News
Hywel Dda responsible for 40% of overspend by health boards

HYWEL DDA UNIVERSITY HEALTH BOARD is responsible for more than 40% of the total overspend by Welsh health boards, it has been revealed.
By the end of this financial year, a total of £163m will have been overspent, according to a BBC Wales analysis.
Of that sum, £69.6m will have been overspent by Hywel Dda.
The huge figure is an increase of 40% from last year, with an overspend of just under £50m.
The total health board deficit figures are:
- Hywel Dda Health Board (West Wales) – £69.6m
- Betsi Cadwaldr University Health Board (North Wales) – £36m
- Abertawe Bro Morgannwg (South West Wales) – £30m
- Cardiff and Vale (South Wales) – £26.9m
The amount spent on temporary doctors and nurses at Hywel Dda hospitals, due to ongoing recruitment problems, is largely to blame.
Hywel Dda said in their latest financial report that their savings had been ‘the best so far’ this year, however this had been countered by ‘local cost pressures’.
Health Secretary Vaughan Gething said that if the health boards were overspending they would not be ‘bailed out’ by the Welsh Government.
The Welsh NHS was also warned that it was facing ‘the most financially challenging period in its history’.
A spokesperson for The Welsh Government said that it was increasing NHS budget above what had been recommended.
They said: “Investment in our NHS is at a record high and Wales already spends considerably more on health and social care per head than in England.
“We are also investing an additional £550m over the next two years, including £100m to help transform the way health and social services are delivered.”
Welsh Conservative Shadow Health Secretary, Angela Burns AM, said: “These soaring deficits show a health service in Wales which is teetering on the brink of financial abyss.
“Failures by the Welsh Labour Government to initiate long-term planning measures for health boards and to break the culture of waste and inefficiency have all played their part in the mess our NHS now finds itself in.
“From Hywel Dda to Betsi Cadwaladr – which is in special measures and under direct Welsh Government control – the situation across Wales is getting worse and worse.
“There is a real risk that health boards will soon be forced to cut vital services in order to make savings, and it’s patients and staff who will be left paying the price.
“This once again raises very serious questions for Labour’s Health Secretary who seems to have run out of ideas and has promised not to bail out health boards.
“To avoid any further damage to services and public confidence in them, Vaughan Gething needs to instigate swift root-and-branch reforms of the health service focused on better planning, smarter spending and stronger public health messaging.”
Crime
Pembroke Dock man to be sentenced for assaulting police officers

A PEMBROKE DOCK man is due to be sentenced on Monday (Mar 31) after admitting to assaulting three police officers and resisting arrest during incidents earlier this month.
Ashley Rickard, aged 27, of Elizabeth Court, Pembroke Dock, pleaded guilty to four offences when he appeared at court on March 17. Magistrates adjourned the case for a pre-sentence report to be prepared.
The court heard that on March 15, Rickard assaulted PC Morse in Pembroke Dock while the officer was carrying out his duties as an emergency worker. He also assaulted PC Walker and resisted two other officers, PC Cranmer and PC Kendall, during the same incident in Milford Haven.
All of the offences are understood to have taken place on the same day and involved Rickard obstructing and assaulting officers during the course of their work.
Rickard is due to appear at Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court at 10:00am on Monday for sentencing. The offences carry a maximum penalty of up to 12 months in prison or an unlimited fine.
The Herald will report the outcome of the case following the hearing.
Crime
Milford Haven man faces court hearing for assault on three police officers

A MILFORD HAVEN man is due to appear at Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court on Monday (Mar 31) facing multiple charges, including the assault of three emergency workers and possession of an offensive weapon.
Adam Williams, 37, of Richard John Road, is facing charges relating to an incident on March 16 in which he is accused of possessing a craft knife in a public place without lawful authority, contrary to the Prevention of Crime Act 1953.
Williams is also charged with three counts of assaulting emergency workers—Police Sergeant 408 Benbow, PC 944 Lee, and PC 764 Mycroft—who were reportedly acting in the course of their duties at the time of the incident.
In addition, Williams is facing a charge of using a motor vehicle without third-party insurance, said to have occurred on Richard John Road on the same date.
The case was adjourned earlier this month for a reports to be prepared.
Williams is expected to return to court at 10:00am on Monday.
Business
Tree-mendous work helping to improve the condition of our rivers

OVER 24,000 trees have been planted along the banks of four south Wales rivers to help reduce nutrient pollution, improve water quality and help protect nature.
The Natural Resources Wales (NRW) Four Rivers for LIFE project has been busy this tree planting season on the Teifi, Tywi, Cleddau and Usk Rivers.
In partnership with organisations like the National Trust, West Wales Rivers Trust, County Councils and contractors a total of 24,160 native trees have been planted with the aim of reducing nutrient pollution, improving water quality and helping to protect nature.
The trees will soak up excess nutrients from agricultural land run off, improve downstream water quality and provide habitat for wildlife.
The corridors of trees, averaging 10metres in width, act as buffer strips between farmland and the river and have been planted on land that has been fenced to create riparian strips.
Robert Thomas, Four Rivers for LIFE Land Management Officer said: “As the trees mature they will act as an important filter, reducing the amount of excess nutrients reaching the rivers, helping to improve the overall condition of these special rivers.”
As well as providing benefits to the Special Area of Conservation (SAC) river, in time as the trees mature and grow, they will stabilise riverbanks, reduce erosion and soil loss to the river, provide shelter for livestock and shade the river, keeping the water cool for fish.
Simon Rose, Woodland Project Ranger at National Trust Brecon Beacons said: “We have been delighted to work alongside NRW’s Four Rivers for LIFE team and the Woodland Trust at Ty Mawr Farm. This collaborative effort exemplifies the very objectives we seek to achieve through ongoing engagement with volunteer and corporate groups, students from Black Mountains College, and staff from similar organisations on team-building days.”
“Together, we are planting trees and hedgerows that will provide essential food sources and create connected woodlands, fostering the growth of wildlife and the flourishing of habitats.”
The Teifi, Tywi, Cleddau and Usk Rivers are classed as Special Areas of Conservation (SAC), meaning they are of international importance for the wildlife and plants that make them home, such as salmon, lamprey, shad, otters and water crowfoot.
The Four Rivers for LIFE Project is funded by the EU LIFE Programme with support from Welsh Government and Welsh Water.
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