A PEMBROKESHIRE caravan site owner who “honestly” admitted “dodging under the radar” by running his site without permission for some 20 years will not be allowed to continue doing do.

In an application before Pembrokeshire County Council’s April planning committee, Nicholas Kinahan sought retrospective permission to continue operating his caravan site with 19 touring pitches, along with caravan storage and the erection of a storage shed at Penrath Farm, Ryelands Lane, Kilgetty.

The long-running site operation, a kilometre from nearby Kilgetty, off the narrow Ryelands Lane, was discovered as part of an ongoing enforcement action.

The application was recommended for refusal on a long list of grounds including the site was in the open countryside, did not propose any community facility, was not supported by a Green Infrastructure Statement, no biodiversity enhancement features, the nearby road being a narrow single-track lane with no visibility splays for access, and concerns over foul waste disposal.

Kilgetty/Begelly Community Council has objected to the scheme on the basis of a lack of information provided within the application and access safety.

One third party representation was also received, raising concerns including a lack of information in respect of type of caravans and their use, no surface water or foul waste drainage details, a lack of an ecology survey, and no highway impact assessment.

Speaking at the meeting, farmer and caravan site owner Mr Kinahan said there were three caravans on-site after he moved to Kilgetty in 2004, housing tenants “on benefits,” with nine caravans on-site by 2010 and ‘vans from other sites stored on site later.

“We’ve done wrong and we know we’ve done wrong,” he told councillors, adding: “I can’t afford to live there without this little bit of extra income.”

Speaking on behalf of neighbour Micheal Ormond of Ryelands Caravan Park and his concerns, Andrew Vaughan-Harries – a planning agent who normally represents applicants – said to the applicant: “When I look at this application, personally, I think you’ve tried to do the application yourself.

“We see many, many problems with this application, a septic tank is not acceptable in 2024, there are lots of issues; it’s unsustainable and has to fail.”

Councillor Mark Carter said: “What can I say really? I think we’re looking at a very honest man, unfortunately in this case he’s got it wrong; he’s had a 20-year run of dodging under the radar.

“We have to respect the law and the policy and be fair to every caravan site.”

Moving the application be turned down, he said: “Much as I admire the gentleman for his initiative, I have to go with the officer recommendation for refusal.”

Councillor Rhys Jordan thanked the applicant for his honesty, adding: “I don’t think he’s tried to ride roughshod over planning, I think he’s been naïve, but I can’t support this application.”

The application was unanimously refused by planners.

Members heard the saga of Kinahan’s caravans may not be ended with a planning refusal, the option of a potential certificate of lawfulness – if he could prove the development had been in place enforcement-free for a decade-plus – being mooted at the meeting.

Committee chairman Cllr Jacob Williams said: “If you can prove it’s immune from enforcement it could be a ‘trump card’.”

THE HOUSING secretary poured cold water on suggestions Wales could follow Scotland’s lead by introducing similar rent controls, saying early indications show it has not worked.

Julie James was pressed for her views on rent controls in Scotland while giving evidence to a Senedd inquiry on the private-rented sector.

Altaf Hussain quizzed the housing secretary about affordability, raising concerns about rent rises since the pandemic, with landlords asking for big deposits and months’ rent upfront.

The Conservative warned this is leading some into unmanageable debt as he questioned whether there is a need to regulate a maximum deposit and rent.

Asked about the Welsh Government’s current thinking on rent regulation, Ms James told the local government and housing committee: “It hasn’t really worked in Scotland, I’m afraid.

“We’ve got some evidence, although it’s early days, to be fair, so we’ll want to monitor that for a longer time period. But, so far, the evidence is it’s not having the desired effect.”

Ms James pointed to a Welsh Government green paper calling for evidence on the right to adequate housing and rent control policies, with a second consultation to follow in summer.

She said: “We’re very keen to look at international examples from all over the place in terms of what works to get affordable rents into the sector.”

Ms James said she was very nervous the renters bill and leasehold reforms will not make it through the UK Parliament before a general election is called.

She warned: “We’ve got two years left of the legislative programme and the possibility of bringing a large bill through to replicate this is slim to none.”

Lee Waters, who was Ms James’ deputy until last month, said many tenants have damp or disrepair issues, but are unaware of their rights or too frightened for fear of eviction.

Suggesting the Welsh housing quality standard should be extended to the private sector, the Llanelli MS warned of a fundamental power imbalance between landlords and tenants.

Ms James criticised the UK Government for reneging on a commitment to uplift quality standards for the private rented sector at the last minute.

The housing secretary said protections under Wales’ Renting Homes Act have led to a substantial drop in evictions since coming into force in December 2022.

Mr Waters said tenants who are forced to move because their landlord has decided to sell face an average cost of about £1,700, suggesting two months’ rent should be waived.

Jack Sargeant, also a Labour backbencher, asked about pet-friendly policies, warning some homeless people face the dilemma of having a place to stay or giving up a companion.

Ms James said she was not able to pick which parts of the UK’s renters bill would apply, but she accepted an offer to be involved in “no benefits claimants” and “no children” exclusions.

She pointed to guidance that landlords cannot unreasonably refuse the right to have a pet but Ms James stressed there must be sensible limits

Recalling how she was once called to a high-rise building while working for Swansea council, she said: “We took an engineer with us and the lift kept breaking because people on the seventh floor were keeping a horse in their kitchen.

“This horse was relieving itself in the lift on the way down and it was breaking the mechanism. It was quite something to see this horse in this kitchen, I have to say.”

