News

BADGER AND THE DICTIONARY

Published

11 years ago

November 4, 2013

PEMBROKESHIRE County Council, in common with others across Wales, will need to find a lot of money if it is to balance its budget in light of the Welsh Government’s reduction in money paid over to local authorities.

The size of the savings that needs to be made means that a harsher and more critical light needs to be shone on some on Council spending decisions.

For example, the Council took a punt on acquiring the former tax offices at Cherry Grove, Haverfordwest. Pembrokeshire County Council, with the confidence borne out of its investment in other white elephant commercial projects, has spent over three-quarters of a million pounds buying and tarting-up those premises. It expected that businesses would flock to occupy a refurbished 60’s office block.

The success of its investment can be measured by the number of tenants the Council has managed to attract to justify its investment of public money in the scheme.

In round figures, the number of tenants is precisely zero.

In order to occupy the premises, the Council is to shuffle its own staff into the building.

Is the Cherry Grove project a ringing endorsement of the Council’s business acumen? Badger thinks not.

The Council has spent the last few years trying to dispose of property in order to shore up its accounts and save money. Its track record is not one of unparalleled success. The Council is even now eyeing up schools for closure to go along with the farcical way it has handled the redevelopment of the County Library.

No doubt there will be exciting opportunities for eagle-eyed property developers to cream off the best sites in a transparent and open tendering process. In an infinite universe all things are possible.

The Council leader, ‘popular’ mathematician and one-time yoghurt salesman Jamie Adams, says that the Council’s acquisition and refitting of Cherry Grove represents ‘value for money’.

Badger thinks that Jamie Adams inhabits some strange looking-glass world. In fact, Cllr Adams is rather like Humpty-Dumpty in Lewis Carroll’s Through the Looking Glass. Carroll wrote:

“When I use a word,” Humpty Dumpty said, in rather a scornful tone, “it means just what I choose it to mean- neither more nor less.”

“The question is,” said Alice, “whether you can make words mean so many different things.”

“The question is,” said Humpty Dumpty, “which is to be master-that’s all.”

Those of us familiar with the Council leader’s elastic and idiosyncratic approach to the English language know that his regular verbal contortions are a result of having to stick to a script that allows him neither to admit of fault nor apologize for an error. As the head of the senior officers’ club that passes for the political leadership of our County Council, poor Jamie’s linguistic gymnastics are the result of many hours work on answers that are semantically accurate without in any way addressing the issue the question seeks to illuminate.

So much is, of course, the lot of the politician. While the impulse to be honest in answer to a question may exist (however tiny such impulse might be), any politician must protect his own side and their interests. The issue with the IPPG, of course, is just whose interests they are protecting. Badger can scarcely credit that many IPPG councillors’ constituents approve of their representatives cutting rubbish collections or closing schools and libraries while making sure that senior staff continue to ride the gravy train of high salaries.

Those high salaries are justified on the basis that if you want the best, you must pay for it. Those high salaries are also described as value for money.

Of course, we all understand that when Humpty Adams talks about “value for money” in relation to senior staff salaries he really is making words mean so many different things.

And we all understand whose interests Humpty is sticking up for when he defends cutting everything but the salaries of the Council’s top earners.

Crime

Pembroke Dock woman in court for failing to remove rubbish from property

Published

3 hours ago

November 25, 2024

Court Reporter

A PEMBROKE DOCK resident is due to appear before Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court later today (Nov 25) for multiple alleged breaches of a community protection notice.

Sheena Deacon, of 13 Wavell Crescent, Pembroke Dock, faces charges under the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014, which carries a maximum penalty of a Level 4 fine.

The charges stem from allegations that Deacon failed to remove accumulated household waste from her property on several occasions. According to court documents, the breaches occurred on September 19, September 26, October 2, October 9, and October 17 this year.

The charges indicate that Deacon, despite being issued with a community protection notice, did not comply with the requirements to clear and appropriately dispose of refuse and household waste from her address.

The Herald will bring updates on the case as it progresses.

News

Welsh Conservatives urge Labour to scrap ‘family farm tax’

Published

3 hours ago

November 25, 2024

Tom Sinclair

THE WELSH CONSERVATIVES have announced plans to bring forward a Senedd debate next week (Nov 27) calling on the UK Labour Government to abandon its proposed “family farm tax.”

The tax, introduced by the UK Labour Government, is being criticised as a move that will harm Welsh farming, threaten food security, and increase food prices. Alongside the Welsh Government’s Sustainable Farming Scheme and perceived “anti-farming agenda,” critics argue this new tax amounts to a coordinated effort to undermine the future of agriculture in Wales.

Shadow Minister warns of consequences
Ahead of the debate, Welsh Conservative Shadow Minister for Rural Affairs, James Evans MS, condemned the proposal, stating:
“Labour’s family farm tax will put family farms out of business, threaten our food security, and lead to food prices rising. Only the Welsh Conservatives will stand up for our farmers, and that’s why we’re bringing forward a Senedd motion calling on Labour to reverse this decision. No farmers, no food.”

NFU Cymru expresses alarm
NFU Cymru President, Aled Jones, echoed these concerns, highlighting the widespread opposition from the farming community. Speaking about the impact of the tax on Agricultural Property Relief and Business Property Relief, Jones said:
“Earlier this week, hundreds of farmers from across Wales journeyed to London to meet with their MPs and register their deeply held concerns about these misguided and ill-thought-out reforms.

“The proposals unveiled by the Treasury last month to introduce a tax on the passing on of our family farms to the next generation are a massive added burden. They will leave many farmers without the means, confidence, or incentive to invest in the future of their business.

“NFU Cymru reiterates its call for the UK Government to halt these changes.”

The motion to be debated
The motion, set to be debated in the Senedd, reads:
“To propose that the Senedd:
Calls on the UK Labour Government to reverse its decision to impose a family farm tax on agricultural businesses.”

This debate is expected to attract significant attention, with Welsh farmers and rural communities keenly watching for the outcome.

Community

Internet outage for two villages after exchange box destroyed

Published

5 hours ago

November 24, 2024

Tom Sinclair

RESIDENTS of Clunderwen and Llandissilio have been left without internet access following the destruction of an Openreach exchange box just outside Llandissilio village.

The incident occurred yesterday (Nov 23) when the box was reportedly demolished by a vehicle. The damage has resulted in a complete loss of internet services for the two villages, with repairs expected to take at least a couple of days.

Local residents have expressed frustration over the disruption, as the outage affects home businesses, remote workers, and households relying on internet connectivity for day-to-day tasks.

Openreach engineers have cordoned off the site, and work is ongoing to assess the extent of the damage. A spokesperson for Openreach has been contacted for comment but had not responded by the time of publication.

The vehicle involved in the incident has not yet been identified. Anyone with information about the collision is urged to contact the local police.

With repair timelines unclear, affected residents have called for increased communication from service providers to manage expectations during the outage.

“Bringing the community back online is a priority,” a local resident said. “We’re hoping Openreach can resolve the issue quickly and ensure it doesn’t happen again in future.”