News

Over 117,000 people newly registered to vote in Wales

Published

1 year ago

June 19, 2024

AS the deadline passed yesterday to register to vote, 117,477 people in Wales signed up who were not previously on the voters toll.

However, the The Electoral Reform Society (ERS) is calling for the next government to bring in Automatic Voter Registration (AVR) across the UK to make it easier for people to cast their vote and help enfranchise millions of missing voters. Wales is already planning to introduce AVR, with legislation progressing through the Senedd currently. This should be introduced for 2026, pending a successful pilot. 

AVR can work in a number of ways. It involves registration officers pre-populating the register from existing databases, rather than voters having to initiate the registration process themselves.

The ERS’s call comes after government figures showed that just under 2.9 million applications to register to vote were made from between when the general election was called on May 22nd and the registration deadline of 23:59 on June 18th. Despite a huge surge on the last day of 632,863 applications lifting the total figure, the overall number of applications is still well short of the around 8 million people the Electoral Commission says are not registered to vote or registered incorrectly.

Following yesterday’s deadline, the final number of registrations since the general election was called stood at 2,898,265. This broke down as 2,450,646 in England, 281,339 in Scotland, 117,477 in Wales and 48,803 in Northern Ireland.

Willie Sullivan, Senior Director of the Electoral Reform Society, said: “Despite a huge surge in last-minute applications to register to vote, it is clear today that millions of voters will still be missing from the electoral rolls come polling day. That means millions of people will effectively be locked out of having their say on the direction of the country in the coming years.

“This should be the last election where we are in this damaging situation. We are calling on whoever is in government after July 4th to bring in Automatic Voter Registration (AVR) across the UK, which is already set to be introduced into Wales.

“Moving to AVR would be a win-win for the next government as it would make life easier for voters by taking one more thing off their to-do list while at the same time strengthening our democracy by helping enfranchise millions of missing voters.

“However, the high number of unregistered voters also points to a deeper malaise in our politics, where millions of people are clearly disengaged with our democracy. This comes at a time when trust in our politics is also now at rock bottom.

“A big part of the problem is people not feeling that their vote counts or has any meaningful impact, which is a direct result of the distorting First Past the Post voting system used for Westminster elections.

“Our research found that at the last general election over 22 million votes (70.8%) didn’t count towards the result, in that they were either cast for a losing candidate or surplus votes for the winner.

“The next government urgently needs to grip the crisis of trust in politics and disengagement with our democracy, and a key part of that has to be bringing in a fairer proportional voting system that means every vote would matter come election day and seats in Parliament would more accurately reflect the way the country voted.”

News

Pembroke Dock man sent to Crown Court over alleged ABH assault

Published

7 hours ago

December 15, 2025

Court Reporter

Charge relates to incident in the town last weekend

A PEMBROKE DOCK man has been sent to the Crown Court for trial after appearing before magistrates accused of assault causing actual bodily harm.

Darren Markes, aged 47, of High Street, Pembroke Dock, appeared at Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court on Monday (Dec 15).

The court heard that Markes is charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm, contrary to the Offences Against the Person Act.

The charge relates to an alleged incident on Friday (Dec 13) in Pembroke Dock, when it is alleged that Markes assaulted a woman, causing her actual bodily harm.

No plea was entered at the hearing.

Due to the seriousness of the allegation, magistrates declined jurisdiction and ordered that the case be sent to the Crown Court for trial under the Crime and Disorder Act.

Markes was remanded on conditional bail. Conditions include:

Not contacting a witness, directly or indirectly
Reporting to Pembroke Dock police station every Wednesday between 12:00pm and 2:00pm
Living and sleeping each night at his home address

He is due to appear at Swansea Crown Court on Thursday (Jan 16) at 9:30am for a plea and trial preparation hearing.

Crime

Aberystwyth man denies criminal damage charge over Cardigan gallery window

Published

7 hours ago

December 15, 2025

Court Reporter

Alleged incident said to have taken place on Bridge Street

AN ABERYSTWYTH man has denied a charge of criminal damage relating to an alleged incident in Cardigan.

Ricky Myers, aged 27, of Jasper House, Aberystwyth, appeared at Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court on Monday (Dec 15).

The court heard that Myers is accused of criminal damage to property valued under £5,000, contrary to the Criminal Damage Act 1971.

The charge relates to an incident on Saturday (Aug 24, 2024) at Manchester House on Bridge Street, Cardigan, where it is alleged that a window at the Cardigan Gallery was damaged. The property is said to belong to Peter Austin.

Myers pleaded not guilty to the allegation.

Magistrates adjourned the case for further case management, and Myers was remanded on conditional bail, with a condition that he live and sleep each night at his home address.

He is due to return to court at Aberystwyth Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday (Dec 17) at 2:00pm.

Crime

Pembroke Dock man remanded in custody ahead of sentencing on string of offences

Published

7 hours ago

December 15, 2025

Court Reporter

Harassment charge and three assaults among cases listed for Llanelli court

A PEMBROKE DOCK man has been remanded in custody ahead of sentencing after admitting a series of offences, including harassment and assaults.

Tony Brundrett, aged 21, of Kavanagh Court, Pembroke Dock, appeared at Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court on Monday (Dec 15).

The court heard Brundrett has pleaded guilty to harassment without violence, contrary to the Protection from Harassment Act. The charge alleges that between Tuesday (Sep 17) and Thursday (Oct 31) at Spring View, Pembroke Dock, he pursued a course of conduct amounting to harassment of a female, including attending her home address and contacting her by text message.

He has also admitted assault by beating against the same female, alleged to have taken place on Wednesday (May 21) at Spring View, Pembroke Dock, and a further assault by beating against a second female on Thursday (Oct 30), also at Spring View.

Magistrates were additionally told that Brundrett faces a further allegation of common assault against a third female, said to have occurred on Tuesday (Dec 9) at Kavanagh Court, Pembroke Dock. No plea was recorded to that matter in the register entry.

Brundrett has also pleaded guilty to a number of offences linked to an incident in Haverfordwest on Saturday (Nov 16). These include:

Aggravated vehicle taking, involving a Vauxhall Corsa, with damage caused before recovery
Using a motor vehicle without insurance
Driving otherwise than in accordance with a licence
Criminal damage, involving a window belonging to Pembrokeshire County Council

He was remanded in custody, with the next hearing listed at Llanelli Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday (Dec 31) at 10:00am.