John Griffiths, who chairs the committee, raised concerns about a mismatch between the number of students and the amount of purpose-built accommodation in university cities.

Ms James said she has tried to persuade council planning departments they have the power to enforce better standards for student accommodation, so it can be more easily repurposed.

She admitted: “I have not been terribly successful at this but I plan to have another go.”

The former lawyer told committee members other levers will be looked at, including any unintended consequences of the council tax exemption for students.

Mr Griffiths also asked about scope for institutional investment in build-to-rent schemes, which often include shared facilities such as gyms.

Ms James said: “It’s not huge in Wales. It’s a lot less huge than it has become in England,” as she argued build-to-rent is not the solution to the housing crisis.

Mr Waters asked about low take-up of Leasing Scheme Wales, which offers incentives for owners to lease homes to councils, amid concerns the application process is “a bit of a faff”.

Ms James said the housing maintenance allowance, which has been frozen for years until the turn of the financial year in April, has been the main barrier.

She vowed to continue pushing the UK Government to say as soon as possible whether it is a one-off or if it will be uplifted next year in line with inflation.

“I think it’s pretty awful that they haven’t said so,” she told the meeting on April 24.

TOO MANY children are being taken from their families, the First Minister admitted, with more than one child in every 100 in Wales now living in care.

Vaughan Gething also warned far too many children and young people do not have a good experience of the care system as he gave evidence to a Senedd scrutiny committee.

John Griffiths raised concerns about an 83% increase in the number of children in care over the past two decades between 2003 and 2022.

The Labour MS for Newport East warned care rates are significantly higher than in England, with “massive, unexplained” variation within Wales.

Mr Gething said: “The picture is still broadly one where too many children are taken into care,” adding that “some people get decent outcomes” but “far too many don’t.”

The First Minister stressed that solving the problem is not as straightforward as the Welsh Government declaring “you cannot take children into the care system”.

Pressed about how he will reverse the trend, Mr Gething said the aim is not only to reduce numbers but to work with, and for, looked-after children to deliver better outcomes.

Alistair Davey, the Welsh Government’s deputy director of social services, told committee members that 25% of children in care are placed outside their home county.

Jenny Rathbone, the Labour MS for Cardiff Central, criticised the pace of change, raising concerns about “constant slippage” in the Welsh Government meeting milestones.

Warning that Wales is an outlier, with the high number of children in care an endemic problem, Ms Rathbone said councils are facing “huge” costs and potential bankruptcy.

“We haven’t got time on our side and children’s lives are being affected,” she stressed.

Urged to get a grip, Mr Gething acknowledged the need for urgency but cautioned that there is not a switch to flick that will change outcomes for children and young people.

Mr Griffiths also raised concerns about educational outcomes for looked-after children, with only 17% getting five GCSEs at ‘C’ or above compared with 54% for pupils generally.

James Evans, the Tory MS for Brecon and Radnorshire, highlighted that looked-after children face significant additional challenges such as moving just before exams.

Recognising that such disruption has a very real impact, Mr Gething said GCSE results for looked-after children reflect the challenges in their lives rather than their ability.

He was not convinced about the need for a specific strategy, echoing Carwyn Jones’ concerns about the Welsh Government becoming a “strategy factory”.

Ms Rathbone pressed the First Minister about concerns the Welsh Government’s “woolly” child poverty strategy lacks ambition and focuses too much on levers outside its control.

She said the children’s commissioner, Audit Wales, the Bevan Foundation and many others are among a chorus calling for clear targets on reducing child poverty.

Mr Gething stressed that poverty will be a key priority for his government, which will refocus on investing in the first 1,000 days of a child’s life.

He said delivering the objectives of the child poverty strategy would make a radical difference to the lives of children and young people.

Warning that the private sector does not deliver the right quality of care and outcomes, the First Minister set out plans to remove profit from the care of looked-after children.

He explained that Dawn Bowden, the newly-appointed social care minister, will bring forward a bill in the week beginning May 20 before the Senedd’s Whitsun recess.

Mark Isherwood, who represents North Wales, stressed that there is no guarantee a non-profit model will prevent money leaving the sector.

The Conservative warned public sector provision could ultimately cost more and deliver less.

Mr Gething said the reforms are not simply about profit motive, but delivering improved outcomes and making better use of the money.

Warning of a crisis in the social care workforce, James Evans raised concerns about an over-reliance on agency staff with high costs “crippling” councils.

The former councillor said social workers face unmanageable workloads, with as many as 40 cases at a time, as he called for a legal maximum on the number of cases.

Mr Gething rejected the suggestion, saying: “What do you do if you reach a limit and you are not legally allowed to take on any extra work if you have another child who needs support?

“Do you say ‘the inn is full, take your luck in the stable’ or do you say ‘actually, we’ve got to find a way to try to manage with the resources we’ve got’?”

Labour’s Jack Sargeant focused on corporate parenting, warning that more than 25% of children moved care placements twice or more in the year to March.

Mr Sargeant, who represents Alyn and Deeside, backed the “bold and brave” decision to proceed with a basic income pilot for care leavers and asked if it could be extended.

Mr Gething would not give a hard-and-fast commitment, saying an evaluation of the project by Cardiff University will report in 2027 which is beyond the next Senedd election.

However, the First Minister told MSs he would be surprised if Labour was not interested in taking the pilot forward with a manifesto commitment in 2026.

“I certainly hope the evidence allows us to do that,” he told the meeting on April 26.

Asked where care-experienced children sit on his list of priorities, Mr Gething stressed that the government’s commitment to a radical reform summit’s declaration is undimmed.