The Senedd is now in dissolution which means I am no longer a Senedd Member. Nor is anybody else for that matter and this will the case for the period between now and when the results of the election on May 7 are counted. The last few weeks of plenary involved some late finishes as legislation had to be done and dusted. It also featured some emotional contributions from long-standing Senedd Members who are standing down so know they will not be coming back.

It is a strange period as I have made it my mission to get out and about as your Senedd Member, meeting as many people and groups as possible since my election to the Welsh Parliament in 2021. My office may be in Newport – which is where I am hoping to be re-elected as the lead candidate for Plaid Cymru in Casnewydd Islwyn – but I have tried to cover every part of the region of South Wales East in that time. Some of our actions in the county including picking up casework from Monmouthshire on our street surgeries, meeting with Monmouthshire farmers over the controversial policy of the Labour Government to link tree numbers with farming payments and visiting the new cancer diagnostic facilities on the site of Nevill Hall Hospital. Whilst I have enjoyed having such a wide-ranging and varied patch in South Wales East, I am looking forward to having more focus on a constituency if I am successfully elected.

Standing for Plaid Cymru in the Sir Fynwy Torfaen Constituency is lead candidate Matthew Woolfall-Jones who has extensive experience of working for Senedd Members and latterly for a leading cancer charity. I am sure he will make a good representative for the people of Monmouth if they get behind him at the ballot box.

As we approach May 7th, campaigning will intensify from all parties. Plaid Cymru is no exception. The Casnewydd Islwyn team has already knocked thousands of doors and delivered many more leaflets. Our message of positivity is going down very well. It seems people are tired of the status quo, are ready for change but do not want one which pits community against community and looks to copy Trump’s America. Plaid Cymru has produced a 100 Day Plan that shows we are serious about replacing Labour and forming the next Government of Wales. Our manifesto builds on the positive ideas contained in the 100 Day document and shows that a Wales-led by Plaid Cymru could really take things forward for our country and everyone that lives here.

As ever, we are in the hands of the electorate - and we never take anything for granted – but Plaid Cymru has done the work to show we are a serious party, committed to leading the country and serving its people in the best and most positive manner.