Speeches by Davies.

“Mine was in Ammanford. There’s a Senedd office in Ammanford, so I just wanted to make sure that we had visibility and that we were spread all over the constituency. My office is now in Carmarthen, and the Senedd Member is in Ammanford. We are spreading ourselves around the constituency, which makes it easier for people…”

“Absolutely. So, I agree: I think those suggestions are brilliant. We have a system within the Plaid where some of us come in on Monday, some of us go back on Wednesday night and some of us then stay on Thursday. We have a rota system, which works well for us. Llinos, for example, with two children, will leave on a Wedn…”

“Yes, I think I would have done here, although we have a small pool of staff here with Plaid. We have six members of staff now and they were fabulous in fairness, but it is constituency work and casework that just did not get done, to be honest, for the first two or three months really. You tried very hard to get on top…”

“I would have preferred a dedicated member of staff. I think they have to be of the same political leaning as you because you have been elected with a political view in mind by your constituents. We are centre left. It would have to be a person who thinks in the same way as I do, to be honest. What I would have wanted h…”

“Looking back, I did not use my buddy to the extent that I could have done. That is simply because of lack of experience. He was great on the first day, and then I did not touch base until a week after, when he took me around again, after I had explored a bit more on my own. Mine was a staff member from the House, and h…”

“I would have preferred a dedicated member of staff. I think they have to be of the same political leaning as you because you have been elected with a political view in mind by your constituents. We are centre left. It would have to be a person who thinks in the same way as I do, to be honest. What I would have wanted h…”

“For us, it would not work because we have a farm and we have cattle to milk. But, for the vast majority of people, I think that receiving an invitation at the end of each term—say Christmas, Easter and the end of summer—where partners can come for a gathering on the Terrace, or if there’s something on in Westminster Ab…”

“I totally agree with that. For me, the buddy system worked well in that first week. I would say as well, with regards to the induction, that I would really have appreciated revisiting that in three months’ time. I know that the general election was at an awkward time—it was at the beginning of July and then we were off…”

“I do not do AI. End of story.”

“I am Ann Davies. I am a Plaid Cymru MP for Caerfyrddin, which is in south-west Wales.”

“I am Ann Davies. I am a Plaid Cymru MP for Caerfyrddin, which is in south-west Wales.”

“I am sure I will at some point, but I am not going there at the moment.”

“For me, the IPSA buddy system was great; I had a dedicated person, Gina. I would have loved to have spent a day or afternoon with her, face to face, going through things like being an employer. As luck would have it, I had employed people before, so I had an understanding of that, but not everybody would. Coming from a…”

“IPSA is only there on a Wednesday. I have to tell you that I was a weekly visitor to that desk, every Wednesday, for a long time, until I found my feet. Somebody said to me—and I cannot remember if it is true—that of your two email accounts, the MP account had an out of office, but your private account did not. I canno…”

“I do not do AI. End of story.”

“I am going to be perfectly honest with you: I did not think any further than election day. I do not know if everybody else was in the same situation, but that was mine. I wanted to get to election day, and then there was the realisation that I had actually been elected. I won the election, and then I started thinking, …”

“I totally agree with that. For me, the buddy system worked well in that first week. I would say as well, with regards to the induction, that I would really have appreciated revisiting that in three months’ time. I know that the general election was at an awkward time—it was at the beginning of July and then we were off…”

“I am sure I will at some point, but I am not going there at the moment.”

“I think that is excellent. There is a crèche here, which I am sure helps people with very young children, but trying to balance school life with this place is very difficult. On the other side, you might be a carer for your elderly parents, and that balance needs to be addressed as well. It is not just about children; …”

“Yes, I think I would have done here, although we have a small pool of staff here with Plaid. We have six members of staff now and they were fabulous in fairness, but it is constituency work and casework that just did not get done, to be honest, for the first two or three months really. You tried very hard to get on top…”