Since becoming leader of the council, I was determined to hit the ground running. It is necessary given the scale of change we need to drive through.

One of my top priorities is to reset the culture at the council and, crucially, tackle the negative narrative that exists about the city.

Already in my short tenure, I have met many local business leaders, and lots of community groups and spoken to a wide variety of residents across the city. Everyone agrees with Newport’s potential and are sick of the doom-mongers dominating our local conversations.

This city, our city, has so much potential, however it is important to recognise that there are so many good things already happening or being planned for the city, not just by the council, but also by community groups, the private sector, our sports clubs and Newport Live.

One example is this recent Big Splash event, driven and led by Newport Live, which brought in thousands of people into the city centre and along the riverfront.

We’re now in the summer holidays, which means that the opening of Splash ‘Port at Tredegar Park couldn’t come soon enough! It will be a brilliant addition to the city, offering lots of different water play, including 26 different water sprinkler features and a massive water tipping bucket.

In terms of the private sector, I visited the construction site for Microsoft’s new data warehouse being built in Newport (which will create 120 permanent jobs), KLA’s new factory that builds state-of-the-art machines for the semiconductor industry, Vishay who has bought Newport’s Wafer Fab factory, attended the board of BID Newport (a collection of businesses in and around the city centre) working together to drive the city forward and Tramshed Tech that exists to support entrepreneurs and start-ups to acquire the financing and skills to grow and much more.

Does that mean there are no issues in the city? No, of course not. I and my new cabinet must be resolutely focused on those issues, including the regeneration of the city centre.

The issues we face are very similar to the ones faced by cities across the UK. We - and it is very much we, not me - have to answer this challenge in a Newport way. It is important I and the entire council listen and, where possible, act upon those concerns.

However, I will not feed the naysayers of Newport. They are people who live to be negative and be down on everything in the city. I am, and will be, unashamedly positive about our city.

Lastly, since being elected leader, I have visited every secondary school in the city. I wanted to see for myself the amazing work our teachers and support staff do to bring out the best of our talented children.

I was also keen to listen the very real issues our schools face, which is significant given the demands being placed upon them, as well as the financial constraints. I will address this in the coming months but the lasting impression I was left with was how talented our children are and the bright future that heralds for the city.

Dimitri Batrouni is the leader of Newport City Council