Western Mail

Wwf Cymru Appeal - Help Usto Solve Climate Crime

STUDENTS from universities aroundWales will be turning detective this autumn to help solve climate crime forWWF Cymru. This year is the most important year ever for our climate with UN negotiations concluding in Copenhagen in December.

Hain Bids to Stop Drive for Referendum On Devolution

PETER HAIN today bids to halt the campaign for a new devolution referendum in its tracks - insisting the Assembly already gets significant law-making powers. The successes of the current system are being kept "secret" by partisan commentators who do not want to admit that it works, Mr Hain says. The Welsh Secretary will make his case for the status quo in a lecture at Cardiff University tonight, and in today's Western Mail argues that Wales has already been transformed by 12 years of devolution.

More Mail Misery As Talks to Avert Strike Action Fail ; 120,000 to Walk Out in Postal Row

A FRESH wave of postal strikes will go ahead from today after hopes of averting the action collapsed last night. Up to 120,000 members of the Communication Workers Union were due to walk out from 4am, causing huge disruption to mail deliveries.

Today On Walesonline

Inside

The New Channel Ferry Service That Will Rekindle Memories of the Good Old Days ; Daily Service to Start Early Next Year to Link Swansea and Devon

IT'S a world away from the stately old paddle steamers that transported tourists across the Bristol Channel in the middle of the last century. But this high-speed ferry is revealed today as the 21st century successor to the pleasure cruisers that linked South Wales to the south-west of England for decades.

'I Welcome the Participation of the Fans - After All, They Are the Ones Reading It' ; Tolkien Festival to Be Held in Middle Wales

WALES will become a world centre for Tolkien fans next year when a landmark gathering of scholars and devotees takes place. Orcs and hobbits will brush shoulders with leading academics and illustrators as the international event takes place in Machynlleth at a time of growing appreciation for Welsh language and mythology's influence on JRR Tolkien's universe.

University Staff to Hold Action Ballot ; Wales Newsbulletin

Girl Raises Alarm for Grandad ; Wales Newsbulletin

A NINE-YEAR-OLD girl raised the alarm after her grandfather had a heart attack on the beach. The pair were enjoying a walk at 3pm yesterday when the 60-year- old collapsed.

Buddha Statues 'Hid Cigarettes' ; Wales Newsbulletin

AN ENGAGED couple smuggled 857,000 cigarettes from Thailand, hidden under religious statues, a court heard yesterday. Nicola Stretton, 34, arranged for the cigarettes to be smuggled into the UK while her fiancee John Shepherd shipped them from Thailand concealed under Buddha statues.

Teenager Survives 100ft Fall From Hill ; Wales Newsbulletin

A 14-YEAR-OLD is lucky to be alive after he plunged 100ft yesterday while trying to recover a lost shoe. The teenager from Swansea escaped injury after his dramatic fall while walking on Aberystwyth's 430ft-high Constitution Hill.

Devolution at Risk If Backers Push Too Hard, Hain Warns ; Lco System Advantages Often Forgotten, Says Welsh Secretary

THE benefits of devolution would be threatened if campaigners "force too hard" and hold an early referendum on a Scottish-style Parliament, Welsh Secretary Peter Hain says today. In a speech calculated to prevent the referendum bandwagon from gaining momentum, Mr Hain will argue in a speech in Cardiff tonight that the current system is already delivering more power to the Assembly.

Milk Boss Admits to Mistakes

A CO-OPERATIVE which collapsed leaving hundreds of farmers out of pocket should have changed its management, one of the directors conceded yesterday. Michael Oakes, a former director of Dairy Farmers of Britain (DFB), said he had personally lost more than pounds 75,000 as a result of the business' collapse in June.

Mps Will 'Just Have to Bite the Bullet' Over Sweeping Changes to Expenses System ; 'No Veto' to Expected Drastic Reforms As Parliament Awaits Allowance Review

GORDON BROWN moved last night to ensure MPs would have no veto on sweeping changes to their expenses - including a ban on employing relatives and a big cut in golden goodbyes. A review of the allowances system by Sir Christopher Kelly - ordered in the wake of public anger when claims by MPs were made public earlier this year - is expected to propose drastic reforms when it publishes its findings next week.

Burglar On Run for Two Months ; Wales Newsbulletin

A CONVICT is on the run after fleeing jail, police revealed yesterday - almost two months after he escaped. Burglar Adrian Lee Jones, 38, from Bridgend, was being held at Leyhill open prison, Gloucestershire, until he made off on September 1. South Wales Police said that although the escape was only now being publicised officers had been looking for 38-year-old Jones using "other avenues".

Solar Panels for Castle Roof ; Wales Newsbulletin

A CASTLE is being updated to make it more environmentally friendly. Some seven centuries since Earl of March Roger Mortimer built Chirk Castle as part of King Edward I's chain of fortresses across North Wales, the National Trust Green Energy Fund has awarded it pounds 23,500 to install solar panels.

Complaints Over Prison Handling ; Wales Newsbulletin

OWNERS of a site rejected for a new prison by the Ministry of Justice say the handling of the issue has hampered efforts to redevelop the land. Ministers tore up plans for a new prison on the former Friction Dynamex site in Caernarfon last month, citing concerns over costs and asbestos contamination.

Suspected Bomb Maker, 24, Appears in Court

A SUSPECTED bomb maker appeared in court yesterday accused of hoarding explosive materials. Darren Tinklin, 24, was arrested by police at his home in Caerphilly borough last Wednesday.

Girl's Grieving Mother Warns of Web Dangers

THE mother of a teenager, allegedly killed by a man she met on a social networking site, warned other parents about the dangers of the web yesterday. The body of Ashleigh Hall, 17, of Darlington, was found in a field in Sedgefield, County Durham, on Monday evening.

Pirate Couple's Family Talk to Premier ; World Newsbulletin

RELATIVES of a British couple feared snatched by pirates off the east African coast met the Somali Prime Minister yesterday as family members pleaded for an end to their "bad dream". Retired quantity surveyor Paul Chandler, 59, and his wife, economist Rachel Chandler, 55, disappeared after sailing from the Seychelles. Naval forces were yesterday monitoring a yacht seen near Somali port Haradheere. But there was no confirmation it was the Chandlers' 38ft Lynn Rival or that they had been captured.