Wrexham.com columns

January often seems like the longest month of the year, the weather turns wintery, the evenings are still dark early, and people try to keep to their resolutions. However, the work as your MP and my office continues. In January my team have dealt with 229 cases so far but that figure changes daily.

In Westminster, I was privileged to speak in the debate for my Private Member’s Bill on Licensing Hours Extensions which has now proceeded to Committee Stage. This is a rare opportunity for a back bench MP and the chance to bring about a small change in legislation that can have a big effect on our hospitality industry and was something that I couldn’t miss. It was also able to use my speech to highlight some of the fantastic pubs we have across the constituency of Wrexham.

I have also been part of the Bill Committee for the Armed Forces Commissioner. In Wrexham we have a proud connection with our armed services and this new post will enable serving personnel and their families to have the support they deserve. This Bill has now moved on to the House of Lords.

It was great to meet residents in Llay whilst knocking doors and the issues raised which ranged from adult education to housing will now be actioned as case work by my office team.

Staff and volunteers at the Wallich do such fantastic work with some of the vulnerable in our community. On my recent visit it was moving to hear about the situations they deal with and the support they provide. I will continue to champion their cause.

I was delighted to meet Mel Morris from Coleg Cambria who has gained a place on the prestigious UK Parliament Teacher Ambassador programme. Mel will now be using what she has learned from the course to support her students’ understanding of the UK Parliament and democracy.

Local author Samantha Maxwell visited Parliament for a tour and to promote her two fantastic books “Disabling Ableism” and “CP isn’t me”. Sam is an absolute inspiration and doing incredible work to break the stigma around disability. Look out for her next book which is out later this year.

Developing my Welsh language speaking skills is really important to me. I am getting my DuoLingo practice in and even met Duo in Parliament. With the 6 Nations around the corner, dewch ymlaen Cymru!

In contrast to January, February’s shortness feels more of a blessing despite the very changeable weather we’ve been experiencing.

In Westminster, we’ve seen the vitally important Employment Rights Bill continue its passage through Parliament. It will ensure that workers are protected from being sacked from day 1 of employment and strengthen entitlement to sick pay, bereavement and parental leave. It will also ban zero hours contracts and ensure workers have a contract that reflects their normal hours of work and compensation for cancelled shifts as well as protecting flexibility in work patterns and hours. As a member of the Welsh Affairs Select Committee, we were joined by First Minister Eluned Morgan where I raised with her the historic underfunding of Wales and the impact that has had on our infrastructure. This has been acknowledged by the Treasury and Wales Office and the spring budget statement should bring clarity about what that now means for Wales’ going forward.

Here in Wrexham, I’ve been delighted to visit two local firms who are championing sustainability: Green Rock Manufacturing Group on Wrexham Industrial Estate and EcoVyn on Llay Industrial Estate. Green Rock manufacture paper cups that do not have any plastic coating and therefore are fully recyclable. The cups also do not require any specialised sorting or industrial facilities. At EcoVyn they process plastic and reuse PVC for a range of different products. Both companies have really demonstrated their commitment to Wrexham and have exciting plans for the future.

Wrexham University is entering a fascinating new phase in its journey. I was keen to hear about the plans from the Vice Chancellor, Professor Joe Yates and then attend the launch introducing the new vision and strategy. Professor Yates explained how Wrexham University is developing and linking with the public sector, business and the third sector. The University is central to the future of Wrexham and the vision and values of excellence, inclusion, collaboration, transformation and sustainability are ones that I share. They have my support, and I look forward to working with them and their partners to help deliver this.

I met constituents in Asda for my first supermarket surgery. It’s also important for me to hold constituency surgeries around the area such as in Rossett, Bangor on Dee and in March, Brymbo. Our constituency in Wrexham is so geographically diverse from the city centre to the mining villages like Llay and the rural areas like Overton. After the boundary changes which came into force for the 2024 election, and the fact that the council and Senedd boundaries are different, people sometimes don’t realise when they are in the Wrexham constituency and when they are not!

The month of March always begins with St David’s Day, and I was delighted to attend the St David’s Day service in Westminster and also a reception for Welsh food and drink producers including Magic Dragon Brewery. In my St David’s Day speech in Parliament, I was proud to reference local events and business in Wrexham. The celebrations of course culminated in the wonderful parade through Wrexham joined by many local organisations including many children. It truly demonstrated the best of our city, alongside the thriving street market which saw the city centre buzzing with a fantastic atmosphere.

The UK Government announced its Plan for Neighbourhoods which will see Wrexham receive £20 million and this is guaranteed to be fully funded. The City Board is already bringing together residents, businesses and community campaigners and this refocus will mean that they will decide how to spend the funding, choosing from wider options that include rejuvenating high streets, local parks, youth clubs and cultural venues.

Advance Brighter Futures is an incredible charity working in our community for over 30 years and I was privileged to visit them last week to see first-hand their approaches to helping peoples’ mental health and wellbeing. They are also part of the Baton of Hope tour visiting Wrexham in October (the only stop in Wales), to raise awareness around suicide prevention. You can find further details here https://batonofhopeuk.org/

I also attended a city-wide Financial Justice Event at Wrexham University where I heard the lived experiences of people in Wrexham living in poverty and hear ideas and recommendations of what could be done. This was an invaluable and important event, and I will continue to work with agencies and groups to make the improvements we can for people. The Government published its Green Paper entitled “Pathways to Work” which proposed changes to the welfare system. These included specific changes to Personal Independence Payments or PIP which in their current form, I cannot support. I also have concerns around the stopping of the health top up of Universal Credit for those aged 16-22.  I will be speaking to Ministers and colleagues in the coming weeks. I have had many representations from constituents and charities, and they will be informing those meetings. People are understandably worried about the future as this could affect thousands of people in the Wrexham area. I believe that the welfare system needs reform and there are positives in the Green Paper, but these should not be at the expense of disabled people. I encourage everyone who has a view to engage in the consultation, the ways that you can do this can be found here: Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working Green Paper – GOV.UK