Scale of Senedd member abuse revealed after minister announces intention to delete X account
This week a Welsh government minister announced he would delete his X account once he steps back from his transport role, after facing significant abuse on social media.
Lee Waters, the Welsh government’s deputy minister for climate change, said he would now receive “a pile of malign comments for even the most innocuous posts”.
Sky News has spoken to a number of members of the Welsh parliament about their own experiences.
Hannah Blythyn. File pic: Welsh government
‘Impact on people around me’
Hannah Blythyn has been a member of the Senedd for eight years and has been the Welsh Labour government’s deputy minister for social partnership since 2021.
Since being elected, Ms Blythyn told Sky News she has had to “reflect” on her life.
“If I wasn’t a politician, I don’t think I’d have cameras on my house, so it’s directly connected to the role that I do,” she said.
Ms Blythyn says she made a decision when first elected “to be open about [her] sexuality” as a lesbian.
“I’ve been open to my friends and family for years, and I thought it was really important, as somebody who grew up thinking I didn’t have anybody I could identify with or nobody visible in public life to provide that visibility myself,” she said.
“But I think, with that comes a cost as well, to an extent.”
One member of the public emailed Ms Blythyn, saying she “should seek conversion therapy“.
“The worst for me I think…[was] it’s impact on the people around me,” she added.
“So this same person also contacted my wife. I found out later they’d also tried to contact my dad and contact a number of other people about me.”
Jane Dodds. File pic: PA
‘Rather scared’
Jane Dodds has been leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats since 2017 and has been a member of the Senedd since 2021.
Ms Dodds says she came off Facebook two years ago and recently handed responsibility for her X account over to her team due to its impact on her mental health.
She told Sky News she has received death threats and reported to the police one comment on Facebook which said she should be “hanged”.
During the pandemic, a vote on introducing COVID passes for nightclubs and large events was held in the Senedd.
After the vote, Ms Dodds said that around 80 anti-vax protesters surrounded her car as she left the building. She told Sky News the incident left her feeling “rather scared”.
“I was the first to leave the Senedd after the vote and we came out of the car park and they saw the car coming out and they ran towards us and ran around, shouting and put things on the car,” she said.
Ms Dodds was first elected to Westminster in 2019 for four months but lost her seat in the general election that December.
Having served as a member in both Cardiff Bay and the Commons, Ms Dodds says her brief time as an MP led her to conclude that Westminster creates an “anti-politician environment” and an unsafe atmosphere.
Sioned Williams. File pic: Plaid Cymru
‘Would I want my daughter in this role?’
Sioned Williams has been a member of the Senedd since 2021 and is Plaid Cymru‘s equalities spokesperson.
She told Sky News she had experienced abuse in the past and that the threat of danger was “always there”.
“Sometimes I do ask myself, would I want my daughter to be in this role, would I want my sister to be in this role,” Ms Williams said.
“And when you’re trying to really encourage women to come forward as candidates, there is a little voice in your head as well that’s a little bit worried about what you’re doing because you know what they’re going to face.”
Ms Williams said she had taken steps to “adapt her home” since being elected.
“I lock the doors now when I’m at home, I never used to before. That kind of thing. I’m always conscious about keeping the car doors locked when I’m in the car,” she said.
“I never would have dreamt of doing that before, the camera on the doorbell. I know lots of people have to do that but it’s specifically because I’m a politician that I’m having to take those measures.
“You just have to because of the level of abuse that you do get. I can deal with people disagreeing with my views, that’s what politics is, but it’s the gendered abuse that you get back that is worrying.”
Natasha Asghar. File pic: PA
‘Thankful to those before me’
Natasha Asghar was first elected as a member of the Senedd for the Welsh Conservatives in 2021.
She is the first woman of colour to be a member of the Welsh parliament.
Ms Asghar told Sky News that since her election she had been “fortunate” not to have faced much abuse until a recent incident when giving a talk to students.
“It was a really difficult time and it was probably the first time in my career that not just myself, where I felt unsafe, but I felt unsafe and scared for my team as well, which is very important to me,” she said.
“Because ultimately, they are the ones who I work with day in, day out, and if something happens to me, they’re usually in the front line as well.”
Ms Asghar’s father was Mohammad Asghar, who served as a Senedd member from 2007 until his death in 2020.
