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Welsh Conservatives lead call for urgent NHS reform

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THE WELSH CONSERVATIVES are demanding urgent action to address the worsening crisis in Wales’ NHS, calling on the Labour-run Welsh Government to enact emergency reforms. In response to the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) report, ‘On the Frontline of the UK’s Corridor Care Crisis’, the Conservatives have tabled a motion in the Senedd, demanding immediate measures to tackle corridor care, overcrowding, and deteriorating hospital conditions.

Welsh Conservatives demand urgent action

The motion, set to be debated next week, states:

  1. Notes the Ending Corridor Care in Wales report published by the Royal College of Nursing Wales.
  2. Regrets that people in Welsh hospitals are being treated in unsafe, undignified, and unacceptable environments.
  3. Calls on the Welsh Government to enact the report’s eight recommendations in full.

Welsh Conservative Shadow Secretary for Health and Social Care, James Evans MS, has condemned Labour’s management of the NHS, stating:

“Under the Welsh Labour Government, people in Welsh hospitals continue to be treated in unsafe, undignified, and unacceptable environments.

“On Labour’s watch, we’ve seen hospital beds axed, hospitals downgraded, and new ones promised but not delivered, and Emergency Department performance that is worse than elsewhere in Great Britain.

“In the Senedd next week, we’re calling on the Welsh Labour Government to enact the Royal College of Nursing’s eight recommendations to ensure urgent action and transparency on corridor care in Wales.”

RCN report highlights systemic failures

As we reported last week, the Royal College of Nursing Wales report has exposed widespread failures in Welsh hospitals, describing a system where patients are forced to wait in corridors, sometimes for hours, in unsafe and undignified conditions. The RCN states that government inaction has directly contributed to avoidable patient deaths, citing severe hospital overcrowding and critical staffing shortages.

Helen Whyley, Executive Director of RCN Wales, urged immediate government intervention:

“Nurses are facing immense challenges in maintaining high standards of patient care amidst the growing prevalence of corridor and chair care in hospitals.

“Our recommendations provide a clear and achievable roadmap to ensure patients receive care in the right place, at the right time, and by the right professional. The nursing workforce is ready to lead the way – but we need the Welsh Government to act now.”

Llais report adds to mounting pressure

The latest findings from Llais, the statutory body representing the public’s voice in Welsh health and social care, further support the RCN’s damning assessment of NHS Wales. Their survey of over 700 people revealed severe delays, ambulance backlogs, and an overstretched system unable to cope with demand.

A patient at Morriston Hospital’s emergency department described the situation as dire: “I drove because the ambulance ETA was 7-8 hours, but I had severe chest pain and couldn’t wait that long.”

The study also found that many patients are forced to arrange their own transport to hospital, sometimes at great personal cost, due to long ambulance wait times.

Critical incidents declared

The Llais report warns that the pressures on Welsh emergency services are not temporary but systemic. Since the study was conducted, ‘business critical incidents’ have been declared by both the Welsh Ambulance Service NHS Trust and Aneurin Bevan University Health Board. Other health boards, including Swansea Bay and Cwm Taf Morgannwg, have issued urgent warnings about overwhelming demand.

Calls for immediate change

The combined reports from Llais and the RCN call for urgent action on multiple fronts, including:

  • Faster ambulance response times
  • Better coordination between emergency services and primary care
  • Increased staffing and resource allocation
  • Improved dignity and care for patients waiting in corridors
  • Greater transparency and accountability from NHS Wales and the Welsh Government

A system at breaking point

With emergency care in Wales under “extreme and unsustainable pressure,” as described by Llais Chair Professor Medwin Hughes, many patients and staff feel abandoned in a system that is failing them.

“The dignity of patients is not even being considered anymore. The system is chaotically inefficient and in desperate need of a review,” one patient at Glan Clwyd Hospital remarked.

With the Welsh Conservatives pushing for immediate action in the Senedd and the RCN calling for an overhaul of emergency care, the pressure is mounting on the Labour-run Welsh Government to provide answers—and, more importantly, solutions.

 

Crime

Milford man threatened to smash parents’ windows, court hears

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A MILFORD HAVEN man who repeatedly asked his parents for alcohol and money has admitted threatening to damage their home.

Christopher Sizer, 38, threatened to smash windows and kick in doors at his parents’ property in Shakespeare Avenue, Milford Haven, on March 3.

Haverfordwest magistrates heard there had been long-standing issues between Sizer and his parents.

“There have been long-standing issues between the defendant and his parents, and he’s constantly asking them for money,” said Crown Prosecutor Sian Vaughan.

“If they don’t give it, then he makes threats. But this is impacting them significantly. It just can’t go on.”

Ms Vaughan said Sizer had arrived at the property initially asking for alcohol.

“He had friends with him and then asked them for pizza, but this was a drain on their finances,” she said.

