Port Talbot Residents Against Power Station

I went to a protest this morning in Port Talbot ( having recovered from my awful day of suffering from food poisoning on Friday) against the wood chip burning plant set to be erected in Port Talbot. The campaigners- Port Talbot Residents against Power Station, are taking the Westminster Government to court, claiming on their latest newsletter that ' it is morally unjustifiable for the Government to build more power stations in Port Talbot when the town is already failing EU air quality health standards on a regular basis.'

I have raised such concerns on an Assembly level, and will continue to so. I also believe that Wales should have the power to decide whether planning is granted for developments which are bigger than 50 mw.

Many residents turned up, but I was glad to see Brian Gibbons AM present, who must be concerned with the way his Labour colleagues in Westminster are dealing with the situation ( and his colleague Hywel Francis, perhaps, who was not present today) I noticed that when the crowd endorsed taking the Government to court, Brian Gibbons clapped in approval. Is this another sign of a divergence of opinion between Labour in Cardiff Bay, and Labour in Westminster?

I hope to raise the issue again this week at the National Assembly because the Environment Agency now has the license to operate the power station and to regulate it. There is an ongoing court case, yes, but if there are ways that we can pursue this matter via the Assembly, then I will do my utmost to represent the voices of the people of the area.