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Haverfordwest’s mayor reported to the DVLA by deputy over driving safety fears

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HAVERFORDWEST’S mayor, who said he had received anonymous warning letters, was reported to the DVLA by his own deputy mayor over concerns for his ability to drive safely, the town council heard.

The concerns about mayor Alan Buckfield’s fitness to drive came about indirectly from an alleged incident during a visit to Haverfordwest’s twin town of Oberkirch, Germany.

At the March 23 meeting of Haverfordwest Town Council, Mayor Alan Buckfield said: “Last November I decided to leave the town council; I was planning to leave in May but now there’s unfinished business

He told members he would discuss the matter further in private, not alluding to it in detail.

Cllr Buckfield was then prompted by the clerk to mention an anonymous letter he had received.

“We don’t normally respond to anonymous things, an anonymous letter to ‘watch my back’,” said Cllr Buckfield.

“It’s happened once before; you get disaffected people saying: ‘we don’t like the town council’.

“I received this information through my door, that’s all there is to it.”

When asked if he passed the letter on to the police, Cllr Buckfield said: “I treated it with the contempt it deserves, it just said: ‘Be very, very careful, there are nasty people out there’.”

Cllr Buckfield was then asked by a member of the council if he had recently been anonymously reported to the DVLA.

Deputy Mayor Jill Owens responded to that, saying: “I said I’d reported the mayor to the DVLA due to comments made which gave us grave concerns about his safety to drive a vehicle.”

That concern stemmed from an alleged incident – not believed to have involved driving – when Cllr Buckfield visited Haverfordwest’s German twin town of Oberkirch last September, as president of the town’s twinning association.

It has previously been reported that the town’s twinning association had initially wanted to remove Cllr Buckfield as president – a role traditionally held by the town’s mayoral office.

Last October’s minutes of Haverfordwest’s twinning association, under the title ‘mayoral invitation from Oberkirch: September 2022’, said: “Owing to previous actions by the mayor, Cllr. Alan Buckfield, the association wishes to remove him as president of the Haverfordwest Twinning Association.”

The association later had a change of heart, cancelling an extraordinary meeting that was due to be held on November 7 and the motion to remove Cllr Buckfield as president.

At the March 23 meeting, Cllr Buckfield responded to Cllr Owens: “That’s personal and private, I see no need to bring it to the council’s attention.”

Speaking after the meeting, Cllr Owens said she had raised the concerns about Cllr Buckfield’s fitness to drive as a result of responses received following the alleged incident in Germany.

Cllr Buckfield, 76, also speaking after the meeting, declined to comment on the DVLA issue, but said he refuted the allegations about any ‘incident’ in Oberkirch, saying he had since been back to the twin town on March 1 for the inauguration of its Burgermeister.

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Dredging work set for Tenby Harbour

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TENBY HARBOUR and North Beach users are being asked to be aware of heavy moving machinery from Tuesday March 26 th to Friday 29 th as dredging work is carried out.

Sand will removed from the mouth of the Harbour and deposited at the north end of the beach. The work will not affect vessel movements at the Harbour.

Tenby Harbourmaster Chris Salisbury said a licence for the dredging had been issued after several months of application work.

“We ask that the public please keep clear of the operating area and that dogs are kept on a lead during this time,” Chris added.

Cllr Rhys Sinnett, Cabinet Member for Residents’ Services, said: “I’m grateful to our officers for securing the licence for this work to go ahead. This dredging is essential
for the operation of Tenby Harbour.

“The timing of the work has been governed by the tide and the dates represented the last opportunity for the work to be carried out before the boats are placed back in the
water.”

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Closure of Tata Steel’s coke ovens sparks political and union backlash

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THE recent announcement by Tata Steel to close the coke ovens at its Port Talbot plant in South Wales has ignited a firestorm of political and industrial action, highlighting the deepening crisis within the British steel industry and the challenges facing the transition to green steel.

Jo Stevens MP, the Shadow Welsh Secretary, expressed her concerns over the impact of the closure on the Welsh steel industry and the workers affected. Stevens emphasized the need for assurances about the workers’ immediate future and pledged that a UK Labour government would invest in the steel industry to support the transition to green steel, harnessing the skills, talent, and ambition of Welsh steelworkers.

The closure, slated for Wednesday due to concerns over the ovens’ “operational stability,” has been criticized by regional Senedd Members for South Wales West, Tom Giffard MS, and Dr. Altaf Hussain MS. They accused the Labour Welsh Government of neglecting its support for the Tata Steelworks in Port Talbot, highlighting a lack of financial assistance since 2019 and calling for a change in response to the current developments.

Unite, the UK’s leading union, has been vocal in its opposition to Tata’s decision, describing it as a shock and a “result of years of betrayal.” The union criticized Tata for not disclosing the imminent risk of closure during recent consultations and announced a ballot for industrial action among 1,500 Tata workers. Unite insists there should be no job losses at Port Talbot or Llanwern and that a blast furnace should remain operational.

Peter Hughes, Unite’s regional secretary for Wales, called for Tata to halt its closure plans in anticipation of Labour’s promised £3 billion investment to rejuvenate the UK steel industry. He accused Tata of managing the decline of UK steel while accepting government subsidies, describing the company’s actions as “deliberate industrial vandalism.”

The closure has not only raised concerns about the future of steel production in the UK but also spotlighted the political and economic strategies required to ensure the industry’s survival and transition towards more sustainable practices. The unfolding situation underscores the need for a collaborative approach between the government, industry stakeholders, and the workforce to navigate the complex challenges ahead.

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Firefighters tackle blaze at block of garages in Monkton

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ONE person was injured as a result of a sunday afternoon garage fire in a block of garages in Monkton.

A spokesperson for Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service told The Pembrokeshire Herald said: “At 1.31pm on March 17, Pembroke Dock and Milford Haven crews were called to extinguish a fire in an alight central garage and were forced to use two breathing apparatus and two hose reels.

“The firefighters reportedly left the scene at 3.02pm after continuing to dampen the fire and check for fire spread.

“The casualty was treated by ambulance service personnel also in attendance.”

The police confirmed that a garage fire had been dealt with by Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service and Welsh Ambulance Service attended.

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