Welsh Government £12 million refugee spending scheme

Lowri Powell News Editor

The Welsh Government’s “super sponsor” scheme spent over £12 million to house 3,028 refugees from Ukraine. Figures show that £5.17 million was paid to the Urdd to use one of its facilities as a welcome centre. Whilst they also spent £5.4 million on a total of 27 hotels to house the Ukrainian refugees temporarily.

The super sponsor scheme by the Welsh Government was launched to pair refugees with sponsors who housed them anywhere in the UK. Initially, the Welsh Government agreed that they would offer up to 1,000 Ukrainians accommodation and care in Wales. This scheme was launched in addition to the Homes for Ukraine scheme by the UK which launched in March 2022. The Homes for Ukraine scheme allows citizens, charities, groups and businesses to bring Ukrainian refugees to safety.

The initial plan was to house the refugees in welcome centres before moving to long-term accommodation. The welcome centres were made to provide “wrap-around support” as they kick start their new life. To help find work, enrol children into schools, and find any financial support they are eligible for. The main welcome centre was at the Urdd facilities, whilst also at accommodation at universities, holiday parks and the site of a former school in the Vale of Glamorgan. The school thanks to the council and Welsh Government for the “significant investment”. To date, this cost the Welsh Government £864,410 for this short-term accommodation for the refugees.

The Welsh Government anticipated that the refugees would take weeks to kick start their new life, instead it was mostly months. Due to the longer settling in period, refugees now have to contribute to their costs after five weeks. From 2023, the refugees will undergo a three-phase approach: starting with a five-week welcome phase in temporary accommodation, free of any payments. This will be followed by a second five-week support phase where they are expected to pay from £25 per week or £37 for a family of four if they decline further accommodation. Their Universal Credit payments from the Welsh Government will most likely cover this. During the final phase, the refugees will leave their temporary accommodation and settle into their own homes.

Many refugees have settled into life in Wales, especially 22-year-old Iryna Matuseyych and her sister Lina Matuseyych who arrived at the Urdd centre in the summer months of 2022. Iryna, a biology and chemical engineering graduate who holds a Masters in ElectroCoagulation Processing, was spotted by Power and Water, a wastewater treatment company in Swansea. Harry Cowen, CEO of Power and Water, approached Iryna to offer her a job. He said “She was exactly the candidate we had been looking to employ. Her knowledge and attitude is remarkable and we have no doubt she will make a major contribution to our business”. Iryna now works as a graduate process engineer for Power and Water, said: Iryna, who has now found her own place to live and settled into her new job, said: “I would like to say a massive thank you for the welcome I have had to Wales and for being given the opportunity to build a new life here. If I hadn’t been given support when I first arrived here it doesn’t bear thinking about.” Despite this thorough plan, volunteers became broken and housing options became bleak. A housing shortage and a lack of interest among households in Wales to house refugees has prolonged the rehousing process for refugees. 1,500 remain in hotels, holiday parks and other temporary accommodations. One refugee said, “They call it a welcome centre because they say it’s temporary, but it’s not. There is such a shortage in housing options that the only viable option is to make those who have arrived through the scheme stay in the hotels.”

Sponsors are also struggling with the change of homing Ukrainian refugees have on their families. A sponsor said, “It was certainly more challenging than we anticipated. I think when you take someone into your home you perhaps don’t know just how difficult the situation is going to be for everyone and each family.” Especially with the rise of the cost of living, many sponsors didn’t feel sponsors were receiving sufficient financial support. One told WalesOnline, she had to start charging rent to those staying with her due to the rise of bills.

Despite the struggles Wales has faced, Jane Hutt, Minister for social justice said Wales is committed to being a Nation of Sanctuary. “More than 500 people have now moved on from initial accommodation into a place of their own.

“We are continuing to work with local authorities and the third sector to support moving on.”

Andrew and Tristan Tate facing arrest in Romania

Michal Lewis Contributor

Brothers Andrew (36) and Tristan (34) Tate are now facing arrest in Romania, due to allegations of rape, exploitation, and human trafficking.

Former professional boxer and social media persona Andrew Tate was arrested on the twenty-ninth of December last year in Romania. The arrest happened due to allegations that include rape, exploitation, and human trafficking. Along with Tate his brother, Tristan, and two Romanian women who are said to be their accomplices were also arrested. They are all claimed to have participated in: the exploitation of several women for the making of pornographic content, in human trafficking, rape, and in forming an organized crime group. To seduce the six vic - tims identified so far, the brothers are said to have pretended to be romantically interested in them before leading them to different properties on the outskirts of Bucharest where they were made by force to produce pornographic content, which was then uploaded online and gave the four suspects a large profit.

On the thirty of December, the Romanian court decided to extend the brothers’ arrest for thirty more days until the twenty-seventh of February.

The police also released pictures from the properties in which the crimes allegedly took place, which is said to be one of the five properties linked to all four suspects.

Both brothers denied all crimes that are attributed to them and appealed the decision to keep them in prison, but this attempt was declined. Meanwhile, their lawyer Eugene Vidieneac said that no new pieces of evidence were presented since the start of the investigation aside from the rape victim’s statement, and keeping the two in custody is not justified. Vidieneac also argued that the defense team was not granted access to the criminal investigation file in order to make a proper defense strat- egy.

Aside from the decision to keep them in custody, the police also seized fifteen luxury cars and ten properties, saying that due to the Tates’ high financial status, there is a high possibility that, once they are out of arrest, they will try to flee the country before the investigation is completed.

