Wrexham MP celebrates volunteers during special Week
MP for Wrexham
Last week saw my Private Member's Bill on Licensing Hours Extensions pass on to the next stage following my presentation of the Bill to the committee.
The Bill proposes that pubs and other licensed premises should be able to open for extended hours for significant national events.
The benefit of this small change to existing legislation will mean that at short notice, such as Wales progressing in a major tournament whether it's the Rugby World Cup or the Football Euros, venues would be able to open their doors to customers at times of the day that suit the events.
The important change being that they would be able to serve their full range of drinks.
Ultimately if the Bill becomes law it will reduce costs, time and bureaucracy for hospitality venues, local council licensing offices and Parliament, whilst making it easier for communities to come together in pubs and bars to celebrate major national moments.
The Bill now moves on to the report stage and 3rd Reading in the House of Commons.
Volunteers' Week is a fantastic opportunity to celebrate the incredible contribution that volunteers make to our communities.
I visited CALL Mental Health Helpline which is staffed by volunteers and operators to hear about the vital support that they provide.
Their service is free and confidential and listens to those who call as well as offering guidance and emotional support for people facing mental health challenges and signposting them to other relevant support services.
I also visited the Venture on Caia Park to hear from Chief Officer Councillor Malcolm King about their plans for their share of the Welsh Government Child Poverty Innovation and Supporting Communities Grant.
The Venture plan to use the money to build on the Children's Commissioner's 'No Wrong Door' report.
This aims to reduce the effects of child poverty by helping more families access services by creating additional capacity.
We also talked more widely about the range of community-based services that The Venture provides, vital to the community in Caia Park.
What really shone through was the importance of working collaboratively, something which Caia does so well through its Caia Park Together initiative and this is something that other areas of Wrexham would benefit from.
As ever, if you have any queries or concerns or you have an issue that you would like me to try and assist you with, please do not hesitate to contact me on 01978 788854 or Andrew.Ranger.mp@parliament.uk
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Telegraph
an hour ago
- Telegraph
Royal College of Pathologists comes out against assisted dying
The Royal College of Pathologists, which represents medical examiners, has come out against assisted dying. It said it could not support Kim Leadbeater 's Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill because of the role that it was expected to play in the assisted dying process. Under the Bill, assisted deaths will not be automatically referred to a coroner, which is usual practice for potentially unnatural deaths and when a drug, authorised or otherwise, brings about death. This will mean that it is for medical examiners to scrutinise assisted deaths. The professional body that represents them says that they are not qualified to do so and warn that a lack of resourcing means that medical examiners may be pulled away from other parts of their vital work. Ms Leadbeater on Tuesday defended not involving coroners in the process. She said there was 'no justification for putting the family and loved ones of the deceased through an unnecessary and potentially traumatic coroner's inquiry' because adequate safeguards were in place. It comes as the Bill returns to the Commons for a debate on Friday, and a vote on the legislation is expected next week. Dr Suzy Lishman, senior adviser on medical examiners for the Royal College of Pathologists, said that the college had no position on the 'ethical issues' of legalising assisted dying. In a statement, Dr Lishman said: 'The college's concerns relate only to the involvement of medical examiners after an assisted death has taken place. 'As part of their scrutiny, medical examiners would need to review the process leading up to the decision to authorise an assisted death and the circumstances of the assisted death, which they are not qualified to do. 'Notification to the coroner following an assisted death would ensure independent judicial review, which is particularly important given the concerns raised by many individuals, organisations and medical royal colleges about the lack of adequate safeguards in the Bill for vulnerable people. 