'Need a Government that has its eye on the ball'

MS for North Wales

The Senedd is now in recess, meaning that Senedd Members will be staying in their constituencies for the summer instead of making the weekly trips down to Cardiff Bay.

As you’ll appreciate, going from North to South Wales isn’t the smoothest trip at the best of times, so I won’t be missing those long train journeys for the next few weeks!

It means more time spent at home, which is a huge plus, and gives me more time to travel around the region visiting constituents, businesses, charities and more. That really is the best part of my role.

Last week was pretty hectic, with the First Minister Vaughan Gething announcing his resignation after four member of his Cabinet resigned.

Everyone knew that the First Minister was on the ropes, but I’m not sure anyone expected the house of cards to collapse so quickly.

He will naturally be disappointed, but the situation with donations dogging his leadership from the very start.

That’s not to mention the sacking of a junior Minister and donations from a taxi company at around the same time that a Bill relating to taxi provision was going through the Welsh Parliament.

My main concern is about who is governing Wales. For the last few months, the ruling Labour Welsh Government has been obsessed with internal squabbling and infighting. It’s not good enough, because you need a Government that has its eye on the ball.

I hope they sort themselves out. As you’d expect, I disagree with Labour policies but we all want stability. At the time of writing, it’s unclear who the next First Minister will be, or if there will even be a contest! There may be a coronation of one candidate, but we will find out for sure in the coming days and weeks.

Whoever that new First Minister is will have a lot to deal with. In Wales, we have the longest NHS waiting lists on record and the worst educational outcomes in the United Kingdom as evidenced by the global PISA rankings. Health and education are controlled by the Cardiff Government, so those things should be marked urgent in the new FMs inbox.

As ever, if you have any queries or issues you’d like to raise with me, then you can get in touch by emailing sam.rowlands@senedd.wales