News

Can pay, won’t pay

Published

10 years ago

June 16, 2014

Tom Sinclair

FURIOUS businessmen have reacted angrily to being left high and dry by the collapse of Mustang Marine.

• Local businesses out of pocket

• Claims local traders misled

Representatives from several local businesses owed money by the firm, which went into administration at the beginning of March, have approached the Herald about events that have left them among unsecured creditors owed in excess of £3.1m, who are not expected to get a single penny back. Each of those business people made it clear to the Pembrokeshire Herald that the only reason they extended such long credit lines to the boat building company was the repeated assurances given by senior Milford Haven Port Authority figures and former directors of Mustang Marine that their bills would be paid in all eventualities. One trader, who asked not to be identified told us: “I was told again and again that my business would be paid. I was told it by the Port Authority and told it by the directors of Mustang Marine. If I had not been told that I would be paid and led to believe that the Port Authority would make good on what Mustang owed me, I would have pulled the plug and taken my men off site. I know others were told the same thing.” Another businessman told the Herald: “It stinks. I could end up losing everything I have spent years building up. Mustang Marine were taking money from Svitzer intended for contractors working in the profitable part of the business, and instead of paying them the directors were using that money to prop up the losses Mustang was making elsewhere. “Fair dos to Svitzer, though, when they found out what Mustang Marine were up to, they started paying contractors direct and not through Mustang. If they hadn’t I would have gone bust, and so would’ve other people. I still might have to put the business through. “We (me and other businesses) were told that the Port Authority was behind it and there was no risk of us losing out. I think the whole thing needs investigating.” HSBC Bank and former Mustang Director Huw Lewis will receive around £270K and £296K respectively as secured creditors of the firm A claim by the Port Authority to be treated as a secured creditor in respect of combined loans made to Mustang Marine totalling £384K has been rejected by the Administrators, Grant Thornton, who have run up fees in excess of £190K since their appointment on March 3 to date. Former employees of the firm are owed a total of £104,292. Local businesses that have taken the biggest cash hits include, BDS Contract Services of Hubberston are shown as being owed in excess of a quarter of a million pounds, while Pembrokeshire County Council shows up as being owed over £66,000 by the failed company. Port Engineering of Milford Haven is owed in excess of £57,000 and JP Junior Scaffolding over £41K. None of those businesses were available for comment. The Herald put a question to the auditors about the status of a reported status debt of £329K owed by Mustang Marine to Marine & Port Services Ltd. A check at Companies House showed that it Marine & Port Services Ltd.’s address was a PO Box care of Milford Haven Port Authority and that it had been wound up in 2008. The Herald put a question to the auditors about the status of a reported status debt of £329,000 owed by Mustang Marine to Marine & Port Services Ltd. A check at Companies House showed that it Marine & Port Services Ltd.’s address was a PO Box care of Milford Haven Port Authority and that it had been wound up in 2008. A spokesman for the Grant Thornton told The Herald: “It’s simply a clerical error. Trading with MHPA was historically with Marine and Port Services Ltd.” He added “When trading changed to MHPA the clerical staff at Mustang did not update the ledger account name and continued to use Marine and Port Services when in reality they should have changed the account name to MHPA.” “The liability should be recorded in the books and records as MHPA.”

News

Welsh Lib Dems urge First Minister to return dodgy donation

Published

15 hours ago

May 2, 2024

Tom Sinclair

THIS week in the Senedd, the Welsh Liberal Democrats have urged the First Minister to return the £200,000 donation he received from a company linked to environmental crimes.

Speaking to the Senedd on Wednesday, party leader Jane Dodds MS urged FM Vaughan Gething to return money donated to his campaign by Dauson Environmental, a refuse and recycling business owned by David John Neal.

Mr Neal received a 3-month suspended prison sentence in 2013 for illegally dumping waste at a conservation site on the Gwent levels.

His companies Atlantic Recycling and Neal Soil Suppliers were also prosecuted and given fines and costs of £202,000.

Then in 2017, Mr Neal was given another suspended sentence of 18 weeks, with fines and costs of £230,000 after failing to remove the waste.

