Remoteness worries in rural Powys

By Carl Yapp
BBC News website

Picturesque Lake Vyrnwy is a popular nature reserve in north Powys

As Wales goes to the polls to elect new councils on 1 May, we profile some of the counties and key local issues.

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While Powys is one of the largest counties in the UK, and covers about a quarter of the area of Wales, it is also one of the most sparsely populated.

There is one person every 10 acres (four hectares), and it is a well-known fact that sheep outnumber the 131,000 human inhabitants.

The major issues affecting the county tend to reflect the concerns people have about its remoteness and rurality.

The most significant of these is probably the county's 10 community hospitals.

When health officials announced plans to cut services at four of them in 2006, people in the areas affected strongly objected, launching campaigns and staging protests.

The county does not have a district general hospital and its residents rely on services provided over the border in England, or in Aberystwyth in Ceredigion.

Protesters were concerned about the distance they would be forced to travel if their small hospitals closed.

POWYS COUNCIL Powys Independent Group: 29 Independent Group Montgomeryshire: 23 Liberal Democrats: 15 Labour: 4

Since then the NHS has uncovered major failings in the way hospitals in Powys care for patients.

Another major issue centring on concerns about remoteness and rurality relates to transport and roads.

In the county's largest town, Newtown, there have been calls for a bypass for about 30 years.

Town officials claim the town is being "choked by traffic".

The Welsh Assembly Government has launched a survey to find solutions to the traffic problems.

Meanwhile, a road in the town centre recently failed a test for air quality, but Powys Council has said it would try and reduce pollution levels.

Elsewhere, two major cross-border road schemes between Powys and England are hanging in the balance.

There are plans for a bypass on the A483 between Welshpool and Oswestry and on the A458 between Welshpool and Wollaston Cross, near Shrewsbury.

Primary schools

But the Department for Transport said in February that it was liaising on funding for the A458, but the A483 scheme was a low priority.

Another controversial topic is the future of primary schools in Powys. Councillors have already backed plans to close three in Llangurig, Howey, near Llandrindod Wells, and Thomas Stephens School in Pontneddfechan.

A decision about Carno, near Newtown, Llanfihangel Yng Gwynfa and Ysgol Efyrnwy schools, near Llanfyllin, has been deferred.

As for the county's economy, it is based on agriculture and tourism, with high levels of self-employment and small businesses.

Newtown-based Control Techniques is one of the county's biggest employers. It manufactures drives for machines and employs 400 staff.

Powys Council is the largest employer in the county though with more than 8,000 workers.

As a result the unemployment rate for the county is 3.9% below the Welsh average of 5.4% and the UK average of 5.2%, but wages are well below the Wales and UK averages.

As for the local authority, it is controlled by independents and there are 73 seats in total.