News
Busy week for Angle lifeboat
THE CREW of Angle’s all-weather lifeboat had a busy time last week, with four call-outs in the space of seven days.
RNLI Angle’s Tamar class lifeboat the Mark Mason launched in the early hours of Sunday (May 31) in response to a mayday from a yacht said to be drifting, without power, off the south Pembrokeshire coast.
The 9m yacht, with two people on board, was reported to be 18 miles south-east of the Turbot Bank.
After launching at 2.20am the Mark Mason’s crew used radar and direction finder to help locate the casualty.
When they arrived at the scene, at 3.23am, the lifeboat found the yacht was making slow progress with her own engine. Because the casualty had no lighting, it was decided to tow her to Milford Haven, which was reached shortly before 7am.
At the entrance to Milford Docks, the tow was released and the yacht made her own way alongside the pontoon. With the casualty secure, the lifeboat was released to return to her station, where she was re-housed at 7.20am.
On Friday (May 29), she was launched at 4.55 am to go to the aid of a 17.4m motor boat, which had suffered machinery failure and needed assistance off the Dale Shelf. There were three people on board.
The lifeboat reached the casualty in 8 minutes and put two of her crew members on board to assess the yacht’s condition. The casualty had suffered water ingress, which was under control, but while attempting to berth at Dale she had been hit by some machinery failure.
After an assessment, and due to the weather conditions, it was decided to escort the yacht to her berth at Neyland Marina, where she was safely secured. The lifeboat recovered her two crew members and left the marina at 6.11am to return to her station.
Two days earlier on the Wednesday (May 27), the lifeboat was launched at 11.43am after a report that a 12m yacht, with one person on board, had fouled her rudder on fishing gear just south of Skomer Island.
Whilst en route it was reported that a nearby dive vessel had offered assistance to the casualty. The lifeboat reached the scene at 12.05pm to find the divers had cleared the obstruction. With all the divers recovered by their vessel, the yacht continued her passage to Holyhead and the lifeboat returned to station to be rehoused at 12.45pm.
On the Monday (May 25),the lifeboat launched at 5.58pm to take over a tow of a 7 metre leisure fishing vessel, from Tenby’s all weather lifeboat, off Sheep Island, near the entrance to the Milford Haven Waterway.
The casualty was taken to Neyland Marina, where the workboat took over the tow to her berth. The lifeboat returned to her station at 7.44pm.
News
Festive fun as Santa Run takes over Tenby streets
A TOWN full of Santas brought holiday cheer to Tenby today (Nov 30) as the annual Santa Run brightened the streets and seafront walkways.
The festive 3k fun run, organised by Tenby Round Table, welcomed adults, children—and even dogs—decked out in Santa suits to raise money for local charities and worthy causes.
Starting outside St Mary’s Church on High Street, participants received a Santa suit and a medal as part of their entry. Despite wet and windy weather, the rain failed to dampen spirits as Santas jogged through the harbour, down High Street, and along North Walk.
The Santa Run, organised by the Round Table remains a festive highlight in Tenby’s calendar, bringing the community together while supporting local causes.
News
Local MP’s family avoids farm tax bombshell
THE FAMILY of Mid & South Pembrokeshire MP, Henry Tufnell, took steps to avoid a potential tax liability weeks before Labour Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced her controversial tax changes to Agricultural Property Relief (APR). The timing has sparked questions about whether Mr Tufnell, a backbench MP, had prior knowledge of the changes—though his spokesperson firmly denies it.
“As has been widely reported, it would seem that even Steve Reed, the Secretary of State for DEFRA, was not aware of the specific changes to APR and Business Property Relief (BPR) before the Budget was announced,” the spokesperson told The Pembrokeshire Herald. “It would, therefore, be implausible to suggest that Henry…would have this kind of knowledge prior to the Chancellor’s Budget announcements before they were made public.”
Avoiding the new tax by coincidence
Around three weeks before the announcement, Mr Tufnell’s millionaire parents implemented financial measures to shield their 2,000-acre Cotswolds estate from the tax changes. While such tax avoidance is perfectly legal, critics have called the optics “spectacularly unfortunate.”
