Visitors to Gower urged to maintain distance after spate of incidents, including newborn foal falling off cliff
Visitors to a Welsh beauty spot have been warned not to go close to ponies to take selfies after a newborn foal fell to its death from a cliff.
In another incident a woman was injured when she was kicked by a gypsy cob pony on the Gower peninsula in south-west Wales, while ponies have also been injured or killed by cars and disturbed by drones.
Continue reading...Prime minister says he told Li Qiang, the Chinese prime minister, at G20 that Chinese interference with the work of parliament will ‘never be tolerated’
Simon Clarke, who was the levelling up secretary during the Liz Truss premiership, has defended the government’s decision not to explicitly label China as a threat. In posts on X, or Twitter as many of us still call it, he said:
There are legitimate reasons why it is difficult for ministers to say China is a threat – that’s the nature of international relations. What matters more than words is that our policy choices change to reflect the undoubted danger of China’s actions.
Here I think the Government’s record stands up pretty well. You have the soft power of our new Pacific trade bloc membership in the CPTPP (which notably does not include China) and you have the hard power of the new AUKUS alliance - itself a response to Chinese aggression.
Continue reading...Major incident declared and number of passengers injured after crash on Cleddau Bridge in west Wales, police say
One person has been killed and another is critically injured after a collision involving a 52-seater bus and a car on a bridge in west Wales.
A major incident was declared on Tuesday and a health board asked people not to attend the local hospital unless they had life-threatening injuries to ensure there was enough capacity to treat the people injured in the collision.
Continue reading...Leader of a secondary school in Essex warns upheaval could have similar negative impact to that caused by Covid lockdowns
A headteacher whose 830 pupils must learn semi-remotely for at least a term because of the schools concrete crisis has warned that the upheaval could cause a recurrence of the negative mental health impact of Covid lockdowns.
James Saunders, the leader of Honywood school in Coggeshall, Essex, fears that year-seven students entering their first term at secondary school could face future struggles after the Department for Education last week ordered the closure of 22 classrooms as part of a nationwide safety alert.
Continue reading...Loopholes are used to obscure ownership of two-thirds of English and Welsh properties held by foreign shell companies
More than two-thirds of English and Welsh properties held by foreign shell companies do not report the identity of their owners, according to analysis that found significant flaws in laws meant to prevent oligarchs from hiding their wealth.
The UK government hurriedly introduced a register of overseas entities in August 2022 after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February that year, in an attempt to “flush out corrupt elites laundering money through UK property”. However, critics said there were severe flaws in the rules from the start.
Continue reading...Charlie Gladstone on why the only way he can live with his family’s dark past is to turn it into something positive
• William Gladstone: family of former British PM to apologise for links to slavery
For Charlie Gladstone, the question is not what sort of ancestor he had, but what sort of ancestor he wants to be.
When he learned about John Gladstone’s involvement in slavery he was moved to tears. “I felt absolutely terrible. I really, really hated it. It was a shock and I felt absolutely sick.”
Continue reading...Met Office issues yellow warnings with heavy rainfall and lightning expected to cause disruption
More than half a month’s rain could fall across the south of England on Friday, which could lead to some homes and businesses being flooded, the Met Office has said.
Between 30mm and 40mm of rain was expected to fall in some areas in six hours, the forecaster said. Typically in August, 63mm of rain falls across the south-east of England over the entire month.
Continue reading...School leavers in the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man will also receive their results today
The number of students accepted on to UK degree courses has fallen this year, Ucas figures show.
Press Association reports:
Firstly, I want to say a huge congratulations to the hundreds of thousands of students up and down the country who are celebrating their results and next steps today.
I am delighted to see more than 200,000 UK 18-year-olds have secured their first choice, which is testament to their hard work and commitment to progress to higher education in a year that has seen many complex factors at play, such as geopolitics, the economy and job market, and cost of living.
Labour recognises the enormous effort that all of our young people have put into their studies over the past year.
Young people have achieved these results despite the challenges they’ve faced: with a Labour government behind them, offering them pathways to good prospects, there will be no limit on what they can achieve.
Continue reading...Six people taken to hospital after vehicle veers off road and hits tent containing baby, who escapes serious injury
Two people have been left seriously injured and four others taken to hospital after a car veered off a road and crashed into a tent on a Welsh campsite.
A baby was inside the tent hit by the car at Newgale campsite in Haverfordwest on the Pembrokeshire coast, west Wales, but is understood to have escaped serious injury.
Continue reading...Tens of thousands of students face likely drop in As and A*s as ministers aim to return results in England to pre-pandemic levels
Tens of thousands of A-level students face disappointment on results day next week, amid warnings that nearly 100,000 fewer As and A*s could be awarded as the government seeks to return grades to pre-pandemic levels.
Up to 50,000 candidates this summer are likely to miss out on the top grades they might have expected last year, according to one estimate, throwing applications for the most competitive universities into doubt.
Continue reading...Winds in Berry Head in Devon of 78mph could be August record for area while trees fall on Exeter-Penzance track
Storm Antoni, the first the Met Office has named this season, has hit the UK, with forecasters warning that flying debris thrown up by strong winds could pose a danger to life.
