News
Council EU Funding ‘suspended’
THE SCANDAL surrounding the Council’s administration of European grant aid in Pembroke and Pembroke Dock has deepened.
The Pembrokeshire Herald can exclusively reveal that the Welsh European Funding Office (WEFO) has suspended payments due to be made to Pembrokeshire County Council under the Commercial Properties Grant Scheme until an investigation into the scheme is completed.
A spokesperson from the Welsh Government told The Herald:
“As a precautionary measure, WEFO has temporarily suspended EU funds payments to Pembrokeshire Council in respect of its Commercial Property Grant Scheme while the Council’s review of eligibility of expenditure is underway.”
A Council spokesperson responded by telling us:
“This matter is due to be discussed by Cabinet on Monday. There is no further comment.”
The suspension of payments to Pembrokeshire County Council is a further blow to the credibility of the IPPG Cabinet and beleaguered member David Pugh, who has had responsibility for overseeing the scheme stripped away from him. In December, the IPPG repeatedly attacked Councillors seeking to look at documents relating to the scheme, claiming there were no problems with it and claiming that officers had assured them there were no issues with its administration. Those reassurances were repeated to the Council’s own Audit Committee in January, when the scale of any potential issues was downplayed by officers.
Shortly after documents were made available for inspection by all Councillors, an issue was identified in relation to a separate scheme, the Town Heritage Initiative, where it appeared that one contractor was asked to tender on far more preferable terms than others competing for the same contract. Labour leader Paul Miller told The Herald:
“Having seen the statement obtained by the Pembrokeshire Herald I’m extremely disappointed that serious money, allocated to re-generate towns in Pembroekshire, is now in jeopardy and being withheld. Unfortunately though, I’m not surprised.
“Pembrokeshire Council has failed spectacularly to manage the Commercial Property Grant Scheme in Pembroke Dock. When concerns were raised they steadfastly refused to accept even the possibility there could be a problem and attacked those councillors demanding answers.
Leadership in our county council is non existent. It’s beggars belief that Cllr David Pugh continues in his position despite receiving only 22 votes (of 60) supporting him at the last full council.
“Unfortunately for Pembrokeshire, Pugh’s bungling just came home to roost and it can’t be far short of £1m of inward investment that Cllr Pugh’s failings have just put at risk.”
Business
Thousands of homes in rural Wales gain from faster 4G boost
RURAL Wales is seeing a major upgrade in mobile connectivity, with faster 4G now live in several areas. Seven locations across North, South West, and West Wales are benefitting from new 4G mast upgrades funded by the UK Government’s Shared Rural Network (SRN), aimed at closing the digital gap between rural and urban areas.
The upgrades, which went live on Thursday (Nov 14), bring improved 4G coverage to communities including Bontddu, Llanelltyd, Llanarmon Dyffryn Ceiriog, Penmaenpool, Tabor, Snowdonia National Park, and Bontgoch. Local businesses, emergency services, and residents are expected to benefit from faster internet access, which supports daily communication, business opportunities, and economic growth.
Technology Secretary Peter Kyle said: “Fast, reliable connectivity is essential for modern life and should be available from Cardiff to the remotest parts of Wales. Today’s upgrades bring us closer to making this a reality.”
SUPPORTING DIGITAL INCLUSION
As part of the rollout, Peter Kyle and Telecoms Minister Sir Chris Bryant visited Ebbw Vale to discuss digital inclusion with charity and industry leaders. They met with representatives at BGfm, a digital inclusion hub in Blaenau Gwent, to learn about how connectivity impacts daily life in Welsh communities.
Telecoms Minister Bryant said: “We are working tirelessly to make sure rural communities aren’t left behind online.
“These upgrades mean businesses can now operate without connectivity limitations, 999 services are better equipped to respond, and residents and tourists can stay connected across the Welsh countryside.”
ADDRESSING CONNECTIVITY GAPS
An estimated 1.5 million homes across the UK remain without internet access, limiting people’s ability to access essential services such as banking and healthcare. In addition to the SRN upgrades, the Chancellor has allocated over £500 million in next year’s budget for digital infrastructure expansion, targeting these underserved areas.
Welsh Secretary Jo Stevens highlighted the importance of this investment, particularly for rural Wales, where fast, reliable internet can be transformative.
“Connectivity is critical for day-to-day life in rural areas – from supporting local businesses to ensuring emergency services are just a call away,” Stevens said.
The upgraded masts, previously limited to EE customers and emergency 999 calls, now serve a wider user base, bringing essential internet access to more people without requiring new infrastructure.
Ben Roome, CEO of Digital Mobile Spectrum Limited, said: “With the activation of five new SRN sites, Wales is seeing the tangible benefits of the Shared Rural Network, bringing crucial connectivity to rural communities.”
