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Rowlands criticises ‘negativity’ about council

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Ambitions for Johnston: Ken Rowlands.

Ambitions for Johnston: Ken Rowlands.

AN OUTSPOKEN email from Johnston Councillor Ken Rowlands to other County Councillors, in which he engaged in wide ranging criticism of perceived bias on the part of this newspaper and the negative’ approach of several councillors, was recently sent to The Herald. In a noisy member’s room at County Hall, our Assistant Editor Jon Coles met with Ken Rowlands.

Their conversation was wide-ranging and, in its course, Cllr Rowlands made a number of observations and trenchant criticisms both of media coverage of the scandals that have engulfed County Hall and his fellow councillors: “In local politics, I would say that national parties are redundant. Constituency parties have to be ‘on message’, and that message might have little to do with local communities. In 2008, I had been assured by the Labour Welsh Government that a new road, which was desperately needed, would be built. When it became clear that promise was to be broken I could not remain. My critics say I joined the Independent Group that I once criticised. That is wrong. When I joined the council, I had little time for the then executive group.

But that group changed, there was a real sense of working together across parties. The executive became much more inclusive and there was more camaraderie here. I was able to speak to people and get things done. What has happened since then, especially since 2012, is that things have been more confrontational. Nobody could really disagree that the executive should be held to account, but to be negative, negative, negative and not also say what is right is just wrong. The people have been wound up to feel that the Council is not representing them properly.

I honestly think that the whole picture is not being put before the people of Pembrokeshire. Some councillors are following a national political agenda and not serving Pembrokeshire. I am afraid that local issues are being used to further national political ends.” We put it to Cllr Rowlands that he had to accept that criticisms were justified, both in the light of events that had been brought to light and other issues that arose in the course of the last eighteen months: “I think what is tending to happen is that there has been a concerted effort among certain people who are rather negative and that those who have only the interests of Pembrokeshire and its people at heart have not responded to those criticisms as they should have done.

You are not arguing not only with another a member, but with another member and his blog followers and other members with their relationship to other media. Add all those together and it becomes bias. I am not making excuses, there were problems that had to be addressed. But if you look across Wales and the UK, there are other places where matters have been really unacceptable but they have not been criticised in the same way.

I am not saying there was not any reason for these criticisms, there have been some positive results. But there has no regard been given to the efforts of staff across Pembrokeshire to address these issues.” His departure from the Education brief in April has been the cause of a great deal of comment on social media and around County Hall. One version of events has Cllr Rowlands fuming at being removed from the Cabinet. His take on events is somewhat different: “When I left the Cabinet, we had been under a great deal of pressure during a period of upheaval in the County’s education and a corner had been turned.

The whole of our authority – officers, staff, and members – had worked closely together to change the situation. It had been a heavy period of time and when I came to the time I stood down, both Jamie and I felt I was unwell and we agreed I should take a back seat for a while. That does not mean that I will take a back seat forever!” We concluded by speaking about his own ward: “The Community Council and I are hoping to have meetings with Johnston Sports Association and other Village Stakeholders in the near future. The Community Council, with other organisations within the village, work closely together in order to enhance village amenities and we would be pleased to show the press that we have worked well together during this period of austerity. We have bucked the trend during difficult times.”

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Rugby Weekly – Tenby’s promotion push continues

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It’s crunch time for all rugby clubs around the county, whether promotion is their aim or fighting relegation or even just trying to improve their league position, it’s now or never. 

Last weekend saw an important win for Fishguard in division two west which should put any relegation fears to bed completely. James Griffiths added an impressive 18 points for the Seagulls as they defeated Nantgaredig 33-19. 

Elsewhere in the second division, Milford were beaten 32-8 by a good Lampeter outfit. The Mariners are still a little too close for comfort with the drop zone but should have enough quality to see them safe. 

At the other end of the table Tenby sit in second place and have played fewer games than leaders St Clears and third place Lampeter. They won impressively again last weekend, beating Pontyberem 64-19 at Haywood Lane. Fletcher Broadhurst impressed with two tries as did Hywel Baker who also grabbed himself a brace. Another excellent performance in an outstanding season so far in which promotion would be the absolute icing on the cake. 

