Stepaside holiday park plans on hold over water quality concerns
It was claimed the expansion of the holiday park, next to the remains of the 19th Century Stepaside ironworks and colliery, would create 44 jobs.The council had approved the scheme, by 37 votes to 16, with two abstentions, after members of the planning committee supported the proposals, against officer recommendations for refusal.The economic benefits were found to outweighed the concerns, based on the Local Development Plan, which included the site being outside a settlement area.The successful High Court challenge was launched by Stepaside and Pleasant Valley Residents' Group, who had objected to the original application.
The latest application, submitted by Heritage Leisure Development (Wales) Ltd, aims to address the issues raised by the court ruling.In its lengthy submissions, planning agent Lichfields suggested members of the planning committee "can reach a decision that is contrary to the development plan without setting a precedent".The agent described the application as a "unique development" which would create a "bespoke offering", adding there were "specific reasons why the proposed development at Heritage Park should be granted" without setting "a precedent for future decisions".Amroth Community Council has objected to the scheme again and the application was recommended to be refused at Tuesday's planning meeting.
However, members of the committee were told no decision could be made on the application due to recently reported unfavourable water quality in the Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire Bay Marine Special Area of Conservation, which many of the schemes under the planning authority's jurisdiction discharge into.Members were told the authority's planners were still digesting the information, and interim advice from Natural Resources Wales said it would be "potentially unsound" to make any decision before sufficient information was available.The application will return to a future committee.
This article was written by a trusted journalist and then edited for length and style with the help of AI, before being checked again by a BBC Journalist. It's part of a pilot.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
an hour ago
- The Independent
Preferred candidate for chairman of Climate Change Committee announced
Energy Secretary Ed Miliband has announced Nigel Topping as the Government's preferred candidate for chairman of the Climate Change Committee (CCC). The chairman plays a key role in the committee's work of advising ministers on climate targets and reporting to Parliament on progress made in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The UK Government, Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive all agreed on Mr Topping as the preferred candidate for the CCC role, Mr Miliband said on Friday. Before any formal appointment, Mr Topping will be questioned by MPs on the energy and environmental audit select committees on July 16. Mr Topping is currently a member of the Climate Change Committee and previously held the position of the UK's high-level climate action champion. Following an 18-year private sector career in emerging markets and manufacturing, he worked as executive director of the Carbon Disclosure Project and chief executive of the We Mean Business Coalition. If approved, Mr Topping will replace interim chairman Piers Forster, a leading climate scientist who succeeded former environment secretary Lord Deben in the role in 2023. Mr Miliband said: 'I am delighted to announce the preferred candidate for chair of the Climate Change Committee – Nigel Topping will bring his extensive experience to this role, having already served on the Climate Change Committee for more than two years and as a UN Climate Change High Level Champion for Cop26. 'The CCC plays a vital role advising the UK and devolved governments on our climate targets and this announcement comes at a crucial time, as we deliver our mission to make Britain a clean energy superpower with good jobs, energy security and growth for the British people. 'Net zero is the economic opportunity of the 21st century and Nigel's strong business background will help us drive growth on the transition to net zero, unlocking opportunities for Britain. 'I look forward to progressing the appointment in the coming weeks along with ministers in the devolved governments.'
BBC News
4 hours ago
- BBC News
Will Bale really buy Cardiff? Wales great's bid explained
The last time Gareth Bale was at Cardiff City, he was about to take his country to the World he wants to buy the at least that is what the former Wales captain appears to have his heart set on after the surprising revelation that he is part of an investment group aiming to take over the League One outfit.A consortium led by Bale has reportedly made a second approach, but club sources have told BBC Sport Wales they have not yet received any proposals that would make them seriously consider of his nation's greatest players, the retired 35-year-old told Cardiff fans that "more news will come out" regarding the attempt to persuade owner Vincent Tan to sell others have suggested the bid launched by Bale's group for his hometown club is not quite as it is the former Real Madrid megastar about to go from Bernabeu to Bluebirds' boardroom? What we know so far Wales' most-capped and highest-scoring men's international, Bale was initially linked with a takeover at Plymouth owner Simon Hallet looking for fresh investment, Bale was said to be the face of a United States-based private equity group who had entered early talks over a sources at Plymouth played down those reports with no public utterance from Bale or the unnamed other members of the changed, though, when it emerged the group had written to Cardiff owner Tan making it clear they would be keen on taking control at the club recently relegated from the was no formal bid, but the proposal did make clear what the group would be looking to pay for a board became aware of the approach but only after it had been dismissed pretty swiftly by Tan. As a result, there was no boardroom discussion or invitation for further Sport Wales has been told a second approach was made to Tan but was met with the same short shrift. Why Cardiff City? On paper, the move makes was born and raised in Cardiff and would come home whenever he could during a glittering playing career, even though the majority of it was spent in uncle, Chris Pike, played for the club during the late 1980s and early 90s, and Bale was close to emulating him before deciding to join Los Angeles FC from Real Madrid in 2022."It's my