'Lawyers, not doctors, are the most appropriate professionals to review these deaths. The medical examiner system was implemented to detect problems with medical care, not to identify discrepancies or malintent in the legal process required for assisted deaths.' Dr Lishman also raised concerns about the need of 'significant' training and resources needed for medical examiners to be able to perform the role in the process. She said that this would risk 'potentially taking medical examiners away from their current important role'. The Royal College of Pathologists concluded: 'Coronial referral for assisted deaths would be in line with current regulations, with all deaths due to a medical intervention or medicinal product being notified.' Last year, Thomas Teague KC, the former chief coroner for England and Wales from 2020-24, expressed concern about the lack of coroner involvement in the Bill. In a letter to The Telegraph, he wrote: 'Since the coroner's jurisdiction affords a powerful deterrent against misfeasance, the public may wonder why the Bill proposes to abandon such a robust safeguard.' A letter signed by around 1,000 doctors from across the NHS published this week said that the Bill is a 'real threat to both patients and the medical workforce'. They said: 'We are concerned that the private member's Bill process has not facilitated a balanced approach to the collection of evidence and input from key stakeholders including doctors, people with disabilities and other marginalised groups.' The Royal College of Pathologists is the latest royal college to come out against the legislation, after the Royal College of Psychiatrists voiced their opposition to the Bill last month. Ms Leadbeater said: 'The Bill does not prevent any assisted death being referred to a coroner, however this would not be required in the majority of cases. 'Coroners investigate deaths that have been reported to them if they think that the death was violent or unnatural, the cause of death is unknown, or the person died in prison or in custody. None of these would apply to a legal, assisted death under the terms of this Bill. 'Eligibility for an assisted death would have been assessed in advance by two independent doctors and a multi-disciplinary panel overseen by a commissioner who would be a High Court judge or retired judge. 'Each of these assessments would be subject to the extensive safeguards contained in the Bill to protect everybody, including the most vulnerable. 'Consequently, most cases would not require a judicial investigation after a person has died, and there would be no justification for putting the family and loved ones of the deceased through an unnecessary and potentially traumatic coroner's inquiry. 'However, in the event of any doubt at all, it would be open to a medical examiner, a family member or anybody with concerns to ask a coroner to investigate.'
The Sun
2 hours ago
- The Sun
House of Lords canteen slammed for serving rainbow-coloured ‘Pride crumble' dessert
A HOUSE of Lords canteen has been given a roasting for serving a rainbow-coloured 'Pride crumble' dessert. Peers and staff working on the Parliamentary estate have been offered the woke sweet treat, pictured above, to mark Pride month. Portions of the pudding were on offer yesterday for £2.15 with custard. Only last week, rainbow couscous was on the menu in the River Restaurant overlooking the River Thames. But campaigner Fiona McAnena questioned whether the colourful crumble had been created after so-called Progress Pride flags were removed from the cafeteria earlier this week. Ms McAnena, who represents the Sex Matters charity, added: 'Whoever is behind this may think that they are supporting a noble cause. 'But do they really support the reality of what the transgender rights flag represents, including sterilising surgeries, cross-sex hormones that cause permanent physical damage, and rapists in women's prisons?' Tory peer Baroness Nicholson had demanded the cafeteria's Pride flags be taken down as they had not been given proper permission. The latest row comes weeks after Nigel Farage's Reform UK party said town halls under its control would be stopped from flying LGBTQ+ and Pride flags. Reform said it would allow only the St George's Cross and the Union flag to be displayed. 1
The Independent
3 hours ago
- The Independent
Lawmakers expelled from Greece's parliament over ties to jailed far-right politician
Three far-right lawmakers in Greece were expelled Tuesday from parliament due to ties with a jailed politician convicted of leading a criminal organization. A court found that Vasilis Stigas, the leader of the far-right Spartans party, and two other party lawmakers had misled voters in the 2023 parliamentary election. The decision comes as concerns grow among traditionally dominant political parties over the rise of far-right parties across Europe and their willingness to disrespect democratic rules. The court determined the three had effectively served as proxies for a former member of Golden Dawn, a neo-Nazi inspired party, who was sentenced in 2020 to 13 years in prison for orchestrating violent attacks against migrants and political opponents. The decision, welcomed by Greece's conservative government, will reduce the number of seats in parliament from 300 to 297 for the remainder of the legislative term through 2027. It also lowers the threshold required to pass legislation from 151 votes to 149. The Spartans party, which won 4.7% of the popular vote in 2023, has denied any affiliation with Golden Dawn and did not immediately respond to the ruling. Two remaining Spartans lawmakers will continue to serve as independents.
