Former NHS consultant Sean Watermeyer is helping in another way after decades of dedicated service

A retired NHS consultant has written a new children’s book in support of the Wales Air Ambulance.

Sean Watermeyer, who served as a consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist at the Royal Glamorgan Hospital for 19 years, has published Bernie the Christmas Spirit and the Wales Air Ambulance as the third version in his Bernie the Christmas Spirit series.

Mr Watermeyer, who has spent 35 years working as a medic, said writing the book was his way of giving back to an organisation he greatly admires. “The Wales Air Ambulance carries out around three and a half thousand life-saving missions every year,” he said. “It’s entirely charity-based and not funded by the NHS.” Stay in the know by making sure you’re receiving our daily newsletter.

Inspiration came to Sean after seeing the air ambulance from his home and searching about them.

“Every day we see them coming in and out, and I looked them up and realised they were entirely charitable,” he said. “I knew I needed to do something for these guys.”

Sean’s medical career has been wide-ranging. Alongside his NHS work he served as a squadron doctor in the RAF, completing a tour in Bosnia and supporting a naval squadron in Germany where he also met his wife.

He later became the cancer lead for the Cwm Taf Morgannwg Health Board for a decade and chaired the hospital committee for PONT – a Pontypridd-based charity working with communities in Mbale, Uganda.

His medical experience, he said, has deeply influenced his writing. “Being a medic for 35 years has shaped how I see the world,” he said. “The Bernie books are about spreading love, decency, and goodness, and that’s the message I want children to take away.”

The Bernie the Christmas Spirit series began in 2020 when Mr Watermeyer published the first edition with proceeds going to Centrepoint, a charity supporting young people facing homelessness. His latest book continues that tradition of pairing storytelling with social good.

As well as the Bernie the Christmas Spirit series Mr Watermeyer has written several other books. His earlier works include Infertility and Miscarriage: A Guide for the General Public, written to support couples struggling to conceive, and The Frequently Untrodden Path to Happiness, a self-help book exploring the pursuit of wellbeing and positivity.

The Wales Air Ambulance has welcomed the project with the charity planning to stock the book across its 10 shops throughout Wales. It will also be available online through Amazon and in Waterstones stores.

Sean said he was delighted when Waterstones agreed to carry the book. “I went into the Cardiff store and explained what the book was for, that all royalties were going to the air ambulance,” he said.

“The staff were absolutely lovely and said they’d be happy to stock it.”

Looking ahead, Sean hopes the book will encourage children and adults alike to appreciate the vital work of the Wales Air Ambulance.

“It’s a feel-good story,” he said. “I want children to know that goodness is the right way ahead and that if anything ever happens there are people out there, like the air ambulance team, ready to help.”

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Located at the southern end of Druridge Bay, the sandy beach attracts families, dog walkers and nature lovers looking for space, scenery and a slower pace compared to busier seaside destinations, but not just from the North East, with people travelling from across the UK to get there.

Part of a nine-mile stretch of coastline, Cresswell Beach is particularly striking at low tide, when the sand stretches far out towards the North Sea.

Cresswell Beach (Image: NORTHERN ECHO)

Reviews regularly mention the space, with visitors noting that even during peak periods it rarely feels overcrowded.

One visitor described it as “a huge, open beach where you can always find a quiet spot,” while another said it was “ideal for long walks with the dog, flat, sandy and peaceful.”

Cresswell sits on the Northumberland Coast Path, making it a regular stopping point for walkers and cyclists exploring the Druridge Bay area.

The nearby Cresswell Foreshore nature reserve is also well regarded, with visitors pointing to the rock pools and birdlife as unexpected highlights.

Nature-focused reviews often mention seeing wading birds and marine life close to shore, with one visitor calling it “a brilliant spot for wildlife without needing specialist knowledge.”

Cresswell Beach (Image: NORTHERN ECHO)

Visitor feedback consistently highlights the convenience of nearby food and drink options.

Cresswell Ices is frequently mentioned in reviews as a must-stop, particularly for families and walkers finishing a beach stroll.

Across from the beach car park, The Drift Café also receives positive comments for its “homemade food and relaxed atmosphere”.

