News

Badger smells more than a rat

Published

13 years ago

September 29, 2013

Readers will have read exclusively in this newspaper about the collusion of certain Councillors in a scheme intended to help top boss Bryn Parry-Jones avoid tax.

There are times when even Badger is astonished by the way in which some members of the Council, having found one level, appear to find murkier depths to plumb with ease.

Look at the six faces opposite: The leader of the Council, his predecessor, a former deputy leader of the Council, a former cabinet member, a current cabinet member and the former leader of Pembrokeshire’s Conservatives: there they are.

These are the faces of the Councillors who sat behind closed doors in a meeting that, in a time of brutal cuts to Council services, decided that a man paid more than the Prime Minister needed a big tax break to make ends meet in his retirement.

Well that condensed milk and those tinned pilchards won’t buy themselves, will they?

Let’s look at some of the sorts of figures involved in the calculations of the Staff Remuneration Committee to see if we can get close to the size of Bryn’s Big Break. The Council, as is usual, have decided that such is Bryn’s importance and magnificence that the public should not have the details of the pot of public money he gets for his part in bringing such shame to Pembrokeshire that the Welsh Government had to intervene in the Council’s operations.

Readers may be surprised to learn that not only is Bryn’s salary actually a matter of public record – although Pembrokeshire County Council held out against revealing his hefty salary for many moons– but calculations used in other local authorities are widely available online.

In 2011, Haringey Council produced the following figures for someone on a salary of £150,000 (much less than his Bryn-ness):

Salary at beginning of year	£150,000
Service at beginning of year	25 years
Pre-2008 service at beginning of year	22 years
Increase in Pay	6.6%
Salary at end of year	£160,000
Service at end of year	26 years
Pre-2008 service at end of year	22 years
Inflation over year (Consumer Price Index)	2.5%
Pension accrued at beginning of year	£48,750
Lump Sum accrued at beginning of year	£123,750
Pension accrued at end of year	£54,667
Lump Sum accrued at end of year	£132,000
Value of “pension savings”	£80,323
Excess over annual allowance of £50,000	£30,323
Tax charge if 40%	£12,129
Tax charge if 45% (from April 2013)	£13,645
Tax charge if 50%	£15,161

Local government pensions work on the basis that employers and employees make contributions to the scheme. In order to permit Bryn to avoid tax what the IPPG led Committee did was to make it possible for Bryn Parry-Jones – as well as his fellow highest-paid officers – to choose to salt away the equivalent value of the Council’s contribution to their pensions to somewhere the tax man wouldn’t be able to get his mitts on it.

The change in the tax laws which brought about this tax dodge “arrangement” only affects those described as ‘very high earners.’ In fact the reason the change was brought in, ostensibly, was because of a quarter of all pension tax relief was going to only 1.5% of members of the pension scheme.

Bryn is one of the 1.5%.

These members – and take a good look at the mug shots opposite – thought that in a period when services were being cut and the wages of the lower paid employees were being slashed, they would give the best paid of their best paid employees a chance to avoid paying tax.

They have colluded to give those most able to afford tax to avoid it at the expense of everyone else.

Cosy and complacent: it appears they sat around a table in secret session to carve out a sordid tax dodge.

They should be ashamed. They won’t be.

Five of these sat together and decided to cut low-paid workers’ pay knowing that Bryn is trousering a big tax-free wodge of Council Tax payers’ cash.

It stinks.

The members of this Committee have colluded to let their very well remunerated Chief Executive avoid tax.

The Welsh Audit Office don’t seem to like it. Why should we?

Let’s also put this in context. At the time this meeting took place, the Council had just been the subject of the report that led to Welsh Government intervention in Pembrokeshire’s affairs. That report said this about our County Council (emphases added):

“The absence of effective governance in relation to safeguarding and protecting children REFLECTS FAILURES WITHIN THE CULTURE OF THE AUTHORITY AS A WHOLE. The shortcomings with the authority’s arrangements to safeguard and protect children are longstanding and systemic. This is indicative of the deep-seated nature of these problems and failings within the authority … THIS IS INDICATIVE OF A CLOSED, NOT AN OPEN OR TRANSPARENT CULTURE.”

So it was – as the minutes of the meeting put it – to aid the retention of the person in charge at the time the Council failed most spectacularly in its duty to us that the Committee members opposite decided that so essential was Bryn’s contribution that he needed an annual five-figure sweetie to stay.

Shortly after the child safeguarding issue came to prominence, a vote of no confidence in Bryn was tabled by Councillors who were, to say the least, “disappointed” in his management. He survived the vote as ‘Cwmbetws’ and his cohorts rallied round him.

Smell a rat?

It stinks of other odours, too: those more associated with the dairy farming with which John Davies and Jamie Adams will be familiar.

Badger was thinking of illustrating this point with the quote from Animal Farm about some animals being more equal than others. Instead, he remembered something he read when being taught history by former Director of Education, Graham Longster.

