News

County NFU elect new chairman

Published

12 years ago

November 27, 2013

A MEMBER and past chairman of the Narberth local branch, Mike Plumb, was earlier this week elected into office for the coming year as Chairman of the Pembroke County branch of the National Farmers Union.

He succeeds Mansel Raymond, North West local branch, and will have as his vice–chairman, Simon Richards of Central area.Born in Oxfordshire, Mike came to the area as a teenager in 1966 when his parents, Peter and Mary Plumb, bought Plascerdin Farm at Llangynin.

He has a strong NFU pedigree for his father was elected Chairman of the Union’s Carmarthen branch for 1988. Like his father, he was a member of the St Clears local branch in Carmarthenshire. Mike served the county as livestock committee chairman and has continued to be actively involved in Union affairs since moving to farm at the 92-acre Blaenffynnonau, Narberth and has chaired the Union’s Rural Affairs Committee in Pembrokeshire.

Mike is married to June, who works for a well-established firm of accountants, and the couple have two sons, Steven, who works for the NHS, and Tim, who is a graphic designer – and three young grandchildren. As a means of generating extra income 16 years ago, Mike trained in pest control and started a service for farmers and others in disposing of rodent pests and he was also in demand in mole control. This side of the business had to end when the use of strychnine became prohibited.

More recently, in partnership with his wife June, with specialised equipment and well trained staff, he now works on private contracts and for the County Council and National Parks Authority on tree surgery (lopping and topping), tree removal (including an emergency 24-hour service), mobile wood chipping and log splitting, orchard and large garden maintenance and bracken control.

Mike manages all the practical aspects of the partnership, personally overseeing all of the work and insisting that his staff provide a reliable service and receive ongoing training and updating, to keep within latest safety guidelines.

Mike says: “We take immense pride in the fact that most of the work we undertake in the private sector, comes from the recommendations of
satisfied clients”.

Panel: Union activities
THE annual dinner of the NFU’s Pembroke County branch, attended by 160 members, friends and guests, was held last Friday evening at the new Crug Glas Function Centre, near Croesgoch, operated by union members, Perkin and Janet Evans. The guest speaker for the occasion was Andy Robertson, who was just over 12 months ago, appointed as the Union’s Director General for England and Wales.

This week’s annual general meeting was held at the Wolfscastle Country Hotel and the Union’s annual County Conference is to be held at the Nantyffin, Llandissilio on Thursday, January 9 when the guest speaker will be Prof Wayne Powell.

For the past five years Wayne has been the highly regarded Director of IBERS (The Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences at Aberystwyth University) and recently appointed as Chief Science Officer of the CGIAR Consortium –a global partnership of research organizations.

Community

Lauren Clewes begins trainee solicitor role at Eaton-Evans and Morris

Published

8 minutes ago

April 12, 2026

Tom Sinclair

Pembrokeshire law firm confirms internal promotion after Lauren joined the business as a paralegal in 2024

LAUREN CLEWES has been promoted to trainee solicitor at Eaton-Evans and Morris Solicitors.

Lauren joined the firm in 2024 as a paralegal, working first with Helen Hodges and later with Pauline Mainwaring. Over the coming months, she will work alongside the firm’s fee earners across all departments as part of her training.

Sean Dyer, one of the firm’s directors (pictured), offered his congratulations on her promotion.

News

Emergency response after person enters water at Milford Haven marina

Published

38 minutes ago

April 12, 2026

Tom Sinclair

Casualty recovered as police, coastguard and lifeboat crews attend

A MAJOR emergency response was launched at Milford Marina in Milford Haven on Sunday (Apr 12) after a person was reported to have entered the water.

Police, ambulance crews, HM Coastguard and lifeboat teams were called to the scene at Milford Docks shortly after 1:00pm.

The casualty was recovered from the water by emergency services. However, at the time of publication, their condition has not been confirmed.

Eyewitnesses described a significant multi-agency presence, with crews working together in a coordinated rescue operation.

The Herald understands that the incident prompted a rapid response from all emergency services in the area.

No further details have yet been released regarding the circumstances surrounding the incident.

Crime

Over 500 arrests at latest Palestine Action protest in London

Published

2 hours ago

April 12, 2026

Tom Sinclair

The Herald understands demonstrators from Pembrokeshire were among those in London as 523 people were detained at Trafalgar Square vigil

MORE than 500 people were arrested in Trafalgar Square on Saturday during a mass protest against the ban on Palestine Action, in what campaigners say has pushed the total number of arrests linked to the group’s proscription to more than 3,300 since July 2025.

The Herald understands that a number of those attending had travelled from Wales, including some protesters from Pembrokeshire.

The Metropolitan Police said 523 people were arrested during the demonstration, where protesters staged what organisers described as a silent vigil against the war in Gaza and the use of terrorism laws against pro-Palestinian activism.

Those detained were said to range in age from 18 to 87. Among those arrested was Robert Del Naja, the Massive Attack musician and artist, who was identified by national media as being among those detained during the protest.

The latest mass arrests come amid continuing legal and political controversy over the Government’s decision to proscribe Palestine Action under terrorism legislation.

The group was banned after activists broke into RAF Brize Norton in July 2025 and damaged military aircraft in protest at Britain’s support for Israel. The proscription came into force on July 5, 2025, making it a criminal offence to belong to the group or to express support for it.

However, in February this year, the High Court ruled that the ban was unlawful. Despite that decision, the proscription remains in force while the Government pursues an appeal, which is due to be heard later this month.

That legal uncertainty has fuelled criticism of the Metropolitan Police, which had initially indicated it would not arrest people simply for holding signs while the case remained unresolved. The force later reversed that position and resumed enforcement.

The handling of Saturday’s protest has drawn further scrutiny after former Metropolitan Police chief superintendent Dal Babu said the “optics” were “very challenging for the police” when faced with hundreds of peaceful demonstrators willing to be arrested.

Campaigners say the arrests raise serious questions about free speech, peaceful assembly and the practical enforcement of the law, particularly while the ban itself remains under appeal.

The protest was organised by Defend Our Juries, which said many of those detained were elderly or disabled and claimed the latest arrests showed the ban was becoming increasingly difficult to enforce consistently.

There was further controversy after reports that Devon and Cornwall Police did not make arrests at a similar protest in Truro on Friday, despite demonstrators there reportedly holding the same signs as those seen in London.

With the Court of Appeal due to hear the case on April 28 and 29, the latest arrests are likely to intensify pressure on both ministers and police over how far terrorism laws should be used in response to peaceful public protest.