One reviewer summed it up by saying: “You’ve got everything you need within a few minutes, beach, coffee, ice cream and fish and chips.”

For those looking to stay overnight, Cresswell Towers Holiday Park, located close to the beach, is often referenced by visitors as a convenient base with sea views and easy access to the coast.

Reviews from holidaymakers staying locally frequently mention the appeal of waking up close to the beach and using Cresswell as a starting point for exploring Druridge Bay and the wider Northumberland coast.

While it may lack the arcades and attractions of larger resorts, that’s exactly what many visitors say they like about Cresswell Beach.

As one review puts it: “There’s nothing flashy here, just a beautiful beach, fresh air and space to relax.”

TOKYO (AP) — Polls opened Sunday in parliamentary elections that Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi hopes will give her struggling party a big enough win to push through an ambitious conservative political agenda.

Takaichi is hugely popular, but the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, which has governed Japan for most of the last seven decades, has struggled from funding and religious scandals. She called Sunday’s snap elections hoping to turn that around.

She wants to make progress on a right-wing agenda that aims to boost Japan’s economy and military capabilities as tensions grow with China. She also wants to nurture ties with her crucial U.S. ally, and a sometimes unpredictable President Donald Trump.

The ultraconservative Takaichi, who took office as Japan’s first female leader in October, pledged to “work, work, work,” and her style, which is seen as both playful and tough, has resonated with younger fans.

The latest surveys indicated a landslide win in the lower house for the LDP. The opposition, despite the formation of a new centrist alliance and a rising far-right, is seen as too splintered to be a real challenger.

Takaichi is betting that her LDP party, together with its new partner, the Japan Innovation Party, will secure a majority in the 465-seat lower house, the more powerful of Japan’s two-chamber parliament.

Recent surveys by major Japanese newspapers show a possibility that Takaichi’s party could win a simple majority on its own while her coalition could win as many as 300 seats — a big jump from a thin majority it held since a 2024 election loss.

If the LDP fails to win a majority, “I will step down,” she said.

A big win by Takaichi’s coalition could mean a significant shift to the right in Japan’s security, immigration and other policies, with its right-wing partner JIP’s leader Hirofumi Yoshimura saying his party will serve as an “accelerator.”

Japan has recently seen far-right populists gain ground, such as the anti-globalist and surging nationalist party Sanseito.

Takaichi has pledged to revise security and defense policies by December to bolster Japan’s offensive military capabilities, lifting a ban on weapons exports and moving further away from the country’s postwar pacifist principles.

She has been pushing for tougher policies on foreigners, anti-espionage and other measures that resonate with a far-right audience but ones that experts say could undermine civil rights.

Takaichi also wants to increase defense spending in response to Trump’s pressure on Japan to loosen its purse strings.

Though Takaichi said she is seeking the public’s mandate for her “nation splitting policies,” she avoided contentious issues such as ways to fund soaring military spending, how to fix diplomatic tension with China and other controversial issues.

In her campaign speeches, Takaichi enthusiastically talked about the need for “proactive” government spending to fund “crisis management investment and growth,” such as measures to strengthen economic security, technology and other industries. Takaichi also seeks to push tougher measures on immigration and foreigners, including stricter requirements for foreign property owners and a cap on foreign residents.

Still, Kazuki Ishihara, 54, said she voted for the LDP for stability and in hopes for something new under Takaichi. “I have some hope that she could do something” her predecessors could not.

A 50-year-old office worker Yoshinori Tamada said his interest is wages. “I think a lot when I look at my pay slip, and I cast my vote for a party that I believe I can trust in that regard.”

Sunday’s vote started under fresh snowfall across the country, including in Tokyo. Record snowfall in northern Japan over the last few weeks, which blocked roads and was blamed for dozens of deaths nationwide, could hinder voting or delay vote counting in hard-hit areas.

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Associated Press video journalist Mayuko Ono in Tokyo contributed to this report.

Doing something romantic for Valentine’s Day does not need to involve a heart-shaped box of chocolates, roses or an atypically expensive dinner, according to relationship experts.

In fact, therapists encourage couples craving intimacy and a deeper connection to focus less on grand gestures and more on expressing love with mundane acts that recognize what matters to their partner.

