Local Senedd Member Paul Davies has again led a debate on the protection of war memorials in Wales. Mr Davies, who has campaigned for several years for war memorials to be better preserved and protected used his time to call for a statutory duty to be placed on councils to protect war memorials and for a nation-wide inventory to be undertaken. He also called for the creation of a custodian or War Memorial Officer which could forge links with local schools and educate our children and young people about previous conflicts and the sacrifices made by people in their local community.
Mr Davies said, “Whilst it’s always a pleasure to raise war memorials at the Senedd, it’s deeply frustrating that this is the third time that I’ve tabled a debate on this issue. Sadly, despite the warm words from Government Ministers over the years, little action has been taken and our fallen heroes deserve better.”
“Our war memorials are an important part of our local communities and we must ensure that they are protected. Not only should we continue to honour those who gave up their lives for our freedoms, we must create opportunities for future generations to learn about the sacrifices of people in their local areas as well as learning about previous conflicts so that they are never repeated again. I’m calling on the Welsh Government to prioritise this issue and commit to reviewing its legislation and establishing War Memorial Officers across Wales – and I truly hope that this time, the Welsh Government will listen.”
You can access the plenary transcript of the debate here - https://record.senedd.wales/Plenary/12430#A67038
