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Gerald Jones is the Labour Member of Parliament for the Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney constituency.
Rhymney community safety and High Street improvements: working together with local partners
I’m continuing to work with our newly re-elected MS, Dawn Bowden, local councillors, Gwent Police and Caerphilly County Borough Council on tackling issues of antisocial behaviour in the Rhymney area, following a number of concerns raised by residents.
In a recent virtual meeting with partners, it was encouraging to hear residents are now engaging more and more with the police regarding local issues such as fly-tipping, antisocial behaviour and drugs, and I’m grateful to both our police and local authorities for everything they’re doing to help keep our communities safe. This is a long-standing issue and will require ongoing commitment to resolve.
Calling for clarity over the future of funding to Wales in Queen’s Speech debate
The Government’s Queen’s Speech earlier this month was a huge missed opportunity to address some of the most urgent problems facing our communities, and in the debate on the speech I highlighted some of the issues overlooked by the Government, including the future of funding to Wales now that EU funding schemes have ended.
With the Upper Rhymney Valley and wider Caerphilly Borough not included on a priority list for the Government’s Community Renewal Fund, despite having some of the highest deprivation across the Valleys, in the debate I urged ministers to provide clarity over the criteria used for allocating the funding. I am continuing to work closely with Caerphilly County Borough Council and fellow Caerphilly Borough MPs to press the Government on this.
Animal trespassing: working together to address residents’ concerns
Following a number of concerns raised by residents across the Upper Rhymney Valley – particularly in Fochriw and Deri – around issues of animal trespassing, I am working together with Cllr David Hardacre, Caerphilly County Borough Council and Natural Resources Wales to see what action can be taken.
This is an ongoing issue that diminished in recent years but has now re-emerged, and one that’s causing significant stress to local residents – with plants being eaten and mess being left on private property.
I want to encourage any constituents affected to report incidents to Caerphilly County Borough Council on 01443 815588 as work to tackle this progresses.
2021 elections: Congratulations to Dawn Bowden and our Police and Crime Commissioner
Following the elections earlier this month for the Senedd and our Police and Crime Commissioners, I want to congratulate my colleague, Dawn Bowden on her re-election as MS for Merthyr Tydfil & Rhymney with an increased majority and share of the vote.
Dawn has been an excellent representative for communities in Merthyr Tydfil and across the Upper Rhymney Valley, and I’m looking forward to continuing working with her on behalf of our communities.
I also want to congratulate Jeff Cuthbert on his re-election as Police and Crime Commissioner for Gwent.
Jeff has done great work with our local police helping to keep communities in the Upper Rhymney Valley and across Gwent safe, and I’m looking forward to working with him and our police further on behalf of local residents.
School virtual visits continue: Catching up with Deri School Council
It was a pleasure to meet virtually with the young people from Deri Primary School’s School Council earlier this month, where I was quizzed and had some great discussions around important issues such as global warming, mental health and improving schools.
I’m looking forward to meeting with more school councils from across Merthyr Tydfil and the Upper Rhymney Valley going forward – if you think your child’s school would be interested in a virtual Q&A session with their MP, please contact my office at gerald.jones.mp@parliament.uk.
Volunteers Week 2021
As we approach Volunteers Week from June 1, I wanted to say a huge thank you to all the volunteers, community groups and charities who work so hard day-in-day-out to support our communities. Volunteers Week is a great opportunity for us all to say a very big and well deserved thank you!
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