A view from Clwyd South’s Member of the Senedd

Wrexham.com has invited Wrexham & Clwyd South constituency Members of Parliament and Members of the Senedd to write a monthly article with updates on their work in Parliament and the Senedd, and closer to home. (You can view an archive here).

Clwyd South MS Ken Skates writes…

I must start my latest column by wishing readers a very happy St David’s Day – and by congratulating the Welsh rugby team on their victory over England and another Triple Crown! A fantastic achievement and one of which we can all be extremely proud.

There was also another landmark to celebrate over the weekend as Wales passed a million vaccinations.

After the recent news that Wales had reached its initial target ahead of schedule, vaccination of the next set of priority groups is already well under way in North Wales. ​As has been widely reported, production capacity is currently affecting supply across the whole of the UK. This temporary drop in supply had already been planned for in Wales – we had factored it into our vaccination plans and we have used this period to significantly increase the pace of second doses. We now lead the UK on first and second doses as a percentage of our population.

An updated vaccine strategy for Wales was published on Friday, confirming our earlier key target dates and the adoption of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation advice on prioritisation for the next phase of vaccinations.

We will soon see an increase in supply which will enable us to reach the next target – priority groups 1-9 by the end of April. As of a few days ago, at least 63% of over-65s in North Wales have had their first doses. As local GP surgeries take imminent delivery of further Oxford AstraZeneca vaccines, they will continue to vaccinate this group and make swift progress through the priority list.

The Welsh Government will continue to do everything we can to continue leading the way on vaccine roll-out and to achieve our next targets, which will see all adults offered the vaccine by the end of July. The well-publicised temporary supply issues are short-term and we will soon be able to begin ramping up the roll-out again to the kind of significant daily numbers we had been seeing regularly until recently. We remain confident of similar success with the next phase if the UK Government is able to deliver supplies.

I was invited by Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board to visit Wrexham’s local vaccination centre at Glyndwr University recently to meet chairman Mark Polin and to see first-hand the incredible efforts of our local team first-hand. North Wales continues to lead the way, and I’d like to once again like to say a huge thank you to everyone involved in making our local roll-out so effective.

While the pandemic continues to dominate Welsh Government’s and Members of the Senedd’s day-to-day work, local matters are not being forgotten.

• I have been in contact with the health board again recently about the plans for a new health centre in Cefn Mawr, and local councillor Derek Wright and I are hopeful of a significant update on this front in the very near future.
• The Welsh Government has also confirmed it has put up funding for step-free access to both platforms at Ruabon Station for the third time. We are now waiting for the UK Government to agree to match-fund the project so it can finally go ahead.
• I have also been contacted by a number of constituents in the New Broughton area about plans for a housing development off Gatewen Road being approved. The decision was made by an independent planning inspector, and Members of the Senedd did not have any involvement, but I have raised residents’ concerns directly with the Minister for Housing, Julie James, and will be happy to share her formal response with constituents.

Although I am unable to hold public surgeries at present, my team and I are still here to help. If you need advice or support, please email [email protected] and include your full home address and a contact number. You can also find regular updates on my Facebook page, and I put out weekly e-newsletters, which you can subscribe to here. The Welsh Government continues to publish a wide range of information, advice and guidance on its coronavirus portal, which you can find here.

Wrexham.com has invited Wrexham & Clwyd South constituency Members of Parliament and Members of the Senedd to write a monthly article with updates on their work in Parliament and the Senedd, and closer to home. (You can view an archive here).