I hope readers stayed safe and well during last week’s record-breaking heatwave.

In my last column I mentioned the privilege of being elected to represent Monmouthshire and Torfaen, and I am pleased to report that the new Plaid Cymru government and your new Senedd Members have got down to work. For me, that has meant meeting with organisations like Monmouthshire County Council and Gwent Police, but also with local people and groups to hear as many of the issues affecting our constituency as possible.

One of those issues, which we all care deeply about, is child poverty. And for the government, getting to work addressing that has to be a priority. Child poverty in Wales is far above the European average and, shockingly, over 2000 children are growing up in poverty in Monmouthshire itself. I believe passionately that every child deserves a fair start in life, and we also know that child poverty is at the root of many other issues in health, education, and justice.

I’m pleased to see the Welsh Government start to take action. ‘Cynnal’, Plaid Cymru’s plan to establish direct payments to families with young children living in poverty, is in its piloting stage. It is modelled on proven best practice from around the world. In Scotland, a similar scheme has drastically reduced child-poverty rates.

I look forward to scrutinising and supporting the government on policies such as this to get the best outcomes for Monmouthshire and Torfaen.

Two of the issues I’ve raised in the Senedd this week have been on the cost of school transport and rural resilience.

On the options for Welsh language post-16 education, students from Monmouthshire are currently required to pay £600 to attend Ysgol Gwynllyw in Pontypool. This isn’t the case for students from Blaenau Gwent who can travel for free. The First Minister told me that removing barriers to accessing education is a priority.

Monmouthshire is built on its rural communities, and resilience means making sure it stays that way. I pointed out that for our health, environment, culture and likelihoods, rural resilience matters to everyone in Monmouthshire regardless of where you live. Climate change, the health of our rivers, Bovine TB, and the success of the Sustainable Farming Scheme will all be critical in determining the future of our county. As I pointed out in the chamber, we cannot afford to make these issues into a political football.