NEWPORT City Council has been fined £2 million for health and safety breaches that led to the death of one of its employees who was filling in potholes.

Highways officer Stephen Bell, 57, from Newport, was killed in a collision with a farm vehicle at Langstone Court Road on Thursday, July 18, 2019.

Today, December 14, Cardiff Crown Court heard how Mr Bell had to walk on the road with live traffic to carry out pothole and surface repairs.

Prosecuting for the Health and Safety Executive, Sam Jones said closing the road was the “only way” the workers could have safely completed the project.

He added: “Every vehicle, no matter its type, that passed through, whether at 10mph or at the speed limit of 60mph, created a risk and a risk of the most severe kind.

“It’s that failure to secure an appropriate perimeter of the roadworks that is at the heart of the failure of this tragic case.”

In a statement made in April, Mr Bell's wife Jenny described how she had been “inconsolable” after two police officers delivered the news of her husband's death.

“We were approaching our time, with the girls growing up and with lives of their own, and that has been taken from me,” she said.

The husband and grandfather was “the heart of the family” and grieving family members had since “lost the enjoyment of life”, the court heard.

David Sapiecha, defending for Newport City Council, added that Mr Bell was a popular and enthusiastic employee.

He said the council would have supported a road closure given the speed limit and narrowness of the road.

He told Recorder of Cardiff Judge Tracey Lloyd-Clarke, sentencing, that there had been "root and branch" changes to the authority's risk assessment routines and no reportable incidents since.

“The council have not turned a blind eye to this. They have not ignored it,” he said, describing the events that led to Mr Bell's death as "a significant error that allowed other matters to follow".

He asked the court to consider the "extremely sensitive" state of the council's finances, suggesting it would be service users who suffered from any fine.

Having watched footage from the morning of the incident, Judge Lloyd-Clarke said the risks were “obvious” even to the untrained eye and would have been “readily apparent” if the council had properly prepared.

“It was the defendant’s failures that led tragically to the death of Mr Stephen Bell,” she said.

She acknowledged the digger that struck Mr Bell had its bucket in a lowered position which limited visibility but said it was “exactly the kind of risk that the defendant was supposed to prevent”.

Considering the steps the council had taken to “remedy” the problems and “very small” financial reserves, Judge Lloyd-Clarke sentenced a financial penalty of £2 million to be paid within two years.

Newport City Council chief executive Beverly Owen has said the council is "extremely sorry" for Mr Bell's death in 2019.

"He was a respected and valued colleague. We again offer our sincere condolences to his family for their loss," Ms Owen said.

“The council takes its health and safety responsibilities very seriously at all times. A guilty plea was entered at the earliest opportunity.

“Policies, procedures and training were in place at the time of the incident however, thorough and in-depth reviews have also been carried out since the incident.

“Health and safety resources have been increased, procedures have been strengthened, and additional training introduced. The council has learned from this tragic incident and has taken every step to try and ensure this is not able to happen again.”

The council must pay costs of £9,780.70 and a statutory surcharge of up to £181. The court made no order for compensation.