News

Angry protestors in Withybush march

Published

12 years ago

February 6, 2014

Over One thousand people turned up to protest about cuts to services at Withybush, Sunday January 26. The protesters marched from Sir Thomas Picton School to the hospital to vent their anger at cuts to services. Outside the hospital the crowd, estimated to be approaching nearly 1200 people, held placards and banners, chanted, and sang the Welsh national anthem. Many Pembrokeshire residents say they fear that the lives of women and babies would be at risk if a level-two neonatal unit was developed at Carmarthen as a replacement for the current unit at Withybush Hospital.

A motorbike accident, which closed the A40 for most of the day on Saturday January 25 has raised concerns that it would not be safe to rely on the single-carriageway road to transfer urgent cases from Haverfordwest to Carmarthen, over thirty miles away.

Chris Overton, the chairman of the Save Withybush Action Team, who organised the protest, said that the turnout showed the “strength of feeling of people in Pembrokeshire” Mr Overton , who is a consultant obstetrician at Withybush Hospital, later told the press: “I’ve coined a new phrase, the Sutton Test, after a woman called Kate Sutton from Johnston who lost her baby and nearly died. I ask you whether someone in a similar position will be safe when the new system is in place. I don’t think that they would be. I think that everyone is concerned more and more across the county that these services are going to be cut.”

Speaking at the demonstration, Stephen Crabb MP said to the Herald: “There is an enormous sense of anger amongst the crowd, people from all walks of life, all across the county, voicing their frustration and their fears of what the future will look like without the essential service of SCBU on our doorstep.”

The hospital changes announced are part of a new system, where doctors in Carmarthen will provide specialist care, with other hospitals eventually providing a midwife-led service. Bronglais hospital in Aberystwyth will become a midwife-led maternity unit, although during the transition period it will also retain some consultants.

The plans were initially revealed a year ago by the health board, but were vetoed by the local patients’ watchdog over concerns that closing the special care baby unit in Haverfordwest could put lives at risk. That meant Health Minister Mark Drakeford had to step in to review the decision himself, and he has taken advice from a panel of experts.

The panel advising Mr Drakeford indicated providing special baby care units across the health board was “neither safe nor sustainable”, but the protestors say its unsafe to cut services due to the time it takes to get mums and babies from Pembrokeshire to the new proposed unit in Carmarthenshire.

Crime

Man bailed after serious assault in Fishguard town centre

Published

52 minutes ago

March 25, 2026

Tom Sinclair

POLICE are appealing for witnesses following a serious assault in Fishguard that has left a man in hospital.

The incident happened on Main Street at around 11:00pm on Saturday (Mar 21), when the victim was reportedly punched, sustaining head injuries. He remains in hospital receiving treatment.

A 24-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm (GBH) and has since been released on bail while enquiries continue.

Dyfed-Powys Police are urging anyone who witnessed the incident, or who may have information that could assist the investigation, to come forward.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police quoting reference: 26*227686.

Information can be provided online via the Dyfed-Powys Police website, by emailing [email protected], by calling 101, or by sending a direct message on social media.

Alternatively, information can be given anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555111 or via crimestoppers-uk.org.

News

Childcare funding boost announced in Wales

Published

1 hour ago

March 25, 2026

Tom Sinclair

Hourly rate to rise as costs increase

THE WELSH GOVERNMENT has confirmed an increase in the hourly rate paid to childcare providers under its Childcare Offer, following a review of funding levels.

The Minister for Children and Social Care, DAWN BOWDEN MS, announced that the rate will rise to £6.67 per hour from April 6, 2026. The increase of 4.18% comes after feedback from childcare providers and sector data gathered during 2025.

The Welsh Government said the change is designed to help providers cope with rising costs, including increases to the National Living Wage.

The Herald understands the review drew on responses from the Childcare Offer’s Annual Survey, as well as information from Care Inspectorate Wales’ Self-Assessment of Service Statement (SASS).

The move follows a policy shift announced last year to review the rate annually, rather than every three years, in a bid to make funding more responsive to pressures facing the sector.

As part of the update, the maximum charge for meals will also increase by 4.18%, which ministers say is intended to balance affordability for both providers and parents.

Dawn Boden said the Welsh Government remains committed to supporting the long-term sustainability of childcare services, adding that officials will continue working with the sector to explore further improvements.

Health

Doctors say Wales is failing to value NHS staff over new pay award

Published

2 hours ago

March 25, 2026

Tom Sinclair

BMA Cymru Wales accuses ministers of falling short on pay restoration as Welsh Government accepts DDRB recommendations for 2026-27

DOCTORS in Wales have accused the Welsh Government of failing to properly value NHS staff after ministers accepted this year’s independent pay recommendations for medical and dental professionals. The row centres on whether the award represents fair recognition for frontline staff — or yet another missed chance to reverse years of falling real-terms pay.

In a written statement published on Wednesday (Mar 25), Health Secretary Jeremy Miles said the Welsh Government had accepted the Doctors’ and Dentists’ Review Body recommendations on headline pay for 2026-27. Under the decision, consultants, specialty and associate specialist doctors, resident doctors, dentists and locally employed doctors will receive a 3.5% consolidated uplift from April 1, 2026, while salaried dentists in Community Dental Services and the Public Dental Service will receive 3.75%.

But while the Welsh Government also said it accepted in principle a 3.5% uplift for contractor GPs and a 3.75% uplift to the pay element of dental contracts, ministers made clear that final decisions on how those increases are applied alongside wider contract changes would be left to the next government.

That has triggered an angry response from BMA Cymru Wales. In a press release issued on Wednesday, Dr Iona Collins, chair of the BMA’s Welsh Council, said ministers had “once again chosen to impose an award that falls short” of repeated promises to deliver full pay restoration for doctors employed by NHS Wales.

She said the award failed to reflect the “superhuman” efforts of doctors working under intense pressure and warned that inadequate pay would make it harder to retain staff in the Welsh NHS at a time when many are considering leaving for better pay and conditions elsewhere.

The BMA also raised concerns about general practice, saying GP pay had effectively been left hanging because the Cabinet Secretary linked the award to ongoing General Medical Services contract discussions with the incoming administration. The union said this left general practice “out in the cold” compared with other branches of the profession and called for urgent talks.

The Welsh Government said the award would apply from April 1 and added that wider DDRB recommendations not directly related to headline pay would be considered separately with partners. Ministers thanked NHS staff for their “ongoing dedication and hard work”.

The dispute is likely to reignite the wider argument over recruitment, retention and morale in NHS Wales, with doctors’ leaders insisting that pay restoration is no longer simply about reward, but about preventing more clinicians from walking away from the service.