News

Procedural row delays vital meeting

Published

4 years ago

October 11, 2021

A LONG procedural wrangle ate up an hour-and-a-half of time at an Extraordinary Meeting of Full Council this morning.

Councillors met to discuss confidential legal advice arising from the equally secret settlement agreement between the local authority and its former CEO, Mr Ian Westley.

Before the meeting, the Council received a letter from the Association of Local Government Chief Executives – effectively Mr Westley’s trade union – that the settlement agreement’s contents were legally privileged and that Mr Westley had not surrendered his right to have its terms kept secret.

As we reported on Friday (October 8), the Council’s Deputy Monitoring Officer ruled a payoff of £95,000 to Ian Westley was made under the wrong procedure.

The settlement should have been reviewed and voted upon by the Full Council.
Although the Deputy Monitoring Officer’s opinion is a public document, councillors were due to discuss the issues it raises behind closed doors.

Some of the material to inform members’ debate, including advice from a leading barrister, is legally privileged and refers to confidential staffing matters.

An employee’s right to depend on confidentiality is the same as discussions between clients and their solicitors. They cannot be disclosed to someone else.

It’s a classic case where the public interest is not the same as what the public might be interested in.
Apart from the settlement agreement’s terms, internal staffing -particularly potential disciplinary proceedings against named individuals – are never discussed in public.

That is entirely standard practice in any employer/employee relationship, whether the employer is in the public sector or not.

However, several councillors – most notably former Council Leader Jamie Adams – insisted that confidential material could be discussed in public.

Cllr Mike Stoddart tartly welcomed Cllr Adams’s conversion to the principle of transparency in governance.
In doing so, Cllr Adams found himself at odds with the Council’s barrister, Mr Nigel Giffin QC, and the newly appointed Interim Monitoring Officer and Acting Head of Legal, Rhian Young.

Their professional opinions were clear.

Discussing confidential material in public, especially when one party had not waived their right to confidentiality, would leave the Council open to a potentially costly legal challenge.

Cllr David Lloyd – a practising barrister – endorsed their view.

It took Cllr Jonathan Preston to bring some real-world thinking into the proceedings.

He wondered how any councillors considered contradicting very clear legal advice to put the Council Taxpayer at risk of funding more legal costs than those the authority incurred already. Staffing matters were routinely confidential, and the Council was in no different a position than anyone else.

Cllr Mike Williams said that it was surely time to decide how to proceed after going around in circles after an hour and a half.

He proposed the meeting be moved into a private session to discuss the report, noting that doing so would leave councillors free to express opinions on the issues raised by the Council’s QC without putting the Council at any risk of litigation at public expense.

Mike Willams’s proposal was carried by 35 votes to 17 with one abstention.

Shortly afterwards, as Cllr Jacob Williams raised the issue of recording the proceedings, the webcast cut out.

Crime

Broad Haven man remanded in custody over sexual harm prevention order breach

Published

13 hours ago

March 20, 2026

Court Reporter

Defendant admitted using Xbox without informing police as required under court order

ANTHONY COOMBES, aged 26, of Sand Banks, Broad Haven, appeared before Llanelli Magistrates’ Court on Thursday (Mar 20) charged with breaching a sexual harm prevention order.

The court heard that between February 26 and March 19, 2026, at Haverfordwest, Coombes repeatedly breached the order by using an Xbox device without informing police within three days, as required.

The offences relate to a sexual harm prevention order imposed at Swansea Crown Court on October 20, 2021.

Coombes indicated guilty pleas to the offences at the first hearing.

Magistrates committed the case to Swansea Crown Court for sentence.

He was remanded in custody ahead of the next hearing, which is due to take place at 9:00am on Friday, April 3, at Swansea Crown Court.

The court refused bail on the grounds that he was likely to offend, citing the nature and seriousness of the offences and his previous record and character.

A pre-sentence report was ordered.

News

Man arrested after suspected drugs-related death in Haverfordwest

Published

13 hours ago

March 20, 2026

Tom Sinclair

Police say death not suspicious as 46-year-old arrested over alleged Class A drug supply

A MAN has died following a medical emergency at a property in Haverfordwest, police have confirmed.

Emergency services were called at 3:18pm on Wednesday (March 18) after a report of a medical incident.

A man was pronounced dead at the scene.

Dyfed-Powys Police said the man’s next of kin have been informed and are being supported by officers.

The death is not being treated as suspicious at this time.

However, police confirmed that a man, aged 46, was arrested on suspicion of being concerned in the supply of Class A drugs.

He has since been released under investigation while enquiries continue.

No further details about the deceased have been formally released.

Crime

Illegal dog breeders ordered to pay over £129,000 after council probe

Published

14 hours ago

March 20, 2026

Tom Sinclair

FOUR people from Mynyddygarreg, Kidwelly, have been ordered to pay more than £129,000 following a successful prosecution for illegal dog breeding.

At Swansea Crown Court on Tuesday (Mar 10), before His Honour Judge Thomas KC, Stacey May June Edwards, Peter John Edwards, Sian Eleri Thomas and David Malcolm James Thomas, all of Sea Breeze, Mynyddygarreg, pleaded guilty to offences under the Breeding of Dogs (Wales) Regulations 2014.

The court imposed confiscation orders totalling £129,873.41 under the Proceeds of Crime Act across the four defendants. They were also ordered to pay £8,000 in costs, while each defendant received a £2,000 fine.

The investigation began in April 2021 after Carmarthenshire County Council’s Animal Health team received an enquiry from Peter Edwards about obtaining a dog breeding licence. Although licensing guidance was provided and a partial application was submitted in February 2022, this was later withdrawn.

In March 2024, the council received a complaint that puppies were being advertised for sale without the required licence. Officers subsequently contacted online advertising platforms and issued data requests to assess the scale of activity.

Analysis of records from Pets4Homes, Freeads and Gumtree revealed multiple litters being advertised by members of the same household.

Correspondence under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act confirmed that up to 25 dogs were kept at the property, including between 16 and 19 breeding females.

While some defendants claimed joint ownership of the dogs, others attempted to minimise their involvement.

The Herald understands that numerous puppy advertisements were posted between July 2020 and April 2025, demonstrating a sustained pattern of unlicensed breeding.

Carmarthenshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Climate Change, Decarbonisation and Sustainability, Cllr Aled Vaughan Owen, said: “This case demonstrates the council’s firm stance against unlicensed and illegal dog breeding.

“These regulations are in place to protect animal welfare and ensure that breeding activities are subject to proper oversight. The scale of activity uncovered at this property was entirely unacceptable, and we welcome the court’s decision to issue significant confiscation orders under POCA.”

He added: “We urge anyone with concerns about illegal dog breeding to report it. Our Animal Health officers will continue to investigate thoroughly and take action against those who disregard the law.”

Residents are reminded that anyone breeding and selling dogs must comply with licensing regulations designed to protect both animal welfare and consumers.