VISIT PEMBROKESHIRE will host a highly anticipated political Q&A session at its upcoming Tourism Summit 2026, giving tourism businesses the opportunity to engage directly with candidates standing in the forthcoming Senedd elections this May.

As Wales’ first and only hybrid Destination Management Organisation, Visit Pembrokeshire brings together both public and private sector partners to support and develop the region’s visitor economy. This collaborative approach will be reflected in the format of this year’s summit, which combines leading industry speakers with a dedicated political panel discussion.

The Q&A session will provide a platform for tourism operators and industry professionals to raise key issues affecting the sector, while offering political candidates the opportunity to outline how their respective parties plan to support Pembrokeshire’s most significant economic driver.

Tourism businesses across the county continue to navigate a changing policy landscape and wider economic pressures. These include the 182-day rule for self-catering accommodation, rising operating costs, the proposed Visitor Levy, and increasing regulatory and licensing requirements.

For many operators, these pressures come alongside ongoing challenges such as recruitment difficulties, seasonality, energy costs and the need to maintain year-round viability for the many small and family-run businesses that form the backbone of Pembrokeshire’s visitor economy and rural communities.

The session will explore how the sector can work collaboratively with policymakers to support a thriving visitor economy while delivering Visit Pembrokeshire’s shared ten-year vision of becoming a world leader in regenerative tourism.

Neil Kedward, Chair of Visit Pembrokeshire’s Board of Directors, said: “Tourism is Pembrokeshire’s largest economic driver and supports thousands of local jobs, businesses and communities. With the upcoming Senedd elections, this summit provides an important opportunity for the sector to engage directly with those who may help shape the policies that affect our long-term future.

“We want our political representatives to succeed, and that means ensuring they are properly informed, connected to the businesses on the ground, and able to hear first-hand about the opportunities and challenges facing the industry. Creating space for open dialogue like this is an essential part of modern politics, particularly at a regional level where the impact of decisions is felt most directly.

“Our hope is that these conversations help build stronger understanding and partnership between tourism businesses and policymakers as we work together towards a thriving and regenerative visitor economy.”

Emma Thornton, Chief Executive of Visit Pembrokeshire, added: “The Tourism Summit is designed to bring together the people shaping the future of Pembrokeshire’s visitor economy. By inviting political candidates to hear directly from tourism businesses, we are creating an open platform for meaningful discussion about both the challenges and opportunities facing the sector.

“Pembrokeshire has an incredibly strong tourism industry, and collaboration between business, government and communities will be essential in ensuring it continues to grow in a sustainable and responsible way while achieving our shared long-term vision for the visitor economy.”

The Visit Pembrokeshire Tourism Summit 2026 will bring together tourism operators, policymakers and industry leaders from across Wales for a day of insight, discussion and networking focused on the future of the region’s visitor economy.

The event is proudly supported by Barclays, whose sponsorship reflects a shared commitment to supporting local businesses and the continued growth of Pembrokeshire’s visitor economy.

Tickets are available now via Eventbrite.

A CALL for the relocation of a Pembrokeshire farm diversification scheme which packages and distributes specialist medical equipment across Europe has been given the final go-ahead by councillors.

In an application recommended for refusal at the March meeting of Pembrokeshire County Council, Mr Van Der Spoel sought permission for the relocation and expansion of an existing farm diversification business into an existing agricultural building at Castle Villa, Hayscastle.

The proposals were before full council rather than its planning committee as members had twice gone against officer recommendations of refusal with a ‘minded to’ support for the scheme, and a ‘cooling off’ period, meaning a final decision would need to be made by all councillors.

Last July a similar application by Mr Van Der Spoel, through agent Harries Planning Design Management, was refused by planning officers.

A supporting statement for that application said the Dutch-born applicant, together with his wife and adult daughter ran the farm diversification business packing specialist medical insulated insulin supplies at their sheep farm.

It added: “The business run from this site is FRIO ASTRID EURO Ltd, which has a franchise agreement with FRIO UK. This business has been run from Castle Villa since its incorporation in 1998. The business was initially run from the stable building on the farmyard at Castle Villa.

