Laura Anne Jones MS questions library change into mosque
The Labour-led Monmouthshire County Council awarded the lease of the iconic building to the Monmouthshire Muslim Community Association.
Conservative Senedd Member for South Wales East, Laura Anne Jones, has raised concerns about how the decision was reached.
Ms Jones emphasised she has no objection to the Muslim community having an appropriate place to worship.
However, she suggested that the process under which the decision was made and its long-term implications pose potential problems.
Ms Jones said: "It is absolutely right that members of all faiths, including the Muslim community, have somewhere appropriate to worship.
"However, this historic library building is a treasured part of Abergavenny's civic heritage and I believe it would have been far more appropriate to create an all-faith space – a building where people of all faiths and none can come together to reflect, build relationships and learn about each other."
She expressed concerns that this Carnegie library would be dedicated to only one group, possibly excluding others.
She also raised questions about the absence of wider consultation before this significant community decision was made.
She questioned why options such as shared or multi-faith use were not more thoroughly explored or consulted on.
Ms Jones said: "People in Abergavenny care deeply about this building and its future.
"They deserved to have their voices heard before a long-term decision like this was taken behind closed doors."
The former Abergavenny Library shut in 2015, after which it was used as a base for the council's pupil referral unit for children unable to attend school.
The unit has since moved to alternative premises.
Last year, Monmouthshire County Council declared the grade-II listed building, which was built in 1905, surplus to requirements and considered leasing or selling it.
A restrictive covenant on the contract prevents it from being used as a public house, restaurant or take-away, but does not prevent commercial or community use.
The 30-year lease went to the Monmouthshire Muslim Community Association after it was the highest scoring applicant on the council's tender process.
The group, which currently meets at the St Michael's Centre for Friday prayers, plans to use the former Abergavenny Library as Monmouthshire's first mosque and community centre.
Currently, there is no mosque in Monmouthshire, despite there being a small Muslim population.
Councillor Ben Callard, cabinet member responsible for buildings, told the cabinet that Abergavenny has the highest number of Muslims in Monmouthshire and that an Islamic place of worship would fill a significant gap in provision for the rapidly growing Muslim population in the region.
He added that it would be beneficial in bringing the building back into "beneficial community use" supporting the "educational, social, economic and recreational value for Muslim residents of Monmouthshire and the wider community".
The council said that no change of use planning application is required for the building as its intended use as a mosque falls under the same category as a library, but a Certificate of Lawfulness will be applied for to provide assurance.
Despite her concerns, Ms Jones said: "It is absolutely right that members of all faiths, including the Muslim community, have somewhere appropriate to worship."
She urges Monmouthshire's Labour-led council to clarify why the lease was awarded for such an extended duration, and why other options, such as multi-faith use, were not properly explored or consulted on.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Powys County Times
2 hours ago
- Powys County Times
Starmer: Labour will not take away ‘safety net' from vulnerable people
Sir Keir Starmer has said 'everyone agrees' the welfare system needs to be fixed but that Labour will not 'take away the safety net' that vulnerable people rely on. In a speech to the Welsh Labour conference that came after a major U-turn on reforms in the face of a backbench rebellion, he said fixing the 'broken' system must be done in a 'Labour way'. 'We cannot take away the safety net that vulnerable people rely on, and we won't, but we also can't let it become a snare for those who can and want to work,' the Prime Minister said. 'Everyone agrees that our welfare system is broken: failing people every day, a generation of young people written off for good and the cost spiralling out of control. 'Fixing it is a moral imperative, but we need to do it in a Labour way.' He called Welsh First Minister Eluned Morgan a 'fierce champion' and 'the best person to lead Wales into the future' to applause and cheers from the audience. Baroness Morgan had publicly criticised the welfare plans and called for Sir Keir to change tack on restrictions on winter fuel payments, which he also eventually reversed. Sir Keir Starmer told the BBC she was 'right to raise concerns' and promised to 'deliver on those as far as we can'. In her speech to the conference, Baroness Morgan said she was pleased the Government listened to her concerns and reversed planned welfare cuts. 'I'm glad the UK Government is a listening government and they heard our concerns and changed their approach to welfare cuts,' she said. 'We were really concerned about the impact these changes could have on some of our poorest and most vulnerable communities, and we made that clear to our colleagues in Westminster. 'And I am really glad they listened because that decision brings huge and welcome relief to thousands of people in Wales who rely on this support to live with dignity.' Farmers gathered outside the conference in Llandudno to protest ahead of Sir Keir's speech, with about 20 tractors parked on the promenade in the north Wales resort town by late morning. Later, some 150 protesters joined a march for Palestine outside the conference, walking solemnly to the venue where they stood for a few minutes to the beat of a drum. A small group of pro-Israel protesters shouted 'free the hostages' and held signs saying 'free Gazans from Hamas'. Sir Keir also said any deal between the Tories, Reform UK and Plaid Cymru at next year's key elections in Wales would amount to a 'backroom stitch-up'. The elections to the Senedd will use a proportional system for the first time, meaning coalitions are likely. The Prime Minister said it would risk a 'return to the chaos and division of the last decade' and risk rolling back the progress his party is starting to make. He told the Llandudno conference it would be 'working families left to pick up the bill'. 'Whether that's with Reform or with Plaid's determination to cut Wales off from the rest of the country, with no plan to put Wales back together,' he said. 'I know that these are the parties that talk a big game, but who is actually delivering?' Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has not ruled out making deals with Plaid Cymru or Reform at the next Senedd election. Reform UK is eyeing an opportunity to end Labour's 26 years of domination in the Welsh Parliament. Labour performed poorly in this year's local elections in England, which saw Nigel Farage's party win a swathe of council seats. Sir Keir also took aim at Mr Farage, calling him a 'wolf in Wall Street clothing' who has 'no idea what he's talking about'. He said the Reform UK leader 'isn't interested in Wales' and has no viable plan for the blast furnaces at Port Talbot. More than half of voters think Labour has underperformed since Sir Keir became prime minister, polling released on Saturday showed. The Opinium survey showed 54% think Labour has done a worse job than expected, while 18% think the party has exceeded expectations.
