From Thursday 5th March 2026 to Thursday 9th March 2023:

Thursday 5th March 2026

No one likes paying tax

I would be interested to hear from Paul Blanchard who begrudges having to pay tax as a pensioner (Letters, 19th February). Who should be paying more taxes? 

David Richards

Bridgend

Opening cafes won’t reduce obesity

SO, yet another coffee shop is proposed with the refurbishment of the old HSBC bank premises in Penarth. Hooray! If you can’t do anything else in The Vale, you can eat!

The Vale Council has expressed concern over the increasing level of obesity amongst young people. In it’s wisdom, they decided that banning posters of fast food outlets at bus stops and public places would dissuade people. What absolute rot!  

The way to cut down on obesity is to refuse approval of all the cafes and food outlets which seem to be appearing on every street corner. Whenever new premises are opened, there is always a ‘welcoming’ coffee shop/cafe included. So long as there is a cafe, people will eat. Banning adverts isn’t going to stop them.

Mrs CH Baker

Penarth

Are public naïve about government policy?

NAIVETY is essential in the general public because without it, a lot of government legislation would not be implemented.

The present government have U-turned on quite a few pieces of new legislation because their own MPs have seen the implications of, for example, new tax legislation. 

Before any concrete is laid for that new ‘white windmill on a hill’ the company who are funding the installation have agreed what return they will get on every mega/kilowatt it generates. This is understandable good business sense.

Unfortunately, the price agreed is more than the general public are paying today. So how can there be a guarantee that energy prices will ever go down? Also, the price agreed is for every unit of energy whether is used or not. The amount of battery storage in the UK is minimal compared to countries in the world. 

The UK generates one per cent of the world’s global output of greenhouse gasses. The efforts of reducing this one per cent hit the general public hard through their pockets. Something has to give. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 5th February 2026

Council must take action on A48 speed limits

THE latest closure of the A48 at Bonvilston was a consequence of a three-vehicle collision involving a stationary vehicle that was waiting to turn right from the A48 towards Llancarfan. 

This is a turn frequently raised by residents as particularly uncomfortable and hazardous due to traffic speeds. We are fortunate that this collision did not result in more serious injuries.

Too many have already suffered fatal or life changing injuries due to vehicles traveling at inappropriate speeds for the village of Bonvilston.  The residents of Bonvilston fear further collisions and seek a reduction of the speed limit to the widely accepted 30mph. 

For over 25 years, the Highway Authority (Vale Council) has refused to accept that Bonvilston is a village despite all the criteria being met. Bonvilston extends for more than 600m along the road, has street lighting, and has key buildings (pub, Reading Rooms, shop, café, church and Memorial) in addition to more than 20 dwellings fronting the main road.

In Wales, the default speed limit for villages like Bonvilston is half the current 40mph speed limit. When people see the GoSafe van, they are often confused and drop their speed to what they expect for a village – 20/30.  The Highway Authority is waiting on yet another serious collision to occur in Bonvilston before correcting the speed limit. This isn’t acceptable. 

Bonvilston lacks a safe crossing to the shop and Reading Rooms and suffers from excessive traffic lane widths and narrow footways that make walking along the busy road uncomfortable and crossing particularly perilous. 

Meanwhile, the Highway Authority has obtained Welsh Government funding, and without the support of the police or local councillors, is to proceed with the reduction of the speed limit on Port and Porthkerry Roads west of Barry. The speed limit through the countryside and around the airport fence will now be the same as on the road through the village of Bonvilston.

To the west of Bonvilston, there is a cluster of recorded collisions outside the Aubrey Arms.  Also at this location, children must cross the A48 to access bus stops for school transport. 

The reduction in speed limit at the section of the A4226 at Cwm Ciddy has been justified due to a similar cluster of collisions and improving safety for those accessing bus stops. The national speed limit no longer appears to be appropriate with the crossings and turnings by the Aubrey Arms and Baffle Haus.

There is a failure to follow and be consistent on Welsh Government guidance and act where action is needed and wanted.  Seven years ago, I was informed that the A48 through Bonvilston was already included in the Vale Council’s Capital Programme for highway safety improvements. The health and safety of the residents of, and visitors to Bonvilston must now be given top priority.

Finally, residents of Llancarfan, Llanbethery and St Georges have asked for 20mph streets.  Given the nature of the narrow streets without footways, these are sensible requests, supported by Welsh Government policies. 

Action and funding must be forthcoming.

Cllr Ian Perry,

Elected Member, Vale Council

No place for The Pope in my Christian Church

IN THE Glamorgan Star (22nd January) Rev Zoe King is free to follow the man-made concoction of faiths presented by The Pope and King Charles III where she is focusing on and praising Buddhist thought as an example to follow, with an afterthought of Jesus Christ at the end.

She doesn’t state which God they are praying to but it certainly is not our God of the Bible. Did her few days away reading a few books include reading the Bible? If she did, she would have learnt that there is only one way to God, and that is through his son Jesus Christ, to whom all power of Heaven and Earth have been given.

Many verses point to this, including John 14:6 – “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to The Father except through Me”. So preach what you like Zoe, but yours and the Pope’s teachings have no place in my Christian Church.

Kasey Burrows, Barry

Do pensioners pay too much tax?

THE wasted generation are those individuals that have retired and are now receiving a state pension.

The majority of this generation have been paying tax for over four decades, potentially five.

What do they have to look forward to?

Criticism for getting a triple lock pension increase, which by the way will automatically be taxed at 20% for those on a full pension. The prospect of a poor NHS when, due to their age, they have more need of it.

If they chose to subsidise their state pension and carry on working, these additional earnings will be taxed at 20%. Therefore if they take up “minimum wage” employment they will have an effective wage of under £10 per hour.

Any private pension they may have accrued will also be subject to 20% tax. An annual pension of £12,500, which is the equivalent of being paid minimum wage today, would attract a £2,500 tax automatically deducted by HMRC.

HMRC allow an individual to earn £1,000 of interest before tax is levied – if that individual has earned over their personal income allowance. As a state pensioner they will have achieved this level. Any interest earnings over £1,000 can be taxed potentially at a rate of 33%.

Why are pensioners the wasted generation? Why carry on working, investing etc when it is taxed so heavily. A fair percentage of pensioners are still able to work and chose not to. Every year, as a tax payer, I get a letter from the HMRC telling me how much tax I paid and how much I still owe.

Paul Blanchard, Barry

Thursday 5th February 2026

Senedd needs more transparency

I READ with interest the letters in the 22nd January edition of The Glamorgan Star regarding the expanding Senedd and wished to add that I very much share the two writers’ frustrations at the apparent disconnection between Cardiff Bay and the Welsh public.

It’s clear that the Welsh parliament hasn’t kept people fully informed over its enlargement otherwise the writers might have been aware that the size increase is necessary after the parliament gained increased responsibilities, and thus workload, following the 2011 referendum.

It’s also obvious that more should have been done to inform Welsh voters that a majority of the parties elected into power in 2021 were in favour of enlargement and they intended to address this matter upon election into power.

The people of Wales deserve a Senedd that’s transparent to all — it must work harder to keep the Welsh public informed.

G Davies

Treoes.

Is education worth the cost?

IN THE UK, there is a very high cost of going to a university and I wonder if teachers make pupils aware of the ongoing amounts of debt that will follow them.

Interest rates are high and the debt will increase year on year. Recent calculations have shown that salaries would have to be over £60 to £65k per annum before the debt starts to diminish. And then only marginally.

HMRC automatically take payments from a person’s earnings. There is a threshold where no automatic deductions are taken out of a salary to pay the outstanding amount but this is around the minimum wage mark.

There is also evidence of fewer opportunities for graduate employment. The outstanding debt students accrue does not disappear if they give up part way through the 3, 4 or 5-year term of their education.

It is critically important that teenagers are made fully aware of the implications of potentially owing such a huge amount of money beginning in their teens.

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Holocaust Memorial Day

ON Holocaust Memorial Day this year, I chose to make a personal commitment to remembrance and to learning about the Holocaust, in particular to remember the six million Jews who were murdered.

For me, remembrance is not a purely symbolic act. It is a responsibility to listen to survivors, to learn from their experiences, and to reflect honestly on how prejudice, hatred, and dehumanisation can take hold within societies. Holocaust Memorial Day offers an opportunity not only to look back, but to consider how the lessons of history apply to the world we live in today.

As part of this commitment, I wrote to the Holocaust Educational Trust to share a personal message of remembrance and to affirm my opposition to antisemitism and to all forms of hatred and prejudice. I felt it was important to articulate this pledge clearly and thoughtfully, recognising the vital role the Trust plays in education and remembrance across the UK.

Remembering the Holocaust is not a task confined to one day each year. It is an ongoing moral responsibility — to challenge intolerance when we encounter it, to listen when others speak of their experiences, and to ensure that the realities of history are neither forgotten nor distorted.

By committing ourselves to remembrance and education, we can work towards a future rooted in understanding, respect, and shared humanity.

Aled Thomas

Penarth

Thursday 22nd January 2026

Who is governing Wales?

I WAS born here in Wales – a country I was taught is a democracy – 97 years ago and was allowed to vote for the first time when I was 21. 

Since then, I have voted in all elections and referendums that have taken place, in the knowledge that many before me had fought very hard to get the vote for all the citizens of this country.  I am saddened to read that often only 45 – 48% of those entitled to vote turn out to complete their voting papers.  

However, when I look at the way in which our Welsh Assembly in Cardiff Bay behaves, maybe our citizens believe that their views are of no importance.  We hear that the ‘powers that be’ have decided amongst themselves to increase their number by 36 Senedd Members – which will cost millions of pounds – for no apparent reason. 

Surely if the idea is to make such important changes, it should be put to the citizens of the country to vote on in a referendum? If not, it seems to me more of a dictatorship than a democracy.

We are told time and again that there is not enough money to deal with the responsibilities the Assembly has towards this country and yet millions have been spent putting up 20 mph signs all over the country, including lanes, cul-de-sacs and other roads that nobody could possibly drive more than 10 mph on, and I hear they are going to put up more new signs in Welsh, at even more cost to the country.  

It seems to me that the Senedd Members are removed from the lives of citizens and I wonder who on earth is responsible for governing our country? If it’s the backroom boys, I suggest somebody opens the door and lets them out.

Basil George

Ogmore-by-Sea

Politicians don’t care about cost control

CONGRATULATIONS on your articles on page 3 of your 25th December edition. 

I suspect most ‘thinking’ people had read the previous cost details for the increased numbers of Senedd Members with a large pinch of salt knowing the limited financial skills of current members. Only a short period ago we were being told the increase in the number of members would ‘only’ be £17 million, now increased to £40 million. Makes you wonder who put the first lot of figures together! 

What the pay rise item demonstrated was the greed of politicians demanding increased salaries for less work, it cannot be an increase in work load as the numbers are jumping from 60 to 96 and whilst the defence will be that the levels are set by an independent body the question is – who selects the members of that body? 

The other item regarding the ever-increasing costs of the primary school in Cowbridge gives a clear picture of the lack of skills in tendering procedures, particularly the inference that the contract was awarded on the basis of no fixed cost, come back for more when you want, project management and control. 

I admit I am a little biased, as I have been waiting over two years to see a consultant at the University Hospital and think that better use of £40 million would be improving staffing levels in the health service.  

David Ludlow

Barry

Time to look again at St Athan facilities?

THE once impressive military base in St Athan, now abandoned, stands as a testament to a forgotten era.

Surprisingly well-preserved, the sprawling complex features an Olympic-sized swimming pool with diving boards still in place, offering a view of the swimming pool, with a large viewing deck remaining a perfect spot for spectators or daydreamers to take it all in.

Nearby, two giant sports halls stand, their vast spaces echoing with the memories of past games and training sessions. The polished floors are still intact, and indoor running track is still in place.

The well-preserved 400-seat cinema looks like it was vacated yesterday, its ticket office still waiting for the next customer. The entire base, once a symbol of strict discipline, now feels like a time capsule.

There’s a growing call to give these facilities back to the Vale so we can all benefit from these wonderful facilities. I can testify that the rumour these facilities are beyond repair is far from the truth. With 9,000 homes given the green light to come to the Vale of Glamorgan, wouldn’t these facilities be much-needed to support the growing community?

Steve Overton

St Athan

Thursday 8th January 2026

Barry town needs tidying up

I COULD not believe what I was seeing the other day when it was raining heavily in Barry.

There where workmen power washing King Square. Surely there is far more important work to do, like levelling the pavements, not just in Holton Road but in many Barry streets. There was also a need to clean up streets after the rough weather we have had, leaving broken twigs to walk on.

The town is far from what it used to be. 

P Rees

Barry

Wales is suffering from poor leadership

IN life we have to make choices all the time. In Wales our choices traditionally were based on the fire in our souls and the chapel ethos of fairness and honesty.

As we look ahead to 2026 the choices being made on our behalf leave me sad and undermine my understanding of what made me proud to be Welsh.

Our leaders are choosing to save money by cutting out a premier rugby team attacking the heart of our community spirit and the sport that has made us kings. Davids in a world of Goliaths.

Instead, our political leaders are choosing to invest millions in expanding the Senedd so that more can talk more about poverty at the same time as they use scarce resources in self- indulgence.

In England, the Labour government is planning to delay significant local elections in order to avoid embarrassing loss of standing, and Labour councillors, with very poor justification. Yet in Wales, the same Labour Party refuses to consider delaying the Senedd expansion and use these resources to tackle poverty in a hope that Labour at least will keep a toehold on power – even as a junior partner in a Plaid- led coalition.

Fairness goes out of the window and the fire in our souls is dampened down by this deceit and double standards.

Happy New Year 

Alan Jones

Wenvoe

Another great year for Cowbridge Poppy Appeal

A PUBLIC ‘Thank You’ must go to the magnificent team of people who make up the Poppy Appeal supporters in Cowbridge and the surrounding villages.

Many do not even know each other but they do have a common aim; that of supporting the Poppy Appeal. They are very wide range of people – from children in the Vale primary and secondary schools to those who are old enough to remember World War Two.

They include many businesses (large and small) who hosted a collection box, members of ATC 293 Squadron, who manned most of our Saturday collection points, members of the RBL, Cowbridge Rotary, Vale Probus, and Cowbridge Male Voice Choir, plus private individuals who collect for the appeal, sometimes in the most atrocious of weather. 

I must not, and cannot, forget the other vitally important members of this team, the public. They give loyal, generous and enthusiastic support to the appeal year after year after year whatever the economic situation. What a community!

In 2025, although there are still donations to come in, we have already banked over £25,000. 

My sincere and heartfelt thanks to all involved with the Poppy Appeal this year and in the past. A massive ‘Thank You’ to you all, relax and enjoy the festive season; you deserve it.

David Howell

Hon Poppy Appeal organiser, Cowbridge.

‘A centuries-old Service in Barry’

MAY I through your newspaper offer my thanks to the wonderful people of all ages who joined with us to sing carols and listen to the Lessons at Merthyr Dyfan Church on Christmas Eve afternoon.

The church was atmospheric – lit by candlelight and twinkling coloured lights. The amazing Barry Brass Band played traditional carols and everyone sang with gusto. When we saw the people arriving it made all the hard work worthwhile. We saw new faces and many familiar faces too.

Thank you to all who joined us and made it a truly community event. There was a spiritual awareness of the many feet that had trodden the same path for centuries to celebrate the Birth of Christ

A happy and peaceful New Year to all. 

Wendy Cook

Barry

Does The Senedd really need 36 new members?

IN less than 120 days, the people of Wales will elect 96 members of The Senedd – an additional 36 members.

The voters may also have read report in the Glamorgan Star (page 3, December 25) that this additional increase in bureaucracy is at a cost of £40 million over the next three years alone. The report also stated that the additional 36 members were needed to cover “additional responsibilities”. 

Surely the people of Wales are due more of an explanation from Wales’ First Minister Eluned Morgan? 14 existing members of The Senedd have stated that they will be retiring and not standing in May.

There will be no new constituencies. What will be the new election process? Taking into consideration that turn out has been less than 50% over the last few elections, in my opinion the people of Wales have realised the futility of worrying who is in charge. 
What could that £40 million fund? 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 25th December 2025

Don’t rely on developers’ promises

I REFER to your page 1 story (11th December) regarding the re-inclusion of draft plans to build housing to the north-west of Weycock Cross in the Local Development Plan (LDP). 

It was with a mixture of incredulity and cynicism that I read the comments made by Cllr Ruba Sivagnanam regarding the proposed ‘mitigation’ of the inevitable traffic-related problems that would result from these plans being implemented. 

Incredulous at the apparent lack of understanding that the major roads in the southern part of the Vale are already heavily over-used during peak hours. The existing evidence maybe being wilfully ignored for the purposes of the LDP?

Cynical due to the statement that these problems will be mitigated by ‘off-site highway improvements….’ funded by the developers.

Vale residents have experience of developers dodging their agreed responsibilities from the past 30+ years across the Vale – schools, doctors’ surgeries, leisure facilities, all agreed in order to get planning permission but most then conveniently forgotten once the houses are up and sold. Recall the legal action taken at the Waterfront to force the developers to fulfil their obligations before building more houses….

Some years ago there was a plan to develop housing at Llandow, including plans to build a new halt/station on the VoG line. That would have solved the stated issue of lack of potential development land near/on brownfield sites…. quietly forgotten for some reason.

Nick Meyrick

Barry

How did a Barry crescent become a terrace?

I RECENTLY discovered that Wenvoe Terrace in Barry used to be called Sea View Crescent. 

The proof of this seems to be the carved stone on one of the homes Wenvoe Terrace showing that name.

Does anyone know why the name was changed?  What an incredible shame.

Joy Kiddie

Barry

Weycock Cross roundabout already ‘over capacity’

I REFER to the front-page story of the Glamorgan Star, 11th December, ‘Weycock Cross is still in Barry housing plans’.

Cllr Johnson makes a good point in the article that Labour councillors support the inclusion of the development in the LDP, but their party’s previous stance was against the housing plan. Their spokesperson now says the sites represent the best option for housing.

Cllr also criticises the Conservative Party’s volte-face, changing from supporting a development on the land when they were in power, to their leader now stating the development would be ‘deeply regrettable’ due to the impact on traffic.

It’s good but rare, when politicians change their minds following public opinion or changed circumstances, but there could be other factors guiding political positions. More than 10 years ago, a Chair of the Planning Committee wrote: “It is difficult to oppose it when the officers who are experts have advised that we pass it.”

Regular users of the Weycock junction will be aware of how difficult the roundabout is, yet the Vale Council seem determined to develop the nearby land for more homes. I wonder whether they are aware of two earlier transportation reports in their possession.

The first in 2009 by Arup related to the then proposed Waterfront development. It concluded that ‘Weycock Cross Roundabout’ and other junctions were, at that time, ‘operating over practical capacity’, and that significant traffic growth was anticipated in the vicinity of Barry by 2020, forecasting it would be over ‘theoretical capacity’ by that time.

Another Highway Impact Assessment in 2013 by Capita Symonds forecast ‘Weycock’ Cross in 2026: the ‘junction is predicted to be over capacity’.

Since those studies, the new road replacing Five Mile Lane has significantly increased the volume of traffic at all four entry points to the roundabout, and even though it has been redesigned it remains a dangerous junction.

Council policy is now to build more houses a few yards away and, to quote Cllr Sivagnanam, developers will be ‘required to fund off-site highways improvements to deal with traffic issues’.

What could possibly go wrong?

Dennis Harkus

Barry

Are older drivers worth protecting?

TO ENSURE that new cars are still fit for the road an MOT is required after three years.

Drivers are not subject to such a test yet it is usually the driver who causes an accident. It would be simple for a medical check to be carried out for drivers over a certain age. Eyesight is usually the first ‘cause célèbre’ but there are other factors that need checking.

In an MOT the brakes are checked but if the reaction/thinking time of a driver has been affected by age, braking distances will be longer. The Highway Code is read once in a driver’s life. If you were lucky enough to pass your test when you were in your 20s, that could be 50 years ago. 

I am in this category and would welcome a medical test but there are some of my age who would quickly realise that they would fail. The DVLA already realises that there is a threshold at 70 because the terms of your driver’s licence changes.

The government has lost millions since the cost of smoking was raised to ridiculous levels. Drivers are buying electric cars, therefore avoiding ridiculous levels of petrol/diesel tax. If thousands of drivers are taken off the road, is that more lost tax revenue?

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 10th December 2025

Let prisoners do useful work

IT IS reported that the new extension of the existing facility at HMP Parc, just off Junction 36 of the M4 will bring 160 new jobs.

Those jobs will cost £4 million a year (based on minimum wage). The building cost will be £millions, it is always counted in millions. 

Lots of required new facilities, gym, multi faith building, education etc etc. 

There will then be 2,000 inmates and like prisoners around the UK, all with a productivity level of absolute zero. 

Would it not benefit the country and the prisoners themselves to ‘employ’ them?

The cost of looking after 87,000 prisoners in the UK is not off set in any way. There would be many prisoners who would want to occupy their brains for any period of time. Why not use them? 

I am not saying they should be slaves to the state. Pay them, use them and maybe they can use what they have learnt when they return to society. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thoughts on the modern world

I AM a ‘Left Behind’.

I forget or cannot retain information, eg open up the computer or press the right letter.

Result? A feeling of desolation.

I wish to speak – a word forgotten in mid-sentence.

Hold on a moment, it will come to me.

At present it does, but for how long?

I remember the name of a plant.

But isolation draws ever nearer.

Others with all their faculties intact.

Go ahead – remember the Left Behinds – and if you can – help.

Elaine Booth

Llantwit Major

Barry incinerator site must be cleared

BARRY’S Docks Incinerator Action Group (DIAG) has been looking at the proposal made by Associated British Ports to, at last, remove the incinerator development.

Unfortunately, ABP would like to take advantage of some of the buildings and will only be prepared to remove what they do not want to use for themselves. This will leave at least one large building that will continue to dominate the area. A constant reminder of the battle forced upon the town.

It wouldn’t be right to allow ABP to profit in this way. The whole of that development was illegally built without the health and environmental protections that ought to have been considered and would have ensured the monstrosity was never built. The Vale Council should be taking steps to see complete removal.

DIAG bears in mind that in 2008, it was ABP that thought it was a great idea to encourage not one. But two incinerators in Barry. We also have ABP to thank for the battle on Berth 31 where huge amounts of waste wood is to be processed with many people already complaining about wood dust around the town.

We can understand, but not accept, that ABP wants to make profits for its investors but it would be better for everybody if they tried to be a good neighbour.

DIAG’s view is that the Vale Council should not allow the instigators of the incinerator battle to walk away with an illegal but profitable result. If ABP wants to develop anything on that site it must initially remove the development that exists but which would never have been allowed if health and environmental matters were taken into account.

Dennis Clarke

Vice Chair DIAG

Lean on Marie Curie this festive season

CHRISTMAS is a chance to celebrate and create lasting memories with those closest to us.

But for anyone experiencing dying, death or bereavement the festive season can be particularly challenging and difficult to navigate. Many carers, families and friends need help to get them through the season, but don’t know where to access that support. 

Marie Curie – the UK’s leading end of life charity -has a free support line that is open over the festive season, including Christmas Day and New Year’s Day, offering practical and emotional support on everything from managing symptoms, navigating care to financial information, including how to get help with energy bills, and bereavement support.  

Support Line Christmas opening hours 

• 24th December (Christmas Eve) – 10am – 4pm. 
• 25th December (Christmas Day)- 10am – 2pm. 
• 26th December (Boxing Day) – 10am – 4pm. 
• 27th December – 8am – 6pm. 
• 28th December – 10am – 4pm. 
• 29th December – 10am – 4pm. 
• 30th December – 8am – 6pm. 
• 31st December (New Year’s Eve) – 10am – 4pm.
• 1st January (New Year’s Day) – 10am –2pm. 

Contact Marie Curie for free on 0800 090 2309, email or visit mariecurie.org.uk/support-line to see more ways to get in touch. 

Charlotte Lindley 

Head of I&S and Companions at Marie Curie. 

SWP should look at incinerator decision process

AS WE reach the final stages of the battle that Barry town has had over incinerators, DIAG has reflected on the real issues.

DIAG believes that most of what went wrong was the way in in which the so-called experts, as well as Vale Council officers, failed to comply with laws that exist for our health protections.

These people have demonstrated an inability to accept their errors. This means the same problems will happen again and again.

In order to help, DIAG has written to our South Wales Police Chief Superintendent asking for a criminal investigation into the errors that can easily identified.

Only with threat of prison will people learn that our health and the environment is important.

Paul Robertson

Chair DIAG

Thursday 27th November 2025

Shock rise in water bill

AS a widow on a water meter, I am very careful how I use it. 

I was shocked to be informed by Welsh Water my standing order was being increased from £17.50 to £29.50 per month. Has this happened to anyone else?

Mari Gibbs

Barry

Dinas Powys.

Is it more houses – more flood risk?

DINAS Powys luckily missed the worst of Storm Claudia, which hit Monmouth so severely. 

Drains did show overload, bubbling up on the Cardiff Road just before 5pm on the Friday. By then the rain had eased. Rain gauges show 44mm rainfall at Dinas, compared with 119mm over a longer (12-hour) rainstorm in Monmouth.

Fears of a repeat of the December 2020 Storm Bella did not materialise. That time the rain-gauge showed 47mm and the time-pattern was a little more extended. Storm Bella caused flooding at some 100 properties and was first called “extreme” – but then assessed as a one-in-20 year storm. 

An ‘extreme’ one-in-100 year storm is estimated as twice the intensity, 90mm total. Storm Claudia at Monmouth warns us that ‘extreme’ is worse still. The Vale Council, as the lead flood management authority, needs to take Storm Claudia into account to comply with its duty to determine the ‘extreme’ storms for planning purposes.

Both Bella and Claudia showed that short intense storms are important for Dinas Powys, because of rapid run-off from urban streets. The Vale planners have increased the run-off into the East Brook, in approving the new Castle Avenue estate and hillside car-park at Llandough Hospital.  Supposed to plan for soakaways, they instead allow attenuation ponds to take drainage water from roofs, hard surfaces and roadways. Attenuation tanks and ponds just delay storm water runoff into the East Brook for at most half an hour.

The flooding threat to Dinas Powys has surely been caused by the headlong expansion of housing as well as the Llandough Hospital car park. The current proposal to further expand housing on the hillside towards the hospital would further worsen flooding of the East Brook and overspill into the Cadoxton River bottlenecks. 

Will the council take the warning from storm Claudia, review this housing proposal and reverse the use of attenuation ponds in Dinas? 

Max Wallis

Penarth

‘Are we mired in bureaucracy’?

THERE is one way of growing an economy and that is business dynamism. 

Our UK Chancellor is forever stating that an increase in productivity is required to boost the economy. Our PM has announced 6,000 ‘new jobs’ in north Wales building mini nuclear power stations. Start date?

The blot on the landscape in East Aberthaw. The ash tip, it seems is worth money. There is a road link, rail link and the Bristol Channel on its doorstep. Where is the drive to turn a coin? Instant new jobs. There has been concern that the dust created will be an environmental hazard. There is a cement works next door? A quarry down the road? 

Every new opportunity seems mired in bureaucracy. 

Some of the beauty will be restored to the Welsh coastline. Maybe a visit by our favourite weather man walking. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Barry needs more businesses

I TELEPHONED this week to book a table at Mr Villas restaurant in Cold Knap. It went to answer phone but they had the decency to call me back. 

I was told that sadly the business had closed down. I was so shocked that I said thank you and put the phone down. Having known the family for over 50 years, I decided to phone back to ask why, as the Villa family have owned various restaurant businesses in the Vale of Glamorgan ever since we first met them when they catered for our wedding in 1972.

At the time they were based near the Barry Hotel. They were also in the process of opening a restaurant in Llantwit Major, Colhugh Villa.

Sadly, Beppe and Christine have now passed away but their daughter had decided to keep the business going. I asked the reason for the closure and was told the main reason was that since the introduction of the parking charges in an area that can only be described as waste ground at the rear of their premises, the business had dropped off to a level where it was no longer viable to keep going.

How long before the other businesses in the area go the same way?
I now read that the council have taken over the old Wilko store to attract people to shop in Holton Road. Attract them to do what? Have their nails done? Have a haircut! Visit a charity shop? Have a bet or maybe get a suntan?

All we see in Barry are businesses closing down. They keep boasting about a new business opening in the Goodsheds but they don’t say that it has taken over the premises of one that has closed down. Sadly the waterfront development will be the same.

Stuart Daniels,

Barry

Thursday 13th November2025

Is local MS a civil engineering expert?

I REFER to the Glamorgan Star report (30/10/25) on the demolition of the Barry Incinerator.

The article includes a comment by Andrew RT Davies MS saying the “regulatory systems are not fit for purpose” and adding that planning permissions should not have been granted.

However, I suggest that there are many biomass plants and energy from waste incinerators in the UK, all built following those regulations. I therefore conclude that Mr Davies was inferring that the planning authorities did not have the intelligence to understand those regulations and stipulate the necessary planning consent conditions.

On the other hand, Aviva Investments should have conducted their own ‘due diligence’ on their engineering contractors’ tender documents. Consequently, the client is at fault, hence Aviva’s other two plants also closing.

The Aberthaw plant is now being demolished and will be available for investors to redevelop. I hope these investors will learn lessons and use capable contractors on such a major civil engineering project.

I hope also that Andrew RT Davies MS will enlighten us on his quality assurance management techniques.

D Bartholomew

Llantwit Major

Bring back Barry’s lido

THE open air pool in the Knap was a place I was brought to by my school to try and teach me how to swim. It was a failure for me, but it was something constructive and beneficial to many children. 

The owner of the biggest attraction at the moment in Barry has had planning permission turned down for a development near Sully but there is a sleeping opportunity for a redevelopment of the pool at the Knap. 

Children of today in my opinion are less hardy and the pool would probably have to be heated but the opportunity is massive. 

Associated British Ports (ABP) has made the decision to not support the marina development and our UK MP does not seem to be voicing his opinion or encouraging any development of the area. 

Barry is an area that has great opportunity with a free beach facility that already attracts thousands of visitors a year. Where are the businesspeople who should recognise there is money to be made in the Vale? The only businesses making money in the Vale are those building houses. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

‘£1 million of Barry’s money wasted on incinerator saga’

IN YOUR front-page article (30 October) regarding the incinerator on Barry Docks, the impression given by the Vale Council that it has been championing the fight against the incinerator is laughable.

If the council had listened to public concerns at the outset this debacle could have been avoided.

The public pointed out the requirement for an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and this was first ignored, then denied, by Vale Council officers.

The public raised concerns regarding the proximity to existing and proposed housing. This was also ignored and denied by council officers and the Planning Inspector.

The public signed a 10,000 signature’s petition, which was totally ignored by the Vale Council and Natural Resources Wales (NRW).

The Vale Council have fought the public all the way at considerable cost in officers’ hours – which translates as rate payers’ money.

The mistakes, errors of judgement and collusion by the Vale Council and others to enable this project to operate against the will of the people of Barry defies belief.

Yet the financial cost does not stop there. Close to £1 million in legal costs have been paid by the Vale Council to the administrator for Biomass No2 Ltd a company created by Aviva (a company that likes to shout about its ‘green’ credentials) for costs incurred hiring expensive lawyers in its fight to bully the town and fire up the incinerator.

Aviva then liquidated Biomass No2 Ltd and walked away, leaving others to clear up after tormenting the town for 10-plus years.

DIAG will be publishing and sharing its account of this awful period.

There will also be a call on the Welsh Government to order a Statutory Inquiry.

Welsh Government must make sure that guidance and legislation is adhered to by all authorities, local and national. And it should make sure the brass necked incompetence of all concerned in this very local shambles sees a return of £1million of our money and it should make a public apology to the people of Barry.

Paul Robertson

Chair of Docks Incinerator Action Group (DIAG).

Thursday 29th October 2025

Is Standards Committee up to standard?

AT September’s meeting of the Full Council of the Vale of Glamorgan, the Annual Report of the Standards Committee, for the year ending 31 March, was presented for noting. 

The task of the Standard Committee is to promote and maintain high standards of conduct for elected and co-opted members.

The Constitution governing the committee states that quorum is achieved when “at least three members are present (including the Chair) and at least half the members present (including the Chair) are independent members” (not councillors). The committee presented its attendance figures that show more councillors present at meetings than independent members on three occasions during the year. 

Looking through the minutes of meetings held in previous years, this isn’t a new problem, and despite its quoracy being raised with the committee in 2024, it appears that the same mistake has occurred again at the meeting held on 15 May this year.

Given the important role and powers of the Standards Committee in our democracy, the public should be concerned about these errors.

At the same meeting of the Full Council, an elected member was removed whilst summing up the motion presented to the council.  Whilst the motion (and much of the following debate) were deliberately divisive, party political and in no way constructive for the benefit of our communities, I cannot find the power for the person chairing the meeting to remove the elected member. It appears that another procedural error has been made at that meeting.

I hope that we do not have a reoccurrence of these errors in the proceedings of meetings. 

I also ask my fellow Elected Members that future motions that are brought before the council are constructive and intended to bring people together to develop solutions to the problems of concern to the residents of the Vale, within the remit of the council.

Cllr Ian Perry

Elected Member, Vale Council

Small children often can’t walk to playgrounds

AFTER reading a Glamorgan Star report on councillors calling for a re-think on parking charges in the Vale, I would like to share my experiences at Penarth clifftop.

My children and now grandchildren have used this playground for many years. It’s my three-year-old grandson’s favourite and we use it almost every lunch time after nursery with many others. There’s an obvious need for many playground users to travel by car to the park.

Our recent experience at a lunchtime visit was unbelievable. For the first time in years, the playground was empty – not one child to be seen. A situation that should have made the 6pm news.
It was an obvious protest by drivers and also local walkers. I believe the charges must have had a massive impact on the two cafes that service the popular area

I have yet to pay at the cliff top to park. I’m sure yellow lines will be introduced on nearby roads to force you to use it. I pay, as do others, substantial rates to live in and use Vale Council services. What did it cost to partially tarmac the carpark and white line the narrow spaces, install the meter and pay wages to the car parking enforcement officer and the cost of his new sign written car?

It will take many months to cover these expenses. I’ve seen the enforcer make futile trips to the park where his only customers were elderly and obligated to pay for a parking space for a short walk and a cup of tea. It’s not just the kids and parents who suffer.

 Cllr Lis Burnett has said these changes are designed to reduce congestion and improve traffic flow by encouraging people to use car parks, public transport, and active forms of travel.
This quote makes no sense, how many families with young kids can afford to live near the clifftop and walk to the playground?

Let’s do the maths again. For my family, allowing for days when we can’t go, let us say £2 x 3 days x 40weeks = £240. I realise that I do have the option of paying £100 up front for an annual season ticket but, if someone cannot use the playground for any reason, then that money is gone for good.

Will the council change this decision? Bo. Will the council publish now or in the future the total raised by parking and enforcement charges and where the cash will be spent? No, of course they won’t.

Please tell me how can the thousands of families contact the council to get this decision and charges reversed? Will they admit they have got it wrong? No, they won’t.

Ronald Richards

Penarth

Thursday 16th October 2025

A fond farewell to Rev Robert

WE were saddened to learn that Rev Robert Parish will no longer be contributing his ‘Pause for Thought’ articles to the Glamorgan Star.

His thoughtful reflections have been greatly valued and have often inspired positive discussion within our Progressive Christianity Network (PCN) group.

We understand that Rev Robert has, at times, received negative correspondence from a few individuals. We would like to reassure him that those voices do not reflect the views of the wider Christian community in the Vale, among whom his contributions have been deeply appreciated.

We extend our heartfelt thanks to Rev. Robert for his faithful ministry and wish him a long, happy, and healthy retirement.

Sue O’Hare (convener of the Vale PCN group)

First Minister should justify expanding The Senedd

GIVEN that there will be a massive upgrade of the Senedd next year – an increase of 50% and a change of voting process – would it not be constructive for the Welsh First Minister to devote time with BBC Wales to explain the why, the benefit to the people of Wales and what the Senedd will look like. 

After all, the money to pay for all this change will be diverting cash from a desperate Welsh NHS, crumbling schools and third world condition roads. 

The first minister chose recently to not accept an invitation to a state banquet with the president of the USA. What a lost opportunity. 

Paul Blanchard, Barry

Thursday 2nd Ocober 2025

First Minister should have gone to Windsor Castle

IT IS quite extraordinary that the First Minister of Wales, Eluned Morgan did not attend the Windsor Castle banquet where there were 150 senior business executives from the USA and the UK.

Wales needs inward investment and exports especially after Brexit. I previously worked for Peter Walker Secretary of State for Wales, both in Wales and at the Department of Environment. I organised trade missions and inward investment events throughout the middle East and Europe, accompanied by Peter Walker.

It was a very successful time for Wales. I was in Kuwait shortly after the Gulf war and over £5m of orders went to Welsh based companies.

The Senedd seems to be bereft of ideas and is not concentrating on the economy. It is time to cut business rates and help companies to grow. There are a lot of empty industrial estates in the Vale and in the Valleys. Tourist tax is also a bad idea as visitors will go elsewhere. I never thought devolution was a good thing as when it was the Welsh Office, we had direct funding from the Treasury coupled with European grants.

I was born and bred in the Valleys and spent my time working in Parliament and then Cardiff. I am now moving to Weybridge in Surrey. The Welsh Assembly has let the population of Wales down.

Royston Chappell

Premier League should nurture local talent

THE home of football has always been seen as Great Britain and England has won the World Cup jus once. 

Something needs to be done to improve the chances of England winning it again. 60 years is a long time. The Premier League has a multitude of overseas players and there is no incentive for teams to have more ‘home grown’ players. The fact that there is a minimal number of candidates from the home nations shows that that there is a lack of emphasis on developing talent. I appreciate that there are academies of football in the majority of clubs but this does not seem to produce the talent in clubs.

The solution is to penalise teams that do not have a certain percentage of British-born players at the beginning of a season. Not monetarily but by points. This would mean the potential of clubs starting the season with a negative points total. This would have to be in a time frame that would allow teams to invest in local talent. Paying over £100 million is nothing to football clubs but this does nothing to improve the chances of a national side in the World Cup.

I am sure that fans would love to see the boy or girl next door playing in their teams. It also may have an effect on the exorbitant cost of season tickets.

F1 has changed its rules many times. The Premier League seems to be happy where they are.

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 18th September 2025

A di-vinyl response to charity shop’s appeal

JUST a very belated thank you to the Glamorgan Star for publishing the Penarth Oxfam shop’s appeal a few weeks back, concerning our need for more vinyl LPs. The response has been great, both in quantity and quality.

I know from past press releases that sometimes it can take up to a year for people to respond. They keep the paper, for instance, knowing they are going to move and they then  get in touch.

Thanks once again. 

Nigel Billingham

Music volunteer

Oxfam Shop, Penarth.

Tattooed pensioners? Not a good look

THE summer, in my opinion, is an excellent time to identify future business opportunities. 

One is long-sleeve shirts and the other is tattoo removal services. 

As people live longer lives, the ink that was cool and identifying in their youth will become a one coloured blob that just lasts and lasts. 

Ladies are in on this fashion and may I say there is some fantastic art out there. As a man of age, my skin is very thin and distorted. Any tattoos on me would look something like the Wicked Witch of the West by now. 

There is a certain ‘of today’ attitude in the UK. Fashion changes and it is difficult to keep up, not worth even trying at my age but blouses and shirts can be discarded but inked skin… expensive and as painful no doubt to discard as when the artist first started scratching away at your epidermis. 

Henna seems like an alternative. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

‘The last days are coming’

I DO NOT understand how a teacher of the Bible can seriously suggest that parts of it are legends (Rev Robert Parrish, Pause for Thought, page 10, 4th September).

It says in 2 Timothy 3:16 that all scripture is inspired by God……If you think some of it is legend than you’re calling God a liar and that is very serious.

I haven’t got the answer to why one person’s prayer gets answered and not somebody else but I understand, from teachings I’ve had, that God gives us free will and can’t interfere if someone uses that free will to do bad things.

What happened to Elizabeth Fritzl was terrible and her father will face the judgement of God for what he did, unless he repents of course, but it’s not the only horrible thing to happen in the world is it? As we know, the last days are coming and the world is going to get more and more wicked but that doesn.t mean that God is not still on His throne and He is still in the business of doing miracles.

Julie Gregory 

Penarth

We will Remember Them

IN World War Two my great uncle, Private Arthur Robertson, of 5, Fairford Street, Barry, served with the Parachute Regiment.