Up until his death, Ms Asghar said her father “experienced awful hate [on social media] from people from all over the place”.
“And the things that they said were not only against him, his politics, but him as a person, his religion, his family. Everything got slated, and he just took it,” she added.
“I’m very fortunate, but I know those before me equally had a very rough ride, so I’m thankful to them for tolerating what they tolerated.”
File pic: Samuel Kurtz
‘Difficult to stomach’
Samuel Kurtz is another of the 2021 Tory intake of Senedd members.
He told Sky News that he “quite regularly” experiences trolling online.
“It does impact on your wellbeing when you see someone coming and attacking you personally rather than professionally,” he said.
“That’s quite difficult to stomach, and especially for family members who have to read that.
“I’ve had incidents of my mum ringing me up, going ‘Who’s this and why are they saying this about you?’
“And I’m like ‘Mum, don’t worry about it, it’s trolling, it’s someone anonymous. No idea who they are, they just get their kicks from doing that so don’t worry’.
“But that’s a difficult conversation to have with my mum and it’s most probably a difficult thing for a mother to see for her son. Unfortunately, that’s just the age of social media.”
Mr Kurtz said he hadn’t experienced much abuse face-to-face.
“I did have one incident where I was just opening the door in my office to leave while someone was trying to open it to come in and they did, and then they started berating me around COVID vaccines,” he said.
“I didn’t feel personally threatened, but with some of the language that they were using, sort of ‘traitor’, ‘blood on your hands’, you don’t want to hear that.”
Vikki Howells. Pic: Welsh Labour
‘Don’t feel safe’
Vikki Howells has been a Senedd member since 2016 and is the Welsh Labour group leader.
She told Sky News that “every female politician” she knows had experienced some form of gender-related abuse.
“Lots of female politicians have faced rape threats, lots have faced threats of violence which perhaps would not be directed towards them if they were male,” she said.
“I do know of politicians within the Senedd who’ve faced those threats.”
Ms Howells said that female politicians especially can feel “physically vulnerable when [they’re] out in public”.
“If you’re leaving a meeting in the dark and there’s no one else around, the worry that people might know who you are and there could be someone who’s following you,” she added.
“It’s not just me, I’ve spoken to a number of female MSs who don’t feel particularly safe in and around Cardiff Bay after dark.”
Ms Howells said she once received a comment on social media that she “should be dragged through the streets by [her] hair”.
But she said she “wouldn’t want women to be put off going into politics as a result of the actions of a minority”.
“We’ve got really talented women in Welsh Labour and we need to do all we can to make sure that they feel that they can put their names forward if they want to, and not face a barrage of abuse,” she added.
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A spokesperson for the Senedd Commission said it takes “the safety and welfare of all members, staff and other stakeholders seriously”.
“Members of the Senedd and their support staff can access a comprehensive range of equipment, guidance and support from the Senedd security team, and this is kept under constant review in response to evolving challenges,” the spokesperson added.
“Training on a range of security matters (such as online security and personal safety) is also available to members and their staff.”
Prosecutions of sub postmasters by the Department for Work and Pensions could be “tainted” as Sky News reveals officials worked with now discredited Post Office investigators to secure convictions.
Around 100 prosecutions of Post Office staff were led by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) between 2001 and 2006.
It is understood that these usually involved the cashing in of stolen order books.
The Post Office itself wrongly prosecuted hundreds of sub-postmasters between 1999 and 2015 – based on evidence from the faulty Horizon accounting system.
The role of government
A Sky News investigation, however, has discovered that information was shared between Post Office investigation teams and the DWP.
Chair of the Justice Select Committee, Sir Robert Neill KC, said as a result DWP convictions “need to be looked at”.
“I hadn’t been aware of that, for example, there may have been material in the DWP case as a result of joint investigations – which suggests a disclosure failure,” he added.
“I think that’s the area they need to look at if we are saying their approach was tainted from the beginning – in the way the investigators adopted things – then joint operations I suspect would be just as tainted arguably as something where it has been the Post Office on its own.”
What was known?
A 2003 DWP report into fraud describes “joint working” and the “sharing of information” with the Post Office.
It also outlines a “Fraud Prevention Board” established by the DWP and Royal Mail Group plc which includes “the exchange of information that directly assists fraud prevention and investigations”.
