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Sister took blame for drink driver A 44-YEAR-OLD man from

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A 44-YEAR-OLD man from Carmarthenshire was tried for driving while under the influence of alcohol at Haverfordwest BreathyliserMagistrates’ Court on February 11. Jason Lloyd had pleaded not guilty at an earlier hearing, and had said that it was in fact her sister, who was sober, who had been in the driving seat.

The prosecutor, Leslie Harbon, outlined the details of the offence. Jason Lloyd was said to have been driving a black Volvo between Tenby and St. Clears after consuming so much alcohol that the proportion of it in his breath (5.5 micrograms in 100ml of breath) exceeded the prescribed limit. The police received information that Lloyd had been drink driving, so they went to a Travelodge in St. Clears, where the client was, to speak with the defendant, who smelt of alcohol. According to two officer reports, and a sergeants report, Lloyd had admitted that he had been the driver several times. On the way to the station he had said: “If I get done for drink driving I’ll lose my job” and “I put my hands up, ‘cause I have done it. I had seven pints earlier on, then coke all night.” When Lloyd was interviewed, he gave a completely no comment interview.

For the defence, solicitor Mike Kelleher, while examining the defendant, emphasised the story from Lloyd’s point of view. He had been in Tenby with a group of friends, but the night turned sour. He was told that his best friend was trying it on with his wife, so there were arguments and everyone went home apart from Lloyd, his sister, and the partner of his best friend, Nicola. The three decided to go home as well. According to Lloyd, his sister drove because she had not been drinking due to a recent gall bladder operation. Lloyd said that when they were in the car, he received a phone call from his friend stating that the police were looking for him in regards to a separate charge. They stopped at the Travelodge in St. Clears. Nicola was hysterical and walk to the foyer of the hotel and Lloyd and his sister had an argument, and according to Lloyd, she walked off and he was left with the car in the car park. When the police officer arrived, Lloyd said that he knew he was going to be arrested anyway so he said that he had driven the car in order to protect Nicola and his sister from being arrested too. When asked about the comments he had made about being the driver on several occasions, he said he could not remember as his memory was not one hundred percent. There was no CCTV at the hotel.

The prosecutor covered many of the same questions as Kelleher but focussed on the fact that Lloyd said he could not remember making comments to the police, but he was sure that he had not driven the car. Harbon asked how he could know for sure that he had not driven, and he replied: “I saw my sister sitting at the side of me.”

Kelleher closed the examination by asking if Jason remembered who drove, to which he replied yes, and then asked if it was him who had been driving, and the defendant replied no.

Lloyd’s sister came into court as a witness and was warned that anything that she said in the court, as she had sworn on oath, had to be true or she would be prosecuted for perjury. Kelleher asked her if she understood the consequences of lying, and she said she did. He asked if she was there to lie for her brother, which, according to her, she was not. Lloyd’s sister told the same story Lloyd had.

Harbon asked if the siblings had spoken about coming to court, to which Lloyd’s sister replied yes. Although, she stated that they had not spoken about it at length when asked by the prosecutor. Harbon stated that she would have had every chance to get the story straight with her brother. The sister spoke about how she could not believe or understand why Lloyd had said that he had driven when it was his sister who had. Harbon responded by saying that she knew a lot about the case for someone who had not spoken at length about it. Harbon then closed her examination by asking if she and her brother were close, to which she replied yes. Then the prosecutor asked if she would do anything for her brother; she said she would, but also stated that she was not lying now.

The Magistrate asked where the key was when she had left, and she said that she had left it with Lloyd.

After some deliberation, the Magistrates returned to court and found Lloyd guilty of his offence. The Magistrate accepted the police’s accounts over the siblings’. Lloyd was fined £1,040 and he will have to pay £80 per month. He was disqualified from driving for 15 months, but will be able to reduce that by 5% by taking part in a drink driving rehabilitation course.

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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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