Column: Neath Guardian - Thomas Talks - 31 October 2007

My column in the Neath Guardian, 31 October 2007:

"The fire which devastated the Gwyn Hall in Neath last week is a bitter blow and this is, without a doubt, a very sad time for the town and everyone associated with Neath. The Gwyn Hall has been an iconic landmark in Neath ever since it was built during the reign of Queen Victoria during the 1880’s, and has been a much loved venue for musical events and amateur dramatic productions in Neath ever since. It was, of course, the venue which saw much of Neath’s young talents begin their rise to stardom. It also served as Neath’s town hall for many years, and played host to many of the major political events in Neath’s modern history.

"I was made aware of the blaze late last Thursday evening, and visited the scene of the fire the following morning. I had the opportunity to thank the emergency services personally during the morning, but I would like to take this opportunity to publicly thank and praise the efforts of all the emergency service personnel, including the approximately sixty two fire-fighters from the Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue service that attended the fire. Their efforts, skill and bravery during the night ensured that the fire did not spread to nearby buildings. Fire-fighters attended the scene from across Wales, some from as far as Llandrindod Wells. Their commitment and bravery is very much to be commended. The biggest relief of all is that nobody was killed or injured as a result of the blaze.

"It is far too early to say yet what the future is for what remains of the Gwyn Hall, but as Neath’s AM, I’m fully committed to working alongside the County Borough Council in whatever way I can and I will be keeping in close contact with the leader of the council Derek Vaughan to see what if anything the Welsh Assembly Government can do to assist the council in the weeks and months ahead. Derek Vaughan has already said that the events of last week will pose a significant challenge. I’m sure we will all rise to that challenge together.