Last week I attended the Royal Welsh Show in Llanelwedd, the 50th Anniversary of the Show being staged at the venue and once again the Show set new attendance records.
I find it a superb platform on which to meet individuals and organisations to discuss a broad range of issues that really matter to people across Powys. I just want to give you a flavour of some of the meetings that I attended:
Penarth Weir hydro project
This was a meeting with Canal and River Trust Wales to discuss the future of the Penarth Weir hydro project, which is just outside of Newtown. The project has effectively stalled because of heritage issues due to the weir’s recently listed status. However, all the local community want to do is to ensure that the site is brought back into effective use by allowing it to generate clean energy for the community but not to the detriment of the construction itself. I have pushed for an on-site meeting to take place between the Trust, Cadw and the Local Authority because I believe common sense solution can be found, which will not only allow the project to continue but will also protect the heritage of the site.
Organic Milk Suppliers Co-operative
This was a very interesting meeting with an organisation that represents over 500 organic dairy farmers in the UK. They were telling me that while the organic milk market in the UK is relatively small, the co-operative has become a major exporter to the continent, particularly France, Belgium, Holland and Germany. There the demand is stimulated by public sector procurement – the majority of the milk is used in hospitals and schools. With the Welsh Government moving to a national procurement model, perhaps this is something that needs further consideration here too.
Digital Communications Event
I shared an event platform at the Royal Welsh Show with the FUW, Ofcom and representatives from the industry, to highlight why connectivity matters to rural Wales and to examine plans for improving the availability of digital communications. I focused my comments on broadband availability and said that as a nation, Wales is poorly served by both standard and superfast broadband. We desperately need to strengthen and enhance our digital infrastructure if we are going to ensure our rural communities are viable places to live and work in the future and the Welsh Government has a vital role to play to make that happen.
Environment & Sustainability Committee
This is one of the Committees that I sit on in the National Assembly and each year it meets for one day at the Show to scrutinise the Minister for Natural Resources and Food on Welsh Government policy relating to the agricultural industry. We questioned the Minister on a range of subjects from sustainable food policy to Glastir. The Minister also provided an update regarding the impact the severe weather had on Welsh agriculture – something that was felt very hard by our farmers here in Mid Wales.
The Royal Welsh Show is the largest agricultural show of its kind in Europe and anyone who visits the Show will understand why it continues to attract visitors from around the world and why it has a continued relevance in the economic, cultural and social life of our nation.
Clwb-y-Dol
I just wanted to thank all the members of the Clwb-y-Ddol group in Llanbrynmair who invited me to talk at their monthly meeting last week. I have to say they really grilled me during the Q&A session but I enjoyed the challenge and the tea and cake I had afterwards was certainly my just rewards!
Finally, our MP, Glyn Davies and I will be out and about over the summer period visiting shows across the county. I’m keen to meet and listen to your views, so keep your eyes open for adverts in the County Times but also do visit my website www.russellgeorge.com for more details.