News

Pembrokeshire defies Welsh tourism tax amid anti-English tensions

Published

8 months ago

May 4, 2025

AS COUNCIL TAX premiums and tourist levies stir tensions, local businesses and residents weigh the cost of protecting Welsh identity against the economic lifeline of English tourism.

In St Davids, the recent spring sunshine bathes flint cottages and surfing shops in golden light. But beneath the postcard-perfect surface, a quiet rebellion is taking shape.

This year, Pembrokeshire County Council became the first local authority in Wales to push back against the Welsh Government’s controversial tourist taxation strategy. After reducing the second home tax premium from 300 per cent to 150 per cent in October, the council announced in April that it will not implement the proposed visitor levy during its current term, which ends in 2027.

The move has been praised by some as a lifeline for struggling businesses. Others fear it signals a retreat from urgently needed reforms to address the housing crisis and preserve Welsh-speaking communities.

Christopher Taylor, 85, has run the St Davids Bookshop since 1974 and previously served as mayor of the city. He says the area has long relied on English second-home owners and tourists. “Second homeowners who have been regular customers over decades are selling up,” he told The Telegraph. “Tourists and second homeowners support jobs here, and we really can’t risk seeming unwelcoming.”

***Chris Taylor, 85, seen here standing at the back on the right, runs a shop which is important for both tourists and locals alike (Image: YPD)***

St Davids, Britain’s smallest city, is one of the jewels of Pembrokeshire’s coastline and a magnet for both walkers and surfers. But signs of change are everywhere. Lockboxes for holiday lets now pepper the streets—dubbed “tosau” or “pimples” by some Welsh speakers.

Grant Pratt, 38, who manages the surf shop Unsunghero, is frank in his assessment: “It’s small-minded,” he says of locals who complain about incomers. “Incoming English families have reversed the fate of the struggling local primary school. Who wouldn’t prefer to live somewhere bustling rather than full of moaning elderly Welsh folk?”

Tourism remains central to the local economy. In 2023, it generated £604 million in Pembrokeshire and supported more than 9,200 full-time equivalent jobs. Yet the tone of some public discourse, particularly online, has left business owners wary of being associated with anti-English sentiment.

One shopkeeper, who asked not to be named, said she feared a return to the “dark days” of the 1980s, when arson attacks by the nationalist group Meibion Glyndŵr targeted English-owned holiday homes.

***Most of Twr y Felin’s guest are tourists from England, the hotel said (Image: File)***

At the luxury art-themed hotel Twr y Felin, General Manager Emma Bowen said that 85 per cent of their clientele are English tourists aged between 50 and 70.

***Twr y Felin manager Emma Bowen: Wants how funds will be used to be clear***

While she supports the concept of a tourist tax, she insists it must be clear how the funds will be used. “Good examples are Germany, France, and Switzerland, where tourist taxes subsidise attractions and public transport for tourists,” she said.

In nearby Tenby, the impact of policy is also being felt. Lucas and Melanie Boissevain, who own the award-winning Penally Abbey Hotel, warn that mounting costs could become unsustainable. “We’ve had Covid, unfair competition from unregulated Airbnbs, rising staffing, power and food bills – all with little government help,” said Lucas. “Now come the levies that will add £6,500 a year to our operating costs.”

According to Lucas, Wales has lost 50 per cent of its serviced accommodation providers over the past 15 years. “This has been made up with a growth in Airbnb-style unserviced beds, but who wants to have a lockbox tourist economy, without breakfasts and the human touch?”

Despite government aims to channel second home tax revenue into affordable housing, some critics argue that the funds haven’t been used effectively. Without clear reinvestment and consultation, opposition to the levies may continue to grow.

More broadly, the proposed tourism tax across Wales has drawn both fierce criticism and cautious support. Industry groups and operators argue that it risks deterring visitors, threatening jobs, and weakening local economies—especially in areas like Pembrokeshire that are heavily reliant on tourism. Some families may opt to holiday elsewhere, fearing added costs, while others may cut back on spending in local shops, cafes, and attractions. A Welsh Government consultation found that 74 per cent of people who were likely to holiday in Wales believed the tax could put them off visiting.