home club, where I grew up, my uncle used to play for them," Bale said last month."So to be involved with an ownership group would be a dream come true. It's a club close to my heart, it's where I grew up. I would love to be able to be a part of growing Cardiff and taking it to the Premier League where it belongs."As the city of his birth and the location for some of his most heroic acts in a Wales shirt, Cardiff is a place which clearly holds a special meaning for did not grow up a Bluebirds fan. It was a picture of Zinedine Zidane that adorned his bedroom wall as a child. Playing for Real Madrid was the childhood dream he realised when he became the world's most expensive footballer in never played for Cardiff, though, there seems to be an attraction for the 35-year-old in returning to rescue his home-city Cardiff are preparing for their first season in the third tier since 2003, this is a well-supported club with significant it to the Premier League would enhance Bale's already legendary status in the Welsh capital and, for those providing the bulk of the consortium's financial power, this could be a good time to acquire a club with plenty of room to and Birmingham City demonstrated last season how high-profile owners – and wealthy backers – can elevate teams from League and his associates will have noted those success stories and will feel they could do the same. Why now? It has been two and a half years since Bale retired, and it still remains to be seen how he will spend his life after charity work, commercial commitments and very occasional media punditry or ambassadorial jobs for the Football Association of Wales, Bale appears to be keeping his options open – and allowing plenty of time for the proposed takeover of Cardiff was to prove successful, it is unclear what role he would football legend Tom Brady holds a minority stake in Birmingham but has no day-to-day involvement in the running of the club, while the same is true of Bale's former Real Madrid team-mate Luka Modric at Swansea is a precedent set if Bale wanted to take a fairly hands-off approach, though Cardiff fans would be delighted if he was more active and visible than his celebrity-owner supporters are desperate for change and have staged protests to express their dismay at the way Tan, chairman Mehmet Dalman and chief executive Ken Choo have run the club over the past buyers will be aware of such ill feeling towards Cardiff's board but any possible takeover would come with several complications. Why not? It has not yet been possible to verify who, aside from Bale, is involved in the interested consortium - or what kind of wealth they Bale was handsomely rewarded during his career when he was once the costliest footballer on the planet - as well as having investments in property, Welsh whiskey business Penderyn and some bars in Cardiff and Bristol - his bank balance is not of a club-owning year, he made it to the Sunday Times' Rich List with an estimated wealth of £70m, though did not chart in the 2025 put that figure in context, Cardiff's owner Tan had £68m worth of loans owed to him by the club at the end of their last published accounting period in May total - according to their most recent financial statements - the Bluebirds are carrying loans of more than £100m, some of which are to a company linked with chairman any deal would factor in those debts remains to be has previously exchanged debt into equity having put in an estimated £200m-plus into the club in one form or another since taking over in the yearly accounts have long made reference to the ongoing reliance on Tan's financial support. Losses over the past three seasons have averaged around £1.5m per is an agreement that Tan will continue to help plug those gaps between turnover and expenses, even with the club's relegation to League One set to hit revenue by as much as £ despite scaling back some of his business interests in recent years - including selling a minority stake in Bale's former club LAFC - Tan still has the money to do Malaysia, where his conglomerate Berjaya Corporation is based, he has involvement in several companies and businesses including mobile phone networks, financial institutions, supermarkets, hotels, property and much April, financial publication Forbes estimated his wealth at $770m - or more than £ is one of the reasons Tan has not held much serious interest in selling the club. Despite his absence, those close to him have routinely stressed he retains a strong interest and passion in the club's it is also why, on the subject of selling in the past, there has been seemingly little interest unless it was of a price in excess of its realistic, business suggests any offer would have to be too big for Tan to turn his most recent major interview with Welsh media - three years ago - he said he had received many approaches but had no interest in selling, adding that only returning the club to the Premier League would make a deal financially in reference to the criticism he has faced from fans during his ownership, he added: "To those guys who want 'Tan out', they should ask a rich Welshman, probably a billionaire, to buy this club and take it to the Premier League and keep them there for 10 years because that is my goal." What happens next? Even if an improved offer - and a firm bid - was to materialise, this situation is unlikely to be resolved factor that could complicate matters is a court date in late September that could dramatically alter the value of the are involved in a legal claim against FC Nantes over the death of striker Emiliano Sala, with the club seeking damages in excess of £100m. Bluebirds sources are confident they will be successful and the ruling would be expected by the end of the that Tan is already reluctant to sell, the Sala case makes him even less likely to entertain any offers right close to the Cardiff owner have rubbished the proposals made by Bale and his associates, with some dismissing the attempted takeover as a publicity feeling at board level is that the Bale-led interest lacks substance, a view that is supported by the Cardiff City Supporters' Trust, which has said the proposal amounts to little more than a "fishing trip".That was a telling statement from the Trust, which has previously voiced its concerns about the way the club is being run under has been ravaged by division and discord in recent years, with fan protests, poisonous atmospheres at games and a general sense of disillusionment around the and his consortium may believe that presents an opportunity but, as the Bluebirds' turbulent past demonstrates, nothing is straightforward when it comes to Cardiff City.