In Division Three West, Pembroke were well beaten by Laugharne 74-15 in which the outstanding Liam Price and Nico Setaro both crossed the whitewash 4 teams a piece. The latter also added 7 successful conversions. 

There was a local derby at Pill Parks where Llangwm hosted Pembroke Dock Quins and it was an exciting clash. The visitors won narrowly 28-23, Craig Barnett and Gethin Bradney both scored two tries for the Quins. The Wasps battled hard and will be proud of their performance, Gethin Thomas impressed for the hosts with two tries of his own but it wasn’t enough to secure the points. 

St David’s hosted the high flying Cardigan outfit and were unable to score in reply to the visitors 20 points, with it ending 20-0. The Saints however won’t be losing too much sleep over it as they have had a great season so far. 

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Stephen Crabb leads inquiry on retaining community bank services  

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PRESELI Pembrokeshire MP, and Chair of the Welsh Affairs Select Committee Stephen Crabb is leading an inquiry in Parliament that will investigate the closure of high street banks in Wales, as well as access to cash.

In November 2023, Pembrokeshire saw the closure of Lloyds Bank in St Davids, and in the coming months both Barclays Bank and Halifax in Haverfordwest are set to close. In recent years, Wales has experienced a rapid decline in the number of high street banking services available to the public. Already in 2024, 23 high street bank closures have been announced in Wales, while automated teller machines (ATMs) declined by nearly a quarter between 2018 and 2023.

The Committee willconsider how declining high street banking services are impacting vulnerable people and small businesses across Wales, who are often more reliant on cash than digital banking. It will also examine how Wales is being affected by the loss of high street bank services, and whether the problem is worse in Wales than other parts of the UK.

Mr Crabb is a staunch advocate for retaining community banking facilities, especially in rural communities like Pembrokeshire where many local branches remain the only source of face-to-face banking provision for miles.

Recently Mr Crabb challenged Barclays Bank senior management on their decision to close the bank branch in Haverfordwest– a move that will see Barclays not only pull out of the county town, but means they won’t have a branch left anywhere in Pembrokeshire. He has also engaged with LINK – the UK’s largest cash machine network – and continues to campaign on the basis that a Banking Hub is established and that ATM machines should be retained or installed, especially in areas worst affected by the closures.  

Following the launch of the inquiry, MP Crabb added: “It is really sad to see so many banks across Wales closing as online banking grows in popularity. Despite the advantages of online banking, for a rural community with an ageing population like Pembrokeshire, bank branches hold huge importance as they offer face-to-face customer service.”

“I am acutely aware of the inconvenience that the bank closures locally have already caused following hundreds of replies from constituents to my ‘online banking survey’ ”

“I am looking forward to gathering further evidence on this subject through the committee’s inquiry, and will continue to put pressure on the relevant stakeholders to ensure that adequate alternative provisions are made through the establishment of banking hubs as well as the instalment of ATM machines where necessary.”

“In this inquiry, we are particularly keen to hear from those likely to be directly affected by the shift away from cash and physical banks. I encourage anyone with first-hand experience of losing banking services to give evidence to the Committee”

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Trains resume between Carmarthen and Pembroke Dock as works end

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TRAIN services resumed this morning (Thursday 28 March) after ten days of essential round-the-clock work to upgrade track and drainage between Carmarthen and Pembroke Dock.

The railway was closed from Monday 18 March to Wednesday 27 March to allow Network Rail teams to replace more than 200 metres of track and 300 tonnes of ballast (track stones) between Pembroke station and Pembroke Dock.

Work to improve the drainage between Narbeth and Kilgetty stations was also completed at the same time.

Nick Millington, Network Rail Wales and Borders route director, said: “This essential work in Pembrokeshire demonstrates our commitment to improving the reliability of the service we provide to passengers along our route.

“We know that replacing the track can be disruptive and very noisy, so I would like to thank the residents of Pembroke for their patience while our team carried out this crucial work.”

Colin Lea, Planning and Performance Director at Transport for Wales said: “We’re pleased that our colleagues in Network Rail have completed this essential work and that Transport for Wales rail services resumed today.

“We’d like to thank passengers for their patience while this work has progressed and look forward to welcoming passengers back in time for the Easter weekend.”

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