WELSH singer Duffy is set to make her live UK comeback with a secret London show, more than 15 years after her last concert appearance in Britain.

The Grammy-winning artist, whose real name is Aimee Anne Duffy, revealed the news to fans in an Instagram story, confirming that the intimate performance will take place on July 5.

Duffy wrote: “I’m doing a secret intimate gig in London on the 5th July, next month, and I would love nothing more than for some of you to attend.

“It’s only small capacity so we can only select a few, but really looking forward to it, I will sing some new songs.

“All my love, Duffy x.”

The performance will include new material and marks her first UK live show since December 2010, when she appeared at Capital FM’s Jingle Bell Ball at the O2 Arena in London.

Duffy became one of Wales’ biggest music stars following the release of her debut album Rockferry, which was powered by the hit single Mercy. The song topped the UK charts for five weeks and helped establish her internationally.

Her second album, Endlessly, followed in 2010, but she later withdrew from public life.

Years later, Duffy revealed that she had been drugged, raped and held captive, explaining her long absence from the music industry.

Her return to the stage comes shortly after confirmation that she will feature in a new Disney+ documentary, which will explore her rise to fame, her life in Wales, her career, and the traumatic events that led to her stepping away from the spotlight.

Duffy also has strong links to Pembrokeshire. After her parents divorced, she moved with her mother and two sisters to Letterston, near Fishguard.

She later attended Sir Thomas Picton School in Haverfordwest, where she completed her GCSEs before returning to North Wales to live with her father.

CALLS have been made for an immediate moratorium on industrial-scale solar and windfarm developments in Wales amid concern over the loss of productive farmland.

The Welsh Conservatives say the Welsh Government should pause major renewable energy schemes and urgently review the planning rules for Developments of National Significance.

Party leader Darren Millar MS said Future Wales 2040, the national planning framework, gives too much weight to large-scale renewable energy projects and risks allowing solar farms and windfarms to be built at the expense of food production.

Planning row

The row comes as Wales faces pressure to increase renewable energy generation while also protecting agricultural land, rural landscapes and farming communities.

Under the Developments of National Significance process, major infrastructure projects, including some large renewable energy schemes, are decided by Welsh Ministers rather than local councils.

Supporters say the system is needed to deliver clean energy and reduce reliance on fossil fuels, while critics argue it can leave communities feeling that decisions are being taken out of their hands.

Mr Millar said: “In opposition, the now First Minister campaigned against industrial-scale renewable developments in his own constituency for fear of the impact it would have on valuable farming land. Now in government, he needs to act accordingly to protect prime agricultural land.

“The current planning framework is fundamentally flawed. Future Wales 2040 creates an assumption in favour of industrial-scale solar farms and windfarm developments across great swathes of rural Wales, putting productive farmland at risk.

“We support renewable energy and recognise its role in achieving energy security and reducing emissions, but those developments should not be at the expense of Wales’ food security.

“Renewable developments should be appropriate in scale and sensitive to their environment, making better use of the roofs of buildings and car parks.

“The Welsh Government should introduce an immediate moratorium on industrial-scale solar and windfarm developments and undertake an urgent review of the planning framework for Developments of National Significance so Wales can take a more balanced approach to Wales’ energy future.”

Climate targets

The Welsh Government says renewable energy is central to meeting Wales’ climate targets and improving energy security, but that projects must go through the planning system before consent is granted.

Supporters of large-scale renewable schemes argue they are needed to cut emissions, reduce reliance on imported energy and help stabilise electricity supplies. Some farmers and landowners also see renewable projects as a source of income at a time when the agricultural sector is under pressure.

However, opponents say the scale and location of some proposals risk damaging landscapes, reducing food-producing land and leaving rural communities with too little say over major developments.

REFORM WALES has accused the First Minister of failing to guarantee jobs for student nurses in Wales, despite continuing pressure on the NHS.

During First Minister’s Questions on Tuesday (Jun 9), Reform Wales leader Dan Thomas MS challenged Rhun ap Iorwerth to promise that all student nurses would be offered employment in Wales after graduation.

Mr Thomas linked the issue to the Welsh Government’s overseas affairs budget, saying £9m should instead be used to employ newly qualified nurses.

He told the Senedd: “Will you do the right thing and will you guarantee all student nurses in Wales a job when they graduate, yes or no?”

The First Minister did not give a direct guarantee, but said workforce planning was central to the government’s health strategy.

Rhun ap Iorwerth said: “Putting a robust plan in place to make sure that people who have decided to devote themselves to careers in nursing or medicine or all the allied health professionals is a core part of our delivery of a workforce strategy.

“That is why my Minister for health and care has already begun the work of ensuring that we are able to support students to have careers within the NHS.”

Workforce concerns

The exchange comes after the Royal College of Nursing Wales warned in April that up to half of this year’s nursing graduates in Wales could be left without a role because of a shortage of Band 5 posts.

The RCN said the situation risked leaving hundreds of newly qualified nurses without work, despite pressure on services and continuing concerns about staffing levels.

Speaking after FMQs, Mr Thomas said: “Our health service is in desperate need of qualified staff. It is unacceptable that newly qualified nurses, doctors and paramedics are being told to find work outside of Wales.

“We all know Plaid Cymru are all in favour of open migration but forcing Welsh nursing graduates to move overseas is taking it way too far.

“I was disappointed that the First Minister could not commit to ensuring these hardworking, qualified professionals can move into the frontline roles our NHS so desperately needs to fill.”

The Welsh Government says its health minister has begun work on supporting students into NHS careers, but no blanket job guarantee was given during the Senedd exchange.