Politics

How Ceredigion Preseli candidates will tackle the cost-of-living crisis

Published

6 months ago

July 2, 2024

Bruce Sinclair - Local Democracy Reporter

AHEAD of the July 4 general election, Ceredigion Preseli general election hopefuls have outlined what they will do about the cost-of-living crisis.

As part of constituency changes, bits of north Pembrokeshire – including St Davids and– are joining the new Mid and South Pembrokeshire constituency.

Other parts of the north of the county are now in the new Ceredigion Preseli constituency; which extends up past Aberystwyth and also includes Cilgerran, Crymych, St Dogmaels, Fishguard and Llanrhian.

There’s now a 15-candidate battle for the two seats, eight in Mid and South Pembrokeshire and seven in Ceredigion Preseli.

With a July 4 date set for the general election, candidates for the new Ceredigion Preseli seat are: Ben Lake for Plaid Cymru, Liberal Democrat Mark Williams, Welsh Labour’s Jackie Jones, Conservative Aled Thomas, Tomos Barlow for the Green Party, Karl Robert Pollard for Reform UK, and Taghrid Al-Mawed for the Workers Party of Britain.

In the run-up to the election, all candidates were asked: “What will you do to improve the economic situation/ help tackle to cost-of-living crisis in your constituency?”

Plaid Cymru hopeful Ben Lake, previously MP for Ceredigion, said: “The cost-of-living crisis has affected every one of us. During the winter of 2022/23, the UK Government implemented a support scheme to help households pay for their energy bills but off-grid homes were initially excluded from this package.

“Ceredigion was the constituency that was most reliant on heating oil or LPG as a source of energy on mainland Britain, and as the MP, I championed my constituents’ needs and secured monthly payments of £200 for off-grid homes to help with the rising costs. I would continue to push for greater support from the Government for families and for those with the greatest needs.

“I am also an advocate for creating opportunities. Ceredigion Preseli has so much potential waiting to be unlocked but investment in core infrastructure (digital and transport) is essential to do so.”

Taghrid Al-Mawed for the Workers Party of Britain said: “I do not feel it is fair that a CEO of one of our supermarket chains earns £9.5 million pounds a year when the people working in the shops who create that wealth get a tiny, tiny fraction of that and the Welsh farmers run at a loss to provide these supermarkets with the produce they sell.

“We will stop this, we will redistribute the wealth away from the fat cats back to those who created the wealth in the first place. The constituents of Ceredigion Preseli would notice more money in their pockets, more money to go into the local economy to revitalise it, not to be hoarded by a few in offshore accounts.”

Liberal Democrat candidate Mark Williams said: “Conservative mismanagement of the economy has hit the majority of us hard, and Lib Dems are committed to provide long term help with the cost of living by cutting energy bills through a Home Energy Upgrade Programme.

“We need to tackle rising food prices through a National Food Strategy, and getting mortgage rates under control though careful economic management.

“When public finances permit, we are committed to raise tax free personal allowances – a Liberal policy which has already taken millions of people out of tax already. We will scrap the bedroom tax and increase the Carer’s Allowance.”

Green Preseli Pembrokeshire candidate Tomos Barlow said: “Introducing a Universal Basic Income will give people an opportunity to strive for better as it gives power to people in work to be able to do better for themselves generally, and also making jobs generally more secure for people.

“I also believe that we need to be heavily diversifying industries within this constituency, and we can do that by encouraging green energy and (with reform to the system) encourage green instillation schemes which can increase the amount and diversity of apprenticeships that we are desperately needing. We also want to encourage apprenticeships in agriculture, horticulture, carpentry and so much more.”

Conservative candidate Aled Thomas said: “Rural communities like Ceredigion and North Pembrokeshire can often feel left behind by both Westminster and Cardiff Bay as the dynamic of our communities is nothing like those in urban centres.

“As someone brought up on a remote farm in the countryside, I know the challenges that rural communities face and I’ll use my voice to fight this injustice in the next parliament.

“As inflation eases and the country’s economic growth returns, we now have a clear plan to cut taxes for working people to ensure they have more money in their families’ pockets to spend on what they want and need.”

Jackie Jones, Labour candidate said: “After 14 years of the Tories, people in Britain are facing soaring mortgages, sky-rocketing bills and the highest tax burden in 70 years. If Rishi Sunak is given five more years on 4 July, the average household is set to be £5,883 worse off. We cannot afford that.

“Being inside any incoming Labour government, I will have direct access to those who make decisions to drive investment to our town centres, our rural communities and our businesses: town centre regeneration, good, well-paying jobs, a better childcare offer, help for higher and further education, more teachers, help for farming, creation of GB energy and better transport. These measures will bring down your bills: food, mortgages and much more without higher taxes.”

All candidates were contacted and asked to respond.

The candidates have also been contacted for further responses on subjects to come, the next being agriculture/the countryside.

Community

Pembrokeshire town 4G phone mast plans withdrawn

Published

2 days ago

December 20, 2024

Bruce Sinclair - Local Democracy Reporter

PLANS for a replacement 20-metre-high 4G phone mast tower in north Pembrokeshire, which the local town council says would have “an unacceptable adverse impact” on the national park’s beauty have been withdrawn.

In an application before Pembrokeshire Coast National Park, Cellnex, through agent Telent, sought permission to replace an existing 10m high mast with a new 20m 4G tower with three Vodafone antennae and nine mast head amplifiers, and associated works, on land at Dwr-y-Felin Farm, Fford Bedd Morris, Newport.