Andrew Tate is previously known for his misogynistic opinions which he posts regularly on different social media platforms and got banned from TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube. Many of his videos preach misogynistic messages to the millions of followers he gained on all platforms, and contain very controversial, sexist statements. In the videos, he also advises men on how they should behave. Some have already named him the ‘king of toxic masculinity’ and expressed worry that his controversial sayings have damaged young men’s behavior toward women. A lot of education professionals also publicly ex- pressed their fear that Tate’s extreme views were radicalizing young men.

Now, from his jail cell, the influencer sent his followers an email, in which he complained about the conditions of his imprisonment. Tate wrote that his room is full of “cockroaches, lice and bed bugs” and stated that the authorities are “trying to break my Iron Mind with unjust imprisonment”. His Twitter account stayed active after the arrest, but it is not clear whether it is he or his representatives who are posting the Tweets on his page.

The investigation team now has a tight schedule to prove that a crime has occurred to keep the suspects in custody any longer, as neither of the brothers is yet to have been charged.

Alec Baldwin to be charged with manslaughter

Luis Atkinson News Editor

Renowned US actor Alec Baldwin is reported to be charged with involuntary manslaughter, following an incident on set of the film Rust in October 2021 within Santa Fe, New Mexico which resulted in the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.

The District Attorney for Santa Fe, Mary Carmack-Altwies, announced the charges on Thursday 12th December, claiming that the charges would be filed by the end of January. The statement said “actor and producer Alec Baldwin and armourer Hannah Gutierrez Reed will each be charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter… I have determined that there is sufficient evidence”. Moreo- ver, the District Attorney added, “on my watch, no one is above the law, and everyone deserves justice”.

Additionally, according to prosecutors, the film’s assistant director David Halls will serve six months’ probation due to the charge of ‘negligent use of a deadly weapon’.

In contrast, however, Mr Baldwin’s lawyer, Luke Nikas, labelled the decision “a terrible miscarriage of justice”.

It was reported by the BBC that the actor was rehearsing a scene for the film, and the actor was unaware of the live rounds contained in the gun.

According to Mr Nikas, Baldwin had “no reason to believe there was a live bullet in the gun - or anywhere on the movie set”. He had relied on personnel such as the film’s armourer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed – also charged with manslaughter – on ensuring the gun’s safety.

Following the incident, Mr Baldwin had argued that the gun was misfired, that he did not pull the trigger and was unaware of the fact that it was loaded. He said “I don’t know what happened on that set. I don’t know how that bullet arrived in that gun. I don’t know”.

It was reported that after the shooting, Ms Hutchins passed away in hospital a short time after she was shot in the chest by the same gun Mr Baldwin had allegedly misfired.

In addition to the criminal cases ensuing after the shooting, Mr Baldwin has also allegedly filed a lawsuit against personnel involved in the film, including Ms Gutierrez-reed and Mr Halls, on the grounds of alleging that they failed to check the gun properly for safety.

Baldwin and the production companies involved in the film, had pre- viously reached a settlement with the Hutchins family, claiming that all parties believed that her death was an accident; the terms of the settlement are undisclosed.

In response to the charges, Todd Bullion, a lawyer for Ms. GutierrezReed, denounced the announcement as the culmination of a “very flawed investigation and an inaccurate understanding of the full facts”. Mr. Bullion also said, “Hannah is, and has always been, very emotional and sad about this tragic accident… but she did not commit involuntary manslaughter.”

Prosecutors overseeing the case have claimed that both parties involved could face up to 18 months in jail and a $5,000 (£4,040) fine if convicted and that the cases will be tried in the presence of a jury.

Swansea Airport to open in the Spring

Jasmine Jones Contributor

For the first time since 2004 passenger flights will depart from Swansea Airport in the Spring.

In a series of regeneration plans for South Wales air travel, Swansea Airport has announced it will start providing a Swansea to Exeter direct route in the coming months after two decades of no passenger travel. The statement was made on its social media pages this week, explaining its long-term goals for the airport.

In an attempt to provide increasing access to holiday travel for people residing in and around the Gower area, the move allows for easily interchangeable travel with connecting flights from Exeter going onto popular destinations such as Spain, Ireland, and the Channel Islands.

A statement read: “Scheduled services are back! Swansea Airport are pleased to announce that Scheduled Services will re-launch from Swansea Airport this year. The end of March will see the start of services between Exeter and Swansea, joining the airport with Exeter provides interchange access to airports across the UK as well as the Channel Islands, Ireland, and Spain. This is the first step in a long planned improvement plan for the airport which will see further infrastructure and services returning to the airport over the year.”

The airport, which is little more than an airbase, has been described by Swansea Councillor Chris Evans as being in “a very, very sorry state”. The new Swansea to Exeter flights hope however to be just the first step in the plan to revamp the Airport, with further infrastructure and passenger services to return in the next few years.

Swansea Council, who currently own the site, have expressed their desire to find new ownership for the airport citing “costs” and the “significant” carbon emissions involved. Currently the council is aiming to be net carbon zero by 2030, seemingly a tough ask with the reintroduction of local passenger flights.

The move does however bring some positivity for travellers in the area, especially with the recent news that Wizz Air is to pull all its planes out of neighbouring Cardiff Airport. Welsh Liberal Democrat leader Jane Dodds has said serious questions need to be asked about the future of the airport. She stated that “With a bill of £210m since the Welsh government purchased the airport and no sign of things improving, taxpayers will rightly be asking what value for money they are getting.”

The state of air travel in and out of Wales needs to be continually evaluated, but the reopening of Swansea Airport to passengers has ultimately been met with confidence from the public .

Services between Exeter and Swansea, joining the airport with Exeter provides interchange access to airports across the UK”