Bethan Jenkins AC/AM Blog

I’ve had a relatively busy day, and now I’m trying to prepare for the start of the new Assembly term next week. It all gets a bit hectic from here on in, but I like being busy! I did a talk at Bishop Vaughan Roman Catholic School this morning about my work as an AM. Perhaps I’m boring, or it was early in the morning, but I didn’t get many questions from the pupils. It really is a massive issue to get young people motivated about politics. I’m not saying that they are apathetic, as I hate the word, but there has to be new ways of engaging with young people to encourage their interest and involvement. Having said that, I’ve had a person on work experience with me all week who plans to study politics at Cardiff, and who was very keen indeed. I’ve enjoyed showing him the ropes, taking him to meetings, and carrying out street surgeries, so that he can get an idea of what we do as AMs. I hope he has been inspired!

This afternoon I went to a local Breath Easy Lung Foundation group meeting in Neath. I met a few of the members of the group at the Assembly a while ago when they came to visit. There really is a need for more action on this issue from the stories that I’ve heard today. Many sufferers cannot travel far due to the fact that the oxygen that they carry with them only lasts for up to 7 hours. If they want to travel outside Wales, the fact that there are different companies providing the oxygen means that they often have differing products, and the sizes vary so that they are unable to utilise them effectively. Many people with lung problems cannot travel on airlines with ease, with some Airlines stating that they may take their oxygen on board the flight, but that they cannot use it! I have plenty of issues to raise with the Health Minister on this matter, nevertheless, and I hope the situation can change so that they can live a far easier, and more independent life.

So, the Assembly beckons. I hope that you can attend the event on civic lotteries and public engagement in politics that I am hosting alongside Public Affairs Cymru on Tuesday evening at the Assembly. It should be an interesting event.