Robert Lloyd - a Sir Gar Blog of random news . . . and some Clecs!

Llanelli Rotary Club are staging a Young Chef competition for Llanelli school pupils. The competition is being staged at Bryngwyn Comprehensive School on Wednesday, February 6. The event is part of a national competition which offers a host of prizes, including a trip to Tuscany, a day’s tuition with a Michelin-star chef in the UK and a cash prize. One of the organisers of the Llanelli heat of the competition is Rotarian Alison Evans. She said: "Rotary International in Great Britain and Ireland believes it is highly important to encourage and develop creativity in young people, and this includes creativity in the kitchen. "Cooking among young people is a growing interest and a valuable life skill. Schools seem to agree and hence the RIBI Young Chef competition, in association with Filippo Berio, moves forward from strength to strength each year producing some superb quality cooking from our young people aged from 11 to 17." The Llanelli competition judges...

One man and his dog as pictured at the Millennium Coastal Park in Llanelli by Mrs Lloyd. This message has been sent from Robert Lloyd's laptop, which means he is out and about at the moment. If you need him in a hurry, then call the mobile 07777683637.

Kevin Green, Burry-Port-based multi-millionaire and star of TV’s Secret Millionaire, said – “Universal Credit' is said by Government to become law from October 1 next year. This will have a major negative impact on the private rented sector as all benefit money will be paid directly to tenants and all grouped together in one lump through the Department of Work and Pensions. “It will be a major headache for landlords as some tenants have no idea how to budget. They will even be responsible for paying a percentage of council tax, even though their benefit allowance is being cut. Potentially, this could lead to mass evictions as tenants fail to pay landlords the rent. “The end result will be very costly to Government ultimately as they are obliged to cover the cost of emergency housing for evicted tenants. Many landlords may go bust as a result. It is a worry for landlords and I suspect many will make the decision not to rent at all to housing benefit tenants. “Interest rates l...

A major new Scarlets heritage project has been given the go-ahead with funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund to inspire new generations in rugby and local history. The Scarlets have been awarded a £100,000 grant for a unique heritage trail that will celebrate Llanelli and its rugby club’s great history with the aim of inspiring young people to find out more about the rich culture and sporting legacy of the region. The Scarlets have been supported in their plans and bid to the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) in a joint collaboration with Llanelli RFC, the former players association and Crys16, the Scarlets’ Supporters Trust along with support from stadium partners, Carmarthenshire County Council. The focus of the new heritage trail project based at Parc Y Scarlets is to inspire, safeguard and promote the great heritage and history of Scarlets rugby and its intrinsic links with Llanelli and people across the county. The trail will promote awareness of the link between local history and L...

David Butler, director of Carmarthen-based-chartered accountants and business consultants Clay Shaw Butler, said - “We are seeing an increasing number of graduates flooding the market seeking work experience and looking for small/medium enterprises locally to gain work experience and training and to acquire an accountancy professional qualification. Living locally minimises their costs as they live with mum and dad. Often these skills are lost in small Welsh towns and we welcome the opportunity for taking advantage of this opportunity. “In view of the increased Annual Investment Allowance up to £250,000 from the 1 January 2013, many businesses will take advantage of this to move forward their businesses, take the associated tax savings and in turn help growth within the economy. Likewise. the reduction in the Corporation Tax Rate reduces the tax burden tremendously. “More than 75 per cent of executives now engage in social media believing this to increase their business turnover ...

Schemes which have improved quality through better use of resources are being recognised in Best of Health Staff Awards. Hywel Dda Health Board’s Best of Health Staff Awards recognise and reward staff who go the extra mile in their day-to-day work, as well as demonstrating innovation in improving practice. The three finalists in the improving quality through better use of resources category are: The E-rostering project rollout  The E-rostering project rollout started in 2010 and the project provides an efficient rostering system eliminating the need for wasteful paper based processes. The E-rostering team aims to help managers to increase productivity by controlling resources effectively in relation to patient or service demand. E-rostering also supports flexible working, improved patient experience and helps to save money. Development of a Spasticity Management Service  Spasticity is an excessive contraction of muscles which can affect people as a result of a stroke, multiple...

