Here is your Tuesday update, covering:
- Long-term empty properties face 300% council tax premium in bid to bring homes back into use
- Cardiff Council's key role in securing Rolls Royce for St Mellons
- Travel advice for Wales vs France on 10 March in Cardiff
Long-term empty properties face 300% council tax premium in bid to bring homes back into use
Cardiff Council is proposing tough new measures to help bring long-term empty houses in the city back into use.
At a meeting of the Council's Cabinet, councillors agreed recommendations to raise the council tax premium on some empty properties to as much as 300%.
In 2019 the Council introduced a 50% Council Tax premium for homes left unoccupied and unfurnished for a year, and last March increased this to 100%. The new proposals would see the premium increase incrementally the longer the house has been left, meaning homes that have lain empty for two years face a 200% charge while homes that have been empty for three years or more will face the maximum 300% premium.
Cllr Chris Weaver, the Cabinet Member for Finance, Modernisation and Performance, said: "Our aim is to help bring empty homes back into use. We are facing a housing crisis and we must do everything in our powers to help house those people who need accommodation. Bringing empty homes back into use is one way of helping.
"The longer these properties remain out of use, the more they become a blight on our communities and become a focus of fly tipping, nuisance, vandalism and criminal activity and if they are boarded up they can reduce the appeal of an area for everyone."
Cardiff Council's key role in securing Rolls Royce for St Mellons
Rolls Royce Submarines decision to open a new office in St Mellons Business Park, Cardiff, creating 130 new jobs has been warmly welcomed by Cardiff Council.
The investment in St Mellons will support the ongoing UK Submarines Programmes including the AUKUS programme recently announced by the Governments of the UK, Australia, and USA.
Cardiff Council has been actively working with the company, the site developer, and our partners, to land this project and the decision is a ‘great endorsement' for partnership working and in the capital's skilled labour market and the Cardiff City Region.
A key requirement of the company was that the location needed to attract people with a background in mechanical design, materials engineering, structural integrity analysis, thermal analysis and fluid dynamics and we were able to demonstrate these skills exist - and importantly - can be grown here in the Capital city.
As part of this process the Council worked with the company to establish a trial recruitment fayre in City Hall, supported by Cardiff University and Cardiff and Vale College, which allowed Rolls Royce Submarines to meet local talent and test the skills pipeline at an early stage of the process to show the company the skills available here. It was a great success and it was also clear from the council's early discussions with Rolls Royce Submarines that the development of the station infrastructure at Parkway was also an important ingredient in the company selecting Cardiff and St Mellons for this exciting project.
Travel advice for Wales vs France on 10 March in Cardiff
Wales will be taking on France on Sunday 10 March at Principality Stadium.
With the kick-off taking place at 3pm - there will be a full city centre road closure from 11am until 7pm to ensure all ticket holders can get into and out of the stadium safely.
The M4 motorway is expected to be very busy - please plan ahead - and avoid the congestion in Cardiff by using the park & ride at the former Toy's R Us site car park in the Sports Village.
Gates open at 12.45pm, those attending the rugby match are strongly advised to plan their journey and get in early. Please pay attention to the prohibited items listed at principalitystadium.wales, in particular the bag policy (no large bags permitted) before travelling into the city.