Nick Smith MP – Monthly Report – December 2025

Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ budget was rightly focused on continuing the work that has gone into putting things right after 14 years of rising costs and declining public services.
This was a budget centred on rebuilding the economy and easing pressure on households. This was also, I believe, a Labour budget with Labour values at its heart.
Some of the more notable announcements included further increasing the minimum and living wage (building on the April 2025 increases which have already helped 160,000 workers in Wales), increasing the state pension by 4.8% from April 2026, slashing household energy bills by £150 per household, scrapping the two-child cap to benefit 69,000 children in Wales and an extra £1bn for the Welsh Government to invest in public services.
This Budget shows Labour is building a stronger and more secure economy. We are beating the forecasts, with growth this year upgraded to 1.5%. Wages have risen more in this Government’s first year than in the previous decade. Inflation is being reduced further, helping interest and mortgage rates fall.
There are no quick fixes and the Chancellor has had a difficult balancing act to encourage growth and investment, drive down inflation and the national debt, invest in public services, and protect after the most vulnerable. Some difficult choices have been made, but for a purpose: building a stronger, fairer country, where living standards rise, child poverty falls and public services are renewed.

BCSSS
I was very pleased to hear Rachel Reeves’ announce that the £2.3bn British Coal Staff Superannuation Scheme investment reserve would be returned to members, meaning an average 40% increase to weekly pensions for 341 former pit staff in Blaenau Gwent & Rhymney, 40,000 members across the UK.
Last autumn, we returned the Mineworkers Pension Scheme investment reserve to members. This was great news for the 1622 MPS members in Blaenau Gwent & Rhymney who would benefit from a pension uplift.
But it was important that we recognised that the MPS wasn’t the only pension scheme in the mining industry. There was also the British Coal Staff Superannuation Scheme (BCSSS), which included pit staff like supervisors, engineers, administrative staff and canteen workers.
Over the last year or so I raised this issue many times in Parliament. I met with Ministers and spoke with trustees, I hosted a local meeting in Tredegar for BCSSS members.
I raised the issue in the House a few days before the budget and was also grateful for Pensions Minister Torsten Bell singling me out for mention in his speech following the budget.
Now, thanks to our Labour Government, a total of close to 2000 former colliers and pit staff in Blaenau Gwent & Rhymney are now benefitting from a pension boost.
Coal workers dedicated their lives to keeping our country running, and whether they were in the MPS or the BCSSS, they all deserve fair play in retirement.

Pride in Place
It’s good to see plans moving forward for the £20m Pride in Place funding UK Labour has allocated to Caerphilly. Cabinet approval is now being sought to put forward the communities of Bargoed, Aberbargoed and New Tredegar as the combined area to receive funding.
In Blaenau Gwent, the options are still being considered for where the £20m will be spent. There will be an update in the near future.
This is a total of £40m Pride in Place money for this constituency from UK Labour, funding that will be a welcome boost for the areas targeted. This is a great example of our UK Labour Government working to provide funding for the areas that need it most.

Youth Guarantee
This week Labour announced plans for funding to provide training and work for 16-24 year-olds  who are neither earning nor learning.
Labour has announced £820m new funding for a programme that includes providing hundreds of thousands of new training and work experience placements for young people out of work and claiming benefits, a new ‘Jobs Guarantee’ providing six months of paid employment for long-term unemployed 18–21-year-olds on Universal Credit and also setting up new Youth Hubs across local communities, offering support to young people, such as CV advice, skills training, mental health support, housing advice and careers guidance.
This will begin rollout from Spring 2026 in areas with some of the greatest need, including here in South East Wales.
In Blaenau Gwent & Rhymney 665 16-24 year-olds are stuck on benefits. Providing work experience, skills training and guaranteed employment is vital in opening the door for these young people and giving them a brighter future. This funding will help ensure no young person is left behind.

Road repairs
In Leader of the House questions I spoke about how, in Blaenau Gwent the council has applied for funding to upgrade the A4046 at Cwm. In Caerphilly, the new council leader, Jamie Pritchard, is driving urgent action to repair the landslip on the A469 between New Tredegar and Pontlottyn in the Upper Rhymney Valley.
These are good examples of the momentum for new economic opportunities now that Labour led councils, the Welsh Labour government and the UK Labour government are working in tandem.

Ticket Touts
Labour is introducing plans for new laws to make it illegal for tickets to live events to be resold for more than their original cost.
This will smash the business model of those ticket touts that have ripped off fans for so long, using bots to snap up tickets and reselling them at sky-high prices.
I asked a Parliamentary question about ensuring that all avenues of illegal reselling are closed off, including social media. I was pleased to be told that all platforms facilitating the resale of tickets will have to ensure the price cap is adhered to or otherwise face tough financial penalties.
These new proposals will improve access for genuine fans when tickets go on sale and end rip-off pricing on the resale market.