In addition, separately, a 2003 letter seen by Sky News also indicates a connection between DWP and Post Office investigations.
The letter, from the then post affairs minister Stephen Timms, references the case of Roger Allen, a sub-postmaster from Norwich.
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It states: “Subsequent investigations by the police, the Post Office Investigation Department and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) led to a prosecution by DWP…”
Roger Allen was convicted in 2004 of stealing pension payments and was sentenced to six months in prison. He died in March of this year.
Mr Allen had pleaded guilty to spare his wife – after his lawyer told him in a letter that there had been “an indication from the Crown that they may discontinue the proceedings against Mrs Allen were you minded to plead guilty”.
Despite the Criminal Cases Review Commission deciding Mr Allen had grounds to appeal against his conviction – it was upheld by the Court of Appeal in 2021.
DWP prosecutions are not covered in upcoming government legislation that will overturn Post Office convictions.
Roger Allen. Pic: Keren Simpson
Fighting to clear names
Keren Simpson, Roger’s daughter, has vowed to fight to clear his name posthumously.
She describes her father as a “proud” and “honest” man who “couldn’t face or deal” with the fact his conviction would not be overturned.
She says “in the end he obviously gave up” and there is “very little surviving evidence” because of the passage of time.
“He’s the innocent one,” Keren states. “I don’t see why he’s got to try and prove it. They have got to try and prove it, and show what evidence they actually had on my dad.
“Because the Department of Work and Pensions have put a statement out saying there was surveillance and witness testimonies and physical evidence to show it.
“Show me it.”
Roger Allen. Pic: Keren Simpson
Investigation failures?
Sky News has also seen documents that suggest failures by DWP investigators in a different case in the 2000s.
It involved a sub-postmaster who decided to plead not guilty and was acquitted of stealing by a jury.
In one extract it says a “senior investigating officer” was “willing to admit in open court that (they) had been neglectful in (their) duty in securing evidence”.
Another document appears to show a failure to review transaction logs used as evidence against the sub-postmaster.
Some logs appear to show that the accused did not cash the “dockets”, used to collect pension payments.
Other transaction logs indicate the sub-postmaster was not present at a particular branch when the theft was alleged to have occurred.
Christopher Head
Chris Head, former sub-postmaster and a campaigner for others, has also seen the documents and says they point to a “deeply flawed” DWP investigation.
“…they failed to obtain all transaction logs for the entirety of this case, but the ones that they have, they have they clearly haven’t looked at.”
He believes there are “more cases out there” which could be “part of a miscarriage of justice”.
A Department for Work and Pensions spokesperson said: “We do not recognise these claims.
“DWP investigates offences against the welfare system to protect taxpayers’ money, and between 2001 and 2006 a small number of Post Office staff were convicted for welfare-related fraud.
“These cases involved complex investigations and were backed by evidence including filmed surveillance, stolen benefit books and witness statements – they did not rely on Horizon evidence, and this has been accepted by the Court of Appeal.”
The Post Office says it “continues to help other prosecuting authorities to ensure that they have every assistance in taking their work forward”.
“This includes sharing all the information we have in relation to prosecutions which have been brought by other prosecutors.”
Meanwhile, Lord Sikka has tabled an amendment in the House of Lords to the Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Bill to include all DWP convictions.
An outbreak of a waterborne disease in Devon has prompted urgent warnings for residents to boil their tap water.
At least 22 cases of cryptosporidiosis disease have been confirmed in and around the town of Brixham in South West England.
But what is the parasite that is making people sick, what are the symptoms of being infected with it and how serious can it be?
What is cryptosporidiosis disease?
Cryptosporidiosis is the disease caused by the parasite cryptosporidium.
Often shortened to crypto, infections can be caused by drinking contaminated water or swallowing contaminated water in swimming pools or streams.
It can also be acquired through contact with the faeces of infected animals or humans.
What are the symptoms?
The symptoms of cryptosporidiosis include:
• profuse watery diarrhoea
• stomach pains
• nausea or vomiting
• low-grade fever
• loss of appetite
How long does it last?
Most people develop symptoms within one to 12 days of picking up the parasite.
Symptoms usually last for about two weeks, but can last up to six weeks or longer when the immune system is not working properly.
