19/06/2007 by admin.

Nine out of ten tourism businesses in Wales consider it important to run a business in an environmentally-friendly way according to a survey.

Brian Gibbons, the Welsh Assembly Government’s new Minister for the Economy and Transport, welcomed the results.

The findings emerged from the third survey in a series of five throughout the year conducted for Visit Wales by Strategic Marketing of Cardiff.

Almost three out of four Welsh tourism businesses stated that the number of visitors had increased over last year (39%) or had at least remained at the same level.

Posted in News | No Comments »

19/06/2007 by admin.

North Wales people lacking basic skills are losing out in the jobs market to immigrant workers from eastern Europe according to an economic development group.

North Wales Economic Forum members are calling for more vocational training to support crucial industry sectors such as aerospace and opto-electronics in the region.

People lacking the basic skills needed by employers were finding themselves passed over in favour of better qualified migrant workers from Poland and other countries overseas.

According to TUC representative Tom Jones, it had been clear for a long time what was lacking in local training provision and says that it is time that we got to grips with the problem before it gets too serious.

Mike Scott, principal at Wrexham’s NEWI, says that stronger links need to be developed between key industry sectors in North Wales such as opto-electronics and aerospace and universities in the region.

However, one of the speakers at the forum, Robin Beckmann, a regional director of the Welsh Assembly Government’s department for education, said it was “notoriously difficult” for SMEs to predict the skills they will need.

Posted in News | No Comments »

19/06/2007 by admin.

A recent survey revealed that half of Britains can’t exist without email - and people in their thirties and forties are more reliant on it than teenagers.

According to the ICM poll, of 25 to 34-year-olds, 50 per cent said they could not carry on without access to email.

This age group was identified as pioneers in using electronic communicationn to keep in touch with the office and friends. Contrary to expectations, the younger generation don’t monopolise the the latest technologies.

Forty one per cent of teenagers admitted to relying on their email, wheras 44 per cent of 35-44-year-olds say that their email is vital. More women than men would find it hard without email contact - 41 per cent compared with 38 per cent respectively.

Posted in News | No Comments »