The highest wind gust recorded was in Berry Head (78mph) in South Devon followed by Cardinham (56mph) in Cornwall. The Met Office said these were both provisionally a new highest wind gust for August in those places.
Continue reading...Police in remote Welsh town appeal to anyone who may have seen someone have ‘sudden influx of beehives’
Police in a remote Welsh town are on the hunt for a thief who stole 14 beehives.
Witnesses have been urged to come forward after the hives disappeared from Blackwood Road near Llangollen, North Wales, over the weekend.
Continue reading...Gusts of up to 65mph forecast to hit English and Welsh coasts on Saturday along with prolonged rain
Ferry and rail passengers have been warned of cancellations and delays as gusts of up to 65mph (105km/h) are forecast to batter the English and Welsh coasts at the weekend.
The Met Office issued a yellow weather warning for wind in parts of England and Wales from 6am on Saturday until 9pm the same day, and prolonged rain was forecast.
Continue reading...Coles, Da Mhile, In the Welsh Wind and Penderyn distilleries awarded label in scheme brought in to replace EU version
Welsh whisky is to join its Scottish and Irish counterparts in being officially awarded protected origin status under the UK’s post-Brexit regime.
Single malt from four distilleries in south and west Wales – Coles, Da Mhile, In the Welsh Wind and Penderyn – has been awarded protected geographical indication (UK GI) status, the scheme brought in to replace the EU’s protected designation of origin label.
Continue reading...She represented her Cynon Valley constituency in South Wales for 35 years, eventually becoming the oldest woman to sit in the House of Commons
Labour leaders past and present have led the tributes to the long-standing former MP Ann Clwyd after it was announced that she had died at the age of 86.
Clwyd represented her Cynon Valley constituency in South Wales for 35 years, eventually becoming the oldest woman to sit in the House of Commons before she stood down at the 2019 election. Clwyd was first elected in a byelection in 1984 and had already served as an MEP for Mid and West Wales for five years in the European parliament.
Continue reading...Celtic authorities to work together on areas such as holiday homes crisis, offshore wind and language conservation
They are separated by choppy waters – and different political ideologies.
But the leaders of Wales and Cornwall have come together to sign an agreement vowing to work together on shared issues, ranging from the crisis of holiday homes to the prospect of cooperating on offshore wind power projects in the Celtic Sea.
Continue reading...Country does not seem to get its fair share of tourists or money, despite so much spectacular mountain scenery and coastline
Any summer’s day on top of Yr Wyddfa you may be forgiven for thinking all is well with Welsh tourism. People are queuing to touch the summit cairn, the cafe is rammed and the railway fully booked.
But the Welsh affairs committee at Westminster this week voiced serious concerns. It pointed out that in 2019, international visitors spent about £515m in Wales, less than 2% of the £28bn they spent in the UK overall. Closer scrutiny revealed other worrying signs: in 2022, there were almost 2.8bn day trips taken by British residents but only 6% happened in Wales, and on those visits people spent less than elsewhere in Britain.
Continue reading...Campaign aims to put onus on men to stop violence against women as figures suggest most already feel country safe place for women
A campaign aimed at making young men reflect about violence against women and domestic abuse is being launched in Wales as new figures suggest most already feel the country is a safe place for women and almost 40% believe enough has been done to fill the gender equality gap.
The “Sound” campaign, which the Labour-controlled government hopes will help tackle the crisis of toxic masculinity, is aimed at men between the ages of 18 and 34, and will try to reach them via social media, podcasts, digital television and streaming channels.
75% of men think Wales is a safe place to be a woman.
37% believe the country has gone far enough in closing the gender equality gap.
39% believe efforts to achieve women’s equality have led to discrimination against men.
43% believe traditional masculinity is under threat.
64% underestimate the prevalence of violence against women.
There was a very low understanding of terms such as love-bombing, gaslighting and coercive control.
Younger men were both more likely to agree that traditional masculinity is under threat – and to describe themselves as feminists. They also perceived scenarios involving physical abuse as less harmful and wrong compared with older age groups.
Continue reading...Women’s Budget Group says changes have disproportionately affected women and cut critical lifeline in England and Wales
Vulnerable women in England and Wales, including survivors of domestic and sexual abuse, are being denied justice because of cuts to the civil legal aid budget, a thinktank has said.
The Women’s Budget Group says a decade on from major changes to legal aid, women have been disproportionately affected, leaving them without essential support to fight discrimination, violence and housing insecurity.
Ineligibility, for example some employment discrimination not being included in legal aid.
Inaccessibility due to insufficient legal aid providers.
Lack of awareness and signposting of what qualifies for legal aid.
Continue reading...Rhun ap Iorwerth says Welsh pro-independence party is at a ‘difficult junction’ as he takes over
Rhun ap Iorwerth has been announced as the new leader of Plaid Cymru and faces the tough job of getting the party back on track after a misogyny and harassment scandal.
Despite strong calls within the party for the new leader to be a woman, ap Iorwerth was the only candidate who put his name forward.
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