EARLIER this year witnesses told the Welsh Affairs Select Committee, which was looking at preparations for the Nato Summit, that if organisers could get Wales mentioned a few times by some world leaders we would be doing wonders for the brand of Wales internationally, let alone Newport.

In the event, we surpassed that. Driving back from the bedroom tax vote last Friday it was wonderful to hear Barack Obama on Radio Five Live repeating how great it was to be in Newport, Wales.

And colleagues this week at a defence conference in France told me how delegates referred to the “Newport” summit.

Local MPs were able to say to the PM last week what a great opportunity hosting Nato had been for Newport, how our community embraced the opportunity and how we must all work together to capitalise on this international awareness of Newport and Wales.

The forthcoming investment conference at the Celtic Manor in November will showcase what Wales can offer business and industry and, like the Nato summit, it’s an opportunity we must grasp.

During the summer my office was inundated with constituents struggling to get abroad at the height of the passport crisis.

Staff in Newport and the other UK passport offices deserve thanks for working so hard to try rectify the situation.

The problem was caused by the Coalition Government reducing staff and resources in UK Passport offices even though demand has remained consistently high.

Last week, in reply to my parliamentary question, we learnt that the Government had earned £5 million more in 2014 than the same period in 2012, because many travellers were forced to use the fast track service of obtaining a passport due to the delays in the normal application process. Travellers have been forced to pay more to get the service that the Government has cut.

Thank you to the many constituents who got in touch to ask me to attend the recent bedroom tax vote.

The Affordable Homes bill will exempt tenants from this obscene tax if they need an extra room for medical reasons or if the property has undergone substantial adaptations.

I was keen to vote for this, but the bill falls short of completely scrapping it. Labour has been consistent in opposing the bedroom tax and will scrap it entirely if elected next year.