MSs warned public notice changes could have ‘catastrophic’ impact on local papers

Published

9 months ago

February 5, 2024

PLANS to scrap a legal requirement for public notices of council tax changes to be published in newspapers risk damaging local journalism and democracy, a committee heard.

Senedd members took evidence on the Local Government Finance bill which would remove a requirement to publish details of council tax changes in newspapers.

Instead, councils would only be required to publish a notice on their own websites.

Gavin Thompson, regional editor at Newsquest, which owns newspapers such as the South Wales Argus, warned the bill would have catastrophic unintended consequences.

Mr Thompson told MSs the proposals would set a worrying direction of travel for other public notices, such as for planning or licensing.

Emphasising the importance of the revenue, he said six of Newsquest’s ten local newspapers in Wales would have been loss-making last year without public notices.

He warned that the business, which employs around 182 people in Wales, would not be able to continue printing loss-making titles.

Mr Thompson said removing public notice requirements would create a worse climate for local news than in England despite a greater need in Wales

He told the committee: “What we need is the Welsh Government and the Senedd to support local journalism – and to not make it more difficult to produce.”

John Griffiths, who chairs the Senedd’s local government committee, said the annual spend on council tax-related notices has been estimated at about £33,000 across Wales.

Rob Taylor, founder of Wrexham.com, raised the declining reach of local newspapers and stressed that the legal requirement is an indirect subsidy propping up the industry.

He said: “Back in the day, yes, circulations were huge and points of reference for many, many people – but the landscape has changed and it’s a bad law, it’s an out-of-date law.”

Saying public notices are becoming more expensive while circulations dwindle, Mr Taylor argued the requirement to publish public notices is no longer providing value for money.

He asked committee members: “Are we making a law here in Wales for the olden days or are we going to make one for the future?”

Mr Taylor said Wrexham.com does not want to get on the gravy train: “We don’t want the money for statutory notices – it’s a terrible law, a terrible way of communicating.”

He added that the website would be willing to carry such notices for free.

Steffan Rhys, audience and content director for Wales at Reach, which owns the Western Mail as well as WalesOnline, also raised concerns about the proposals.

He warned that the commercial media sector is facing many headwinds that directly impact its revenue, including the dominance of Google and Facebook in advertising markets.

Mr Rhys said: “If you remove the requirement to put public notices in print titles, you are removing that information from a certain part of the public – there’s no two ways about it.

“You’re also removing revenue from publishers, that means publishers are able to do less journalism and that means the public is even less informed, so it’s almost a circular effect.”

He said £33,000 may not be a huge amount but when you add in all other public notices, it becomes a very large sum which is critical to the revenue of publishers.

Mr Rhys warned transparency would vanish if public notices retreated onto council websites as he raised concerns about the so-called democratic deficit in Wales.

He said: “The more challenged revenues of news publishers become, the more difficult they are going to find it to produce that sort of public-interest journalism that Wales really needs.”

Rachel Bowen is director of policy at the office of the older people’s commissioner for Wales, which this week published a report, entitled Access denied, about digital exclusion.

She told the committee meeting on January 31 that the proposals are yet more evidence of a “creep towards digitalisation and increasing exclusion”.

Ms Bowen raised concerns about the “grey, ambiguous” wording of a requirement for councils to make suitable, alternative arrangements.

“There’s just no clarity about what that means,” she said, pointing out that other groups such as disabled people and those on lower incomes can be digitally excluded.

Carolyn Thomas, a Labour MS for North Wales, who has had The Leader delivered for 25 years, said the text of public notices is so small that she could not read them.

Ms Bowen agreed that current arrangements could be more accessible but she criticised a “rush” to as-yet ill-defined alternatives.

Thousands of homes in rural Wales gain from faster 4G boost

Published

3 hours ago

November 14, 2024

Tom Sinclair

RURAL Wales is seeing a major upgrade in mobile connectivity, with faster 4G now live in several areas. Seven locations across North, South West, and West Wales are benefitting from new 4G mast upgrades funded by the UK Government’s Shared Rural Network (SRN), aimed at closing the digital gap between rural and urban areas.

The upgrades, which went live on Thursday (Nov 14), bring improved 4G coverage to communities including Bontddu, Llanelltyd, Llanarmon Dyffryn Ceiriog, Penmaenpool, Tabor, Snowdonia National Park, and Bontgoch. Local businesses, emergency services, and residents are expected to benefit from faster internet access, which supports daily communication, business opportunities, and economic growth.

***There is a £170 million agreement with Openreach to provide gigabit-capable broadband to 70,000 remote Welsh properties***

Technology Secretary Peter Kyle said: “Fast, reliable connectivity is essential for modern life and should be available from Cardiff to the remotest parts of Wales. Today’s upgrades bring us closer to making this a reality.”

SUPPORTING DIGITAL INCLUSION

As part of the rollout, Peter Kyle and Telecoms Minister Sir Chris Bryant visited Ebbw Vale to discuss digital inclusion with charity and industry leaders. They met with representatives at BGfm, a digital inclusion hub in Blaenau Gwent, to learn about how connectivity impacts daily life in Welsh communities.

