November 2017
Dear Resident,
November is the month when our minds turn to the Remembrance period and this year, I will be pleased to join the parade and the service of Remembrance in Welshpool on Sunday 12th November.
A couple of weeks ago, I was also pleased to represent Montgomeryshire by supporting the Royal British Legion's second annual Poppy Ride to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Passchendaele and the start of the Remembrance period.
The 6 hour bike ride was held in the Senedd and I cycled as far as I could in 5 minutes. The target of 300 miles was achieved just after 3pm after over 6 hours of pedalling from everyone involved (not just me).
I would like to thank the Royal British Legion in Wales for arranging this event and for the invaluable support which it provides to the Armed Forces community.
In this month's newsletter, I also report back on my ongoing campaign for a Mid Wales Growth Deal to support the unique needs of the Mid Wales economy as well as providing an update on my activities in the National Assembly and in Montgomeryshire.
As always, please contact me if I can offer any help or support by emailing [email protected] or by phoning my office on 01686 610887.
Best regards,
Russell George
Assembly Member for Montgomeryshire
Mid Wales needs a Growth Deal
The National Assembly's Economy, Infrastructure & Skills Committee, which I have the privilege to Chair, has made a series of recommendations calling for Mid Wales to have the same sort of investment funding and advantages which come with city region deals in other parts of Wales.
This is something which I have been calling for over many months and I'm pleased that the issue has now been given national prominence by the Committee.
Cardiff and Swansea are set to have City Deals and there are plans afoot for a similar arrangement in North Wales. As a result, all of these regions will see money invested in better transport links, better broadband connectivity as well as other programmes designed to boost innovation, create employment and raise living standards.
There are currently no plans for a similar deal covering Mid Wales and I am keen on ensuring that our region isn't ignored. Earlier this month, I met with representatives of Station Couriers and Ceri Stephens from the Mid Wales Manufacturing Group (pictured above) to discuss the prospect for a Mid Wales Growth Deal and to gain their thoughts on how it should work so that it benefits Mid Wales businesses.
I firmly believe that a Mid Wales Growth Deal would complete the jigsaw for an ambitious economic vision for Mid Wales and I fully endorse the Committee's recommendations in its recent report which can be found here.
Transforming Primary Care in Mid Wales
In last month's newsletter, I referred to the award-winning Independent Prescribing Service which Arwystli Medical Practice and Dudley Taylor Pharmacy have pioneered in Llanidloes.
I genuinely believe that this model has the potential to transform the way in which healthcare is delivered, particularly in rural Mid Wales.
I was therefore pleased to have the opportunity to introduce a short debate on this subject in the National Assembly for Wales to ensure that it is firmly on the radar of the Welsh Government.
Delivering cost effective, high quality healthcare from the most appropriate provider will clearly benefit the whole NHS and I would like to see this model rolled out across Wales and beyond. To read more, please click here.
Return your unused medicines
I was also shocked to learn that an estimated £50 million is wasted every year in Wales on medicine which is either not needed or over supplied.
The inefficiency in ordering, prescribing and supply of medicines must be tackled so I'm urging all of those who are in receipt of a prescription to return unused medicines to your local pharmacy and discuss your medicine usage with your GP to ensure that it is appropriate for your needs.
This initiative which is being championed by Community Pharmacy Wales, is designed to optimise the use of medicines and the network of pharmacies across Wales are well placed to reduce this avoidable waste and make savings which can be reinvested into frontline healthcare.
Crime & Policing Matters
Last month, you will recall that I referred to the 154% increase in business crime in Newtown over the past year and I committed to updating you further after my meeting with Superintendent Jon Commins at Newtown Police Station. It was a positive meeting and Superintendent Commins has confirmed that there has been a sustained recruitment drive in an effort to boost policing numbers in our area.
With regards to CCTV in Newtown, there has been a positive response from the Police and Crime Commissioner who I will be meeting later this month, and I will report back further on this when I have news to report.
Supporting Mid Wales professionals to "Go Solo"
Earlier this month, I attended the launch event of The Federation for Small Businesses (FSB) report: “Going Solo: Understanding Self-Employment in Wales", which highlighted the importance of self-employment in Mid Wales with almost one quarter of people in Powys identifying themselves as being self-employed.
However, the FSB report finds that the patterns of self-employment in Mid Wales are skewed towards older workers so the Welsh Government must do more to ensure that the barriers which are preventing young people from becoming self-employed are removed.
After questioning the First Minister on this issue, I was pleased that the he recognised the benefits of a regional approach and that he will urge Business Wales and the Development Bank for Wales to ensure that young people in Mid Wales have access to the necessary finance to take the steps to setting up their own business.
I was also pleased to meet with Nick Evans (pictured above), Chair of the FSB in Powys, to discuss these matters as well as issues surrounding the potential for a Mid Wales Growth Deal.
Congratulations to Age Cymru Powys
I would like to congratulate Age Cymru Powys who have been awarded with an Age UK certificate of achievement for the quality of the information and advice it provides.
I was delighted to present them with the award a couple of weeks ago and would like to congratulate all members of the team for their achievement. I know that the team, which comprises a small team including volunteers, work extremely hard on a range of issues affecting older people locally and are seen by many as the go to people for older people’s issues in Powys.
Keep a step ahead of Winter
As this time of year, it’s really important to take steps to ensure that our homes are energy efficient in order to keep bills under control. British Gas have published 10 Top Tips which include some practical steps which we can all take to make sure we are prepared. More details about all of these tips can be found at po.st/wintertoptips
Advice Surgeries
I will be in the following areas on these dates.
Please call my office on 01686 610887 if you would like to meet.
Newtown - Friday 17 November
Arddleen / Crew Green - Saturday 18 November
Welshpool - Monday 20 November
Caersws - Thursday 30 November
Llanfyllin - Friday 8 December