The Welsh Lib Dems have called on the FM to return the donation, as part of wider calls for a shift away from the influence of “big money” in Welsh politics.

Commenting, the Leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats Jane Dodds MS said:

“This entire episode has casted a dark shadow upon Welsh democracy and has rightfully led to many questioning the integrity of Vaughan Gething’s leadership campaign and the way our democracy works here in Wales.

Unfortunately for many of us this is hardly surprising, as our political system has been broken for quite some time now.

A system that empowers the elite donor class whilst simultaneously shutting out the voice of the voter is a perversion of democracy itself.

This is why our wider goal must be to remove the influence of ‘big money’ from Welsh politics once and for all.

We cannot have another government that prioritises the interests of its financial benefactors over those of the Welsh people.

We need to take a firm stance in rooting out the influence of cash in Welsh politics, for the sake of our communities we must start prioritising their interests and needs instead of having more self-serving politicians.”

News

Council seeking legal advice to address Withyhedge enforcement

Published

16 hours ago

May 2, 2024

Tom Sinclair

PEMBROKESHIRE County Council says it has sought legal advice and is contemplating legal proceedings against Withyhedge Landfill operators RML, in regards to the ongoing odour issues at the site.

The Council intends to ask the Court for an injunction requiring RML to abate the public nuisance odour arising from the landfill. Failure to comply with the injunction would be contempt of court, which carries a penalty of up to two years’ imprisonment and unlimited fine.

Following significant work undertaken by RML the Authority is disappointed that the problem has not been resolved and residents continue to be impacted by the odour.

Working in collaboration with Natural Resources Wales (NRW) and Public Health Wales (PHW), we fully appreciate that the communities affected cannot tolerate this any longer.

NRW announced that the first set of deadlines for the completion of actions to tackle the ongoing odour issues at Withyhedge Landfill have been met, one week on following the issuing of further enforcement action on 18th April.

This will be closely monitored by NRW to ensure the operator complies with all the actions set out in Notice by 14 May.

It was deemed appropriate to wait until the operator had carried out mitigation to comply with the enforcement requirements by NRW prior to considering this additional action.

To that end, on 26th April 2024, the Council served RML with a letter of claim and invited them to give legally binding undertakings to abate the odour nuisance or face legal proceedings. The Council also asked for disclosure of documents relevant to the proceedings, including records of waste brought in or removed from the landfill.

The Council has given RML until 14th May 2024 to respond to its letter of claim. This aligns with the current deadline set by NRW under its enforcement notice.

Pembrokeshire County Council Chief Executive Will Bramble welcomed the move. He said: “We are extremely disappointed that RML has not delivered the necessary action to stop the completely unacceptable smells from the site.

“We fully support the additional enforcement action being taken by NRW and continue to work closely with them to do all in our power to correct the situation.

“Our intention to ask the Court for an injunction requiring RML to stop the odour nuisance arising from the landfill, is another part of our collaborative approach. The smell from Withyhedge is having a major impact on residents and visitors. This situation has gone on too long and it is unacceptable.”

News

Beautiful, funny and lovely: Family pay tribute to Sian Batchelor

Published

18 hours ago

May 2, 2024

Tom Sinclair

THE family of a woman has paid tribute to a “beautiful, funny, lovely person.”

Sian Batchelor, aged 32, was found on a beach near Pennar, Pembroke Dock on Tuesday evening, April 30^th, 2024.

Her family has issued a statement to say: ‘We are devastated by our loss. Sian was a beautiful, funny, loving person. We will treasure the good times we had with her.

“We would now like time to grieve and would ask to be given privacy in which to do so.”

The circumstances surrounding Sian’s death are being investigated and police would like to hear from anyone with information, sightings of Sian or contact from Sian, between Thursday April 25 to Tuesday April 30.

Police can be contacted either online at: https://bit.ly/DPPContactOnline, by emailing [email protected], or by calling 101. If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or speech impaired text the non-emergency number on 07811 311 908.

Quote reference: DP-20240430-284