Council pollution officers say they have no enforcement powers over Welsh Water infrastructure

SEWAGE contamination on the Commons in Pembroke has prompted an urgent response from pollution officers, after a leak was reported by a member of the public on Tuesday.

Pembrokeshire County Council’s Pollution Control Team confirmed they were alerted yesterday afternoon to sewage surrounding a manhole cover on the site. The Herald understands that officers immediately notified Welsh Water (DCWW) network technicians to investigate the incident “as a matter of urgency”.

County councillor Jonathan Grimes, who represents Pembroke St Mary South and Monkton, said the authority had been clear that it holds no enforcement powers over Welsh Water assets.

“Whilst we work constructively with Welsh Water, we have no authority to intervene on their apparatus or to carry out enforcement action against them for such pollution incidents,” the Pollution Control Team said in a statement shared with the councillor.

Urgent works underway

Council officers visited the site on Wednesday morning alongside contractors and Welsh Water technicians to assess clean-up options. According to the team, works will include cleaning the contaminated ground in and around the manhole cover and fencing off the affected area “until safe”.

Cllr Grimes said officers would return to the scene on Thursday to check on progress and ensure the area is properly secured.

Residents who notice any further issues have been urged to contact the Pollution Control Team directly.

Further updates are expected later this week.

Critics say policy inflates numbers while new-build programme stalls

PEMBROKESHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL is under growing pressure over its multi-million-pound programme of buying back former council houses, with critics warning that the strategy gives the illusion of progress while long-promised new-builds remain stuck on the drawing board.

The latest criticism comes from Milford Haven councillor Mike Stoddart, who has accused the authority of “standing still” by funnelling Housing Revenue Account (HRA) cash into purchasing properties that were once part of the council’s own stock.

Stoddart said the council’s approach “doesn’t increase the housing stock – it merely moves people from the private sector into the public sector”.

He added: “It would be much better if the money was spent on building anew.”

A temporary fix that became permanent

The buy-back scheme began in 2017 when the council adopted a new inflation-linked rent regime that delivered sizeable HRA surpluses. At the time, officers described buying ex-council homes on the open market as a “stop-gap” measure until the new-build programme ramped up.

But that programme has repeatedly faltered. Major schemes in Johnston and Tiers Cross have been hit by cost overruns of around 66%. In Milford Haven, new flats on Charles Street are costing close to £300,000 each for a one- or two-bed unit, before adding land costs, architects’ fees and planning expenses.

Stoddart said the pattern amounted to a “disaster”, arguing that buying existing homes had become the authority’s default option. “It gives the impression of making progress while actually standing still,” he said.

Brownfield sites left idle

In Stoddart’s own ward, three former school sites have stood empty since 2018. Their redevelopment is not expected to begin until 2027 or 2028. Meanwhile, the council’s purchasing programme has accelerated.

A Cabinet report for late 2025 shows more than £3.5 million spent on acquisitions in just the first half of the year.

The most striking deal was a bulk purchase of five homes in Harcourt Close, Hook, for £1.851 million — almost £400,000 each. Stoddart said the developer would think “all his birthdays have come at once”, with the council avoiding estate agents’ fees, reducing legal costs and allowing the seller to immediately stop paying interest to the bank.

Thirteen high-value purchases

All properties were bought for over £100,000 and moved into the council’s HRA stock:

All purchases were made from HRA reserves with no borrowing, a point the council highlights as prudent financial management.

Fears over market distortion

Stoddart also warned that the authority’s deep pockets may be pricing out young families by outbidding first-time buyers for entry-level homes. “If classical economic theory is to be believed, it’s forcing up the price,” he said.

House prices in Pembrokeshire have risen around 15% in the past year, according to recent ONS data. Local estate agents, speaking anonymously, told this newspaper that council intervention “definitely nudges prices upward” in hotspots like Hook, Neyland and Milford Haven.

Council defends strategy

A council spokesperson said the approach was necessary to deliver homes “immediately” amid chronic shortages.

“Acquiring existing properties allows us to respond quickly to housing need,” they said. “New-builds remain a priority, but delays in planning, construction and funding mean we must use all available tools to meet demand. All purchases represent value for money and are compliant with our HRA strategy.”

Housing charity Shelter Cymru took a different view, arguing that “recycling stock is not a substitute for expansion”. The charity says Pembrokeshire needs around 500 new affordable homes a year to meet demand.

‘Residents deserve homes, not headaches’

Social housing waiting lists in Pembrokeshire now exceed 2,000 applicants. With another Cabinet briefing due later this month, Stoddart says he will push for a fundamental rethink.

“It’s time to stop standing still,” he told this newspaper. “Our residents deserve homes, not headaches.”

ANGLE RNLI were paged at 10:47am this morning after an EPIRB (Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon) was triggered on a local fishing vessel in the Dale Roads area.

Dale Coastguard Rescue Team was also tasked to investigate the alert.

As the lifeboat crew prepared to launch, further checks by HM Coastguard — along with direct contact from the vessel’s skipper — confirmed the beacon had been activated accidentally.

With no-one found to be in difficulty, the launch was cancelled.