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Protest planned after Town Council votes to keep child rapist’s portrait

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A PROTEST will be held on Monday (Feb 24) from 3pm. Organisers said: “This is for Pembroke Town Council to take down the peadophile’s picture and replace it with a plaque in honour of the survivors. Posters said: “Do not stand by and allow abuse to happen – please join the protest to show your support. Stop our children from being sexually enslaved!

The news of the demo comes after an attempt to have the photograph of a disgraced former mayor of Pembroke removed from the Town Hall’s walls was defeated by the town’s councillors last week.

Convicted child molester David Boswell’s portrait will remain hanging alongside those of other mayors but turned towards the wall.

Last year, Boswell was convicted of four counts of indecently assaulting two children and a further offence of raping one of them. He is currently serving an eighteen-year prison sentence.

Two town councillors, County Council Cabinet member Jon Harvey and former County Council Chair Aden Brinn proposed Boswell’s portrait should be removed. They cited the seriousness and appalling nature of Boswell’s crimes. However, their move was not supported by any of the other town councillors present at the meeting.

Instead, the councillors agreed upon a proposal made by Cllr Jonathan Nutting, who said the portrait should remain in place but reversed.

During a speech in support of his motion, Cllr Nutting said that he regretted that the Council’s dirty laundry had been aired to the public and impugned the integrity of those who called for the removal of Boswell’s portrait. An action he repeated subsequently in a personal post on Facebook.

Cllr Nutting posted the full text of his speech online after the Western Telegraph failed to publish his lengthy peroration in full in its reporter Bruce Sinclair’s hard-hitting and accurate report of the meeting.

In the version published online, Cllr Nutting said: “To me, the picture on the wall is a testament to the shame of this council and our region. There was a failure to protect vulnerable children from a predator. People had some idea of what was going on and turned a blind eye. We need to be reminded as a community that we failed those children. If we can decide on some way to mark this event that shows our disgust. I think we should do it.”

To summarise those sentiments: ‘we’re all to blame for Boswell’s crimes’.

Cllr Nutting remarkable proposition that guilt for Boswell’s grotesque offending is spread as widely as possible was accompanied by the statement: “I accept the fact that in a few tens of years what happened will be forgotten. To put it away in a cupboard or to actually burn it will not bear witness to this man’s crimes.”

Cloth-eared comments made by Cllr Daphne Bush that the portrait’s removal would upset members of Boswell’s family appeared to ignore the toll its presence would exact on his victims.

Unsatisfied with refusing to remove the portrait, Cllr Dennis Evans alleged comments made about councillors permitting it to remain in place were ‘libellous’.

Cllr Evans reportedly said: “I’ve heard rumours that people want us to give a public apology; it should be the other way around, the editor of the Western Telegraph should be giving us a public apology.”

The Herald invited response to that suggestion from our rival publication’s editor, Steve Adams, but Cllr Evans’ remarks speak volumes; as Mr Adams’ silence speaks of their merit.

In response to his fellow town councillors’ vote, Jon Harvey quit the Council during the meeting.

In a statement given subsequently, and in response to criticism levelled at him, Cllr Harvey said: My resignation from Pembroke Town Council was by no means pre-planned.

“Following concerns expressed by residents just over a month ago I emailed the Town Clerk (copied to all Town Councillors) expressing my view that the photograph of the former Mayor should be taken down. I also pressed for an Extraordinary Meeting to be held so that a decision would be made quickly on this matter. Including myself, only two Town Councillors supported this idea, with five needed to do so to allow the meeting to take place. As a consequence, the matter rolled on to the meeting of the Town Council held on the 13th February.”

Describing the decision to place the portrait back on the wall after the current Mayor had it removed as ‘a grave error of judgement’, Cllr Harvey continued: “It became clear that many of those Councillors present were more concerned about the former Mayors place in history, as well as attacking the member of the public who initially raised this matter on social media. Next up it was the turn of the press to be criticised for publishing the story and quoting the member of the public in the article.”

Cllr Harvey said: “Whilst I will always respect a democratic vote on any issue, this decision of the overwhelming number of Town Councillors was not one I could subscribe to given the clear strength of public opposition. I am not aware of any member of the public supporting the retention of the photograph in situ, either facing out or turned around. I am sure there are no pictures of Jimmy Saville facing the wall in Stoke Mandeville Hospital or Hitler hanging in the Reichstag.

“Members of the Town Council seem more concerned with history, attacking a member of the public and attacking the freedom of the press than actually grasping the simple concept that the public doesn’t want that photograph on the wall.”

He concluded: “As a matter of principle, I tendered my resignation with immediate effect following the vote. I do not want to remain a part of a Town Council that does not represent the views of the electorate, shows no understanding of the importance of this matter to the public and does not believe in press freedom. I remain as County Councillor for the Pembroke St. Mary North Ward and will continue to serve the good folk of the Ward to the best of best of my abilities.”

Marcel Laval, who originally drew attention to the photo’s presence, came in for particular criticism both indirectly during the meeting and subsequently directly from Cllr Jonathan Nutting on social media.

