THE PEMBROKESHIRE HERALD has today confirmed that its Editor, Tom Sinclair, has served a £50,000 defamation claim on Neyland Town Council following a series of false and damaging statements issued by the Council and its Clerk.

The legal action centres on an official post published by Neyland Town Council on its Facebook page in October, in which the Herald’s reporting was described as “targeted”, “bullying”, and “relentless”. These accusations were presented as fact, published without evidence, and issued without giving the newspaper any right of reply.

In the weeks that followed, serious defamatory abuse was allowed to remain visible beneath the Council’s post, including a comment labelling the editor a “nonce”. That comment remained public for around eight weeks before being removed. The Town Clerk later escalated matters further by posting an abusive public message directed at Mr Sinclair personally, using obscene language.

Mr Sinclair said: “Our reporting has been fair, accurate and entirely justified. When a public authority uses its official platform to publish untrue personal attacks about a journalist, it crosses a line. This is not about disagreement with a story – it is about a council making baseless allegations that undermine press freedom and damage trust in local democracy.”

He added: “No journalist should be publicly slurred by a public body for doing their job. Allowing defamatory abuse to remain online for weeks, and then adding further hostile comments, has caused serious harm to my reputation and encouraged harassment.”

The claim seeks damages, the removal of the offending material, a public apology, and written undertakings to prevent a repeat of the allegations.

Mr Sinclair said the purpose of the action is to “draw a clear line under this behaviour” and ensure that no other journalist is subjected to similar treatment by those in public office.

“The Herald will always hold public bodies to account,” he said. “But accountability runs both ways.”

NATURAL Resources Wales (NRW) has updated a flood alert for the Pembrokeshire coast, warning that flooding is possible between St Dogmaels, Cardigan and Amroth over the next two days.

The alert, which covers the stretch of coast from St Dogmaels down to Amroth, was first issued on Friday (Dec 5) and was updated around midday today (Sunday, Dec 7). NRW says the risk comes from a combination of high tides, large waves and unsettled weather, with the greatest impacts currently expected around Tuesday’s tides.

Flooding of low-lying land and roads is expected around the time of each high tide on Monday (Dec 8) and Tuesday (Dec 9). A further spell of wet and windy weather is also expected to keep river and surface water levels high across parts of south-west Wales.

Residents in coastal communities and estuary areas are being urged to be prepared and to take some simple precautions. NRW’s advice includes:

What people are being urged to do

• Follow your household flood plan if you already have one.
• Check where your loved ones and pets are, and think about how you would move them to safety if water starts to rise.
• Move sentimental items, important documents and valuables to higher shelves or upstairs where possible.
• Keep your mobile phone charged and switched on so you can receive warnings and updates.
• Make sure you know how to turn off your electricity, gas and water supplies.
• Pack a small grab-bag in case you need to leave home in a hurry – including medication, phone and charger, warm clothing, baby and pet supplies, sanitary products and insurance documents.
• Consider moving cars, livestock and equipment away from low-lying or exposed areas that are likely to flood.

What not to do:

Officials are again stressing that people should not drive or walk through floodwater. Just 30 centimetres (around one foot) of fast-moving water can move a car, and as little as 15 centimetres can knock an adult off their feet.

• For the latest official information on this alert, residents can visit the NRW flood warning page for the Pembrokeshire coast (area code 102WABT02), or call Floodline on 0345 988 1188 and use quick dial number 503013.
  

Up-to-date river, rainfall and sea level data is also available via the ‘river, rainfall and sea data’ pages on the Natural Resources Wales website.

Government invests £820m to tackle rising youth unemployment, with targeted support across south-west Wales

YOUNG people on Universal Credit in West Wales will be offered new training and work experience placements in sectors such as construction, hospitality, and health and social care, as part of a UK Government drive to bring down rising youth unemployment.

The programme – funded from the £820m announced by Chancellor Rachel Reeves in last month’s Budget – will create 350,000 training and work-experience places across the UK, and guarantee 55,000 jobs in areas judged to be most in need from spring 2026. South-west and south-east Wales are among the regions singled out for focused support.

Ministers say the measures aim to move young people aged 16–24 off long-term benefits and into stable work. Almost one million young people across the UK are currently classed as NEET (not in education, employment or training), a figure that has been rising steadily since 2021.

Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden said the new pathways would give out-of-work young people “a fair chance to make something of their lives”. The support will include a dedicated work session for every claimant aged under 25, followed by four weeks of intensive coaching before they are placed on one of six routes: paid work, work experience, an apprenticeship, wider training, classroom learning, or a workplace-based training scheme with a guaranteed interview.

Focus on sectors vital to the West Wales economy

For West Wales – where seasonal work, rural isolation and limited transport links have long affected youth employment – the concentration on construction, hospitality, and social care is likely to be significant. These industries remain major employers across Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion, with businesses regularly reporting difficulties recruiting local staff.

The Herald understands that officials expect more than 1,000 young people nationally to move into jobs within the first six months, with additional programmes promised as the government prepares to publish its national youth strategy.

Political dispute over the impact

The Conservatives accused the Chancellor of “driving youth unemployment up” through recent tax decisions, claiming the new scheme “gives with one hand while taking with the other”. However, ministers insist the investment represents a “downpayment on young people’s future” and will help address the rise in long-term sickness and disability among under-25s – one of the biggest barriers to work.

Further announcements are expected next week, including new details on the government’s pledge to make apprenticeships for under-25s at small and medium-sized businesses completely free.