Sky News
14 hours ago
- Sky News
Welsh independence will unleash 'full potential' as nationalists serious contenders to form next government
Wales should "learn" from the SNP's successes in Scotland, according to the man who could well be the next first minister of Wales. Plaid Cymru leader Rhun ap Iorwerth told Sky News: "I believe that we will not be able to fully release our potential until we're an independent nation." He admitted "not everybody agrees" but believes there should be a discussion about how to "edge things forwards" on independence. The party leader has ruled out a referendum in his first term but says support for Welsh independence is growing among young voters. Mr ap Iorwerth, whose party is neck and neck with Reform UK and Labour in the polls to lead the Welsh Parliament next year, says his party takes "very, very seriously the positive impact" the SNP has had in Scotland. It comes as a government minister admitted there are "major" questions about how fairly Wales is funded compared with Scotland. Stephen Kinnock, the Labour MP for Aberafan Maesteg, told Sky News he and other Welsh MPs are looking for a reassessment of the funding formula. He said the Barnett formula, which decides the allocation of much of the funding from the treasury to devolved nations, works "much better" for Scotland and the industrial heritage and age demographics in Wales mean the nation has been historically underserved. Since Mr Kinnock spoke to Sky News, Wales was awarded £5bn in revenue and capital over three years, largely for rail infrastructure, in the spending review. However, some Welsh Labour MPs fear the growing nationalist tide could mirror Scotland's 2007 shift. Lessons "have not been learned" from Scotland, Labour Member of the Welsh Parliament Lee Waters said. Speaking to the Labour List website, he warned: "The control of the party machinery by London HQ, and the disdain of Westminster MPs towards their devolved counterparts were features now and then." Mr Waters sounded the alarm for Welsh Labour, adding: "Scottish Labour paid the price for it in 2007. The SNP seized on its chance to form a minority government and used it to build a generation of dominance. Plaid Cymru aim to do the same." Does Wales get treated unfairly? It's a question that could propel Reform UK or Plaid Cymru to power in Wales this time next year - a seismic political shift in a nation dominated by Welsh Labour since devolution began. The closure of the blast furnaces at Port Talbot, the end of virgin steelmaking in this country, drew comparisons with the government's intervention at Scunthorpe in Lincolnshire. Why was an English steelmaking site saved and not a Welsh one? The answer, as Wales MP and government minister Stephen Kinnock tells me, is not straightforward. The owners of Scunthorpe were "actively sabotaging the blast furnaces", and Labour were not in power in Westminster when decisions about Port Talbot were being made. "You have to set the bar really high when you're going to, as a government, go in and seize the assets of a private company," he said. But Port Talbot has become symbolic of something bigger, and it's not just about steel. Last month, a new railway line between Oxford and Cambridge was classed as an England and Wales project, meaning Wales does not get a share of funding, and earlier this year Wales' first minister said the allocation of HS2 funding was "unfair" for Wales. But Welsh Labour's Eluned Morgan may not have done enough to distance herself from the national party. Jac Larner from Wales' Governance Centre at Cardiff University says her emphasis on the close relationship between Welsh and UK Labour echoes the message from Scottish Labour before their vote collapsed. It makes it "easier for voters to punish both" he said. Launching his party's so-called contract with voters in Merthyr Tydfil, Nigel Farage said Wales has been "let down". The Reform UK leaders' progress in Wales has been notable, but as has that of a lesser known party leader, Plaid Cymru's Rhun ap Iorwerth. Can Wales' nationalist party echo the SNP's success in Scotland? Both parties are fishing in the same waters for disillusioned Labour voters. Both have a real shot at power in Wales. Reform UK are also tapping into a mood of discontent in Wales. Leader Nigel Farage has put re-industrialisation at the centre of his pitch and even pledged to reopen Port Talbot's steel blast furnaces. In last year's general election, Reform UK came second in 13 of the 32 Welsh constituencies. 1:37 Those close to Mr Farage suggest he sees the Welsh elections next year as an important stepping stone in his ambitions to get to 10 Downing Street. Asked about Reform UK, the Plaid Cymru leader said he sees it as his "duty" to keep the party out of power in Wales. Mr ap Iorwerth said Mr Farage's party "have no particular interest in developing policy for Wales".