Philip Lewis, managing director of the award-winning architectural firm the Lewis Partnership, of South Wales, said - “Cooperation and partnerships are the words which crop up again and again as we look forward to 2013. Increasingly, we are finding benefits from partnerships and alliances with construction firms and consultancies. “There is a big drive to produce eco-friendly, sustainable and environmentally-friendly buildings. If you can show evidence that you can work in tandem with other businesses to produce such buildings then your chances of securing more work are greatly improved. “We are now finding that local authorities are building up alliances which offer greater economy of scale and value for money for the taxpayer. “For example, the Carmarthenshire, Neath Port Talbot and Swansea City councils are forging their own new framework organisation to pick key contractors. “Securing places on local authority frameworks can be crucial. Investment in the right management an...

Vote aims to pitch Llanelli versus Carmarthenshire County Council - Wales News - News - WalesOnline Town councillors in former industrial heavyweight Llanelli want to break away from Carmarthenshire County Council – accusing it of “systematically running down” the historic town. A vote in favour of the move “in principle” was set to take place last night in a move unlikely to find favour with the Welsh Government.

The Carmarthen Bay Film Festival is offering 'Early Bird' discount for film-makers wishing to submit entries to the event. The 2013 festival aims to build on the success of the inaugural 2012 event, staging a more expansive festival based around Llanelli. "We were delighted with the success of the first festival," said Carmarthen Bay Film Festival founder and chief executive Kelvin Guy. "All great oaks start from little acorns and we were delighted to get the film festival up and running. It's an attractive event and a great showcase to help put Llanelli and Carmarthenshire on the map. "Lots of people will remember the special Grand Slam screening we put on at Parc y Scarlets last year, plus the many different screenings of films from all over the world at the Stradey Park Hotel. "This year, we are planning to make the festival bigger and better." For film-makers, there is an 'Early Bird' discount of £10 per submission up until Jan...

Charmaine Macmuiris: Carmarthen murder accused to be kept in custody | This is South Wales : A man accused of the Christmas Day killing of a Carmarthen woman has been remanded in custody. David Thomas O'Sullivan, 28, was charged last week with the murder of mother-of-three and grandmother-of-one Charmaine Macmuiris.

Ivor Skinner, director of Burry Port-based courier and delivery firm Celtic Couriers, said – “The logistics industry as a whole continues to feel the effects of the price of fuel combined with a hardening of the insurance market, resulting in higher premiums for fleet operators. “However, the outlook for express overnight parcels business in 2013 is optimistic. “The advent of internet shopping has seen volumes continue to rise year on year. “With this growth comes a number of challenges, not least the ability to achieve first time deliveries, particularly to private addresses. “There is also the thorny issue of who picks up the tab for returns. Retailers cannot push all the problems on to the distribution companies and expect them to absorb all the costs. This is most definitely a shared issue. “With the introduction of route optimisation there is now an ability to reduce our carbon footprint by reducing the number of miles we travel and thereby reducing the amount of fuel we ...

Happy New Year (Blwyddyn Newydd Dda) one and all. Sorry if the blog has been underpowered in recent days. Normal service is now resuming.

Simon Buckley, chief executive of the Llandeilo-based Evan-Evans brewery group, said – “2013 is going to be one of the hardest years for some time for the licensed trade. “Increasing gloom is spreading across the industry, with increased duty on beer planned for the budget and rocketing prices for raw materials. “Pub selling prices are continuing to drop. “There is little doubt that there will be significant rural pub closures in 2013 and many small brewers will not survive. “As far as we are concerned, we have modest plans for 2013 - to increase production across a wider customer base and to bring on line our long awaited bottling plant and new internet beer company. “Margin is the key word for 2013. With increasing unemployment and no short-term Welsh Government initiatives for growth, I think that, for many, 2013 is going to be bleak. “But we are in the market-place, profitable, and now building on what is a great brewing tradition and quality offering. “Will consumers come out to...

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The Llanelli Talking Newspaper for the Blind production team perform carols for listeners every Christmas-time. Here are the 'musical' offerings for this year -