Telecoms Minister Bryant said: “We are working tirelessly to make sure rural communities aren’t left behind online.

“These upgrades mean businesses can now operate without connectivity limitations, 999 services are better equipped to respond, and residents and tourists can stay connected across the Welsh countryside.”

ADDRESSING CONNECTIVITY GAPS

An estimated 1.5 million homes across the UK remain without internet access, limiting people’s ability to access essential services such as banking and healthcare. In addition to the SRN upgrades, the Chancellor has allocated over £500 million in next year’s budget for digital infrastructure expansion, targeting these underserved areas.

Welsh Secretary Jo Stevens highlighted the importance of this investment, particularly for rural Wales, where fast, reliable internet can be transformative.

“Connectivity is critical for day-to-day life in rural areas – from supporting local businesses to ensuring emergency services are just a call away,” Stevens said.

The upgraded masts, previously limited to EE customers and emergency 999 calls, now serve a wider user base, bringing essential internet access to more people without requiring new infrastructure.

Ben Roome, CEO of Digital Mobile Spectrum Limited, said: “With the activation of five new SRN sites, Wales is seeing the tangible benefits of the Shared Rural Network, bringing crucial connectivity to rural communities.”

GOVERNMENT INVESTMENT IN REMOTE WALES

The improvements come alongside a £170 million agreement with Openreach to provide gigabit-capable broadband to 70,000 remote Welsh properties, helping future-proof digital access in even the most isolated locations.

The latest upgrades mark another step in the Government’s mission to improve mobile coverage and close the connectivity gap across Wales, creating opportunities and supporting economic growth across rural communities.

News

Milford Haven man admits to downloading indecent images of children

Published

4 hours ago

November 14, 2024

Tom Sinclair

A MILFORD HAVEN man has been sentenced after admitting to downloading over 1,000 indecent images and videos of children, including highly explicit content involving young children. Gareth MacDonald, now 23, appeared before Swansea Crown Court, where he pleaded guilty to possessing indecent images and videos across various devices.

The court heard that police visited MacDonald’s home, which was the scene of protests after his arrest, last year following intelligence suggesting that child abuse images had been accessed there.

***There were protests outside MacDonald’s house in September 2024 (Pic: Herald)***

Officers spoke with MacDonald’s mother at the door before entering to conduct a search.

During the operation, two mobile phones, a tablet, a laptop, and two hard drives were seized.

MacDonald initially spoke to one of the officers privately, admitting to downloading the images and saying, “It’s me.” Later, in formal interviews, he revealed that he had grown “bored with legal pornography” roughly a year earlier, knowing that what he was doing was illegal but continuing regardless.

Prosecutor Emily Bennett informed the court that MacDonald’s devices held 15 Category A images, the most severe classification, 26 Category B images, and 960 Category C images. Some content depicted children as young as nine, and the most serious material involved pre-teen children in distressing situations.

Bennett also noted that MacDonald had briefly joined an online group where members self-identified as paedophiles, although he left without sharing any material. Cleaning software was also found on his devices.

Defense counsel Dan Griffiths acknowledged that MacDonald’s actions had crossed the custodial threshold, but argued that there was “a realistic prospect of rehabilitation.” He highlighted MacDonald’s cooperation with police and his willingness to comply with rehabilitation programmes.

Judge Geraint Walters, presiding over the sentencing, addressed MacDonald, saying, “For some considerable time, you have accessed this kind of imagery, fully aware of the harm it represents.” He acknowledged that MacDonald largely isolated himself and stayed at home, factors he considered in the sentencing.

MacDonald was sentenced to eight months in prison, suspended for two years, with a requirement to complete 20 rehabilitation activity days and participate in the Horizon programme. He was also ordered to register as a sex offender for 10 years and is subject to a sexual harm prevention order for the same duration.

News

Welsh teenager jailed for creating 3D-printed gun at home

Published

5 hours ago

November 14, 2024

Tom Sinclair

A TEENAGER who assembled parts for a viable semi-automatic firearm using a 3D printer has been sentenced to nearly five years in prison.

Owain Roberts, 19, purchased nuts, bolts, steel barrels, and metal rods online, constructing components of an FGC-9 gun with the aid of a 3D printer.

Detectives said that this case marks the first of its kind in Gwent, where Roberts admitted to manufacturing a firearm component. He appeared at Cardiff Crown Court on Thursday (Nov 14).

In April, firearms officers executed warrants at two Newport addresses connected to Roberts. Seized items included a 3D printer, two laptops, six plastic reels, and parts for an FGC-9 firearm.

PC Tom Meazey, from Gwent Police’s East Serious Organised Crime team, stated: “Illegally-held firearms can lead to tragic consequences and devastate innocent people’s lives. To own a firearm, including a printable one, is illegal in the UK without a valid firearms certificate. Roberts’s reckless actions in buying items capable of manufacturing a firearm placed people at direct risk.”

This rare and complex investigation involved support from the National Crime Agency (NCA).

Roberts received a prison sentence of four years and nine months.