“The business set-up involves receiving stock from FRIO UK in Wolfscastle, packaging orders and distributing the stock to seven Western Europe countries.”

Wolfscastle-based FRIO produces the world’s first patented insulin cooling wallet which keeps insulin and other temperature-sensitive medicines cool and safe.

The scheme for the business, said to have outgrown its current site, was refused by county planners on grounds including a lack of “robust evidence” to prove it couldn’t be sited within a nearby settlement or an allocated employment site, such as Haverfordwest.

The latest application was recommended for refusal on similar grounds.

Agent Wyn Harries has previously said his client’s business, selling into Holland, Belgium, Switzerland, and Germany, accounted for some 20 per cent of FRIO UK’s trade on its own, adding that previous articles on the planning application in the Western Telegraph had shown a great deal of public support for the applicants.

At the January meeting, local member, and chair of the planning committee, Cllr Mark Carter moved approval, delegated to senior officers on receipt of a Section 106 legal agreement, saying the proposals had community council support, adding it was “hard not to support a business that keeps local jobs and keeps a family farm viable”.

Cllr Michelle Bateman, whose neighbouring ward has FRIO UK’s base, said she was “fully supportive” of Cllr Carter’s call.

Members were warned of the danger of potentially setting a precedent by going against officer recommendations, with both former leader Cllr David Simpson and Cllr Michael Williams expressing their concerns at going against the officer recommendations.

Cllr Carter’s call, against the recommendation of refusal, was passed by 28 votes to 15, with one abstention.

A CALL to convert a former vineyard restaurant in rural Pembrokeshire to holiday lets as a form of small farm diversification has been refused.

In an application recommended for refusal at the March meeting of Pembrokeshire County Council’s planning committee, Barry Cadogan sought permission for a farm diversification and expansion of an existing holiday operation through the conversion of the former Cwm Deri vineyard production base and restaurant to three holiday lets at Oaklea, Martletwy.

It was recommended for refusal on the grounds the proposal “would introduce three new self-catering accommodation units within a countryside location which is not considered to be a proportionate amount of development to support a farm enterprise of limited scale”.

It had previously been recommended for refusal at the December planning committee but was deferred pending a site visit.

An officer report then said that, while the scheme was suggested as a form of farm diversification for the 36-acre farm, no detail had been provided in the form of a business case.

Speaking at that meeting, agent Andrew Vaughan-Harries of Hayston Developments & Planning Ltd, said the former Cwm Deri vineyard had been a very successful business, with a shop and a restaurant before it closed several years ago.

He said Mr Cadogan then bought the site, farming and running a small campsite of 20 spaces, but didn’t wish to run a café or a wine shop; arguing it would easily convert to holiday let use.

Speaking again at the March meeting, he said his applicant had now produced a business case, expecting the proposal would generate half the farm income, saying of the recommendation of refusal: “It almost seems like my client is punished for being a small farmer.”

He later added: “compared to a lot of farms in Pembrokeshire it is small; I think it’s very difficult to make a living out of 36 acres, he’s just a businessman trying to use a building.”

The business figure was debated, with estimations of the income ratio being closer to three-to-one in favour of the tourism side raised.

However, calls to go against officer recommendations and approve the scheme were moved by Cllr Brian Hall, who said the tourism operation was “the only thing that’s keeping him going at the moment,” adding: “I think we should give this applicant a chance; I think if we don’t do this a lot of these smallholdings are going to go out of business.”

Cllr Nick Neumann said the building not being used “doesn’t sit well with me,” warning: “I fear we are just making another building in our county redundant.”

Cllr Michael Williams, who had previously warned of the dangers about going against officer recommendations, saying it was time for a “reality check,” adding: “We have to determine this application as it is before us, not to look for ways round it; that’s the agent’s job.”

Committee chair Cllr Mark Carter, who had previously raised the three-to-one concern, said the business plan as received “doesn’t really stack up to show a form of farm diversification,” adding: “This new proposal with three units of holiday accommodation could well outstrip anything on the farming side by three-to-one.”

Cllr Hall’s call for approval was defeated by six votes to four, with the recommendation of refusal then taken, passing, also by six votes to four.