Swansea restaurants fined after serving unsafe meals to allergy sufferers

Three Swansea restaurants have been fined thousands of pounds after investigations revealed they had served meals containing undeclared allergens to customers who had specifically warned staff about their allergies.

Trading Standards officers from Swansea Council carried out undercover sampling and inspections at Saporito Pizza and Grill House on Gower Road in Killay, Indian Street Kitchen on Walter Road in Swansea city centre, and Joyato Sushi and Grill on Salubrious Passage, off Wind Street in the city centre. In each case, staff gave false assurances about food safety, but laboratory analysis later confirmed the presence of allergens including gluten, milk and egg.

At Swansea Magistrates’ Court, all three owners admitted offences under the General Food Regulations 2004 and the Food Safety Act 1990, including placing unsafe food on the market and falsely describing menu items.

The penalties varied, but all were significant. The owner of Saporito Pizza and Grill House, Seckin Bulutoglu, was ordered to pay more than £2,000 in fines, surcharges and costs. At Indian Street Kitchen, Muminul Uddin faced a bill of over £2,300. The heaviest penalty was handed to Yanrui Yi, who runs Joyato Sushi and Grill, with fines and costs totalling close to £9,500.

Council officers said the breaches included mislabelled menu items, poor allergen management systems, and a lack of staff training.

Council: “No excuses”

Cllr Andrew Williams, Cabinet Member for Corporate Service (Performance), said the cases showed how dangerous poor allergen practices can be.

“These cases highlight the potentially fatal consequences of failing to manage allergens and provide accurate information to customers,” he said.

“All the businesses involved have no excuses, having received significant advice about staff training and the dangers associated with allergens.

“Swansea Council is committed to protecting public health and will not hesitate to take enforcement action against businesses that put consumers at risk.”

Warning to businesses and customers

The council is urging all food businesses to ensure staff are properly trained and that allergen information is accurate and up to date. Consumers are also advised to ask about allergens and, if in doubt, walk away.

#allergens #cllrAndrewWilliams #featured #foodDrink #foodSafety #gowerRoad #killay #restaurant #salubriousPassage #swansea #swanseaCityCentre #swanseaCouncil #walterRoad #windStreet

Woman hospitalised with potential life-changing injuries following serious crash in Sketty

A major road in Swansea was closed for much of Monday morning (4 August) following a serious two-vehicle collision in Sketty. South Wales Police and Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service responded to the incident on the A4118 Gower Road, near the junction with De-La-Beche Road, shortly after 7.30am.

A 53-year-old woman from Uplands, who was driving one of the vehicles involved, was taken to hospital with injuries described as “possibly life-changing”, though not life-threatening. Police confirmed that an investigation into the crash is ongoing.

The road was closed in both directions for several hours while emergency services worked at the scene and advised the public to avoid the area. It reopened at approximately 1.30pm.

South Wales Police said in a statement:

“Officers were called to a report of a two-vehicle road traffic collision on Gower Road, Sketty, Swansea at around 7:30am this morning (Monday August 4). A 53-year-old woman from Uplands, who was the driver of one of the vehicles, has been taken to hospital. Her injuries are not life-threatening but are possibly life-changing. An investigation into this incident is currently ongoing. The road has since reopened.”

Fire crews from Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service also attended the scene to assist.

#A4118 #DeLaBecheRoad #featured #GowerRoad #RoadTrafficAccident #Sketty #SouthWalesPolice #Uplands

Councils in South West Wales to get £27m boost to improve local transport

The grants from the Welsh Government will fund projects that improve the condition of local roads and address disruptions caused by severe weather; pilot new bus services and upgrade bus journey times and waiting facilities; and make it easier for people to walk, cycle and use wheelchairs.

It will also fund the installation of more publicly available electric vehicle charging points; the creation of safer routes for children to travel to schools; and improve road safety.

Swansea

Swansea Council will receive core transport funding of £1.11 million, plus £50,000 for the Clyne Common Active Travel scheme to provide a safe cycling and walking route from Bishopston and Murton across the common.

There is £600,000 for a ‘Northern City Link’ that would see improvements made to the A483 North of Cadle along Carmarthen Road, through Dyfatty and High Street to its junction with Welcome Lane in the city centre. This includes remodelling the busy Dyfatty junction, bus priority measures along the whole route as well as improvements for walking and cycling. The grant money would be for a traffic modelling exercise to look at the potential impacts of any changes to the road network.

£500,000 is to go towards work on the Swansea Bay and West Wales Metro. Swansea will act as host authority for the region with projects including the creation of a new Regional Transport Plan covering all of the local authorities in South West Wales.