He was wounded and captured at Arnhem in Holland in September 1944, 81 years ago. Arthur was involved in Operation Market Garden, which was portrayed in the film, A Bridge Too Far. He had previously served in North Africa and Italy.

During the battle of Arnhem he was lowered on a rope from the upstairs of a house and attached a mine to a German tank which had crashed through the downstairs.

After his capture, he was sent to Germany where he was put to work mixing cement. He would pee into the cement in the belief that it would later cause cracks.

He attempted an escape but was recaptured when he and a friend decided to pass through a village instead of going around it. Suddenly a flight of American aircraft flew over. This brought all the villagers out into the streets. They must have looked out of place because a child spotted them and they ran and fetched a policeman who arrested them.

When Arthur died in 1993 his funeral was attended by many Arnhem vets in their red berets.

Alun Robertson,

volunteer,

Barry War Museum & Heritage Centre

Green waste collection – what is going wrong?

HAVING registered and paid for the Green Waste Collection Service in the Vale it would appear that the Council believe the delivery of that service is optional. I am now on my third missed collection this summer.

The first I reported through the missed collection page on the council website.  No response, no collection.

The second I raised a formal complaint, only for that complaint to be closed, as now referred to the relevant department who would contact me.  No contact, no collection.

The third I reported through the missed collection page on the council website.  No response, no collection.

I can sort of appreciate that the Vale Council needs to make choices on the services provided through council tax.  When it comes to services that residents have specifically opted in to and paid for, however, I am at a loss as to why the council believes that service is still discretionary.  Surely, through the resident’s formal request of the service and the payment for it, the council has a contractual obligation to fulfil it.

It seems, the council takes the view that as a local authority they are not subject to the same contractual obligations as other institutions / businesses… and as for the council’s complaints process, it really isn’t fit for purpose.

I’m keen to understand whether this is a widespread problem within the Vale. I live on a main road and any refuse collection vehicle has to drive past my house to collect in the village and so location / visibility of six green bags on the roadside isn’t a reason for non collection.

Mark Tweed,

Wick.

Thursday 4th September 2025

It ain’t broke, so please think before ‘fixing it’

The Welsh Government is running a consultation on the introduction of a Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) and I have grave concerns about this.

The plan is to charge a deposit on glass bottles and cans – and possibly plastic bottles too. I understand the motivation. It is depressing to be out in a beauty spot and find discarded bottles and cans – just left behind for ‘someone else’ to pick up.

My problem with the plan is that I already recycle every bottle and can that I buy – and so do many thousands of people in Wales. We can do this because of the excellent kerbside recycling service run by our local councils. We do, of course, already pay for this through our council tax.

Ironically, this aspect of the recycling system works well. People moaned when it came in – no surprise there – but I don’t hear moans anymore. There are complaints about other bits of the recycling system – soft plastic for instance – but not about drinks cans and bottles.

However, under a deposit return scheme I will have to stop using this recycling system – if I want to get my deposit back. A time-consuming traipse to a suitable shop looms. Will I have to take them back to the shop or supermarket where I bought them, or can I drop them off at the most convenient shop?

Tough luck on that shop.

Also, retail outlets will have to allocate space for all these returns. This means that space that could have been profitable for the retailer – by selling something – will instead be ‘donated’ to the Welsh Government. Yet another burden on retailers who are not having it easy.

For convenience, I suspect that most households will carry on using the kerbside recycling – meaning that we will be paying twice. Once via the DRS and again through our council tax.

Name and address supplied

Thank you to kind motorist

I WOULD like to thank a Rhoose resident who went out of his way to give me a lift to Barry on a recent Sunday afternoon.

This was after my bus to Barry had to stop in Rhoose due to a road accident. Thanks to this kind sir (a former paramedic) I was able to return to my home in Dinas Powys later that day.

Jeff Webber

Dina Powys

‘I see beautiful messages on pebbles’

IN the letters page on 21 August, Mark Smith wrote: “Keep Knap beach clean and pristine” and supplied a photo.

Am I seeing a different picture to Mr Smith? I see pebbles painted with beautiful messages. How can he possibly think it is defacing them?

I would be happy to come across these as I think lots of others would. Very different to empty cans and bottles and other eyesore.

Mo Watkins

St Athan

Thursday 21st August 2025

‘Irresponsible individuals’ endanger Knap wildlife

WHILE on a walk around the lake at Cold Knap, feeding the hungry swans I walked towards the pebbles and could not believe it.

There was hollow fibre polyester filling blowing everywhere in the wind. It was on the beach, along the path by benches and down the steps leading to the water where the inquisitive swans were waiting. There was more and more stuck in vegetation and bushes. It was a nightmare.

I began to pick it up to prevent it entering the water. I used the seed bag that I filled a number of times over. I called the council for help but they were closed. Then along came a lady called Karen with her mum who stopped and kindly offered to help. Another concerned person called Mark got off his bike and helped us clear the area.

It took a long time to collect as much as we could. I dread the consequences if we hadn’t acted when we did, this choaking hazard would have entered the water in large amounts, affecting the wildlife.

I would like to thank Karen and Mark so much as I was struggling by myself and even though it was busy, they did stop. Hopefully between us we helped prevent suffering to the birds which was all due to a senseless act by irresponsible individuals.

T Abery

Barry

Time to put extra Senedd Members ‘in the coalhouse’

THE recent missive from the Conservative leader in Wales should cause the people of Wales to think that their opportunity to change the political future of Wales will arrive next year at the Senedd elections.

I don’t believe it will. 

Some believe that the Reform party is the way to go but who are they? They have no policies and recently they showed in the council elections all they have to do is be nominated and have their names on the ballot paper. Espousing reform, to what? 

The Labour Party in Wales have ruled the roost for 25 years. I’m not a betting man but odds of 100 to 1 seem fair for their chances of controlling Cardiff Bay. For those who bother to vote, the knee jerk reaction is, let’s try The Reform lot, but only a few candidates will have the political wherewithal to bring the quick changes that are necessary. 

In his column (7th August) Andrew R T Davies raised the issue of the 36 new Members of Senedd. The people of Wales need to know now what this will entail. What I have seen of it is convoluted and as the Labour Party are bringing it about and their chances of government seem slim, maybe it is something that should be ‘put in the coal house’. Only people of the older generation will understand what I mean by this. 

There are other political parties with their hat in the ring but they have to prove they can do better with the same cash hand-outs from Westminster, as I cannot see the Principality getting any more. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Who is overseeing the operations of CCR?

ON page 5 of your 7th August edition, Twm Owen reported on the deep concerns of those councillors charged with scrutinising the work of the Cardiff Capital Region (CCR) over the Aberthaw Power Station demolition contract.

There are 10 local authorities incorporated in CCR (including the Vale) and we learn that there are plans to develop a ‘renewable energy park’ on the Aberthaw site, the cost of which, in 2022, was stated to be £38m.  You report that CCR is the only shareholder in Cardiff Capital Region Energy a limited company which is the body set up to undertake the development. 

The report notes that the £5.25m (loss) settlement has been funded from commercial returns ‘on interest generated on balances it holds, and there was no requirement for further public funding’. How can it be implied that the use of interest in this way is not employing public funding?

In your edition, dated 1st May 2025, you published my letter, questioning the Vale Council’s involvement with Solar Together in the promotion of solar panels. This led to an exchange of correspondence with an officer of the Vale Council which revealed that CCR was running a ‘buy in scheme’ with other local authorities and that I should expect a letter from CCR as the Vale Council ‘can add nothing further’. I have received no letter from CCR.

CCR appears to be an unelected body vested with considerable powers which, on the evidence of the Aberthaw contract, is not giving the elected councillors of the constituent local authorities the information for them to act on behalf of their council taxpayers. I understand that this body is to receive funding from the UK and Welsh Government as part of the ‘local innovation fund’. The creation of Cardiff Capital Region Energy, with CCR as its only shareholder, must raise alarm with those seeking, at the very least, a competitive tendering approach for future works.

The larger issue of governance in south-east Wales must be addressed before the Senedd elections next May.

Chris Samuel

Bonvilson.

Keep Knap beach clean and pristine

THE Vale Council has erected a sign discouraging damage to the beach at the Knap. One problem is the abandoned debris left after people have barbecues.

I would like to highlight another issue. I believe that, as a result of the increasing numbers of people painting pebbles on the beach, the natural environment which we all enjoy is being damaged.

I enclose a picture (above) of some painted pebbles. Over three days last week, I took several similar photos (different pebbles each time). Why do people feel that have the right to deface what nature has given us?

The beach should be pristine and clean.

Mark Smith

Barry

Chris Samuel

Bonvilston.

Feed the birds…

A LETTER of apology to those people living near my address.

I did not encourage sea gulls to nest in this area but I am guilty of feeding them after seeing a chick walking on a neighbour’s roof. My interest in wild birds may have gone too far.

EB

Llantwit Major

Thursday 7th August 2025

Stop the parking charges at Barry Island

HOW can the Vale council be so shortsighted over its parking charges at Barry Island?

Families from Cardiff and beyond will bypass Barry and head straight to Porthcawl where all day parking is cheaper. Public transport, as most people know, is still unreliable and could involve two bus journeys or a train and bus, uncomfortable with all the paraphernalia needed these days.

The Vale Council obviously has no thoughts for what the people of Barry really want. I won’t even mention the demolishing of the car park in Barry town – to build more flats, no doubt.

E Bishop

Barry

Nature needs peace and quiet

THERE is growing concern among people in the Vale who care about protecting its wildlife and biodiversity that the decision by the Vale Council to site an Aqua Park at Cosmeston Country Park is the start of a slippery slope which will see the commercial development of other important parks and reserves.

We are also shocked that the council cabinet did not consult the Vale Nature Partnership about this change of policy at one of its flagship nature reserves.

When councillors declared a ‘Nature Emergency’ in the Vale in 2019, it should have ensured that the protection of its biodiversity would be a priority in all its policies.

We are not against the Aqua Park, but we are against placing it at Cosmeston and encroaching on vital safe places for nature. Nature needs peace and quiet in order to thrive!

Rob Curtis 

Barry Action for Nature 

More water testing needed at Cosmeston

 I BELIEVE there are real concerns about water quality in Cosmeston Lake.

An NRW Wales map indicates the lake has two large tips on either side. There is a third at the top of the hill towards Sully (not marked on the map). I hope that Vale Council leader Cllr Lis Burnett can agree with her constituents that water flows downhill and the lake is a sump for groundwater in the area.

At the moment, two types of bacteria are tested for but what of other materials in these former tips? Have the materials in these tips been tested for?

At a public meeting two years ago, former workers of a nearby chemical company stated they disposed of chemical waste here but did not know what it was.

The concerns of constituents should be investigated thoroughly to ensure there is no risk to public health – the first duty of a government and council.

Tim James

Penarth

Thursday 24th July 2025

Time to make work worthwhile for pensioners

THE Chancellor of Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, has a difficult job. When under pressure for not achieving results, she reverts to history and her inherited black hole in the country’s finances.

Sir Keir Starmer also has a difficult job, as he is where the buck stops.

How to improve Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and to improve productivity across the board is a dual issue which could improve if the number of people who work is increased.

Birth rates have been low for many decades, therefore there are fewer people joining the ranks even at minimum wage.

It seems there are issues with the rate of increase of people on PIP (whatever that is).

One area of potential new earners/workers and therefore feeders of GDP and filling vacancies for professional/semi-professional is the retired masses, newly -minted pensioners. As it stands, it is not economically attractive for pensioners to work as everything over the current government pension payment is taxed at 20%. Your company pension,20%. Working at minimum wage 20%. Any dividends, investment return 20 to 33%. There is some leeway in regards to the last elements but suffice to say you are taxed.

Therefore, the minimum wage for pensioners goes down to around £9.50.

When people ‘retire’ they have a great deal of disposable income, as mortgages are paid and they have an empty nest. Why doesn’t the present government have a solution to use this potential labour resource which at present cannot justify working for such a paltry return after paying tax all their lives.

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 10th July 2025

Late abortions are inexcusable

I AGREE with the letter from Chris Williams (26th June, page 4) and am equally horrified that women will now be legally permitted to ‘self abort’ right up to nine months of their pregnancy.

The medical term ‘foetus’ is a clinical term (it simply means ‘unborn baby’) which gives the impression of the baby being a thing, a seed, a mass of tissue and not an actual baby, thereby giving a justification to discard.

Feminists chant ‘It’s my body’ but totally dismiss that there is real life growing within them. So, it is not just about the women. What of the unborn babies’ rights? Abortion is a highly emotive and sometimes complex issue and most of us understand that there can be special circumstances when that choice is made. For example, when a girl has been raped, or when the mother’s life is threatened and she could die giving birth or if the baby has serious health defects whereby there will be no quality of life.

When I was five months pregnant (many years ago) doctors informed me that my much longed for baby girl had ‘Edwards syndrome’. This is a serious chromosomal condition and the effects are endless, including missing organs, stunted growth and heart defects.

I was strongly advised to terminate the pregnancy and told most babies died in the womb or very soon after birth, suffering great distress. After much praying, being a committed Christian, I agreed and was given drugs at the hospital to induce labour. Twenty-four hours later my precious Lucy Lesley fell into the palms of my hands, so tiny and clearly dead.

I have never regretted my decision because it was founded on love for her and would be the least painful for her, hopefully. I could not bear the thought that my baby would be born, only to die in pain.

It breaks my heart to read about women who wait until the late stages of healthy pregnancies to self abort. If a woman does not want a baby, there is the morning after pill and other prescription drugs and should be done as early as possible. To wait until the latter stages is inexcusable and immoral. These women will be haunted by seeing these fully-formed babies lying dead after suffering pain during the procedure.

Lynne Rees

Penarth

Abortion is not healthcare

I REFER to Mr Chris Williams’ letter in the 26th June issue of the Glamorgan Star ‘MPs have betrayed unborn children’.

My MP Stephen Doughty (Labour, Cardiff South and Penarth) has previously indicated that he is pro-choice. Bearing in mind that Tonia Antoniazzi’s amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill has the potential for unborn children to be aborted at any stage of pregnancy, including just before natural birth, I asked Mr Doughty on this occasion to give life a chance and vote against. He did not and so was one of the 379 MPs who voted for this extreme amendment.

Abortion is not healthcare. It results in the death of an innocent unborn child and leaves the mother hostage to future feelings of regret for taking a course of action that cannot be undone.

Badgers, bats, hazel dormice, beavers, otters, wildcats, adders, all wild birds and their habitats, together with many other species, enjoy legal protection that is denied to unborn children. Are not human beings more important than animals?

Abortion is not a human right – it is a human rights issue.

Diane Jones

Penarth

Who cuts back weeds at Eagleswell?

THE refugee encampment at Eagleswell in Llantwit Major came about through force of government.

Residents nearby are overlooked and did not have a chance to raise any kind of objection. It is serving a purpose and the place is no doubt full of deserving families. 

I drive past there regularly and although there is fencing all around, the weeds are now at least five feet tall. Getting bigger if that is possible. Inside the development, a few shrubs exists but the weeds are taking grip. 

Compare this to the Five Mile Lane development. No residents, few neighbours and the area is attended to regularly by the contractors who created the new road. At a contractual cost no doubt recently raised in this newspaper. There are shrubs, trees and new fencing along most of the route. It will look very nice but who really sees the mix of fauna at 50mph – whereas residents on Eagleswell Road are seeing ugliness every day at 20ph or just outside their windows. 

As an aside, the contractors who built the St Athan by pass to Aston Martin attend the planted shrubbery there too. It is great to think my rates are enhancing the environment – one shrub at a time. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 26th June 2025

If it ain’t broke…

I READ the article about the Penarth Sea Angling Club in last week’s Glamorgan Star and was interested in the comments from the Vale Council Chief Executive.

His words “ visitor attraction“ and “enhance the visitor experience” seem to me to aptly describe the activities of the sea angling club, including the use of the hut.

The Vale Council’s approach looks to be a waste of time and money, together with being a matter of “If it isn’t broke why are you trying to fix it?”

Jim Davies,

Barry

Cosmeston water needs more testing

HAVING read the recent article in the Glamorgan Star about the protest demonstration against the Cosmeston Lake Inflatable Amusements Installation, I have become very concerned as to whether the underwater survey that has been carried out in respect of Child Health and Safety was compiled by a fully independent expert.

In south Wales, the legal responsibility for Safety in all Brown Water Lakes, Rivers , Inland Waterways lies with the Fire Service and Rescue Authority.

The public concern for the Cosmeston Wildlife is understandable. I am reassured that there is a new Wildlife Law going through the Welsh Government that will be introduced later this year. This Act is the Environment, Principles, Governance and Biodiversity Targets Wales Bill.

The new Law will make it mandatory for the Vale Council to meet legally enforceable targets for Wildlife Conservation at Cosmeston and all relevant sites in the future. The council will then be held to account by individuals and protest groups for any failure to meet conservation targets.  Ultimately the council could receive a substantial fine.

The introduction of inappropriate amusement facilities could be the cause of failure to meet targets in some cases. Child safety is far greater concern.

The inflatable amusements caterer carried out an underwater survey. The press release does not state which authority carried out the survey or whether it was independent.

A Fire and Rescue Service Water Quality Survey of a similar waterborne inflatable amusement was made at Cardiff Bay on the 24 June 2023 prior to transferring the facility to Cosmeston due to “poor water quality” in the Bay. The results are on the Fire Service website and appear to have been satisfactory at that time.

The generic advice given to Cardiff Bay users is crucial in respect of the dangers to children from this type of activity. A few quotes from the Fire Officers’ report are topical for the summer months and highly relevant to Cosmeston.

For example, the South Wales Fire Service report commented on the dangers of jumping in by saying:-“We’re just coming into a heatwave now, and that’s when our number of water-related incidents typically spike. People jump into bodies of water trying to cool off, but they don’t realise the water isn’t warm at this time of year.”

“The cold-water shock and the risk of drowning are high, even in shallow bodies of water.

A further comment was on the dangers lurking in murky brown water depths: “We’ve had incidents where people have jumped into Cardiff Bay not realising that how much rubbish and detritus is below the surface of the water to get injured by or tangled in. “

I am sure the visiting parents and their children will be greatly reassured if the South Wales Fire Service, Vale Council and the inflatable amusement caterers were to get together and conduct a video camera underwater safety survey of the Cosmeston Lake depths in the relevant area thoroughly and publish the results, although I realise as in all brown water lakes, visibility will be very poor.   

Philip Rapier

Penarth

Everyone knows how the Resurrection happened

He is at it again (Pause for Thought, 15th May, page 10).

Why Robert Parrish persists in saying that Jesus didn’t rise bodily from the tomb when the Gospels clearly explain that he did is anybody’s guess. He plainly ignores the Gospels. Just because he doesn’t understand Jesus’ resurrection, nor believe or understand the truth of God’s Word or the end time rapture doesn’t mean it’s not true – especially as God tells us that His thoughts are not our thoughts and His ways are not our ways. He is God.

Rev Parrish is inconsistent, creating a problem where one doesn’t exist. Followers of Christ believe the Word of God and if God tells us that believers will have a bodily resurrection like Jesus then we will, no matter how many there are.

Joseph of Arimathea prepared a new tomb, in which he placed Jesus’ body after the Crucifixion at Golgotha, the rock shaped like a skull. At the time of Jesus’ death, there was an earthquake, causing the bedrock to split in the middle. When our Lord’s blood poured out, it ran through the split onto the Ark of the Covenant hidden in a chamber directly below. It was discovered by biblical archaeologist Ron Wyatt.

Even though the tomb where Jesus’ body was laid was securely sealed and guarded, it was found empty, apart from neatly folded burial cloth. Everyone knows this!

Kasey Burrows

Barry

Thinking outside the box for blood donors

GIVING blood is like giving money to a beggar. You do not know that person but in some way you have made that person’s life a little easier.

One of the things they do with your blood is they take little samples, obviously to see if your blood is any good. 

Fergal Sharkey recently reported that after a GP recommended blood test, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer. It was caught early, unlike Sir Chris Hoy’s, and his treatment was successful. 

I have been giving blood for 50 years (115 donations) and at no stage have I been approached with the question: “While we are testing your blood, would you like us to test for anything else and by the way, it will be free.” 

Maybe that is thinking too far outside the box. The problem though is that if I die from something that could have been identified by a blood test, the blood donation service in Wales loses a donor – and we are in short supply already. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

MPs have betrayed unborn children

SHAME on the 379 MPs who voted in support of Tonia Antoniazzis’ bill advocating the decriminalisation of abortion. I am pleased that an even worse amendment by the uber-feminist Stella Creasey MP did not succeed.

I agree with the Society For The Protection Of Unborn Children that it is immoral and unacceptable to extend the time limit by which a foetus can be murdered. If I were rich and didn’t need to work, I would, as a Christian, gladly stand outside abortion clinics and persuade females who have no relationship with God that abortion is not the right decision. Life is precious and it begins at conception. Being a single mother is better than abortion.

Some feminists might say “shut up bloke; you won’t be pregnant”. On the contrary, the father is a stakeholder in a pregnancy and his wishes should be considered throughout.

Chris Williams

Cardiff

Thursday 12th June 2025

Rare butterfly makes an early appearance

I AM sure many of our readers know that the Vale of Glamorgan is home to the only remaining colony of High Brown Fritillary butterflies in Wales.

A group of dedicated volunteers has been looking after the butterfly and the place it lives for many years. On Bank Holiday Monday, 26th May, the first male butterfly of the year was spotted by volunteers carrying out essential maintenance work. This is the earliest the butterfly has ever been seen in the Vale.

Butterflies are a key indicator of environmental change and it’s great to know that this special butterfly continues to thrive in the Vale. Thanks to Lottery funding, there will be a series of public walks near St Brides Major with an opportunity for people to see this wonderful butterfly. 

For more details, contact Dot Williams:  or follow the project on Facebook at: Butterfly Conservation – Vale of Glamorgan High Brown Fritillary Project 

Dot Williams

Penarth’s Marine Buildings were not a hotel

THE Victorian Society has misled the Glamorgan Star and its readers as the photograph published on 29th May (page 4) is not of the Marine Hotel but of the Marine Buildings.

They were never a hotel nor part of the Mercantile Marine Offices. The buildings were known colloquially as the Dock Buildings with commercial units on the ground floor including a chemist, ship’s butcher, marine stores and with a Post Office at the west end.

When the dock closed in 1936, so did the units, with the exception of the Post Office which traded as a general store and sub post office well into the 1950s, run by Mr and Mrs House. Above the commercial units there were apartments for dock employees – police and pilots etc.

The Marine Hotel, known in the 1880s as the Penarth Pierhead tap, ceased trading in 1936 when the dock closed, as did Penarth’s Ship Hotel and Dock Hotel. The outline of the Marine Hotel can be seen on the wall at the east end of the Marine Buildings.

Alan R Thorne BA

Cardiff.

Blatant fly tipping in Barry

IT is little wonder that the town of Barry has deteriorated in recent times.

Despite raising taxes, the Vale Council has chosen to remove numerous litter bins to reduce costs, resulting in rubbish being dropped in streets, bus shelters and lanes across the town.

However, at 5.15am on Monday, 2nd June, I was amazed to see a car pull up in Buttrills Road. A man and woman got out, each with a black bag full of rubbish. They entered Gladstone Gardens where they left their bags.

This behaviour explains why our town has become such a disgrace. I have the car’s registration number and am forwarding it to the council and to the police. Action should be taken to help stop what is blatant fly tipping.

R Parker

Barry

Protect our town hall clock!

THERE is a rumour circulating in Llantwit Major that a few people want to silence the town hall clock.

In its defence, I have composed the following poem:

Do not rely on the town hall clock,

Sometimes it’s a Tick

When it should be a Tock.

Sometimes it stops

And sometimes it goes,

Exactly what time it is,

The Lord only knows.

It’s part of our history,

Part of our life,

Part of our culture

Through trouble and strife.

Through two World Wars

It has tolled the time,

To silence the clock

Is a cultural crime!

Its cogs are all worn,

They’re in need of repair,

But long may its toll

Be heard through the air.

So, admire the clock

As you pass on your way,

Even when stopped,

It’s right twice a day.

Since 1887 it has struck the hour,

It needs to be protected by all those in power.

Steven George

Llantwit Major.

‘Nature emergency’ in the Vale – but not in Cosmeston?

IN recent years, there has been growing recognition of the value of nature, including its role in tackling climate change and its benefits to people’s health and wellbeing.

The need to protect and restore nature is recognised by the public and policy makers alike.

Therefore, it saddens me and many others who care about nature that the Vale Council is pushing through plans to erect an Aqua Park on Cosmeston Country Park. I have no doubt that the noise and disturbance from this attraction will have a negative effect on wildlife.

It is also ironic that the same councillor who proposed that the Vale Council declare a ‘Nature emergency’ on 30 July 2021 is the same councillor now determined to ignore public concerns and push ahead with these badly thought out plans which will ultimately damage our precious local biodiversity!

We want nature not noise.

Robert Curtis 

Barry Action for Nature 

Traffic congestion at Culverhouse Cross

THE unpalatable truth of how to significantly ease the congestion at Culverhouse Cross is that the A4226 (Five Mile Lane) should be extended to junction 34 of the M4.

If a survey was carried out it would be evident the majority of the traffic arriving, southbound, at the junction from the M4 and from Cardiff south are heading towards either Barry (A4050) or the A48 up the Tumble.

A large proportion of traffic coming from the west, Barry, Rhoose, St Athan and Llantwit Major are heading to the M4. If this work is carried out, more work would be required at the A48 end of the A4226 as the double lights are such a potch and would suffer greatly with the increase of traffic. If a few pennies were left, major work would also be required at the Pontypridd Road roundabout, again to cope with the increase of traffic levels.

Cardiff Wales Airport would benefit from this link and it could attract a coach service to make it easier for potential customers.

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 15th May 2025

Looking after local footpaths

IN the Glamorgan Star (page 9, 17th April) you included an article from Stuart Bain of Pencoed concerning the state of local footpaths.

I have to advise your readers that Bridgend County Borough Council (BCBC) has a Rights of Way Forum that meets every three months and is very much pro-active.

From my own point (having been an elected councillor for over 50 years) I have been chosen by the 20 Town and Community Councils to represent their interests and complaints on the Forum; but have never been contacted by Mr Bain or Pencoed Town Council (PTC) to discuss any footpath problems.

That said, the forum meets next on 12th June at which I have called for a full report on footpaths in the Pencoed area.

I have also offered to arrange a prior meeting with Mr Bain, PTC and the BCBC Rights of Way officer to identify the most pressing problems in the area.

Such an on-site offer is open to any town and community council in the BCBC area. Contact details:

I hope this offer is helpful to all lovers of the benefits of footpath facilities and outdoor walking.

Cllr David Unwin

BCBC Rights of Way Champion

The death penalty doesn’t work

IN his letter (1st May), Chris Williams raises a significant point to consider should this country contemplate reintroducing capital punishment.

In its first 25 years, the Criminal Cases Review Commission overturned a total of 540 convictions or sentences, a number of these for murder. For those advocating capital punishment, how many innocent people is it acceptable for the state to kill? How might we feel if a loved-one was wrongly convicted of murder and executed unnecessarily?

Neither is capital punishment cheap. In the USA, New Jersey spent $253m over a 25-year period and had no executions.

Here’s another question to ponder: Why do countries with the death penalty still have murderers?  Research has failed to provide any proof that executions have a greater deterrent effect than life imprisonment.

G Davies,

Treoes.

Medical supplies for Ukraine

IT HAS been over three years since the unprovoked invasion of Ukraine by Putin’s Russia.

Will your readers help the brave defenders of Ukraine by donating vital medical supplies?

Throughout the month of May ‘Barry 4 Ukraine’ will be collecting medical and other donations to distribute to the people of Ukraine. We hope to show our solidarity at their time of need.

Any of the following items will be gratefully accepted: Incontinence pads; wool for stump socks; bandages and plasters; Nutrition drinks and vitamin pills; Stoma products; wheelchairs, zimmers and commodes; baby products (formula, nappies, etc); dog food; non scented candles; used vapes.

Please deliver to: 10, Adar y Mor, Barry Island, CF62 5AF.

Whenever you see the blue and yellow of the Ukrainian flag, you know it’s about people who do not give up. Please help us to help and support the brave people of Ukraine.

Rob Curtis

Barry for Ukraine 

Say ‘no’ to the throwaway society

WITH little fanfare, a shop in Barry recently turned 60.

Only a little off the beaten track, S Gregory has been on Holton Road near George Street since 1965. I had left a pair of leather shoes and went to pick them up on the very day of the 60th anniversary. 

What a cracking job on my shoes. They look new again. 

With shoes being so expensive these days, I am glad I made the decision to give my very comfortable old shoes a new lease of life. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 1st May 2025

Death sentence risks miscarriages of justice

I USUALLY enjoy reading the contributions by Paul Blanchard from Barry in the letters page but I feel his call in the 17th April edition for the public to consider reinstating the death penalty was surreptitiously misanthropic.

I have closely followed the case of Lucy Letby since the time of her arrest and I consider it, as an autistic person, to be one of my specialist subjects. In short, the court of public opinion said she was guilty because media coverage said she was guilty.

With regards evidence heard at the trial, it is a mystery to me as to why it was prosecuted in the first place. I was previously pro-death penalty but the Letby case underlines that we are fortunate it is no longer in use. Miscarriages of justice bring shame and humiliation onto the state.

Chris Williams

Cardiff

What is council’s role in solar power offer?

I RECENTLY received an unsolicited letter from a company called ‘Solar Together’ addressed to ‘The Occupier’.

 The heading included the Vale Council logo and the contents suggested that the council was working with Solar Together and a partner named iChoosr Ltd, to promote the installation of solar panels and battery storage on houses in the Vale. 

The letter raises a number of questions including:

1/ Does the letter have the backing of the council and, if so, why is the council involved solely with one commercial organisation in this way? (The return address on the envelope is Norwich NR13 6LJ).

2/ There are many companies seeking this business and visits to websites such as Money Saving Expert reveal the competition and caveats.

3/ The letter says that ‘our approved solar installers will bid for the work in a ‘reverse auction’. Who will supervise the auction and then approve the installers, the council or Solar Together? Who approves the quality, origin and price of the solar panels and the subsequent monitoring of the work?  Is the council going to underwrite the cost, to the householder, of pursuing claims for poor workmanship, or contract failure, using council taxpayers money?

The very worthy objective of supporting ‘our goal of reaching net zero as an organisation by 2030’ calls to mind the often-quoted maxim that the end does not justify the means. Clarification is required.

Chris Samuel

Bonvilston.

Confusing speed limits on the A48

FOLLOWING on from the Glamorgan Star on the A48 (17th April, page 11) I never cease to be amazed at the number of different speed limits on the A48 between Culverhouse Cross and Bridgend.  

With regard to the recent dreadful crash, I have never understood why St Nicholas is 30mph, but Bonvilston is 40mph.

In addition, it is difficult to understand why the Cowbridge bypass, a dual carriageway with no housing, is 50mph, which becomes 60mph travelling eastwards when the road reduces to single carriageway – with housing and side roads.

I am heartily sick of being overtaken on the bypass by people doing 60 and 70 miles an hour, who then slow down when they reach the 60mph section (and I catch them up). Travelling westwards, there is suddenly a 30mph section near the roundabout at the end of the bypass.

Consistency along this entire stretch of road would be wonderful. I pity any law-abiding drivers who are not familiar with it.

Marcia Malia

Llantwit Major

Bring back death penalty

IN the letters page of your edition of 17 April, Mr Blanchard wrote about the death penalty.

I agree that there should be a death penalty but instead of a people’s vote, the government should just bring it back overnight, as it did with help for British Steel.

If a dangerous animal hurts or kills someone, it is put down without question, so why not these animals? Furthermore, why are foreign criminals not deported immediately after sentence? Surely we can pay third world countries to imprison them at much less cost to taxpayers.

My final word is, as I have said for years, make prisons a place you never want to see twice.

G Jenkins

Barry   

Social life in Barry

WOULD anyone be able to tell me if there are any mixed social groups and choirs in and around Barry?

I am looking for groups that meet in the day. If they have vacancies, could they contact the Glamorgan Star?

(Name and address withheld)

Glamorgan Star note: This lady lives in Barry and has requested us not to publish her address or telephone number. If any groups would care to supply their contact details, we will be happy to publish them in our next edition.

The solution to shortage of driving test examiners

THERE is a problem in the UK in that there is a shortage of Driving Test Examiners. 

I would imagine that driving instructors are the main source of supply for these jobs. 

The difference between the two roles, I would guess, is very minimal. One sits in a car with a learner for 10 to 30 hours while being driven around the area the driving school covers. Eventually the instructor is confident and advises the pupil that they are ready to take the test. 

The other gets in a car with a total stranger, drives around for a few hours and makes an assessment. Pass or fail. 

Why not give authority to time-served driving instructors to carry out driving tests? They would not be allowed to test their own pupils, of course. The person would pay the selected instructor for the two hours or less taken for the test to be carried out in an area they know. The 20-week waiting list would evaporate. 

Bureaucracy being as it is, there would have to be legislation passed. Wouldn’t it be marvellous if the Senedd was first to pass it. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 17th April 2025

Time for a rethink on the death penalty?

RECENTLY, another person was sentenced to a minimum term for murdering somebody else.

After the court case, the only option for the judge to take was to sentence that person to 40 years in prison. This is one of many people put in prison for 40 to 48 years before they are able to apply for parole.

What is the cost to the tax payer? At a minimum, this will cost over £2 million per prisoner.

One of murderer carried out his crime due to his religious zealotry. The death sentence was abandoned in the UK in the 1960s and it was heavily influenced by religious leaders stating whatever the crime, it was wrong to take a person’s life.

When a person is sentenced in court, all the mothers, fathers, sons and daughters of the victims can do is make a victim impact statement. One murderer, in a case linked to gangland violence, took a machine gun to a local night club and sprayed the crowd with bullets. He is in his 20s and received a 48-year sentence. He will be in his 70s when he gets let out.

When these prisoners leave prison after their sentence, the state will carry on looking after them as they will have no money.

Give the people of the UK the right to vote for the death penalty. An eye for an eye.

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Spend all our car tax on road repairs

I READ with intrigue your story (3rd April, page 5) showing how much it is costing to fix potholes in The Vale.

I also recalled reading a past story in The Glamorgan Star about the council trialling new machinery that uses old car tyres to repair them.

It would be interesting to see the results of these trials and know how much they cost to repair each pothole, when compared to the older method.

Potholes have been the curse of the nation ever since money from car tax was diverted away from funding roads and their repairs and straight into the government’s purse. Is it now a good time for motorists to demand all their money is once again used to fund roads, and especially potholes?

T Jones

Barry

Thursday 3rd April 2025

Thanks to local Good Samaritans

I HAVE always been treated with courtesy and kindness by Adrian and staff at my local branch of Filco – and also by the drivers of Andy Cars.

However, on Thursday, 6 March, when I was taken ill in the store, they really went ‘the extra mile’ for me. Emma and Isobel got a chair for me and a cup of water – and helped me to my taxi when it arrived.

Andy drove me home, took my shopping to the door and helped me up the steps. As I am an old lady of 85 and have a few health problems, I felt very grateful for their help.

So well done Filco and Andy Cars. Thank you!

Deidre Mollart,

Llantwit Major.

Some problems in Barry are easily fixed

DEMOCRACY is failing the people of Barry and there is need for a more joined up government to meet the needs of the residents.

I have mobility problems and ordered a taxi to collect me outside the town library, by a lowered pavement just above the top bus shelter. However, the taxi driver made me cross the busy road with difficulty. I was furious until the driver informed me he would be fined by the police if he parked by the library.

This is astonishingly stupid! It is clear the area where the pavement is lowered above the top bus shelter should be made into a pull in where people like me (and there are many) can be picked up safely by taxi drivers. There are a mass of problems like this that need sorting out in the town. Councillors and public officials need to move about and see for themselves as there are many problems that can be easily solved. 

Once again, I appeal to the Vale Council to provide a museum for Barry which has a rich history that stretches back long before the building of the docks and the town. Displays of artefacts and photographs on different themes could be a regular attraction. Town Guides and walks for residents and visitors alike would welcome more people here. Perhaps local charities, for a fee, could make snacks and hot drinks available.

Councillors and public officials need to act soon as the town is heaving with discontent.

Brian C Luxton

Barry

AI is the way to efficient councils

IN the Glamorgan Star’s 20 March edition, Marcus Stead’s article, ‘Councillors not happy with work-life balance’, highlights a critical issue.

However, the root of this problem lies deeper—in the inefficiencies and outdated practices of local councils.

The British Government’s decision to expand the use of artificial intelligence in its departments is a step in the right direction. It’s time for local councils to follow suit. By embracing AI, councils could drastically improve their performance and financial management, ensuring taxpayer money is used effectively.

Moreover, this would provide an opportunity for underperforming councillors to step aside, making way for individuals genuinely committed to public service.

The public deserves representatives who prioritize efficiency and accountability over personal convenience. It’s high time we demand better from our local governance.

Keith Edger

Porthcawl

Senedd reform

IN his letter of 20th March, Paul Blanchard mistakenly conflates Senedd reform with recent Westminster government policy.

This is to ignore the vote by the Welsh electorate to transfer full responsibility for the Senedd, and the 19 other subject areas under the devolution settlement, from Westminster to Cardiff Bay in 2011. Its enlargement next year will bring the size of Wales’s parliament into line with the other devolved legislatures of the UK.

In short, the running of the Senedd no longer has anything to do with No10.

G Davies,

Treoes.

Politicians can help you!

POLITICIANS and councillors often receive negative press for their actions or inaction on behalf of residents.

I would like to share a recent experience that ‘bucks this trend’.

Back in July 2024, Open Reach engineers installed a telephone cable which ran extremely close to my washing line. I clearly expressed my dissatisfaction and concern that my washing would be damaged and entangled by the cable. Being a full-time carer for my bed-bound husband, I have to wash bedding sheets on a daily basis. The engineer seemed oblivious to my dilemma and said that the installation was only temporary.

Throughout the summer and autumn months, my washing was regularly being damaged and entangled by the cable. Close to 100 emails were sent to Open Reach asking for a resolution. Despite numerous promises and occasionally start dates for the work, nothing happened. The effect on my mental health was very significant, with nobody at Open Reach seeming to care

Eight months after the installation, I reached desperation point and decided to contact the Older People’s Commissioner for Wales. Following my initial discussion with them, Jane Hutt’s office became involved.

What a difference! Open Reach began to react. The complaint was elevated and in March the cable was removed. I cannot thank OPC (Wales) and Jane Hutt MS for expediting this long drawn out saga. Without their help, I’m not sure when a resolution would have been forthcoming. Thank you again.

Mrs Pat Cogbill,

Barry

Surely council can’t charge for pothole parking?

THE news of off-street parking charges has been causing a headache among many people in the Vale of Glamorgan and in particular those visiting the Knap and parking in Bron-y-Mor Car Park in Barry.

Before the car park charges are introduced at Bron-Y-Mor Car Park (adjacent to the Bridge Cafe) is the Vale Council going to level the car park surface and then tarmac the whole area before marking out correct parking spaces?

This car park is like driving on the moon with the constant potholes appearing, then being filled in with stone dust. On many occasions I have witnessed cars blocked in due to inconsiderate drivers and the lack of marked parking spaces.

Ok, if the Vale Council is to introduce off-street parking, then give us proper facilities, not a moon scape.

Keith Brown,

Barry.

NHS has been replaced by a ‘black hole’

PICTURE the scene. A massive incident is ongoing and there are many casualties.

People are hurt to various degrees and are in pain. They have been waiting for different periods of time. They have been told how long they are going to have to wait for attention to their afflictions. Some die before their problems get attended to. Casualties are being attended to, in small numbers but there are new casualties being added to the list of people who need attending to.

The local services have been proven not to be fit for purpose, as this ‘incident’ has been ongoing for many years. No call for help has been made to the Red Cross or Medicins sans Frontières, the World Health Organisation or the UN.

This is what is happening to the UK Health Services. There is no light at the end of the tunnel.

This situation will be current for decades to come as nothing serious is being done. The latest figures for the Cymru Health Service show a 0.4% drop in the waiting list. 

Look after your health because there is a huge black hole where the NHS used to be.

Paul Blanchard,

Barry.

Thursday 20th March 2025

Senedd expansion goes against PM’s plan

OUR Prime Minister has recently announced his intention to close NHS England, saving £millions. 

More cutting of management in the NHS is sure to follow. It is important that in times of austerity. Excessive and bloated management structures are one thing the UK could do without. 

This is bad timing for the Senedd, as they will soon be creating an extra 36 Members. This is an increase of 60% as there are only 60 members today. This is the equivalent of the UK government creating another 400 Members of Parliament.

