News

Row over Mustang debts escalating

Published

12 years ago

June 16, 2014

don

A ROW over debts owed by Mustang Marine, the uncertainty over Murco oil refinery, and an ambitious £70m plan for the redevelopment of Milford Docks were the main topics of Milford Haven Port Authority’s annual meeting on Friday (May 30).

The chairman of Milford Haven Port Authority, Peter Jones, told a packed conference suite at the Cleddau Bridge hotel, that 2013 had been “a very difficult year” for the organisation, adding: “The £2.7m hole caused by the collapse of Mustang Marine was a matter of deep regret to us.” With a security guard keeping watch over proceedings, he went on to say that 2014 was set to also be a challenging year due to “the certainty over Murco Oil refinery which accounts for 20% of shipping movements on the haven.” Chief Executive of the authority, Alec Don, took to the podium next. He started off his speech by making his position clear over the failed boat building firm. With a handful of creditors sitting in the audience of the Annual Consultative Meeting he said firmly: “The legal position is that we are not liable for Mustang’s debts. Do we have a responsibility? Yes, we feel we have a responsibility, but not a legal liability.” He added: “We put resources in to help turn Mustang around, but it became clear that it wasn’t just a management problem. Once administration had occurred we worked with the administrator to ensure he could sell parts of the firm to people or new managers who could take those business forward. Mr. Don announced that Milford Haven engineering firm BDS was taking over the dry dock for at least the next five years, and a new firm called Haven Marine Services would be taking over some of the boat repair work. Both of these deals, he said, had secured the employment of some of the former Mustang workers. Bruce Evens, of Evens & Co. Accountants – at the meeting representing creditors of Mustang – took the mic and said that he had help found Haven Marine Services as a community interest company (CIC), but with the idea of putting profits back into a pot for creditors. He said that MHPA had agreed to give £10,000 by way of a grant to the CIC, but Mr. Evans said that MHPA should be doing more. He added: “Perhaps MHPA can find a way to help the community further. The problem that Haven Marine Services is new – making a profit will take time. What the creditors need is more help now. We have just seen that MHPA has got £9m sat in the bank right now.” He added: “Most people think that if it swims like a duck, and if it quacks like a duck, then it is a duck. We have to work together as a county. Many of the creditors did business with Mustang on the understanding that it was a subsidiary of MHPA. Alec Don then told the meeting: “We as the port are not seeking to recover our losses from the CIC, so that assists the CIC to help the local community” later adding: We’re not a charity. We have gone way beyond what any other commercial organisation would have done in terms of making sure that there were the resources around management and other issues to see that opportunity emerge.” He added: “What we had in Mustang was a 50% share, if we wanted a 60% or a 70% share then we would have bought a 60% or a 70% share.” But one creditor was not impressed. Mr Jo Polak of JP Junior Scaffolding, who is owed over £40,000 asked Mr Don one question. He said: “Would you please tell me if you think that the small, local businesses [who were working with Mustang] would have let the credit get so high unless they thought that Mustang was being backed by the Port Authority as a 50% shareholder?” Mr Don answered by saying he did not know what those businesses thought. Mr. Don told the meeting that outline planning permission had been submitted to Pembrokeshire County Council for the Milford Docks Master Plan “today.” He said that the plan, which The Herald has covered in detail in previous weeks, would create 600 jobs. To his critics who have said that the plans are too ambitious Mr. Don said: “We’ll its happening, in fact, we have already started with the Milford Dock Lock project, which itself is a £6m investment for us.” We have a separate article in this edition of The Herald about the master plan. The project, he said, would help develop tourism, leisure and fishing in the county. “The are currently 617 people employed at the port not including the oil refineries.” “Our aim is to increase that to 2000 jobs by 2020” he said. Speaking on the telephone on Wednesday, a spokesman for KO Carpets who are owed £4246 by Mustang Marine for fitting floors and carpets for boats told the Herald that they were “disappointed with the whole affair”

Farming

Basic Payment Scheme 2025 balance paid to 95% of Welsh farmers

Published

8 hours ago

December 14, 2025

Tom Sinclair

Final year of BPS as transition to Sustainable Farming Scheme begins

The WELSH Government says more than ninety-five per cent of farm businesses have now received their full or balance payment under the final year of the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS), ahead of the introduction of the new Sustainable Farming Scheme (SFS) in 2026.

Announcing the update on Friday (Dec 12), Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Rural Affairs, Huw Irranca-Davies, confirmed that over 15,400 Welsh farm businesses have been paid £68.7m. This comes on top of the £160m issued in BPS advance payments since 14 October.

Final round of BPS payments

The Basic Payment Scheme, which has been the backbone of farm support in Wales for a decade, provides direct income support to help farmers plan and manage their businesses. BPS 2025 marks the last year in which full BPS payments will be made before the scheme begins to be phased out.

The Cabinet Secretary said officials would “continue to process the outstanding BPS 2025 claims as soon as possible,” adding that all but the most complex cases should be completed by 30 June 2026.

Payments issued today represent the main balance due to farmers following earlier advances, giving many businesses the cash flow they need during the quieter winter period—traditionally a challenging time in the agricultural calendar.

Shift to Sustainable Farming Scheme in 2026

From 1 January 2026, the Welsh Government will begin rolling out the Sustainable Farming Scheme, a major reform to how agricultural support is delivered. The SFS will reward farmers for environmental outcomes such as habitat management, carbon reduction and biodiversity improvements, alongside continued food production.

