MP calls on Lloyds CEO to halt closure of Pontardawe branch

Speaking in Parliament, the Brecon, Radnor and Cwm Tawe MP condemned the wave of bank closures across rural Wales. He described it as a betrayal of loyal customers who have been abandoned in the name of profit.

He criticised Lloyds CEO Charlie Nunn, who received a five point six million pound pay package last year while overseeing the closure of more than one hundred and forty branches including those in Presteigne, Ystradgynlais and Brecon, and now Pontardawe. David Chadwick MP accused him of disregarding and causing ‘misery’ to elderly and vulnerable people throughout his constituency.

Commenting, David Chadwick MP said: “Lloyds claims it is closing branches due to lack of footfall. Yet in Pontardawe the queues regularly run out the door. That is not a lack of demand. It is a deliberate choice to walk away from loyal customers.

“Charlie Nunn took home over five and a half million pounds last year. His customers in Pontardawe are being offered nothing more than a visit to community banker once a month. It is insulting, and it must be put right.

“The planned closure of the Lloyds branch in Pontardawe has sparked much local anger. With more than five hundred residents signing a petition asking for it to remain open.

“The closure would leave thousands of people in the Swansea Valley without access to in-person banking. These are people who have entrusted Lloyds with their life savings, who Lloyds have profited off for decades.

“The banks may have forgotten their customers in Wales, but I have not.

“That is why I am calling on Lloyds CEO, Charlie Nunn to reverse this decision and show some understanding of the harm these closures are causing.”

#bankClosure #DavidChadwickMP #LloydsBank #Pontardawe #WelshLiberalDemocrats

MP calls for devolved rail powers after ‘shocking’ £6.6bn project delivers nothing for Wales

The decision follows a pattern of major rail projects (including HS2) being wrongly classed as “England and Wales” schemes, meaning Wales is denied the funding it would otherwise receive through the Barnett formula. The classification was revealed by local Liberal Democrat MP David Chadwick following a written question in Parliament, which was answered by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport Simon Lightwood.

Speaking in the House of Commons today, David Chadwick MP condemned the decision as “shocking” and called on the UK Government to urgently devolve full powers over rail infrastructure to Wales, so future English projects can no longer be used to side-line Welsh investment.

The Welsh Liberal Democrats estimate that Wales would have received over £360 million in consequential funding from the East-West Rail project alone. Independent experts estimate Wales has lost over £4 billion as a result of similar misclassifications in recent years.

The party continues to campaign for this project to be reclassified as “England only,” for a fair funding settlement for Wales, for full devolution of transport infrastructure to the Senedd, and for sustained investment in Welsh rail services, including long-overdue improvements to the Heart of Wales Line.

Commenting, David Chadwick MP said: “It is simply indefensible that Wales continues to be frozen out of hundreds of millions in rail funding for projects that do not lay a single centimetre of track in our country. We saw this with HS2, with Northern Powerhouse Rail, and now again with East-West Rail. Time after time, Wales is left behind.

“It is clear that someone in this labour government is out to deliberately short-change Wales. The only way forward is to devolve full powers over rail infrastructure to Wales so we can make decisions that serve our own communities.

“Wales must be able to invest properly in its own rail network. That includes delivering serious improvements to the Heart of Wales Line, which has been neglected for decades.

“Investment in lines such as the Heart of Wales Line would make a meaningful difference to Wales, unlike a rail project hundreds of miles away between Oxford and Cambridge. This line is a lifeline for rural communities, supporting jobs, education and tourism, and it deserves the same level of ambition and investment as rail services elsewhere in the UK.”

Meanwhile a former Swansea Labour MP has also criticised the UK Labour Government for Chancellor Rachel Reeves’s latest £15.6bn transport investment announcement, where she missed Wales out entirely.

Geraint Davies called for the Welsh Government and Welsh MPs to “step-up so Wales can get it’s fair share” and for Wales’ rail infrastructure to be devolved.

#DavidChadwickMP #HeartOfWales #railFunding #railInvestment #Railway #UKGovernment #WelshLiberalDemocrats

Claims that ‘Swansea Valley forgotten again’ as area missed out of Welsh Government transport grant announcement

Neath Port Talbot Council has been awarded nearly £5.7 million through the Local Authority Transport Grants for 2025–26. This includes £990,000 for the Neath to Cimla Active Travel Route, £730,000 for carriageway improvements in Cymmer, £440,000 for the Neath Integrated Transport Hub, and £1.6 million for drainage improvements on Fabian Way. Further funding has been awarded for a range of road safety and training initiatives.

However, critics say that none of this funding has been directed towards the Swansea Valley, despite the area facing serious transport and economic challenges. While investment has been concentrated in Neath and Port Talbot – areas already benefitting from stronger transport links, including rail connectivity – the Swansea Valley, which has no direct rail services and limited infrastructure, has once again been left behind.

Although approximately £800,000 has been allocated for wider Active Travel and road safety schemes, the Welsh Liberal Democrats have argued that this does little to address the urgent need for meaningful infrastructure investment in the Swansea Valley.

David Chadwick MP (Brecon, Radnor, and Cwm Tawe) has called on the Welsh Labour Government to urgently rethink its priorities and deliver real investment to communities that have been consistently overlooked, warning that continued neglect of former industrial areas like the Swansea Valley will only deepen regional inequalities.

David Chadwick MP said: “Once again, the Welsh Labour Government have forgotten the Swansea Valley.”

“None of the almost £5 million awarded to Neath Port Talbot for transport projects has been earmarked for the Swansea Valley, an area with already inadequate transport links.”

“Although a small amount of funding has been allocated to wider initiatives such as ‘pedestrian training’, this does not come close to addressing the lack of serious investment in the Swansea Valley.”

“The people of Swansea Valley deserve more than being an afterthought. Over and over, the Welsh Labour Government promise fair funding across Wales. Yet the money flows straight to already well-connected areas with established transport and rail links, while communities like those in the Swansea Valley are left behind.”

“The Government must stop neglecting the Swansea Valley and commit to a fair and consistent transport strategy.”

#DavidChadwickMP #NeathPortTalbot #Pontardawe #SwanseaValley #Transport #WelshGovernment #WelshLiberalDemocrats #Ystalyfera