This is even though AI (Deallusrwydd Artiffisial) is supposed to reduce staffing levels, with technology doing the work of many.

Once this organisation increases to 96 members, what will stop it becoming bigger? 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 6th March 2025

Cardiff’s ‘lost church’

Mr Loveluck-Edwards, in his article ‘Tales of a lost church’ (Glamorgan Star, page 24, 23/01/2025) wrote that he is absorbed with the history of our oldest and most interesting pubs.

However, the article suggests he does not have a thirst for historical accuracy. He states that St Mary’s church was destroyed by a tsunami in 1607, one assumes he meant the ‘Great Flood’ of January 20th, 1606. There is a plaque in the parish church of Peterstone Wentloog to commemorate the flooding on both sides of the ‘Servern Sea’.

Speed’s map of 1610 shows the church in situ and intact. Due to erosion of the river bank, St Mary’s gradually lost its graveyard. The map shows a section of the boundary wall already lost by 1610. Speed wrote “the Taff was a foe of St. Mary’s”. Mr Edwards states that the wall of the Prince of Wales pub in Cardiff “has a clear brick outline”. The outline is clearly stone not brick and the outline bears no resemblance to the original church, built in a cruciform shape with a lofty square tower.

Years after the great flood, the vicar in the 1630s was one William Erbery, son of a Roath merchant. He resigned in 1638, to be succeeded by Theobald Price who was followed by Benjamin Flower, who was later “ejected from his charge at St. Mary’s”. Theo Price returned and officiated until his death in June 1675. During 1678, part of the roof fell into the knave and regular services ceased. However, occasional baptisms and burials continued until the early 18th Century.

During 1756, William Jones, a shipwright with a boat building yard on the Taff’s east bank, near the town’s south gate, was prosecuted for “laying his timber on the highway near to St Mary’s”. The present St Mary’s, designed by Thomas Foster of Bristol, was built 1840 to 1845 at the cost of £5,700.00, met by the Second Marquis of Bute.

AR Thorne,

Cardiff

Let motor homes onto ‘The Island’

I have read several articles saying that charging to park a car on the road is soon to be introduced across Barry Island, and about the negative effect that businesses predict thereafter.

On recent visits to ‘The Island’ I have noticed another subtle attack on trade there; the recently erected height barriers on the council-run top (main) car park. These are positioned to prevent taller vehicles such as motorhomes from entering the area. My disabled partner used to enjoy us parking up there and watching the view. But no more, because our van is too tall to drive under the barriers.

I have lost track of the amount of times in the past that I have directed the driver of a motorhome to that car park, as they frantically search for somewhere to park on ‘The Island’.

I question why our council adopts the ‘keep them away’ policy, rather than the ‘encourage them’ policy of mainland Europe. There, local councils provide special car parks where motorhomes can stay overnight, called ‘aires’. These have large parking spaces and often have facilities, such as chemical toilet disposal and freshwater top-ups.

The councils charge a fee for these services, so they provide a useful way to attract visitors and trade to the area. By contrast to the negative approach shown by the Vale Council, all car parks in Powys allow overnight stop overs.

I would ask that our council investigate these as a positive way to attract trade to Barry Island, even if only in the off-season month, but I won’t be holding my breath until they do.

Ade Pitman

Barry

Will Lidl be a ‘good neighbour’

I READ with interest the quote from Rob Mitchell, representing Lidl at the Vale Council Planning Committee meeting on 13th December where the conditions attached to the proposed building of a Lidl supermarket in the open countryside were being discussed. 

Despite stating that Lidl is “proud to be a good neighbour to the communities it serves” and that it has a “wealth of experience in developing its stores to ensure residential amenity is safeguarded”, the actual fact in this instance is that Lidl has explicitly and specifically refused to engage with the community with regards to this highly contentious proposal. 

Lidl met the Llanmaes Community Council only once (the proposed development lies solely within the Llanmaes community boundary and thus falls under the Llanmaes community council, not Llantwit Major town council) and that was in the first half of 2022 – almost three years ago.  

The company has also refused to engage with or respond to questions from residents of Llanmaes on matters, for example, as simple as committing to regular litter picks to minimise the impact on this rural settlement.

This is a very long way from being a good neighbour and thus far Lidl has shown itself to have a total disregard for the residents of the impacted community and a total lack of interest in safeguarding any residential amenities. One can only hope that this changes dramatically and quickly.

Linda Christmas

Llanmaes

How about doing a full day’s work?

ISN’T it unfortunate that it has taken so little time to accept rubbish customer service levels and quality of workmanship from local businesses and tradesmen? 

If you ask your parents what they received from people who they paid to carry out a variety of jobs in their homes or businesses, I am sure it would be a lot different. 

I despair of what exists in the way I have been treated in the last many months. I do not except to have a cap ‘doffed’ or to be called ‘sir’. However, at the end of the day I have earned the money I am paying them. That money pays their bills. If somebody asks me if I can recommend anybody to carry out any work I certainly have people I can recommend, but there are others that somehow I have forgotten their names. 

There is one thing I agree on with the UK Labour Party and it is that this country needs to buck up and improve productivity levels. Is a day’s work 8am till 2pm or 9am to 3pm?

No.

I did not vote Labour last time. I voted for the guy that was as an individual doing a very good job in his own right. To those who have carried out work for me (and I continue to give you work) it does not mean that complete satisfaction is assured. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 20th February 2025

Make council tax fairer by reforming a flawed system

IN his column (6th February) Andrew R T Davies calls for the Council to stop raising council tax which “will compound misery for hardworking families … still grappling with cost of living pressures… and ease pressure on taxpayers by cutting back on waste (diversity schemes) and senior officer pay.”

Does his worry about “balancing the books on the backs of hard-up families” extend to sympathy for making the council tax fairer?

The current system was cobbled together hastily by the Conservatives in 1991 when they had to restore some sort of property tax after their disastrous dalliance with the poll tax. So, it produced a broad-brush estimate of house values to be taxed, divided into eight bands that ensured that the lowest valued houses would be the most heavily taxed. And in England those 1991 values remain to this day. Wales has, at least, had one revaluation since then, setting 2003 values, though the regressive banding simplification remains (nine bands).

To quote The Economist on 27th January: “According to calculations by the Institute of Fiscal Studies (IFS), in 2019 council-tax bills for the poorest 10% in England accounted for one tenth of take-home pay. For the richest 10%, it was just one fiftieth.

The IFS has estimated that … [by] replacing the bands and charging council tax as a fixed proportion, say 0.4% of a home’s value … fully 70% of households in England would pay less … The richest 10% of households would be on the hook for an additional £750 per year. It would also require far more redistribution from Whitehall towards the regions beyond the south.” The picture does not change at the Welsh border.

The fact that council tax falls on property values, though imperfectly, does at least keep house prices and rents lower than they would otherwise be, which hardworking families trying to get on the property ladder might appreciate. A more accurately valued tax base would hold back the top end further.

Another point in favour of the council tax is that it is difficult to avoid. Properties can be dilapidated, of course. Valuing the land element of properties only (site value rating) would avoid that. And it would ease the tax at the lower end even more. (Land value happens to be the bit of house prices that is rising disproportionately, the supply of land being far more limited than the supply of bricks and mortar.) Hard workers might appreciate that.

David Richards

Bridgend

Speed limits have saved lives (and money)

Paul Blanchard (Letters, 6 February) is right to say it’s a shame that public money will need to be spent changing some 20mph limited roads to 30mph, and vice versa, especially when local authorities could have done this originally, but surely if residents feel speed limits are inappropriate our councils should listen to those concerns?

With the first full year of results now available, we can now add more numbers — according to police data, there were 628 fewer deaths and injuries on Welsh roads than in the previous year. In addition to this favourable result, if we multiply this figure by the number of health professionals and emergency services attending these casualties, we can appreciate the financial savings which could be made in the years to come.

 G Davies

Treoes.

Pink Ribbon Walks are special occasion

AS an Olympian, I am always on the hunt for a new a physical challenge.

I am also a proud ambassador of Breast Cancer Now, so when I learned their Pink Ribbon Walk series was celebrating its 20th anniversary, taking on the 20-mile walk felt like the perfect way to mark this milestone. I would like to encourage your readers to lace up their walking boots and join me.

Having received a diagnosis of breast cancer myself at the age of 36, Breast Cancer Now is very close to my heart. I know first-hand how devastating a diagnosis is, and how Breast Cancer Now’s research and support gives hope to all those affected. I will be walking at the Blenheim Palace Pink Ribbon Walk alongside people who have been impacted by the disease.

From April to June, the Pink Ribbon Walks take place across four beautiful locations. Hampton Court Palace on Saturday, 26 April, Blenheim Palace on Saturday, 10 May, Crieff Hydro in Scotland on Saturday, 31 May and Chatsworth House on Saturday, 21 June.

Find out more and register now at www.breastcancernow.org/prw

Donna Fraser OBE OLY

Breast Cancer Now ambassador

Oh to be a fly on the wall in The Senedd

THERE is an old expression, ‘I wish I could be a fly on the wall’. It means that you would like to be able to attend a certain event or conversation.

The event I would like to attend is the meeting of our First Minister Eluned Morgan and the UK Treasury when it is discussed that the Welsh Parliament will need an extra £5 million per annum when there are 36 more Members of Senedd to finance.

It is difficult to assess the exact amount. It is more than just the wages of these new members which at today’s rate is £2.5 million pa. Those Members of Senedd have expense accounts and assistants to pay, plus accommodation etc.

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 6th February 2025

Could leisure centre help out NHS?

I wanted to comment on the article about the bids to take over Holm View leisure centre in Barry.

 I realise physical activity is important, especially for youths but the centre obviously did not succeed, perhaps due to the pandemic. 

 I often wonder where all the beds and equipment used for the Nightengale Centres that were introduced over the country are housed now. I know it was just a leisure centre and only used as a vaccination centre in Barry but would it be suitable to convert to help the hospitals and queuing ambulances as a centre for lesser A&E issues, rather than everything being directed to one central hospital – if staff could be located there?  (I realise there is a shortage of staff too!)

Ada Flinn

Barry

UK doesn’t want Wild West politics

I AM happy to defend the political status quo, which means that we support our democratic process and the peaceful transition of power.

Surely, most of us here in the UK would be happy to do so. This is far better than the ‘wild west’ approach favoured by Elon Musk, who recently posted that UK voters’ wishes should be ignored and that “America should liberate the people of Britain from their tyrannical government”.

We witnessed shameful scenes in Washington DC on 6 January 2021, followed by the reprehensible pardon of those criminals four years’ later. We don’t want that here — the UK changes its political direction with a ‘X’ in a box, not through broken politics and deadly insurrection.

G Davies

Treoes.

Lidl plan is in wrong place

THE proposed Lidl development at the entrance to Llanmaes is in the wrong place.

The supermarket will cause congestion from drivers in the town and also from the Barry road and the road leading to Bridgend. Although I do not shop in Lidl, if the project is to go ahead, it would be better sited off the new road leading to Aston Martin or at Llandow.

The proposed 235 houses planned off the Eglyws Brewis road would also maybe see benefits. I am surprised the council have made this decision bearing in mind the new housing being planned.

Royston Chappell

Boverton

Only one way to Heaven for good Christians

I AM responding to the Rev Robert Parrish’s article in the 23 January edition of the Glamorgan Star, where he compares the here and hereafter to the TV series Ashes to Ashes, based on Buddhist thought.

Were the Reverend a true Christian and leader of the flock, he would be preaching the word of God, which tells us that the only way to the Father is through his son Jesus Christ, Yeshua Hamashiach, because of everything He did for us on the cross as a living sacrifice to pay for our sins-debt. He should also be warning of the reality of what happens to people when they don’t choose the path that God has given us; while God has given us freedom of choice, not all choices are of God.

Rev Parrish is wrong to mislead people into believing that whatever their faith is will determine what they’ll see following death. If he ever reads a Bible instead of preaching all this nonsense, he’ll learn that there is only one other place people will see and go, for not trusting in the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. I do not wish to repeat those terrifying accounts of what people really experience when dragged from this existence to the next.

Let this be a warning to anyone serious about the eternal consequences and their salvation.

Kasey Burrows

Barry

20 to 30 and back again?

IT has been reported that many 20 mph roads will be reverting to 30. This is good news but sadly, £millions of pounds are being quoted. 

This no doubt is because metal signs need to be changed to new metal signs with a different number on them. 

Why not get self-adhesive labels to stick over existing signs. There are industrial adhesives that will stay the course until The Senedd change them back to 20. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 23rd January 2025

British politics is broken

I WRITE in response to the letter mentioning me, written by G Davies in the 9th January edition of the Glamorgan Star.

It is sad that the writer defends the current status quo. I believe that the political landscape in Britain is broken and we must prepare ourselves to fundamentally alter the way we do politics in this country.

Unless one has been living under a rock, the latest scandal to hit the Labour Party is that of the so called (in British media) ‘grooming gangs’. Taking a holistic view of world media, as I do, this terminology upsets Asians in India, who use the correct terminology for this national disgrace.

These ‘gangs’ are a national disgrace, but even that pales when the country and the victims of these gangs call for and deserve justice. This shame has become global news now, many thanks to Elon Musk and others.

Despite them having had 14 years in which to ensure that such an inquiry took place, the Conservatives’ recent call for one was defeated because our Prime Minister told all of the Labour MPs, including the MP for the Vale, Kanishka Narayan, that they should vote against the proposal. Our PM then abstained, whilst dutifully our MP did what ‘The Party’ told him to do. He was not alone, and the proposal was dropped.

Thus, I question whether the people who voted for our MP wanted him to represent them, or to represent the Labour party? As such, should we also share in blame for the call for an enquiry being dropped?

As our Labour government kowtows to China, whilst ensuring that the ‘special alliance’ between Britain and the US is allowed to crumble, I predict some interesting times ahead for Britain.

As the Chinese say, “May you live in interesting times”.

Ade Pitman

Barry

Barry Veterans Group says ‘thank you’

THE Barry Veterans Group would like to thank all the businesses that donated prizes for our raffle at our Christmas lunch.

The group meets every Saturday morning at All Saints Church Hall, Park Road, Barry at 10am and holds a breakfast group for Veterans to come along and have breakfast, a cuppa and a chat. People attend from all over the vale and Cardiff. The group also organises social evenings and days out.

We are a non-profit group run by volunteers so all donations and items we receive are precious to us and help us support so many veterans and their families. in 2024, we won the Welsh Veterans Group Award

We had around 45 people who attended for the Christmas lunch, including the Vale Mayor Elliott Penn VOG Mayor. We are so grateful to all those who donated to the Raffle 

Claire Coelho

Barry Veterans Group

It’s the right time to foster a child

CHILDREN can really thrive in the safe, stable environment of a loving foster home, but we are currently facing a crisis in the care system because too few people in Wales are becoming foster parents.

Many older foster parents are retiring at a time when unprecedented numbers of children and young people are coming into care.

There are lots of reasons why fewer people are coming forward to foster. Post Covid we have seen people turn spare bedrooms into home offices and we are seeing young people living with their parents for longer. The cost-of-living crisis has also had an impact on people’s decision making.

There are also many myths surrounding fostering, with people ruling themselves out because they think they are too old, or their circumstances are not right. Whether you are single, married, part of the LBTQ+ community, renting, or own your own home, you can foster.

If you are over 21, have a spare room and feel you could offer a child a stable home then we ask you to consider whether you could foster a child either for short breaks or long term. Children in care come from all backgrounds, we are looking for potential foster parents from diverse backgrounds and cultures.

We know it is a big decision, but with more children entering the care system each year, there’s no time to wait. Your skills and care could change a child’s life, and we will support you every step of the way with extensive training and a financial package.

The perfect time to foster a child doesn’t exist, but the right time is now. Please get in touch with us to find out more, visit barnardos.org/foster.

Sarah Morgan

Barnardo’s Cymru Adoption and Fostering Service

Billions, trillions, zillions

I SHOULD like to apologise to Geraint Davies (Letters page, 9 January) regarding the total outstanding student loan debt.

To the ordinary person in the street, £billions and £trillions mean the same. It would be interesting to learn how many professionals the degree system produces in the UK but I for one know that it is cheaper to import skilled labour than to make it yourself.

The Premier League has accepted this concept. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

How good are councils’ complaints procedures?

I WORK in the Vale but live in two different county council areas during the year.

 I have had no service from the Vale Council but I have experience of rubbish council customer service elsewhere, including dissatisfactory whitewash complaints procedures and then dialogue with the Public Services Ombudsman which did not resolve the matter.

My father in west Wales threatened to kill himself because of the stress of these behaviours. I sincerely hope the VOG Council have not been indulging in the following:

* A switchboard which always pretends the council staff member is always out and nobody from their department is in.

* No returned calls and no replies to emails and letters.

* Data protection requests revealing a tissue of maladministration by the council staff. Total lies about the staff doing things they didn’t do and my family supposedly saying/doing things we did not say/do.

* A complaints process where the council find themselves to be completely blameless and the customer to be in the wrong at every stage before, during and after the complaints process.

Quite frankly, those who can’t be bothered get employment with county councils. They pretend they are overstretched due to budget cuts but I have seen different levels of service quality across two different sized councils.

Chris Williams

Cardiff

Childline can help tackle loneliness

JANUARY can be a difficult month for many people across the UK and here at Childline, thousands of children reach out to us all year to discuss their loneliness.

In the last year, the NSPCC service has delivered almost 5,000 counselling sessions related to this subject, both online and over the phone from 13 Childline bases across the UK.

Many children and young people said they felt lonely due to moving house or school and having to make new friends or their parents working long hours. Others said they were being bullied by their peers, and some said it was because they saw their friends having fun on social media and felt as though they were missing out.

We want to remind children and young people that they are not alone, and if they feel this way they can reach out to trusted family and friends. Childline is also there to provide help and support 24/7, free and in confidence.

They can call 0800 1111 and speak to a counsellor over the phone or visit the website at www.childline.org.uk

We also have tips for adults to support children and young people who may be struggling. Visit www.nspcc.org.uk and search for ‘loneliness’.

Louise Israel,

Childline team manager at NSPCC Cymru

Llanmaes residents voice their opinions over Lidl decision

LOCAL residents have voiced their opinion over the approval of plans for a supermarket near their village of Llanmaes by writing to the Glamorgan Star to express their own views.

The Vale Council’s planning committee recently voted to approve plans by Lidl for a supermarket on land at Bridge House Farm in between Llantwit Major and the village of Llanmaes.

This was despite the recommendations of planning officials to refuse. Many of the planning committee members argued that services were needed for the growing town of Llantwit Major and said there were not any alternative locations to build the supermarket.

Councillors who voted for Lidl should be ‘ashamed’

I AM entirely against the Lidl development for a number of reasons.

The ability of the councillors on the planning committee to entirely ignore the planning officer’s recommendation after two years of consideration and negotiation with Lidl, as well as ignoring their own LDP and various Welsh policies, suggests they have free reign to do whatever they please with zero accountability. 

It is also a monumental waste of public money. There may well be a need for additional retail provision in the region but that should not mean that process and policy is ignored. It would be interesting to know if the vocal supporters of Lidl from Llantwit Major would be so keen on a Waitrose or M and S.   

This development will fundamentally and irreversibly change the landscape of the area. The councillors who voted to approve it should be thoroughly ashamed of the legacy they will be leaving for our generations to come. 

Linda Christmas

Llanmaes

Unsound planning decision

THE recent decision by the Vale Council Planning Committee to ignore the recommendation of its own planning officer and approve the building of a food store, ie Lidl, on a greenfield site in Llanmaes has left me questioning the competency of the councillors who have been entrusted to make such decisions on behalf of the residents of the local area. 

Whilst they are perfectly within their rights to ignore the recommendations of the planning officer, it is my understanding that if they choose to depart from what the officer advises then they have to clearly set out their reasons for doing so.

Sadly, the planning committee has dismally failed in this regard. The minutes from the meeting held on 12th December 2024 give the reason for the decision as ‘Having regard to the content of the report and discussions at the meeting’. I watched the meeting live on YouTube and planning rules and regulations did not feature in the speeches given by the committee members when it came to making a decision. 

The Labour government has only last month published a policy paper ‘Planning Reform Working Paper: Planning Committees’ in which it states that “there can be insufficient understanding among all committee members of planning principles and law, inhibiting their ability to make decisions in line with these principles and law, in turn making these decisions more vulnerable to being overturned on appeal”. This is only too true in respect of the recent decision regarding Lidl.

Unfortunately, the review only applies to England, but hopefully it is something that will also be adopted in Wales. As the recent decision of the Vale planning committee shows, it is very much needed here as well. 

If this development is allowed to go ahead I feel that it is likely to spoil the beauty of an area that many residents, in Llanmaes and elsewhere, value. It will adversely affect the character of Llanwit Major which is likely to see a reduced footfall in the town centre and subsequent closing of the small independent shops which make it so attractive to residents and visitors alike. 

Samantha Hall

Llanmaes

No need for a Lidl in Llanmaes

IT IS a month since the planning committee went against the advice of its own planning officer and approved plans to allow Lidl to use a green field site, true farmland, in Llanmaes, a small village community in the Vale.

The site is visible from the village houses and from the well-used footpaths in the countryside surrounding us. When it is functional and lit, it will be a blot on the local landscape, causing significant light pollution. 

Llantwit Major is already serviced by local shops, selling a good range of produce to meet everyday needs. There is no ‘need’ for a larger supermarket to be built on this field, it is a ‘want’. A supermarket on that site will bring extra traffic from surrounding areas and speeding cars through the lanes and the village, causing a bottle neck at the junction immediately adjacent to the site.

There are far better sites on the Northern Access road and on the business park in Llandow. The village boundary is the bypass. Development on the Llanmaes side is against planning policy and should not be allowed.

Wendy Hewitt-Sayer

Llanmaes

Any fool can see where Lidl should go

I WRITE 24 hours after a head on collision at Llanmaes traffic lights on the B4265.

Luckily, the occupants of both cars appear to have escaped unscathed. But that collision is the reason why Lidl or any other store CANNOT be allowed to be built on a narrow and dangerous country lane leading to a small village, Llanmaes. 

I am still trying to puzzle out why councillors ignored the expert advice of their own planning officers to approve the application. Those officers, don’t forget, are paid from our council tax, as are the Vale councillors who sold us down the river.

 So why did they do it? Is it because they had just emerged from a bruising battle in which container homes for refugee families were imposed on the area without, seemingly, any need for a planning application – a dreadful misuse of powers.

Are they trying to curry favour with the surrounding householders, who raised a magnificent sum to take the council to judicial review, but who unfortunately lost their case? Are they trying to please Llantwit Major citizens who rightly say they want more choice and cheaper food? 

“Stick it there, on that field, and never mind the protests,” seems to be the view. But that’s short term in the extreme. What about looking at the bigger picture? St Athan has grown rapidly and is woefully underserved for supermarkets. As are Cowbridge and Rhoose. 

The Northern Access Road is the place for supermarket development in this area. Any fool can see that. Hundreds of acres of land, earmarked for development, roads built, but nothing else done a decade after it was completed. Don’t tell us the drainage is a problem. Sort it out Welsh Government and the Vale Council, and move Lidl, Sainsburys and anyone else down there. Have a heart, use your heads, and leave Llanmaes alone.  

Gail Kirkham

Llanmaes

Rural way of life is in jeopardy

LLANMAES is a unspoilt village in the Vale. It has a thriving community of like-minded people.

The ladies of Llanmaes have grouped together over the years and have raised money for a number of charities. During lock down they had a WhatsApp group ‘Llanmaes masks and sundries’, offering bespoke masks for occasions and general wear. I had all my masks made by the ladies for my mother’s funeral – she died during the pandemic. All proceeds went to charities. There is always a new project to raise money or collections for shoes and clothes offered to the Afghan and Ukraine refugees. The community as a whole, is generous and steadfast in continuing to help people less fortunate than themselves.

This is in sharp contrast to the developers and land-owners of the Lidl Field. Lidl is a multi-million business corporation built for profit. If this development is to go ahead it will ruin a community whose spirit has been broken over past events. It’s a way of life that is very rural. Surrounded by open fields, Llanmaes is an ancient settlement nestling in a small basin which will be looked down upon by a huge industrial size building where the Lidl field is situated, 50 metres from Llanmaes boundary and conservation area.

How is this allowed on a green field site with no LDP, so close to a conservation area?

The community of Llanmaes were completely overlooked (not one letter was sent to Llanmaes residents) when the land-owners and Lidl sent a ‘rallying’ letter to all the houses of Llantwit Major. This included a list of councillors and their e-mails to encourage them to write in their support for the store. Just days before!

The planning officers’ reasons for refusal of the development. Includes road safety at that particular junction, which is blind coming into the village. There are near misses nearly every day as they race the lights at an accelerated speed where it is recommended to be 20 mph.

Another hazard at this junction is a riding school and stables in daily use right opposite. All the towns and villages from every direction will either come through this junction or through the village to shop. I dread to think what it would be like at Christmas. We already have a problem with speeding traffic that is a rat run from Cardiff and Cowbridge school at certain times of the day. The problems include HGV lorries that have been stuck in the lanes around the village and within the village. The ongoing developments in St Athan Village have been a constant hassle with lorries stuck in the lanes.

We are not ‘angry’, we are not ‘posh’, we are hard-working people who love our way of life. The village is tranquil most of the time. A pleasure to walk. The village pub is a stroll from Llantwit Major where many like to go for a meal, a drink and enjoy the events held in the summer months.
This all adds to the character of the village and a rural way of life that will be lost to the site of an industrial building like Lidl…totally out of context…against road safety and the wellbeing of both horses and riders at the school opposite.

Why do we have planning officers if their recommendations are ignored?

Janine Lee

Llanmaes

Lidl will be in the wrong place

MOST OF the villagers in Llanmaes don’t want any type of big supermarket at the entrance to their beautiful village.

The charm of the village is that it’s oldy worldly with no shops, just a little village pub and a church, no anti-social behaviour or traffic and It’s fabulous, generally only horses trotting though the little streets, or tractors from the farm!

The people in support of the supermarket don’t live in Llanmaes or understand or care about the charm it has and that charm is what attracted the residents to the village in the first place.
The Vale can clearly service a supermarket but not at the entrance to Llanmaes.

Chris Macnamara

Llanmaes

Extra traffic will harm Llanmaes

AS a resident in the village of Llanmaes for six years, driving and walking to and from the village on a daily basis, I feel well qualified to express concern about the appropriateness of the chosen site for a new Lidl store.

We have very limited paved footways through the village where there are numerous pinch points restricting traffic flow to a single vehicle width. The 20 mph is frequently ignored by traffic driving through. The regular traffic on the network of lanes comprises resident vehicles,  delivery traffic,  agricultural vehicles accessing the fields, horse riders, cyclists ( which at weekends includes numerous organised groups together with motorists using the lanes as short cuts towards the A48 and beyond.

I fear that the councillors who supported this application are very naive in thinking traffic to the store is not going to have a significant impact on both the village of Llanmaes and traffic using the traffic light junction. They also seem to be oblivious to the fact that road traffic accidents are bound to happen, with a risk of serious injury to pedestrians, cyclists, horse riders and drivers. 

Is ‘Cheap food’ worth this? Save a few £££ or save a life. 

Beth Pocock

Llanmaes

Llanmaes lacks the infrastructure to support Lidl

I AM writing to express my disappointment regarding the recent approval for the construction of a new Lidl store within our village.

While I recognize the potential benefits such a development could bring, including job creation and local shopping options, the decision has not adequately considered the detrimental impact on traffic through the village and is in the wrong location in my opinion.

Our community already struggles with congestion, particularly during peak hours. The narrow roads and limited infrastructure are ill-equipped to handle the inevitable increase in traffic this store will generate. Deliveries from large vehicles, combined with an influx of shoppers, will exacerbate existing issues, creating safety concerns for pedestrians and cyclists, especially schoolchildren who regularly travel along these routes.

Despite objections raised by local residents, it seems these valid concerns have been overlooked. This decision appears short-sighted, prioritising commercial development over the quality of life and safety of the community.

I urge the council to reconsider this decision and take immediate steps to address the traffic concerns. Whether through improved infrastructure or alternative plans, it is essential that our village’s needs are prioritized before irreversible harm is done. I hope you will take our concerns seriously.

Rik Stevens

Llanmaes

Llanmaes residents have been let down

I WOULD like to respond to the article regarding the Lidl development in Llanmaes. 

My first point is that Llanmaes residences are not against a Lidl in the area but not in this location (in the village of Llanmaes). There are other sites available that do not impact on a rural location, and would be safer with regards to traffic danger. 

Next – why was the planning officer’s recommendation ignored? I also feel that voting in the meeting was weighted as to appease the local Llantwit community with regards to the development on the old Eagleswell school site. A truly political move. Disgraceful.  

If residents of Llantwit are in favour of a supermarket development, then surely it should be built in Llantwit not Llanmaes village? As Cllr Smith stated: “It is especially unfair that the proposal apparently hinged on the support of people from larger settlements and not those within our community”. It’s like saying that I could have a vote about something that didn’t affect me. Madness. 

I would like to end with the facts that I am not in favour of the development of Lidl in Llanmaes for so many reasons. It is an unsafe location, it is a small village, it will have huge impact on the environment by causing light noise pollution etc. And it is so unfair, Llanmaes residents have not been represented properly by some of their local council representatives. 

Sue Stevens

Llanmaes

There are more suitable sites for Lidl

THE location of the planned Lidl store is completely wrong. Contrary to popular belief and application the site is in Llanmaes and not Llantwit Major.

The entrance to the village of Llanmaes is very narrow with, in some areas only passing places. I live in Llanmaes and each time I enter the village from the direction of the traffic lights I often have to stop to allow traffic to pass.

The planned entrance to the Lidl store is immediately opposite a horse riding stables. Children walk this area to and from school where there is only a path on one side of the road. There have already been several accidents on this busy main road junction.  

There are other more suitable sites which Lidl should have considered just a few hundred yards away just off the Northern Access Road which would serve the wider community of the ever-growing St. Athan and Llantwit Major with much safer access 

Jackie Wright

Llanmaes

Thursday 9th January 2025

New Lidl store is in the wrong place

I WRITE concerning the granting of planning permission to Lidl for a new store near Llanmaes.

When the by-pass was built, the people of Llantwit were told that there would be no building beyond that road. Lidl is beyond the road.

We don’t mind another shop to service the population but not there. It is directly off a traffic signal junction. Llanmaes has been voted village of the year in the past and this extra traffic will spoil that. There are other places to put a new store.

The ring road put in for Aston Martin has plenty of space. This is another time when the council is not listening to the people.

J Lucas

Llantwit Major

Student Debt

I DON’T know where Paul Blanchard obtained his figures (Letters, 26th December) but according to the Welsh and UK Governments’ own data, overall student debt currently totals £9.3bn in Wales and £236bn in England, and not the £1.6tn as claimed.

In return for this investment in our young people, our country produces well-educated individuals who go on to become the innovators, doctors, lawyers, surgeons and decision-makers, etc, of the future.

The alternative is to see this nation import even more of this talent from overseas, a prospect that many in our society find unappealing.

Geraint Davies,

Treoes.

Deaf Government?

IT WAS odd to read Ade Pitman’s claim in this paper’s 12th December edition that our governments aren’t listening when we’ve only recently had a general election, surely the foremost time when political power is in the hands of the people?

Last July, the new UK Government was entrusted to deal with matters of state in its own way by the UK electorate. As individuals we may disagree with one policy or another, but the people have already spoken and they opted for change. Contrary to Ade Pitman’s belief, the petition to call a new election has indeed been listened to and will be debated in January.

The same can be said of Welsh Government policies referred to in the same letter — both the 20mph default residential speed limit and the visitor levy were election pledges, were voted upon in the 2021 election and were also opened to public consultation. To claim Cardiff Bay isn’t listening is to ignore these facts.

Similarly, in response to Paul Blanchard’s letter in the same edition, our parliamentarians and governments are elected to deal with matters of state as they see fit. We possess a trustee model of representation here in Wales and the UK, where our representatives are free to exercise their own judgement over matters for which they’re responsible. Should we wish to change this, we must prepare ourselves to fundamentally alter the way we do politics in this country.

G Davies

Treoes

Scrap HS2 and build ‘care villages’

THERE will four things occurring in four years. 

The new series of Dai and Blodwyn will be on BBC Wales. HS2 will be finished. A Public Inquiry will be opened as to why HS2 costs the same to build half of it as was forecast to build the full route. Lastly, Labour’s four-year investigation into ‘Care For the Elderly’ will materialise – having cost millions of pounds. This will be just in time for the run up to the election. 

There could be a simple solution. Postpone HS2 now. Nobody will know and nobody, more than likely, will care. 

Use the money saved and the building prowess and build care facilities needed now – not just in four years. 

Care homes should not be small and inefficient – they should be purpose-built care villages. There will be economies of scale where green energy is available. There could be shops and entertainment on the same site. A small hospital, rail links and accommodation for staff on call etc. 

The whole thing should be built and run by the government of the day. Care homes today are run by entrepreneurs who rake in tax payers’ money and make a good return. The new villages could be anywhere if they have good transport links for the rare occasion that relatives visit. Training could be carried out on site. 

This is not brain surgery and any investment will be quickly returned by the economies of scale. An individual in a small care home these days could be costing the government £1,500 a week. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 12th December 2024

Llanmaes will be changed forever

THERE has been much discussion on social media recently about the pros and cons of Lidl opening a store on the edge of Llanmaes.

As a Llanmaes resident, I would like to share some of the comments made by one correspondent, who chose to remain anonymous. In my opinion, it gives an unbiased view of the situation:

Llanmaes Village will be facing many challenges after hearing the news the land adjacent to it has been granted planning permission for a Lidl. They were never against a Lidl…just where it was to be located. It is also understandable Llantwit Major wants this…it’s hard times.

The Eagleswell  fiasco has heightened everyone’s emotions. It was a devasting defeat, after a long hard campaign. The residents of Llanmaes have made the same sacrifices as they all did. They have gone through all the motions legally and without fuss but have mostly been ignored by Lidl and the land owners.

Llanmaes residents were not included in the leaflet drops, not given the respect of being part of the decision overall. Outnumbered and left to stand alone.
They are ordinary people, living ordinary lives, working hard to accumulate what they have.
No one has been born with a silver spoon in their mouths. Just ordinary people who love where they live in rural peace.
To say they are devastated is beyond words. They will suffer while the supermarket is being built. Watching the green fields disappear.
Yes, I say fields…as the land-owners own the land around the village on that side.

The village runs down from the site and you may be surprised to know that many of the houses in Llanmaes will see it on their horizon every day. They naturally believed that the by-pass acted as a boundary that kept Llantwit from merging into the village.

Jackie Wright

Llanmaes

Have you seen Colin the St Bernard?

PLEASE, please, please help.

A much-loved therapy St Bernard dog called Colin was cruelly stolen from his distraught family four weeks ago.

While taking an unplanned adventure (digging under a fence) in Brynna (near Pencoed) the huge four-year old character had his airtag removed and has since disappeared off the planet …. not one confirmed sighting!

His face has now been shared the length and breadth of Great Britain. Over 50k people are wanting him home and even shared overseas to France and America. Despite there being a substantial reward and a dedicated social media site (headed by Nicola Round of Missing DOGS TEAM WALES). He is still unbelievably invisible.

Please help us keep him at the forefront of everyone’s mind.

Sharon Williams 

Are councillors’ allowances immune from cuts?

IN the Glamorgan Star dated 28th November, I read with interest the Vale Council’s attempt to explain away the drastic cuts to local services in the Vale, blaming those cuts on an unprecedented budget funding reduction from the pot of money supplied to the Senedd by Westminster.

The leader of the council, Cllr Lis Burnett, said, and I quote, “there is no disguising the fact that the council remains in an extremely challenging financial position” unquote.

On turning the page, I read that the annual fundraising ‘Carols in the Park’ Christmas concert has been cancelled due to the funding from the Vale Council being stopped. This concert raised a lot of money for under-privileged families in the Vale at a financially difficult time, which Christmas is for a lot of families.

Upon turning the page again, I then read that the Vale Council Advisory Committee has approved the recommendation of an inflation busting pay award of 5.9% for councillors.

This recommendation will be put to the full council for rejection or approval and it would be totally inappropriate to pre judge the outcome of that vote. However, the residents of the Vale can look forward to the New Year with trepidation, in the expectation of a council tax rise of inflation plus 3% whilst the Vale Councillors vote on the recommendation to accept their above inflation pay rise.

CT Webb

Cardiff 

Planners must take note of what people actually want

FOR heaven’s sake, when are those who make decisions on our behalf going to put their sensible heads on, and start to do things that we common folk want?

I read (Glamorgan Star, 12th December) that a much-needed, good-sized supermarket was likely to be refused outside Llantwit because of the effect it would have on the countryside. I see my much-loved village of St Athan losing much of its green areas to new estates, looking to turn us into a dormitory town, to all intents and purposes.

I recall Alun Cairns once saying that the Vale Council would be happy to fill every little green space around Vale villages before they would even look at potential brown field sites. 

What we need is a champion who can stand up to the Vale Council, and make them turn their attention to alternative locations, in particular the old airfield site of Llandow. (Anything built there would surely improve the appearance of the countryside, and a new, much-needed conurbation, with all necessary infrastructure, would no doubt include the much-needed supermarket).

So – come on Reform, can you hear me, please take up this cause on behalf of us little folk, and I`ll bet that the feedback you receive would be well translated into votes for you at both country and council level.

Power to the people, not those bureaucrats in their ivory towers.

AF Wadner

St Athan

Balance the books by thinking outside the box

OUR Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, has repeatedly stated that there is a black hole equivalent to £22 billion, which has recently been hoicked to over £40 billion. Sounds like another HS2.

Innovative solutions are required and there is a huge reserve of debt that could be tapped. Student loan debt is now at an unbelievable £1.6 trillion. That is a £million £million. Why not give the relations of the many students who owe this money the opportunity to completely clear this debt for their sons, daughters, grandchildren etc at a discount. Perhaps 50% or higher.

The reality is that this debt will be written off after a set period by the government as irrecoverable. If somebody who owes a student debt keeps their income below a certain level, they will never be required to pay any money back to the government. A glass ceiling.

Somebody who wants to advance and earn more money to buy a house and start a family is therefore restricted if they want to avoid starting to pay off that debt (on average £40K).

Of course, not every family will be able to do this but even if a small proportion agree, the amount of money will enable this government to possibly balance the books in a more acceptable way.

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thanks from Barnardo’s

STARS shine brightest in the dark and here at Barnardo’s we have seen many of the families we support facing dark and difficult times this year.

But Christmas is a season of celebration and there is no better time for us to thank our Barnardo’s stars – the people who have helped shine a light through 2024 by supporting us in the work we do with children and families across Wales.

We have the most dedicated volunteers who help keep our shops running seven days a week, allowing us to raise the money we need to run services to support people when they need us most.

Thanks to the young people, still in their teens, who help us as part of their Duke of Edinburgh Award and to our older volunteers, many of whom have been manning our tills or helping behind the scenes for many years.

Thanks to everyone who got up in the dark and pounded the pavements whatever the weather, training for the Cardiff Half, the London Marathon and other challenges, raising money we depend on.

 Thanks to everyone who gave generously to our emergency appeal which allowed us to provide some of Wales’ poorest families with essentials such as beds and bedding, food and help with heating. Our frontline workers have never seen such levels of poverty before, but our emergency fund has allowed us to help many in critical need.

Thanks to the huge numbers of people who have donated gifts this Christmas. As one dad told us, “I’ve told my older boys there will be no presents this year but how do you tell a five-year-old that Santa isn’t coming?” Thanks to you, he doesn’t have to.

Finally, thanks to our amazing staff who help change childhoods and change lives every day.

Sarah Crawley,

Director, Barnardo’s Cymru

Thursday 28th November 2024

Farmers say ‘thank you’ to supporters

FOLLOWING numerous references to the budget announcement, where changes to Inheritance Tax relief and Business Property Relief have featured in many articles, in late November farmers headed to London.

Many of us met with MPs, a delegation of Glamorgan NFU Cymru members met with Bridgend MP Chris Elmore in Church House. We were able to detail the impact the changes will have on all our farming businesses. We remain firm in the view that the effect will be felt far wider than the Treasury figures suggest, and other changes proposed on double cab pickups and carbon tax plans.

However, at this point in time, I would like to thank the public for their continued support. I know many rural businesses and communities rely on a profitable farming sector, but consumer support for all the industry is vital. Thank you to everyone who went to London, those who have signed the NFU petition, the MPs who have met with us – we appreciate the support.

