I am humbled and excited at being elected to be the Labour MP for Blaenau Gwent.

Humbled because I 'stand on the shoulders of giants' like Nye Bevan and Michael Foot before me, and excited as I look forward to standing up for local people.

It is an honour for me, as a local lad, to have been elected to my home seat. I was born into a mining and steelmaking family, lived on a local council estate and went to school at Tredegar Comprehensive.

Blaenau Gwent is my passion.

I promise Blaenau Gwent people that I will stand up for them and be their champion. My priorities for the area will be to work with our Labour colleagues in Westminster and Cardiff Bay to campaign for more investment in public services, deliver results on tackling crime and to maximise job opportunities.