Nurses may consider industrial action if a pay award is not introduced in full, a leading Welsh nursing representative warns. Action is likely to exclude going on strike, says RCN Welsh chairman Eirlys Warrington, but would be designed to demonstrate to the government nurses’ anger over what is effectively a pay cut.

Visitors to hospital wards could have their mobile phones confiscated because of fears they are compromising patient confidentiality. Gwent Healthcare NHS Trust has introduced a ban on mobile phones in all clinical and ward areas to protect patients and staff.

Children in Blaenau Gwent have a special one-stop-shop where they can make complaints and talk about services which affect them.

Union leaders are furious at UK government plans to pay court workers in Wales and the north of England less than their counterparts in the south. The plans for a new regional pay system by the Department for Constitutional Affairs (DCA) would apply to workers in crown, county and magistrates’ courts.

Police last night welcomed the closure of another North Wales crackhouse. The house on Wrexham’s Caia Park estate was linked to drug use and anti-social behaviour. It is the third property to be closed down in the area in the past month.

Hundreds of sex offenders across Wales have been let off with their crimes – despite admitting their guilt, we can reveal. A Wales on Sunday investigation has discovered that police and the Crown Prosecution Service have released hundreds of offenders onto our streets with just a caution rather than take them to court, where they could face a jail sentence.

For the first time, pub landlords in Wrexham will join forces in a bid to drive out violent customers who regularly terrorise innocent customers. It is hoped the Pubwatch scheme will reduce the number of fights and drunken incidents in the town’s bars dramatically.

Plaid Cymru yesterday promised a full pay rise for nurses as part of its programme for the NHS. It would ditch a staggered increase which will give nurses in England and Wales a 1.5 per cent pay rise in April and another one per cent in November.

The former boss of one of Cardiff’s biggest shopping centres is facing a string of allegations that he downloaded pornography at work. Michael Kelly has been charged with 15 offences of taking or making indecent images of children and two offences of possessing indecent pictures.

The violent nature of society has led to a “deplorable” increase in attacks on Welsh teachers and pupils, teaching unions warned yesterday. The claim came as figures revealed nearly 5,000 Welsh pupils were excluded from schools in this country in the past academic year for violent offences.