The application for a 4G mobile base station for the mobile network operator(s) (MNOs) Vodafone Ltd in conjunction with Cornerstone. The application site is owned / operated by Cellnex UK, a radio site infrastructure provider.

A supporting statement accompanying the application said: “The proposed antenna height of 20m is essential to provide new 4G coverage and replacement 2G and 3G service provision to the surrounding area. 4G radio signals are more sensitive to physical obstructions than older technologies.

“This is because the higher the frequency band the greater the reduction in signal strength, increasing the likelihood of dropped calls and reduced data rates for internet browsing,” adding: “Generally, the higher the signal frequency the more it will be impacted by clutter. It is for this reason that there is the height of 20m is required.”

It went on to say it “should be noted that a radio base station within this location has already been considered acceptable and has become an established feature within the area and the proposed upgrade albeit different in design to support the latest equipment will not be of substantial or detrimental harm to the national park, conservation area or heritage assets”.

Newport Town Council had objected to the application, saying: “The proposed development (if approved in its current form) will have an unacceptable adverse impact on the qualities and special landscape and seascape character of the National Park and also on the special qualities of natural beauty and tranquillity.”

The application has now been withdrawn.

Charity

Flats for veterans to be built at VC Gallery, Pembroke Dock

Published

2 days ago

December 20, 2024

Bruce Sinclair - Local Democracy Reporter

A CALL to build flats for armed forces veterans on a former Pembrokeshire school yard/playing field next to veterans’ charity the VC Gallery has been approved by county planners.

In an application before Pembrokeshire County Council, veterans’ charity The VC Gallery sought permission for eight flats in two blocks of two-storey buildings, including wheelchair accessible flats, for Armed Forces veterans on land to the east of the former St Marys Catholic School site, Britannia Road, Pembroke Dock.

The former school, which closed in 2019, is currently used as the VC Gallery, itself an expansion of veterans’ charity the VC Gallery’s home in Haverfordwest, set up by Barry John MBE.

Documentation, through agent Pembroke Design Limited included a supporting statement by Barry John MBE, which it says “explains the issues that veterans face after leaving the services, the need for dedicated housing provision, the support that VC Gallery’s staff and volunteers provide and the gaps in current provision which the proposed development will help address”.

It added: “Although the development will provide and encourage independent living for its tenants, essential physical and mental support will be provided by the staff and volunteers in the VC Gallery as required, in accordance with individual veterans’ needs. Many will need a high level of support and the close proximity of the flats to the facilities and people on hand in the adjacent VC Gallery is therefore critical to the proposal’s purpose.”

Mr John’s statement said: “We want to create a unique offer to Armed Forces veterans in Pembrokeshire by offering up not just quality accommodation in a gated and safe environment but to also have a bespoke peer mentoring service.”

He added: “Working alongside our stakeholders The Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust and the OVA (Office of Veterans Affairs) we have secured a grant to draw up plans and to look at how the secured land at the VC Gallery Pembroke Dock can be turned into a bespoke housing solution for Armed Forces Veterans.

“We have Service level agreements with the local authority for specifically supporting tenancy in veterans which will also extend to giving vital counselling services. Our work with the health board and provision for peer mentorship also gives us great grounding for effective help on a practical level for the veterans’ village but we will need a more designated package around the housing we provide to include both mental health and also maintenance (something we don’t have at present).”

His statement finished: “We think the need is great, we have the land, we have the skills for care and the ambition to help. It would be a project above all social housing enterprises, and we want to make a go of it.”

Politics

Call to stop councillors being employed by MPs and MSs

Published

2 days ago

December 20, 2024

Bruce Sinclair - Local Democracy Reporter

A CALL to stop senior Pembrokeshire county councillors being employed by MPs or Senedd members is to come under greater scrutiny at a special council committee.

In a Notice of Motion submitted to the December meeting of Pembrokeshire County Council, Independent Group leader Cllr Huw Murphy said: “While it is acceptable for Cabinet members to hold other employments, no serving county councillor should hold a Cabinet position within Pembrokeshire County Council (PCC) while simultaneously being employed by a sitting Member of Parliament (MP) or Member of the Senedd (MS).

“Cabinet members hold executive responsibilities, and such dual roles risk potential conflicts of interest, particularly if Cabinet decisions conflict with the policies of their employer, often a political party. This concern is heightened in a council where most members are Independents.”

Cllr Murphy’s notice of motion was heard at the December meeting of Pembrokeshire County Council where it was agreed the matter be referred to a future constitutional review committee.

In the registration of interests for the eight members of Leader Cllr Jon Harvey’s Cabinet, only Cllr Joshua Beynon, deputy leader of the Labour Group and Cabinet Member for Corporate Finance and Efficiencies, lists a politician as an employer, in his case newly-elected Mid and South Pembrokeshire MP Henry Tufnell.

Responding to the notice of motion, Cllr Beynon has previously said: “This motion, which appears to target my unique position as a Cabinet Member for Finance and part-time parliamentary employee, raises serious questions about its fairness, legality, and intent.

“At its core, this is a politically motivated motion that seeks to undermine the principles of fairness and freedom. It attempts to dictate lawful employment choices of councillors, disregarding the importance of balancing public service with individual rights. Such an approach risks creating a chilling effect, discouraging capable individuals from serving in public office in the future.”