News

District Enforcement deny using tactics and incentives for penalties

Published

5 years ago

November 22, 2018

A REPRESENTATIVE from the District Enforcement team has denied that their officers have been using tactics against members of the public when issuing Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs).

At a meeting of the Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee on Thursday (Nov 22), members asked numerous questions about the issuing of notices and asked for assurances that children under the age of 18 weren’t being targeted.

District Enforcement Representative John Dunne denied that officers were using tactics describing them as ‘pro-active’ and said that they were not being offered incentives to issue notices.

A report to the council states that from September 10 until November 9, 945 fixed penalty tickets were issued, a high percentage of which (99.58%) were for littering.

Many of those involved cigarette butts while there have also been a few notices issues for general littering and dog fouling.

The Council have said that 323 tickets remain unpaid after ten days as of November 1 and that ten cases were ready to proceed court.

District Enforcement officers have been on patrol in Haverfordwest, Milford Haven, Pembroke Dock, Goodwick and Narberth – amongst others.

The Council’s Head of Environment, Richard Brown said that although the majority of notices issued related to fag butts this was not their intention when it was first started.

He went on to speak about comments on social media which described the behaviour of some officers but said: “We don’t get complaints from people who don’t commit an offence.

“A lot of things on social media may not be entirely truthful and any enforcement activity will lead to a lash-back by members of the public and there are little direct complaints to us.”

John Dunne told members he had seen the impact that enforcement has had in other areas but added that it needed to be aligned with education.

Cllr Rob Summons led the questions asking if officers were targeting areas that produced the greatest number of penalty notices.

John Dunne said that officers patrolled the whole of the county and that their strategy would be determined by complaints from members of the public.

Asked about using tactics, John said: “I deny that, we are pro-active rather than reactive. We wouldn’t be serving the people, if we had that intelligence, if we didn’t catch that person.”

Cllr Summons asked if officers were given incentives but John added: “All officers are salaried, paid an hourly rate and they are not incentivised whatsoever. We are completely transparent on this and the local authority can log on to our system and check payslips.”

He also went on to say that children under 18 could not be issued with a notice but if someone was wrongly given a notice, all they would need to do was send identification through an email and the penalty would be cancelled.

Cllr Brian Hall said that the process was ‘well overdue’ and added: “If we’re going to do things we’ve got to get it right.”

He gave an example of someone who had been given a notice in a Tesco car park but had the notice cancelled as it was deemed not in the public interest.

Cllr Tim Evans also raised an issue where a homeless person had been given an FPN but John Dunne said that on reviewing the 16-minute interaction between the officer and the man, he did not say he was homeless but went on to say this was also cancelled.

Other members also talked about education being needed while Cllr Simon Hancock sought assurances that no child under the age of 10 would be issued with a penalty notice.

John Dunne gave that assurance and went on to say that there was a minimum of two officers patrolling a certain area of the county and that they would cover the whole county in a week.

He added that officer work from 7am to 7pm but added if they had intelligence of litter being dropped at later times they could go out at those times to catch people.

Cllr Summons concluded by encouraging members of the public to report any littering concerns to their local councillor for the information to be passed on.

He also requested that the committee receive an update in April about the service.

Business

Expansion for Ashmole & Co with acquisition of Jones Ward Accountants

Published

11 hours ago

May 5, 2024

Tom Sinclair

CHARTERED, Certified Accountants, Ashmole & Co, are delighted to announce their expansion following the acquisition of JonesWard accountancy firm in Carmarthen.

Ashmole & Co Carmarthen has today taken over JonesWard who have closed their office in Lammas Street, Carmarthen. All JonesWard staff, including Ian Jones and James Ward, have transferred over to Ashmole & Co and will be based in the Old School, the Quay, Carmarthen.

JonesWard informed their clients that the administrative burden of running a practice had increased significantly over recent years due to the constant changing money laundering and tax regulations, software requirements and so on. Over the past 12 months it had become more challenging to maintain the level of service they had been used to providing.

Ian Jones said, “We feel Ashmole & Co share the same values as us and have the necessary expertise and resources to ensure we can continue to provide the personal touch and level of service clients have been accustomed to. Myself and James are not retiring but we will be supported by Ashmole & Co’s partners and staff from now on in their Carmarthen office.”

Ashmole & Co partners Sharon George, Carwyn Morgan and Vinal Patel will strive to ensure JonesWard clients will continue to receive the high quality of service they are used to.