Senator Joseph McCarthy was notorious for helping create the ant-communist hysteria in America during the early 1950’s. His claims became more outrageous and vindictive as time went on. He finally met his come-uppance before a Senate committee in 1954.

Joseph N. Welch, Counsel for the US Army, finally – exasperatedly – asked McCarthy the lethal: ‘You’ve done enough. Have you no sense of decency, sir? At long last, have you left no sense of decency?’

Shut a library. Close a school. Cut bin collections. End public toilets. Slash workers’ wages. Tell everybody the cuts are unavoidable. But for God’s sake give Bryn the Merciless a tax break.

Look at the faces opposite again.

Ask Joseph Welch’s question of them.

News

Police watchdog referral made after fatal A4075 crash

Published

1 hour ago

June 25, 2026

Tom Sinclair

No suggestion of pursuit or contact between police vehicle and motorcycle, force says

A VOLUNTARY referral was made to the Independent Office for Police Conduct following the fatal A4075 crash which claimed the life of 22-year-old Callum Hanson.

Dyfed-Powys Police has confirmed the referral was made because a police vehicle was in the vicinity of the collision, which happened between Canaston Bridge and Yerbeston on Wednesday (Jun 17).

The force said the referral was made to ensure full transparency and independent oversight.

However, police have stressed that there is no suggestion of an active pursuit or any contact between the police vehicle and the motorcycle at the time of the incident.

The IOPC has now referred the matter back to Dyfed-Powys Police for an internal investigation by the force’s Professional Standards Department.

A Dyfed-Powys Police spokesperson said: “A voluntary referral was made to the Independent Office for Police Conduct in relation to this case, due to the presence of a police vehicle in the vicinity.

“This was to ensure full transparency and is a standard requirement in order to ensure independent oversight.

“There is no suggestion of an active pursuit or any contact between the motorbike and the police vehicle at the time of the incident.

“Due to this, the IOPC have referred the matter back to Dyfed-Powys Police for an internal investigation by the Professional Standards Department.

“While PSD carry out their enquiries it would not be appropriate to comment on the matter further.

“The thoughts of Dyfed-Powys Police remain with Callum’s family and friends at this time, and we would still ask that anyone with information about the incident contacts the force.”

Callum, from Haverfordwest, died in hospital following the collision involving a grey Kia Sorento and a white Yamaha motorcycle. A 22-year-old woman who was travelling as a pillion passenger was also taken to hospital.

His family later paid tribute to him as a “kind, loving” young man who lived life to the fullest despite his own personal challenges.

They said he was deeply caring and had spent the last month looking after his grandad, who had also recently passed away.

Callum had a passion for gaming and motorbikes and was training to become a mechanic at college.

Police are continuing to appeal for witnesses or anyone with dashcam footage from the A4075 between Canaston Bridge and Yerbeston at around 6:15pm on Wednesday (Jun 17).

Anyone with information is asked to contact Dyfed-Powys Police online, by emailing [email protected], by calling 101, or by direct message on social media.

Quote reference 362 of June 17.

News

Wales inactivity rate rises as opposition warns economy is ‘flatlining’

Published

2 hours ago

June 25, 2026

Tom Sinclair

ALMOST one in four working-age people in Wales are economically inactive, according to the latest labour market figures.

The Welsh Government’s June labour market overview shows the economic inactivity rate in Wales was 24.8% for people aged 16 to 64.

That is down 0.6 percentage points on the previous quarter, but up 0.6 percentage points over the year. The UK rate stood at 21.0%.

Economic inactivity refers to people who are not in work and are not classed as unemployed because they are not actively seeking work or are not available to start.

The figures have prompted criticism from the Welsh Conservatives, who said Wales’ economy was failing to grow strongly enough.

Janet Finch-Saunders MS, Shadow Minister for Enterprise, Connectivity and Energy, said: “These latest figures show the Welsh economy has continued to flatline with too many people economically inactive.

“We urgently need welfare reform to get people off benefits and into work, where they can pay their taxes and help generate more revenue to invest in better public services.

“The new Plaid Cymru government needs to focus relentlessly on creating the conditions for businesses to start up and expand because this is the only way to grow the Welsh economy and make Wales more prosperous.”

The latest statistics also show Wales’ unemployment rate was 3.8%, up 0.3 percentage points on the quarter but down 0.9 percentage points over the year. The UK unemployment rate was 4.9%.

The Welsh Government said evidence from a range of sources suggested the Welsh labour market was following a similar trend to the UK as a whole.

It also said Cabinet Minister for Enterprise, Connectivity and Energy Adam Price was keen to meet the Office for National Statistics to discuss the reliability of labour market data for Wales.

The issue is likely to remain politically significant because economic inactivity affects the size of the workforce, business recruitment, tax receipts and pressure on public services.

Across Wales, inactivity can include people out of work because of long-term illness, caring responsibilities, study, early retirement or other reasons. For rural and coastal areas, including Pembrokeshire, the challenge is often linked to the availability of suitable jobs, transport, skills and seasonal work.

