It was always the way to vote Labour here': party's proud Welsh heartland makes a clean break of it

"Reminders of the Labour movement's roots are inescapable in Tredegar, south Wales: murals pay tribute to party giants Aneurin Bevan and Neil Kinnock, both of whom were born here. The Workmen's Hall Library is long gone, replaced by a car park, but the Cambrian Inn, which hosted early trade unions and Chartist groups, survives. The Tredegar Medical Aid Society, which Bevan used as a model for the NHS, was across the road; today it is a heritage centre paying tribute to the public health pioneers and the area's coal-mining and steel-making past."

"For decades, Blaenau Gwent was a steadfast Labour seat, at times holding the single safest majority in the UK. But in last week's Senedd election, the Labour party lost its grip on Wales for the first time in more than 100 years. Tredegar's post-industrial valleys constituency of Blaenau Gwent Caerffili Rhymni didn't elect a single Labour member of the Senedd (MS): three of the six seats available under the new more proportional voting system went to pro-independence Plaid Cymru, and the other three to Reform UK."

"The Tredegar Veterans Support Hub, a floor above the Tredegar Medical Aid Society Heritage Centre, a museum to the creation of the NHS. Photograph: Francesca Jones/The Guardian It's unbelievable, really, said Woody Woods, 61, who runs a charity supporting armed forces veterans on the floor above the heritage centre. Since the pandemic, the space has also hosted a food bank. It was always the way to vote Labour here, I don't think people ever thought about not doing it I think the party just doesn't represent working people any more."

"Tredegar-born Alun Davies, who served as a Labour MS from 2007 until losing his seat last week, said he thought there must have been a mistake when he watched the ballots being verified on election night. I couldn't see any Labour boxes in places we normally pick up votes. We started the campaign thinking we'd get the third seat, and as the weeks went by, we revised it down to four, to fi"

Murals in Tredegar honor Labour figures Aneurin Bevan and Neil Kinnock, both born locally. The Workmen’s Hall Library has been replaced by a car park, while the Cambrian Inn remains, having hosted early trade unions and Chartist groups. The Tredegar Medical Aid Society, a model for the NHS, now operates as a heritage centre alongside coal-mining and steel-making history. Blaenau Gwent Caerffili Rhymni long held Labour majorities, including some of the safest in the UK. In the latest Senedd election, Labour won no seats in the constituency under a more proportional system, with Plaid Cymru and Reform UK taking all available places. Local residents and former Labour representatives describe surprise and concern about Labour’s current fit for working people.

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