INQUEST OPENS: The inquest into the deaths of four teenage boys near Tremadog opened and closed at Caernarfon yesterday, with drowning the verdict.

Jevon Hirst, 16, Harvey Owen, 17, Wilf Fitchett, 17, and Hugo Morris, 18, were found in a silver Ford Fiesta on November 21.

North Wales Police said the car had left the A4085 at Garreg, near Tremadog, and was partially submerged in water.

Coroner Kate Robertson opened the inquest and adjourned it to allow the police to conclude investigations.

HOUSING REFORM: Welsh Minister Julie James agreed yesterday to put a consent Bill to the Senedd to enable it to work with the UK government on its Leasehold and Freehold Reform Bill, despite housing being a devolved matter.

Ms James said: “It is my view that working together with the UK government represents the best way to reduce complexity, maximise the clarity and coherence of the law and ensure the new fairer reformed system applies to all.”

NOISE POLLUTION: New legislation has been passed in the Senedd, giving the Welsh government greater powers to improve air quality and reduce noise pollution across the nation.

Wales is the first country in the UK to bring forward legislation for the improvement in quality of the air environment, through policies that tackle unwanted noise and protect sounds that matter to people, like birdsong and nature.

PRE-PAYMENT METERS: The Senedd’s petitions committee will launch its latest report later today on Fuel Poverty Awareness Day, urging the Welsh government to do more to stop vulnerable people from being forced into using energy pre-payment meters.

The committee’s latest report urges the Welsh government to improve advice services in Wales this winter.

With 200,000 households in Wales using pre-payment meters, the report also calls for a new social tariff for vulnerable people to provide more support.