Health

Nursing leaders demand urgent action to end corridor care in Welsh hospitals

Published

3 hours ago

June 25, 2026

Tom Sinclair

RCN Wales joins doctors, patient groups and charities in call for national reporting before summer recess

NURSING leaders, doctors, patient groups and charities have called on the Welsh Government to take urgent action to end corridor care in Welsh hospitals.

A joint letter signed by Age Cymru, BMA Cymru Wales, Carers Wales, Llais, Marie Curie Cymru, Royal College of Nursing Wales, Royal College of Emergency Medicine Wales, Royal College of Pharmacy and Royal College of Physicians sets out a series of steps ministers are being urged to take immediately.

The organisations want the Welsh Government to publish a formal definition of corridor care, introduce national reporting, monitor the issue as a patient safety indicator, and require health boards to produce local plans focused on the most vulnerable patients.

They have also called for a coordinated approach across health and social care, warning that the problem cannot be tackled properly unless it is measured consistently across Wales.

The groups want a public commitment from the Welsh Government before the Senedd’s final sitting day before the summer recess on July 17.

‘Unsafe and unacceptable’

Corridor care refers to patients being assessed, treated or cared for in inappropriate areas such as corridors, waiting rooms, ambulance bays or other spaces not designed for clinical care.

Health bodies have repeatedly warned that the practice can put patients at risk, reduce privacy and dignity, and leave staff unable to provide the level of care they know patients need.

RCN Wales Executive Director Nicola Williams said corridor care was still happening every day across most hospitals in Wales.

She said: “Earlier this month, we welcomed the Cabinet Minister for Health and Care’s determination to address corridor care following England’s first publication of corridor care statistics.

“I have also been encouraged by the verbal commitments I have received from Welsh Government officials that echo our priorities of a clear, consistent definition of corridor care across Wales, and the development of a data set for use across NHS Wales for public reporting.

“Corridor care continues to happen every day across most hospitals in Wales, putting patients’ wellbeing and lives at risk and affecting the morale of nursing staff who cannot give the care that patients deserve.

“We must be able to quantify this problem if we are to eliminate it.”

Ms Williams added that the RCN must be involved in efforts to eradicate corridor care because nurses are “at the forefront of this crisis and a vital part of the solution.”

Wales behind England

The call comes after NHS England began publishing national corridor care data, giving a clearer picture of how often patients are being treated in inappropriate settings.

In Wales, there is still no formal national definition of corridor care and no routine public reporting.

RCN Wales has argued that without consistent data by health board, it is impossible to know the true scale of the problem, identify trends or hold the system properly accountable.

The issue has been raised repeatedly by nursing and medical bodies in recent months. In January, RCN Wales published a briefing calling for care delivered to a patient in a chair for more than 24 hours to be treated as a “never event.”

The RCN and BMA Cymru Wales have also called for reductions in hospital beds to be paused, for capacity to be reviewed nationally, and for greater investment in community and social care so patients who are medically fit to leave hospital can be discharged safely.

Healthcare Inspectorate Wales has also warned that corridor care should not become normalised, saying care in non-clinical spaces can compromise patient safety, dignity and the quality of care.

West Wales concerns

The issue is particularly relevant in west Wales, where hospital capacity, ambulance handover delays and the future of local services remain politically sensitive.

Hywel Dda University Health Board has faced repeated criticism over pressures at Withybush, Glangwili, Bronglais and Prince Philip hospitals, with patients in rural areas often facing long journeys for emergency treatment.

The call from nursing and medical bodies comes days after the Senedd backed a motion calling on the Welsh Government to rule out hospital closures and service downgrades during the current Senedd term, with patient safety prioritised.

That debate was dominated by concerns over Withybush Hospital, where changes to emergency general surgery mean some patients who need emergency operations will be transferred to Glangwili Hospital in Carmarthen.

Campaigners argue that distance is itself a patient safety issue in rural Wales, particularly when emergency departments and ambulance services are already under pressure.

Wider NHS pressure

Corridor care is widely seen as a symptom of wider problems across the NHS, including delayed discharges, lack of social care capacity, pressure on emergency departments, workforce shortages and too few available beds.

Doctors and nurses say patients can end up stuck in emergency departments because hospital wards are full, while patients on wards cannot leave because care packages or community support are not available.

The result is a system where pressure builds at the hospital front door, leading to long waits, ambulance queues and patients being cared for in unsuitable spaces.

The Welsh Government has previously said it recognises the seriousness of the issue and is committed to improving urgent and emergency care.

But professional bodies say recognition is no longer enough and that Wales now needs clear national data, local health board plans and public accountability.

The joint letter places fresh pressure on ministers to act before the Senedd breaks for summer.

For patients and staff, the message from Wales’ leading health organisations is blunt: corridor care cannot be ended until Wales properly defines it, measures it and treats it as a major patient safety issue.