“It was at this point that he threatened to damage their property with a hammer that was readily available, and naturally they were concerned about that.”

The court was told Sizer’s mother had provided a victim impact statement, saying she and her husband could no longer cope with his behaviour.

“If we don’t give him what he wants, he threatens to kill himself, and if we have a night away he’ll phone me constantly, asking for money,” she said.

“My husband has had to get a night job to get extra money and we’ve also had to take out a loan. We can’t cope with his behaviour any more.”

Sizer, of Precelly Place, Milford Haven, pleaded guilty to making threats to damage or destroy property.

Magistrates requested a pre-sentence report from the probation service before sentencing and adjourned the case until July 14.

Sizer was released on conditional bail. He must not enter his parents’ property in Shakespeare Avenue, must not enter the Ty Hotel in Milford Haven, and must not contact his parents by any means, either directly or indirectly.

 

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Crime

Argument outside Tenby hotel ends in conditional discharge

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A MARRIED woman who threw her shoes and a flower pot at her husband during an argument outside a Tenby hotel has been given a conditional discharge.

Haverfordwest magistrates heard that Kerry Mayne, 35, had been out for a meal with family friends on May 9 and had drunk wine before meeting her husband, Ryan Mayne, outside the Tenby House Hotel.

Her solicitor, Aled Owen, said Mr Mayne had also been drinking after a night out in Saundersfoot.

Mr Owen told the court that Mr Mayne runs a security firm involved in training door staff and recognised two men working on the door at the premises.

“He recognised two men who were on duty at the pub as people he had trained,” said Mr Owen.

“This was when he grabbed the defendant from behind and told them to take her out because she was too drunk.

“Maybe this was his way of showing off to his past pupils who were at the door.”

Prosecutor Sian Vaughan said Mayne then “saw red”.

“She took offence at what he’d done and took her shoes off to throw them at her husband, but fortunately they did not make contact,” she said.

“She then reached up to a pot of flowers that had been placed on the windowsill and threw them at Ryan Mayne.”

Mayne, of Trem y Coleg, Carmarthen, pleaded guilty to assault by beating and causing £35 worth of criminal damage to a plant pot owned by the Tenby House Hotel.

After viewing CCTV footage of the incident, magistrates sentenced her to a 12-month conditional discharge.

She must also pay £85 prosecution costs and a £26 surcharge.

 

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Community

Council says Tenby Spectacular can still go ahead

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Authority denies cancelling event as organisers await licensing decision

PEMBROKESHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL has insisted that it wants the Tenby Summer Spectacular to go ahead, after organisers announced the cancellation of this summer’s events amid a row over harbour access and crowd control.

Tenby Round Table said earlier this week that the popular charity events, scheduled for Sunday, August 16 and Sunday, August 30, had been cancelled “until further notice” because organisers did not believe they had the clear powers needed to safely manage pedestrian access at Tenby Harbour.

The events are among Tenby’s best-known summer attractions, drawing thousands of residents and visitors to the harbour for entertainment, food, drink and fireworks, while raising money for local good causes.

But the council has now said it has not asked for the events to be cancelled and that the matter remains part of the normal licensing process.

Deputy Leader Cllr Paul Miller said: “Pembrokeshire County Council supports the Spectacular as we have for nearly 15 years. The Council has not requested or given direction that the event should be cancelled.

“The Spectacular is a much-loved event with significant number of attendees. As a result, we have an important duty to make sure the event can take place safely to address the concerns formally raised by the Responsible Authorities under the Licensing Act, which include the blue light services.

“Tenby Harbour is a working harbour and a key community asset – and just as every year this event needs to be licensed, and the organisers need to provide important information on how they plan to safely manage the event.”

Cllr Miller said the council wanted the event to proceed, but had to be satisfied that suitable safety arrangements were in place.

He added: “As a council, we very much want this event to go ahead but we have to make sure the event is safe for the public, with the right safety measures in place.

“Once the organisers provide the required information, the Licensing Sub-Committee, currently scheduled for July, will consider the event application, in exactly the same way they consider the large number of other events which occur across Pembrokeshire each year.”

Local county councillor Sam Skyrme-Blackhall also said she wanted to see the Spectacular continue.

She said: “I want to see the Spectaculars go ahead. It is important for locals and visitors alike to celebrate Tenby, have fun and raise money for worthy causes.

“I am really encouraged from meetings that I have had with senior officers that everyone is ready to do all that they can to enable these events to go ahead.”

The dispute now appears to centre on whether organisers can provide the information required by licensing officers and responsible authorities before the application is considered next month.

Tenby Round Table has previously said the issue relates to the safe management of large crowds around the harbour, including control of pedestrian access.

The council says those concerns must be addressed through the licensing process, while stressing that no instruction has been given to cancel the events.

The future of this year’s Spectaculars now appears to depend on whether an agreed safety plan can be produced before the July hearing.

 

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