News

Council row over accounts sign-off

Published

11 years ago

September 30, 2013

PEMBROKESHIRE County Council has today controversially voted to sign off last year’s accounts in a lively meeting of the Corporate Governance Committee.

Seven members to six voted in favour of a motion by leader Cllr Jamie Adams that the Council were able to ratify the financial statements despite legal concerns by the Welsh Audit Office. The Council and WAO are currently locked in a “legal dispute” over the legality of pension arrangements which help senior members of council staff avoid paying tax on their pensions.

During a heated discussion at County Hall the representative from the Welsh Audit Office said his organisation was not in a position to sign off the accounts. The Welsh Audit Office will be holding a meeting on Thursday to discuss the legal position, following which they may qualify the authority’s accounts, issue a statement in the public interest, or possibly commence legal action.

Plaid Cymru group leader Cllr Michael Williams said in a response to a statement by Cllr Adams: “Things aren’t as rosy as they should be, I hear your words but I accept them with a pinch of salt”.

Councillors were asked to vote in favour of signing off the accounts with a caveat over the controversial element, something which Cllr Michael Williams was unable to support, telling the meeting: “We have been asked to park the issue over pensions at the side, and sign off the accounts anyway. I’m uncomfortable with this. We shouldn’t be able to separate something potentially illegal from the rest of the accounts.”

Cllr Paul Miller said after the Leader explained how the pension plan was introduced: “You must be aware of the ridiculousness of the story you have cooked up in a venue which is not open to the public, after no legal advice had been given, that members of the Senior Staff Committee without intervention from officers read half an A4 page report and voted in favour of this tax scheme.”

Cllr Adams replied: “You have painted a dark picture Cllr Miller, if any public had turned up they would have been shown to the chief executive’s office. This is an office open to the public.”

Disputing that the chief executive’s office was accessible and open to the public, Cllr Jacob Williams, who held up his security key-card, said: “You have to use an electronic pass to open locked security doors to get as far as the chief executive’s room. It’s simply not true that this is an office open to the members of the public.”

Cllr Mike Stoddart, who earlier in the meeting commented on the council’s transparency by way of a reference to “political democracies such as Russia or Zimbabwe,” told members of the committee that he thought that when the Senior Staff Committee went into private session in 2011 this also was potentially unlawful. Under section 100 of the Local Government Act, the Committee can go into private session, but there is a public interest test which was introduced in 2006.

‘’I wonder whether the public interest was considered in this case. I don’t think that in this instance the law in excluding the public was applied correctly,’’ he added.

Cllr Stoddart also questioned if the Chief Executive, Bryn-Parry Jones, should have declared an interest during the controversial meeting.

“If a member had failed to declare an interest and acted in this way, they would probably be lead of in handcuffs,” he said.

Cllr Jacob Williams said: “The legal advisor has read out to us a Local Government Act section 117 guidance note which says interests like this don’t need to be declared by an employee if the matter under discussion relates solely to that single employee, as the interest will be automatically presumed declared. This seems wrong to me, but despite that, this was not a situation where the matter related only to the chief executive or even to named employees, it was a whole change of policy which affected all senior staff members of the council, so I disagree entirely that no interest needed to be declared.”

In reply, the council’s legal advisor, Mr Huw Miller, stood by his own interpretation of the law saying the Chief Executive did not need to declare an interest in the pension policy change.

All the members of the Independent Plus Political Group voted to adopt the accounts, and all other councillors not in the IPPG voted against.

Community

Public reminded to stay away from Ward’s Yard and Criterion Quay

Published

14 hours ago

July 26, 2024

Tom Sinclair

THE PORT of Milford Haven is reminding members of the public to stay away from Ward’s Yard in Milford Haven and Criterion Quay (sometimes known as the offshore jetty) in Pembroke Dock due to concerns over public safety. 

Despite significant security measures, people continue to access the sites illegally, ignoring and sometimes damaging the onsite signage and fences.

Niall Yeomans, Head of Health, Safety and Security at the Port of Milford Haven said: “Safety is our key priority. Members of the public are continuously putting themselves and members of our team at risk of serious harm by trespassing in these areas.”

“Both Ward’s Yard and Criterion Quay are unsafe for public access. They are isolated areas next to deep water and are susceptible to slips, trips and falls.”

Both sites are owned by the Port of Milford Haven and are private property. Anyone found onsite without consent is trespassing, and any criminal damage could result in prosecution.  

Anyone who sees any suspicious activity at Ward’s Yard or Criterion Quay is asked to contact Dyfed Powys Police on 101 urgently.

Crime

‘Sophisticated’ organised crime gang trafficked cocaine and cannabis to Aberystwyth

Published

17 hours ago

July 26, 2024

Tom Sinclair

FIVE people have been found guilty or admitted to conspiring to supply cocaine and cannabis as Dyfed-Powys Police continues its efforts to dismantle organised crime gangs.

Officers seized cocaine with a street value of more than £400,000 from gang members, who continually changed tactics to avoid arrest.

Six defendants have appeared in court in the latest phase of Dyfed-Powys Police’s Operation Burleigh, which sought to disrupt the trafficking and onward supply of class A and B drugs into Aberystwyth, with all but one admitting their charges or being found guilty by a jury.

This brings the total number of people awaiting sentence under the operation to 15.

The court heard that officers from Dyfed-Powys Police’s Serious and Organised Crime Team and Ceredigion Priority Policing Team led the investigation into the OCG, which was described as ‘sophisticated, well-organised and evolving’.

Detective Sergeant Steven Jones said: “This conspiracy operated on a County Lines model, where controlled drugs are trafficked into a smaller rural town from a larger city, and the operation is controlled by one or more ‘drugs lines’.

