Police have issued a response to an incident in Penally last night (Monday) where a number of protestors against the repurposing of the village’s army training camp as a site to house asylum seekers stood firm to block the facility’s entrance.

It is believed that there will be a further protest outside the camp tonight (Tuesday) at 6 pm by those opposing the decision by the Home Office.

MP for Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire, and Welsh secretary of state Simon Hart issued a further update on the situation after receiving further information from the Home Office.

They have stated that the occupation capacity of the site has been downscaled slightly from 250 to 234 males, to comply with Covid-19 regulations, and that the majority of occupants will be from Iran and Iraq.

Superintendent Anthony Evans, Divisional Commander for Pembrokeshire has stated: “Dyfed-Powys Police is a service that relies on co-operation with our communities and we will always work to ensure that everyone’s voices are heard, in a peaceful and safe way.

“We understand that tensions are running high in the community, but last night’s scenes endangered everyone and caused understandable alarm.

“We are actively reviewing a significant amount of footage extracted from our officers’ body worn cameras, from footage shared to social media and intelligence obtained from other sources. Those identified committing criminal offences will be prosecuted - last night’s policing priority was to ensure the safety of everyone at the scene.

“We are in conversation with our partners across Pembrokeshire and are grateful to those in Penally and the surrounding community who are engaging with our officers on the ground and sharing concerns and information with us.

“Our history as a service is one of co-operation and we are working with partners across the county and the Home Office to get the support residents are asking for,” he added.

One of the protestors at the scene on Monday night, Darren Edmundson took to social media to states that many members of the public stood their ground at the gates of the site entrance for what they believe in.

“Last night was not supposed to turn out like that - all we wanted was to speak to the Home Office as they agreed but they decided not in the end.

“The public was frustrated and stood what they believed in. If the police couldn't handle around 50 people at the gate how are they going to cope with all the migrants if something kicks off!”

Mr. Edmundson alleges that matters got out of hand because a security guard and police officer were involved in what was perceived to be a confrontation between three of the protestors, and before this point the protest had been a peaceful one.