What Blaenau Gwent and the South Wales Valleys needed last week was a budget which assured hardworking people that their futures were in safe hands.

You will have heard the phrase “we needed a new deal, but what we got was a meal deal” many times by now.

And it’s right. And it’s a half-cooked meal deal at that.

The Chancellor had very little to say on funding for the public services which will be critical to our recovery, no clarity on funding for Wales and a continued absence of any information whatsoever about the Shared Prosperity Fund.

This pot of money could help places like Blaenau Gwent rebuild after being hit so hard by this pandemic.

There are already business closures happening in my constituency.

There is widespread uncertainty and people are losing their jobs. A restaurant discount will not ease their concerns.

The closing of the Job Retention Scheme and tapering off support for the self-employed and others assumes we are on course to sail smoothly out of this crisis.

The Job Retention bonus is welcome but, instead over being handed over to every business, the bonus should have been targeted at those who most need the support.

Billions of pounds of taxpayer money are at risk of being wasted by this one-size-fits-all approach.

The Chancellor’s jobs plan alone will not be breathe life into the economy. It should be complemented by more ambitious investment in training for young people.

The Kickstart scheme - which to me appears to be Labour’s own successful Future Jobs Fund revived - is to be welcomed, but we need real investment in those young people who are facing the toughest job market in decades.

Young people need opportunities right now - neither they, nor our economy, can afford to wait.

The Valleys have seen this before.

People in Blaenau Gwent remember the 1980s, they remember the pit and steelworks closures.

We know how important early investment is during tough times.

Now is the time for the Government to take the urgent action needed to protect our most vulnerable communities.