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max/min (Day) A SNAG has hit the council’s


controversial plans to hive off its leisure operations to a trust, The Herald understands. Earlier this week, The Herald received


information that the plans which would see the county’s leisure and cultural facilities pass from public ownership hit a difficulty due to an elementary error with the calculations used to make the economic case for the transfer. The Herald’s source, who has asked


to remain anonymous, told us that they believed an issue had arisen over the way in which some of the leisure assets which are co-located on school campuses were counted in to the savings alleged to be possible. In order to establish the possible


options for error, we made enquiries as to what might have gone wrong. Labour leader Paul Miller, who works


for an outsourcing consultancy, told us that he could not comment on the specifics for Pembrokeshire. When we asked him whether there was a potential issue arising from leisure


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assets on school premises, he suggested that it was possible that account had not been taken of any discount on non- domestic rates already applied to the facilities or that financial issues had not been taken into account relating to the facilities' use by schools and their location on public authority maintained premises. Across Pembrokeshire, many leisure


facilities are located on school campuses, notably in Haverfordwest and Pembroke. Cllr Miller made it clear that such


problems would only effect the sort of ‘quick fix’ savings which transfer to a leisure trust might seek to achieve. The longer term - more substantial - savings would be achieved by on maintenance contracts, pay, and pensions. In their hard-hitting response to the


council’s initial consultation, UNISON stated there was a lack of evidence that the proposals will be either cheaper or more effective, saying: "Local people want a say in the running of their services and they want them directly delivered by Pembrokeshire County Council. They won’t be hoodwinked by a council rushing


THE HERALD FRIDAY JANUARY 20 2017


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Leisure plan in trouble


into a decision in the mistaken belief they will save lots of money." The council now finds itself in a


potentially invidious position. If, having sold the changes as a way of reducing costs to the council without impacting upon employees in any meaningful way on pay and future pension entitlements, it cannot now demonstrate the ‘quick fix’ is economically viable, it is faced, with rather more publicly, acknowledging that long term savings are only possible at employees’ expense, whether directly employed by a leisure trust or retained as part of the council’s in-house maintenance team.


We put the issues raised with us to Pembrokeshire County Council. A spokesperson told us: "A ‘task


and finish’ group has been examining the proposal to establish a Leisure/Cultural Trust. "The results of that exercise are due


to go before the Policy Overview and Scrutiny Committee for discussion on Thursday (Feb 2)."


Sex assault accused claims blackmail A MAN who has been accused of


sexually assaulting a teenage girl has claimed he is the victim of blackmail at Swansea Crown Court this week. Kenneth Waters, 70, from Haverfordwest, denies nine charges of sexual assault. Waters claimed that the girl, now


in her 20s, threatened to 'go to the police' unless he gave her money to pay for her silence. However, the girl said she had a


ThePembrokeshireHeraldinnumbers


recording of a phone conversation in which he confesses to touching her sexually when she was just 13. She described to the court how


Waters drove her in his vehicle to Newgale beach, where he instructed her to take her trousers down, which she then did. Waters then took his trousers


Legal information


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down, she said, and told her that he wanted to have sex with her. The girl said this is when


he touched her sexually but was interrupted when a car 'full of girls' appeared, which caused him to drive


off with his trousers around his ankles. Waters denied the claim, saying he never touched or kissed her. He said: "I have never exposed


myself to her or touched her sexually." He went on to say that he did take


the girl to a beach; however, it wasn't Newgale and insisted nothing sexual happened during the trip. He then said that years after the


trip, she phoned him and demanded 'lots of money to keep her mouth shut'. He said: "She threatened to come


to the shop and tell all my customers I was a paedophile. "She said she would get sandwich


boards made and walk around town with 'Ken Waters is a paedophile' written on them. "She telephoned me 80 times in


one day. It was doing my head in." When questioned about the


recorded telephone conversation, he said he had apologised to her 'to get her off my back'. Late yesterday afternoon (Jan 19) the jury was sent home for the night.


Check will now appear at


Jury out: Ken Waters


Remanded in custody for alleged sexual offence A TENBY man has been


remanded into custody by Haverfordwest’s Magistrates after being charged with a serious sexual offence. The 29-year-old appeared in court on Monday (Jan 16). It is alleged that on January 9,


Andrew Check, of Greenhill Avenue, inserted his fingers into a woman’s private parts without her consent, contrary to Section 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003. Check, who was represented by


Giles Hayes of Graham Evans and Partners Solicitors of Swansea, was not granted bail due to the ‘nature and seriousness of the alleged offence’.


Swansea Crown Court on February 17.


He will remain on remand until then.


Andrew Check: Remanded into custody


Crown Court date for flasher A PEMBROKE DOCK pensioner


was remanded into custody ahead of a Crown Court appearance by the District Judge in Llanelli on Tursday (Jan 19). Barry Hollingsworth, of Old


Coronation School, pleaded guilty to one charge of intentionally exposing his


genitals, and entered no plea to a charge of breaching a sexual harm prevention order by approaching a child under the age of 18. He will appear at Swansea


Crown Court for sentencing and case management on February 20.


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