The government has argued that the new scheme is essential to meeting Wales’ climate and nature targets while ensuring long-term resilience in the sector. However, the transition has been closely watched by farming unions, who have raised concerns about the administrative burden, income stability, and the speed at which BPS is being phased out.

Mr Irranca-Davies reaffirmed the government’s stance, saying: “This government is steadfastly committed to supporting Welsh farmers to sustainably produce quality food. This is demonstrated today in our payment of the BPS 2025 balance payments and will continue throughout the transition period.”

Sector reaction

Farming unions are expected to scrutinise the detail of today’s announcement, particularly around remaining unpaid cases. Last year, late payments led to frustration in parts of the sector, with unions calling for greater certainty as the industry faces rising input costs, supply chain pressures and continued market volatility.

The move to the SFS remains one of the most significant agricultural policy changes in Wales since devolution. Ministers insist the shift is designed to support both food production and environmental stewardship, while critics warn the transition must not undermine farm viability—especially for family-run livestock farms that dominate rural areas such as Pembrokeshire, Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire.

What happens next

Farmers still awaiting their BPS 2025 balance will continue to be processed “as soon as possible”, the Welsh Government said. Officials will also publish updated guidance on the Sustainable Farming Scheme ahead of its launch.

The coming year will therefore become a pivotal moment for Welsh agriculture, as the long-standing BPS framework—which provided over £200m annually to Welsh farmers—makes way for a new results-based model that will shape the industry for decades to come.

News

Improved train timetable launches across Wales

Published

8 hours ago

December 14, 2025

Tom Sinclair

Extra services, later trains and boosted Sunday routes as £800m rail investment takes effect

An improved train timetable has come into force across Wales today (Sunday, 14 December), with Transport for Wales (TfW) introducing more frequent services, stronger connections and additional late-night trains on key routes.

The winter timetable update brings one of the most substantial uplifts in recent years on the Wales and Borders network, forming part of the Welsh Government’s ongoing £800 million investment in brand-new rolling stock and reliability improvements.

More trains and later journeys

Among the upgrades, passengers will see:

A new hourly additional service between Chester and Wrexham, effectively doubling the frequency on one of the region’s busiest commuter corridors.
An extra train in each direction every day on the Heart of Wales line between Swansea and Shrewsbury.
Three later last trains from Cardiff to Treherbert, Aberdare and Merthyr Tydfil, supporting shift workers and the night-time economy.
A new hourly Sunday service on the Coryton line in Cardiff.

Cabinet Secretary for Transport and North Wales, Ken Skates, said improved connectivity was “absolutely vital” for economic growth and passenger confidence.

“These changes will make a real difference to customers, who will benefit from more services and greater connectivity,” he said. “This has been made possible by our £800m investment in brand-new trains for the Wales and Borders network.

“We will see the doubling of trains between Wrexham and Chester and a later service from the capital to valley communities. In South Wales, people will continue to benefit from simpler, fairer fares through TfW’s Pay As You Go service, and its forthcoming introduction in North Wales will help even more passengers access easy, transparent pricing.”

Full details of the updated timetable are available at: tfw.wales/service-status/timetables

News

Wrecked guard boat still under watch off north Pembrokeshire coast

Published

8 hours ago

December 14, 2025

Tom Sinclair

Tidal changes monitored after dramatic early-morning rescue

A GUARD VESSEL that ran aground off the north Pembrokeshire coast in the early hours of Thursday morning (Dec 11) remains under close observation as tides continue to shift.

The Resolute, a 24-metre guard boat understood to be working for an offshore wind project off the Irish coast, had been sheltering in worsening weather when she was pushed onto rocks near Aber Hywel, Dinas, shortly after 3:25am.

Four crew members were onboard when the vessel grounded in rough seas and a strong southerly wind.

Major rescue effort launched

The crew issued an emergency alert, prompting a full multi-agency response.
A coastguard rescue helicopter, both Fishguard RNLI lifeboats, and coastguard teams from Fishguard and St Davids were sent to the scene.

Turbulent air made a winch rescue impossible and Fishguard’s all-weather lifeboat was unable to get close due to cliffs and submerged hazards. The inshore lifeboat was instead deployed to attempt a transfer in extremely challenging conditions.

During the evacuation, the third crew member descending to the vessel’s life raft slipped, fell into the water and was swept away. Speaking afterwards, RNLI crew member Cedwyn Rogers said the team immediately switched into “hyper-focused” mode as training took over.

Despite the casualty drifting, helm Warren Bean — a volunteer with more than 30 years’ RNLI experience — manoeuvred the lifeboat alongside, allowing crew to haul the man to safety. The remaining crew member was then retrieved, and all four were taken aboard the all-weather lifeboat and brought ashore to Fishguard.

All rescue units were later stood down.

Vessel still stranded and taking on water

The Herald understands that the Resolute remained aground on the rocks yesterday and was taking on water. The crew were later assisted back onboard by a local fisherman to assess damage on behalf of the vessel’s operators.

Management representatives from Ireland were due to arrive to draw up a recovery plan, including arrangements to remove fuel to prevent any potential environmental impact.

Further inspections have been taking place today as the team evaluates the next steps.

Coastguard statement

A spokesperson for HM Coastguard said: “At 3.28am on Thursday morning, HM Coastguard was made aware of a vessel with four persons onboard aground on rocks at Fishguard, Pembrokeshire. RNLI lifeboats and coastguard rescue teams from Fishguard and St Davids were sent to the scene. The four people aboard were rescued by lifeboat, and the helicopter was stood down. The vessel, which is still aground, is being monitored as tidal conditions change.”