General election 2024: The candidates standing in Newport West and Islwyn

Two Labour seats are being merged into the Newport West and Islwyn seat. Part of the existing Newport West constituency has been moved into the Newport East patch, the rest is joining Islwyn.

Instead of 40 constituencies, there are now 32 in Wales and the idea behind it is to make all Westminster constituencies the same size. Using figures from electoral calculus, we can see how this constituency is changing. It means 70.6% of the Islwyn seat joins 54.2% of Newport West.

The boundaries of all but one Welsh seat have changed ahead of the 2024 election, only Ynys Mon (the island of Anglesey) remains untouched, all others have seen changes which could impact the results on election night. You can read the background to the changes here.

READ MORE: What is my general election 2024 constituency - as 90% of areas hit by boundary changes

READ MORE: UK general election postal vote details including how to register and how it works

Where does the constituency cover?

It includes Marshfield, Graig, Rogerstone, Abercarn, Newbridge, Crumlin and Argoed.

You can also find your constituency by entering your postcode here:

What happened in the General Election in 2019

Who is standing?

• George Etheridge (Independent)

• Brandon Ham (Plaid Cymru)
  

• Mike Hamilton (Lib Dem)
  

• Nick Jones (Conservatives)

• Ruth Jones (Labour)

• Paul Taylor (Reform UK)

• Kerry Vosper (Green Party)

The candidates

All candidates are being asked the same questions, and their answers will be added here once received.

Ruth Jones - Labour

My name is Ruth Jones and I’m standing as the Welsh Labour candidate for Newport West and Islwyn in this General Election. I was born and raised on the Gaer estate in Newport and worked as an NHS physiotherapist in Gwent for more than 30 years. In 2007, I was elected as President of the Wales Trades Union Congress.

In 2019, I was elected as the MP for Newport West following in the footsteps of the late Paul Flynn, who was both a friend and mentor. I was re-elected in the General Election eight months later. I am now 62 years old and live in Allt-yr-yn with my husband and we have two adult children. When I’m not meeting people in my constituency or navigating Parliament, I enjoy singing in my choir and watching rugby.

Name a policy you want to see become law if elected as an MP

Under the Tories, wages have stagnated while the costs of supermarket shops, energy bills and other essentials have soared. Remarkably, when Rishi Sunak called the General Election, he marked an end to the first Parliament on record where living standards were worse by the end.

The Tories have been sleeping at the wheel, paralysed by their own chaos, and it has never been more obvious our country needs change. As a proud trade unionist, I know the importance of making work pay.

With so much pressure on family finances, we must do more to provide job security and cultivate high paid working opportunities here in Wales. That’s why I’ll be backing Labour’s package of workers’ rights reforms, giving thousands in Newport and Islwyn the dignity they deserve.

What's the biggest issue facing Wales and what will you do to fix it?

While I look forward to backing Labour’s workers’ rights legislation, I know there is no quick solution to the Tory cost-of-living crisis. To fix their mess, we will need to take a fresh approach on many fronts, and it may well take time to reap all the rewards.

We should never underestimate the importance of stability. It is working families who are picking up the bill after five failed prime ministers in 14 years – and four Tory chancellors in 2022 alone. The next Labour chancellor, Rachel Reeves, will never play fast and loose with public money and never allow a repeat of the disastrous Liz Truss experiment.

I believe our new, publicly owned clean power company - Great British Energy – will be a force for positive change, not only giving us energy security from tyrants like Putin but cutting household bills for good and creating quality jobs.

Who has been the best British Prime Minister and why?

Every prime minister bears an awesome responsibility as the public servant ultimately responsible for leading government and changing lives. Each of them has a legacy – some shorter than others – but in my opinion none are greater than that of Clement Attlee. He shouldered all the turmoil of the two World Wars and re-built Britain in a bold and inclusive way, capturing the mood of the nation and responding to the appetite for change.

Attlee oversaw the biggest roadbuilding and housebuilding projects in British history and pushed the NHS Act through Parliament despite persistent opposition from the Tory benches. In the 21st century, it is easy to take the efforts of Attlee’s government for granted but they would not have achieved as much as they did without immense willpower and forward vision. In many ways, the post-war Labour Government showed the best of Britain.