South Wales Guardian
2 hours ago
- South Wales Guardian
Conservative MP refers himself to watchdog over adviser role
Former minister George Freeman submitted queries to Labour ministers about the sector the firm operates in, The Times reported. The newspaper published what it said were leaked emails that showed exchanges in which Mr Freeman had asked the company's director what to ask about as he prepared written parliamentary questions related to space data and emissions tracking. He reportedly tabled the questions, which are a way for MPs to ask for more information on the policies and activities of government departments, to the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero. He became a paid adviser with GHGSat, a monitoring service for greenhouse gas emissions, in April last year. The appointments watchdog Acoba advised him that in taking up the role, 'there are risks associated with your influence and network of contacts gained whilst in ministerial office'. 'In particular, this is a company that is interested in government policy and decisions relating to the civil space sector and emissions. 'You noted you have made it clear to the company that you will not lobby government on its behalf, and this will not form part of your role.' Mr Freeman told the Times: 'As a longstanding advocate of important new technologies, companies and industries, working cross-party through APPGs (All-Party Parliamentary Groups) and the select committee, I regularly ask experts for clarification on technical points and terminology, and deeply respect and try to assiduously follow the code of conduct for MPs and the need to act always in the public interest. 'Throughout my 15 years in parliament (and government), I have always understood the need to be transparent in the work I have done for and with commercial clients and charities and am always willing to answer any criticism. 'I don't believe I have done anything wrong but I am immediately referring myself to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards and will accept his judgment in due course.' Mr Freeman and GHGSat have been contacted for comment. A Conservative Party spokesperson said: 'George Freeman MP has referred himself to the Parliamentary Standards Commissioner. 'It would be inappropriate for the Conservative Party to comment further whilst the Commissioner's inquiries are ongoing.' The Lib Dems and Labour called for Tory leader Kemi Badenoch to suspend him. A Labour spokesperson said: 'Cash for questions was a hallmark of Tory sleaze in the 1990s, and three decades on the same issue has raised its head again. 'George Freeman has referred himself for investigation so now Kemi Badenoch must suspend him from the Tory whip.' Liberal Democrat Deputy Leader Daisy Cooper MP said: 'This looks like the same old sleaze and scandal people have come to expect from the Conservative Party. 'Kemi Badenoch should immediately suspend the whip from George Freeman while this is investigated. 'Failure to act would confirm that even after being booted out of government, the Conservatives are still hopelessly out of touch.' The MP for Mid Norfolk is currently on the science, innovation and technology committee and a trade envoy. He was responsible for the UK space agency in his previous role as a minister in the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology under Rishi Sunak.
North Wales Chronicle
3 hours ago
- North Wales Chronicle
PM ‘incapable of sticking to a decision' after welfare U-turn
The reforms would only have made 'modest reductions to the ballooning welfare bill', but Sir Keir Starmer was 'too weak to hold the line', the Conservative Party leader is expected to say. In a speech to the Local Government Association Annual Conference in Liverpool on Wednesday, Ms Badenoch will criticise Sir Keir for creating a 'punishing welfare trap that shuts people out of going back to work'. 'This week, the Prime Minister backed down on limited reforms that would have made modest reductions to the ballooning welfare bill,' she will say. 'He was too weak to hold the line. 'The result? A punishing welfare trap that shuts people out of going back to work. 'Right now, Labour are making everything worse. And Keir Starmer sums up exactly what's wrong with politics today. 'Now that his backbenchers smell blood, there's almost certainly another climb down on the two-child benefit cap in the offing. 'Labour told us 'the adults were back in charge', but this is actually amateur hour. The Prime Minister is incapable of sticking to a decision. 'If he can't make relatively small savings to a benefits bill that is set to exceed £100 billion by 2030, how can we expect him to meet his promised 5% defence spending, or ever take the tough decisions necessary to bring down the national debt?' On Saturday, the Prime Minister told the Welsh Labour conference the 'broken' welfare system must be fixed 'in a Labour way'. In a speech to the Welsh Labour conference, he said: 'We cannot take away the safety net that vulnerable people rely on, and we won't, but we also can't let it become a snare for those who can and want to work,' the Prime Minister said. 'Everyone agrees that our welfare system is broken: failing people every day, a generation of young people written off for good and the cost spiralling out of control. 'Fixing it is a moral imperative, but we need to do it in a Labour way.'
