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Pembroke Dock: 50 dogs rescued in animal welfare case

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POLICE and Council officers are investigating a series of allegations relating to animal welfare complaints following an exclusive Herald Online investigation.

On Tuesday, January 29, three Dog Ambulances from the Dogs Trust, council officers from Pembrokeshire County Council and Police officers from Dyfed Powys Police attended at Bramble Hall Farm, Pembroke Dock.

Speaking to The Herald on Wednesday, January 30, a spokesperson from the Dogs Trust told us: “On Tuesday 29 January, we assisted Pembrokeshire County Council and Dyfed-Powys police in attending to dogs whose welfare has potentially been compromised at a premises near Pembroke Dock.

“More than 50 dogs were removed from the site and Dogs Trust staff were on hand to ensure that affected dogs were safely retrieved and transported with care to Council premises in our specially equipped Animal Ambulance.

“The health and welfare of the dogs is our priority and we will do all we can to assist Pembrokeshire County Council.

“If anyone is concerned about any specific dogs that they think may be involved they can contact the Animal Health Team at Pembrokeshire County Council on 01437 764 551.”

The action took place after Pembroke Dock residents contacted The Herald over the weekend to express concerns about the welfare of animals in a nearby field, believed to belong to the same farm.

A sheep was in a field backing on to the southern edge of Bush Estate on Sunday afternoon (Jan 27).

Old vehicle: In front of the gateway (pic. Herald)

Locals who saw the animal in distress described it as seemingly ‘neglected’.

The concerned members of the public tried to contact the RSCPA but received no help, which ultimately meant that a vet had to put the animal to sleep.

A Facebook post about the incident has been shared hundreds of times, with many local residents expressing their outrage at the fact animals were being kept in such conditions.

A Herald reporter visited the field on Monday afternoon (Jan 28) and it was easy to see why locals were alarmed.
Immediately in front of the gate to the field is the shell of a wrecked vehicle, with debris strewn across the ground across the length of the field.


Wire, pieces of old wooden pallets, and litter can easily be identified from the gateway.

The field also lacks a lot of grass, with the majority of the ground covered in mud.

One local, who did not wish to be named, told us: “I saw the sheep  – initially thought it was dead, but I went into the field and took a closer look and it was moving so I stooped down to it.

“It started to have a seizure and was in a bad way – I couldn’t leave it like she was.

“We contacted the RSPCA but after 2 hours we had heard nothing and the weather was atrocious so I decided to try and make it comfortable by making a bed in the back of my van.”


The local continued: “A man turned up to ask what was wrong – I explained and he drove off, and then the owner came.

“He was identified to me afterwards as I had no clue who he was at the time.

“He asked what was wrong and I explained and he opened her mouth, pulled her legs and told me to take it home.
“At this stage, I was unaware who this person was, so I called a vet as I couldn’t bear to see it suffer any more and the RSPCA hadn’t turned up.

“The vet came to our home and put her to sleep in the back of my van.

“Nobody has contacted myself or my friend – I’m just being inundated with messages from the public telling me of lots of other occasions of neglect that authorities are well aware of but nothing is ever done.”

When contacted by The Herald about the concerns raised, a Council spokesperson told us: “We are aware of the number of expressions of concern relating to these animals.

“We can assure the public that appropriate steps are being taken to ensure the welfare of the animals during the ongoing investigation.”

An RSPCA spokesperson said: “RSPCA Cymru is very saddened to hear that this sheep was severely injured and to prevent further suffering was put to sleep. The animal welfare charity can confirm that it received a call in regards to this sheep, and passed this onto Animal Health, which has been leading on animal-matters in the area.

“Unfortunately, the RSPCA only has a very small number of inspectors – but we receive a call for help approximately every 30 seconds across England and Wales; and sometimes need to pass calls onto other agencies where they have appropriate statutory responsibility, or who have prior experience of a location.”


However, local anger is growing at the lack of action by the RSPCA, with claims made on social media that a number of animal welfare complaints concerning animals in the fields and at Bramble Hall Farm were inexplicably ignored by the organisation.

It is not clear whether the RSPCA shared information regarding those previous complaints with the Council’s Animal Health team.

In a shocking new development, The Herald has been sent photographic evidence which suggests animal parts or carcasses have been disposed of in the same fields as the distressed sheep.

In a series of images, which may cause some readers distress, skeletal remains of animals were discovered in the same field in which livestock continues to be kept.

The failure to dispose of animal carcasses in an approved way is potentially a criminal matter.

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Business

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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News

Welsh Water has increased sewage discharges into waterways ‘by 40%’

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NEW figures released by the Environment Agency have shown that Dwr Cymru discharged sewage into waterways for a staggering 23,354 hours last year, a 40% increase on 2022. 

The Welsh Liberal Democrats are now calling for tougher action against sewage dumping in Welsh waterways.

The party has also called for a halt on bonuses for water company bosses whose firms have dumped sewage into waterways.

Conservative MPs have consistently voted against measures which would have helped to tackle the crisis.

The Leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats Jane Dodds MS said: “It is a complete scandal that filthy sewage is being pumped into our nation’s rivers and waterways without consequence.

“It’s beggars’ belief that both the UK Conservative Government and the Welsh Labour government are allowing water firms to get away with this environmental vandalism.

“We as a party are calling for tougher action to stop sewage being dumped in local waterways. We have also called for a halt on bonuses for water company fat cats whose firms have pumped filth into our waterways.”

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