Opposition politicians, particularly Conservatives, have branded the levy a “toxic tourism tax” that could damage a fragile sector. But supporters—including figures in Plaid Cymru and Labour—say the proposed fee, at just £1.25 per adult per night, is modest and commonplace across Europe. They argue it would raise much-needed funds for local infrastructure, including toilets, car parks, and footpath maintenance, and help ease the pressures of overtourism.

Following public feedback, the Welsh Government confirmed children will be exempt and has promised a full review of the tax’s impact within four years. There will also be further consultation with businesses and communities.

Across the UK, similar measures are being considered. From April 2024, three quarters of councils in England and Wales will introduce 100 per cent premiums on second homes, and some are extending these to Airbnb properties. Manchester introduced a tourist tax last year. Others, like Bournemouth, paused plans after backlash from the hospitality sector.

Pembrokeshire’s stance has made it a test case. With visitor numbers still recovering post-pandemic and an economy reliant on tourism, many locals are asking whether pushing away the English is a price they can afford to pay.

As one visiting mother from Bath remarked while enjoying tea at Penally Abbey: “It’s lovely here, isn’t it? Who really needs to get on a plane?”

That sense of quiet appreciation may be Pembrokeshire’s greatest asset. But it remains to be seen whether it can coexist with the cultural pressures that have driven the Welsh Government’s policies—and the resistance now rising against them.

This article was based on a national newspaper report in The Telegraph which can be read here.

Health

Resident doctors in Wales vote to accept new contract

Published

4 hours ago

December 18, 2025

Tom Sinclair

RESIDENT doctors across Wales have voted to accept a new contract, with 83% of those who took part in a referendum backing the agreement, according to BMA Cymru Wales.

The contract includes a four per cent additional investment in the resident doctor workforce and introduces a range of reforms aimed at improving training conditions, wellbeing and long-term workforce sustainability within NHS Wales. The BMA says the deal also supports progress towards pay restoration, which remains a central issue for doctors.

Key changes include new safeguards to limit the most fatiguing working patterns, measures intended to address medical unemployment and career progression concerns, and reforms to study budgets and study leave to improve access to training opportunities.

Negotiations between the BMA’s Welsh Resident Doctors Committee, NHS Wales Employers and the Welsh Government concluded earlier this year. Following a consultation period, a referendum of resident doctors and final-year medical students in Wales was held, resulting in a clear majority in favour of the proposals.

Welsh Resident Doctors Committee chair Dr Oba Babs Osibodu said the agreement marked a significant step forward for doctors working in Wales.

He said: “We’re proud to have negotiated this contract, which offers our colleagues and the future generation of doctors safer terms of service, fairer pay, and better prospects so that they can grow and develop their careers in Wales.

“This contract will help to retain the doctors already in training, and also attract more doctors to work in Wales, where they can offer their expertise and benefit patients.”

Dr Osibodu added that the BMA remains committed to achieving full pay restoration and acknowledged that challenges remain for some doctors.

“Whilst this contract sets the foundations for a brighter future for resident doctors in Wales, we recognise that there are still doctors who are struggling to develop their careers and secure permanent work,” he said. “We need to work with the Welsh Government and NHS employers to address training bottlenecks and underemployment.”

The Welsh Government has previously said it recognises the pressures facing resident doctors and the importance of improving recruitment and retention across NHS Wales, while also highlighting the need to balance pay agreements with wider NHS funding pressures and patient demand.

The new contract is expected to be phased in from August 2026. It will initially apply to doctors in foundation programmes, those in specialty training with unbanded rotas, and new starters, before being rolled out to all resident doctors across Wales.

