‘Top city’ – but Cardiff faces some tough issues
CARDIFF is one of the UK’s best cities – but it has to overcome issues such as a housing crisis and funding cuts, the leader of the council has said.
In a keynote speech, Huw Thomas said that the capital faces big challenges but even bigger opportunities in the coming year.
Cllr Thomas, in his speech at a ceremony to appoint Cardiff’s new Lord Mayor, also called for a change in the way councils are funded, as his authority faces £90m worth of cuts.
His comments came a week after Cardiff won the bid to host the UK’s biggest media conference – the Creative Cities Convention – beating Glasgow and Bristol.
The capital is also bidding to be the new home of Channel 4, and Cllr Thomas claims it is the best choice for the broadcaster’s headquarters, saying “Cardiff is a bold, enterprising and self-confident city... one of the top cities in the UK.”
He listed the huge developments transforming Cardiff’s heart and predicted 2018 would be the year Central Square “shifts from a regeneration project to a living city district”.
And he said his administration was committed to building new houses.
“In some corners of the city this causes angst, but I make no apology for this,” he said.
“With over 8,000 waiting for social housing and house prices now 20% above the pre-crash peak, there is a housing crisis in Cardiff.
“That’s why we have put forward a radical, long-term investment plan worth £176m, doubling our commitment on new council homes to 2,000.”
The council will work with developers to build more than 6,500 new affordable homes in coming years, he added. Cardiff has seen a noticeable and worrying rise in rough sleeping in the city over the past 18 months.
Cllr Thomas said the city has made great strides in tackling homelessness – including helping 200 people into supported accommodation, carrying out a record number of homelessness assessments and the Give Differently campaign, which saw charity donations being made via a dedicated debit card point.
“But again, such is the scale of the issue, we will need to go further and faster again in 2018,” he said.
Turning to transport, he said the council is consulting on a range of options including – as first revealed in our sister paper the Echo earlier this year – a ‘Clean Air Zone,’ which would charge motorists driving into the centre of the city; an Oyster Card-style ticketing scheme; 20mph zones; cycle superhighways; and a zero-carbon bus fleet.
He also called for a reform of the way councils are funded – which would mean more money for Cardiff, given the disproportionate amount the city contributes to business rates.
“A ‘Fair Funding Review’ has been established in England. It’s time for something similar here in Wales,” said Cllr Thomas.