GOVERNMENT INVESTMENT IN REMOTE WALES
The improvements come alongside a £170 million agreement with Openreach to provide gigabit-capable broadband to 70,000 remote Welsh properties, helping future-proof digital access in even the most isolated locations.
The latest upgrades mark another step in the Government’s mission to improve mobile coverage and close the connectivity gap across Wales, creating opportunities and supporting economic growth across rural communities.
News
Milford Haven man admits to downloading indecent images of children
A MILFORD HAVEN man has been sentenced after admitting to downloading over 1,000 indecent images and videos of children, including highly explicit content involving young children. Gareth MacDonald, now 23, appeared before Swansea Crown Court, where he pleaded guilty to possessing indecent images and videos across various devices.
The court heard that police visited MacDonald’s home, which was the scene of protests after his arrest, last year following intelligence suggesting that child abuse images had been accessed there.
Officers spoke with MacDonald’s mother at the door before entering to conduct a search.
During the operation, two mobile phones, a tablet, a laptop, and two hard drives were seized.
MacDonald initially spoke to one of the officers privately, admitting to downloading the images and saying, “It’s me.” Later, in formal interviews, he revealed that he had grown “bored with legal pornography” roughly a year earlier, knowing that what he was doing was illegal but continuing regardless.
Prosecutor Emily Bennett informed the court that MacDonald’s devices held 15 Category A images, the most severe classification, 26 Category B images, and 960 Category C images. Some content depicted children as young as nine, and the most serious material involved pre-teen children in distressing situations.
Bennett also noted that MacDonald had briefly joined an online group where members self-identified as paedophiles, although he left without sharing any material. Cleaning software was also found on his devices.
Defense counsel Dan Griffiths acknowledged that MacDonald’s actions had crossed the custodial threshold, but argued that there was “a realistic prospect of rehabilitation.” He highlighted MacDonald’s cooperation with police and his willingness to comply with rehabilitation programmes.
Judge Geraint Walters, presiding over the sentencing, addressed MacDonald, saying, “For some considerable time, you have accessed this kind of imagery, fully aware of the harm it represents.” He acknowledged that MacDonald largely isolated himself and stayed at home, factors he considered in the sentencing.
MacDonald was sentenced to eight months in prison, suspended for two years, with a requirement to complete 20 rehabilitation activity days and participate in the Horizon programme. He was also ordered to register as a sex offender for 10 years and is subject to a sexual harm prevention order for the same duration.
News
Welsh teenager jailed for creating 3D-printed gun at home
A TEENAGER who assembled parts for a viable semi-automatic firearm using a 3D printer has been sentenced to nearly five years in prison.
Owain Roberts, 19, purchased nuts, bolts, steel barrels, and metal rods online, constructing components of an FGC-9 gun with the aid of a 3D printer.
Detectives said that this case marks the first of its kind in Gwent, where Roberts admitted to manufacturing a firearm component. He appeared at Cardiff Crown Court on Thursday (Nov 14).
In April, firearms officers executed warrants at two Newport addresses connected to Roberts. Seized items included a 3D printer, two laptops, six plastic reels, and parts for an FGC-9 firearm.
PC Tom Meazey, from Gwent Police’s East Serious Organised Crime team, stated: “Illegally-held firearms can lead to tragic consequences and devastate innocent people’s lives. To own a firearm, including a printable one, is illegal in the UK without a valid firearms certificate. Roberts’s reckless actions in buying items capable of manufacturing a firearm placed people at direct risk.”
This rare and complex investigation involved support from the National Crime Agency (NCA).
Roberts received a prison sentence of four years and nine months.
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“The sense of power and the great surge of energy that this earth provides is all I want my paintings to share”
Teifion
April 5, 2014 at 9:25 am
We all think we know what’s going on don’t we?
Where are the Police in all this?
mary astles
April 7, 2014 at 1:33 pm
this council are not capable of leading a dog, let alone a council to serve the people of pembrokeshire.
TToommy
April 9, 2014 at 8:20 am
Jamie couldn’t run a tap let alone a council without the yay or nay from the public servant Bryn, Bryn would want a new tap as this is the only way to ensure that he is retained as the “best Chief Exec” in Wales – said with a straight face!
Robin Howells, Chair, Preseli Pembrokeshire Labour Party
April 11, 2014 at 9:37 pm
Another fine mess they have got this county into and the sort of investment that’s needed. Fraud, jobs for the boys and the girls, wasting public money on Paul Kerr QC to justify a grave error of judgement with Bryn Parry-Jones and his pension, election fraud – where will all this end apart from making Pembrokeshire County Council look a complete laughing stock and the county with it. Time for a higher authority to step in and clean up County Hall.