Apr12017

The Government’s botched business rate revaluation has created a huge and destabilising burden for many businesses – Long-Bailey

Labour
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“Today
many businesses across the country will see their business rates increase
substantially. For some firms, it will seriously threaten their viability and
continued existence. However, today it also transpires that the Government’s
inadequate measures to mitigate these effects are not even in place to help
businesses. The support fund the Government promised is reportedly not even up
and running and nor is the Government clear on how it will work.

 “The
Government’s botched business rate revaluation has created a huge and
destabilising burden for many businesses. Prior to the budget Labour announced
its Five Point Plan for business rates, which promised to set up an Emergency
Relief Fund, undo Tory restrictions on the appeals process, bring forward the
shift from RPI to CPI indexation, and remove most categories of new plant and
machinery from valuations, as well as a fundamental rethink of business rates
in the longer term. Today the Government must rise to Labour’s challenge by
taking action to defuse the ticking time bomb of business rates and bringing
forward additional transitional relief for small and medium sized firms.”

Apr12017

Free prescriptions are a long term investment in people’s health – Vaughan Gething

Welsh Government
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Since 1 April 2007 prescription medicine has been provided free in Wales. All patients registered with a Welsh GP who get their prescriptions from a pharmacist in Wales are eligible.

The GP is one of a number of frontline clinical experts able to prescribe medication. Others include pharmacists and nurses: prescriptions issued by these are also free of charge. 

The decision to abolish prescription charges was taken in light of evidence that some people with serious chronic conditions, such as high blood pressure or heart disease, could not afford their prescriptions and chose to have only part of the prescription dispensed to reduce the cost. 

Health Secretary Vaughan Gething said:

“Free prescriptions were introduced in Wales in 2007 as a long-term investment to improve people’s health. 

“We were the first of the home nations to take the step to introduce free prescriptions and I’m delighted that both Scotland and Northern Ireland followed our lead.

“We firmly believe by providing people with the medication they need helps to keep them well and out of hospital, thereby reducing the overall cost to the NHS.  It should never be the case that people with serious chronic conditions can not afford to collect their prescription.

“Ensuring patients have the medication they need not only improves their own health and wellbeing, it also benefits the health service as a whole by reducing hospital attendance and placing fewer demands on general practitioners.” 

“It is socially irresponsible to charge people with serious chronic conditions for the medication they need. Free prescriptions are progressive and an integral part of our health services in Wales.”

Apr12017

China to set up Xiongan New Area in Hebei

East Asia
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China announced Saturday it would establish the Xiongan New Area in Hebei Province, as part of measures to advance the coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei (BTH) region.

This is another new area with national significance after the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone and the Shanghai Pudong New Area, according to a circular issued by the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and the State Council.

The move is a “major historic and strategic choice made by the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core,” said the circular.

The New Area, about 100 km southwest of downtown Beijing, will span three counties that sit at the center of the triangular area formed by Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei’s provincial capital Shijiazhuang.

The move will help phase out non-capital functions from Beijing, explore a new model of optimized development in densely-populated areas, and restructure the urban layout in the BTH region, according to the circular.

The New Area will cover around 100 square km initially and will be expanded to 200 square km in mid-term and about 2,000 square km in the long-term.