As we turn to Christmas, I hope everyone buys Welsh/British produce to spur us on as we continue this battle.

Tom Rees

Glamorgan County Chair and NFU Cymru Council Delegate  

Labour is failing Wales

TWO articles stood out to me in the Thursday, 28th November edition of the Glamorgan Star, both linked to how Labour is failing us.

With almost a million signatures now calling for a fresh election, due to Labour having done many things that they hadn’t mentioned in their manifesto – like cutting pensioner’s winter fuel payments, I would have expected our MP to have commented on the petition.

Perhaps we have this to look forward to, or perhaps just like the petition to the Senedd against the 20mph debacle in Wales, our MP knows that this too will be ignored.

Ignoring the electorate is something that the Labour controlled Senedd do well. Perhaps it is the only thing that they do well, as Mark Drakeford, famous for keeping Wales in Covid lockdown longer than in England, defends the proposed ‘Tourist Tax’ as a ‘Modest measure’.

Not content with destroying steel making in Wales, his party now wants to destroy one of the last industries in Wales. Tourism. Yes; Dubai has a tourist tax. But Wales is not Dubai, and England has many comparably beautiful places to visit where people won’t have to pay a tax to stay there.

As has already been mentioned, I am naive, but could someone please explain to me just what the Labour party have against small businesses such as those people who earn their living in the tourist industry, and our farmers?

Thankfully, it’s only two years until the Senedd elections, when we have a chance of saving what’s left of Wales from Labour.

Ade Pitman

Barry

Councillors are looking after their own interests

THE Vale Council has set out the budget difficulties it is having and is looking at ways to bridge the gap in its finances.

One of the ways it could and should have done was to refuse to award councillors an inflation-busting pay rise and had the decency to accept a rise in line with current inflation.

It does not convince us – the council tax-payers – that councillors have our best interests at heart, but only their own when difficulties occur.

I wonder what they will do when the next council tax bill is decided?

Malcolm Hopkins

Cowbridge

Christmas appeal can make a real difference

WITH Christmas just around the corner, I would like to invite local businesses, residents and organisations to help spread some festive cheer by supporting a scheme which seeks to provide vulnerable people with a full Christmas dinner, treats and gifts.

Last year, volunteers working out of Talbot Community Centre in Kenfig Hill were able to support more than 750 vulnerable people located all around Bridgend county borough.

Working as a team, we cooked and prepared a traditional Christmas dinner with all the trimmings, and distributed it along with a range of presents and festive treats.

The people we support come from all kinds of backgrounds and include impoverished children and young people, families struggling to make ends meet during the cost of living crisis, elderly residents, people living alone, refugees whose homes have become a warzone, and more.

Our appeal for 2024 has already had a strong response, and we hope to be able to help even more vulnerable people, and ensure that everyone in Bridgend county borough can enjoy a very merry Christmas.

Donations of food, produce, gifts or money will all be gratefully received, and I am happy to provide more details – email or call me on 07508 643052.

Cllr Jane Gebbie

Deputy Leader

Bridgend County Borough Council

Many thanks to Cowbridge good Samaritans

I WOULD like to say a big ‘thank you to the lovely people who stopped to help when I fell in Cowbridge three weeks ago.

Two ladies, plus a couple in a car, came to my aid. Also, thank you to the lady in Square Spots who allowed one of her chairs for me to sit on.

 I still have a sore knee, but otherwise I am fine.

Diane Cope

Llantwit Major

We need a referendum to decide important issues

THE latest vote for Assisted Dying in Parliament – like the Brexit vote – is a vote for the people.

MPs should always listen to the people and not make decisions for themselves. The UK is a democracy and MPs should always vote with the people. Listening to the House of Commons debate, this is not always the case and they bring their own person opinions to the fore. Individual stories of people who have lived through pain and suffering are not necessarily what happens in this country.

Palliative care services do not exist as they should. The one story that stuck in my mind was the person who said that as long as she knew she could ask for assisted dying at some time in her life, she could live better until that time came.

There is now an opportunity to have another vote for another of the people’s outstanding huge issues. The death penalty. 

Who will be the MP who raises that Private Members Bill? Putting murderers, especially the most heinous, behind bars for 20 to 25 years, costing the hard-working tax payers hundreds of thousands of pounds is a conundrum that politicians have avoided for decades.

There will be twice the number of protestors outside Parliament if that ever comes about, so simply put it to a referendum.

Paul Blanchard

Barry

The Vale needs to plan for heavy rain events

STORM Darragh coincided with the end of the Vale Council consultation on its ‘Corporate Strategy’ 2025 to 2030.

Fortunately, the Vale escaped the worst of the rain and winds. The storm still showed the Council to inhabit a fantasy world in proposing a ‘New Objective on respecting and celebrating our environment’. 

The Welsh Government has issued the ‘Climate Adaptation Strategy for Wales’  which requires a programme to adapt to changing climate; it changes priorities for responding to the climate emergency. While the Corporate Plan distracts with “net zero” talk, “adaptation” is vital for facing up to the Climate Emergency.

Adaptation requires action to abate flooding from increasingly intense storms, including tackling rainstorm run-off into the River Cadoxton, that has worsened mainly from recent house-building run-off flooding homes in Dinas Powys.  Plans have to include storage ponds and floodable fields to hold back stormwater. ie ‘living with water’ was argued by a planning consultant at the Welsh Government’s recent conference.

The council has to plan to retrofit surface water drainage into older housing areas, where highways and roofs drain to sewers that lock during intense rainstorms. Welsh Water asked for highways drainage to be disconnected from the sewer and retrofitting surface water drains is urgent with homes at risk of being flooded.

In their 2023 report ‘Health impact Assessment of changing climate’, Public Health Wales stressed building community resilience to flooding events and helping the elderly and vulnerable cope with heat waves, which already cause excess deaths. Increased tree canopy is needed to counter urban heating as well as for shading, yet the council has been removing street trees, refusing to replant any. A decade or more going backwards needs reversing.

The Corporate Plan shows no awareness that the Climate and Nature emergencies are serious. Unless our councillors revolt.

Max Wallis   

Friends of the Earth, Barry&Vale

Thursday 14th November 2024

Remembering Porthcawl’s marine tragedy

RECENTLY, members and friends of the Porthcawl Shout Forum gathered at Rest Bay to dedicate their seven ton Portland stone memorial to the crew of the cargo ship SS Samtampa and the RNLI volunteers on the Mumbles Lifeboat, Edward Prince of Wales.   

I would like to thank everyone who attended on the day and to express our gratitude to the generosity of our various benefactors who have supported this 10-year project and made the day possible.

The memorial marks a tragic event which took place on Porthcawl’s coast, just a mile or two from the town. On the afternoon of Wednesday, 23 April, 1947, the cargo ship SS Samtampa, with a crew of 39, was in transit to Newport with no cargo and only 182 tons of ballast. It was high in the water, which made the ship hard to control in a gale.                                                                                                                           

It was trapped in a raging hurricane-force storm and was smashed into three pieces on Sker Rocks.                                                                                                                    

The Mumbles Lifeboat, with a crew of eight, attempted a rescue which proved impossible and both crews perished. This new memorial honours those 47 incredibly brave men and boys who were all lost to the cruel sea.

It was a bitter irony that many of these men had survived World War Two – only to perish on the south Wales coast.

It should also be mentioned that there is a memorial plaque on the rocks at Sker, close to the site of the tragedy. However, it is not easy to find and access to it is impossible for all but the most sure-footed. This memorial will remind all visitors to Rest Bay about that fateful day in April, 1947.

Gary Victor

Porthcawl Shout Forum.

NHS needs to work smarter

WHEN people get old it is often the case that they have more disposable income. It is also the case that their bodies start to develop issues. Hips. Knees. Eyes. 

What to do with this spare cash, this is where the above elements come together? 

Private operations cost an absolute fortune. £15-£20k is not out of the question for replacement joints. This is wasted money to have something carried out that realistically a caring and responsibly managed country should do free of charge and quickly. To the relieved people who have stumped up this money, no it is not. 

What could this money have been otherwise been used for? Deposit for a house for grandchildren. Possibly fund a more manageable home. Money like this is hard earned and to see it finance the surgeon’s new car is wrong especially as that surgeon’s day job is in the NHS. 

Would it not be best to rethink healthcare, encourage the very young worker to invest in medical insurance or find a way to use NHS resources in a better way. 

The waiting lists in this country will never go away. As the NHS catches up, there are more people getting older and bits failing, joining the back of the queue. 

Working smarter not harder. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 14th November 2024

Will £50 million make a difference?

I READ with interest (Glamorgan Star, 17th October) that the Vale Council estimates that it will take £50 million to alter its buildings and achieve its target of carbon neutrality by 2030.

This is a very noble target and we all need to play our part in the climate crisis. But have they specified what difference it will make to the overall Vale, Wales and UK carbon footprints.

Is the contribution significant, or minimal? And have they published what services will not benefit from this £50 million over the next six years, over £8 million a year. Why are they afraid to carry out and publish a proper cost benefit analysis? 

Alan Jones

Wenvoe

Is air freight from China good news for Wales?

AFTER reading the recent Cardiff Airport story in the Glamorgan Star (17th October) I question some of the claims made by the airport commercial director Spencer Binns.

The airport has launched its first cargo service since 2010, carrying freight between south Wales and China.

He is trying to suggest this is an export operation from Wales to China. I believe the reverse is the case.

It is “vitally important” that Cardiff Airport makes money from new sources, not just passenger flights, Mr Birns has said.

Each flight is expected to carry around 70 tonnes of goods. Based on four flights a week, operator European Cargo said this would see around 1,000 tonnes a month. 

The aircraft are empty on the outbound flight to China but full on return to Cardiff. With more flights added over time, that level could double.

These are all imports, not exports. I believe the majority will be goods from Shein and Temu which are sold online in the UK and mailed from warehouses in the Midlands

These flights are coming from Urumqi airport in an area of very poor human rights conditions. Xinjiang is a mostly desert region and produces about a fifth of the world’s cotton. Human rights groups have voiced concerns that much of that cotton export is picked by forced labour.

The call comes in the aftermath of a BBC investigation. China has been accused of forcing hundreds of thousands of Uighurs and other minorities into slavery.

UK businesses must investigate where they get their cotton to avoid buying material grown by slave labour, according to a member of an influential parliamentary committee.

US officials have said Chinese authorities have established labour camps for Uyghurs and other Muslim minority groups in Xinjiang. Beijing denies any abuses.

Before spending another £200 million on the airport, Welsh Transport Minister Ken Skates should investigate what is being imported and where it is manufactured.

Mike Flynn

Formerly of Llantwit Major

Good to see Cardiff Airport recovering

I AM writing in response to the letter from Michael Gray in the Glamorgan Star (31st October}.

I for one will not be writing to my MP or MS objecting to cargo flights from Cardiff Airport. In fact, I am very pleased that Cardiff Airport seems to be getting back on its feet after Covid. 

I have lived in Cowbridge for 50 years and in its heyday, flights were going over frequently and I was pleased to think our national airport was being used. There have been critics over the past few years, saying the airport is a white elephant, now the airport has a new cargo contract, a minority are whining about the noise.

I for one wish Cardiff airport all the best with their new contract and look forward to new and upcoming destinations.

I will fly from Cardiff every time and refuse to go to Bristol.

Jan Ferris

Cowbridge  

Flood planning in the Vale will not work

THE Deputy First Minister with responsibility for Climate Change, Huw Irranca-Davies, opened the Wales Climate Week online conference with an address entitled “Adapting to our Changing Climate”.

He talked about extreme weather conditions – winter rainfall rising by seven percent and tropically heavy rain in summertime. Catchment management working-with-nature is required from all partners – including local authorities. 

We know from building a carpark on the slope below Llandough hospital, with attenuation tanks holding rainfall run-off for half an hour, gives a pulse of storm-water down the stream – that flooded the main road at the Murch junction. It swelled the River Cadoxton and worsened flooding at over 100 downstream Dinas Powys homes in December 2020. That flood was mild compared to the 1:100 flood that the council has to plan for.

The council’s RLDP allocated the nearby green fields sloping down to the East brook for housing, so developer Persimmons have produced a plan to take water into drainage ditches down to the brook. They will include attenuation ponds to delay stormwater from roofs and roadways for half an hour – quite useless for rainstorms lasting a few hours.

The Minister said they’re putting £75 million this year into flood schemes for 4,000 to 5,000 properties. Your last issue of the Glamorgan Star reported nearly 5,000 homes are a risk of fluvial flooding in the Vale alone. The RLDP mentions but dismisses the issue.  Mitigating flood risk, let alone “adapting” to climate change doesn’t enter its thinking.  The conference was told to expect wetter winters and heavier peak rainstorms; land management has to make space for water.

The buzzwords “adaptive habitat management” are obvious for the farmland and woodland on the Eastbrook hillside. The Minister said local authorities have to work with Natioal Resources Wales ((NRW) on nature-based solutions; NRW previously promised Dinas Powys a nature-based solution to the River Cadoxton floods. Yet the RLDP and Eastbrook shows the growth-focused Vale Council is far from switched on.

Max Wallis 

Friends of the Earth Barry&Vale

Why do road repairs take so long?

THERE is an old expression ‘wrapped around your finger’. The road maintenance companies seem to have this power over local councils and governments.

When a contract is issued by a council to a contractor such as the pedestrian islands on Ffordd Y Mileniwm in Barry, it is a money issue only. Whoever wins the contract and how they carry it out is up to that winner. 

Three pedestrian islands are to be changed to a new specification. As a regular visitor in that area, the two months/60 days seemed an eternity. The problem with the contractors having the control is that they chose to do one traffic island at a time. The maximum number of workers on site each day seems to be three. It does not take anyone with a modicum of intelligence that this was a job that was expanded to fill the allocated time. 

The council is continuing to carry out this kind of work on pavements throughout the Vale. It must be difficult to balance the books when all this money is being flushed away. I hope people can spot the difference and the justification of such work. I cannot.

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 31st October 2024

Welsh Tories need new leadership

IT IS no secret that we at Abolish want to get rid of the Welsh Assembly/Senedd as we do not believe it benefits the people of Wales.

This is supported by 25 years of abject failure, with devolution damaging the economic and social wellbeing of our citizens.

It now appears a number of aspiring young Conservative Party Leaders hold a similar view. We have known for years that the majority of Welsh Conservative members also want the Senedd Abolished.

Its time the Old Conservative Leadership is thrown out and the new wave of patriotic pro UK future leaders are elected to their positions instead.

We would like to see the same happen with the other major political parties too but won’t hold our breath.

There are too many politicians with noses in the Senedd trough for the old guard to abandon what has been for them and their families a self-enrichment scheme.

In two years, we will have 128 MPs/MS’s doing the same work that 40 MPs used to do before the devolution madness infected the body politic.

It’s sad to see that the Reform Party also wish to join the same enrichment programme by supporting the Senedd when they know it’s a failed institution, repeatedly damaging the interests and future of those living in Wales.

Why have two rubbish governments when one is more than enough?

Richard Suchorzewski

Abolish The Welsh Assembly Party

Airport’s cargo flights are not good news

VALE of Glamorgan residents should not be pleased at Cardiff Airport’s attraction of European Cargo flights to and from China. 

The company said that the airport’s ’24-hour operating model’ was a factor in its decision. Do we want night flights of freight aircraft over the Vale?  This is not for the benefit of local residents.

The 24-hour operating license is a relic from the airport’s military history and should have been withdrawn years ago.

Write to your MS and MP and object now.

Michael Gray.

Cowbridge.

Temporary traffic lights caused chaos

THERE was traffic chaos in Barry on Sunday, 27 October, at the ASDA temporary lights.

Just one or two officers would have quickly cleared the lines but obviously this is not the role of the 21st Century officer. 

This junction, over the last few weeks, has seen a regular buildup of traffic but the sun was shining and everybody came out. The contractors, given two months to do the job, left such a convoluted system on Friday that a log jam was inevitable. 

Whoever is responsible in The Vale Council, Welsh Government or some other body should not just give the responsibility to the contractors. Quite frankly, it looked like they did not care. 

There is another month of work left and this will continue to happen when the sun come out on the weekend. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 17th October 2024

Credit must go to walking festival organiser

I WOULD like to thank Jane Hutt for her wonderful tribute to the Valeways Walking Festival in the Glamorgan Star (3rd October).

It certainly was a wonderful effort by all concerned, but could I just put the record straight by pointing out that the one name missing from the list of trustees was Paul Hawkins, who, as always with the festival, deserved most of the credit.

Thanks again, Paul.

Peter Weston,

Chair of Trustees, Valeways.

MP’s priorities should be the Vale

I HAVE been called many things over the years, but ‘naive’ is possibly one of the nicest, and for this I would like to thank Mr Bowdler (his letter, 3 October, Glamorgan Star.)

It is indeed commendable of him to feel that he needs to stick up for our new MP, rather than them actually commenting themselves, or informing us plebs of what they are doing on our behalf.

Indeed, Mr Bowldler appears to suggest that other things must take far higher priority for our new MP, such as attending the Labour Party Conference where delegates voted to reverse the cutting of the Winter Fuel Allowance for pensioners – but were ignored. Being elected to his job in July, holidays for our new MP also seem to take priority in Mr Bowdler’s eyes, although for myself this is simply a matter of seeking value for money from our tax payer funded MP. Of that, I see little evidence.

One policy of Lab-Con is the giving away the British Overseas Possession of the strategically important ‘Chagos Islands’. The policy having been started by the Tories and completed by this Labour Government in record time. When Mr Bowdler accuses anyone of naivety, I wonder how he views the effects of this on the World stage, as Spain eyes up a return of Gibraltar and Argentina renews its claim on the Falklands Islands.

As time moves on there is much that I’m sure the voters of Glamorgan would like to know, such as how our invisible MP is going to protect the many pubs in ‘The Vale’ from Labour’s remorseless attack. Soon they will be forced to close earlier, and having a cigarette in a pub beer garden will be a crime.

Having not voted for any of the old parties, I have no ‘buyers’ remorse’. We simply need to educate voters that there is a new kid on the block, as we look forward to next month’s Reform Welsh Conference, where we will be planning a new and brighter future for Wales.

Ade Pitman

Barry

Finding work for those new Members of Senedd

BEFORE anybody in Wales knows it, there will be 36 more Members of Senedd – and they inevitably have to be paid.

With hangers-on, expenses etc this could cost £150 to £200k in the first year and who knows how much after. This means that there will be 36 more people to find roles for, or they could sit around the Senedd and surf the web.

Therefore, I suggest that the people of Wales get in touch with their own MS and make suggestions. My own contributions are quite boring, Chancellor, Foreign Secretary etc. But there are positions they may not have thought of:

1/ Chairperson of the New First Minister selection committee so they can plan for the next exit.

2/ Minister of Silly Walks who would be in charge of the next pavement/cycleway that is desperately needed.

3/ Minister for the review of new premises selection as the existing Senedd is simply not going to be big enough.

4/ Cardiff Airport minister (huge budget).

This list could be enhanced by contributions from the Welsh public who want value for money from their tax contributions.

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 5th September 2024

Glamorgan Star is a pleasure

I HAVE to say what a pleasure it is that we have the Glamorgan Star delivered to my place of work in Cardiff on Dumballs Road.

It’s very informative and well written (better than some top papers) and some cheery stories which we need – particularly this week about the Gavin & Stacey Christmas special being filmed. I follow Larry Lamb’s son in the Waitrose free newspaper and find it all interesting.

So, I was amused and pleased that Larry visited the Pizza place …great guy. And then you continued with the lovely story about the possible wedding keeping us waiting. Whoever wrote this piece ended it so lovely about us holding our breath! 

Well done team.

Lynne Gough 

Nurse Shire Hall care home 

BP retired Pensioner meetings

IT IS hard to believe that BP Chemicals ceased manufacturing at Barry almost 30 years ago. 

When it was working at its peak production it manufactured millions of tons of PVC and other petroleum by products. It employed more than 3,600 workers and was one of the largest job providers in Barry and Penarth for many years. 

The retired BP Pensioners have a regular get together every six weeks. They have a three-course lunch at several local venues throughout the year. If you are a retired BP worker and would like to meet up with old workmates to talk about the old times, why not join them? You can also bring your wife, partner or friend along with you. (Just like the Safety Dos in the Good Old Days). 

Last week they met at the Barry Masonic Hall for a buffet, followed by a Race Day Afternoon. It was a great success. Not only did they have some winners, but they also managed to raise £100 for Cancer Research.  If you’re interested in joining them, please send a letter asking for an application form to Elaine Bush, The BP Society, c/o BP Pension Fund, Administration Team, Chertsey Road, Sunbury-on-Thames, Middlesex, TW16 7LM.

Mike Cheeseman

Regional coordinator

First  Minister blames everyone – but herself

IT was interesting to note that at the first meeting of the new Welsh Government cabinet under the supervision of our new First Minister, Elenud Morgan, she immediately stated that the NHS in Wales needs immediate help.

She blamed everyone for the terrible state the NHS is in now, apart from the complete incompetence of the last Health Minister – Herself!

She led the NHS to the terrible state it is in now and cannot blame anyone but herself. As a reward for almost destroying the NHS, she has been promoted to First Minister. If she makes the same mess of running the country as she did of the NHS then there is a poor future for Wales.

Malcolm Hopkins

Cowbridge.

Hospice patients have given something back

AS we mark the end of organ donation awareness week, I want to highlight the crucial role and positive impact it has on individuals and communities, as well as being a final act of kindness.

As a palliative care doctor, patients often tell me they’d like to give something back as they approach the end of their life. And at the Marie Curie Hospice, Cardiff and the Vale, we have helped make that wish possible with more than 400 individuals benefitting from the decision many people under our care have made to donate their corneas after they die. 

Corneal transplants have the power to restore sight to people living with corneal diseases, injuries, and other visual impairments.

Despite the clear need, the number of available corneas often falls short of the demand. By raising awareness about corneal donation to our patients and their loved ones, we can encourage more individuals and families to consider this selfless act.

Corneal transplants are cost-effective and accessible. Each donation can help enhance lives for others. We would like to thank all our patients and their families who have selflessly decided to be donors.

Siwan Seaman

Marie Curie Cymru Medical Director

New MP needs time to settle in

I WAS interested to read the letter entitled ‘New MP is making a low profile start’ (September, page 4).

I was not only interested, but also saddened by the writer’s naivety. As I write this, the House of Commons has only sat for about six weeks since the General Election in July. After all, having a General Election in early July leaves very little time before the summer recess and the subsequent Party Conference season in the second half of September. I assume that, because members of the Cabinet were making pronouncements on a whole host of things during the holidays, the author of the letter thought that Parliament was sitting.

At the same time, with 330-plus new MPs to give maiden speeches, six weeks is not enough time for that number of people to make such a speech, or to take verbal part in any debates.

Whilst I would probably have as little trust in the Labour Party as the author of the letter referred to seems to have, I do feel that we must be realistic about timings and opportunities an MP – new or old – has, to get their ‘feet under the desk’.

Incidentally, I seem to remember that Alun Cairns didn’t give a maiden speech in the House until about six months after he was elected in 2010, and that his regular columns in various local newspapers took at least a further six months to appear.

Andrew Bowdler

Dinas Powys

Thank to Barry for a warm welcome

ON Saturday, 21st September, I took part in a wonderful event, ‘An Anthology of Authors’, at the Barry War Museum and Heritage Centre.

Along with other local writers, I’d been invited to go along with my novels to talk about them with members of the public attending and hopefully sell a few. Right from the start when we arrived to set out our tables, I was impressed by the friendliness of everyone involved.

What a gem this museum is! It’s bursting with so much information and memorabilia on Barry’s doorstep in Barry Island. My dual timeline novels are partially set during or just after World War Two so it seemed particularly fitting for the books to be surrounded by these wartime artefacts. The weather forecast for the day had been grim but although there were showers, by the afternoon the sun shone.

There was a real buzz in the building and passers-by were encouraged to join us. It was so good to talk to interested people, catch up with writer friends and meet new authors. Huge thanks to Glenn Booker and Rosemary Chaloner, of Barry at War Group, for such a warm welcome.

Jan Baynham

Cardiff

Thursday 19th September 2024

The (electric) future of road traffic

THERE will come a time when traffic noise will not exist anymore. 

The World will be electrically powered. 

There always is a downside. The countryside will be strewn with huge edifices to transport the power from where the wind is to where the electricity is needed. 

But one of the biggest is that the roads will be further churned up than they already are as electric vehicles are much heavier than their internal combustion engine equivalents.

It must also be considered that the death and injury toll will higher on pedestrians and cyclists. “I did not hear it coming” will be a common issue. Electric vehicles are also very quick off the mark – much, much faster than ICE vehicles. “I did not have a chance of getting out of the way”. 

So welcome to a new era of potential new issues to address – as long as the wind blows and the sun shines. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Stop fly tipping – look after our world

I HAVE been doing some early morning walks, about 20 minutes, around Pencoedtre Fields. 

It is lovely and quiet, but the peace is shattered by selfish people who fly tip. Why do people do it?  There is a chest of drawers in Edwards Street, plastic toys, paint pots and floor tiles and a settee in Dyfnallt Road. 

It makes the area look awful and threatens wildlife. Please stop fly tipping. Look after our world. Make an effort and take it to the tip or arrange for it to be picked up. 

Pam Hill,

Barry.

New MP is making a low profile start

ONE thing that I miss in your otherwise excellent local newspaper, is the regular update from our (former) MP, Alun Cairns telling us what he was doing for the people of the Vale of Glamorgan; this despite my not finding it in my heart to vote for any of the ‘old parties’.

Since having been parachuted in by Labour and voted into his job by the people of ‘The Vale’, information from our new Member of Parliament, Kanishka Narayan about his work on our behalf is noticeable by its absence.

I notice from the House of Commons website, that thus far our new MP has made no spoken contributions, nor submitted any written questions on our behalf. This is despite the basic annual salary of a Member of Parliament in the House of Commons being £91,346, plus expenses.

Noting also, that he was one of the many Labour MPs who voted to cut the Winter Fuel Allowance for pensioners, I would have least expected Mr Narayan to have taken the time to explain his actions to the many Vale pensioners who will now face some difficult choices during the coming winter.

Maybe our new MP was just too busy setting up his new office, and learning how to submit his expense claims? I look forwards to reading what he is doing on our behalf in future issues of the Glamorgan Star.

Ade Pitman

Barry

• Glamorgan Star note: We offer a monthly column to the elected Member of Senedd and to the Member of Parliament. Mr Narayan has expressed an interest in taking up this offer.

Thursday 5th September 2024

Wales has its own black holes

ONE of the first things any incoming Chancellor must try to do is identify black holes. 

This has quickly commenced and our Chancellor is well into her stride. May I suggest Cardiff Wales airport, which has been haemorrhaging huge sums of Welsh and English tax payers’ money – prompting a new plan to spend a further £200 million for an upgrade over the next few years. 

The solution? Sell the airport with a guarantee of the new owners maintaining it for ten years etc. The usual price for such a white elephant is £1.

Potentially the government could promise to build a link from the nearest railway station in the Bristol area to Bristol airport.

There are further savings that could be had for a Welsh organisation that does not seem to be working to the tax payers’ advantage. That particular organisation spent £34 million of tax payers’ money with only the anger of the Welsh motorist to show for it. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Barry’s Merchant Navy sacrifice must be remembered

TODAY (3rd September) I attended the Merchant Navy Day annual service to honour our Merchant Navy boys who were in the convoys during the Second World War.

I stood remembering some of the stories my father, Terry Holley, had told me about his experience in the convoys.

Like the story about being docked in North Africa, on a ship with a cargo of jerry cans filled with petrol for the Army, where he witnessed enemy planes flying in to bomb the ships in the harbour.

He was 21 years old and had been to sea for two years. On realising what was taking place, my father grabbed a young cabin boy’s hand and made him jump off the stern of the ship into the water before it was blown sky high.

The noise damaged the young boy’s ear drums and he went completely deaf.  Once they made it to dry land, they had to walk hundreds of miles across Africa to find a ship to bring them home.

The majority of the journey they made on foot, but did manage to acquire a couple of donkeys for part of it. They faced many hardships on their journey and were even chased by hundreds of starving cats!

They eventually made it to a distant port and found a troop ship full of wounded soldiers that brought them back home.

My father continued in the convoys until the end of the war, and in the Atlantic his ship was torpedoed!

He and his fellow survivors were in a lifeboat for a number of days before being picked up by a passing ship. He was torpedoed at least twice during the war. He saw many of his friends and ship mates blown up and die by his side, people who would never return to Barry.

He could never believe that he survived when so many great men were lost.

My father didn’t talk about it often, and I wish that I had written it all down when he was still here.

I was extremely proud to wear his medals, as a reminder of what has passed, and the sacrifices that the men of Barry and the rest of the Vale made, serving their country during the Second World War. 

We were also reminded today from Father Chris that 24 four years ago on 3 September, the first Merchant Navy Day was commemorated. It was on that same day 78 years before that the Second World War began and Britain went to war with Germany. It was the beginning of a conflict that was to last for six years. 

It was to see the loss of millions of tonnes of Merchant Marine shipping due to enemy action. It took only eight and a half hours for the British merchant ship, the liner SS Athenia, to become the first casualty of the war when she was torpedoed just west off Ireland with the loss of 128 souls. It was 13 days later, if research is correct, that the first casualty from the port of Barry was recorded as Master Mariner Charles Milne, aged 47, was lost when the merchant ship SS Bramden was sunk on 16 September 1939 . He was to be just one of the 62,933 merchant seamen, worldwide, who lost their lives between 1939 and 1945. 

They were courageous many times alongside their Royal Navy counterparts, in facing the extremes of weather and of course, the enemy. The losses were great, but the courage was greater, and during the conflict no ship ever left port undermanned or was delayed because of the lack of a full crew, and many of those who made up these crews came from the port of Barry.

As a consequence, the loss of life and the subsequent grief was great – 637 men and boys lost their lives. It is said not a street in Barry went unaffected by this loss. It shows too the courage of the families who grieved and lamented upon hearing the news that a son, brother, an uncle, a father had been lost. Ernest and Elsie Stiff of Cadoxton lost three sons, William, aged 19 in 1940, Charles, aged 16 in 1941 and Joseph, aged 21 in 1942. But without these men and boys the very way of life in this country may have been lost; we owe much to them and to those.

So today we gave thanks to those who gave the ultimate sacrifice during two world wars.

Janice Charles

Barry

Questions need to be asked about Senedd budget

Further to Marcus Stead’s article (page 10, Glamorgan Star, 22nd August) regarding ‘Staffing costs of Members of the Senedd’ I did a quick calculation of what the costs related to the increase in Welsh Government members would be.

I was surprised at the level of cost: 36 additional members at £72,057 (current salary level) = £2,594,052, considerably higher than any figures I have seen previously. To calculate total costs, one would need to add a sum for expenses they could claim, accommodation in Welsh Government buildings, additional civil servants to support them etc.

Your article shone a small light on the potential costs of expenses but, projecting forward, these will be considerably more.

Given the number of residents in Wales we would appear, based on current data, to be looking at a figure of 31,250 residents (of all ages) per Senedd member compared to a UK total of 103,076 residents per MP.

One wonders why nobody questions the total cost of the Senedd related to its budget.

David Ludlow

Barry

Cosmeston housing permission should be called in

THE Vale Council’s approval of 576 homes at Cosmeston is being “actively” considered for ‘call-in’ after an Inquiry by the new Planning Minister.

Call-in is needed not just because the poor planning report was hardly scrutinised and was pushed through by a solid Labour vote. Suspicions that the March approval was motivated by plans for the Vale Council to double as developer have proved true.

An Inquiry has to consider if the whole site is suitable for housing, with suitable accesses. The Council and Welsh Government now accept setting back development from the coast to secure the Wales Coastal Path for future decades and are still negotiating over how far to set back, as Welsh law requires no development on the coast. 

Welsh law also requires securing access during flooding episodes. The planning report said there was no flood-risk, despite the repeated flooding of Lavernock Road. Access for potential TfW tram-trains plus a Cosmeston station were likewise ignored.

Planning law required assessing the hazardous chemical risks, but this was incomplete so the hazards to future residents and the nearby Cosmeston/Sully Brook are unclear.  Planning law requires showing ‘biodiversity gain’ is feasible, yet planned removal of the coastal hedgerows and mature trees, to be notionally replaced by new planting, amounts to biodiversity loss.

Cosmeston’s medieval farmhouse was listed Grade II during the application. Yet the Vale Council ignored Welsh (CADW) policy that the “setting” of the farmhouse should be retained, saying the adjacent farm buildings could be demolished for modern building. ‘Community use’ of the farmhouse was prescribed, but no viable management and funding identified. It could obviously be linked to the Cosmeston medieval village, opposite over the Lavernock Road.  Yet the Vale Council plan does not enable this, nor did the council consult the community as required.  

The Welsh Government as applicant has specific responsibility to produce a viable plan for the Grade II historical building in its setting. 

Let’s hope the new Minister, Jayne Bryant, freezes the planning decision pending proper plans for the coastal and historical parts of the site, and space reserved for the possible metro-rail station and extension to Sully.

Max Wallis   

Penarth

Thursday 23rd August 2024

Pollution warnings in Barry are too bureaucratic

POLLUTION alerts are issued by Surfers Against Sewage, while Welsh Water have started publishing on-line when their discharges are active. RNLI lifeguards used such an alert to stop people bathing at Whitmore Bay on 18th May.

BarryVale FoE said that was wrong, because the supposed discharge was at Watchtower Bay.  Data shows discharges there (from the short Barry Town outfall) hardly affect bathing water at Whitmore Bay because of the local currents.

The Vale Council says the council has now agreed a protocol with RNLI covering use of alerts. It includes consulting a Vale officer. The Bathing Water Regulations say NRW sets up procedures for informing the public “whenever short-term pollution is predicted or present”. 

It seems that the council expects NRW to declare each short-term pollution incident like the major “abnormal situation” that was declared at Ogmore in May-June. That’s much too slow and bureaucratic.

Under the regulations, the Council has the duty to: ensure that notification that the bathing water is affected by short-term pollution is actively disseminated and promptly made available to the public during the bathing season in an easily accessible place in the near vicinity of the bathing water.

Discharges from the Barry Town sewer outfall are, of course, predicted to affect bathing water at Watchtower Bay. Welsh Water alerts of this occurring need to reach the public “promptly”.  

BarryVale FoE has asked for a hooter or flashing light, triggered by the alert from this outfall, to be set up at Watchtower Bay. Welsh Water could meet the cost. So let’s get on with it!

Max Wallis 

Friends of the Earth Barry&Vale

Stand with Ukraine

ON Saturday, 24th August, Ukrainians throughout the world celebrate their Independence Day. 

As a demonstration of our local solidarity and in recognition of Barry’s unique relationship with the people of Ukraine due to the work of the international reporter Gareth Jones, we will be organising a peaceful ‘We stand with Ukraine’ fundraising walk (all funds going towards supporting Ukrainian refugees).

Gareth Jones exposed the Soviet Union’s use of starvation against the Ukrainian people during the 1930s. The walk will start from his former home on Romilly Road and end at his grave in Barry’s Merthyr Dyfan Cemetery, where we will light a Ukrainian candle for peace.

We wish to demonstrate that the people of Barry have not forgotten the bravery of the Ukrainian people and will continue to stand with them during these difficult times.

The walk will take place on Saturday, 24th August, starting at 10.30am meeting at the junction of Romilly Road and Porthkerry Road. 

Bring along your Welsh and Ukrainian flags! If people cannot support the walk in person, then we hope they will donate by logging on to our fundraising page on bit.ly/4dMxhYI

Rob and Claire Curtis

Barry

Barry RBL dedicates a new Standard

THE Royal British Legion, Barry branch, would be delighted if local people could join us on Friday, 6th September, at 7pm (doors open 6.30pm) at All Saints Church in Barry, CF62 3NU, as branch lays up its old Standard and dedicates a new one.

We will also be dedicating our second book of Remembrance. We will hear from Dr Jonathan Hicks on his work to compile this full record of casualties from Barry who died as a result of the Second World War and all subsequent conflicts.

The evening will be rounded off by a second half concert from Barry Brass Band.

This is a free event with collection buckets on exit, for the Poppy Appeal. 

Teresa Goodwin 

Royal British Legion, Barry

Information needed on RAF Camp cinemas

I RECENTLY read your article concerning the planned demolition of the former RAF St Athan East Camp leisure complex, which includes the Astra cinema.

I agree with Mr Tim Brown’s comment that all of the much-needed facilities would benefit all concerned living in the area should they remain.

I am researching cinemas in the Vale and would be interested to know, via your newspaper, if any photographs and historical information about the Astra are available. I also understand that a cinema called the Athenia was once on West Camp, but I have been unable to find any information on this.

P Sutton,

Barry

• Glamorgan Star note: If you have any information for Mr Sutton, contact the editorial team here and we will put you in touch.

Thursday 8th August 2024:

Eagleswell housing a ‘fait accompli’

THE Vale Council Planning Committee, faced with a fait-accompli, had to approve the Eagleswell housing in Llantwit Major, despite having too many units crammed in and being over-close to adjacent homes.

It turns out that Ukrainian refugees do not require 90 units, the number officers told the Welsh Goverment in order to get the £24million funding. Never mind, they’ll use those extras for the homeless.

The Vale Council is hiding the details under the “confidential” exc se, but the bare figure of £270,000 per unit seems very high.  Standard figures for cost per unit of temporary social housing run around £7,000 per year, including management and services, and that would be £35,000 for the five years. 

They say the demountable units will be moved elsewhere and the committee requires a start to that well before five years are up. The costs of removal are not disclosed. The lives of the homeless people, with doctors, schools and friends, will be again disrupted in pretty short order after their spell at overcrowded Eagleswell.

The hopes of Llantwit people to use the old school and site for a health centre have been delayed for five years, despite the Health Board putting Llantwit in their forward plan for a ‘wellbeing hub’.  I would ask what’s the point of the ‘Llanwit First’ group joining Labour in coalition, with two members of the cabinet, when they get such a dreadful deal?

Max Wallis   

Penarth

Vale residents can be thoughtless

AS A grocery delivery driver, sometimes I am forced to follow council recycling vehicles until the road widens for me to pass and be on my way.

The operatives pick up nearly empty bags/glass containers and then place them back on the pavement. What is the point in putting two or three pieces of cardboard, five pieces of plastic or a glass bottle or two out for collection? It is not the best possible use of the operative’s time.

Would it not be better to ensure that residents of the Vale make it worthwhile for the operatives to collect their recycling by putting out their containers at least half full?

Productivity would improve and carbon emissions fall as the whole operation would be more efficient. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 24th July 2024:

MS has ‘rose-tinted spectacles’

GOOD to see Jane Hutt MS can quote statistics on the NHS in Wales (Glamorgan Star column, 11th July).

What she does not say is that it is in a state of good health itself. A few districts under “administrative measures” after huge budget overspends. Lucky they are not given credit cards. 

When this particular MS has finished with her pair of rose-tinted spectacles, maybe she can share them with people on the waiting lists. I am sure they will see their own particular predicament in a totally different light. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Senedd is failing NHS patients

I RECENTLY had a bad toothache and went along to my NHS dentist for help – only to find that that I was now not registered for NHS work and the dentist is not taking on any new NHS patients.

I explained that I was in considerable pain. The receptionist said that I could have a consultation now for £50 and a tooth extraction for £150 – a total of £200.

This is from a person whose pension is £830 a month and who has paid taxes for 50 years. Also, I know of a large number of people who had to pay thousands of pounds for knee and hip replacement because they cannot stand the pain and a five-year wait.

Well done Senedd.

George Gough

Cowbridge

Rise in parking charges will keep vulnerable at home

OUTRAGEOUS unfair parking charges in the Vale are preventing vulnerable people and those at risk of ill health and poor mental health from getting out and about. How can this greed and unreasonable charges be justified?

UK inflation rose at its peak at just under 8% this year. At the same time, the hourly charges at Vale of Glamorgan beaches rose a staggering 100%.

We all accept that those who are most at risk of ill health mental illness and obesity are those on low income or those on welfare benefits.

Welsh Government claims to be leading the way in initiatives aimed at addressing obesity, including a ban on meal deals, a ban on refills of fizzy drinks, and the cost of alcohol in supermarkets.

And yet, at the same time the Welsh Government permits local authorities to get away with what can only be described as day light robbery!

It is clearly obvious that a walk on the beach with the family pet or a walk with the grandchildren or a walk or a jog on the beach is a sound way to burn off calories, or simply to unwind or de-stress.

