'People in Wrexham can collect their trees from the wonderful Erlas Victorian Walled Garden'

MS for Wrexham

Back in December, the Welsh Government announced every household in Wales would be offered a free tree to plant as part of its commitment to tackling climate change. I am pleased Wrexham is part of the initial pilot having been selected as one of the five regional tree collection hubs located throughout the country. The first 5,000 trees are now available for people to collect. However, this batch is available just for the month of March on a first-come, first-served basis. In the autumn, the scheme will extend to 25 regional hubs across Wales where 300,000 trees will be available to collect. People in Wrexham can collect their trees from the wonderful Erlas Victorian Walled Garden, located on Bryn Estyn Road. I picked up my tree on Friday and I encourage local residents to pop along this month. Further information can be found online but if anyone has any queries, please do not hesitate to contact me.

The Wrexham Gateway Project – which centres around regenerating the area surrounding the Mold Road – is something I have long-supported. I believe it has the potential to transform the town and I was pleased to receive an update from Economy Minister, Vaughan Gething, which outlines the latest position. Up to £2.5m of the £25m grant awarded to Wrexham Council by Welsh Government in March 2021 has been committed to complete detailed designs of a new stand at the Racecourse Ground. The funding will also undertake the critical surveys and reports, prepare a full planning application at the appropriate time and demolish the existing Kop stand. Work is being undertaking jointly with Wrexham AFC and the FA Wales is engaging with the project to ensure the new stand will meet the standards for competitive international fixtures. A lot of work has taken place over a number of years to get to the current stage. I am pleased momentum is gathering and partners are working together to secure something truly special for the town.

The truly shocking atrocities being committed by Putin in the Ukraine have dominated the news these past few days. I attended a demonstration outside the Senedd last week, along with hundreds of others, to show solidarity with the people of Ukraine. Wales is a nation of sanctuary and the generosity shown by Wrexham residents has, as always, been remarkable. Local charities, such as Teams4U, have been inundated with donations for the Ukrainian people and we pray this horrific conflict ends urgently.