A busy day at Conference culminated in an emotional tribute to Glenys Kinnock at the well attended Welsh night. Both Gordon and Harriet stopped by to rally the troops and both received an exceptionally warm reception, but the night really was all about the achievements of one of Wales's finest politicians. Glenys steps down as an MEP next summer, and the European Parliament will lose its brightest star. Her tenacious campaigning in the field of international development really has changed the world for the better, the only benchmark that matters for a progressive politician. When you can count Nelson Mandela as one of your biggest fans, you know you are doing something right.I'll be speaking at the debate on Work & Prosperity this morning, see my speech below.
Conference, as the Welsh Assembly Member for Merthyr Tydfil & Rhymney I am proud to speak of the record in Government in Westminster and in Cardiff Bay in tackling unemployment in this country.
Conference, as the Welsh Assembly Member for Merthyr Tydfil & Rhymney I am proud to speak of the record in Government in Westminster and in Cardiff Bay in tackling unemployment in this country.
The devastation wrought on communities like my home village of Aberfan by successive Tory Governments looms large in the memory even today. After years of record investment by Labour, working in partnership in the Assembly and Westminster, we are still fighting hard to eradicate forever the twin scourges of child poverty and low aspiration delivered to us by the Conservatives.
David Cameron, and Nick Bourne the Tory leader in Wales, try in vain to erase the memories of their party's past. A party that actively tried to kill off communities like my own. They say, "let’s not talk about the past. Look to the future. We’ve changed. We are a different, caring Conservative Party."
Conference, that would only be true if these new Tories rejected the ideas and the values which embodied Thatcherism – but they do not. Their language may have changed, they might have better media advisors, they might ride a bike to work, but they still cling to the same bankrupt beliefs that inspired this country into open political revolt in 1997.
It is the same old Tory Party that, in Wales, described Rhodri Morgan’s historic emboldening of the Welsh Trade Union Learning Fund – a Fund which makes development, opportunity and fairness at work a reality for hundreds of people every day in Wales – the Tories described that vital fund as a “bung” to the unions.
It is not a bung, it is a lifeline.
Along with innovative back-to-work programmes like Want2Work, Labour in the Assembly is working with Labour in Westminster not just to put people back to work, but to find them the right jobs and give them the right opportunities to reach fulfilment in the workplace.
I was delighted to hear this week our Education Minister, Jane Hutt, say that our European Funded Genesis Programme will continue in future years.
A programme which funds childcare for hard-to-reach parents entering the workplace, often for the first time. A transformational programme that just would not have occurred to any other party in Wales.
So much of this agenda around work and skills begins at this early stage, before a child can walk and talk so much of their future is decided – and that is where we must invest both our hope, and our resources.
If the last few weeks have reminded us of anything as a Labour movement, it is that when you see trouble, if it be for an ailing banking sector or an ailing mother – you act.
You do not stand idly by.
David Cameron, and Nick Bourne the Tory leader in Wales, try in vain to erase the memories of their party's past. A party that actively tried to kill off communities like my own. They say, "let’s not talk about the past. Look to the future. We’ve changed. We are a different, caring Conservative Party."
Conference, that would only be true if these new Tories rejected the ideas and the values which embodied Thatcherism – but they do not. Their language may have changed, they might have better media advisors, they might ride a bike to work, but they still cling to the same bankrupt beliefs that inspired this country into open political revolt in 1997.
It is the same old Tory Party that, in Wales, described Rhodri Morgan’s historic emboldening of the Welsh Trade Union Learning Fund – a Fund which makes development, opportunity and fairness at work a reality for hundreds of people every day in Wales – the Tories described that vital fund as a “bung” to the unions.
It is not a bung, it is a lifeline.
Along with innovative back-to-work programmes like Want2Work, Labour in the Assembly is working with Labour in Westminster not just to put people back to work, but to find them the right jobs and give them the right opportunities to reach fulfilment in the workplace.
I was delighted to hear this week our Education Minister, Jane Hutt, say that our European Funded Genesis Programme will continue in future years.
A programme which funds childcare for hard-to-reach parents entering the workplace, often for the first time. A transformational programme that just would not have occurred to any other party in Wales.
So much of this agenda around work and skills begins at this early stage, before a child can walk and talk so much of their future is decided – and that is where we must invest both our hope, and our resources.
If the last few weeks have reminded us of anything as a Labour movement, it is that when you see trouble, if it be for an ailing banking sector or an ailing mother – you act.
You do not stand idly by.
You do not wait and see.
You act, you reach out and you help.
We are men and women of the left, and that is what our Labour values demand.
As Chair of the Child Poverty Expert Group in Wales, I know that the answers to the skills shortages and the economic imperatives of tomorrow rest with the kids being born today.
The innovative Foundation Phase, which will revolutionise how our youngest children learn shows, that – in Wales – Labour remains unafraid of radical solutions to age old questions.
The message is clear.
If you are a child in the classroom, you are better served by Labour working together in the Assembly and Westminster.
If you are returning to work, looking for work, or want to develop in work – not only are you better served by Labour in Westminster and Welsh Assembly – only the Labour Party is interested in reaching out with a helping hand.
The Tory values may not have changed but, luckily, neither have ours.
You act, you reach out and you help.
We are men and women of the left, and that is what our Labour values demand.
As Chair of the Child Poverty Expert Group in Wales, I know that the answers to the skills shortages and the economic imperatives of tomorrow rest with the kids being born today.
The innovative Foundation Phase, which will revolutionise how our youngest children learn shows, that – in Wales – Labour remains unafraid of radical solutions to age old questions.
The message is clear.
If you are a child in the classroom, you are better served by Labour working together in the Assembly and Westminster.
If you are returning to work, looking for work, or want to develop in work – not only are you better served by Labour in Westminster and Welsh Assembly – only the Labour Party is interested in reaching out with a helping hand.
The Tory values may not have changed but, luckily, neither have ours.
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