Romance is not one size fits all. For some people, it means holding hands, opening a car door or drawing a bath for their lover. Others respond to receiving a hilarious text, coffee in bed or an offer to run a nagging errand. Either way, demonstrating kindness and care in small ways over time helps to support relationships as they evolve, says Traci Lee, a licensed marriage and family therapist in Dallas.

“The more that early on, you as a couple are able to establish good habits of whatever romance is going to look like for you, the better it is,” Lee said.

Couples counselors and people in relationships share ideas for showing a romantic partner love throughout the year:

Romance is constantly evolving

Early in a relationship, it doesn’t take much to show romantic intentions, but that changes as couples learn more about each other as individuals, discover what their partner needs for emotional and physical well-being, and experience life together.

“Depending on what stage of the relationship you’re in, romance can mean different things,” Lee said. For example, couples with parenting and caregiving responsibilities have less time to devote to each other than they did during the honeymoon phases right after they started dating or got married.

Gabrielle Gambrell, who lives in New York with her husband of seven years and their two children, thinks romance “should be an evolution” and therefore takes work. One piece of advice she received before getting married stuck with her: Never stop dating.

“You keep romance alive by continuously dating,” Gambrell said. “No matter how busy or what happens in the world, me and my husband have a mandatory date night. And every single date night, we leave the date energized and happy and grateful, and reminded what means the most to us.”

Taking the pressure off Valentine’s Day

Valentine’s Day carries a heavy burden of social pressures, fantasies from movies and books, and individual desires and expectations that often go unexpressed. All can be managed with planning and communication, experts say.

“Some people will say, ‘If I have to tell my partner what to do, then it won’t be romantic.’ But I have to remind people that their partner is not a mind reader,” Lee said. “I try to blow up the myth that romance can only happen if it’s created spontaneously out of thin air.”

Gambrell, who describes herself as a planner by nature, says she typically starts asking her husband questions about their plans for Feb. 14 days before. Making assumptions about the best way to celebrate Valentine’s Day and comparisons with other couple’s relationships are likely to lead to disappointment, she said.

“Love is not perfect. Romance is not perfect. Relationships, there’s nothing perfect about them, but they are beautiful,” she said.

Clarence Smith IV, a 29-year-old middle school teacher and video content creator in Phoenix, remains a big believer in using traditional acts of chivalry to communicate respect and care for his girlfriend, such as positioning himself closer to the curb when they are walking together on a street.

“Romance today involves more seen gestures – let this be seen, let this be shown, let this be big,” Smith said, adding that in his dating experience some people see his gentlemanly behavior as old-fashioned. “I do little things like that, and they’re looked at as superbly impactful. We don’t do this anymore. But to me, baby, this is basics.”

Express love beyond February

While some relationship experts recommend establishing traditions around meaningful holidays, anniversaries and birthdays, others say that creating rituals to mark new seasons or weekends are equally valuable as part of the foundation for merging lifestyles and routines.

Lee says she often explains to her clients a popular analogy in the counseling industry: If you get in a fight with your partner and apologize with a dozen roses, that would be great, but bringing one rose every day for 12 days would communicate consistency and dedication.

She asks patients, “What are some small things that you can do that are going to be a way for you to show up for your partner in the way that they need it?”

Gambrell says gift-giving is the way she prefers to receive and show love. As a result, it touches her deeply and comes across as a romantic gesture when her husband buys her a scratch-off lottery ticket or stationery item, like a pen or notebook, at the store.

“It’s knowing that you’re thinking about me, that I’m on your mind, that you stop what you’re doing to think of me,” she said.

Smith encourages people to not be afraid of expressing love regardless of how experienced a dating life or how long a relationship they have.

“Do not be afraid to love in your own way,” he said. “It’s always worth it. You always win in the end.”

Major changes to car tax will come in over the next two years

The Government has released an update regarding changes to road tax. Vehicle Excise Duty, also known as road tax, is expected to rise in accordance with inflation once more in April 2026.