One must ask why the first hour is not free? This would encourage more vulnerable people and those with underlying health conditions to engage in physical activity. In any case, one must also ask how the 100% price increase overnight can be justified? Residents already pay for amenities within council tax charges and so how can a parking charge be justified?

Welsh Government need to look these kind of behaviours as it is this type of unfairness that is a part of the wider problem.

Martin W Jones MBE,MSc

Penllyne

Thursday 11th July 2024:

Will Wales follow UK’s lead?

THE people of the UK have given a bloody nose to the government recently.

The incumbent party were ousted after a period of what the people considered an unsatisfactory performance while in power. Next it is the turn of the people of Wales. Considering the performance of The Senedd, may we look forward to a similar bloody nose? I think not.

Could we in Wales look forward to a change? Better management? I think not. 

The people of Wales should think long and hard before they decide who will be in charge for the next five years and can Wales endure more of the same? 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

‘Boundary Commission’s review was independent’

IN The Glamorgan Star’s recent article covering the UK general election, ‘Who is on your ballot paper,’ the article stated  …“As the Senedd has expanded in numbers, it means that the number of Welsh MPs will be cut from 40 to 32.” This is factually inaccurate and totally misleading.

The 20% reduction in Wales MPs, from 40 to 32, is a direct result of recommendations by the UK Boundary Commission to the UK parliament and takes no account whatsoever of the sizes of the devolved governments or their needs.

Following the review, Norther Ireland retained its number of Westminster MPs (18), Scotland lost two MPs ( 59), Wales eight  MPs (32) whilst England gained a further 10 MPs ( 543).

With regards to the increase in Senedd members, a totally separate matter, this is long overdue if we are to properly hold our devolved government to account and ensure democracy works effectively.

The increase in Senedd members is less than originally recommended and proportionally will still leave the Senedd as the smallest of the devolved governments.

Irrespective of the size of The Senedd, the loss of Wales representation at Westminster though should gravely concern everyone who lives in Wales, as unfortunately we have seen all too often that what England votes for, the rest of The UK get.

Andrew Murphy

Colwinston

Glamorgan Star Note:

Philip Irwin writes: “I am perfectly happy to acknowledge that, in the course of explaining that the Parliamentary constituencies had changed, I used a phrase that suggested that the cut in the number of MPs was linked to the proposed increase in Members of Senedd. To be clear, the Boundary Commission had its own criteria, while the Senedd also made its own decision.”

St Athan leisure complex pre-dated Empire Games

I BELIEVE Ashley Preece is mistaken in saying the leisure complex at RAF St Athan was built for the 1958 Empire Games (Letters 27th June).

I remember going to the cinema with a lot of other youngsters on a Saturday morning before that. The athletics stadium on Flemingston Road was built for the games – and the athletics accommodation was in the RAF wooden huts adjoining it, opposite the main gates.

It’s more than likely that the site was chosen because of the facilities the RAF had to offer.

DH Williams,

St Athan

More daytime shows at the Memo?

I GET email updates from the Memorial Hall, Barry, about all manner of shows but they are mostly in the evenings.

Surely I am not the only one who would like to see more shows / cinema during the day, with hopefully reduced prices and in smaller rooms?

Have you heard the saying “If you build it, they will come?”

Pam Hill

Barry

Thursday 27th June 2024:

Burger King – town council’s views were ignored

AS Bridgend Town Council’s Planning Committee chairman for the past 12 years, I refer to your correspondent P Williams of Bridgend (Glamorgan Star, 13th June, Letters Page) concerning the new Burger King development near the A48 roundabout at Waterton, Bridgend.

None of this development situation is new, as it has been fully debated, and the outcomes reported in the local press over the last two years. In a nutshell Bridgend County Borough Council (BCBC) Planning and Bridgend Town Council Planning put up serious objections and refusals to the scheme.

However, a Welsh Government Inspector saw it differently, so it was the Welsh Government who approved it on appeal. So, any fire – and ire – should be directed at Cardiff Bay, not locally.

We put up all the specific objections that P Williams outlined – to no avail. Our views were ignored and trampled on by Welsh Government.

So, what’s new?

Cllr David Unwin,

Bridgend

Traffic should have been stopped for D-Day Service

QUITE by chance, on 6th June, I came across a Service in Cowbridge to mark the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings.

It was at the War Memorial in front of the Town Hall. I stopped and joined the large crowd that had gathered. I was appalled that the traffic had not been stopped for this very special occasion. Due to the traffic rumbling past, it was impossible to hear the Service, which only lasted for around 20 minutes.

If the traffic can be stopped for the Pride Parade, the Christmas Parade, The Remembrance Day Parade and the Mayor-making Service Parade, why was it not stopped for this?

The whole of Europe was taking part in some form of Remembrance. This was something that can never be replicated.

I was ashamed to be a resident of Cowbridge. On reflection, perhaps we should have blocked the road ourselves, which various protestors all over the country seem to be able to do with impunity.

C Davies

Cowbridge

Vale Council should stay away from Cosmeston development

DO NOT assume it’s a good thing for the Vale Council to take on housing development at Cosmeton (Glamorgan Star headline 13th June).

The council has no expertise in large scale housing development, let alone the near ‘zero carbon’ housing that they promise to build

It’s not just “concerns” from local people over the old landfills – asbestos and two serious chemicals were found. Cadmium, which the World Health Organisation specified must remain contained, and fluoranthene, which is top tier vPvT (very persistent and very toxic). The assessor admitted it is toxic but claimed not persistent, despite it persisting on the site since pre-1990.

The site is at flood-risk, the access roadway flooding every few years, the last time in 2020 to 0.3-0.5 metres deep. A drainage system can’t be built to drain into a flood-area. The Vale Council will be liable if they omit to disclose this unsolved flooding problem to their partners.

At the planning decision on 21 March, councillors present included some who were involved in (or knew of) the plan to take on the housing.  None of them declared their interest.  BarryVale FoE believe this is an offence under the Local Government Act.

There are several reasons why the plan for high density housing at Cosmeston is bad. It does not include a Cosmeston rail station with a metro line through to Sully. It does not include renewable energy from wind or tides, so cannot achieve net-zero over the winter. It damages the Wales Coastal Path, losing biodiverse hedgerows so it cannot achieve the biodiversity enhancement that the nature emergency demands,

Chemicals, flooding and hard realities will spell failure – if not disaster. There’s still time for the Vale Council to realise they can’t rely on their own planners but need to commission independent technical advice – as any ordinary purchasers would. Then pull out! 

Max Wallis

Friends of the Earth Barry&Vale

Devolved issues are nothing to do with this election

I EXPECT there are many people like me across the UK who will be glad to see 5 July when the General Election will be over after seeing our TV channels jammed up with election broadcasts and the many repeated answers throughout the long campaign.

Locally, we have heard from many candidates with their plans for the future and interesting comments to catch our vote which have nothing to do with their election to Westminster but which aim to swing our vote in their favour. One candidate is making big noises about the 20mph speed limit introduced by the Welsh Government – which has nothing to do with the UK election.

Of course, other devolved issues are mentioned like Education, Health and the NHS, Housing and Transport – to name a few – which again have nothing to do with Westminster but are controlled by the Welsh Government.

 I just hope that whoever wins on 4th July, that the newly-elected government provides the money which is owing to Wales and that all voters who go to the polls will understand when they vote to support the candidate who tells us the future aims of his party at Westminster and not those for which the Welsh Government are responsible. The voters will have their chance in 2026 to have their say on these services at the next Welsh Government election.

Gwyn John

Llantwit Major

Barry ‘Town Board’ lacks local voices

I AM not sure if the Barry community can differentiate between the £20m fund for the town centre or the £20m Levelling Up money for the marina as I, for one, was unaware that they were separate pots of money for this town. 

The one that interests me is the £20m endowment style fund, over 10 years, to invest in local people’s priorities for Barry.  The press release dated September 2023 clearly states that the long-term plan puts the funding in the hands of local people themselves, to invest in line with their priorities and it was clearly stated by that local people will be at the heart of any decisions through the direct membership of a new ‘Town Board’.

This board was to include community groups, MPs, businesses, cultural and sports organisations, public sector agencies and local authorities of each town. So, being interested in joining a community group, I looked into this and, 10 months down the line, it is my understanding the board has been agreed and it consists of four elected politicians, two people from the business community, a headteacher and a policeman. Members of Parliament are all part of the deal here but is there a need for three other politicians – and who are these people who are empowering the community? 

Where are the local people and the community groups that have been mentioned, as we do need local people’s priorities taken into account because I am not sure if the above members of Parliament, local politicians, policeman and a headteacher (which school?) actually live in the town?

Perhaps someone can enlighten me on how I go about joining this board, as I have seen nothing advertised for these positions?

Keith Lewis

Barry

St Athan is about to lose a community asset

I READ with interest the article by Marcus Stead in the Glamorgan Star, dated Thursday, 13th June, regarding the imminent demolition of the excellent sports facilities at the former RAF St Athan site, near Llantwit Major.

Having been posted to (the then) RAF St Athan in the late 1990s, I am very familiar with the gymnasium, swimming pool, medical centre and cinema at the camp.  I used to watch many movies in the cinema rather than having to travel to Cardiff, and played sports in the gymnasium when St Athan was a thriving camp that employed thousands of local civilians, as well as us RAF.

Indeed, more recently the gym has been regularly used by local young people in the region’s Air Training Corps for various events. It is certainly a little-known asset to the area that has much potential, particularly now that the camp is to be converted into one huge housing development.

Sadly, this is endemic of the lack of vision demonstrated by the Welsh Government.

The facility at the former RAF St Athan should be the nucleus of the development, giving the people living in this rural area leisure facilities on their doorstep that are comparable to those available in Cardiff. As people in the Vale find it increasingly difficult to see a doctor, the medical centre near the complex could be repurposed as a cost-effective practice, serving the people who will be living in the new houses being built there.

Sadly, this vision is beyond the Welsh Government. But once the facility is demolished it will, along with the opportunities that it presents, be lost forever.

Ade Pitman 

RAF Veteran

Barry

Thursday 13th June 2024:

People of Wales wake up

ARE you fed up with days trying to obtain a GP appointment, waiting 12 hours for an ambulance, then 12/24 hours on a hospital trolley and several years for hospital appointment, or trying to find an NHS dentist?

Wales has the worst record for the NHS service in the UK and probably in the civilised world, while the Welsh Government has been wasting money on hare-brained schemes. The reason is that the money has been spent elsewhere in Wales.

The Westminster Government only allows Wales a fixed amount to cover essential services such as NHS, education etc. The Welsh Government has been wasting money on schemes such as Cardiff Airport, tree planting in Uganda, holidays in Patagonia and money given to Sustrans. The list of blunders is endless.

Who pays? To pay for 36 more Senedd members the Welsh Government must cut the money to essential services even more. Now the Senedd is picking on our hard-working farmers by wanting to reduce their land and business use by 20 per cent.

George Gough

Cowbridge

Airport missed a trick for football fans

IN Cardiff Airport on Sunday, 2nd June, there were lots of ‘REAL’ football fans.

Three flights were dedicated for fans heading home to Spain after the European Champions Cup at Wembley the previous day. 

Would it not have been great customer service to have the gate display screens in Spanish and not… cyhoeddiad giat..Galwad derfynol 

It is the little things that make a difference. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Fast food expansion will cause grid lock

I LIVE in Bridgend and recently found that someone has given permission for a Burger King to be built and operated on the A48, near a MacDonald’s and a KFC, close to an already congested small roundabout.

I am not against Burger King in the Bridgend area, my concern is where it is being built.

At the moment, there is a roundabout on the A48 where, if driving from west to east, you turn left into the retail park which includes MacDonald’s and turn right for KFC. There is a second roundabout alongside MacDonalds.

At weekends, school holidays and even during lunchtimes the traffic driving into the MacDonald’s can back up onto the A48 all the way back to the BP garage. This then causes a complete jam for traffic trying to get to the other stores on the retail park.

The traffic becomes gridlocked in all directions, including traffic coming from the east trying to turn right into the retail park. Last week in the middle of the day (not even lunchtime) it took me almost 15 minutes to cover a very short distance from Lidl to the A48.

Now someone has given permission for a large Burger King to be built on the other side of the same A48 roundabout across from MacDonalds with its entry road the same as that for KFC. This will add to the traffic congestion in both directions. What about drivers who just want to drive continually along the A48 without turning left or right?

Would someone please explain to me and others like me who have the same concern who gave permission and why they saw fit to allow the Burger King to be built on this site? Why so close to the busy A48 and the roundabout that already causes so many problems?

It could even have an impact on sales at other stores as people are less likely to visit the area.

Did anyone truly carry out any research? Did anyone study the traffic congestion that already exists? Who will be responsible for fixing the problem that this situation will most definitely create?

P Williams

Bridgend

Thursday 30th May 2024:

What is the point of a Council Scrutiny Committee?

IT WAS with great interest that I watched the Vale Council’s Homes and Safe Communities Scrutiny Committee on 15th May. 

It was going to be the first time the development of the old Eagleswell School Site would be discussed by a council committee. The 90-unit site has yet to even go to planning, despite the fact it is 85% complete.

I thought this should be good. There are so many questions to put to the housing officers. Why has it been built ignoring numerous Vale planning guidelines?  If they were built to alleviate an emergency how come it has taken close to two years to deliver?  As it has taken two years, surely there was time for a proper planning consultation before the development was started? 

The list of questions sent to our local representatives and housing officers goes on. I was on edge. How would the officers answer these once the councillors started grilling them?

The main question, from a Scrutiny perspective has to be current cost per unit.  At present, to get the temporary buildings on site at Eagleswell and make them fit for habitation, the 90 units will cost in the region of £280,000 each. This is at a time when we are told that council funding is at a premium. The units will only be on the Eagleswell site for five years.  They will then be moved to another site at an estimated cost of £100,000 per unit.

I know that the Welsh Government is contributing to the cost, but it is unclear how much. (See footnote).

So, where were the questions from our local councillors? This was the scrutiny committee.  I thought they were there to hold the officers to account and to ensure public money was spent wisely and every project should deliver value for money. 

Unbelievably, there was not one question on the cost!  One question was asked about why the project was delayed.

This whole project has been a scandal from start to finish. Local residents have asked questions to councillors and housing officers. Those questions have basically been ignored. 

You have to ask, what is the point of councillors?

Let us hope the councillors on the planning committee on 16 June have a bit more about them and call the council officers to account for this thorough waste of public money and the misery they have brought to the local residents bordering the site.

Dave Thomas

Llantwit Major

Glamorgan Star footnote: We asked the Vale Council for details on how the cost of the project will be shared between the council and the Welsh Government. The response was: “The scheme will beWe asked the Vale Council for details on how the cost of the project will be shared between the council and the Welsh Government. The response was: “The scheme will be funded through the Council’s Housing Business Plan and with financial support from Welsh Government.”

Colcot Sports Centre plan is all wrong

I BELIEVE the Vale Council’s proposal to demolish the Colcot Sports Centre in Barry and sell off the associated land for housing is an underhand act.

Residents were only made aware through discussion with other residents prior to the council going to cabinet. At the meeting, Cllr Lis Burnett stated that the proposals would secure funding to support the rapid growth in women’s and girls’ football. The only clear aim that I can see is to update changing facilities at a cost of demolishing the sports centre and selling off the land for housing.

I don’t understand how the proposal in any way addresses the increased provision of football for women and girls. Vale officers told me that the Buttrills football events only take place on the weekend. They are lucky if the weather allows them to do that in any case, as the field gets waterlogged due to the bad drainage and so they cannot use the site for the majority of the year due to the ever-increasing wet weather due to climate change.

The council have let the outdoor hockey pitch at the Colcot site decline. They intend to build houses on this as it is no longer classed as green land. This could be renovated in my opinion, as an outdoor football pitch. There is floodlighting and so it could be used in evenings and all year round. This would increase access to football for all genders. They could also renovate the Colcot Sports Centre as opposed to the Buttrills site instead.

To be clear, I am not opposed to the council increasing its housing stock but this appears to be just to generate more funds for them. The impact of traffic on Colcot Road is already in a dire state. It’s often gridlocked at peak times and is very different to the road I first lived on 17 years ago. We have seen the impact from the White Farm housing development and now there are more proposals to demolish the college for housing – and the Colcot Sports Centre.

When will it end? Residents have a voice but they are unheard by this council.

Carol Weighell 

Barry

Who will speak for the council at the incinerator appeal?

LOOKING ahead to the appeal that has been lodged by Aviva against the Vale Council’s decision to refuse permission for the Barry incinerator, how can the planning and legal department of the council deal with the appeal, when their view of the application is that it should be allowed?

Imagine the Vale calling a witness to support its position:

One question of the witness:

Q: Why do you think planning permission should be refused?

Answer: “But I think it should be given.”

Instant success of appeal with an order for costs.

Surely the Vale Council is not going to trust its officers again? Alternatively, surely the Vale is not going to put itself and the officers in an impossible possible by letting the officers have anything to do with this appeal?

Dennis Clarke

Barry

Action needed to protect Ogmore bathing waters

MEMBERS of Barry Vale Friends of the Earth are concerned about the performance of the Penybont sewage works on the River Ogmore.

The Rivers Trust provides the summarised data for each of the UK’s sewage works and sewer overflows on this website:  theriverstrust.org/sewage-map

Penybont was among the worst dischargers of untreated sewage in 2023: 108 times for over 15 hours on average. Welsh Water cannot claim there were 108 exceptional weather storms. The data show their sewage works is grossly inadequate. Welsh Water dump sewage into the river Ogmore despite being paid to treat the sewage.

The River Ewenny also contributes some sewage pollution to the Ogmore, as shown by Ewenny’s many discharges into it a few km upstream.

The Vale Council, NRW and Welsh Water have to assess what was the cause of the ‘poor’ water quality and what to do. Not much of a problem. From the timing of Penybont works discharge, delayed to account for the tides, show that it could match the timing of the sample. Expect river water to be swept back to Ogmore beach just after low tide.  

Just one out of 20 weekly bathing water samples was outstandingly bad. As the times can be predicted, there is no need to ban swimmers completely. Instead, the Vale Council and Welsh Water should just display warnings at the beach of the limited times of risk.  

In the longer term, of course, the Penybont sewage works must be upgraded.  Bridgend cannot build more housing and expand businesses without levying them for sewage works upgrading.

Don’t let Welsh Water and Bridgend deprive Ogmore of its bathing-beach status!

Max Wallis

BarryVale FoE

Mayor should concentrate on more important matters

READING in the Glamorgan Star about the new Vale of Glamorgan Mayor’s proposal on Christian prayers before full council meetings left me feeling agog.

With all the problems the people of the Vale are currently going through, Cllr Elliot Penn (Labour) and his colleagues need to concentrate on far more important matters.

My own thoughts are that Christianity is the faith of Wales and, until that changes, there is no reason or rationale for change. Just do what you were voted in for and paid to do, and make the county a better place to live, work and socialise.

Terry Jones,

Barry

Why is litter such a problem in Wales?

I HAVE just completed a bike ride home to the Vale from Suffolk.

Apart from some in Cambridge and Oxford, there was virtually no litter anywhere until I got to Newport where began the – sadly usual – crop of bottles, drink cans, assorted bits of paper and plastic and other rubbish lying around. This continued on and off all the way home, augmented by broken glass on the bike track in St Mellons.

Why does this area of Wales have to be so scruffy? It costs nothing to use a bin or take litter home instead of throwing it out of the car window. I have even seen litter lying by the side of litter bins. Friends from England have confirmed this impression.

Name and address supplied.

Thursday 16th May 2024:

Ukrainian refugees in Llantwit Major

I AM a resident in Crawshay Court in Llantwit Major. There are only a few residents who want to have the Ukrainian people in our communal lounge.

It is for us to use, not the whole community. Our rent has just gone up to £151.44 – an increase of £16 per week – all for nothing.

Five years ago, we had a communal garden. Now it’s a community garden. Where will this end for us?

Name and address withheld

Who will be living in ‘container village’?

WE read with interest and disbelief the article (Glamorgan Star, 2nd May, page 6) stating that a grant of £10,000 has been made available to help the Ukrainian refugees settle in the container village currently being built in Llantwit Major on the site of the former Eagleswell School.

Vale MP Alun Cairns told a packed meeting of very concerned residents in the rugby club that there would not be Ukrainians living there as they have either gone home or are happily settled in accommodation. We were also told by a local Vale councillor that they wouldn’t come to Llantwit because of racism – which we do not believe is the case, as many local people have hosted them.

As residents who have an accommodation container six inches away from our boundary, we initially didn’t object as we were told it was temporary for two years – and for Ukrainians. Over time we have come to realise that sadly this is not true.

I’m curious what will become of the grant money if this is the case.

Don and Ann Knight 

Llantwit Major

Fishing is a cruel sport

I WOULD like to share my concerns about fishing/angling at beaches in Barry.

It is clear to see the cruelty inflicted on fish, birds and other marine life at our coasts is due to the careless attitude of people. I often walk around the beaches and my heart sinks when I encounter these poor creatures left to die and rot on the rocks. I reported this problem some years ago and the fish were removed but the problem causing it – the humans – still remain!

I have often approached and spoken to some ‘fishermen’ and reminded them to take their rubbish home. Many say they do, though I can guarantee that on a litter pick I will always find,fishing line, plastic bags, hooks, cans, bottles and bonfire remains, besides dead fish, just discarded on the rocks.

I have even visited an angling shop to request they try to ensure their customers are responsible. I am all for support and initiatives via the Angling code but sadly, I feel many just turn a blind eye and how would a novice know about the ‘snapping off’ rule? I am also in favour of issuing fines but how will that be enforced?

Numerous scientific studies demonstrate that fish feel and react to pain just like other animals. Therefore, if fish can perceive pain then angling cannot continue to be considered a non cruel sport as, unlike drowning in humans, which takes about 4/5 minutes, fish have a prolonged death.

T Abery,

Barry

Barry has taken too much housing

WITH all housing on just 1.1 percent of the land in the UK, what does that tell us about the way Barry has been used by the local and national government to fulfill their housing agenda and raise funds for their institutions?

Our government is now keen to call its residents ‘customers’ which would make them a business. As a business the more houses they can cram into their towns, the more profit they make. This is scandalous as the assets they are building on are ours, the stakeholders, often left in trust by our forward-thinking ancestors.

Today our Vale Council has lost its moral compass with regards to housing development. They are looking at housing as the most profitable arm of their business, no matter how that impacts on the community. Now they try and justify building houses on green and recreational land as being for our own good.

A token offer of a few new changing rooms for football players leads to the demolition of a perfectly serviceable sports centre and the generation of tens of millions to their business through house sales on the land. It is an absolute outrage that each person in Barry and beyond needs to understand. We cannot let a few officers in a council take our assets. What will we be able to leave future generations? Save Colcot Sports Center and Buttrills recreational park.

Glyn Pooley

Barry

Unused pedestrian crossings – surely a waste of money?

IT IS an age old question – not for today’s youngsters maybe – but why did the chicken cross the road? 

Today’s question is why does it take three months to put up a pedestrian crossing and at what cost?

If this crossing is not used – which the majority are not in the Vale – does anybody lose their job? 

The crossings/traffic light system at the Aston Martin site in St Athan is a case in point. The pavement system near this particular site is in its second year of construction. Such largesse is inexcusable. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 2nd May 2024:

Home owners should not pay cost of council house upgrade

I READ with some disbelief Ted Peckett’s article in the 18th April edition of the Glamorgan Star in regard to the looming Council Housing upgrade cost.

Just because this Welsh Government changes its strategic dictates, it should not expect the Vale Council and the council tax-payers to pick up the bill – especially those private house owners/rate payers who went out to work all their lives and can hardly keep their heads above water.

If this dictatorship in Cardiff requires the housing stock to be upgraded, it should fund it totally out of the vast reserves of public funds handed down from Central Government – not from us council tax-payers.

Graham Vodden

Penarth

Council should invest in Colcot Sports Centre

HAVING settled in the Colcot area 26 years ago, it is disheartening and disgraceful that the Colcot Sports Centre has received no investment over the years and is now considered ‘unworthy’ of renovation.

The Vale Council has a plan to demolish and dispose of this site for yet another housing project and build changing facilities and extensive car parking on part of the Buttrells fields at a cost of £2.1million.

This seems absurd! One wonders if those behind this plan are even residents of the area and understand that the Sports Centre is an integral part of the broader community. The widely recognised and easily accessible centre, with parking for more than 100 cars, along with its sports cages and adjacent green fields, is heavily used.

It houses the Boxing Club and a nursery, and the potential uses for this site are numerous, as we saw during the pandemic and also by film production companies on many occasions. So why not upgrade the existing site instead of building on green fields prone to flooding with very limited road access through narrow roads on a large housing estate?

Surely it makes more sense to develop houses on the vacant Holm View site, which has good access and existing amenities. Sue Vincent Jones highlighted the significant increase in traffic if the housing projects at The Barry College site and the Colcot Sports Centre site proceed, disregarding road safety and air pollution. It is time for common sense to prevail and for the proposed project to be revised to upgrade the current Colcot Sports Centre to a modern, inclusive, gold standard facility deserving of Barry.

Kay Charles

Barry

Council should invest in Colcot Sports Centre

HAVING settled in the Colcot area 26 years ago, it is disheartening and disgraceful that the Colcot Sports Centre has received no investment over the years and is now considered ‘unworthy’ of renovation.

The Vale Council has a plan to demolish and dispose of this site for yet another housing project and build changing facilities and extensive car parking on part of the Buttrells fields at a cost of £2.1million.

This seems absurd! One wonders if those behind this plan are even residents of the area and understand that the Sports Centre is an integral part of the broader community. The widely recognised and easily accessible centre, with parking for more than 100 cars, along with its sports cages and adjacent green fields, is heavily used.

It houses the Boxing Club and a nursery, and the potential uses for this site are numerous, as we saw during the pandemic and also by film production companies on many occasions. So why not upgrade the existing site instead of building on green fields prone to flooding with very limited road access through narrow roads on a large housing estate?

Surely it makes more sense to develop houses on the vacant Holm View site, which has good access and existing amenities. Sue Vincent Jones highlighted the significant increase in traffic if the housing projects at The Barry College site and the Colcot Sports Centre site proceed, disregarding road safety and air pollution. It is time for common sense to prevail and for the proposed project to be revised to upgrade the current Colcot Sports Centre to a modern, inclusive, gold standard facility deserving of Barry.

Kay Charles

Barry

Thursday 18th April 2024:

Birthday present returned after car park mishap

MAY I, through your letters age, thank the kind and honest person who handed a parcel in to Filco, Llantwit Major, at approx. 125pm on Sunday, 7th April.

After a slightly stressful morning, I despatched my wife to the Amazon lockers to collect her (unbeknown to her) birthday present. (I’m such a romantic).

Whilst telephoning me to ask if I wanted some bacon, she left the parcel on the roof of her car; and then drove off. Naturally, said parcel exited stage left, somewhere in Filco car park.

Where some honest person, picked it up and returned it to Filco. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank he/she – a Big Thank You.

I always believe that there is a ‘return’ for good deeds, and if you can do someone a good deed, why wouldn’t you?

So my friend, feel good about yourself, take a pat on the back.

Roy Bamford

Llantwit Major

Another ‘money pit’ project

The Toucan crossing at Barry Rail Station is another colossal waste of money.

The Vale Council or The Senedd – whoever is paying – has a knack of putting in what everybody else knows is a waste of money, for instance pedestrian crossings on low pedestrian use roads. 

May I make a suggestion. This crossing will be little used so put an electronic counter on it and see what demand there is. 

This installation is timed perfectly. Ffordd Yr Mileniwm is one of two main roads to Barry Island. The dropped curb took two weeks to install. Traffic at this time of the year is getting busier. Expect abject chaos. 

The road to the new estate is horrendous but the authorities have potentially a six-figure budget to install another white elephant/vanity project. 

Vaughan Gething has a huge mountain to climb if he expects the Welsh taxpayer to carry on accepting these money pit projects. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Should we support sport with housing sales?

THE Vale Council has proposed an improvement strategy for the Colcot Sports Centre, the Buttrills Fields changing facilities, and the transfer of some land to the housing account.

Sport and leisure provision is highly valued by the Barry community, including the Colcot sports centre itself, but the shower and changing facilities are considered not fit for purpose. There is some support for the proposed changes on social media, especially the advantages for football and boxing activities.

However, many are concerned that the proposal includes transferring some of the sport centre’s land to the housing account, suggesting that yet more housing is to be squeezed into an already dense urban setting, adding more pressure onto our already over-stretched infrastructure.

I have always understood the housing revenue account to be ring-fenced, but the council proposes to transfer the land to that account, and then use the housing development to contribute to the funding of recreational facilities.

The council are to talk with Fields in Trust, to allow the improvements at the recreation sites, which indicates that they have a legal commitment with them called a ‘Deed of Dedication’. This legal commitment would ensure the sports centre’s land can only be used for sport or recreational activities.

Under this agreement, parts of the site can be disposed of “provided the disposal is of clear advantage to, and in the best interests of, the community from a recreational perspective.”

The council report also says that the proposed scheme is being designed to be self-funding, with the housing part providing some of that money. An alternative would be to include this project within the recently announced £20 million endowment-style levelling-up fund for Barry.

Dennis Harkus

Barry

Bring back the 95 bus!

WHO in their right mind decided to stop the 95 bus from Barry and the Vale to the Heath Hospital?

It went from half hourly to an hour. Didn’t they consider the number of out-patients who travel to the Heath for treatment because there is no other option?

Come on Cardiff transport, get your act together and get the route reinstalled.

Brian Kirke

Barry

Cloud formation is explained

THE photograph on page 2 of the Glamorgan Star (4th April), taken by a staff member on Good Friday in Devon, shows two types of clouds, often seen together in showery weather.

The higher altitude large white cloud in the background is stratocumulus with a typical round base and irregular windblown top. Its darker base indicates that it is thick enough to produce light rain. These clouds move together in groups with a base at 350-2,000m above the ground.

The smaller dark grey smaller cloud, roughly in the shape of a cross, is a stratus fractus. Blown by the wind, these clouds have ragged and tufted shapes and move quickly across the sky, changing shape rapidly, often resembling earthly objects – as is the case here.

They are often dark in colour because they are shielded from sunlight by a cumulus cloud above. Their base usually occurs up to 450m above the ground. 

In medieval times, before the sciences of meteorology and astronomy were developed, people were always looking to the skies for signs and portents of things to come. This was particularly true of comets which can often be seen in clear night skies with the naked eye by large numbers of people over a period of weeks.

Watch out for comet Pons-Brooks – now becoming visible on a clear night.

Chris Pearce

Cowbridge

Thursday 4th April 2024:

Memories of Rick on the Roof

I WAS interested to read your article (Glamorgan Star, 21st March. Page 24) about the Barry film maker who aims to tell the story of ‘Rick on the Roof’.

I knew Rick Canty quite well and used to see him protesting alongside the old Post Office building in Westgate Street every time I visited the nearby Media Wales office.

Rick liked a bet on the horses so we always had something to talkabout and without fail he used to ask me how my now late daughter Amanda was coping with her cancer treatment.

Rick, I believe, would have loved to have had a film made about himand I am certainly looking forward to seeing it.

Brian Lee

Cardiff

Praise for Barry Hospital

I HAD the misfortune to have a nasty fall a couple of weeks back and went to Barry Hospital’s minor injuries unit. 

They confirmed that I had broken a wrist. They then raised my spirits whilst having to carry out a very painful realignment procedure before putting it in a caste. They were very professional and I could not fault the service. 

Mel singing ‘Whispering Grass’ even made me laugh through the gas and air.  A big ‘Thank You’ to all.

On another note, why has the 95 bus stopped going to the Heath?  Apart from staff, there are a lot of patients who have to attend the Trauma Unit for follow up appointments.  Please someone reconsider!

Sue Chapman

Cadoxton, Barry

Monitoring beach water quality is not enough

FOLLOWING a campaign by conservation groups, the Green Party and local swimming groups, Watch House Bay and Ogmore by Sea were both classified as new designated bathing waters in 2023.

Now, both beaches have not met the minimum requirements for bathing water quality and were the only two bathing sites in Wales to be classified as ‘poor’ – the Welsh Government has described this as “disappointing”.

Rather than putting up signs warning people not to swim at these beaches, the Vale Council, Welsh Water and Welsh Government should be taking action to prevent this pollution.

We have been campaigning for a number of years about the sewage pollution entering Barry’s Old Harbour and Watchtower Bay in Barry. We have identified human sewage outfall pipes and the outfall pipe from the Knap lake, which has a large resident population of swans and geese, and we believe that this is probably being the main cause of this pollution.

This polluted water needs to be treated in retention tanks before releasing into the marine environment. We now need action, not delays, to stop the pollution.

Rob Curtis

Barry Action for Nature

PS. We urge your readers to sign our online petition which can be found on the Senedd petitions website.

The true meaning of Easter

EASTER is more than just about Easter Eggs and bunnies, Simnel cake and holidays.

It is about Jesus Christ coming to this earth nearly 2,000 years ago, “not to condemn but to save”.

Save us from what you may ask?

Today more than ever Jesus and Christianity is irrelevant in our secular world. Man does not want to be morally accountable to the God of the Bible. He wants to have his own way and make up his own rules. There are no longer absolutes of right and wrong. They call that relativism.

But Truth by its very definition is black or white – it never changes. To say anything different is an oxymoron. Many people today look at our society, our country and indeed the wider world and say: “It is going downhill exponentially” This is an indisputable truth.

For every action there is a reaction. Every choice we make has consequences. We do not live in a chaotic universe and we would not have survived this long if it was. Mankind needs to take personal and corporate responsibility for its choices and beliefs.

Today we can say: “I can live without God”.

But ask yourself: “Can I die without Him”?

I saw the above in a shop window in Cowbridge and thought it deserved as wide an audience as possible.

G Williams

Cowbridge

It’s not difficult to find pot holes

REGARDING the article by Ted Peskett (Page 5, 21st March, Glamorgan Star) regarding road inspections, is it not obvious that council employees drive the roads of the Vale every day and can easily report pot holes? 

There is an obvious downside for the council. More reported pot holes and the council statistics go through the roof. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 21st March 2024:

TV explorer should come to the Vale

AS David Attenborough gets older, it is obvious that any future expedition he undertakes must be a lot easier than, for instance, the Amazon or the Gobi Desert. 

May I suggest to him that he could explore the cycleways/pedestrian paths of the Vale of Glamorgan. These routes – where homo sapiens are very rarely seen – are easily accessible. Many millions of pounds have been spent to ensure ease of access.

There are dedicated bus stops where he could use his bus pass. His camera crew would obviously have to pay. 

The route from the A48 St Nicholas to the A4055 Barry could be of particular interest with literally thousands of new plants at the sides of the road. This route similarly is rarely visited by the nearby inhabitants. 

At the village called Brocastle on the border between Bridgend and the Vale, he can dine with the local inhabitants after traversing a similarly deserted area where the local people are puzzled as to why their elders spent so much of their taxes constructing a pathway.

So come to Wales Sir David. You are welcome to explore. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Put on your own ‘Tea for Tŷ Hafan’

I AM writing to you today to invite your readers to put the kettle on and hold their very own fundraising tea party for Tŷ Hafan Children’s Hospice to mark our charity’s first 25 years in operation. 

Every year, Tŷ Hafan provides vital care and support for more than 350 children with life-shortening conditions and their families in our hospice in Sully and in homes and communities across Wales.  

Currently this costs £5.6m per year, with only 12% coming from statutory sources and, unfortunately, our running costs are only continuing to go up. Without the amazing kindness, enterprise and generosity of the Welsh public we simply would not be able to do what we do. 

Readers are invited to hold their ‘Tea for Tŷ Hafan’ fundraising parties at any time throughout the month of May and they can be anything from lavish to low-key – whatever suits personal preferences. Any amount your readers can raise – no matter how big or small – will go straight towards supporting children with life-shortening conditions. 

Readers can hold their Tea for Tŷ Hafan parties wherever works for them, with some options being at home, in the garden, in the street, in a local hall, school, college or university or places of work. 

To sign up email or call 02920 532255 and we’ll send readers their very own tea party pack in the post with lots of Tŷ Hafan goodies for all to enjoy. Plus, our supporter care eam will be there every step of the way to help readers with fundraising tips, publicity materials, Gift Aid and more. 

So whatever else your readers may have planned throughout the month of May, may I invite as many of them as possible to get a brew on and celebrate with some Tea for Tŷ Hafan and help some of the most vulnerable children in Wales in the process. 

Thank you for your support. 

Rachel Ritter 

Tŷ Hafan Children‘s Hospice  

Thursday 7th March 2024:

Planning of refugee camp in Llantwit needs clarity

CONCERNING the site under construction at the former Eagleswell School in Llantwit Major, another factor to consider is now coming to light.

It is not just the proximity of the cabins to the surrounding houses which is of concern but the ‘patio’ areas behind the cabins which worry me. They are accessed by an alleyway between the cabins and can only be for the locating of refuse bins for the cabins’ occupants. Most likely the style of refuse bin which attaches to the rear of the refuse lorry when emptying.

If correct, this means that the residents of the houses which lie directly adjacent to the site will have refuse bins between them and the cabins. If we have another hot summer, this will be lovely when using our gardens!”

Can this be clarified by the constructors please and, if correct, how often are these bins going to be emptied?

Charles Allen

Llantwit Major

Memories of Maendy and Tair Onen

I WONDER if any of your readers can help me with any information about life in Tair Onen in the early 1950s?

I was five years old when my late parents Dai and Muriel Thomas, along with my older sister Vivie, brother Ralph and I moved to Shropshire from Tair Onen, where my father worked on the forestry, which was close to our home which I believe was No 10.

My mother always spoke fondly of the neighbours including Mr and Mrs Davies. I believe Mrs Davies was Austrian. Other neighbours were Bert and Edna Williams and their daughters Glenda and Barbara.

Mum and Dad spoke of the day the late Queen was crowned in 1953, Bert and Edna were the only family with a television set, so all the neighbours gathered and sat in their front room to watch the Coronation.

My parents kept pigs, chickens and goats, remembered by my sister Vivienne (Vivie), who will be 83 this year. She was born with learning difficulties (in those days classed as handicapped).Vivie and Ralph attended Maendy school near Cowbridge.

My parents spoke of Italian prisoners of war who worked the land close to their home.

I am writing these memories of my family in the hope someone out there may remember our family and could contact me on email at with any stories of life back then in Tair Onen. 

Marion Lane

Gwynedd

Thursday 22nd February 2024:

Time to get rid of council

I UNDERSTAND that Cowbridge Town Council intends to put up the council tax precept in Cowbridge and Llanblethian by 34 per cent – which I think is very excessive.

The tax on my house was £107.52 last year so at that rate it will be over £140 this year.

Rhoose threw out the council over 40 years ago. I think we should do the same in Cowbridge.

PM Brown,

Cowbrdge

Marie Curie’s Day of Reflection

THE new ITV drama, Breathtaking, which started this week and is set in a hospital on the frontline during the pandemic, will be triggering for many people who were bereaved during that time.

This period was a devastating time of loss where people’s normal traditions and death rituals couldn’t take place or were altered in some way. For a great many, this made their grief either delayed or more complicated and put millions at risk of needing formal grief counselling. 

On Sunday, 3rd March, Marie Curie will lead the nation in a UK-wide ‘’Day of Reflection to remember the people who died during the pandemic, from any cause, and to show support for those who were bereaved. It’s a day for healing and hope for the future.

We’re asking the public to observe a minute’s silence at midday and if anyone needs support with their grief, or someone to talk to, please contact Marie Curie’s Support Line for free on 0800 090 2309 or visit dayofreflection.org.uk

Matt Williams

Associate Director of Information and Support, Marie Curie,

Bridgend

Flooded car park is a danger

I WOULD like to bring to people’s attention the matter of the Market in Cowbridge which in recent years is used as a car park.

 I have been a resident in this town for 47 years and I was also a member of Cowbridge Amateur Dramatic Society (CADS) up until 1990. The CADS club rooms are in the far right hand corner, and I have never seen this area in such a dreadful state. It was appalling in the 70s and has only deteriorated with time.

The final straw for me was two weeks ago when I took a disabled friend to the exercise class in the Scout Hall on the Tuesday morning. We had to trudge through deep puddles of water that were covering up large potholes. By the time we got home we had to wash our trousers, socks and shoes.

Surely Health and Safety would not tolerate this state of affairs? The scouts rent their building out to various organisations such as the Repair Cafe and the exercise class for the elderly. This area contains the CADS club rooms which is also used by adults and children alike and often at nighttime.