There is £380,000 towards plans for a multi-modal transport interchange at the Dairy Car Park in Mumbles, with funding going towards talking to the community and business owners about the proposed design and engaging with landowners affected by the proposals.

Flood alleviation measures on the A4118 Gower Road in Killay and on the same road between Scurlage and Llandew will see £265,000 of grant funding from Welsh Government.

There’s also £333,700 for motorcycle safety provision, £205,000 for implementation of 20mph speed limits, £60,000 for Kerbcraft pedestrian training, £30,900 for National Standards Cycle Training and £3,250 for Bike Safe training.

There’s £208,700 of safe routes in communities funding for Penllergaer and

£233,500 for electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

The council will also adopt Cae Rowland St in Manselton thanks to £80,000 of grant funding.

Neath Port Talbot

Neath Port Talbot Council will receive core transport funding of £716,000, plus £990,000 for phase 1 of the Neath to Cilma active travel route.

There’s £730,000 for Cymmer carriageway improvements, £440,000 towards plans for an Integrated Transport Hub in Neath outside of Neath Train Station and £1.6 million to deal with drainage and flooding issues on the A483 Fabian Way.

There’s road safety grants of £890,000 for the A4241 between Harbourway and Rutherglen and £220,000 for the B4242 Ynysygerwn to Glynneath.

In addition, there’s £14,000 for Dragon Rider motorcycle training, £12,180 for Pass Plus driver training, £6,700 for National Standards Cycle Training, £5,600 for Kerbcraft pedestrian training, £5,500 for Mega Drive pre-driver training for ages 16 to 18, £3,720 for First Responder (FBOS), £3,500 for Drive for Life, £3,000 for level 3 National Standards Cycle Training.

£50,000 will go towards creating a safe route between Coed Darcy and Skewen.

Carmarthenshire

Carmarthenshire Council will receive core funding of £732,000, plus £1.14 million for a replacement for Black Bridge in Llanelli that would see the construction of a new ramped access and shared use bridge for cycling and walking linking to previously completed routes to Trostre and Halfway with access to Pentre Awel and the Millenium Coastal Path.

There’s also £2.05 million towards the proposed Llanelli Interchange at the train station, as well as £574,000 for the A484 Sandy Road improvement scheme.

The council will get £1.5 million for highway drainage improvements across the county, as well as £520,000 for safety improvements to the B4304 Station Road and New Dock Road in Llanelli.

There’s £450,000 for the implementation of 20mph speed limits, £41,500 for Kerbcraft pedestrian training, £34,000 for active travel and road safety training, £28,120 for National Standards Cycle Training, £5,880 for Dragon Rider motorcycle training and £4,200 for Biker Down motorcycle training.

A safe routes in communities scheme in Five Roads will also receive £712,305.

Pembrokeshire

Pembrokeshire Council will receive core transport funding of £500,000, plus £802,880 for Saundersfoot shared use paths at Stammers and Frances Road.

There’s also £6.07 million towards the Milford Haven Transport Interchange project which sees improvement works to the existing Milford Haven train station to create a new public transport interchange, by relocating the existing rail platform and providing a dedicated bus interchange between the station and retail area, along with a, taxi rank, formalised car park, public realm spaces and improved Active Travel links.

£1.1 million will go towards projects in Newgale, including rerouting the Newgale section of the A487, creating a new walking and cycling path through the village, changing access to the beach and coastal businesses and releasing space for the beach to naturally adapt to coastal change.

In addition there is £39,200 for Kerbcraft pedestrian training, £32,080 for National Standards Cycle Training, £3,500 for Mature Driver training for ages 65 and over, £2,520 for Dragon Rider motorcycle training and £1,200 for Biker Down courses.

£500,000 has been given to the council towards EV Charger Network rationalisation and £84,000 for the council to adopt Mayfield Acres in Kilgetty.

Responding to the Welsh Government grant, Pembrokeshire Council’s Cabinet Member for Residents’ Services Cllr Rhys Sinnett said: “This is tremendous news for Milford Haven and allows us to move forward on a scheme that has been in development over a number of years. Not only will this significantly help the overall look of the station approach, it will also hopefully lead to better connectivity along the network for our own residents and also encourage more tourist visits. As this is an interchange scheme, it will also help us link up buses and taxis in a more seamless way.”

Bridgend County

Bridgend County Borough Council will receive core transport funding of £707,000 from Welsh Government, plus £119,000 for phase 1 of the council’s Pen y Fai active travel scheme that looks to create a shared pedestrian and cycle track from the safe crossing point along Tondu Road into Bridgend town centre, including work to improve the A4063 Pen-Y-Fai Junction.

