News
Remain vote best for the NHS – Leanne Wood and Carwyn Jones
WELSH First Minister Carwyn Jones and Plaid Cymru leader Leanne Wood have joined forces to argue that the long term future of the NHS can only be secured with a remain vote in the EU referendum on Thursday. They warned that leaving the European Union would make it more difficult to recruit doctors and other healthcare professionals to the NHS.
During First Minister’s questions in the Senedd, the Plaid Cymru leader and First Minister agreed that the NHS will need to recruit increasing numbers of trained healthcare professionals and that voting to leave the EU would make it even more difficult to recruit them from overseas.
Plaid Cymru leader Leanne Wood said:
“Wales already faces a doctor shortage, and voting to leave the EU would perpetuate this problem. If we were to leave the EU on Thursday the NHS in Wales would find it even more difficult to recruit doctors from overseas.
“The economic uncertainty caused by withdrawing from the EU would also make it difficult to attract GPs to areas where vacancies are difficult to fill. We cannot overlook the threat of privatisation if we were to leave the NHS in the hands of right-wing politicians. Their keenness to sign up to TTIP would make it easier for more of our public services to be sold off.
“The only way to secure the future of our NHS is to vote to remain in the EU. It is in Wales’ best interests to remain in the EU. When it comes to protecting people, the economy and protecting the health service, Wales is better off in the European Union.”
In response to the question from the Plaid Cymru leader, the First Minister Carwyn Jones said:
“What message would we convey to doctors and other health staff should we leave the European Union? Without question we would find it harder to recruit skilled staff from abroad. It is clear that our NHS benefits hugely from our membership of the EU, and it is one of the things people need to think about before they vote on Thursday.”
Addressing a question on the threat of privatisation in the event of a Leave vote, the First Minister said:“We of course oppose any privatisation of the NHS, and there is no doubt that a Leave vote would damage the fabric of our health service. Look at the personalities at the top of the Leave campaign – those are people who do not speak for the NHS, who talk openly about a privatisation agenda. Devolution would not protect us fully from the effects of wholesale privatisation in Wales, as it would slash the funding available to us.”
News
Emergency services respond to maritime incidents off Pembroke Dock

Police incident and vessel fire prompt swift action from lifeboat, coastguard and fire crews
EMERGENCY SERVICES were called into action late on Saturday night (July 19) following two separate incidents in the waters near Pembroke Dock.
The first call came at 11:14pm when Angle RNLI’s all-weather lifeboat was launched to support Dyfed-Powys Police with an ongoing incident near the town’s waterfront. The lifeboat crew was joined by Dale and St Govan’s coastguard rescue teams, working in coordination with police officers on the scene. After approximately 20 minutes of standing by, the situation was brought under control by police and no assistance from the lifeboat was ultimately required.
However, the night was far from over for the RNLI crew. As they were departing the first scene, they were immediately re-tasked to respond to a second emergency – a report of a fire on board a vessel carrying four people in the Milford Haven waterway.
The lifeboat made best speed to the location, where the fire was believed to have broken out in the vessel’s wheelhouse. By the time the lifeboat arrived, the fire was thought to be extinguished. Crews from Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service boarded the vessel to confirm the situation, while Dale coastguard was again dispatched to provide further support.
Fortunately, all individuals on board were accounted for and unharmed. The fire was confirmed to be fully out, and all responding teams were stood down shortly after 1:00am.
The overnight incidents highlight the close coordination between emergency services in in local area, with lifeboat, coastguard, police and fire crews working together to ensure public safety.
Photo caption:
Ready to respond: Angle RNLI crew were involved in two back-to-back overnight callouts (Pic: RNLI)
Crime
Waste dumped at recycling centre leads police to drug factory near Cardigan

