Supporting Merthyr Tydfil & Rhymney constituents during the coronavirus pandemic

During the past few weeks, my team and I have been working hard to support people in our area affected by coronavirus, writing to UK and Welsh Government ministers calling for action on a range of issues and holding regular virtual meetings with Caerphilly County Borough Council, Aneurin Bevan University Health Board, Gwent Police and a number of businesses and voluntary organisations operating in the Upper Rhymney Valley, to ensure affected constituents get the support they need during these difficult times.

Now that Parliament is back in session using a ‘hybrid’ of virtual and physical proceedings – for the first time in 700 years – I want to encourage constituents to please continue to contact me with your comments or any issues you feel I can help with, as I can now continue to raise issues with ministers and hold the UK Government to account.

Standing up for Wales in new role on Labour frontbench

Last month I was delighted to be appointed as Shadow Minister for Wales by new Labour leader Keir Starmer, and in the weeks and months ahead I will do everything I can in my new role to stand up for the people of Wales during the ongoing pandemic.

I was pleased to get to work in the new role straight away as I took part in a historic session of Welsh Questions – the first ministerial questions to be held both virtually and physically due to the ongoing distancing measures – and I was proud to be part of the history as the first opposition MP to ask a question virtually, urging the UK Government to provide greater clarity over which coronavirus policies apply to Wales and which apply to the UK as a whole.

Marking the 75^th anniversary of VE Day

Friday, May 8 marked the 75^th anniversary of victory in Europe in the Second World War, and although many commemoration events in our area and nationally were cancelled due to the lockdown, many people still came together virtually and in spirit to pay tribute to all those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country.

At 11am on Friday, people across Wales and the UK paused for a two-minute silence to remember the service of the Second World War generation to the country, and thank them for all the sacrifices they made for the freedom we enjoy today.

To mark the historic VE Day anniversary, the Royal British Legion also organised an online livestream, an evening of WW2 memories and music on BBC One from 8pm and a nationwide singalong to Vera Lynn’s ‘We’ll Meet Again’ at 9pm, as well as lots of VE Day learning materials for children, which are available on its website.

As we face such difficult times due to the coronavirus pandemic, the messages of unity and determination that the Second World War generation have taught us have never been more important, and I want to thank residents for getting involved and coming together to mark the anniversary and paying tribute to all those servicemen and women from across Wales and the UK to whom we owe so much.