Gerald Jones MP: speeches

Speeches

• 22 Oct 2025 · Coal Tip Safety and New Extraction Licences · Hansard source

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  I agree that communities need to be vigilant, and also fully involved in these projects going forward—hopefully, we have seen the last of them. I am aware that Merthyr Tydfil county borough council is working hard on finding a resolution to the restoration, and I am pleased that the Welsh Government are working with the local authority and other regulators as part of a technical working group, to ensure that the best possible outcome is achieved for local people. The people in my constituency and across Wales have paid an historic price for coal, which has helped to fuel our country and our economy. It is now time they were allowed to enjoy their green and pleasant valleys once again.

• 22 Oct 2025 · Coal Tip Safety and New Extraction Licences · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Twigg. I congratulate the hon. Member for Caerfyrddin (Ann Davies) on securing the debate. As the hon. Lady outlined, the debate comes the day after the 59th anniversary of the Aberfan disaster in my constituency—an event that illustrates, more than any other, the need to ensure the safety of coal tips. As I joined community members and civic leaders in Aberfan yesterday, it was heartbreaking and humbling to see at first hand, yet again, the true price of coal in our communities. For many years, coal extraction built wealth right across the UK. It powered the Welsh and UK economies for decades. However, the previous UK Government failed to support any costs associated with the remediation of coal tips, owing to the fact that it is a devolved area. This Labour Government recognise that the legacy of coal and coal tip safety is very much a shared responsibility, and I welcome the £25 million that the Government provided in the first Labour Budget in 14 years last October. They then built upon that with a further £118 million in the spending review to support the vital work to keep our coal tips safe. The hon. Member for Caerfyrddin mentioned calls for further investment, at a full cost of £600 million. Perhaps, in her reflections, she could be clear on how much less money would be available for public services in Wales if her party ever pushed its Welsh independence fantasy, which could cost every adult in Wales something like £11,000 per year.

• 22 Oct 2025 · Coal Tip Safety and New Extraction Licences · Hansard source

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  Perhaps the right hon. Lady and her party could be clear on what the true cost would be. We know that those costs are significant. It is something that Plaid Cymru has never really wanted to talk about, so perhaps going forward they could be clear on what the costs of their pipe dream would mean for communities and individuals right across Wales. But back to the point: the safety of our communities is our first responsibility. The funding represents all that Welsh Government requested to fund the safety works for the rest of this Parliament. With a significant number of category D tips across Merthyr Tydfil and Rhondda Cynon Taf, this investment is hugely important for my constituents. This is a Government determined to act where Tory inaction left communities unsafe. The funding announcement, along with significant investment from the Welsh Government, shows the impact of two Labour Governments working together for Wales after years of Tory failure. I welcome the fact that the Welsh Government’s Disused Mine and Quarry Tips (Wales) Act 2025 received Royal Assent last month, which paves the way for the establishment of the disused tips authority for Wales, a dedicated public body responsible for assessing, registering, monitoring and managing disused tips. That authority would be the first of its kind in the UK and would be world-leading in developing a robust system for the safety of disused tip. The new authority is due to be operational from April 2027, and will take over the work that is currently done by the Mining Remediation Authority. As we have heard, there are more than 2,500 disused coal tips in Wales, predominantly in the south Wales valleys. We have almost 100 category C and 44 category D across Merthyr Tydfil and Rhondda Cynon Taf. The changing climate, our industrial past and the landscape mean that we must act to keep our communities safe. The House will also be aware that my constituency is home to Ffos-y-Fran, the last major open-cast mine in the UK, which shut down in November 2023. The scheme has certainly had its difficulties and caused much concern over the years. When it first opened, the company running the mine, Merthyr (South Wales) Ltd, pledged to fully restore the site after it finished operations. I call on it to honour that pledge. Local residents have put up with a lot in terms of nuisance and inconvenience since the open-cast began. I sincerely hope that this is recognised and that the developer ensures that local residents are at the forefront when completing the restoration. Current restoration costs are estimated at between £50 million and £120 million, and there has been much uncertainty in the community. Merthyr Tydfil residents are understandably concerned, given how long this has gone on and the need for remediation work to provide a lasting solution to ensure that the area is, above all, safe and returned to natural countryside. It is essential that progress be made soon and that remedial work be completed, so that local residents can once more enjoy their local surroundings.