Crime

Swansea man jailed for online child sex offence dies in prison

Published

5 hours ago

December 18, 2025

Tom Sinclair

A SWANSEA man who was jailed earlier this year for attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child has died while in custody.

Gareth Davies, aged 59, of the Maritime Quarter, was serving an 18-month prison sentence after being convicted in May of sending sexually explicit messages to what he believed was a 14-year-old girl. The account was in fact a decoy used as part of an online safeguarding operation.

The court heard that Davies began communicating with the decoy between November and December 2024 and persistently pursued the individual, later attempting to arrange a face-to-face meeting. He was arrested after being confronted by the decoy operators.

Davies had pleaded not guilty but was convicted following a trial. At the time of sentencing, police described the messages as extremely concerning and said his imprisonment was necessary to protect children.

It has now been confirmed that Davies died at HMP Parc on Wednesday (Nov 27) while serving his sentence.

The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman has launched an independent investigation into the death, which is standard procedure in all cases where someone dies in custody. No cause of death has been released at this stage.

A coroner will determine the circumstances in due course.

Farming

Welsh Conservatives warn climate plans could mean fewer livestock on Welsh farms

Published

5 hours ago

December 18, 2025

Tom Sinclair

THE WELSH CONSERVATIVES have challenged the Welsh Government over climate change policies they say could lead to reductions in livestock numbers across Wales, raising concerns about the future of Welsh farming.

The row follows the Welsh Government’s decision, alongside Plaid Cymru and the Welsh Liberal Democrats, to support the UK Climate Change Committee’s Fourth Carbon Budget, which sets out the pathway towards Net Zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

The Carbon Budget, produced by the independent Climate Change Committee (CCC), states that meeting Net Zero targets will require a reduction in agricultural emissions, including changes to land use and, in some scenarios, a reduction in livestock numbers.

During questioning in the Senedd, the Welsh Conservatives pressed the Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Rural Affairs on whether the Welsh Government supports reducing livestock numbers as part of its climate strategy.

Speaking after the exchange, Welsh Conservative Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs, Samuel Kurtz MS, said the Welsh Government could not distance itself from the implications of the policy it had backed.

Mr Kurtz said: “By voting in favour of these climate change regulations, Labour, Plaid Cymru and the Liberal Democrats have signed up to the UK Climate Change Committee’s call to cut livestock numbers in Wales, and they cannot dodge that reality.

“The Deputy First Minister’s smoke-and-mirrors answers only confirm what farmers already fear: that Labour, along with their budget bedfellows in Plaid and the Lib Dems, are prepared to sacrifice Welsh agriculture in pursuit of climate targets.”

He added that the issue came at a time of growing pressure on the farming sector, pointing to uncertainty over the proposed Sustainable Farming Scheme, the ongoing failure to eradicate bovine TB, nitrogen pollution regulations under the Nitrate Vulnerable Zones (NVZs), and proposed changes to inheritance tax rules affecting family farms.

The Welsh Government has repeatedly said it does not have a target to forcibly reduce livestock numbers and has argued that future emissions reductions will come through a combination of improved farming practices, environmental land management, and changes in land use agreed with farmers.

Ministers have also said the Sustainable Farming Scheme, which is due to replace the Basic Payment Scheme, is intended to reward farmers for food production alongside environmental outcomes, rather than remove land from agriculture.

The UK Climate Change Committee, which advises governments across the UK, has stressed that its pathways are based on modelling rather than fixed quotas, and that devolved governments have flexibility in how targets are met.

However, farming unions and rural groups in Wales have warned that policies focused on emissions reduction risk undermining the viability of livestock farming, particularly in upland and marginal areas where alternatives to grazing are limited.

The debate highlights the growing tension between climate targets and food production in Wales, with livestock farming remaining a central part of the rural economy and Welsh cultural identity.

As discussions continue over the final shape of the Sustainable Farming Scheme and Wales’ long-term climate plans, pressure is mounting on the Welsh Government to reassure farmers that climate policy will not come at the expense of the sector’s survival.