Mr Laval told us: “I remain convinced that this slap in the face to the public should give cause for the community as a whole concern.

“Those in the majority decided instead to be outraged that their lack of understanding of the issue and the lack of compassion for the survivors of the most horrific crimes was such a great issue.

“The adopted motion instead of accepting the wishes of many in the real community to remove said portrait will be to further debase the town council and councillors by making the reversed portrait a tourist attraction to be explained by whoever is left to supervise the Town Hall Museum. If a worse outcome could be found, a majority of councillors tried their best to find it and voted to accept it. Those responsible for this situation must resign for the good of Pembroke.”

Business

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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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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New bus services announced by Pembrokeshire County Council

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A NUMBER of changes to local bus services will be introduced in the coming weeks as a result of a shake up to bus funding. 

From April 2024, the funding which has been provided directly to bus operators by the Welsh Government to keep services going in the wake of the Covid pandemic will cease. 

Additional funding will instead be provided to Local Authorities to support their local bus network.

In total, Pembrokeshire County Council and the Welsh Government will provide over £3million in support for bus services in Pembrokeshire during the coming year.

As part of this process, all Pembrokeshire’s local bus services have been re-tendered. 

A public consultation, receiving over 300 responses, helped to inform decisions about which services should be prioritised. 

Councillor Rhys Sinnett, Pembrokeshire County Council Cabinet Member for Residents’ Services said: “I am delighted to be able to report that we are able to maintain the whole of Pembrokeshire’s current local bus network in the coming year.

“We have also secured key improvements such as reinstating an hourly service on the 349 route between Haverfordwest and Tenby via Pembroke Dock, and the popular Strumble Shuttle and Puffin Shuttle coastal bus services during the summer.”

The changes will also see two key services, the 302 Haverfordwest to Milford Haven and 349 Haverfordwest to Tenby via Pembroke Dock, brought under Council oversight for the first time. 

This will give the Council greater oversight of service operations and fares.  Pembrokeshire residents will also benefit from a new fare structure on all First Cymru services, due to be introduced from 1 April 2024. 

This will use Tap On Tap Off to allow passengers to pay the cheapest fare depending on the number of journeys they make or distance travelled, and will cap the maximum adult fare at £3 single and £5.40 return. 

More information about these fares can be found on the First Cymru website

A number of additional service changes and improvements are being considered for introduction during the course of the coming year in response to feedback received from the public consultation.  

The following bus service changes have been confirmed:

From 23 March 2024:

  • The Celtic Coaster (403) on the St Davids peninsular will restart for the 2024 season on Saturday 23 March and will run until Sunday 29 September. This is an hourly service, increasing to half-hourly during the whitsun half term and school summer holidays. There will be no service departing Caerfai Road at 13.00 and 13.30.
  • The 351 (Tenby to Pendine via Amroth) will return to its summer timetable.

From 1 April 2024

  • An hourly service will return on the 349 (Haverfordwest to Tenby via Pembroke Dock) service (April to September only).
  • The 356 (Milford Haven to Monkton) service will no longer call at Waterston and Hazelbeach due to operational issues caused by the narrow lanes in this area. The Fflecsi service will still be available.
  • A Saturday service, between 07:30 and 18:30, will be reintroduced in the Fflecsi Mid Pembrokeshire zone (formerly known as Bwcabus). This zone covers the area between Letterston, Crymych, Clunderwen and Wiston.  Passengers can also travel from this zone to Fishguard and Haverfordwest. 
  • The 302 (Haverfordwest to Milford Haven) and 349 (Haverfordwest to Tenby via Pembroke Dock) services operated by First Cymru will come under Pembrokeshire County Council control, giving the Council greater oversight of service operations and fares.
  • The 322 (Haverfordwest to Carmarthen) and 381 (Haverfordwest to Tenby via Narberth) services will be run by First Cymru. The 322 timetable will remain the same. The 381 timetable will remain the same from Haverfordwest to Tenby but journeys from Tenby to Haverfordwest will depart slightly earlier (37 past the hour instead of 45).
  • The X22 and X61 services which provided journeys at the start and end of the day between Pembroke Dock and Kilgetty, and Pembroke Dock and Haverfordwest will be withdrawn.
  • The 410 (Fishguard Town) and T11 (Haverfordwest to Fishguard via St Davids) services will be operated on a commercial (T11 part commercial) basis by Richards Bros. An improved connection with the ferry at Fishguard Harbour will be provided at 12.30.

From 19 May 2024

  • The Tenby Coaster service between Tenby and Saundersfoot will return for the summer season.

From 25 May 2024

  • The 400 Puffin Shuttle and 404 Strumble Shuttle services will return to the coast between Marloes and St Davids, and St Davids and Fishguard. These services will operate 7 days a week until 29 September 2024.  The Fflecsi service is also available in this area throughout the year.
  • The 387/388 Coastal Cruiser service around the Angle Peninsula will also return to its summer timetable, operating 7 days a week until 29th September 2024.

Further information about all Pembrokeshire bus services can be found on the Council’s website.

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