrecking it day by day.

The death toll from Covid has more than doubled when you count in the patients that had their treatments put on hold or did not even get started.

Bill Symons

Cardiff

TV licence freebie never a good idea

I MAY be in a minority but I have never understood why reaching 75 entitled me to a free TV licence. Why not 65 or 70?

When I was working ,I had far less time to watch TV than I do now but was expected to pay the licence fee and I am sure this applies to nearly all 75-year-olds. I believe the £3 a week (a pint of beer) is not much to ask.

During the lockdown older self-isolating people have relied more than ever on their TVs for company and to relieve the boredom (yes I know there have been far too many repeats) but these are unusual times. Newspapers, of course, try to whip up public outrage but in my opinion this is one freebie that should never have been given. David Gorton

Rumney, Cardiff

Would Schumpeter have liked layout?

THE expression “creative destruction” has over the years come to be associated with the ideas of a former leading economic theorist called Joseph Schumpeter who lived from 1883 to 1950.

When I studied economics among other subjects at university in the 1950s there was a huge emphasis on the ideas of John Maynard Keynes who had died only recently, and I may have felt even then that other important economic thinkers were being as it were sidelined. Schumpeter himself reportedly thought Adam Smith “unoriginal”, Alfred Marshall (one of those who best synthesised pre-Keynesian economics) “confused”, and someone called Leon Walras “the greatest economist of all time”.

But “creative destruction” can belong in the field of present day local authorities too, arguably. You only have to look at the very recent changes in the layout of the town centre of Penarth with the deliberate destruction of a number of carparking spaces and the introduction of a one-way system. The changes seem to have been done hurriedly and without proper full consultation and discussion. When you make any bigger changes, you do not need a “Schumpeter” to tell you that there will be winners and losers.

The pandemic and associated lockdown which is now receding somewhat into the past, with hopefully no second dose, gave the council the opportunity to make these changes quickly, the changes being imposed on the public as a whole without any referendum or other test of public opinion. It is likely that traders in the town will not appreciate the loss of parking spaces.

If one-way traffic is introduced for a section of Windsor Road, or full pedestrianisation perhaps, might the town then be heading for a repeat of what happened in 2003 when the bottom of Glebe Street was pedestrianised and a little later reopened to traffic? Local shopkeepers had complained of a large fall in takings during the quite short period of this limited pedestrianisation.

Creative destruction can be a bit hit and miss perhaps, with some “bright ideas” not living up to their expectations.

There is a problem of too many cars, of too many cyclists as well and in the end too many pedestrians on this over-populated planet. But on a more micro level the hurriedly introduced layout of new parking controls and changed pedestrian footpaths here in Penarth may need revisiting.

Michael O’Neill

Penarth

During the lockdown older self-isolating people have relied more than ever on their TVs... David Gorton Rumney

Funding available for green agenda

WHILE the current coronavirus pandemic is naturally at the forefront of our minds, climate change is still very much a reality.

As the Committee of Climate Change has highlighted, climate investments will play a pivotal role in helping to rebuild the country following the pandemic, encouraging innovation, stimulating job creation and shaping and supporting our economic recovery in an environmentally positive way that will benefit future generations.

Prior to the pandemic the Welsh Government committed to a climate target of net-zero emissions by 2050 and a carbon neutral public sector by 2030. Achieving this requires direct action across all sectors.

Wales is already making substantial strides and is on track to generate approximately 70% of its electricity demand from renewable energy by 2030, with ambitions to make this 100% by 2035. Investments are being made in low-emission transport, with policies supporting an increasing number of electric vehicle charging points.

These measures are a great start, demonstrating how Wales is tackling some of its largest sources of emissions. We need to continue progress in all areas, including Wales’ public sector buildings. Achieving carbon reduction across schools, universities, councils, hospitals and other public facilities will play a key role in reaching the goal of a sustainable future. Simple measures such as lighting upgrades, building management systems and insulation can achieve substantial energy savings.

It is clear that the Government recognises this, but meeting targets will require public building retrofits to happen at a much greater pace, with a focus on the most effective carbon-reduction measures, improving building fabric, air tightness and controls. These measures will also ensure buildings are well placed to maximise the benefits of renewable heat options.

There can be financial barriers in the public sector, but it’s important that energy managers are aware that funding options are available. The Welsh Government can support public sector organisations to reduce their energy consumption through the Wales Funding Programme administered by Salix Finance. The programme provides interest-free loans which are paid back through savings on energy efficiency projects.

If Wales is to reach its net-zero targets, as well as help power a green economic recovery, the public sector must continue to be a key player in the effort to achieve our climate ambition.

Francesca Edmonds, Wales Programme Manager at Salix Finance