A view from Sam Rowlands – Welsh Conservative North Wales Member of the Senedd
Wrexham.com has invited the four North Wales Members of the Senedd to write a monthly column with updates on their work. You can find their updates – along with contributions from the Wrexham and Clwyd South MPs and MSs – here.
In this month’s column, Welsh Conservative MS Sam Rowlands writes:
It’s been a busy 2023 for me in the Welsh Parliament in my role as the Member for North Wales.
I’ve spent lots of time scrutinising the performance of the Labour Welsh Government and their coalition partners Plaid Cymru, both in parliamentary debate and also in committee.
As the biggest parts of the Welsh Government budget, health, education and local government rightly take up a lot of debate and discussion time.
However, it was Labour’s 20mph speed limits that dominated the conversation, and I have opposed this measure at every opportunity.
It’s foolish and unnecessary, and it’s clear that public opinion is strongly against it.
Common sense would say that 20mph is appropriate outside schools, places of worship and other similar locations, but unfortunately Labour in Cardiff have imposed a blanket 20 across the country!
I am pleased to say that Welsh Conservatives are committed to revoking this policy.
The man who brought in this policy, First Minister Mark Drakeford, has announced he is stepping down in March. I certainly wish him well in his retirement and acknowledge his decades of service in politics, which certainly isn’t an easy job.
When a political figure steps down, it is obvious to analyse their legacy – and Drakeford leaves behind a legacy which is frankly damaging for Wales.
In the areas of policy where Welsh Government are responsible, Wales lags behind the rest of the United Kingdom.
The recent PISA international education results show that Wales has the worst-performing education system in the UK, which can wreck the life chances of children in Wrexham.
Wales also has the longest NHS waiting lists in Britain, with around 30,000 waiting two years or longer for treatment compared to virtually none in England.
Don’t forget the long-term impact of the COVID lockdowns – some of which were necessary, but which lasted longer and harder in Wales thanks to Cardiff Labour’s decisions. This has had a truly devastating impact on mental health and our society more widely for years to come.
All of this, and more, leaves Wales more impoverished than other parts of the United Kingdom, all thanks to Drakeford and his Welsh Labour colleagues.
At the time of writing, there hasn’t been a final confirmation of who will succeed him, but it looks likely to be Ministers Vaughan Gething or Jeremy Miles.
Remember – the failures of the Labour Welsh Government have been fully supported by both of them. There will be no new leaf, only more of the same old failure.
Back in our patch, I’ve had the pleasure of visiting a wide range of individuals, groups, businesses and organisations across Wrexham and the rest of North Wales during 2023. This is my favourite part of the job – getting to meet the people who actually do things, who strengthen our communities and who creates jobs and economic growth to drive prosperity for all.
I visited Chirk Cricket Club who are doing great work encouraging people to play the sport and I’ve seen the British Heart Foundation shop in Wrexham where volunteers are helping raise money for an extremely worthy case.
I’ve been to Hollybank Care Home to meet residents and carers, and I’ve met a wide range of businesses as part of the successful North-East Wales Investment Zone campaign, which will stimulate growth and job creation across North Wales.
You can be assured that I’ll be visiting many more in 2024!
I’d like to end by wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
If you do have any queries or issues, then please feel free to contact me by emailing [email protected]
Spotted something? Got a story? Email [email protected]