During the illness, you might think you are getting better but the illness returns a couple of days later before you fully recover.
How serious is it?
Most people recover, but in people with severely weakened immune systems it can cause severe disease and can be fatal.
Serious cases and death used to be more common, according to Paul Hunter, professor in medicine at the University of East Anglia (UEA).
This is because before effective antiretroviral treatments were introduced for HIV/AIDS, people living with these illnesses would not recover if they picked up cryptosporidiosis.
Who is most at risk of serious illness?
People with weak immune systems are at greater risk of serious illness. This includes:
• people on some immunosuppressive drugs, for example cancer or transplant patients
• people with untreated HIV/AIDS
• malnourished children
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Residents ‘worried’ over water parasite
Does it need treatment?
There is no specific treatment for cryptosporidiosis.
It important to drink plenty of fluids as diarrhoea or vomiting can lead to dehydration, according to advice from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA).
You might also want to talk to a pharmacist about oral rehydration sachets to help replace the sugar, salts and minerals the body has lost.
Dr Lincoln Sargeant, Torbay’s Director of Public Health, said anyone with “severe symptoms like bloody diarrhoea” should contact NHS 111 or their GP.
Severe cases may require hospital treatment.
How do you know if you have crypto?
The symptoms of crypto are similar to other stomach bugs, so the only way to know for sure if you have it is for your doctor to send a sample of your faeces to be tested in a laboratory.
Read more:
Water disease outbreak may last a week, expert says
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Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
How can you stop the illness spreading?
If you are ill, stay away from nursery, school or work while you have symptoms, and for at least 48 hours after they stop.
You should also avoid swimming for two weeks after being unwell.
You should not prepare food for anyone else until 48 hours after diarrhoea has stopped.
Make sure you’re using good handwashing practices too, washing your hands thoroughly when handling food and after using the toilet.
The UKHSA also advises washing bedding and towels on the hottest possible cycle.
UK
Lucy Letby: Families of victims want inquiry live streamed to stop ‘grossly offensive’ conspiracy theories
The inquiry into how nurse Lucy Letby was able to murder babies at a hospital in Chester will begin to hear evidence in September.
Lawyers for the families of Letby’s victims told a preliminary hearing that the inquiry should be live streamed to the public to prevent the spread of “grossly offensive” conspiracy theories.
Letby was sentenced to 14 whole-life orders after she was convicted of murdering seven babies and attempting to murder six others while working on the neo-natal unit at the Countess of Chester Hospital in 2015 and 2016.
At the preliminary hearing, inquiry chair Lady Justice Thirlwall heard submissions on whether the hearings should be publicly broadcast.
Peter Skelton KC, on behalf of the families of six babies, said Letby’s crimes continued to be the subject of conspiracy theories online.
“One of the most effective antidotes to those theories and the damage they cause will be to see and to hear the people involved in the hospital give a true and comprehensive account of the facts,” he said.
But Andrew Kennedy KC, representing the Countess of Chester, said there was a “high level of anxiety” from staff at the prospect of giving evidence which was live streamed.
He said: “If a witness is concerned about live-streaming then if we can remove that concern we can, we would suggest, encourage candour, frankness and openness.”
Letby was given multiple whole-life terms and will be re-tried on one charge next month
Richard Baker KC, representing some of the other families, said: “Their desire in this case is for change and so that others do not experience what they have experienced.”
They were “saddened” and “concerned” at the suggestion the lack of transparency might continue, he said.
Lady Justice Thirlwall will give her decision on whether the hearings will be broadcast at a later date.
She had begun the proceedings with a pause for reflection on the “lives lost”, “injuries sustained” and “suffering” of the families.
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The hearing was told 188 requests for information had been made to individuals including midwives, nurses, doctors, managers and members of the hospital board.
The inquiry hearings are scheduled to begin on 10 September at Liverpool Town Hall.
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
The parents of the babies will be among the first to give evidence.
Counsel to the inquiry Rachel Langdale KC told the hearing: “There are no sides. It is a search for the truth.”
Last month Letby asked the Court of Appeal for permission to mount a full legal challenge to her conviction. Judges are due to rule on this at a later date.
The former nurse is due to face a re-trial next month on one charge of the attempted murder of a baby in February 2016.
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