Email to the Chief Constable
Update 18th May;Response received this morning - seems like a standard reply...Dear Ms Thompson,Thank you for your email which I have read with interest. From the details you have provided I will...
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Agenda; Carmarthenshire Council AGM
The agenda has now been published for the council's AGM, which will be held on Wednesday (24th) at 11am. Act One of the proceedings is entirely missable and involves the pomp and nonsense of swapping...
View ArticleRevisiting that car park deal...
Sian Caiach reminds us yesterday of that mysterious car park deal back in 2013, and the financial, erm, ingenuity with which, in the words of the former Police Commissioner, our very own Sicilian...
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Carmarthenshire Council AGM, a few points
Yesterday's AGM was quite a subdued affair, these things usually are, more a formality than a means of debate. The whole thing can of course be viewed on the archived webcast.After the preliminary...
View ArticleReported for summons
Further to matters outlined here, and subsequent to a formal interview on the 16th March, two police officers called at my home yesterday to tell me that they have made a decision to prosecute and I am...
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Cardiff connections - Jac o' the North's post
Last week I made a passing reference to council chief executive Mark James' business affairs relating to property in Cardiff.Jac o' the North has also picked up on these recent developments, via...
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Council news in brief, and a BBC report
I'm sure many of us have been a bit distracted, or perhaps driven to distraction, by the general election campaign but the polls are now open so please go and vote. My Twitter timeline has been...
View ArticlePolice summons
I have now been served with a written charge and postal requisition from Dyfed Powys Police to attend Llanelli Magistrates Court at the end of this month. However, a brief adjournment has been agreed...
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Public audit time
Its that time of year again when the public are allowed to enter County Hall and inspect the council's accounts, and should you unearth evidence of creative accounting and/or slush funds, or an...
View ArticleRegional Boards - is big always better?
Interesting blogpost caught my attention this morning from a councillor in far-away Bradford, don't let the politics put you off, (he's a conservative councillor), as he makes a valid point. The post...
View ArticleMagistrates' Court date
I will be attending Llanelli Magistrates' Court next Thursday, 6th July at 10am for the first hearing (plea and case management) of the charge against me of alleged non-violent harassment of council...
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Exit packages and senior pay - a few figures
I was interested to learn that the council have spent another £3m this year in exit packages bringing the total for the past three years to over £10m, paid out to 541 members of staff. The majority of...
View ArticleAudit woes
The Council's Audit Committee meets next week (not webcast, and recordings are banned) and on the agenda, alongside the draft Statement of Accounts which I mentioned last week, are a couple of worrying...
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'Evidence' accessed from council computer - Carmarthenshire Herald
This week's Carmarthenshire Herald reports that a council computer was used to trawl through this blog immediately prior and during the time that the chief executive, Mr James, was making his first...
View ArticleCPS discontinue blog 'harassment' case - updated
I was informed, late yesterday afternoon that the CPS have discontinued the case against me for the alleged non-violent harassment of chief executive Mark James. It has, in effect, been dropped. I had...
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News round-up; back to business - Updated
Update 19th July - Senior salariesFull council met today and an amendment was put forward by the Labour group to cap the two new salaries, referred to in the main post below, at £112k each, rather than...
View ArticleCPS decision - Y Cneifiwr's analysis. And a complaint to the Wales Audit Office.
Further to the decision by the CPS to drop the prosecution against me, Y Cneifiwr has written an excellent analysis of it all here, including a dissection of Mr James' witness statement;Y Cneifiwr; CPS...
View Article'Cadno and the rule of law' - This week's Carmarthenshire Herald
See below for this week's Cadno opinion piece from the Carmarthenshire Herald. An interesting article, self-explanatory, and well worth a read;Cadno and the rule of lawCadno believes in the law. He...
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News round-up - budgets, selling the silver, and a new Director..
Yesterday's Executive board meeting included the first glimpse of the next budget, which will not be determined until next February. The last budget was passed earlier this year, just as the campaigns...
View ArticleFreedom of Information - the difference a Review can make...
Freedom of Information responses from Carmarthenshire Council can be a mixed bag.Sometimes they try to baffle you with b******t, (appointment of Monitoring Officer, Linda Rees Jones) and sometimes...
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