 Assembly Member for Gower, Rebecca Evans AM, is marking International Nurses Day 2018 by expressing her gratitude to nursing staff across Gower constituency, and thanking them for their hard work and dedication. The Gower AM recently supported the Welsh Labour Government’s Nurse Staffing Levels Act (Wales) which places a duty on health bodies in Wales to calculate and maintain nurse staffing levels in adult acute medical and surgical inpatient wards. Mrs Evans said “This year sees the NHS turn 70, and Nurses’ Day is an opportunity for all of us to recognise the contribution that nurses make to the NHS in Wales through their care, compassion and professionalism.” Commenting on the news that Virgin Media has announced that it is closing its flagship Swansea site, with the loss of up to 800 jobs, Rebecca Evans AM for Gower said:
“This is terrible news for the workforce and the wider community. “Alongside my Swansea colleagues Julie James AM and Mike Hedges AM, I am seeking an urgent meeting with the Cabinet Secretary for the Economy to discuss what support the Welsh Government will be able to put in place for the workforce - both in terms of helping them secure alternative employment or training opportunities in the run up to autumn of next year, and also more immediately in terms of coping with the stress and anxiety that inevitably comes with news like this. “If affected constituents would like to talk to me, please just get in touch.”  I will be holding an advice surgery, on Friday 4th May, 12noon – 1.00pm, Upper Killay Recreation Hall, Gower Road, Upper Killay, Swansea, SA2 7HQ If you think I can be of assistance, please come along. No appointment necessary.  The anti-poverty charity, the Trussell Trust, has produced its annual foodbank statistics for Wales. They show that across Wales, 98,350 three day emergency food supplies were provided by the Trussell Trust Foodbank for people facing crisis, 35,403 of whom were children. In Gower alone, 7,017 three day emergency food supplies were provided over the last year - 2,515 of which were for children. Rebecca Evans AM, Assembly Member for Gower, said: “The Trussell Trust statistics are a stark reminder of how many people in Gower and across Wales are in need of foodbanks - and they reveal that the number is continuing to grow. These facts are a shocking indictment of the UK Government’s austerity agenda.” For the first time, new Wales-specific data highlights the growing proportion of foodbank referrals which are due to benefit levels not covering the cost of essentials. The other main primary referral reasons were benefit delays and benefit changes. Mr Evans added: "Once again, it's the people who have the least who are being hit the hardest. “There should be no need for anyone to have to rely on foodbanks, but in these difficult times I am very grateful that they are there to help. I wholeheartedly thank the many volunteers who, week in week out, give of their time and resources to meet the needs of our communities." |
