- 16/05/2024
- Posted by: Mark Drakeford MS
- Category: News
There’s an afterlife to being the First Minister of Wales and recent weeks have showed the shape it is taking.
Recently, I was in London to speak at the Resolution Foundation’s event to mark 25 years of devolution. I shared a platform with John Swinney, a man I have known for many years in his work at the Scottish Government. John was the first speaker at the conference. When he stood up, Humza Yousef was the First Minister of Scotland. By the time I spoke, the First Minister of Scotland had resigned. A week later and John Swinney is now the Scottish FM! The Resolution Foundation conference was meant to be a look-back over the first quarter of a century of devolution − but found itself at the centre of events which will help to shape the future.
From London, I took the train to Newtown in mid-Wales. It was my first time on that line, and very beautiful indeed it turned out to be. A night at Gregynog, the outstanding centre bequeathed to Wales by the famous Davies sisters is always a revelation.
The Davies sisters are most famous for the French impressionist paintings they left to the National Museum in Cardiff. Thousands and thousands of visitors from around the globe come to see the best collection of such paintings anywhere in the world. But the Gregynog house, where they lived, remains a real jewel in the crown of mid-Wales, and definitely worth a visit for the grounds alone. I was there for the annual conference of Welsh criminologists, looking forward to the next Labour Government and the devolution of responsibility for youth justice and the probation service to Wales. After the results in English local elections, that next Government really cannot come quickly enough.
Then it was back to London to speak at an event organised by Cityforum. It brought together a large group of people involved in the broad field of “resilience”. How resilient is essential infrastructure − reservoirs, for example − across the United Kingdom? How resilient is the NHS in all parts of the UK in dealing with the pressures it faces? How well prepared are we for the cyber-attacks which are an increasing feature of all sectors, private as well as public, in the digital age? The answer, unsurprisingly, after more than a decade of austerity, is “not resilient enough”. Rebuilding the essential infrastructure of our country is another key challenge facing the next government, and repairing the damage of 14 years of neglect will take time, money and determination.
Back to Cardiff for multiple events here, too. The start of the month saw a lovely event at Cardiff Castle, bringing together members of the fantastic Polish community we have in Wales. This was followed by attendance the next day, with my MP colleague Kevin Brennan, to the civic service held every year to mark the start of the Radyr & Morganstown Festival.
Not being First Minister means being relieved of responsibility for many of today’s challenges − but not, it turns out, relieved of being busy!
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