Andrew Ranger

Small Charity Sector

It is a pleasure to serve with you in the Chair, Sir Roger. I congratulate the right hon. Member for Chingford and Woodford Green (Sir Iain Duncan Smith) on securing this debate. The stories, as has been said many times, of small and medium-sized charities and the impact that they have can be seen across our cities, towns and communities. They are the ones directly impacting lives and making a day-to-day difference on the ground in our communities. We have much to thank them for, but also much t

St David’s Day and Welsh Affairs

Diolch yn fawr, Madam Deputy Speaker. It is a real pleasure to speak in my second St David’s day debate in this Chamber. I begin by thanking my hon. Friend the Member for Newport West and Islwyn (Ruth Jones), Chair of the Select Committee, and the hon. Member for Ceredigion Preseli (Ben Lake) for securing this debate today. The story of St David began about 1,500 years ago, when, in the wake of the Roman empire’s departure from Britain, a unique Welsh identity began to take shape—one identity ar

St David’s Day and Welsh Affairs

It’s a close-run thing. There is also a range of interactive and engaging cultural and educational activities for everyone to enjoy and take part in. Wrexham is bidding to become the city of culture in 2029 and our annual St David’s day celebrations, which are now embedded in our city and growing every year, demonstrate so much about what makes Wrexham a welcoming place for everyone. Last summer, Wrexham was the very proud host of the National Eisteddfod, reportedly attracting around 160,000 vis

St David’s Day and Welsh Affairs

In the hon. Member’s response to our Labour Government’s record-breaking £14 billion commitment to Welsh rail, he stated that there was no mention of the electrification of the north and south Wales main lines in the plan. I assume that he has now had a chance to read the full Transport for Wales vision document, which does in fact include that. Would he now like to take the opportunity to row back on his previous comments and instead welcome the benefits that his constituents will incur from it

Asylum Seekers: Hotels

Trust and confidence are the cornerstones of a functioning asylum system, yet both were damaged in Wrexham recently due to an unclear and poorly communicated proposal for large houses in multiple occupation to be used for asylum accommodation. Following years of Tory failure, we have inherited a chaotic system and wasteful contracts which were signed by the previous Government that frequently bypass local input. Will the Minister reassure my constituents that the Department is finally moving awa

Railways Bill (Fourth sitting)

The debate around the devolution of rail in Wales is absolutely worthy of further consideration, but I am not convinced that it would be right to do so as part of this Bill, which surely has to reflect the current situation, as the Minister is rightly pointing out. We heard evidence from a Transport for Wales official that they really welcomed the partnership working between the UK Government, the Welsh Government and TfW, as well as future collaboration and the work that has been done on the he

Railways: Funding

Last year, the Welsh Labour Government introduced a £1 bus fare cap for young people. Since then, these reduced fares have been used on 2 million journeys. Earlier this month, Welsh Labour announced in my constituency that after the Senedd election in May, we will build on that success with a £2 bus fare for all fares and more than 100 new routes across Wales. Would my right hon. Friend join me in supporting this announcement, and can she update the House on what else the UK and Welsh Labour Gov