Independent MP James McMurdock questioned Chancellor Rachel Reeves in a written parliamentary inquiry about whether she intends to “review the structure of Vehicle Excise Duty”. Treasury minister Dan Tomlinson delivered the Government’s response.

He said: “Vehicle Excise Duty (VED), sometimes known as ‘road tax’ or ‘car tax’, is a tax on vehicles used or kept on public roads. Different rates apply to cars, vans, and motorcycles, and the rate for each vehicle is calculated according to a range of factors, such as its date of first registration, weight, or CO2 emissions.”

Addressing the possibility of reforms to the system, Mr Tomlinson said: “The Government has no current plans to review this structure.” Nevertheless, he did acknowledge that major modifications are on the horizon.

The minister outlined: “At Autumn Budget 2025, the government announced the introduction of Electric Vehicle Excise Duty (eVED), a new mileage charge for electric and plug-in hybrid cars, which will come into effect from April 2028. Drivers will pay for their mileage alongside their existing Vehicle Excise Duty (VED).”

Under the new proposals, electric vehicle drivers will be charged 3p per mile, while plug-in hybrid motorists will pay 1.5p per mile, with both rates subject to inflation-linked increases. The Government has launched a consultation on these plans.

The consultation document states: “It will be set at half of the equivalent rate of fuel duty for electric cars, and half again for plug-in hybrid cars. eVED will ensure all car drivers contribute, but will still maintain important incentives to switch to an electric vehicle. eVED will not require ‘trackers’ in cars, nor will the government ask people to interact with a whole new tax system: car drivers will pay for the miles they drive alongside paying their usual road tax (VED).”

From April 2025, electric vehicles became liable for vehicle excise duty. Chancellor Rachel Reeves set out in the Autumn Budget that the VED Expensive Car Supplement threshold would be raised from £40,000 to £50,000 from April 2026. VED rates for vehicles of all types will rise in line with inflation from April 2026.

With rough sleeping on the rise across Scotland, the Sunday Mail’s Dan Vevers decided to see what it’s like first-hand.

More than 2000 Scots reported sleeping rough at some point in the six months from April to September last year, official stats show.

The numbers sleeping rough the day prior to applying for homeless status have rocketed by 24 per cent.

So with rough sleeping on the rise, I decided to see what it’s like first-hand.

It was a very chilly, early February night, just at the tail-end of a yellow weather warning from the Met Office for high winds and sleet, and it was nippy to say the least.

The most sheltered spot I could find to unroll my sleeping bag was under the Clyde Bridge on the Broomielaw – a known refuge for rough sleepers.

I’d wrapped up pretty warm – a big parka jacket, a scarf. But still, it was cold enough to pull on my emergency hat.

I was away from the worst of the wind and cold. But there’s nothing comfortable about sitting or lying on concrete.

I was tired, it was late and I hadn’t eaten since the afternoon.

When I closed my eyes on my camping pillow, I thought I might even nod off.

But then I’d hear voices, or footsteps. Or loudest of all, the whooshing of a train flying across the bridge, rattling my skull. All that put me back on my guard.

I thought I’d been there for hours before I gave up the experiment. But when I looked at the time, I’d lasted for less than two hours. After all, I had a real bed to go home to.

Councils in Scotland have a statutory requirement to give temporary housing to homeless people.

But from April to September, there were 10,710 instances of local authorities failing to provide this – despite it being unlawful – which is a shocking 42 per cent rise in a year.

Many of these people might have been forced into a night on the cold streets. I don’t envy them.

When the job of eSafety Commissioner came up, she bashfully explains there was a small pool of candidates to choose from. The man who helped write the bill, Malcolm Turnbull, went on to become prime minister. He hired her and, she says, wanted a commissioner with a background in online safety, but also experience in the tech sector itself.

As Bad Bunny prepares to headline the Super Bowl halftime show, Cardi B says she’s proud to see him step onto the world’s biggest stage, praising his cultural impact and willingness to speak out during heightened immigration arrests.

“I’m proud of everything that he’s been standing up for against ICE and everything,” Cardi B told The Associated Press ahead of her performance at Michael Rubin’s star-studded Fanatics Super Bowl Party on Saturday, which featured performances by SZA, Don Toliver and Travis Scott.

