It’s been great to see so many of you out and about in Swansea East over the summer – albeit in a socially distanced manner! – and I always enjoy being able to spend the recess working at home in the constituency. I know that since my last roundup, there have been a number of changes to the Covid-19 rules and regulations, and it’s been lovely to see families able to meet up and enjoy time together, often for the first time in many months. The changes that the Welsh Government have been able to make are down to your commitment to respecting the guidance, so I would urge everyone to make sure they keep following the rules and stay up to date on regulations at https://gov.wales/coronavirus, so that we can continue to tackle this virus together.
The first week back at Westminster is always a busy one – and despite the changes that Coronavirus has brought, this week was no exception. I started the week with a call on Tuesday with the Centre for Social Justice to discuss their project on Childhood Sexual Abuse. It was good to catch up with Olivia Robey, who is leading the research on this project. Olivia is an ex-Special Adviser to Sajid Javid, the former Conservative Chancellor, and I think it just goes to show that on big important issues such as this it’s really important to be able to reach out across party political lines – often we achieve more that way than when we only take an adversarial approach.
It’s also been lovely to see our children and young people start to return to school this week. It’s been such a difficult time, but teachers and students have adapted brilliantly to the challenges posed by Covid-19. And of course we have to mention the efforts of parents and guardians who took on the task of homeschooling, often while working from home themselves and juggling a number of stressful demands!
This evening, I’m absolutely thrilled to be hosting an awards ceremony at Mecca Bingo in Swansea in recognition of everyone who has contributed so much to the Swansea Together project. So many local companies and individuals went above and beyond during the initial stages of the Coronavirus crisis to make sure vulnerable families didn’t go without, and I’m so delighted that we’ll be able to properly recognise their efforts. And I can’t lie – I’m also really looking forward to getting my glad rags on and having a night out!
As always, if you have any issues or concerns to raise with me as your local MP, please get in touch by emailing carolyn.harris.mp@parliament.uk – my team and I are here to help. And remember – observe social distancing, wash your hands regularly and keep Wales safe!
