Town council donation will support two of the town’s biggest community events, with further funding for Santa visit

MILFORD HAVEN TOWN COUNCIL has presented a £6,000 donation to Milford Haven Round Table to help support this year’s Milford Haven Carnival and Free Fireworks Extravaganza.

The cheque was presented by the Mayor of Milford Haven, Councillor Mark Woodward, at the Lord Nelson Hotel on Thursday, June 25.

The donation was agreed at a meeting of the full council on Monday, June 8, in recognition of the work carried out by Milford Haven Round Table in organising major community events for the town.

A further £500 will also be donated to the Round Table for its annual support with the Visit of Santa to Milford Haven.

Milford Haven Town Council said it was proud to support the Round Table and hoped the strong relationship between the two organisations would continue for many years to come.

The council added: “Thank you all so very much for giving up your time to put these fabulous events together for our beloved town.”

A PEMBROKESHIRE DJ and music producer is celebrating a major career breakthrough after having his new track signed by London dance label Perfect Havoc.

Josh Oughton, 29, who performs as J Flow, will release his new single Another Lie on all major platforms on Friday, July 3.

Josh, who is from Pembrokeshire and still lives locally, began DJing in 2018 and has been performing professionally for the past two years. He has also spent several years learning music production, before deciding to take it seriously over the last two years.

He said Perfect Havoc discovered him after he sent demos directly to the label.

“Having my track signed to Perfect Havoc is a massive achievement in my career,” Josh said. “It gives me the potential to get booked for bigger shows and festivals.”

He described Another Lie as a high-energy dance track with “pure summer vibes”.

“The story behind it is constantly being lied to and me being able to walk away from them lies,” he said.

Josh added that the achievement still has not fully sunk in.

“To me personally, it still doesn’t feel real,” he said. “I never thought I would have got as far as having my music signed to a label, so it means the world to me.”

Perfect Havoc is a London-based dance music label which has released music from a number of high-profile dance artists, including Joel Corry.

Josh said further plans are in the pipeline, although he is not yet able to reveal details.

THE BADGER TRUST has called on the new Welsh Government to publish the scientific evidence behind any move towards wildlife controls as part of Wales’ bovine TB strategy.

The charity says ministers have repeatedly promised to “follow the science” while also leaving open the possibility of future interventions involving wildlife, including badgers.

The row follows recent Senedd exchanges in which Cabinet Minister Llyr Gruffydd said the Government was committed to a “holistic approach” to eradicating bovine TB in Wales, based on science and evidence, and informed by the Technical Advisory Group and the TB Programme Board.

Ministers have not announced a badger cull. However, the issue has become politically sensitive after Plaid Cymru’s manifesto pledged a new approach to bTB which recognises wildlife as a source of infection and enables “scientifically validated control methods”.

Badger Trust says that wording raises questions about whether the new administration is preparing to move away from Wales’ previous policy, which focused mainly on cattle measures, biosecurity, testing and vaccination rather than widespread badger culling.

The charity argues that Wales has already made progress without adopting the large-scale culling programmes seen in England.

Official figures published by the Welsh Government show there were 479 new TB herd incidents in Wales in the 12 months to March 2026, down 23.1% from 623 in the previous 12 months. The number of animals slaughtered for TB control in Wales also fell by 21.1%, from 13,171 to 10,395.

However, the Welsh Government has also acknowledged that the number of cattle slaughtered remains high and that there is “still a long way to go”. A written statement earlier this year said some slaughter figures reflect the use of more sensitive testing aimed at finding infection earlier and reducing the risk of future spread.

Nigel Palmer, chief executive of Badger Trust, said: “Ministers are saying they will follow the science repeatedly to the Senedd. That is welcome.

“But if they are considering a major policy change, the public has a right to know what evidence is driving that discussion.

“The evidence does not demonstrate that badger culling provides a meaningful solution to bovine TB in cattle or would improve on the progress already being made in Wales.

“We understand the devastating impact bovine TB can have on farming families and rural communities. That is why farmers deserve effective solutions based on evidence, not assumptions.

“That means continued investment in cattle measures, including on-farm and off-farm biosecurity, improved testing and vaccination. Farmers and wildlife can be protected by following the evidence.”

The charity also pointed to polling by RSPCA Cymru which, it says, found only 27% of respondents supported badger culling, while 46% opposed it. It said 63% of respondents were uncomfortable with killing badgers and 68% opposed public money being spent on culling programmes.

The debate has intensified since a Senedd exchange on June 10, when Labour MS Vikki Howells asked whether ministers would consider all the science, including evidence which she said showed culling badgers was not the answer.

Responding, Mr Gruffydd said the issue needed to be approached “in an objective manner with a clear head” and said any decision would be based on science, the evidence base, and advice from the Technical Advisory Group, which is looking at TB and wildlife.

Earlier in the same session, Mr Gruffydd said he had already met the TB Programme Board and the Technical Advisory Group, and said a position paper published in March made clear that TB needed to be tackled across livestock, wildlife and other sources of infection.

Farming unions and rural representatives have argued that the current approach has not gone far enough. NFU Cymru backed calls earlier this year for a “step change” in Wales’ bTB eradication strategy, saying the current trajectory was not sufficient to meet the target of Wales becoming officially TB free by 2041.

NFU Cymru president Abi Reader said at the time that while it was encouraging to see new breakdowns falling, the impact on farms under TB restrictions and the number of animals slaughtered could not be ignored.

The Welsh Government has also recently tightened cattle movement rules. From January 2026, cattle in Wales that previously tested as standard interpretation inconclusive reactors and later tested negative at re-test remain restricted to their holding for life. The Welsh Government said scientific evidence showed such animals were three times more likely to become TB reactors than clear-tested cattle.

In the Senedd, ministers have highlighted the Pembrokeshire TB project as a possible model for future work. Mr Gruffydd said he had visited the project and was “inspired” by its local, industry-led approach, involving farmers and vets working together on area-specific responses.

Badger Trust said it accepted the seriousness of bTB for farmers but said any change in policy involving wildlife must be justified by clear evidence.

Mr Palmer added: “Wales has already proved that progress against bovine TB is possible without widespread badger culling.

“If ministers are considering a different approach, they should share and explain the scientific evidence they have to support a change in policy direction.”

The Welsh Government has been asked to comment.