A CIVIC service has been held at St Mary’s Church in Haverfordwest, bringing together civic leaders, councillors, cadets and community representatives from across Pembrokeshire.

The Mayor’s Civic Service took place at 11:00am on Sunday, 28 June 2026, at the historic High Street church, one of the county town’s most familiar landmarks.

The service was hosted by Haverfordwest Town Council and attended by the Sheriff of Haverfordwest, Cllr Dani Thomas-Turner, Deputy Lord Lieutenants, the mayors of Pembroke, Pembroke Dock, Neyland and St Davids, members of the Guild of Freemen, the Lord Lieutenant’s Cadet and the Mayoral Cadet.

St Mary’s Church has stood at the heart of Haverfordwest for more than 800 years. Built in about 1200, its size and position have made it one of the town’s dominant historic buildings.

Cllr Randell Izaiah Thomas-Turner said the occasion had been “truly special and humbling”.

He said: “It was an honour to gather in one of our town’s most historic and beautiful buildings, a church that has stood at the heart of our community since the 12th century, bringing people together in faith, service and reflection.”

Cllr Thomas-Turner and the Sheriff thanked all those who attended, saying the presence of civic representatives from neighbouring towns reflected the “strong spirit of friendship and partnership across Pembrokeshire”.

They also paid tribute to fellow town councillors, the Guild of Freemen, and the cadets who supported the service.

Cllr Thomas-Turner added: “Days like today remind us that civic life is about more than titles and chains of office. It is about service, community, friendship and working together for the good of our towns and our county.”

He said the event had been a proud day for Haverfordwest, adding: “Haverfordwest truly is the Best in the West.”

A FRESH call has been made for Crown Estate assets in Wales to be devolved to the country, a call backed by Pembrokeshire councillors last year, after it made £210m profit this financial year.

Today, June 26, the Crown Estate published its annual review, also releasing a Wales-specific review, showing that, in 2025-’26 its profits in Wales were £210m, up from £8.7m in 2020-’21.

Plaid Cymru Westminster Leader Liz Saville Roberts said that Plaid Cymru – which has long campaigned for the assets to be devolved – has a “mandate to keep fighting for fairness” with devolving the Crown Estate being a position held by every council in Wales.

The new Plaid Cymru Welsh Government is also pursuing control over natural resources, in line with Scotland, where the Crown Estate was devolved in 2017.

Ms Saville Roberts said that profits from Wales’ natural resources being sent to London is a “striking injustice” and that the next UK Government “must take steps to devolve the Crown Estate to Wales”.

Back in 2025, Pembrokeshire County Council joined other Welsh councils in supporting the Crown Estate assets in the county being devolved to its people.

The Crown Estate owns 65 per cent of Wales’ riverbeds and beaches.

Proceeds from the Crown Estate, which dates to the 17^th century, are split by 25 per cent funding the Royal Family and 75 per cent to the UK Treasury.

Responsibility for the Crown Estate is already devolved to the Scottish Government, which has previously been reported as generating £103.6 million into the public coffers in Scotland in 2023.

A sticking point in Wales is that Westminster has to date been against any change.

A successful notice of motion before Pembrokeshire County Council, by Plaid Cymru councillor Michael Williams said: “We ask PCC to support the proposal for the Crown Estate assets to be devolved to the people of Wales, so that profits can be used to invest in the economy and communities of Wales.

“A poll in 2023 showed that 75 per cent of the population were in favour of taking control of the assets of the Crown estate rather than the profits going to the Treasury and the Crown.

“Local authorities are under huge financial pressure and placing the Crown Estate in the hands of Wales would be a significant step to address the lack of investment in our local government.

“We call upon the Welsh Government to ask Westminster to devolve the assets and revenue of the Crown Estates as a matter of urgency, as was done in Scotland in 2017.

“We demand that Wales is treated fairly and accepts management of the Crown Estate land for the benefit of the people of Wales.”

Councillors have previously heard the Crown Estates derives nearly £60,000 from some 16 leases in Pembrokeshire.

The £59,005 quoted at the time includes £26,600 for foreshore lease agreements, £8,520 for the land around Haverfordwest’s Riverside Market, and £12,800 for a sailing centre and car park at Cosheston Pill near Pembroke Dock.

MORE THAN 100 development schemes in Pembrokeshire, amounting to more than 2,300 homes, are in limbo due to the ongoing Nitrogen Neutrality guidelines from Natural Resources Wales, councillors heard.

At the June meeting of Pembrokeshire County Council’s services overview and scrutiny committee, members received an update on the ongoing issue of Nitrogen Neutrality which has led to delays in many housing schemes in the county since its introduction last June.

The area which development is required to demonstrate nitrogen neutrality is approximately 75 per cent of the county, including Haverfordwest, Narberth, Pembroke and Pembroke Dock.

The report, presented by Cabinet Member for Planning and Highways Cllr Jacob Williams, focussed on the implications of Natural Resources Wales’ (NRWs) Nutrient Neutrality requirements in respect of dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) for development within the Milford Haven Inner waterbody catchment of the Pembrokeshire Marine Special Area of Conservation (SAC) and the measures being taken by the council at a local level to address this issue as well as the council’s contribution to regional and national initiatives.

The report said that, as of May, there were 21 planning applications which were in the system before the introduction of nitrogen neutrality requirements (June 2025) which are now caught and which remain undetermined, along with a further 66 undetermined since that date, and a further  15 applications which are caught by nitrates requirements, but which have not yet reached eight-week determination date.

It said the 102 developments caught by the nitrates issue amounted to some 35 per cent of the total undetermined applications; that figure even higher when determined (refused) schemes were taken into account.

Cllr Williams, who last year with the backing of full council, wrote a letter to the First Minister, conveying the authority’s “great concern over Natural Resources Wales’ recent river nitrates guidance in relation to development, and the serious effects this is having,” said that amounted to 2,376 of 6,741 potential housing units, adding that “Pembrokeshire County Council cannot approve development which is unable to demonstrate Nitrogen Neutrality”.

Last October, Cabinet endorsed an action plan to address the nitrates issue for affected development within its planning area, the early stages already delivered, with a final report due for Cabinet consideration this September in order to determine how mitigation opportunities identified might be taken forward.

Members backed a recommendation to note the action plan progress ahead of the report to Cabinet.