Man jailed after drug discovery sparked by vigilant staff
A TIP-OFF from staff at an Aberystwyth recycling centre has led to the discovery of a large cannabis factory in a derelict property near Cardigan — and landed a 20-year-old man behind bars.
Manuel Nerguti was sentenced to six months in prison at Swansea Crown Court on Friday (July 11) after pleading guilty to producing a class B drug.
The court heard that on May 1 this year, workers at the Aberystwyth recycling centre reported a suspicious delivery: four to five bags of cannabis stalks, apparently dumped by men in a hired Ford Transit van.
Police acted quickly and intercepted the van later that afternoon on the road between Aberystwyth and Cardigan. Nerguti and two other men were arrested on suspicion of being concerned in the supply of cannabis, but were released without charge at the time, as no grow site had been located.
However, a month later, acting on new intelligence, Dyfed-Powys Police executed a warrant at a derelict house in Bridell, near Cardigan. Inside, they discovered a sophisticated cannabis cultivation operation: 260 mature plants spread across five rooms and an attic, with the electricity supply illegally bypassed.
During the raid on June 7, Nerguti attempted to flee but was found hiding behind a washing machine in the garage.
He was charged and later pleaded guilty to producing cannabis.
Detective Constable Sam Garside, who led the investigation, praised the recycling centre staff for their quick thinking.
He said: “This result is thanks to the staff at the recycling centre for recognising that criminal activity was taking place and for alerting police quickly.
“We rely on the public to inform us of anything suspicious going on in their communities and we encourage people to get in touch if they suspect anything. We were able to use our local knowledge and police intelligence to execute a successful warrant and shut down an illegal cannabis factory.
“We are committed to continuing our drug operations across Dyfed-Powys and bringing offenders like Nerguti to justice.”
Police estimate the cannabis seized had a potential street value of up to £242,000.
More information on Operation Scotney — Dyfed-Powys Police’s campaign to tackle cannabis cultivation — including how to spot signs of a drug grow, can be found on their website.
News
Pembrokeshire County Council group to review ‘climate emergency’

A CALL for a group to review Pembrokeshire County Council’s decision to declare a climate emergency some six years ago has been backed by councillors.
In May 2019, the council declare a climate emergency following a notice of motion by Cllr Joshua Beynon calling on the authority to back the global consensus that climate change poses a risk to the well-being of future generations.
He had urged county councillors to back a motion to take “bold, decisive action” to fight “truly, catastrophic” climate change.
He called on the council to commit to becoming a zero-carbon local authority by 2030.
At the July meeting of Pembrokeshire County Council, a notice of motion by Cllr Mike Stoddart called for the establishment of a working group to review the decision made by the council to declare a climate change emergency.
Cllr Stoddart’s motion said: “Given the turbulence on the global financial markets; the parlous state of the UK’s public finances; Pembrokeshire County Council’s projected funding gap; and the government’s softening of its policies on the switch to EV vehicles and heat pumps, this council establishes a seven person, politically balanced working group to review the authority’s decision to declare a climate emergency at its meeting on May 9, 2019.
“The working group will be asked to: (a) examine the effect of the emergency declaration on the level of council tax in Pembrokeshire and particularly the extent to which any such increases militate against the authority’s anti-poverty policies.
“(b) The cost of decarbonising the council’s housing stock and the effect this has had on the authority’s ability to finance the building of new housing.
“(c) The extent to which the council’s decarbonisation programme has contributed to a reduction of the risk of runaway global temperature increases, and (d) any other effects that the working group considers may have adversely impacted the wellbeing of the residents of Pembrokeshire.”
Cllr Stoddart’s notice of motion was previously supported at the June meeting of the council’s corporate overview and scrutiny committee, with a recommendation to full council in July meeting, to reinstate the Net Zero Working Group to review the contents of the notice of motion and, subject to the outcome of this review, review the future delivery of the Net Zero Action Plan.
Cllr Stoddart’s call was backed by Cllr Steve Alderman, and Cllr Rhys Jordan, who said: “I fully support this, it couldn’t come sooner; around England and Wales councils are looking at this, there’s been a huge push for a ‘net zero’ agenda at any cost, I don’t think we’re in a position to drive that.”
Cllr Aaron Carey said: “We’ve set ourselves some lofty goals, but we haven’t got the money to back it up.”
Members overwhelmingly agreed to back the June committee recommendations.
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