Jeff Jones is a retired Labour Party politician from the town of

Maesteg Maesteg (; ) is a town and community in Bridgend County Borough, Wales. Maesteg lies at the northernmost end of the Llynfi Valley, close to the border with Neath Port Talbot. In 2011, Maesteg had a population of 20,612. The English translatio ...

, Wales who rose to become Council Leader of

Bridgend County Borough Council Bridgend County Borough Council () is the governing body for Bridgend County Borough, one of the principal areas of Wales. History Bridgend County Borough and its council came into effect from 1 April 1996, following the '' Local Government (W ...

. He is known throughout

South Wales South Wales ( ) is a Regions of Wales, loosely defined region of Wales bordered by England to the east and mid Wales to the north. Generally considered to include the Historic counties of Wales, historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire ( ...

as an outspoken local politician. Jones was brought up, the son of a miner and steelworker, in Maesteg. He studied political history at the

London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. The school specialises in the social sciences. Founded ...

. Jones was a councillor in Maesteg on the

Mid Glamorgan County Council Mid Glamorgan County Council () was the upper-tier authority for the Welsh county of Mid Glamorgan between its creation in 1974 and its abolition in 1996. History Local government in England and Wales was reorganised in 1974 under the Local Gove ...

from 1981, initially for the Maesteg No. 2 ward, which became Maesteg East. From 1995 he became one of the two councillors for the Bridgend County Borough Council ward of Maesteg East. He retired from politics in 2004 before the Labour administration – which had held power since 1996 – was defeated by a coalition in the June 2004 council elections. After writing a letter to Wales First Minister

Rhodri Morgan Hywel Rhodri Morgan (29 September 1939 – 17 May 2017) was a Welsh Labour politician who was the First Minister of Wales and the Leader of Welsh Labour from 2000 to 2009. He was also the Senedd, Assembly Member for Cardiff West (Senedd constitu ...

citing concerns about the 2004 Clywch inquiry (into allegations of sexual abuse), there was an unsuccessful attempt to prosecute Jones for contempt. Jones says it was an attempt to silence him. Though found not to be in contempt, he had to pay £10,000 legal costs. In March 2006 Jones was cleared of claims he had breached the council's code of conduct, after a grievance had been brought against him by a council employee about comments made on a television programme in 2003. Jones' comments were described by the local government ombudsman as "somewhat hostile" but not "abusive". His attempt to become a governor in 2008 of

Maesteg Comprehensive School Ysgol Maesteg School is an English language comprehensive school situated in the town of Maesteg in the South Wales Valleys of south-eastern Wales. The former and more commonly used name of the school is Maesteg Comprehensive School, or Ysgol Gy ...

was thwarted by the county council. Jones has subsequently set himself up as a local government consultant.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Jeff Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Welsh Labour politicians Members of Bridgend County Borough Council People from Bridgend Leaders of local authorities of Wales Members of Mid Glamorgan County Council