Where the money is
The average Welsh family farm earns less than £45k a year, with most of its value tied up in land—an asset that can only be realized by selling it, often at the cost of the farm’s viability. However, the Tufnells are far removed from this scenario. The family estate, owned by Mark Tufnell, includes an entire village of tenants, and Jane Tufnell, Henry’s mother, cofounded a major investment management company with over £20bn in client investments.
Avoid tax, says Pembrokeshire MP
When asked for comment, Mr Tufnell’s spokesperson encouraged Pembrokeshire farmers to follow suit in seeking professional advice to manage potential tax burdens. “The actions taken by Henry’s parents were based on professional advice… This is something every farmer in Pembrokeshire should consider in light of the Chancellor’s recent announcements.”
This statement has fueled criticism that those who stand to benefit most from the new tax policy are not small family farms but the wealthiest landowners employing tax advisers to exploit legal loopholes.
Policy must be scrapped
Welsh Parliament Member Samuel Kurtz slammed the policy, calling it devastating for small, family-run farms. “Labour must now do the right thing: scrap this policy. It’s evident that it cannot, and will not, work,” he said, echoing concerns from tax specialist Dan Neidle that the policy disproportionately impacts farmers while sparing tax avoiders.
As public outrage continues to mount, questions remain about the fairness of the tax and its potential repercussions for Wales’ hard-working farming families.
News
Local nurses shine at national awards
IT WAS another night of success for Hywel Dda University Health Board’s nursing team with two winners and one runner up at this year’s Royal College of Nurses (RCN) Wales Nurse of the Year Awards.
The prestigious annual awards took place in Cardiff on Thursday (Nov 21) to celebrate the innovation and excellence in practice, acknowledging the outstanding efforts, commitment and achievements of our nursing community across Wales.
Many congratulations go to Claire Hurlin, Strategic Head of Community and Chronic Conditions Management, who won the Lifetime Achievement Award and Donna Major, Senior Ward Sister, winner of the Registered Nurse (Adult) Award. Bianca Oakley, Lead Advanced Nurse Practitioner in Cardigan Integrated Care Centre, was awarded runner up in the Chief Nursing Officer for Wales Award.
Sharon Daniel, Interim Director of Nursing, Quality and Patient Experience at the health board said: “I’m delighted and very proud that our nurses in Hywel Dda have been recognised again in this annual event. The awards provide a great opportunity for nurses, students, support workers and midwives to showcase the difference they make to the lives of people we care for. Congratulations to you all.”
Claire Hurlin, Strategic Head of Community and Chronic Conditions Management won the Lifetime Achievement Award for her work to construct the trial of an asthma interface nurse, linking together pharma, primary care and specialist difficult asthma care. As a result, the team has expanded, resulting in more patients receiving specialist treatments.
She commented: “It is a real privilege to accept this award. I am grateful to be in a profession that I am passionate about and had the opportunity to work with so many nurses and health care professionals to make a difference.”
Donna Major, Senior Ward Sister, winner of the Registered Nurse (Adult) Award for her work to improve the care of frailty and dementia patients. She explored innovative ways of improving safety and outcomes for patients on the frailty ward, which included milkshake rounds, hydration, snack self-service, gardening, book and luncheon club. She also was pivotal in establishing the Frailty Assessment Unit and ‘Art in Health’ weekly activities for inpatients living with dementia in Glangwili Hospital.
She commented: “I was very shocked and delighted to receive this award and it was a wonderful, very inspiring evening highlighting our fantastic Welsh nursing workforce and the positive impact they have on patient care everyday.”
Bianca Oakley, Lead Advanced Nurse Practitioner in Cardigan Integrated Care Centre, was awarded runner up in the Chief Nursing Officer for Wales Award for her work developing a Community Same Day Urgent Care Service. This has helped give patients access to care closer to home and reduced pressures on general hospital sites. She is also actively involved in research such as point-of-care testing in remote areas to improve and enable timely safe care to be delivered to patients, closer to their homes.
She added “It was a great privilege to be awarded runner up for the second year running in these awards. I am incredibly proud of our team in Ceredigion’s Same Day Urgent Care and Outreach service who have worked tirelessly over the last three years to provide advanced care closer to home. Being nominated was only possible because of their hard work and dedication.”
For more information about the winners and finalists, visit: Nurse of the Year Award Winners 2024 | Wales | Royal College of Nursing
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