Recently, the final insult came when the council had obviously been down to the car park and indiscriminately dumped material on the ground in various places to disguise to problem. Some of it was piled up and caused some of the exercise members to stumble and trip. This is in my opinion a serious safety issue.

I do hope that you will publish this letter as I know it is of great concern to the residents of Cowbridge.

Gill Williams

Cowbridge

Thursday 8th February 2024:

Welsh Government must decide Barry incinerator issue

BARRY’s incinerator, with its history of planning disputes, a controversial monstrosity blighting the waterfront development, limps on regardless, requiring planning consent to try to undo previous errors.

Given such controversies, the latest being eye-watering legal costs awarded to the appellant that the skint Vale council has to shell out, you would anticipate the latest planning applications would be so squeaky clean you’d be able to see your own reflection in it.

But that’s not the case.  It doesn’t take much to strip back the thin veneer of the latest three applications that the appellant and Vale Council officers are desperate to put to committee sooner than later.

The incinerator is a 10MW generating station that is a development of national significance and any applications for the development or associated add on bits, go to Welsh Government to decide on its fate, not the Vale Council. The main application has to be made to the Welsh Ministers, the Vale Council has no validity to determine such, as is made clear in the Town and Country Planning Act.

Councillors could and should direct the appellant to fully comply with planning legislation, withdraw the applications and if they wish to persist, submit their application(s) to the Welsh Ministers.

B Lewis

Barry

Take better care of Barry

THERE has been much criticism of the new Barry Dock park and ride hub – and of how much this white elephant has cost.

I now read that on a recent visit to Barry, David TC Davies has given Alun Cairns a ‘pat on the back’ for achieving more funding for the regeneration of Barry Marina and the town.

Are we to expect more wasteful spending on unused developments?

How about using some of the funding on improving the much-used other side of Barry Dock Station? The path leading from the station to Dock View Road is an absolute disgrace, strewn with litter, dog faeces, broken glass and overgrown undergrowth, not to mention the rat population! The pavements on Dock View Road are in the same state, despite the hard work of the regular council litter pickers.

Someone in the ‘ivory towers’ of the council offices needs to take responsibility for solving this issue. Maybe the councillor for the area.

Also, people of Barry please start taking some responsibility for the state of our town and stop throwing your litter everywhere and pick up your dog faeces.

Barry is a great town so let us take care of it.

Glenys Hutchinson

Barry

Green Party calls for ceasefire

MAY I, through the pages of your newspaper, thank all the wonderful local people lobbying Alun Cairns’ constituency office every week calling on him to support a ceasefire in Gaza and so end the appalling killing of innocent women and children.

Next week will mark the 10th such lobby in cold and often wet conditions. Neither the Conservative nor Labour parties will make a stand for humanity. Sadly, the killing will not bring peace for Israel but instead will sow the seeds of hate and killing for generations to come.

I am proud that the Green Party continues to support an immediate ceasefire and the release of all hostages!

Robert Curtis

Barry & Vale Green Party 

Cycle lanes are a ‘vanity project’

CAN I apologise for suggesting (Glamorgan Star Letters, 11th January) that the work on the Port Road Wenvoe ‘cycle lane’ never took place and that it was work associated with the new nursing home. 

I should have realised that 12 weeks was nowhere near long enough for such a project. 

The Pickeston Lane St Athan cycle path is now in its ninth month and is only 300 yards long. It is nowhere near completion – and I still cannot fathom who is going to use it. 

Vanity projects must stop. The only beneficiaries are the contractors to the tune of £100s of thousands of pounds. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 25th January 2024:

Charity shops can help young people into work

IN response to Mrs A Davies of Barry in the 11th January issue, on the subject of charity shops, I would like to share my experiences.

I am originally from Pembroke Dock where the supermarkets have killed off the old shopping high streets. Most old shops have been turned into flats. There are two charity shops but they only operate on half day trading hours.

After my time in Cardiff University ended. I started volunteering for Barnardo’s on Albany Road, Cardiff. Just as with Holton Road, Barry, the locals complain that there are too many charity shops in the road. To cut a long story short, I became the unpaid Sunday keyholder volunteer and the experience of having responsibility helped me to land paid 15 hours a week employment in one of the Barry supermarkets.

Charity shops can be a springboard from unemployment to long term sustainable employment. I encourage the young people in the town to offer themselves to the charity shops with a view to seeking paid weekend employment in commutable places away from Barry.

Chris Williams

Cardiff

Time for a hard line on pupil behaviour

I READ with interest the article in your 11th January edition regarding the teachers’ walkout over pupils’ unruly behaviour at Pencoedtre School, Barry.

The answer, it seems, is more training for the teachers. The real answer is:

1/ Remove the offending pupils from the school.

2/ Take the parents of the offending pupils through the courts.

3/ If any of the families  of the offending pupils are on benefits, then this needs to be withdrawn. No more softly, softly.

AJ Wallace

Barry

Today is Stroke Prevention Day

IN Wales more than 120,000 people have a ‘silent killer’ which is one of the leading causes of serious strokes – and many more may be unaware that they have it.

Atrial fibrillation – or AF – is a cause in around one in five strokes and these are often more severe, with higher mortality and greater disability.

AF is when your heart beats with an irregular rhythm. When this happens, your heart won’t empty all of the blood out of its chambers with every beat. Then, if your heart chambers aren’t empty, the leftover blood can form clots which travel from your heart into the brain, blocking off blood flow and causing a stroke.

AF sometimes has symptoms including palpitations – feeling as if your heart is fluttering, thumping or skipping a beat – fatigue, feeling breathless or having chest pain. But often it’s symptomless, which is why it often goes undiagnosed, until it’s too late.

The good news is that AF can be picked up and treated after a simple check.

So, on Stroke Prevention Day, Thursday, 25 January, we are encouraging the public to check their own pulse at home or to use a pharmacy service to get their pulse checked.

A video on our website shows how you can test yourself by placing two fingers on your wrist or neck www.stroke.org.uk/spd24. 

Normal heart rate: your pulse should feel regular. Most people have a resting heart rate between 60 and 100 beats per minute (bpm).

Abnormal heart rate: your pulse may feel uneven or skip a beat. Your resting heart rate could be over 120 bpm.

If your pulse is irregular, or very fast when you are at rest, you should contact your GP. This 60-second test could save your life.

Katie Chappelle

Associate Director Wales

The Stroke Association

Hydrogen plant not welcome in Brynmenyn

THE future for the residents, businesses and wildlife of the Brynmenyn / Bryncethin areas of Bridgend seems bleak.

Despite our well-documented, serious concerns about the proposed installation of a ‘green’ Hydrogen plant / solar farm (HYBONT) within our semi-rural location, we have now learned that in October, 2023, the UK Government signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Japanese company, Marubeni, agreeing this project may proceed.

The following quote – dated 14th December, 2023 – from Mr Tomoki Nishino, President and CEO of Marubeni Europower Ltd., may be found on the .gov.uk website.

“Marubeni team is very honoured to be selected as a recipient of Hydrogen Allocation Round 1. Recently in October, 2023, Marubeni signed an MoU with the UK Government, whereby we have shown our plan to invest ZIO billion (along with our partners) into UK Green business. We truly hope that a combination of HARI funding and Marubeni’s investment can help decarbonize UK through Hybont, especially in the South Wales region.”

I feel we are living in a pseudo-democracy; voters’ choices are being eroded, and their voices ignored. It is difficult to believe that our elected Welsh representatives could have been unaware of the UK/Japanese agreement whilst ostensibly supporting our opposition to the project. And who are Marubeni’s aforementioned partners?

To say I am disillusioned is an understatement.

Mrs S Lewis,

Bryncethin.

Time for a change to the voting system

OUR Welsh Government has given councils in Wales the option to change our failing ‘first past the post’ voting system for a fairer proportional system for the next council elections.

First past the pos, far from delivering strong and stable government as its advocates claim, has produced nothing but chaos and division.

The consequences of this political disorder are plain for all to see – squeezed living standards, failing environmental standards, towering NHS waiting lists and wholesale contempt for politicians.

I believe that countries with proportional voting systems – in which debating chambers accurately reflects the way people vote – are on average more stable politically than those with winner-takes-all systems like ours. 

We call on the Vale Council to carry out a consultation so local people can have their say on a fairer more democratic voting system which can restore trust and increase local participation.

Robert Curtis

Barry & Vale Green Party

Does cycle lane really meet a need?

DRIVERS and rate payers of the Vale may have noticed a sign as you come back to Barry on the top road. It is just next to the new care home. 

The sign reads that work will commence soon and will last for 12 weeks. The work outside the care home has been completed so this sign can only mean one thing. A new cycle lane. The work will mean temporary traffic lights, obvious delays but the tax payers of the Vale can be assured that this will be money well spent. 

The lamp posts will have to be moved and the opportunity taken to replace them. The Welsh Government have already released information that every 20mph sign post was installed at a cost of over £1,000. I cannot imagine what lamp posts cost. 

So, if you do become a resident at the new home, please feel good about the fact that you will soon be able to cycle safely to M&S or Wenvoe Castle Golf Course, courtesy of the Welsh taxpayer. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

10 charity shops – too many for one street

I AM writing to express my dismay at the opening of yet another charity shop in Holton Road, Barry.

Barnardo’s is opening in a large shop that could have been put to so much better use. This will bring the number of charity shops in Holton Road to 10!

It is a sad reflection on Barry is that it is the only type of business willing to operate in the town.

Then we have £3 million spent on a ‘travel hub’ with no buses, and yet we have no direct bus from Barry to the Heath Hospital in Cardiff – a vital service to anyone who does not have a car.

The Vale Council needs to get its priorities straight.

Ps: I dread to think what plans the council has for the vacant Wilko store.

Mrs A Davies,

Barry.

Why are cycle paths empty. Here’s the answer!

MAY I heartily endorse the comments of your eagle-eyed correspondent, R Bradshaw of Cowbridge, relating to the vanity projects of cycle paths crossing our beloved landscape but signifying nothing of remote use.

It is a complete waste of public money by ALL Governments; and I would simply highlight the hard-pressed funds spent in the Bridgend County Borough Council area, via Freedom of Information (FoI) request, from 2016 to 2021. A total of £3,137,777! More recent figures are being sought.

I suggest your correspondent submits an FoI on the cycle lane debacle to the Vale Council. The outcome could be astonishing.

But wait! I have a possible answer as to why no cycles are seen on these paths.

They’ve all been stolen.

The latest UK figures just published show that 200 cycles are stolen every day. 365,000 were stolen in the past five years but only two per cent resulted in a recovery and conviction.

So now we know the reason for empty cycle paths. They’ve all been nicked.

Over to you, national governments. What’s your answer?

Cllr David Unwin,

Bridgend

Thursday 28th December 2023:

Footpaths need to stay open

WHILST out walking last week along the permissive footpath that runs from the historic Dunraven walled garden inland through part of the Dunraven Estate and exits into woodland at Pant y Slade in Southerndown, I was dismayed to come across a notice on a stile advising that from 1st January 2024 – and after a total of 24 years – the Welsh Government are withdrawing their funding, so without their financial support the permissive routes will be closed.

I am assuming that this is not a one off and that other landowners who received financial support from the government for opening up their land with the permissive route scheme – and who after all are the custodians of our stunning rural landscape – will also be affected, which would be a great loss. 

In these present times people are being actively encouraged to exercise more in the outdoors, which in turn benefits not only physical but mental health and in return, we are encouraged to protect and respect our countryside which most of us are only too glad to do.

It has been my absolute privilege and pleasure to have walked these delightful paths on this beautiful estate for the whole of the time since they were made permissible, and I am saddened, as I am sure other walkers and local residents will be, that this will no longer be possible unless a solution on funding is made possible.

Joy Strangward,

Penarth and District Ramblers.

Cosmeston plan is contrary to Welsh Gov policy

“No development on the Welsh coast, except for development that needs a coastal location”, says the Welsh Government in Planning Policy Wales.

Natural Resources Wales (NRW) is their ‘arm’ with responsibility for the coastal environment and in the adjacent Marine Protected Area (international designation) – NRW said a buffer is needed, setting all housing back from the coast by 20 metres or more.

NRW is directly responsible for the Wales Coastal Path, which Ministers claim to be a national treasure and “jewel in Wales’s crown”. How can the Minister create a housing estate on this jewel?

In acting as developer, the Minister, Julie James, has not only ignored her countryside duties, but also her planning role. If the Vale Council supports policy and rejects this plan, it goes back to Julie James for a planning appeal.

This conflict in roles is a travesty of proper governance. Wales is no banana republic but is signed up to the rule of law and separation of powers. Let’s see the local politicians and Vale Council calling out this shameful ministerial action.

Max Wallis,

FoE Barry&Vale.

Unwanted gifts still welcome at charity shop

NOT every Christmas gift hits the spot and the charity Barnardo’s has said it will be happy to take any unwanted gifts this year.

The children’s charity is asking people to drop off their unsuitable gifts at one of their fundraising shops so they can be sold to fund the charity’s work with families in need of support.

The charity also supports young people at risk of exploitation, as well as care leavers and children who have caring responsibilities for parents, grandparents or siblings. Much of its work is supporting those who are struggling with the challenges of family life.

This year’s appeal for donations is even more urgent as families struggle to cope with the continuing cost of living crisis. The charity has supported families across Wales with food and heating, clothing, beds and other essentials. A Barnardo’s survey recently revealed that 11% of children in the UK don’t have a proper bed.

Shoppers can buy quality clothes, household goods, books, toys as well as accessories and collectibles at Barnardo’s shops. There are shops in Bridgend and Cardiff. For more details, visit https://www.barnardos.org.uk/wales

Sharon Goswami,

Head of retail operations at Barnardo’s.

Thursday 24th November 2023:

The shy boys on the balcony at The Paget Rooms

THE article by Brian Lee in your 30 November paper will have, no doubt, jogged a few memories for your older readers.

Cardiffians did flock to Penarth in the 60s for a Saturday night dance at the Paget Rooms. It was there that boys met girls. Although I had met Joan, my wife, at St Fagan’s Tennis Club, I knew that on Saturday night she would be at the Paget Rooms with her best friend Barbara Allen. It was the best place to get to know them.

In the 60s boys and girls were, in the main, segregated educationally and boys were shy approaching a girl for a dance. We also had to master the basic steps of a quickstep, foxtrot and waltz.

It was a ritual, therefore, to go to a local pub for a drink before the dance. In the Paget Rooms, the boys would go up to a balcony which overlooked the dance hall. From there they could view the talent. Although from memory the dance started at 8pm, most boys would be arriving well after 9pm and the dancing finished at 10.30pm as the buses for home left soon. Few had their own transport in those days.

Music was provided by Jimmy McNulty and his band. Jimmy would often look to the balcony and say to the boys “Come on down – there is no extra charge for dancing”.  It was at the dance that Barbara Allen met Brian Baker.

The bus home for was destined for Ely but it stopped in Canton for Joan and Barbara and for me near to Victoria Park where I had digs.

For the record, Joan and I were married in Llandaff Cathedral in 1965. (I was a member of the Cathedral Choir during the 60s). Barbara was a bridesmaid and Brian Baker a guest. The following year, Barbara and Brian were married in a church in Canton. They lived in Rhoose for a time before emigrating to Perth in Western Australia.

By coincidence, I had just finished reading Brian Lee’s article when Brian Baker rang from Perth WA . He remembers those Saturday nights well, and Jimmy McNulty calling out to the boys to come on down.  Happy memories.

Michael Bradley       

Cowbridge

Glamorgan Star note: Shortly before going to press, Mr Bradley contacted us to say that a friend remembered things slightly differently, saying that the Paget Rooms attraction to Cardiff folk was that they finished later than Cardiff, where the dances finished at 10.30pm. Please email us if you can offer any further information.

Thursday 30th November 2023:

Could Jordan help resolve Israel – Palestine conflict?

HOW many City marches must there be in favour of the Palestinians?

Between 1950 and the Six-Day War in 1967, Jordan claimed an additional 2,270 square miles which included the West Bank.

King Hussein of Jordan gave up claim to the West Bank in favour of the Palestinians. Modern history (1965) informs us that Jordan and Saudi Arabia made land agreements that gave Jordan 6,000 square kilometres of territory inland, with 7,000 square Kilometres of Jordan conceded to Saudi Arabia.

Surely, with the Palestinians having the West Bank, further territory of Jordan can be made available to the Gazan Palestinians?

Maybe the land is mostly desert but let’s not forget, so was Israel. Over the years, Israel has made its desert areas flourish with much growth of fresh fruit etc. There was investment in desalination, taking sea water and building desalination plants that reach their arid areas.

I have read somewhere that Jordan is not willing to concede such a land area to the Palestinians. If Jordan would reverse their land accumulation (which they could well do) and house the Palestinians then there would be no ‘ongoing’ wars or building of secret tunnels in Gaza.

Why can’t the United Nations resolve this problem instead of dishing out orders for Israel to Cease fighting the Hamas Terrorists who want to see the Jews wiped off the map?

Mr M Stafford

Brackla

Local residents let down after removal of trees

IN the previous edition of the Glamorgan Star (15th November), I wrote about the strong local opposition to the removal of two mature trees at the front of the school in St Nicholas and the failure to engage with residents – that resulted in an expensive planning application failing at a meeting of the Planning Committee.

Sadly, the trees have since been removed by the Vale Council, with residents complaining directly to me, and expressing their “disgust” on social media on the very day that elected members of the Vale Council were considering the Annual Self-Assessment Report.  I looked through old postings on the council social media account and found one post on the Vale Council’s public engagement attracted 54 comments. In my opinion, 54 of which were negative.  The annual report states that social media sentiment on public engagement is a “mixed picture” – perhaps there were ‘positive’ comments on other threads. 

During the final phases of the construction of the new school in St Nicholas, the village was overloaded with contractors’ parked vehicles.  It was a planning condition that contractors employed to build the new school building must not park on the narrow, tight streets of the village.  The contractor and subcontractors wilfully ignored the planning condition, with local residents finding the highway, driveways and even front doors obstructed by parked vehicles. Delivery drivers were unable to access homes and there were weeks of missed recycling and waste collections. 

Eventually, we succeeded in moving some vehicles out onto the extremely wide A48 and feedback to this solution was overwhelmingly positive once we moved the vehicles back from the junction of School Lane.  Again, this was a locally initiated solution that the decision-makers within the Vale Council had ignored.

To many people, there appears to be lack of oversight of contractors employed by the Vale Council, accountability, and leadership.

We are still awaiting a retrospective planning application in relation to the ‘new’ £26m A4226 which opened back in 2019.  There is much room for improvement within the Vale Council.

Cllr Ian Perry

St Nicholas and Llancarfan ward member

Speed limit anomalies must be sorted out

WE have had the new 20mph limit issue for just over two months now and whilst it makes sense in certain situations, I think it would help if there was some uniformity of placement.

For example, Llantwit Major Road going out of Cowbridge skirting Clare Gardens is 20, yet the perimeter road from Forage Roundabout also skirting Clare Gardens, is 30. 

The main road through Llysworney passing one pub and a few other properties is all 20, yet the main road through Ogmore village, with several houses, a pub and busy riding stables and farm, is 30. 

Indeed, the main road in Ogmore by Sea, particularly Seabank Hill, with houses on each side of the road, is 30, up to the Post Office and businesses, where it drops to 20 until some random point on a common! 

There seems to be little uniformity and I am sure there are more examples which would show it. Now, I read, there is even some suggestion to allow buses to ignore the 20 limits! 

At the other end of the scale, Cowbridge bypass, a dual carriageway with traffic travelling in both directions separated by a central safety barrier and arguably one of the safest types of road to travel on, has been reduced to a 50mph speed limit. Once reaching the Bryn Owain pub, with the road reverting to a two-lane road with no central safety barrier, the speed limit reverts to the national speed limit of 60mph! Quite bizarre! 

Just like putting traffic lights on roundabouts, it’s all slowly taking the skill out of proper driving. 

Freya George 

Cowbridge 

Cosmeston plan is contrary to Welsh Gov policy

“No development on the Welsh coast, except for development that needs a coastal location”, says the Welsh Government in Planning Policy Wales.

Natural Resources Wales (NRW) is their ‘arm’ with responsibility for the coastal environment and in the adjacent Marine Protected Area (international designation) – NRW said a buffer is needed, setting all housing back from the coast by 20 metres or more.

NRW is directly responsible for the Wales Coastal Path, which Ministers claim to be a national treasure and “jewel in Wales’s crown”. How can the Minister create a housing estate on this jewel?

In acting as developer, the Minister, Julie James, has not only ignored her countryside duties, but also her planning role. If the Vale Council supports policy and rejects this plan, it goes back to Julie James for a planning appeal.

This conflict in roles is a travesty of proper governance. Wales is no banana republic but is signed up to the rule of law and separation of powers. Let’s see the local politicians and Vale Council calling out this shameful ministerial action.

Max Wallis

FoE Barry&Vale

‘Affordable housing’ just means small houses

DRIVING around the south Wales area delivering groceries I have come to what I consider to be obvious conclusions.

Affordable housing means building houses that are suitable for only very small families. You will see three houses where the standard houses around them, taking up the same space, are used for two. The width is narrow – often just a front door and a small window.

Why does it take the builders (tradesmen) so long to complete houses? Is it lack of co-ordination or lack of planning? Where is the encouragement for productivity to improve?

Building companies really do not care and are not satisfactorily monitored to get quality houses built faster. Houses have a guarantee for 12 years after completion but some houses have been built so badly that there are problems from day one.

To prove the utter contempt that building companies have for residents of these huge estates, drive into one and check out the roads two to three years after the estate has been completed. They will very often still be incomplete.

When the profits are pronounced for these large companies, they make millions while their customers are residing in sub-standard housing and poor environments.

I do not care what colour the next government is, this issue needs fixing.

Paul Blanchard

Barry

16th Novemeber 2023:

20mph limit means more noxious emissions

Patrick Whelan (Letters, 2nd November) needs to re-read my letter of 19th October.

There is nothing in that letter to indicate that I have a problem with driving at 20mph – if he believes that then next time he drives through Cowbridge I would suggest that he stops off at one of the opticians to get his reading glasses checked.

My letter was to draw attention to the misleading statements used by the First Minister and his cronies to justify the imposition of the 20mph speed limit.

My car (63 plate) is capable of driving at 20mph in second gear at fairly high revs, meaning that noise levels are higher, fuel consumption is higher and noxious emissions are higher. Driving at 30mph, in third gear, means lower noise levels, lower consumption and lower emissions and as confirmed by the garage when it was last serviced, 20mph means more wear on engine, transmission and gear train because they are not (in modern cars) designed to be driven at distances at 20mph.

On top of all that there is the wear on brake linings and associated dust emissions resulting from increased application of brakes when going downhill to keep the vehicle speed to below 20mph.

John Upstone

Cowbridge

Ceasefire vigil in Barry

WILL your readers stand up for humanity? The Barry & Vale Green Party would like to invite local people to join their peace vigil calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of all hostages this coming Saturday, 18th November on King Square, Barry, meeting at 12 midday.

We need to send a clear message to both Alun Cairns and Jane Hutt, that local people will not tolerate the Conservative and Labour refusal to back a ceasefire and help protect innocent women and children in Gaza.

Supporters of all political parties and religions are welcome to join us on this peaceful demonstration. Silence is complicity!

Robert Curtis

Barry & Vale Green Party

Barry Remembrance was very moving

I AM writing to say that my wife and I were most impressed with the Remembrance event at Barry Cenotaph and Memorial Hall on Sunday (12th November).

The bugler was excellent and the subsequent service in the Memorial Hall afterwards was very moving. Many congratulations to all involved.

It’s a pity that some of our politicians couldn’t stop themselves making a mountain out of a molehill, especially bearing in mind the weather!

Jim Davies  

Barry

Don’t cut down our village trees

PRIOR to the Planning Committee of the Vale Council refusing planning permission for a majorly flawed planning application for a new school at St Nicholas in 2021, St Nicholas with Bonvilston Community Council made a formal complaint about a lack of engagement. 

The complaint remains unanswered. 

This planning application failed because it involved doubling the size of the school and implementing a one-way system that would prevent access around the narrow, tight streets by larger vehicles to homes and agricultural fields. Knowledge held within the local community was unwanted and ignored.

A second planning application came forward for a new school building, with a small size increase and no unworkable one-way system and this was approved by the Planning Committee. A small concession in the design of the school imposed upon the community was won, the width of the footway for parents to stand waiting for their children at the end of the school day was reduced from 3m to 2.7m  

So, it is without the consent of St Nicholas’ residents that the two healthy, mature field maple trees that stand prominently at the front of the school, within the Conservation Area, will be removed.  We are told that there were many conversations about the trees, but these conversations did not involve the community nor their elected representatives.

Residents do not know why the trees must be removed and are shocked and saddened that the Vale Council is to proceed with their removal.  Some have heard it’s because of the leaves that fall from them each autumn.  Perhaps it’s the roots?  We can see that the trees stand between the land that will be taken by the footway and the space to be used as a car park.

There was national outrage when the Sycamore Gap Tree was cut to the ground.  There will be outrage and great sadness in St Nicholas when the trees at the front of the school are cut to the ground in the next few weeks.

Many of the trees planted by the Vale Council in recent years at other schools and country parks have died.  Whilst four crataegus monogyna (hawthorn) trees will be planted, these will take many years to mature. Eyebrows were raised when we were told separately that existing hawthorn on the site is to be removed because its thorny nature makes it unsuitable for school premises.

Cllr Ian Perry

St Nicholas and Llancarfan ward member

Charity needs warm clothes

STOCKS of winter clothes are flying off the rails in our Barnardo’s Cymru shops across Wales, and more stock is needed urgently to keep up with demand.

If you are having a clear out, please think about donating good quality winter items to your local store. You will be doing your bit to support Barnardo’s Cymru’s work with children, young people and families through more than 60 services across Wales.

Quality stock also means that families struggling financially can shop for winter economically. We need autumn and winter clothing, such as coats and jumpers and we will be happy to take those unwanted presents of hats and scarf sets that are not your thing but could be just perfect for someone else.

Anything suitable for gifts would be very welcome too, as more and more people are now coming to us on their Christmas shopping trips. We stock a wide range of brand-new gifts at discount prices but welcome seasonal donations too.

You’ll be supporting the work we do with more than 11,000 children, young people and families across Wales each year. That work includes help for struggling families and for children with disabilities and mental health issues, those leaving care and those who have suffered exploitation or are facing homelessness. 

You can find your nearest store here.

Keith Taylor

Barnardo’s, Wales and the South West

Thursday 2nd Novemeber 2023:

Heartfelt thanks to all my rescuers

ON the morning of 9th October, I set off on my early morning walk with Rosie my rescue greyhound.

It was a pleasant day and Barry Island was tranquil and calm with just the usual early birds going about their business. Unfortunately, I tripped and injured my knee quite badly, and was unable to move.

I could only shout ‘Help’ in the hope that someone would hear. The Waders, who were getting ready for their early morning swim, heard my shouts. Four lovely ladies, who I can only describe as angels, came hurrying to my aid. They were so kind and expertly took care of me, wrapping me in their warm coats, and contacting the emergency services.

I did not have my mobile phone with me and did not know the contact numbers of my family. Rosie was looking increasingly concerned and expressed it by the look in her big brown eyes. She made no effort to leave my side. I was worried about my dog, more than for myself, but two of the ladies offered to take her back to my house, settle her in and give her breakfast. They were so thoughtful and practical. They also located my mobile phone, enabling them to contact my family.

Next on the scene were three ambulance crew and three lifeguards, who gently and expertly used the scoop stretcher to carry me to the ambulance, ensuring I had adequate analgesia. They were all professional, good kind people.

I required surgery and spent 10 days in hospital (UHW and Llandough) where I can also say the care was of a very high standard, as was the equipment and walking aids I was given on discharge.
The kindness and professionalism I was shown on this day, will forever stay in my heart A big thank you to all.

Madeline Thornton

Barry

People need to be taught not to litter

I READ your story (19th October, page 18) regarding the beach clean at Whitmore Bay on Saturday, 21 October, arranged by student Poppy Martin.

I am a regular dog walker and occasionally use this beach when out and about. I regularly pick up litter while I am walking.

At Aberthaw beach a few weeks back, I collected cans, crisp packets, bagged dog mess and sweet wrappers…. even though there are bins provided in the car park there.

While sitting at the beach in Barry having a coffee, I have witnessed people putting litter (crisp packets, sweet wrappers, etc) in their pockets or a bag, which then gets picked up by the breeze and is lost to the elements and forgotten about – ending up in the sea.

I am sure that there are many people who just don’t care and litter at will but there are also many who carelessly litter by accident too.

Education and awareness needs to be enhanced to make people more responsible for their actions.

People like Poppy are doing a great job for the environment and I fully encourage this event, which brings people together in a social gathering and all for a good cause. However, this really needs to be stopped at the source and education and awareness can assist with this.

Gerard Morgan

St Fagan’s

Time to tackle Old Harbour parking problem

I READ with interest your article headed ‘money invested in Barry must not be wasted’.

I totally agree that money shouldn’t be wasted on ‘a marina’ in the Docks. Not many people I know would want to swim in this dock!

The Old Harbour is gaining in popularity, with all types of water sports enthusiasts. Unfortunately, the Vale Council has not addressed a potential parking issue. I regularly count at least 50/60 cars parked on the double yellow lines when there is a high tide. Cars are also parked on the Parade and White House areas causing a nuisance to residents.

A simple fix would be to create a car park on a section of the old swimming pool site with an entrance off the roundabout and exit by the steps the other end. This grass area isn’t used for any purpose at present.

This could possibly encourage a business to show interest and open a coffee shop or similar in the area. Perhaps using the old building in some way, as I understand it has toilet facilities. Unfortunately, visitors have been seen using the hedges and bushes for this purpose. This could potentially become a public health issue.

Tom Hughes

Knap resident

Driving at 20mph is not difficult

MESSRS Upstone and Larkin (Letters page, 19th September) have a problem with driving at 20mph.

If they cannot do it, they are not fit to drive. I am 82 years old and have already adapted.

Cowbridge has become calmer, quieter and safer since ‘Day 20’. Parents with children on foot or in buggies, all pedestrians and all us less nimble citizens share a less tense environment, much like 50 years ago.

Get out of your cars and join us, all you 20mph moaners! If your car strikes me at 20mph, I may escape injury and avoid spilling blood on your bumper.

Patrick Whelan,

St Hilary

Car boot sales will be back

FOLLOWING numerous messages and direct contacts in support of Cowbridge Rotary Club’s charity car boot sales, the club has decided that it will give the sales a try again next year. 

It has been such a wonderful response from local people in their supportive comments that instead of replacing this event, we will try again in the hope we can generate more interest. 

Dates will be published when agreed with the Vale Council.

Malcolm Hallewell 

Cowbridge Rotary Club

Thursday 19th October 2023:

Speed limit claim is misleading

I WISH to comment on the Welsh Government claim that the 20mph speed limit will add just one minute to journeys (Glamorgan Star, 5th October, page 5).

The fact that you can write a “detailed technical assessment” to say exactly what you want it to say, whether it is technically accurate of not, seems to escape some folks. The actual facts are quite simple to work out without a university degree, in that as follows:

A 60-mile journey taken at 60 miles per hour will take 60 minutes.

The same journey at 30 miles per hour will take 120 minutes.

The same journey at 20 miles per hour will take 180 minutes. (One third the speed, three times the duration)

The statement that a speed limit reduction from 30mph to 20mph will add one minute to your journey assumes that your journey is only one mile long and should have been written to say “… one minute per mile to your journey” ie, a five-mile journey, once taken at 30mph would take 10 minutes, will now at 20mph take 15 minutes.

Another indication that you can’t believe a word that Drakeford utters, just like his mate who had a thing about “weapons of mass destruction”.

John Upstone

Cowbridge

20mph roll out will not work

THE blanket roll out of the Wales-wide 20mph speed restrictions are undemocratic.

On page 2 of the 21st September edition of the Glamorgan Star, it states that ‘a consultation exercise took place in the Vale from 22nd June to 19th July but doesn’t give any clue as to whom was asked for comment.

It is a fallacy to say that it’s safer for pedestrians. Cars, vans, lorries, and other motorized vehicles are not designed to be driven at the lower rate for long periods. Yes, you might reduce noise pollution, but at the same time, you increase exhaust pollution – as an asthmatic, I know which kind of pollution I would have reduced, that which reduces exhaust fumes.

As for cyclists: the councils across Wales, have spent millions of pounds providing cycle paths on major roads, yet hardcore cyclists still ride on roads where cycle paths have been provided! Then they get agitated when motorists get frustrated by them as they cause legitimate road users to slow down to their speed – and seemingly take a warped kind of pleasure doing it. If they used the paths provided, it’s a win win arrangement as they get to enjoy safe riding, it saves them from clogging up the roads and getting abuse from irate motorists. By actually using them, their relations with other road users would greatly improve.

By making the speed limit 20mph country-wide, albeit with certain exceptions, it also makes a mockery of the 20mph zones near schools and hospitals. Now that we have to drive at this speed all the way through built-up areas, are they going to remove all speed reducing humps?

So-called cushion bumps don’t cushion your vehicle – even if you go over them at 10mph, particularly those on Buttrills Road in Barry, whereas the ones outside the school in Rhoose are much kinder. Remove these bumps and maybe people will be less opposed to the scheme. At 20mph, the only ones needed, are the rumble strips, such as the ones on the western approach to the crossroads near to St Athan and Gileston, and the western approach to Cosmeston.

Andrew Larkin, 

Conservative resident of St Athan.

Credit where credit’s due for skatepark

IT is absolutely wonderful to see the Richard Taylor Memorial Skate Park finally refurbished and our young people fully enjoying this wonderful facility.

Unlike other political parties, we will say when other political parties get it right.

So, we would like to thank the Labour-led Vale Council, Gaynor Taylor, Sport Wales, the National Lottery Community Fund, the Waterloo Foundation, the South Wales Police Youth Trust and the generosity of everyone who have made donations to make this project possible.

We would also like to thank those people who supported our petition calling for the refurbishment nearly two years ago… together we made a difference.

Robert Curtis

Barry & Vale Green Party

Money invested in Barry must not be wasted

IN his Glamorgan Star column (5th October), the Mayor of Barry stated that in Barry, “the former industrial dockland area has been transformed into the new community at Barry Waterfront, and Goodsheds shopping and leisure complex”. 

Realistically, the area is a housing estate with supermarkets and small businesses. Not a great reflection of “Barry’s early industrial identity”. The opportunity has long gone for this area as more houses continue to fill in the spaces left.

Let’s see some ‘Blue Sky thinking’. 

Option 1. A Barry Marina on the mud bank that is the old harbour.

Option 2. Put a solar-powered heated pool down the Knap.

Option 3. The Vale Council building Broad Street repurposed. Working From Home has halved the usage of the car park so a building this size is no longer required.

The Barry Marina will never come to pass in the expected dock as the area continues to be used for ships from the Bristol Channel. It may also be used for the ‘pellet ships’ – should the Barry Incinerator start production.

The money allocated for Barry needs to be invested wisely. Unfortunately, wide pedestrian/cycle lanes peppered over the Vale do not benefit the greater majority of the residents of Barry. There is a new cycle lane grinding its way through St Athan. It involves MoD land and new security fences around Picketston Close area and has been under construction for six months. Taxpayers’ money being flushed down the drain for projects like this is shameful in my opinion.

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 5th October 2023:

First Minister will not listen

THE large petition already signed against the 20mph limit shows that many people in Wales oppose it.

Mark Drakeford has shown again his contempt for the Welsh people by saying he will not take notice of any petition. This is not the first time he has shown such contempt. When we voted for Brexit in one of the most important votes ever, he ignored the people and threw his weight behind Corbyn in an attempt to stop it.

Since he has no intention of supporting the wishes of the Welsh people, unless they agree with him, it is time he remembered who put him in power and he should do the honest thing and resign now.

M Hopkins

Cowbridge

Why 20mph makes sense to me!

WHEN I was about seven years old in 1955, I ran home from my Llantwit Major school in the afternoon.

Something (I forget what) was urging me to get home as soon as possible. Consequently, I ran straight across a main road (Colhugh Street) from a footpath known as The Drangway. In those days there were not many cars on the roads but in this case I ran into the path of an oncoming car.

The driver was (fortunately) travelling quite slowly so I was unhurt but touched the car’s bonnet with my right hand and lost a shoe from my right foot – which became wedged under the passenger side front wheel.

The driver could not have seen me until the last second as the path ran between two buildings. Instant braking, good tyres and a dry road surface enabled the car to stop before hitting me – but the main reason I escaped death or serious injury was that the driver was travelling at a low speed.

Do I support 20mph in residential areas?

You bet I do.

SR George

Llantwit Major

What’s the big deal about driving a bit slower?

MY confidence in basic human nature has taken a battering this week. How can a safety measure to slow cars, vans and lorries in our communities result in the biggest ever petition to the Welsh Government?

I could understand a petition calling for an end to fuel poverty or calling for an end to sewage being dumped into our seas and rivers or calling for better funding for the NHS or calling for better school buildings.

Perhaps a petition calling for an end to the shame of homeless on our streets or calling for an end to food banks by ending poverty or stopping inappropriate development next to Ty Hafan or stopping knife crime on our streets or even concern at the highest ever temperatures causing wild fires throughout our planet!

But please, please would anyone out there explain how travelling 10mph slower on some roads is such a big deal?! Or is everyone just high on petrol fumes?!! 

Robert Curtis

Barry & Vale Green Party 

Litter in the Vale

I HAVE just been on holiday round Lake Constance.

If I saw half a dozen pieces of litter during the week that is all. Back in Cowbridge it is litter as usual,

R Bradshaw

Cowbridge

Thursday 21st September 2023:

First Minister will not listen

THE large petition already signed against the 20mph limit shows that many people in Wales oppose it.

Mark Drakeford has shown again his contempt for the Welsh people by saying he will not take notice of any petition. This is not the first time he has shown such contempt. When we voted for Brexit in one of the most important votes ever, he ignored the people and threw his weight behind Corbyn in an attempt to stop it.

Since he has no intention of supporting the wishes of the Welsh people, unless they agree with him, it is time he remembered who put him in power and he should do the honest thing and resign now.

M Hopkins

Cowbridge

Why 20mph makes sense to me!

WHEN I was about seven years old in 1955, I ran home from my Llantwit Major school in the afternoon.

Something (I forget what) was urging me to get home as soon as possible. Consequently, I ran straight across a main road (Colhugh Street) from a footpath known as The Drangway. In those days there were not many cars on the roads but in this case I ran into the path of an oncoming car.

The driver was (fortunately) travelling quite slowly so I was unhurt but touched the car’s bonnet with my right hand and lost a shoe from my right foot – which became wedged under the passenger side front wheel.

The driver could not have seen me until the last second as the path ran between two buildings. Instant braking, good tyres and a dry road surface enabled the car to stop before hitting me – but the main reason I escaped death or serious injury was that the driver was travelling at a low speed.

Do I support 20mph in residential areas?

You bet I do.

SR George

Llantwit Major

What’s the big deal about driving a bit slower?

MY confidence in basic human nature has taken a battering this week. How can a safety measure to slow cars, vans and lorries in our communities result in the biggest ever petition to the Welsh Government?

I could understand a petition calling for an end to fuel poverty or calling for an end to sewage being dumped into our seas and rivers or calling for better funding for the NHS or calling for better school buildings.

Perhaps a petition calling for an end to the shame of homeless on our streets or calling for an end to food banks by ending poverty or stopping inappropriate development next to Ty Hafan or stopping knife crime on our streets or even concern at the highest ever temperatures causing wild fires throughout our planet!

But please, please would anyone out there explain how travelling 10mph slower on some roads is such a big deal?! Or is everyone just high on petrol fumes?!! 

Robert Curtis

Barry & Vale Green Party 

Litter in the Vale

I HAVE just been on holiday round Lake Constance.

If I saw half a dozen pieces of litter during the week that is all. Back in Cowbridge it is litter as usual,

R Bradshaw

Cowwbridge

Thursday 21st September 2023

Green Party backs 20mph decision

THE Barry & Vale Green Party fully supports the Welsh Government’s brave decision to reclaim our communities away from the car, vans and lorries and back towards pedestrians and cyclists.

Change is never easy but if you want reasons for introducing 20mph zones, then just ask a firefighter because they have to deal with the horrific carnage resulting from speed.

Which side of history were you on?

Compulsory seat belts?

Banning smoking in public areas?

Charging for single use plastic bags?

Reducing speed in our communities?

Change is sometimes just so inconvenient – but it’s the right thing to do!”