Vinal Patel, Partner with Ashmole & Co said, “It is our priority to make the transition as smooth as possible with all employees of JonesWard having already transferred to Ashmole & Co and are now based in our office on the Quay in Carmarthen. We look forward to meeting our new clients and working closely with them to meet their needs in the future.”

Ashmole & Co Chartered and Certified Accountants have been established since 1897 and are one of the largest accountancies and auditing practices in south Wales, now operating from thirteen offices throughout south and west Wales including Swansea, Carmarthen, Haverfordwest and Ammanford.

Charity

Fundraiser to take on epic 87k steps challenge to raise funds for Withybush

Published

11 hours ago

May 5, 2024

Tom Sinclair

SAM Faulkner is challenging himself to walk 87,000 steps in one day to raise funds for the Cardiac Care Unit at Withybush Hospital in memory of his father.

Sam will be walking along the Brecon and Monmouth Canal from Brecon to Rogerstone in Newport.

Sam said: “Since losing my Dad last year, I made a personal commitment to do something to raise money every year for the Cardiac Care Unit at Withybush Hospital in Haverfordwest who looked after my Dad so well in his final days.

“I will be challenging myself to complete 87,000 steps in a day on July 20th 2024 – 1,000 steps for every year of my Dad’s life. I’ll be walking around 40 miles in about 10 hours.

“Canal walks were always a firm favourite of mine and my Dad’s, with many days spent walking along the Grand Union in Northamptonshire when I was growing up.

“My family and I, and the unit at the hospital, would be beyond grateful for anything supporters could give. Thank you ever so much in advance.”

Katie Hancock, Pembrokeshire Fundraising Officer, said: “We’d like to say a huge good luck to Sam with his challenge. Thank you so much for dedicating your time to raise more funds for the Cardiac Care Unit.

“The support of our local communities enables us to provide services over and above what the NHS can provide in the three counties of Hywel Dda and we are extremely grateful for every donation we receive.”

You can donate to Sam’s fundraiser here: https://www.justgiving.com/page/sam-faulkner-1712508280259?newPage=true&fbclid=IwAR2tyVVQVea0DLQelSsrp7Ie2CKjX0jXGnwndR_tBKL-Av2kv8f5nchEolw

For more details about the charity and how you can help support local NHS patients and staff, go to www.hywelddahealthcharities.org.uk

Business

Dragon LNG explores integration of LNG and CO2 liquefaction processes

Published

11 hours ago

May 5, 2024

Tom Sinclair

DRAGON LNG, based in Waterston, Milford Haven, recently announced a significant step towards sustainable energy solutions.

The company awarded a contract to Worley, global professional services company of energy, chemicals and resources experts, to conduct a comprehensive feasibility study.

The study is focussing on exploring the potential benefits of integrating LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas)
regasification and CO2 (Carbon Dioxide) liquefaction processes at Dragon LNG’s facilities. This integration holds promise for a more efficient operation, with the potential to reduce energy consumption, carbon intensity and the levelized cost of CO2 export not only at the Dragon site but also for Haven industry companies.

If feasible, the technology at Dragon would support wider collaboration with RWE Pembroke Net Zero Centre, whose CO2 would be transported to the Dragon facility for processing before being shipped via non-pipeline transport (NPT) to carbon sequestration sites.

Key aspects to be addressed in the feasibility study include:

Technical Solutions: Worley will evaluate various technical approaches to seamlessly integrate LNG and
CO2 liquefaction processes, ensuring optimal energy efficiency and effectiveness.
Carbon Intensity Reduction: Dragon LNG is committed to sustainability, and the study will assess how the integration of processes can contribute to lowering the carbon intensity of operations, aligning with broader environmental goals.
Economic Viability: Understanding the financial implications is crucial. The study will delve into the levelized cost of CO2 and other economic factors to determine the feasibility and financial benefits of the proposed integration.

Commenting on the partnership, a spokesperson for Dragon LNG stated, “We are excited to collaborate with Worley on this important initiative. As a responsible energy provider, Dragon LNG is continuously seeking innovative ways to enhance our operations while minimizing our environmental footprint. This feasibility study represents a significant step towards achieving those objectives.”

Worley’s expertise in engineering and consultancy services including in the CO2 and LNG sectors makes them an ideal partner for this endeavour. Their track record of delivering sustainability solutions aligns perfectly with the ambitious goals of Dragon LNG.

This collaboration underscores Dragon LNG’s commitment to driving sustainable practices within the energy sector. By exploring the integration of LNG regasification and CO2 liquefaction processes, the company aims to pave the way for a cleaner, more efficient energy future with their ambition of a net zero terminal by 2029.