The City of Sanctuary AGM was held on Friday the 15th of July. Kirsty Williams, Welsh Liberal Democrat AM for Brecon and Radnorshire, had the following message to share:

“Firstly can I say how sorry I am that I cannot be with you today. This is an issue I am a passionate believer in, so I would have liked to have heard your experiences in person.

Wales has a proud history of helping people when they are in need; rarely in human history have people been in greater need of sanctuary. I am so proud of the reaction of the Welsh public to this crisis.

For several months now I have been offering my constituency office in Brecon as a drop off for donations for the refugees. The response has been overwhelming. The amount of clothing, bedding, kitchen equipment and other goods has been a testament to the good will of the people in my constituency. However, it is down to the hard work of people like the volunteers at Hay, Brecon & Talgarth Sanctuary for Refugees, that the good will of local people is translated into real benefits for those vulnerable people.

However, there is still clearly more to do. We need much more action from the UK Government and I am very proud that the leader of the Liberal Democrats in Westminster, Tim Farron, has been championing the case for greater support for refugees.

I will be making the case from within the Welsh Government for Wales to be playing its part in helping those most in need and I look forward to working with you all in the future to help make Wales a true Nation of Sanctuary.”

Kirsty Williams
Welsh Liberal Democrat AM for Brecon and Radnorshire