Vale of Clwyd MP and Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Wales, Dr James Davies, outlined his priorities for the region when speaking at the first ever North Wales Conservative Conference at the weekend.
James welcomed delegates to St Asaph and the Vale of Clwyd at Saturday's event, and later introduced the Secretary of State for Wales David TC Davies MP.
Speaking after the event, James said:
“It was a real pleasure to speak at this first ever North Wales Conference and to welcome members from all over to my constituency.
“The conference provided me with an opportunity to discuss my first three and a half months as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, and to highlight the role of the Wales Office, which is to fly the flag for Wales at Westminster, to inform and influence Government Departments and to communicate government efforts in Wales.
“I also talked about Wales Office oral questions which take place just before Prime Minister’s Questions every month or so, appearing in front of the Welsh Affairs Select Committee, and an Adjournment Debate on the Menai Suspension Bridge, which was closed without warning by the Welsh Government last October, impacting businesses and residents on the island.”
James went on to discuss his areas of responsibility, including the Growth Deals, Digital Infrastructure and Energy and referred to his visits as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Wales to Wylfa, Holyhead, Bangor University, Glan Conwy, Llandyrnog community shop, HM King Charles III’s visit to Wrexham to celebrate its city status, Hightown Barracks, the Royal Welsh Winter Fair and the Board of Trade and CBI in Cardiff.
James added:
“After discussing the Wales Office and my role within it, I spoke of the strong team of Conservative MPs in North Wales, who are fighting hard for the region. I emphasised that for too long North Wales has been an afterthought and poorly understood by Cardiff Bay, and stressed that this needs to change if the region is to thrive in the way that it needs to.”
James also outlined his priorities which include the NHS, growing the economy and strengthening the United Kingdom.
He said:
“We will grow the economy through infrastructure; rail, Freeports, Gigabit broadband; Levelling Up policy; renewable energy; and Growth Deals, including the North Wales Growth Deal.
“I referred to the new UK Government funding which has already come to North Wales, through the Shared Prosperity Fund (£126m), Community Renewal Fund, Community Ownership Fund, (for example, the £200,000 awarded to Llandyrnog community shop), and the Levelling Up Fund (Holyhead, Llanberis, Conwy Valley, Ruthin and Llangollen, with a third round due).”
In a later session, James discussed health and social care with Vale of Clwyd MS Gareth Davies, with questions from the audience.