“In this case there were a total of four lines controlling the supply of cocaine and cannabis within Aberystwyth.

“The conspirators frequently evolved their actions to frustrate the authorities and evade capture.”

The OCG embedded members were mainly asylum seekers brought to Aberystwyth by Toana Ahmad and another man who remains outstanding, with the sole purpose of dealing drugs. The drug lines were initially based in Swansea, and later in areas of Birmingham.

Three properties – on Terrace Road, Alexander Road and Parc Graig Glas – were identified early in the investigation as being used to house the OCG members embedded in Aberystwyth. Substantial amounts of cash, controlled drugs and weapons were recovered from these properties, and from the people found inside.

When arrests were made, the gang changed its tactics. Drugs began to be supplied from vehicles, and OCG members stayed in guest houses to avoid detection.

DS Jones added: “Trusted couriers were employed to transport drugs to Aberystwyth and cash back to Birmingham or Swansea. A number of vehicles, including taxis, were used as the gang attempted to avoid detection along the route, while trains were also taken when courier cars were stopped by officers.”

In June 2023, two vehicles travelling from the West Midlands towards Aberystwyth were stopped by police on consecutive days. A black sock was uncovered in the engine of the first car, which was found to contain 82g of high purity cocaine divided into 169 grip seal plastic bags.

Davinder Singh, who previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply class A and class B drugs, was the driver of the second vehicle, which was a taxi. A blue plastic bag was seen falling out of his shorts, which contained over 81g of high purity cocaine divided into 167 grip seal bags.

DS Jones said: “On the basis that the amounts of cocaine transported over the 37 couriers over the course of the conspiracy period were similar, over 3kg of cocaine would have been conveyed to Aberystwyth from Birmingham.

“This equates to class A drugs with a potential street value of over £308,950. In addition to this, class A drugs were seized from individuals and addresses with a potential street value of £103,445, along with cash totalling £11,687.

“A number of teams and departments across Dyfed-Powys Police, from analysts, CCTV operators and priority policing teams, to CAB, the Technical Support Unit, Economic Crime Team and Force Intelligence Bureau all assisted in dismantling the OCG from top to bottom.

“Their dedication and relentless efforts have assisted in making Aberystwyth a safer place to live without the threat and harm of drugs being made easily available on the street.”

After a seven-week trial at Swansea Crown Court earlier this year, the following three defendants were found guilty for their parts in the conspiracy:

Toana Ahmad, aged 33, of Lee Gardens in Smethwich, West Midlands
Barzan Sarhan, aged 31, of no fixed address
Ahmed Piro, aged 26, of no fixed address

The jury failed to reach a verdict on two defendants during the earlier trial. They have been subject to a retrial starting on July 1, with the following outcomes:

Hawre Ahmed, aged 35, of Pinderfields Road, Wakefield, West Yorkshire, was found guilty by the jury of conspiracy to supply Class A and B controlled drugs.
Diar Yousef Zeabari, aged 35, of Flat 5, 41 Bryn Road, Swansea, was found not guilty of conspiracy to supply Class A and B controlled drugs.

Karwan Karim, aged 39 of 125 Griffith John Street, Swansea, also stood trial, and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply Class A and B controlled drugs on day three.

In addition to the OCG members found guilty during the most recent trials, the following have previously pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to supply class A and class B drugs under Operation Burleigh:

Davinder Singh, aged 36, of Huntingdon Road, West Bromwich
Daban Khalil, aged 23, of Streetly Road, Birmingham
Kastro Omar, aged 30, of Junction Road, Northampton
Karwan Jabari, aged 26, of Weedon Close, Northampton
Walid Younis Abdal, aged 34, of St Anne’s Road, Doncaster
Saman Aziz, aged 41, of Kirk Road, Merseyside
Adel Mustafa, aged 39, of Hubert Road, Newport
Charlotte Roberts, aged 21, of Sutton Hill, Telford

The following have previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply class A drugs:

Akasha Smith, aged 24, of Third Avenue, Aberystwyth
Luqman Jarjis, aged 21, of Wake Green Road, Birmingham

News

Community asked for views on allocation of new St Davids homes

Published

17 hours ago

July 26, 2024

Tom Sinclair

THE FIRST phase of Pembrokeshire County Council’s Glasfryn housing development in St Davids is progressing well with the second phase also underway.

The development being built by GRD Homes Ltd, began in November 2023, with a first phase completion date of Winter 2024 looking hopeful, ahead of the scheduled plans.

The first phase consists of seven properties, including a mixture of one and two bedroom bungalows

As completion draws closer the properties will be advertised via Pembrokeshire Choice Homes.

Ahead of this, the Council’s housing team will be holding community engagement on the 13th August 2024 at the Ty’r Pererin Centres, Quickwell Hill, St Davids, SA62 6PD, 5pm-7pm.

This will be a chance for officers to liaise with the local community about the allocation process for these properties.

Glasfryn’s second phase is well underway, with the initial groundwork already completed. This phase includes a further 11 two bedroom bungalows, with a completion date in late 2025.

These bungalows will meet the latest Welsh Government’s Development Quality Requirement, and will be energy efficient, built to EPC A specification and include solar panels to help tenants with running costs.

The Glasfryn development is funded in partnership with Welsh Government.

Cabinet Member for Housing Cllr Michelle Bateman said: “We are really keen to work with the community on a local lettings policy for these new properties, as we have done for our developments in other parts of the County.”

If you have any queries please email the Customer Liaison Team on [email protected], phone them on 01437 764551, or visit Housing’s Facebook page.