Robert Curtis

Barry Green Party

St Nicholas 20mph exemption is not needed

IT is surprising that the Vale Council is in the process of exempting the speed limit on the A48 through St Nicholas from the default for restricted roads, given that officers admit the road meets the place criteria for 20mph, with homes and key buildings in close proximity to the road. 

I question whether increasing the speed limit back to 30 is lawful, as this will immediately raise road noise pollution back to a level that is harmful to the health and wellbeing of neighbouring residents.  The road will once again be identified in the Welsh Governments Noise and Soundscape Action Plan for Priority Action to reduce road noise pollution – perhaps through a costly new TRO to reduce the speed limit to 20mph?

The Highway Authorities were supposed to only make exemptions where they can make a ‘clear and reasoned case’ supported by evidence. The Highway Authority, in its response to objections, states that “further assessments will be required” for the A48 at St Nicholas because they lack evidence.

It seems that it is the view of the Highway Authority that St Nicholas and Bonvilston should have higher speed limits than would be expected of villages because the A48 is an “emergency diversion route for the M4.”  The speed limit at Bonvilston is indeed very similar to the speed limit of the M4 at Newport.

The sensible thing to have done was to have accepted the new default speed limit for St Nicholas, then resolve the noise and safety issues experienced by residents before considering whether to increase the speed limit back to 30.

Cllr Ian Perry

Vale Councillor

St Nicholas and Llancarfan ward

Council has not made case for 20mph exemptions

THE worst thing about the Vale Council making 30mph exceptions to the new 20mph default in residential areas, is their belief that all A-roads and B-roads are ‘strategic’. 

Their default speed for that ‘class of roads’ is 30mph. Second, their officer says cyclists and pedestrians will be deterred from using these roads, so he’ll define just a few crossing points. Of course, it doesn’t work as cyclists cross at each side road and pedestrians cross at each shop or bus-stop.

It seems that the council doesn’t expect people to cycle to Sully Library and sports field at one end of the village, or to Sully (Old School) community centre at the other. No need to worry about Sully, you can say, for they’re getting 20mph, if with 30mph exceptions at both ends. 

But up the road, Cosmeston has no such luck. People are not expected to walk or cycle to shops or the secondary school because the road is ‘strategic’.

Ystradowen – north of Cowbridge – is similarly mistreated. The village is denied 20mph, despite over 50 objections letters, while nearby Aberthin down the same road gets the 20mph default.

The Welsh Government told councils to make “robust and evidenced” cases for each 30mph exception. Their guidance told the officers how to assess each stretch of road. We believe that the council didn’t do it – unlike most councils.

Late changes under public pressure have given much confusion. As the exception orders and signs to go with them are delayed, the council has  a chance to review them and try to show fair decision-making, based on the law.  Will they? 

 Max Wallis

Friends of the Earth Barry&Vale

Thursday 7th September

Say no to planet of the vapes

WHILE waiting to be served at a local pharmacy, I noticed that one of the main attractions on display on the counter was single use vapes.

This is a dreadful product, designed to sell nicotine to young people (I noticed flavours like watermelon and strawberries). 

What on Earth are they doing, placing these for sale in a pharmacy, which I thought would be geared up towards helping us to be more healthy? 

I have quite a large family, children and grandchildren and great-grandchildren all living in this community, and I do not want anybody trying to make them addicted to nicotine.

I am so lucky to live in a wonderful community. However, it’s impossible to ignore the deluge of rubbish that is ruining every part of our town and surrounding countryside, as more and more throw-away items are unleashed by businesses, whose only aim is apparently to make money, no matter what the cost to our health and our environment. 

Does anybody think it is acceptable for 1,000,000 (yes that’s one million!) of these throwaway vapes to be entering our waste stream every week?

The environmental group Material Focus says this: “Vapes contain a range of materials which when thrown away, are lost forever. Although vapes are covered in plastic, the lithium inside the battery forms a key material hidden inside the vapes. Each single use vape contains on average 0.15g of lithium and with over 1.3 million single use vapes thrown away every week, this accumulates to 10 tonnes of lithium a year, equivalent to the lithium in batteries inside 1,200 electric vehicles.”

I say no. This is not acceptable.  

Annie Paine

Llantwit Major

New speed limit will cause more pollution

ON the subject of the new 20mph speed limit, somebody in the Welsh Government comes up with these amazing ideas but does no comprehensive research into the consequences of the proposals.

The 20mph limit, due to be implemented this month is not at all environmentally friendly. A motor vehicle restricted to 20mph will use approximately 20% more fuel, owing to the fact that it will have to use second and third gears, with higher revolutions, expelling far more fumes into the atmosphere. Also, slow moving vehicles slow down air movement.

They have also not researched why people are seriously injured or killed. Statistics show that drink, drugs, using a phone, and irresponsible drivers who often have no licence, insurance or tax, are all factors.

So, the 20mph limit will just cause more asthma, chest infections and more cancers.

Roy Jones

Cowbridge

RAF were never given the Freedom of Llantwit Major

AFTER reading the Glamorgan Star (24th August) I wish to correct some of the statements in the report referring to the RAF Parade at Llantwit Major (page 23).

RAF St Athan were never given the Freedom of Llantwit Major in 1975 as stated, as Llantwit Major Town Council could not grant a Freedom, as they are not a borough council. The Town Mayor at the time, Cllr Dewi Evans, gave RAF St Athan an ‘Illuminated Address of Friendship’ between the town and RAF St Athan. There was a parade through Llantwit Major and a reception at the Pensioners’ Centre, which is now known as Llantonian Hall.

The RAF have the Freedom of the Vale of Glamorgan and can exercise that Freedom anywhere in the borough – and have done so a few times in Llantwit Major. I know this because I was a serving member of Llantwit Major Town Council from 1974-79 and I am the only surviving councillor of that administration.

Prior to 1974, Llantwit Major was a Parish Council and, under new legislation in 1974, the newly elected council unanimously voted to make Llantwit Major a Town Council – on 1 April, 1974, at 6.02pm at the first meeting.

Gwyn John

Llantwit Major

Scaffolding stays up too long

WHY does scaffolding seem to linger so long on the few beautiful buildings in Barry?

At Golau Caredig on Broad Street the scaffolding was there six months or more. Now the scaffolding is at old Barry Hotel. Surely they should put it up do the work and then take it down?

The poor residents. Shame on the building and scaffolding companies. I would imagine there are no bye laws that mention these visual blights. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 5th October 2023:

First Minister will not listen

THE large petition already signed against the 20mph limit shows that many people in Wales oppose it.

Mark Drakeford has shown again his contempt for the Welsh people by saying he will not take notice of any petition. This is not the first time he has shown such contempt. When we voted for Brexit in one of the most important votes ever, he ignored the people and threw his weight behind Corbyn in an attempt to stop it.

Since he has no intention of supporting the wishes of the Welsh people, unless they agree with him, it is time he remembered who put him in power and he should do the honest thing and resign now.

M Hopkins

Cowbridge

Why 20mph makes sense to me!

WHEN I was about seven years old in 1955, I ran home from my Llantwit Major school in the afternoon.

Something (I forget what) was urging me to get home as soon as possible. Consequently, I ran straight across a main road (Colhugh Street) from a footpath known as The Drangway. In those days there were not many cars on the roads but in this case I ran into the path of an oncoming car.

The driver was (fortunately) travelling quite slowly so I was unhurt but touched the car’s bonnet with my right hand and lost a shoe from my right foot – which became wedged under the passenger side front wheel.

The driver could not have seen me until the last second as the path ran between two buildings. Instant braking, good tyres and a dry road surface enabled the car to stop before hitting me – but the main reason I escaped death or serious injury was that the driver was travelling at a low speed.

Do I support 20mph in residential areas?

You bet I do.

SR George

Llantwit Major

What’s the big deal about driving a bit slower?

MY confidence in basic human nature has taken a battering this week. How can a safety measure to slow cars, vans and lorries in our communities result in the biggest ever petition to the Welsh Government?

I could understand a petition calling for an end to fuel poverty or calling for an end to sewage being dumped into our seas and rivers or calling for better funding for the NHS or calling for better school buildings.

Perhaps a petition calling for an end to the shame of homeless on our streets or calling for an end to food banks by ending poverty or stopping inappropriate development next to Ty Hafan or stopping knife crime on our streets or even concern at the highest ever temperatures causing wild fires throughout our planet!

But please, please would anyone out there explain how travelling 10mph slower on some roads is such a big deal?! Or is everyone just high on petrol fumes?!! 

Robert Curtis

Barry & Vale Green Party 

Litter in the Vale

I HAVE just been on holiday round Lake Constance.

If I saw half a dozen pieces of litter during the week that is all. Back in Cowbridge it is litter as usual,

R Bradshaw

Cowbridge

Thursday 21st September 2023

Green Party backs 20mph decision

THE Barry & Vale Green Party fully supports the Welsh Government’s brave decision to reclaim our communities away from the car, vans and lorries and back towards pedestrians and cyclists.

Change is never easy but if you want reasons for introducing 20mph zones, then just ask a firefighter because they have to deal with the horrific carnage resulting from speed.

Which side of history were you on?

Compulsory seat belts?

Banning smoking in public areas?

Charging for single use plastic bags?

Reducing speed in our communities?

Change is sometimes just so inconvenient – but it’s the right thing to do!”

Robert Curtis

Barry Green Party

St Nicholas 20mph exemption is not needed

IT is surprising that the Vale Council is in the process of exempting the speed limit on the A48 through St Nicholas from the default for restricted roads, given that officers admit the road meets the place criteria for 20mph, with homes and key buildings in close proximity to the road. 

I question whether increasing the speed limit back to 30 is lawful, as this will immediately raise road noise pollution back to a level that is harmful to the health and wellbeing of neighbouring residents.  The road will once again be identified in the Welsh Governments Noise and Soundscape Action Plan for Priority Action to reduce road noise pollution – perhaps through a costly new TRO to reduce the speed limit to 20mph?

The Highway Authorities were supposed to only make exemptions where they can make a ‘clear and reasoned case’ supported by evidence. The Highway Authority, in its response to objections, states that “further assessments will be required” for the A48 at St Nicholas because they lack evidence.

It seems that it is the view of the Highway Authority that St Nicholas and Bonvilston should have higher speed limits than would be expected of villages because the A48 is an “emergency diversion route for the M4.”  The speed limit at Bonvilston is indeed very similar to the speed limit of the M4 at Newport.

The sensible thing to have done was to have accepted the new default speed limit for St Nicholas, then resolve the noise and safety issues experienced by residents before considering whether to increase the speed limit back to 30.

Cllr Ian Perry

Vale Councillor

St Nicholas and Llancarfan ward

Council has not made case for 20mph exemptions

THE worst thing about the Vale Council making 30mph exceptions to the new 20mph default in residential areas, is their belief that all A-roads and B-roads are ‘strategic’. 

Their default speed for that ‘class of roads’ is 30mph. Second, their officer says cyclists and pedestrians will be deterred from using these roads, so he’ll define just a few crossing points. Of course, it doesn’t work as cyclists cross at each side road and pedestrians cross at each shop or bus-stop.

It seems that the council doesn’t expect people to cycle to Sully Library and sports field at one end of the village, or to Sully (Old School) community centre at the other. No need to worry about Sully, you can say, for they’re getting 20mph, if with 30mph exceptions at both ends. 

But up the road, Cosmeston has no such luck. People are not expected to walk or cycle to shops or the secondary school because the road is ‘strategic’.

Ystradowen – north of Cowbridge – is similarly mistreated. The village is denied 20mph, despite over 50 objections letters, while nearby Aberthin down the same road gets the 20mph default.

The Welsh Government told councils to make “robust and evidenced” cases for each 30mph exception. Their guidance told the officers how to assess each stretch of road. We believe that the council didn’t do it – unlike most councils.

Late changes under public pressure have given much confusion. As the exception orders and signs to go with them are delayed, the council has  a chance to review them and try to show fair decision-making, based on the law.  Will they? 

 Max Wallis

Friends of the Earth Barry&Vale

Thursday 7th September

Say no to planet of the vapes

WHILE waiting to be served at a local pharmacy, I noticed that one of the main attractions on display on the counter was single use vapes.

This is a dreadful product, designed to sell nicotine to young people (I noticed flavours like watermelon and strawberries). 

What on Earth are they doing, placing these for sale in a pharmacy, which I thought would be geared up towards helping us to be more healthy? 

I have quite a large family, children and grandchildren and great-grandchildren all living in this community, and I do not want anybody trying to make them addicted to nicotine.

I am so lucky to live in a wonderful community. However, it’s impossible to ignore the deluge of rubbish that is ruining every part of our town and surrounding countryside, as more and more throw-away items are unleashed by businesses, whose only aim is apparently to make money, no matter what the cost to our health and our environment. 

Does anybody think it is acceptable for 1,000,000 (yes that’s one million!) of these throwaway vapes to be entering our waste stream every week?

The environmental group Material Focus says this: “Vapes contain a range of materials which when thrown away, are lost forever. Although vapes are covered in plastic, the lithium inside the battery forms a key material hidden inside the vapes. Each single use vape contains on average 0.15g of lithium and with over 1.3 million single use vapes thrown away every week, this accumulates to 10 tonnes of lithium a year, equivalent to the lithium in batteries inside 1,200 electric vehicles.”

I say no. This is not acceptable.  

Annie Paine

Llantwit Major

New speed limit will cause more pollution

ON the subject of the new 20mph speed limit, somebody in the Welsh Government comes up with these amazing ideas but does no comprehensive research into the consequences of the proposals.

The 20mph limit, due to be implemented this month is not at all environmentally friendly. A motor vehicle restricted to 20mph will use approximately 20% more fuel, owing to the fact that it will have to use second and third gears, with higher revolutions, expelling far more fumes into the atmosphere. Also, slow moving vehicles slow down air movement.

They have also not researched why people are seriously injured or killed. Statistics show that drink, drugs, using a phone, and irresponsible drivers who often have no licence, insurance or tax, are all factors.

So, the 20mph limit will just cause more asthma, chest infections and more cancers.

Roy Jones

Cowbridge

RAF were never given the Freedom of Llantwit Major

AFTER reading the Glamorgan Star (24th August) I wish to correct some of the statements in the report referring to the RAF Parade at Llantwit Major (page 23).

RAF St Athan were never given the Freedom of Llantwit Major in 1975 as stated, as Llantwit Major Town Council could not grant a Freedom, as they are not a borough council. The Town Mayor at the time, Cllr Dewi Evans, gave RAF St Athan an ‘Illuminated Address of Friendship’ between the town and RAF St Athan. There was a parade through Llantwit Major and a reception at the Pensioners’ Centre, which is now known as Llantonian Hall.

The RAF have the Freedom of the Vale of Glamorgan and can exercise that Freedom anywhere in the borough – and have done so a few times in Llantwit Major. I know this because I was a serving member of Llantwit Major Town Council from 1974-79 and I am the only surviving councillor of that administration.

Prior to 1974, Llantwit Major was a Parish Council and, under new legislation in 1974, the newly elected council unanimously voted to make Llantwit Major a Town Council – on 1 April, 1974, at 6.02pm at the first meeting.

Gwyn John

Llantwit Major

Scaffolding stays up too long

WHY does scaffolding seem to linger so long on the few beautiful buildings in Barry?

At Golau Caredig on Broad Street the scaffolding was there six months or more. Now the scaffolding is at old Barry Hotel. Surely they should put it up do the work and then take it down?

The poor residents. Shame on the building and scaffolding companies. I would imagine there are no bye laws that mention these visual blights. 

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Thursday 27th August 2023:

Nature could tackle climate change

THE letter to the Glamorgan Star (10th August) entitled The ‘boiling’ question is pure rational thinking but ignores a much wider argument.

Yes, climate change is real and accelerating but the letter ignores our planet’s capabilities. In 1815, in Indonesia, Mount Tambora erupted. This was the largest volcanic eruption in recorded human history. It brought about the 1816 ‘year without a summer’ – which is easily researched.

So yes, we need to address the climate issue but keep in mind that our planet can change its climate regardless of human activity – and at a frightening speed.

Charles Allen

Llantwit Major

Cash ‘frittered away’ on road ‘improvements’

IT looks like the Welsh Government still like to spend ratepayers money on pointless road ‘improvements’.

The three-metre wide pavement from Brocastle to Greggs is open. Now, the Senedd has come up with a scheme for a bus lane at £1 million in Pontcanna, Cardiff. That’s a total of £2 million just frittered away. The bus lane is expected to save 40 seconds on the bus trip. 

Spend, spend. spend.

Paul Blanchard

Barry

Memories of the Commonwealth Games

(when Southerndown sheep were a danger to the cycling!)

READING the article about the Empire Games in Cardiff in 1958 (Glamorgan Star, 10th August, page 28) and the involvement of Barry’s Memorial Hall, where the weightlifting was held, brought back a lot of good memories.

In addition to the events held around the Cardiff area, there were also events staged in the western Vale. The cycling race was held around the coast from Ewenny Cross through St Brides Major, Southerndown, Ogmore-by-Sea, Ogmore Village and finished back at Ewenny Cross. The outriders were the Army with radio wagons following the riders around the course. 

I was a steward, stationed by the water pumping station (Schwill) making sure that none of the pubic came out from the footpath onto the road while the race was on. I think all the sheep on the common had been put into fields for the day. Many years later I was at the Games in New Zealand in Christchurch and met a gentleman who was in the NZ cycling team who told me that up until then, the course around the coast was as good as he had ever experienced. The teams were accommodated at the St Athan RAF camp. 

The management of the Games here in Wales was under the president, Major Cennydd G Traherne, Lord Lieutenant of Glamorgan.  At the opening ceremony in Cardiff Arms Park, the renowned rugby player, Ken Jones, had the privilege of carrying the Queen’s Baton into the stadium and the Duke of Edinburgh read the Queen’s message of welcome. Wales won 11 medals in total with the one gold medal won by Howard Winstone in bantamweight boxing.

At the end of the Games a profit of £33,000 was reinvested by the committee of trustees into a trust fund to assist future Commonwealth teams. By the late 1990s this amount had increased threefold. The size of the teams has increased over the years as well as the cost of staging the event.

It is sad to read that Victoria, Australia, has pulled out of the 2026 Games. It is the only Games in which Wales can compete in a large number of different sports on a world-wide basis . Wales has been a member of the Commonwealth Games since the start in 1930.

Ogmore Village

Basil Georg

Thursday 10th August 2023:

Council should invest in Colcot Sports Centre

HAVING settled in the Colcot area 26 years ago, it is disheartening and disgraceful that the Colcot Sports Centre has received no investment over the years and is now considered ‘unworthy’ of renovation.

The Vale Council has a plan to demolish and dispose of this site for yet another housing project and build changing facilities and extensive car parking on part of the Buttrells fields at a cost of £2.1million.

This seems absurd! One wonders if those behind this plan are even residents of the area and understand that the Sports Centre is an integral part of the broader community. The widely recognised and easily accessible centre, with parking for more than 100 cars, along with its sports cages and adjacent green fields, is heavily used.

It houses the Boxing Club and a nursery, and the potential uses for this site are numerous, as we saw during the pandemic and also by film production companies on many occasions. So why not upgrade the existing site instead of building on green fields prone to flooding with very limited road access through narrow roads on a large housing estate?

Surely it makes more sense to develop houses on the vacant Holm View site, which has good access and existing amenities. Sue Vincent Jones highlighted the significant increase in traffic if the housing projects at The Barry College site and the Colcot Sports Centre site proceed, disregarding road safety and air pollution. It is time for common sense to prevail and for the proposed project to be revised to upgrade the current Colcot Sports Centre to a modern, inclusive, gold standard facility deserving of Barry.

Kay Charles,

Barry

Thursday 27th July 2023

My broken ankle – an example of NHS waste?

CIRCULAR economisers might like to look at the NHS.

When I broke my ankle a few weeks ago I was given a boot and two arm crutches. When I recovered, I heard nothing from the hospital about returning these and when I enquired, I was advised to “bin the boot” and return the crutches when convenient.

When I took them back to the hospital the advice was to put them in a cupboard, with some others, from where they would be thrown away.

The reason was “health and safety” so no surprise there. The crutches are as good as new and I read that refurbishment kits are available for the boot. How much other, maybe more expensive, equipment does the NHS throw away in this cavalier manner? Is it any wonder that it is forever demanding more cash when it carries on in this profligate way?

Perhaps your readers have had more encouraging experiences,

R Bradshaw,

Cowbridge

The internet is passing me by

I READ a letter in the last edition of the Glamorgan Star (13th July) on the subject of the proposed 20mph speed limit that is due to be introduced in September.

The letter from H Taylor of Llantwit Major commented that he/she had been unable to find any details on whether the Vale Council was leaving some roads at the existing 30mph limit. I can think of a few where cutting it to 20mph seems unnecessary. Has the consultation taken place? Where was it promoted?

If it’s all on the internet then I am not a technically adept person and I can’t navigate the internet without help.   Surely some allowance should be made for people like me?  Incidentally, the same applies to internet banking, what happened to good old dealing in person!

Name and Address supplied

Chapel needs clearing up

It would be so good to see fellow brother and sister Christian folk in Barry organise a rota to clear up the mess in the courtyard of the old cream painted chapel in the centre of Barry.

It really does give a bad impression.

Vivien Pernas,

Llantwit Major

Garden waste collection has never been ‘free’

I AM, as no doubt others are, very annoyed with the Vale Council’s description on its website to quote: “We will no longer collect garden waste from your home for FREE “.

This is treating the residents in the Vale as having no common-sense or intelligence. Who do they think the residents of the Vale thought was paying for the collection of the garden waste, the vehicles, fuel and salary of the staff? 

The costs have always been met by the council, who obtained the funding from the council tax payments or monetary awards from the Welsh Assembly, again from the council tax.  It is a play on words.

The council increased the council tax and has taken away services. There may have to be cutbacks but do not treat residents as if they are not aware.

Amend the wording so as not to offend, people are not unwise.

ABS of Penarth,

(Full name and address supplied)

Thursday 13th July 2023

What’s happening with 20mph speed limits?

I LIVE in the Vale of Glamorgan and I would like to raise an issue that has been bothering me for quite a while.

I think it was about a year ago that the Welsh Government announced a plan to introduce a 20mph speed limit in towns. That seemed fair enough in shopping areas, around schools and in residential streets. Reducing the speed limit from 30 to 20 seemed sensible.

However, talking with friends, I was not alone in thinking that some roads – although technically in a town – did not need a speed reduction. We all know roads which are quite wide, have good visibility and have very little housing.

They are often quite long too, so I was reassured to read that there would exceptions.

Since then, I have heard nothing. I went on the Vale Council website and searched for 20mph speed limit. It came back saying no results.

There are about 30 options on the website – from dog fouling to residents’ parking. The only possible one was ‘highways’. I clicked on that.

No luck. Another range of options from snow clearing to Japanese Knotweed. No mention of 20mph speed limits.

A friend had mentioned that he thought it might be subject to a consultation, so I searched for ‘consultations’. No luck. Quite a few consultations on schools but nothing on 20mph.

Am I the only one in the dark?

H Taylor
Llantwit Major

Allotment rate rise is unfair

THE recent decision of the Labour and Llantwit First-controlled Vale Council to increase allotment rent rents by up to 72 per cent in Barry and Rhoose will mean many poorer allotment holders, who have often tended their plot for many years, will be forced to surrender their plots.

The Barry & Vale Green Party believes that this level of rent rise is not proportionate with other council charge increases such as car parking, council house rents or council tax and will hurt those on the lowest incomes most. Allotments have never been meant to be rented at an economic rent. They were and are a social and environmental good.

Increasing rents in line with inflation would be reasonable but making allotment holders plug council finances is simply wrong. At a time when the Vale Council is boasting about the fact it has one of the lowest council tax rises in the whole of Wales, it is simply wrong that they have made the political choice of raising allotment rents by this much. Has the council lost the plot?

Robert Curtis

Barry & Vale Green Party

Council needs to rethink waste collection plan

AFTER receiving a great deal of negative feedback from residents of the Wenvoe ward about waste collection changes, I emailed the Vale Council leader, Cllr Lis Burnett with my observations..

There is a real concern from residents who are elderly or have young children, and those with pets, at having to store bags for three weeks with used nappies or pet waste. The smells from the bags, particularly in summer months, is not going to be pleasant and there is sure to be increased activity from rats, coupled with bags being ripped open by birds and cats.

Regarding garden waste collection, the proposal is to charge for one to four bags – and then up to 8 bags with a further 50p a bag charge. This is unfair to residents with properties with large gardens, who put out over 10 bags on a regular basis. It can be argued that they already pay a higher level of council tax and are now going to be further penalised?. Also, there are areas where households put out their refuge collectively to assist refuse collection. I do not think this has been thought about as part of the proposal.

Surely the logical way of collecting payment should be via residents’ council tax, otherwise this creates a further burden on the Vale Council to collect payments.

I believe that the introduction of the proposed changes should be delayed until the above issues are reviewed.

I am disappointed with Cllr Burnett’s response, which was: “I further note your comments but have nothing to add on this subject.”

Cllr Russell Godfrey

Elected member – Wenvoe ward

75 years of caring

LAST week, on 6th July, Marie Curie celebrated its 75th anniversary.

Since 1948, Marie Curie has been there for millions of people and their families affected by terminal illness, and today our support is needed more than ever.

The anniversary was an opportunity to highlight our years of expertise and to show we’re ready to achieve even more over the next 75 years.

In our Marie Curie Hospice, Cardiff and the Vale, we have run a hospice on Bridgeman Road, Penarth since 1959, supporting the terminally ill and their families with care, compassion, and dignity. We also work closely with the NHS to deliver palliative care support via partnerships.

Our care includes day and outpatient services, bereavement support and complementary therapies. Marie Curie also provides an information and support line which provides a listening ear for anyone affected by death, dying or bereavement.  

The services that Marie Curie provides are always free, but it can only continue through the generosity of its supporters.

To help us continue providing end of life care for the next 75 years, visit  Mariecurie.org.uk/donate

Rachel Jones

Marie Curie Cymru Associate Director

Thursday 29th June 2023:

Thanks to ‘lovely, helpful people’

I AM writing to express my sincere thanks to the several people who stopped to offer help when my car broke down on Wednesday, 7th June.

It was in the most inconvenient place in the middle of the road at the bend halfway up Windsor Road in Barry. One kind lady offered me the use of her phone so that I could save my battery and a very helpful young man managed to manoeuvre the car into a safer spot.

Unfortunately, I can`t thank them personally but I am so pleased that I am lucky enough to live in a place where there are still some lovely helpful people.

Janice Boland, Penarth

Council should rethink Penarth special school plan

MEMBERS of Barry&Vale FoE are disappointed that the Welsh Government has decided not to ‘call in’ the Vale Council proposal for an extension to Ysgol y Deri Special School in Penarth’s green belt, which FoE requested in March.

However, the Welsh Government can still decline to sell the land to the council. There’s space for the school on their adjacent development site instead.

The Welsh planners have put the decision back to the council, with a mention of needing a licence (European-Protected Species). The wild habitat along the old railway is thought to be rich in wildlife (evidenced by rarer species of bat).  We believe the council now has to show there is “no alternative” to damaging species in this habitat. 

However, the Welsh Government report says there is an alternative site over the road from Ysgol y Deri. A further alternative (not mentioned in the Welsh Government report) is the adjacent Cosmeston development site (Upper Cosmeston Farm).

FoE Barry&Vale group are challenging the Vale Council to show they have asked the Welsh Minister to release part of this Cosmeston Farm site for their special school. Until the Minister refuses, with reasons that comply with their rules, the council cannot maintain there is “no alternative” to damaging the habitat of protected species.

The rules governing the Welsh Government landholding require the land to be used in the public interest, over and above disposing of it for development. Previously the Minister argued it was needed to meet the Vale LDP’s need for “affordable housing”. Now that development has stalled and the LDP is under review, having failed to deliver over-ambitious house building, the argument no longer stands up.

Max Wallis

Friends of the Earth Barry and Vale

Thurday 18th May 2023:

Online meetings are killing democracy

THE COVID-19 pandemic greatly accelerated the use of online meetings for local councils and they have become the go-to solution for conducting business.

However, I’m not convinced online meetings hold our senior politicians or paid officers accountable for their actions and this lack of accountability is eroding democracy. All Covid restrictions were lifted on 24th February 2022.

However, the Vale Council continues to hold public meetings online, though they claim to be working (at a glacial pace) towards a hybrid style, when some councillors are in the committee room and some online.

It’s difficult to debate at both hybrid or online meetings. It’s usually people reading set statements. So why keep this terrible method of debate? It’s easy for those in power to manipulate proceedings and it’s much easier to control the narrative. Too often, I’ve seen some councillors treat online meetings like watching the telly, take the foot off the pedal and coast, say nothing, do nothing and frankly act like furniture.

I’m also mindful that for a couple of years during the height of the pandemic, paid officers ran the Vale Council with little ‘interference’ from elected members. I wonder about that power shift and the continued ‘arm’s length’ scrutiny.

Is giving back control proving to be too hard?

Politicians seem unable to direct the progress of change and I wonder who is in charge and who is holding them to account.  The sooner the council returns to face to face meetings the better.

Cllr Shirley Hodges

Barry Town Council 

Sully hospice thanks volunteers

Volunteers Week takes place 1st-7th June every year. It’s a chance to recognise the fantastic contribution volunteers make to our communities and to say ‘thank you’ to them. 

Volunteers play a vital role in the success of Tŷ Hafan Children’s Hospice – in fact, they make up a large percentage of our Tŷ Hafan family. We have over 500 volunteers in a variety of roles and the contribution of each and every one of them is integral to our ability to care for children with life-shortening conditions and their families in Wales.  

So, we would like to use this opportunity to say a huge thank you to all our volunteers and to say once again just how grateful we are for their time, effort and priceless support. If you are online then please do check out Tŷ Hafan’s social media channels to see more about how we’re thanking our volunteers as well as how we’re encouraging more volunteers to join us. 

Finally, if you would like to receive more information on volunteering for Tŷ Hafan, please email  or call 02920 532254. 

Sarah Roberts 

Tŷ Hafan Children’s Hospice

Thurday 18th May 2023:

Flood risk on incinerator can’t be ignored

IN your recent article on Barry’s incinerator (4th May), the author reports the Vale Council officers’ claim that the 2015 planning consent stands, despite the Welsh Government holding it up since 2018 for lacking the essential EIA. 

The officers declare the site is suitable for an incinerator despite it being at flood-risk and exceptionally close to housing.

When the recent peak spring tide flooded the footings of new buildings by the old graving dock, the pictures got news coverage and people asked what is the Council doing in denying flood risk?  Cllr Mark Hooper put a question at the full council meeting but was brushed aside.

At last, NRW faced up to their responsibility for flooding from the sea and told the Vale Council (letter 21st March 2023, file 2023/00032/FUL) the predicted flood risk level (8.95m AOD) means flood depths of up to 1.36m at the site access. They conclude “This depth is not within the tolerable limits of A1.15”.

This is an understatement: the tolerable maximum depth is 0.6m, over half a metre less. The Waterfront developments have already been designed to the same flood-risk levels (8.9-9.0m AOD), so it’s no surprise to the Vale Council. 

NRW at last tell the Vale they have “to determine whether the risks and consequences of flooding can be managed in accordance with TAN15”, recommending “professional advisors on matters such as emergency plans, procedures and measures to address structural damage that may result from flooding”.

TAN15 “Development and Flood planning” is Welsh Government policy.

Max Wallis   

Friends of the Earth, Barry & Vale

Glamorgan Star Note: The NRW letter referred to above is below:

The Vale of Glamorgan Council,

Dock Office,

Barry Docks,

Barry,

CF63 4RT

Annwyl Syr/Madam / Dear Sir/Madam,

BWRIAD / PROPOSAL: RETROSPECTIVE FULL PLANNING PERMISSION FOR DEVELOPMENT COMPRISING A WOOD FIRED RENEWABLE ENERGY PLANT AND ASSOCIATED STRUCTURES WITHOUT COMPLYING WITH CONDITION 5 (DRAWINGS) ATTACHED TO PLANNING PERMISSION 2015/00031/OUT.

LLEOLIAD / LOCATION: BARRY BIOMASS RENEWABLE ENERGY FACILITY, DAVID DAVIES ROAD, BARRY.

Thank you for consulting Cyfoeth Naturiol Cymru / Natural Resources Wales about the above, which we received on 31 January 2023.

We have no objection to the proposed development as submitted and provide the following advice.

We note the Planning Statement (section 4.7) advises on the withdrawal of planning application reference 2021/00695/FUL for “A retrospective (S73A) planning permission for the erection and use of a cylindrical fire water tank at its biomass fired renewable energy generation facility at the Barry Docks”. The planning statement advises the planning application would be withdrawn on validation of planning application reference 2023/00032/FUL.

In our letter ref CAS-162786-R5G0, 6 September 2021 we advised on the fire water tank and pollution prevention.

We note planning application reference 2021/00695/FUL does not appear to have been withdrawn. For completeness our letter is attached for your information

Flood risk

The planning application proposes retention of highly vulnerable development (energy plant). Our Flood Risk Map confirms the site to be partially within Zone C2 of the Development Advice Map (DAM) contained in Technical Advice Note: 15. The Flood Map for Planning (FMfP) identifies the application site to be at risk of flooding and falls partially into Flood Zone 2 and 3 Sea (Tidal).

We note this proposal seeks to retain the use and structures. We wish to highlight that the FMfP would not have been used to inform our previous advice on the original proposal and subsequent variations of planning permission.

We note and have reviewed Environmental Statement Appendix 3.14 (Technical Note: Flood Risk and Drainage – Barry Biomass Plant’ Document Ref: 407.13039.00002, Version No: Issue 4 by SLR, dated July 2022 (Technical Note)).

The Technical Note advises the operational lifetime of the development is 25 years and assesses flood risk and climate change until 2049. Our technical assessment on flood risk over a lifetime of development (LOD) until 2049 is below.

We note Section 3.2 of the Technical Note advises the ground levels of the site vary between 7.9mAOD at the site entrance to 9.5mAOD at the northern Site boundary. We note section

3.4 of the Technical Note advises the Main Process Building and Turbine Hall have a finished floor level (FFL) of 8.71mAOD and the Wood Processing Warehouse is set at a level of 9.27mAOD.

A1.14 Criteria

The predicted flood level for the 0.5% (1 in 200 year) plus climate change allowance (CCA) to 2049, is 7.85m AOD. With a ground level 7.9mAOD, the development is predicted be flood free during this event. The proposal meets with the requirements of A1.14.

A1.15 Criteria

The predicted flood level for the 0.1% (1 in 1000 year) plus CCA to 2049, is 8.95m AOD.

Buildings

The Wood Processing Warehouse is set at a level of 9.27mAOD and is predicted be flood free during this event.

The FFL of turbine hall is 8.71m AOD, the development is predicted to experience flood depths of up to 0.25m. This depth is within the tolerable limits of A1.15.

Access

Plan ‘Topographic Survey 1st March 2022’ by SLR dated March 2022 identifies a datum point of 7.59 mAOD on Woodham Road and a few meters from the site entrance. With a predicted flood depth of 8.95m AOD this area is predicted to experience flood depths of up to 1.36m. This depth is not within the tolerable limits of A1.15.

The other elements of A1.15 (depth, velocity and speed of inundation / rate of rise) have not been included in the Technical Note.

A1.12 Criteria

As proposed, there are no significant alterations to the site levels. The Technical Note advises there would be minor displacement of flood waters and no material impact beyond the site boundary. We agree with this assessment.

We note section 3.2 advises the intention to set out a formal Flood Emergency Plan. As it is for your Authority to determine whether the risks and consequences of flooding can be managed in accordance with TAN15, we recommend you consider consulting other professional advisors on matters such as emergency plans, procedures and measures to address structural damage that may result from flooding. Please note, we do not normally comment on or grant the adequacy of flood emergency response plans and procedures accompanying development proposals, as we do not carry out these roles during a flood. Our involvement during a flood emergency would be limited to delivering flood warnings to occupants/users.

Important advice to the Planning Authority

Lifetime of Development and National Policy

We refer you to Welsh Government guidance on Climate change allowances and flood consequence assessments, which assumes a LOD for this proposal would be 75 years (i.e. non-residential development). However, we note the energy plant is expected operate for 25 years. It is for the decision maker to be satisfied that the LOD is appropriate for the proposal. Therefore, if a 25 year LOD is not acceptable to you, a revised flood consequence assessment will be necessary to support the proposal, and you should reconsult with us.

We note Environmental Statement (‘Environmental Statement Volume 1: Main Text – Barry Biomass Facility’ reference Q220002 by Quad, dated July 2022) (ES) and supporting documents have been submitted in support of this proposal.

You previously asked us to advise you, under enforcement reference CAS-01341-N2Q5B8, in light of the information within the ES, whether the existing planning conditions for application reference 2015/00031/OUT remain appropriate. In our letter reference CAS- 197544-J9D1, dated 18 November 202 we advised there doesn’t appear to be issues, relevant to our interests, which could make the existing conditions inappropriate or would we require further conditions.

We maintain this advice and refer you to our letter reference CAS-197544-J9D1 and our comments on matters relevant to the Natural Resources Wales Environmental Permit which may be helpful to you.

Other Matters

Our  comments   above   only  relate   specifically  to   matters  included   on  our checklist,

Development Planning Advisory Service: Consultation Topics (September 2018), which is

published on our website. We have not considered potential effects on other matters and do not rule out the potential for the proposed development to affect other interests.

We advise the applicant that, in addition to planning permission, it is their responsibility to ensure  they  secure  all  other  permits/consents/licences  relevant   to   their development. Please refer to our website for further details.

If you have any queries on the above, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Yn gywir / Yours faithfully

Kate Glover

Cynghorydd – Cynllunio Datblygu / Advisor – Development Planning Cyfoeth Naturiol Cymru / Natural Resources Wales

New national independent body will monitor health and social care

WE would like to call on your readers to become involved with Llais, the new national independent body for health and social care in Wales.

Llais launched at the beginning of the month and replaces the seven Community Health Councils that have played a significant part in representing the views of NHS patients for 50 years.

We need volunteers from across Wales to help make Llais a success. We need volunteers, to engage with and listen to others, before feeding back to Llais. We want to hear all opinions, and for every voice in Wales to influence people-centred health and social care services.

Whether your readers have lots of time on their hands, or just a few hours a week to spare, there is a range of flexible volunteering opportunities available.

We need ‘on-line feedback collectors’, who will search forums and social media for opinions on health and social care, and also ‘community engagement volunteers’ who are out and about at engagement and information events, telling people and community groups all about Llais and listening to their views.

Our ‘visiting volunteers’ will go to places where health and social care services are provided to hear from those receiving them, such as GP practices or care homes, while ‘virtual visiting volunteers’ will meet on-line with those unable to meet in person.

Llais ‘representations volunteers’ will be comfortable digesting reports and stats and ensuring these accurately reflect findings and issues.

There are plenty of opportunities for those who want to help, are interested in a career in health and social care, or anyone who may have previously worked within either sector. We are keen to be inclusive – to listen to anyone in Wales who has an opinion on health or social care they have received or are receiving.

Llais welcomes any contribution to help make a difference to our health and social care. Please get in touch via www.llaiswales.org

Professor Medwin Hughes

Chair, Llais

Thursday 4th May 2023:

Appeal to newspaper led to record response!

EARLIER this year, the Glamorgan Star very kindly published an appeal by the Oxfam shop in Penarth for music-related donations, as the shop had run out of saleable items.

We were looking for vinyl records, CDs, pre-recorded cassettes, sheet music and musical instruments. I wanted to thank everyone who responded to our appeal.

The last two months has seen some of our highest taking in the shop’s music section in the last five years. Vinyl records account for about 80 per cent of our music takings so those have been particularly welcome.  Of course, we could not have been so successful without out loyal customers who come regularly to the shop to buy the goods, so a big thank you to them too.

Our shop needs the commitment of over 40 volunteers each week to stay open, so my final thank you goes to them.

Our shop sells a whole range of goods, including music, and we are open most days to receive any donations.

Once again, many thanks to all the readers.

Caroline Mumford (manager),

Oxfam, Windsor Road, Penarth

Don’t take a hard line on recycling errors

THE Vale Council should realise that you get better results with a carrot than you do with a stick.

They have decided to put stickers on recycling bags containing the wrong material and then leave the full bags behind. Why not take out the offending articles empty the bag onto their vehicles and then put the stickers on the bag with the wrong materials replaced inside?

I watched somebody remonstrating with the operatives and telling them that this was a heavy-handed approach to a rate payer who had made a mistake.