Other funding commitments include £226,000 for Bridgend Bus Station information displays and £357,000 for improvements to the A4061 from the Junction 36 on the M4 to Heol Canola, Sarn. There’s also £137,000 for improvements to the A4064 King Edward Street in Blaengarw.

Welsh Government have given Bridgend County Borough Council £208,689 for implementation of 20mph speed limits, £29,636 for Kerbcraft pedestrian training and £25,440 for National Standards Cycle Training.

There is also £104,000 for residential charge point initiative and £16,000 towards the adoption of Lakeview Close, Porthcawl.

Welsh Government Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Ken Skates, said: “Connecting communities and delivering better transport for all is at the heart of this £27 million investment. We want to make it easier for people to travel to work, school, healthcare and to see friends and family, while also building a more sustainable transport network for future generations.

“These improvements will make real differences to everyday journeys – whether that’s safer routes, better paths for walking, wheeling and cycling, or more reliable bus services. We’re working with councils to ensure this money delivers the greatest benefits to communities across Wales.”

#A4063 #A4118 #A4241 #A483 #A484 #ActiveTravel #B4304 #BridgendCouncil #CarmarthenRoad #Carmarthenshire #featured #GowerRoad #Junction36 #Llanelli #NeathPortTalbot #Newgale #Pembrokeshire #SandyRoad #StationRoad #Swansea #Transport #TransportInterchange #WelshGovernment

The proposed active travel network expansion, which has been under discussion with residents and businesses, aims to provide dedicated cycling lanes and improved pedestrian and crossing facilities along Walter Road and Sketty Road. It would also see general upgrades to key public areas in Uplands.

However, a number of key policy and priority changes announced by the new administrations in Westminster and Cardiff on economic growth and public transportation, will now need to be fully considered by Swansea Council’s Cabinet, alongside feedback from Swansea residents and businesses before a decision is made on whether to proceed with the Sketty and Uplands scheme.

Cllr Andrew Stevens, the council’s Cabinet Member Environment and Infrastructure, said:

“Our transport and highways teams have done an amazing job in creating an extensive walking and cycling network that offers residents and visitors over 120km of safe, enjoyable off-road walking and cycling routes that connect communities, links for children to their local schools and are used and enjoyed by residents and visitors daily’.

“However, it’s clear that some remaining part of the proposed network, especially those that run through local commercial areas, are much more challenging technically to deliver without sustained disruption.  

“The active travel route for Walter Road and Sketty Road has identified some important local and broader impacts that need to be considered further before deciding whether it is right to continue.”

“We are aware of misleading comments on social media claiming that decisions were made before people have had a chance to give their views. This is completely untrue.

“However, there are some broader considerations. Cabinet will need to take into account before making a decision on whether to proceed with the scheme.

Cllr Rob Stewart, Leader of the council, said:

”People want better roads but also cheaper and more reliable bus and rail services. That is what we are attempting to deliver with over £8m being invested in local roads this year, and free bus travel being offered across Swansea during holiday periods.

“However, with the announcement of significant policy changes following the election of the new Government in Westminster and a reprioritisation and refocusing of priorities by the new Welsh Cabinet, we have the potential to do even more on public transport as a driver of economic growth and prosperity.

“Swansea is already going through its biggest ever sustained period of regeneration and has recently been identified as being one of the fastest growing cities in the UK next year.

“With both Government focusing on economic growth and taking tangible steps to invest in public owned or controlled transport across the UK, including new bus franchising in Swansea and South west Wales from 2027, and the potential for a new rail metro network services in South West Wales currently being finalised by TFW, it’s right to reassess how best to prioritise our own local transport investment in Swansea as we plan for these changes.

“We also know that Swansea is a major tourist destination and our annual programme of major events, provides a significant economic tourism boost to our local economy.

“Events like the Wales National Airshow and major concerts draw in hundreds of thousands of visitors and tourists. Planning for these events relies on the ability to safely divert traffic flows through area like Sketty and Uplands. So, investments must support and grow the local economy.”

“Transport, tourism, and economy officers are currently assessing all of the broader considerations plus the comments provided by residents and businesses during recent local engagements, so a revised report can be provided to the council’s Cabinet for a decision to be made on whether to progress this scheme.”

Uplands councillor Peter May welcomed the halting of the cycle path scheme:

In” my view common sense has prevailed. The dilemma the council had was the scheme’s engineer-ability. The last thing we wanted was to rush something through.”

[Lead image: Swansea Council]

https://swanseabaynews.com/2024/09/28/future-transport-plans-lead-to-rethink-on-city-centre-walking-and-cycling-route/

#ActiveTravel #cycling #GowerRoad #Sketty #SkettyRoad #Swansea #SwanseaCouncil #WalterRoad