‘This should not be happening in one of the richest countries in the world’

Lindsay Whittle is the Plaid Cymru Senedd Member for the Caerphilly constituency.

Well, these last few weeks have been a bit of a whirlwind.

Once the by-election campaign was over it was down to the Senedd to be sworn in, and sort out my office and staffing arrangements. I must say I found the whole process extremely professional which was encouraging as the Senedd moves forward.

I’m still getting messages of congratulations from all over the UK and abroad, from friends and political colleagues and opponents alike. The comments have really been heart-warming. I apologise for not being able to respond to everyone.

During my first plenary week, I had the opportunity again to pay tribute to my late predecessor Hefin David, who made a huge contribution to Caerphilly, both as a Senedd Member and before that as a councillor. Despite our different political views, Hefin was a friend.

Then the during the plenary session, I raised with the Deputy First Minister the issue of poverty in Caerphilly, highlighting the struggles so many face in our area to put food on the table and heat their homes.

For eight years I volunteered on a Wednesday at the Caerphilly Foodbank and I witnessed poverty every single week. This should not be happening in one of the richest countries in the world. It was so sad and makes me even more determined to do everything I can to make people’s lives better.

I also had a good chat with students from Cardiff University’s student newspaper, Gair Rhyd.

Talking with those students confirmed to me that much more must be done to ensure our young people are able to continue to live in Caerphilly. Bringing more jobs into the Caerphilly area will be a top priority for me so we can offer young people rewarding jobs and they don’t feel the need to leave our area or, indeed, Wales.