The Grammy winner spoke with admiration and unity about Bad Bunny, who appeared with J Balvin on her chart-topping hit, “I Like It.” The collaboration helped propel Latin music further into the global mainstream.

Bad Bunny is set to take the Super Bowl stage on Sunday, one week after winning album of the year at the 2026 Grammys for “Debí Tirar Más Fotos.” It is the first time an all-Spanish-language album has taken home the top prize.

At the Grammys, the Puerto Rican superstar said “ICE out” while accepting an award, criticizing President Donald Trump‘s administration for its dramatic expansion of immigration arrests.

“It just feels like everything is aligned right now,” said Cardi B, who is of Afro-Caribbean descent with roots in Trinidad and the Dominican Republic. “It just shows how Hispanics, Latinos. … We standing. They standing. We all standing.”

With Super Bowl buzz swirling around “I Like It” and the possibility of surprise guests, Cardi B was asked what it would mean to share the stage with Bad Bunny on such a massive platform.

“That’d be exciting,” she said.

As Bad Bunny readies for his halftime moment, Cardi B is preparing for the launch of her highly anticipated tour, which opens Feb. 11 in Palm Desert, California. The run marks her first headlining arena tour and her first tour in six years.

The tour arrives on the heels of her sophomore album, “Am I the Drama,” just four months after the birth of her first child with New England Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs, her fourth child overall.

Her preparation has centered on long rehearsal days that double as physical training, building momentum and confidence ahead of life on the road, Cardi B said.

“The rehearsing is my workout,” she said. “I’m just doing my job.”

With her recent project connecting strongly with fans and plans to work on her new album while on tour, Cardi B said the momentum has sharpened her excitement for returning to the stage.

“I feel really confident,” she said. “Knowing the fans are going to be there and know the music. It’s exciting.”

RMT union chiefs point to ‘horrendous’ stories of workers being spat on, abused and attacked while on duty on trains, buses and ferries.

A trade union is demanding a new law to protect transport workers in Scotland against a surge in assaults.

Gordon Martin, the RMT’s ­Scottish organiser, said members have told him “horrendous” stories of being spat on, abused, threatened and attacked while at work on trains, buses and ferries.

The RMT is to rally outside Holyrood this week demanding a new standalone offence for assaulting transport staff – similar to protections for retail workers introduced in 2021.

It comes as British Transport Police reported a 43 per cent increase in assaults against ­Scottish rail workers between April and September last year, compared to the same period in 2024.

A recent RMT survey found 70 per cent of women staff had experienced workplace violence in the past year.

Martin told the Sunday Mail: “It was only a few short months ago we had the terrible situation in Cambridgeshire of a mass stabbing on a train, with victims including the train manager, and the guard on that particular service.

“That is at the more extreme end of the scale, but it still happens.

“More commonly, there’s a lot of low-level verbal abuse, people getting spat on, people getting threatened. When I say it’s low-level, that’s not to say it’s not important, because of course it is.

“You end up with people traumatised and it happens right across the transport sector, from pier workers on the ferries to railway guards and ticket examiners.

“I’ve heard horrendous stories of station staff in particular facing real, heavy threats as well as people actually getting attacked.

“We hope a new standalone offence against assaulting a transport worker when they’re on duty will act as a deterrent..”

But he added this would have to go hand-in-hand with an increased police presence in trouble spots and a boost to public transport staffing to prevent lone working, particularly at train stations.

The union says it wants all parties to commit to measures to tackle violence on public transport ahead of May’s Holyrood election.

The most common abuse reported by women transport workers last year was verbal assault, followed by threats of physical violence, while over 20 per cent said they had been sexually harassed.

Lone working was identified as a major risk with about 60 per cent of those who experienced violence saying they were on shift alone at the time.

Three-quarters of respondents said violence at work was getting worse.

Scottish Government research published in 2023 also found women and girl passengers feel safer on public transport when staff are present at stations, in ticket offices and onboard trains.

For shop staff in Scotland, a 2021 law made it a specific criminal offence to assault, threaten, abuse, obstruct, or hinder retail workers, with offenders facing up to 12 months imprisonment, a fine of up to £10,000, or both.