• 16 Oct 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Last Saturday, I attended the 60th anniversary celebrations of the Dowlais male voice choir, which is one of at least six choirs in my constituency. They do a great job of representing the town locally, nationally and internationally. I took particular pleasure in congratulating Meurig Price, the only original member of the choir left from the early days—from 1965. Will the Leader of the House join me in congratulating the choir on this milestone anniversary? May we have a debate in Government time on the benefits of choirs and choral societies to community life and to individual health and wellbeing?

• 16 Oct 2025 · World Menopause Day · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Betts. I, too, congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Neath and Swansea East (Carolyn Harris) on securing the debate, and thank the Backbench Business Committee for granting it. There is an argument that World Menopause Day should not need to exist, as the support that is needed should not be in the “too difficult” box. Much of it is basic common-sense support that should be built into the norm. World Menopause Day is, however, an ideal opportunity to remind ourselves of what has been done, and more importantly, what still needs to be done. I pay tribute to all the work that my hon. Friend has done to promote the cause, and the work that she and others have done on Menopause Mandate. She is a great champion. I remember with pleasure attending a menopause bingo evening on the fringe of the Labour party conference in Brighton. I am not sure whether I volunteered to go, but, as with most things with my hon. Friend, it is easier to say yes at first than at last. None the less, it was an enjoyable and informative evening, with a very important message of awareness. I was delighted that my hon. Friend spoke at the menopause in the workplace event that I held at Merthyr football club in 2023, which was attended by local organisations and key employers across the constituency. That event highlighted to me some of the local issues, which are very similar—indeed, identical—to the picture across the country, and it reinforced the message that much more needs to be done. In the limited time that I have remaining, I want to focus on menopause workplace support. The fact that 15,000 people responded to the survey is a significant result, as surveys go, and it provides a snapshot of the issues faced across the country. Eight in 10 women highlighted that they were affected by symptoms at work, which is why increased awareness among employers is hugely important. They should put in place support. Some small adjustments would make a big difference and help employers retain staff who may otherwise feel that they are not able to continue in their roles. It is often easier for larger employers to make positive changes to enhance the experience of women dealing with the menopause in the workplace. We must all work harder to raise awareness among smaller employers and bring them on board, because they face many issues and employ a large number of women. More awareness and action would make a big difference. My hon. Friend highlighted that we are not talking about big changes; she rightly told us that small adjustments will make a big difference. The British Standards Institution has the role of developing standards for use in society, including on wellbeing. BS 30416, the standard on the menopause in the workplace, has been adopted by lots of public bodies in Wales. It is a valuable tool for employers—particularly small and medium-sized enterprises—and could help them to provide important support to retain women in the workplace. Too many women are forced out of the workplace because they do not have the support they need to continue in their roles. We need to do more to change that, and I look forward to hearing from the Minister what more the Government can do to support and encourage employers—large and, in particular, small—to do more to support women in the workplace.

• 15 Oct 2025 · Pride in Place · Hansard source

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  Like others, I welcome this investment, particularly the investment initially in Merthyr Tydfil and latterly in Rhondda Cynon Taf, which covers the Aberdare part of my constituency. It will make a real difference to the community. I am sure the Minister agrees that it is crucial, indeed critical, for real engagement to take place with communities when it comes to how this money is spent, but can she say a little about any discussions that are taking place about a replacement for the shared prosperity fund, which will remain until March next year?

• 2 Sept 2025 · Pension Schemes Bill (First sitting) · Hansard source

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  As do I.