A view from Clwyd South’s Member of Parliament

Wrexham.com has invited Wrexham & Clwyd South Members of Parliament and Assembly Members to write a monthly article with updates on their work in their respective Parliaments and closer to home – you can find them all here. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​ ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​ ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

In his monthly column for Wrexham.com, Clwyd South MP Simon Baynes writes:

Since my last column, the Boundary Commission for Wales (which is a body independent from government) has published its final proposals for parliamentary seats to be contested from the next general election onwards.

This is to reflect population shifts that occur over time, with some areas gaining more residents than others.

Sadly, as a result of the proposals, the Clwyd South constituency will cease to exist, with the majority of residents moving into either the expanded Wrexham seat or the new Montgomeryshire & Glyndŵr constituency.

In addition, the Llangollen area goes into the new Clwyd East seat while the Corwen and Llandrillo area moves into the Dwyfor Meirionnydd constituency. As these changes only come into effect at the next general election, I will continue to represent all residents of Clwyd South until that time.

Since being elected as MP in December 2019, my team and I have helped resolve over 5,300 cases raised by residents in Clwyd South on a wide variety of local interests and issues.

We are constantly busy working for you, dealing with issues from missed bin collections to urgent immigration matters. In addition to these, I am also much involved in responding to policy enquiries from constituents, having answered almost 8,000 of these enquiries to date.

I am always keen to ensure Cabinet Ministers visit Clwyd South and meet with local residents and organisations. On Friday 2nd June I had the honour of attending the reopening of Corwen Station alongside the Secretary of State for Wales, Rt Hon David TC Davies MP, the Llangollen Steam Railway directors and Lord Hendy, Chairman of Network Rail and the Heritage Railway Association.

The station was reopened after more than a decade of tireless work by a committed group of volunteers and thanks to private and public donations including from the UK government’s Clwyd South Levelling Up Fund which paid for the new station roof.

The Secretary of State for Wales and I also visited the Rhug Estate near Corwen to learn more about their operations, plans to become more carbon neutral and their eco-friendly focus.

left to right) Emyr Owen, Farm Manager at the Rhug Estate, Simon Baynes MP, Rhys Davies, Estate and General Manager, Secretary of State for Wales, Rt Hon David TC Davies MP, and Mared Williams, Sustainability and Carbon Officer.

The 12,500-acre estate in Clwyd South is an award-winning and diverse family enterprise, owned and run by Lord Newborough, that has rightly been recognised for embracing sustainable organic farming, green energy, retail, wholesale and, most recently, skincare.

Clwyd South is also a hub of innovative industry, and I was very pleased to bring the Secretary of State for Wales to visit the Ifor Williams’ factory at Ty’n Llidiart, Corwen.

Ifor Williams Trailers visit from Secretary of State for Wales David TC Davies and Simon Baines MP . (Picture Mandy Jones)

Run by John and Carole Williams, this family business was established in 1958 and has since manufactured over half a million trailers, becoming the UK’s largest trailer manufacturer. Ifor Williams is a world-beating company and a testament to the innovation and ingenuity of Welsh and British industry.

I celebrated the exceptional performance in Britain’s Got Talent of Rhos-based choir, the Johns’ Boys Male Chorus, at Prime Minister’s Questions on 7th June.

Deputy Prime Minister, Rt Hon Oliver Dowden MP, joined me in congratulating them on their magnificent achievement in reaching the semi-final as well as the work of other community choirs in Clwyd South and across the UK who bring such pleasure to singers and audiences alike.

As part of my continued work on the Welsh Affairs Select Committee in parliament, on Wednesday 14th June I questioned Veterans Commissioner for Wales, Colonel James Phillips, as Clwyd South has one of the largest veterans’ communities in the UK with 4.6% of the population having served in the Armed Forces compared to a national average of 3.8%.

I come from an army family, both my father and grandfather were professional soldiers, and on Armed Forces Day on Saturday 24th June I paid tribute to those who serve our country and to our veterans’ community.

Simon Baynes MP chairing the meeting for the APPG for Woods and Trees for the launch of the Nature Recovery Report.

Having raised the urgent need for repairs to Newbridge Road in Prime Minister’s Questions last year and worked with residents and the Council since then on this vital issue, I am pleased by the recent announcement that Jones Brothers have been awarded the contract to repair the land slip on the B5605 Newbridge Road by Wrexham County Borough Council although this is a highly complex project which will take time to achieve.

Preserving our environment, particularly woods and trees, for future generations is an issue of great importance to me. On 27th June, I chaired a meeting of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Woods and Trees in the House of Commons to celebrate the launch of The Woodland Trust’s Nature Recovery Report for England. I was pleased to be joined by colleagues from both Houses of Parliament and to chair a lively discussion on the findings of the Report.

As your Member of Parliament, my team and I are always here to provide advice and support. For updates on my work in Clwyd South and Westminster, please visit my website www.simonbaynes.co.uk

If you’re a constituent and you wish to contact me with an issue of concern, please don’t hesitate to get in touch on [email protected].