It is quite easy to just forget attempting to recycle and to put everything into black bags as a protest. Not something that I think the Vale would ever realise until next time the statistics come out.

It is not the operative’s fault. Come on the council… get real.

Paul Blanchard

Barry

The Bible is not just slogans

I RESPOND to Andrew Lloyd’s letter of 20 April entitled ‘I welcome a more thoughtful interpretation of Christianity’. 

His letter appears to be a non-starter with his conglomeration of attributes he has used against such an ethical subject. One description he surprisingly quotes is “slavish adherence” as being the cause in Church attendance falling?

Secondly, it’s predominately the Church’s Fundamentalists’ presentation of the Gospel (good news) that does not resonate with the younger generation which does more harm than good.

Also, he stated that “Quoting biblical texts is meaningless and worked well in the days when people were illiterate. How ridiculous is that.

Mr Lloyd, before Christ went to the Cross he prayed for his Disciples and all believers saying – “Sanctify them in the truth, your word is truth” (John 17 verse 17).

Christ was actually saying- “Your Word (Scripture) is truth (Divine, Authoritative, Absolute and Inerrant) – if it were not Divine, Authoratative and Inerrant, it could not be truth).

Isaiah (40 verse 8) says – The grass withers, the flower fades but the Word of our God stands forever.

The Bible is not a book of slogans (as you have stated) but a book of God given truths which sets free men and women who are not looking for life’s mysteries or magic but looking for a life with an ‘Eternal Hope’ that goes beyond the grave. 

True responsible Christians absolutely treat people with love and care and not as you suggest with slogans or the development of scientific knowledge which give far less certainties about clear and unequivocal ‘truths’. 

It’s a fallacy to believe that all Churches are on the decline. Most Evangelical Churches that I know of are on the increase. One of them in Manchester is over 4,000 strong with the majority young persons.

Finally, there is no such saying as a more thoughtful and humanistic teaching of Christianity. Humanistic means a philosophy and values which reflect a belief in human dignity but not religiuon.

Mr M Stafford

Bridgend

Faith is what matters

I AGREE with David Barnes’ letter (6th April) on the subject ‘What does Christianity stand for?’ – his response to recent Pause for Thought columns by Rev’d Robert Parrish and Rev’d Zoe King.

The Church has really lost its way, especially with the articles of current Church of Wales Diocese.

The Church is the embodiment of those who have Faith in their God. It appears that those in High Church positions would rather talk to society about environmental issues rather than the real Easter time of Death and Resurrection of our blessed Lord and Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Our God is really in love with His Creation (irrespective of some people’s views) 

Our God wants to ensure that our Faith in Christ gives us an Eternal Life with an Eternal Hope after our own existence. Yes, we may go through troubles and trials but Jesus Christ is always by our side to help every second of the day. 

A clear example is the Biblical character Job. Job went through every trial imaginable – his friends criticised him, his wife told him to curse God and die, he lost his daughters to death, lost all his cattle, but through all these trials he came through and his God blessed him so much more than he expected.

Job’s Faith wasn’t in a philosophy. or a code of rules or even ornate coloured glass in a church building – his Faith was in his Eternal God.

It appears that some Dioceses of Churches are more interested in environmental issues to cheer oneself up rather than Job’s God who is a ‘Rewarder of those who diligently seek  Him’. 

If the Church in general is going to have another ‘Welsh Revival’ it’s going to have another ‘Florrie Evans’ of west Wales who simply stood up in her Church prayer meeting and with a soft voice acclaimed: “I love Jesus with all of my heart”.

From that simple prayer in 1904, churches began to fill everywhere. In Wales it grew 100,000 fold in four years with people having a strong faith In their God.

Now there’s ‘A Pause for Thought’.

Mr M Stafford

Bridgend

Thursday 20th April 2023:

Council has been slow to act over Llandow recycling centre

IN response to the leader of the Vale Council labelling of the recycling centre as ‘horrendous’ (Glamorgan Star, 6th April) the underlying problems existed before the original lease expired in December 2019.

Following complaints, a council spokesman in March 2019 said: “The household recycling centre at Llandow is operated by a private contractor and is located on private land. As a result, the access road is not part of the adopted highway network and so not owned or maintained by the council.   We are, however, well aware of the longstanding issues with accessing the site. As part of a review of how waste and recycling is managed in the Vale, the council is currently considering the future of the Llandow site and the possibility of moving the service elsewhere. The issue of access will be a key consideration decision taken on the site’s future.’

Further to this, the Vale Council cabinet, as recently as 19 January, included the following extracts:

‘2.42 It is also proposed that the HWRC facility at Llandow is relocated, and a new site constructed. There is already £1.9m in the capital programme but it is estimated that a further budget of £1.5m will be required to deliver this project.

2.48 Following the latest site set-back, our Estates Department are now exploring other options and hopefully at some point, another alternative site will be identified, as promptly as possible.

2.49 If this is possible, it will take at least 18-24 months to complete the necessary due diligence, design, procurement, planning and permitting applications, before construction can begin. So, subject to funding and finding a site the aspiration is to be operational around 2025/26 and the Strategy has been updated to reflect this.’

As matters stand, any waste figures by the Council have to be questioned as there is little doubt tonnage would have been far greater in a more accessible recycling centre, all at a time of significant population increase. Any development costs for the new site will have inevitably spiralled.

Whilst the council say they have had problems completing the purchase of land, you have to question how proactive they have been over the years, noting they recognised there were ‘longstanding issues’ in 2019. We are now left with an access road which remains unfit for purpose and  an ‘aspirational’ and ‘horrendous’ resolution date of 2025/2026.

PD

Cowbridge

Support the Heritage Coast

THE Friends of the Glamorgan Heritage Coast is a support association which has run for 50 years since the inauguration of the Heritage Coast Project.

The project was in dire trouble at the end of lockdown, with the committee suffering depletion due to illness and retirement. However, a well-publicised General Meeting (thank you to the Glamorgan Star amongst others) was positive and a new committee came forward.

Members are holding an AGM on Sunday, 30th April, at 2pm for 2.30pm at the Heritage Centre, Dunraven Bay to confirm appointments and plan activities. New members and members of the public very welcome.  The centre can be contacted on 01656 880157.

Heather March

Llantwit Major 

I welcome a more thoughtful interpretation of Christianity

AFTER reading ‘What does Christianity stand for?’ in the Letters section of your 6th April edition, I for one applaud any clergy who tries to present a more realistic and credible interpretation of Christian thought and who emphasises the practical contributions a church makes to the local community. 

In my opinion, it is the slavish adherence to the simplistic interpretations of the Christian message that has resulted in the fall in church attendance across most denominations in Britain, Europe and north America. I think it’s fair to say that the predominantly fundamentalist presentation doesn’t resonate with reflective or younger generations and does more harm than good.

Also, promoting Christianity by quoting Biblical texts is meaningless, (every major religion can do that). Most thinking people find such quotations totally unconvincing, logically impossible and full of contradictions. This approach worked well in times when the majority of people were illiterate and in awe of authority, but thankfully those days have long gone.

Today, people should be treated more respectfully than berating them with such slogans. Our present understanding of how the biblical scriptures came about, and the development of scientific knowledge mean that beliefs are in a constant process of evolution and refinement, and there are far less certainties about clear and unequivocal “truths”.

So, I would welcome the time when church ministers move well away from a literal interpretation of Christianity, (of which there are literally thousands of differing ones worldwide), and which were largely abandoned by the British theological elite decades ago. My hope is that we progress to Christianity being presented as a message of simply treating others in the way that we would like to be treated and how the church goes about doing that.

So, if ministers like the Rev Robert Parish promote a more thoughtful and humanistic understanding of Christianity, long may he continue to do so. 

Andrew Lloyd

Cowbridge

Thursday 6th April 2023:

Pause for Thought criticism is unwarranted

IN the March 23 edition, Rev’d Robert Parrish received unwarranted criticism for his regular columns in the Glamorgan Star.

These have covered faith and spiritual experience, the relationship of Christianity to other religions, the nature of God, different interpretations of Christianity, and the limitations of The Bible in respect of advances in science and medicine.

He has commented on the writings of major theologians and philosophers rather than the promotion of his own opinions. To rate his writing as erudite is an understatement.

Many will have appreciated his contribution to giving readers an insight into complex religious issues generated over thousands of years. Those keen to maintain an interest in progressive Christianity may also enjoy the articles, poetry and community outreach of the Progressive Christianity Network (www.pcnbritain.org.uk).

Robert Williams

Barry

Tea for Tŷ Hafan – with the Patron’s blessing

I AM sure your readers are looking forward to this year’s additional long Bank Holiday weekend from Saturday, 6 May to Monday, 8 May in celebration of the coronation of King Charles III. 

His Majesty has been Patron of Tŷ Hafan Children’s Hospice since 2001 and I am writing today to invite your readers to celebrate the coronation of King Charles III with their very own fundraising tea party for Tŷ Hafan. 

Readers can hold their tea parties at any time between 29 April and 13 May and they can be anything from lavish to low-key – whatever suits personal preferences. Any amount your readers can raise – no matter how big or small – will go straight towards supporting children with life-shortening conditions. 

Readers can hold their ‘Tea for Tŷ Hafan’ parties wherever works for them, with some options being at home, in the garden, in the street, in a local hall, school, college or university or places of work. 

To sign up, email  or call 02920 532 255 and we’ll send readers their very own tea party pack in the post with lots of Tŷ Hafan goodies. Plus our Supporter Care Team will be there every step of the way to help readers with fundraising tips, publicity materials, Gift Aid and more. 

It costs £5.2 million a year for Tŷ Hafan to provide vital care and support for children with life-shortening conditions and their families in our hospice and in homes and communities across Wales and less than 20% comes from statutory sources. In other words, without the amazing kindness, enterprise and generosity of the Welsh public, we simply would not be able to do what we do. 

So whatever else your readers may have planned for the May 6-8 bank holiday weekend, I invite as many of them as possible to get a brew on and celebrate with some ‘Tea for Tŷ Hafan’ and help some of the most vulnerable children in Wales in the process. 

Thank you for your support. 

Sarah Roberts

Tŷ Hafan Children‘s Hospice  

Local history mix up in story of the Herberts?

AN article entitled ‘A right little Herbert’ published in The Glamorgan Star on 12 January (page 20) contained misleading information or omissions, e.g., the Herberts were not at Cogan Pill in 1520, and the author does not name the vessel taken by Herbert or name the captain.

George Herbert inherited the Manor of Cogan in 1544 from his mother’s family the Cradocks of Cosmeston, his son Matthew is regarded as the builder of the house in 1554. J Newman in his seminal book The buildings of Wales – Glamorgan suggests Matthew’s grandfather Sir Matthew Cradoc had the house built in 1531.

The events described in 1520 are very similar to events of 1538 recorded that year at the ‘Star Chamber’ and recorded in the Cardiff Records, Volume 5, page 308. During August 1538, the vessel ‘Valentine’ of London, not Portuguese, anchored in the river Ely. The vessel, commanded by its owner Londoner Captain Richard Hore had arrived from Andalusia, carrying a mixed cargo of salt, tunny fish, wine ’12 Kyntals’ of alum. Walter Herbert, kinsman of and agent to the powerful Marcher Lord seized the vessel.

Herbert, with about 29 well-armed men, took the vessel ‘Valentine’. Alderman John Colchester of Cardiff witnessed the event and said in evidence: “…saw in all eventide many strangers with bills and staves repairing toward the vessel”; another witness stated: “a waste of bows and arrows and firing at Cogan Pill”. Herbert had Hore charged with: ‘a failure to pay dues and with bringing in Portugueses fleeing justice in their own country’. Hore was initially held at Cardiff Castle until being released under surety to bring the Portuguese to the Castle. He only succeeded in bringing in a few, the majority having fled, including Agnes Fermandez who was found dead in woods near Cogan Pill, perhaps Adams or Callef’s woods.

Hore was re-arrested at the Cardiff home of one John Loveday. The Coroner, a Herbert placeman, committed Hore on a charge of manslaughter and he was imprisoned at Cardiff Castle then Chepstow Castle.

Herbert took the vessel from the Ely and anchored for a day and night at the ‘Kynrode’, the anchorage off the mouth of the Bristol Avon, now spelled ‘King Road’. Herbert then took the vessel to Chepstow sold the cargo and kept the vessel.

Hore was soon freed by order of the all powerful Thomas Cromwell. There is no record of Hore being hanged. Hore entered a lawsuit at the ‘Star Chamber’ against Herbert alleging corruption persecution, carried out to enable Herbert to sell the cargo and possess the vessel.

AR Thorne,

Cardiff

Church forecourt is a disappointment

I always enjoy the Rev’d Zoe King’s columns in the Glamorgan Star.

We like the Vale of Glamorgan very much, especially as the people are so friendly and helpful. We moved here from Devon a few years ago.

I am a carer of a sick husband, but I am fortunate to go occasionally to Barry on the bus. I attend regularly the small Presbyterian chapel here.

However, when I visit Barry, I am disappointed to see the amount of litter in the forecourt of the church in the town centre. The church may not be used now but surely local Christians could clear it up. It gives sad impression.

Vivien

Llantwit Major

What does Christianity stand for?

IS it any wonder that many folk these days have no idea what the church or indeed Christianity stands for?

Your ‘Pause for Thought’ column contributors are guilty of sowing doubt and confusion amongst your readership.  

Robert Parish stated that Jesus Christ was limited to embracing the pre-scientific views of his age, and in so doing he infers the God Man is limited to the intellectual capacity of mere humans. However, the Bible states that Jesus Christ is God clothed in flesh, and that He is in fact the creator God who put in place all that is, down to the minutest molecule.  (“All things were made through Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made” John 1 v 3). He is in no way limited, as Paul writes in Col 2 v 9 “For in Him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily”

Then we have Zoe King listing the plans of a church in Merthyr Dyfan with regard to the environment and an exciting garden project at St Mary’s.  Nowhere in her article is the name of God mentioned, although she celebrates human achievement. She refers briefly to the ‘Resurrection at Easter’ – the true meaning and its glorious implications are totally ignored as she goes on to write of the ‘resurrection in Barry’!

As I read the Bible, I note that its message is the greatest account ever told – that God actually clothed Himself in human flesh in order to save a people for Himself. Save, because man by his very nature is sinful, lost and at enmity with God. Yet that very same God, through mercy, paid the penalty and took the punishment (on Calvary) for all those who would believe.   How refreshing it would be if those who see themselves as ministers of the Christian religion would proclaim the Truth about Jesus Christ,  but they can only proclaim the Truth if they believe it themselves.  

David Barnes
Pencoed

Thursday 30th March 2023:

Memorial bench at the Memo

FOR the last two years I have been trying, with the help of the community, to raise enough funds to purchase three memorial benches to be placed opposite the Memorial Hall in Barry.

The benches are to commemorate the people of Barry who gave their lives for our freedom. Thankfully, the Vale Council and Barry Town Council agreed to fund a bench each, leaving one for the community to fund.

Due to the Covid pandemic and the cost of living crisis, fundraising has been extremely difficult, but we are now just £280 short of reaching our target of £1,395!

As an incentive, anyone wishing to donate £100 can have their name or company name added to a plaque on the bench as a thank you. If you can help, then please log onto the fundraising page at: https://gofund.me/8d9b3afb

Rob Curtis 

Barry

The Devil is real

IN the 9 March edition of the Glamorgan Star, Rev Robert Parrish is talking once again about different beliefs; this time on the existence of the Devil.

What really beggars belief is that the man is allowed to lead a congregation and write this way about God’s word and Christianity. Jesus did not just believe in the Devil – He knew him. Indeed, Satan was created beautiful; an angel of high standing and was made chief of music in Heaven.

Agreed, he took a third of the angels with him when he was thrown out of Heaven but he lost his position through the first sin of pride, wanting to be like, and to rise above God. Jesus himself saw Satan fall from Heaven like lightning. This is not a whimsical belief but an account of real events with an understanding of the word of God.

The Devil is not a metaphor for evil but a very real entity created by God. His fallen nature and activity is evident in the world today as we see Biblical prophecy being fulfilled as we approach the end of this age and the world as we know it. These days are likened to the Days of Noah as the evil is so great and has to be destroyed.

History is repeating itself. Jesus, whose Father, God, created the whole universe and the life within it with mathematical and scientific precision would not have shared the views of the people of that time regarding science. Jesus is wholly living God made flesh.

Kasey Burrows

Barry

Thursday 9th March 2023:

Vale residents are paying more for less

READERS may be aware of the latest increased council charges including; allotments – up 67% , waste caddies – up 500% , outdoor seating up in some cases – 100%, and council tax up 4.9%. 

Black bag refuse collections are changing from every two weeks to every three weeks, and we will soon have to pay for our garden waste to be collected.  These are all decisions that have been rubber stamped with little or no consultation with the public or businesses. 

Every year, we get fewer and fewer services from the council, yet they have the audacity to keep increasing charges. There are thousands more homes in the Vale than there ever have been, generating increased tax income for the council.  They also have around £100 million in reserve funds.

If they managed their budget properly, made savings by doing away with vanity projects, did not appoint additional top managers and more councillors, they would not need to take so much money from the community who are already struggling to make ends meet. 

I recently attended a scrutiny meeting which turned out to be a waste of time, since pretty much everything that was cabinet recommended got politically pushed through. 

So much for openness and transparency. This council is not in touch with the electorate.

How long until the next elections?

Jonathan Osborne,

Barry.

Councillors made correct decision on Model Farm

Vale Communities Unite would like to thank all councillors who voted against the Model Farm development. 

Historically, the Romilly family developed this farm as a ‘model’ for rotational crops. It continues to produce beef, crops and wildflower seeds. When there are plenty of alternative sites in the area, there is no need in our current climate and nature emergency (and food shortages) to build on 100 acres of farmland, which was originally protected as a green wedge. 

We are delighted with the outcome of the majority vote against the development. Councillors and speakers brought up the lack of sewerage capacity, the viability which would impact on the public purse, the questionable number of jobs, the biodiversity, traffic implications, the access, public transport concerns, the concern of capacity of the attenuation ponds and maintenance which would have been in the gifted land – plus the concern and cost of the airport situation.

Some counter arguments included how wonderful the gifted land would be to Porthkerry management – increasing biodiversity. However, the fields of the farm are used regularly for foraging of mammals and on my last count 50 skylarks were winter feeding on site. The wildflower seeds have increased the winter foraging there. The disturbance from the potential enormous build would move on the mammals, birds and diversity. Policies and practises on farmland are improving continuously and the Jenkins are keen to take part in these improvements. 

The managing director of Legal and General Land Group, Andrew McPhillips, spoke and advised that the farmer would be compensated. This would be the rent multiplied by a few years and I am unaware that any more has been offered.

He said that the development is in the LDP and follows due processes. However, that LDP is due for review and is now falling out of date in today’s very different climate – the airport has taken enormous amounts of public funding.

He also said the land is not high in agricultural value but the production of the land speaks for itself. He spoke of 4,000 jobs but this appears speculative as we are not provided with the industry, and we would ask they look at other areas more appropriate in the area.

Councillors now have to give their grounds and reasons for voting against the Vale Officers’ recommendations. It is against their professional code for the Vale to prepare the refusal. One councillor stated they they felt they were being vilified for making a democratic decision.

Maxine Levett,

Chair,

Vale Communities Unite

Tŷ Hafan is already a jewel in the Vale’s crown

Mr Henry Danter seems to think that his absolutely abhorrent idea of building a ‘holiday park’ in Sully is in some way a great idea for Vale residents and states that he can make Barry Island the ‘jewel in the crown of Wales’ – not egotistical at all!

What he neglects to mention is the close proximity of the proposed plan to the border of Tŷ Hafan Children’s Hospice.

I can only speak from personal experience with regard to what a special place Tŷ Hafan is – having spent time there with my youngest son in his final months. To be able to reflect on the horrific situation we found ourselves in as a family in the peace and tranquility that the location gave was so important to us.

We were able to walk down to the beach which backs on to Tŷ Hafan and listen to the sea lapping against the shore, to walk the grounds and hear nothing but bird song and the rustling sound of leaves on the trees. In moments of sheer agony and loss it felt as if it was gifted from somewhere that can’t be bought – a little piece of heaven on earth.

I know most of you have never had to use the services that Tŷ Hafan offer and I pray you never will but there are many families who find themselves in that unenviable situation. The staff treat families with absolute love and respect – something I think that is sadly lacking in the minds of those who believe that these proposals should even be considered.

Don’t be fooled into thinking that Mr Danter wants to do this for the people of the Vale. It is about lining his own pockets by playing on people’s nostalgia for the ‘Glory Days’ of Barry!

If you want to be proud of something, please do your upmost to protect the very special place you have on your doorstep for every child, for every family that needs Tŷ Hafan.

The jewel in crown of south Wales already exists, fight for it to remain that with all that you are.

Lee John McCabe.

Thank you to kind gentleman

I WOULD like to say a big thank you to a gentleman called Steve from near the fire station in Barry when I had a bad turn and felt so unwell in February.

He looked after me and offered to do my shopping in Tesco’s and took me to the bus stop so that I could get home to Llantwit Major. Also, the bus driver was so kind. A massive thank you for all the help. It was so much appreciated.

Daphne,

Llantwit Major.

Committee sees sense over Model Farm

ON the subject of Model Farm in Rhoose, congratulations to the Vale Council planning committee for seeing sense and wanting to save the environment/planet from unscrupulous developers who seek short term gain over the community and the environment.

A heartfelt thank you from a concerned citizen. 

Graeme Ramsden,

Bolton.

RAFA branch looks for ‘warm space’ venues

THE Barry branch of the RAFA has approached The Ship in Barry as one venue for a ‘Warm Spaces’ coffee morning, to which they have agreed, although a start date has not yet been agreed.

I wish to ask if there are other organisations, churches, veterans’ charities in the Vale that are already running such events, and if so, would they consider allowing Barry RAFA to share the venue? We can help with the cost of providing the service.

More importantly there are many RAF Veterans and dependents that we simply cannot reach, so if anyone reading the Glamorgan Star knows of an RAF veteran, widow or widower of a RAF Veteran, who is needing help, please contact us directly at RAFA.org.uk or email 

The veteran does not need to be a member of RAFA to benefit.

Howard Provis,

Barry branch secretary.

Thursday 20th April 2023

Council has been slow to act over Llandow recycling centre

IN response to the leader of the Vale Council labelling of the recycling centre as ‘horrendous’ (Glamorgan Star, 6th April) the underlying problems existed before the original lease expired in December 2019.

Following complaints, a council spokesman in March 2019 said: “The household recycling centre at Llandow is operated by a private contractor and is located on private land. As a result, the access road is not part of the adopted highway network and so not owned or maintained by the council.   We are, however, well aware of the longstanding issues with accessing the site. As part of a review of how waste and recycling is managed in the Vale, the council is currently considering the future of the Llandow site and the possibility of moving the service elsewhere. The issue of access will be a key consideration decision taken on the site’s future.’

Further to this, the Vale Council cabinet, as recently as 19th January, included the following extracts:

‘2.42 It is also proposed that the HWRC facility at Llandow is relocated, and a new site constructed. There is already £1.9m in the capital programme but it is estimated that a further budget of £1.5m will be required to deliver this project.

2.48 Following the latest site set-back, our Estates Department are now exploring other options and hopefully at some point, another alternative site will be identified, as promptly as possible.

2.49 If this is possible, it will take at least 18-24 months to complete the necessary due diligence, design, procurement, planning and permitting applications, before construction can begin. So, subject to funding and finding a site the aspiration is to be operational around 2025/26 and the Strategy has been updated to reflect this.’

As matters stand, any waste figures by the Council have to be questioned as there is little doubt tonnage would have been far greater in a more accessible recycling centre, all at a time of significant population increase. Any development costs for the new site will have inevitably spiralled.

Whilst the council say they have had problems completing the purchase of land, you have to question how proactive they have been over the years, noting they recognised there were ‘longstanding issues’ in 2019. We are now left with an access road which remains unfit for purpose and  an ‘aspirational’ and ‘horrendous’ resolution date of 2025/2026.

PD

Cowbridge

Support the Heritage Coast

THE Friends of the Glamorgan Heritage Coast is a support association which has run for 50 years since the inauguration of the Heritage Coast Project.

The project was in dire trouble at the end of lockdown, with the committee suffering depletion due to illness and retirement. However, a well-publicised General Meeting (thank you to the Glamorgan Star amongst others) was positive and a new committee came forward.

Members are holding an AGM on Sunday, 30th April, at 2pm for 2.30pm at the Heritage Centre, Dunraven Bay to confirm appointments and plan activities. New members and members of the public very welcome.  The centre can be contacted on 01656 880157.

Heather March

Llantwit Major 

Welcome a more thoughtful interretation of Christianity

AFTER reading ‘What does Christianity stand for?’ in the Letters section of your 6th April edition, I for one applaud any clergy who tries to present a more realistic and credible interpretation of Christian thought and who emphasises the practical contributions a church makes to the local community. 

In my opinion, it is the slavish adherence to the simplistic interpretations of the Christian message that has resulted in the fall in church attendance across most denominations in Britain, Europe and north America. I think it’s fair to say that the predominantly fundamentalist presentation doesn’t resonate with reflective or younger generations and does more harm than good.

Also, promoting Christianity by quoting Biblical texts is meaningless, (every major religion can do that). Most thinking people find such quotations totally unconvincing, logically impossible and full of contradictions. This approach worked well in times when the majority of people were illiterate and in awe of authority, but thankfully those days have long gone.

Today, people should be treated more respectfully than berating them with such slogans. Our present understanding of how the biblical scriptures came about, and the development of scientific knowledge mean that beliefs are in a constant process of evolution and refinement, and there are far less certainties about clear and unequivocal “truths”.

So, I would welcome the time when church ministers move well away from a literal interpretation of Christianity, (of which there are literally thousands of differing ones worldwide), and which were largely abandoned by the British theological elite decades ago. My hope is that we progress to Christianity being presented as a message of simply treating others in the way that we would like to be treated and how the church goes about doing that.

So, if ministers like the Rev Robert Parish promote a more thoughtful and humanistic understanding of Christianity, long may he continue to do so. 

Andrew Lloyd

Cowbridge

Thursday 6th April 2023:

Pause for Thought criticism is unwarranted

IN the March 23rd edition, Rev’d Robert Parrish received unwarranted criticism for his regular columns in the Glamorgan Star.

These have covered faith and spiritual experience, the relationship of Christianity to other religions, the nature of God, different interpretations of Christianity, and the limitations of The Bible in respect of advances in science and medicine.

He has commented on the writings of major theologians and philosophers rather than the promotion of his own opinions. To rate his writing as erudite is an understatement.

Many will have appreciated his contribution to giving readers an insight into complex religious issues generated over thousands of years. Those keen to maintain an interest in progressive Christianity may also enjoy the articles, poetry and community outreach of the Progressive Christianity Network (www.pcnbritain.org.uk).

Robert Williams

Barry

Tea for Tŷ Hafan – with the Patron’s blessing

I AM sure your readers are looking forward to this year’s additional long Bank Holiday weekend from Saturday, 6th May to Monday, 8th May in celebration of the coronation of King Charles III. 

His Majesty has been Patron of Tŷ Hafan Children’s Hospice since 2001 and I am writing today to invite your readers to celebrate the coronation of King Charles III with their very own fundraising tea party for Tŷ Hafan. 

Readers can hold their tea parties at any time between 29th April and 13th May and they can be anything from lavish to low-key – whatever suits personal preferences. Any amount your readers can raise – no matter how big or small – will go straight towards supporting children with life-shortening conditions. 

Readers can hold their ‘Tea for Tŷ Hafan’ parties wherever works for them, with some options being at home, in the garden, in the street, in a local hall, school, college or university or places of work. 

To sign up, email  or call 02920 532 255 and we’ll send readers their very own tea party pack in the post with lots of Tŷ Hafan goodies. Plus our Supporter Care Team will be there every step of the way to help readers with fundraising tips, publicity materials, Gift Aid and more. 

It costs £5.2 million a year for Tŷ Hafan to provide vital care and support for children with life-shortening conditions and their families in our hospice and in homes and communities across Wales and less than 20% comes from statutory sources. In other words, without the amazing kindness, enterprise and generosity of the Welsh public, we simply would not be able to do what we do. 

So whatever else your readers may have planned for the May 6th-8th bank holiday weekend, I invite as many of them as possible to get a brew on and celebrate with some ‘Tea for Tŷ Hafan’ and help some of the most vulnerable children in Wales in the process. 

Thank you for your support. 

Sarah Roberts

Tŷ Hafan Children‘s Hospice  

Local history mix up in story of the Herberts?

AN article entitled ‘A right little Herbert’ published in The Glamorgan Star on 12 January (page 20) contained misleading information or omissions, e.g., the Herberts were not at Cogan Pill in 1520, and the author does not name the vessel taken by Herbert or name the captain.

George Herbert inherited the Manor of Cogan in 1544 from his mother’s family the Cradocks of Cosmeston, his son Matthew is regarded as the builder of the house in 1554. J Newman in his seminal book The buildings of Wales – Glamorgan suggests Matthew’s grandfather Sir Matthew Cradoc had the house built in 1531.

The events described in 1520 are very similar to events of 1538 recorded that year at the ‘Star Chamber’ and recorded in the Cardiff Records, Volume 5, page 308. During August 1538, the vessel ‘Valentine’ of London, not Portuguese, anchored in the river Ely. The vessel, commanded by its owner Londoner Captain Richard Hore had arrived from Andalusia, carrying a mixed cargo of salt, tunny fish, wine ’12 Kyntals’ of alum. Walter Herbert, kinsman of and agent to the powerful Marcher Lord seized the vessel.

Herbert, with about 29 well-armed men, took the vessel ‘Valentine’. Alderman John Colchester of Cardiff witnessed the event and said in evidence: “…saw in all eventide many strangers with bills and staves repairing toward the vessel”; another witness stated: “a waste of bows and arrows and firing at Cogan Pill”. Herbert had Hore charged with: ‘a failure to pay dues and with bringing in Portugueses fleeing justice in their own country’. Hore was initially held at Cardiff Castle until being released under surety to bring the Portuguese to the Castle. He only succeeded in bringing in a few, the majority having fled, including Agnes Fermandez who was found dead in woods near Cogan Pill, perhaps Adams or Callef’s woods.

Hore was re-arrested at the Cardiff home of one John Loveday. The Coroner, a Herbert placeman, committed Hore on a charge of manslaughter and he was imprisoned at Cardiff Castle then Chepstow Castle.

Herbert took the vessel from the Ely and anchored for a day and night at the ‘Kynrode’, the anchorage off the mouth of the Bristol Avon, now spelled ‘King Road’. Herbert then took the vessel to Chepstow sold the cargo and kept the vessel.

Hore was soon freed by order of the all powerful Thomas Cromwell. There is no record of Hore being hanged. Hore entered a lawsuit at the ‘Star Chamber’ against Herbert alleging corruption persecution, carried out to enable Herbert to sell the cargo and possess the vessel.

AR Thorne,

Cardiff

Church forecourt is a disappointment

I always enjoy the Rev’d Zoe King’s columns in the Glamorgan Star.

We like the Vale of Glamorgan very much, especially as the people are so friendly and helpful. We moved here from Devon a few years ago.

I am a carer of a sick husband, but I am fortunate to go occasionally to Barry on the bus. I attend regularly the small Presbyterian chapel here.

However, when I visit Barry, I am disappointed to see the amount of litter in the forecourt of the church in the town centre. The church may not be used now but surely local Christians could clear it up. It gives sad impression.

Vivien

Llantwit Major

What does Christianity stand for?

IS it any wonder that many folk these days have no idea what the church or indeed Christianity stands for?

Your ‘Pause for Thought’ column contributors are guilty of sowing doubt and confusion amongst your readership.  

Robert Parish stated that Jesus Christ was limited to embracing the pre-scientific views of his age, and in so doing he infers the God Man is limited to the intellectual capacity of mere humans. However, the Bible states that Jesus Christ is God clothed in flesh, and that He is in fact the creator God who put in place all that is, down to the minutest molecule.  (“All things were made through Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made” John 1 v 3). He is in no way limited, as Paul writes in Col 2 v 9 “For in Him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily”

Then we have Zoe King listing the plans of a church in Merthyr Dyfan with regard to the environment and an exciting garden project at St Mary’s.  Nowhere in her article is the name of God mentioned, although she celebrates human achievement. She refers briefly to the ‘Resurrection at Easter’ – the true meaning and its glorious implications are totally ignored as she goes on to write of the ‘resurrection in Barry’!

As I read the Bible, I note that its message is the greatest account ever told – that God actually clothed Himself in human flesh in order to save a people for Himself. Save, because man by his very nature is sinful, lost and at enmity with God. Yet that very same God, through mercy, paid the penalty and took the punishment (on Calvary) for all those who would believe.   How refreshing it would be if those who see themselves as ministers of the Christian religion would proclaim the Truth about Jesus Christ,  but they can only proclaim the Truth if they believe it themselves.  

David Barnes
Pencoed

Thursday 30th March 2023:

Memorial bench at the Memo

FOR the last two years I have been trying, with the help of the community, to raise enough funds to purchase three memorial benches to be placed opposite the Memorial Hall in Barry.

The benches are to commemorate the people of Barry who gave their lives for our freedom. Thankfully, the Vale Council and Barry Town Council agreed to fund a bench each, leaving one for the community to fund.

Due to the Covid pandemic and the cost of living crisis, fundraising has been extremely difficult, but we are now just £280 short of reaching our target of £1,395!

As an incentive, anyone wishing to donate £100 can have their name or company name added to a plaque on the bench as a thank you. If you can help, then please log onto the fundraising page at: https://gofund.me/8d9b3afb

Rob Curtis 

Barry

The Devil is real

IN the 9th March edition of the Glamorgan Star, Rev Robert Parrish is talking once again about different beliefs; this time on the existence of the Devil.

What really beggars belief is that the man is allowed to lead a congregation and write this way about God’s word and Christianity. Jesus did not just believe in the Devil – He knew him. Indeed, Satan was created beautiful; an angel of high standing and was made chief of music in Heaven.

Agreed, he took a third of the angels with him when he was thrown out of Heaven but he lost his position through the first sin of pride, wanting to be like, and to rise above God. Jesus himself saw Satan fall from Heaven like lightning. This is not a whimsical belief but an account of real events with an understanding of the word of God.

The Devil is not a metaphor for evil but a very real entity created by God. His fallen nature and activity is evident in the world today as we see Biblical prophecy being fulfilled as we approach the end of this age and the world as we know it. These days are likened to the Days of Noah as the evil is so great and has to be destroyed.

History is repeating itself. Jesus, whose Father, God, created the whole universe and the life within it with mathematical and scientific precision would not have shared the views of the people of that time regarding science. Jesus is wholly living God made flesh.

Kasey Burrows

Barry

Thursday 9th March 2023:

Vale residents are paying more for less

READERS may be aware of the latest increased council charges including; allotments – up 67% , waste caddies – up 500% , outdoor seating up in some cases – 100%, and council tax up 4.9%. 

Black bag refuse collections are changing from every two weeks to every three weeks, and we will soon have to pay for our garden waste to be collected.  These are all decisions that have been rubber stamped with little or no consultation with the public or businesses. 

Every year, we get fewer and fewer services from the council, yet they have the audacity to keep increasing charges. There are thousands more homes in the Vale than there ever have been, generating increased tax income for the council.  They also have around £100 million in reserve funds.

If they managed their budget properly, made savings by doing away with vanity projects, did not appoint additional top managers and more councillors, they would not need to take so much money from the community who are already struggling to make ends meet. 

I recently attended a scrutiny meeting which turned out to be a waste of time, since pretty much everything that was cabinet recommended got politically pushed through. 

So much for openness and transparency. This council is not in touch with the electorate.

How long until the next elections?

Jonathan Osborne,

Barry.

Councillors made correct decision on Model Farm

Vale Communities Unite would like to thank all councillors who voted against the Model Farm development. 

Historically, the Romilly family developed this farm as a ‘model’ for rotational crops. It continues to produce beef, crops and wildflower seeds. When there are plenty of alternative sites in the area, there is no need in our current climate and nature emergency (and food shortages) to build on 100 acres of farmland, which was originally protected as a green wedge. 

We are delighted with the outcome of the majority vote against the development. Councillors and speakers brought up the lack of sewerage capacity, the viability which would impact on the public purse, the questionable number of jobs, the biodiversity, traffic implications, the access, public transport concerns, the concern of capacity of the attenuation ponds and maintenance which would have been in the gifted land – plus the concern and cost of the airport situation.

Some counter arguments included how wonderful the gifted land would be to Porthkerry management – increasing biodiversity. However, the fields of the farm are used regularly for foraging of mammals and on my last count 50 skylarks were winter feeding on site. The wildflower seeds have increased the winter foraging there. The disturbance from the potential enormous build would move on the mammals, birds and diversity. Policies and practises on farmland are improving continuously and the Jenkins are keen to take part in these improvements. 

The managing director of Legal and General Land Group, Andrew McPhillips, spoke and advised that the farmer would be compensated. This would be the rent multiplied by a few years and I am unaware that any more has been offered.

He said that the development is in the LDP and follows due processes. However, that LDP is due for review and is now falling out of date in today’s very different climate – the airport has taken enormous amounts of public funding.

He also said the land is not high in agricultural value but the production of the land speaks for itself. He spoke of 4,000 jobs but this appears speculative as we are not provided with the industry, and we would ask they look at other areas more appropriate in the area.

Councillors now have to give their grounds and reasons for voting against the Vale Officers’ recommendations. It is against their professional code for the Vale to prepare the refusal. One councillor stated they they felt they were being vilified for making a democratic decision.

Maxine Levett,

Chair,

Vale Communities Unite.

Tŷ Hafan is already a jewel in the Vale’s crown

Mr Henry Danter seems to think that his absolutely abhorrent idea of building a ‘holiday park’ in Sully is in some way a great idea for Vale residents and states that he can make Barry Island the ‘jewel in the crown of Wales’ – not egotistical at all!

What he neglects to mention is the close proximity of the proposed plan to the border of Tŷ Hafan Children’s Hospice.

I can only speak from personal experience with regard to what a special place Tŷ Hafan is – having spent time there with my youngest son in his final months. To be able to reflect on the horrific situation we found ourselves in as a family in the peace and tranquility that the location gave was so important to us.

We were able to walk down to the beach which backs on to Tŷ Hafan and listen to the sea lapping against the shore, to walk the grounds and hear nothing but bird song and the rustling sound of leaves on the trees. In moments of sheer agony and loss it felt as if it was gifted from somewhere that can’t be bought – a little piece of heaven on earth.

I know most of you have never had to use the services that Tŷ Hafan offer and I pray you never will but there are many families who find themselves in that unenviable situation. The staff treat families with absolute love and respect – something I think that is sadly lacking in the minds of those who believe that these proposals should even be considered.

Don’t be fooled into thinking that Mr Danter wants to do this for the people of the Vale. It is about lining his own pockets by playing on people’s nostalgia for the ‘Glory Days’ of Barry!

If you want to be proud of something, please do your upmost to protect the very special place you have on your doorstep for every child, for every family that needs Tŷ Hafan.

The jewel in crown of south Wales already exists, fight for it to remain that with all that you are.

Lee John McCabe.

Thank you to kind gentleman

I WOULD like to say a big thank you to a gentleman called Steve from near the fire station in Barry when I had a bad turn and felt so unwell in February.

He looked after me and offered to do my shopping in Tesco’s and took me to the bus stop so that I could get home to Llantwit Major. Also, the bus driver was so kind. A massive thank you for all the help. It was so much appreciated.

Daphne,

Llantwit Major.

Committee sees sense over Model Farm

ON the subject of Model Farm in Rhoose, congratulations to the Vale Council planning committee for seeing sense and wanting to save the environment/planet from unscrupulous developers who seek short term gain over the community and the environment.

A heartfelt thank you from a concerned citizen. 

Graeme Ramsden,

Bolton.

RAFA branch looks for ‘warm space’ venues

THE Barry branch of the RAFA has approached The Ship in Barry as one venue for a ‘Warm Spaces’ coffee morning, to which they have agreed, although a start date has not yet been agreed.

I wish to ask if there are other organisations, churches, veterans’ charities in the Vale that are already running such events, and if so, would they consider allowing Barry RAFA to share the venue? We can help with the cost of providing the service.

More importantly there are many RAF Veterans and dependents that we simply cannot reach, so if anyone reading the Glamorgan Star knows of an RAF veteran, widow or widower of a RAF Veteran, who is needing help, please contact us directly at RAFA.org.uk or email 

The veteran does not need to be a member of RAFA to benefit.

Howard Provis,

Barry branch secretary.

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