Dafydd Elis-Thomas, Baron Elis-Thomas (born 18 October 1946) is a

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, ...

who served as the Leader of

Plaid Cymru Plaid Cymru ( ; ; officially Plaid Cymru – the Party of Wales, often referred to simply as Plaid) is a centre-left to left-wing, Welsh nationalist political party in Wales, committed to Welsh independence from the United Kingdom. Plaid wa ...

from 1984 to 1991 and represented the Dwyfor Meirionnydd constituency in the

Senedd The Senedd (; ), officially known as the Welsh Parliament in English and () in Welsh, is the devolved, unicameral legislature of Wales. A democratically elected body, it makes laws for Wales, agrees certain taxes and scrutinises the Welsh Gov ...

from 1999 to 2021. Born in

Carmarthen Carmarthen (, RP: ; cy, Caerfyrddin , "Merlin's fort" or "Sea-town fort") is the county town of Carmarthenshire and a community in Wales, lying on the River Towy. north of its estuary in Carmarthen Bay. The population was 14,185 in 2011, ...

, Wales, he was raised in

Ceredigion Ceredigion ( , , ) is a county in the west of Wales, corresponding to the historic county of Cardiganshire. During the second half of the first millennium Ceredigion was a minor kingdom. It has been administered as a county since 1282. Cer ...

and the Conwy Valley. He represented

Merioneth , HQ= Dolgellau , Government= Merionethshire County Council (1889-1974) , Origin= , Status= , Start= 1284 , End= , Code= MER , CodeName= ...

, then Meirionnydd Nant Conwy constituencies as a

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...

from 1974 to 1992 and was the Llywydd of the Senedd (the speaker) from its inception in 1999 to 2011. He is a member of the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminst ...

, a former leader of

, and, since 2004, a privy counsellor. On 14 October 2016 he left the party in order to support the

Welsh Government The Welsh Government ( cy, Llywodraeth Cymru) is the Welsh devolution, devolved government of Wales. The government consists of ministers and Minister (government), deputy ministers, and also of a Counsel General for Wales, counsel general. Minist ...

and sat as an independent in the Senedd. In November 2017, he joined the Welsh Government. He was the Deputy Minister for Culture, Sport and Tourism until May 2021.

Personal

Thomas was born on 18 October 1946 at Priory Hospital, Carmarthen, and brought up in the

Llandysul Llandysul is a small town and community in the county of Ceredigion, Wales. As a community it consists of the townships of Capel Dewi, Horeb, Pontsian, Pren-gwyn, Tregroes, Rhydowen and the village of Llandysul itself. Llandysul lies in sout ...

area of Ceredigion, and in

Llanrwst Llanrwst ('church or parish of Saint Grwst'; ) is a market town and community on the A470 road and the River Conwy, in Conwy County Borough, Wales, and the historic county of Denbighshire. It developed round the wool trade and became known als ...

in the Conwy Valley. In 1970, he married Elen Williams and had three sons. They later divorced. From the mid-1980s until 1992 his partner was Marjorie Thompson, the chairwoman of the

Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) is an organisation that advocates unilateral nuclear disarmament by the United Kingdom, international nuclear disarmament and tighter international arms regulation through agreements such as the Nuc ...

(CND). In 1993, he married Mair Parry-Jones. He lives in

Llandaff Llandaff (; cy, Llandaf ; from 'church' and ''River Taff, Taf'') is a district, Community (Wales), community and coterminous electoral ward in the north of Cardiff, capital of Wales. It was incorporated into the city in 1922. It is the seat of ...

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a ...

(when working at the Senedd) and

Betws-y-Coed Betws-y-coed (; '' en, prayer house in the wood'') is a village and community in the Conwy valley in Conwy County Borough, Wales, located in the historic county of Caernarfonshire, right on the boundary with Denbighshire, in the Gwydir Forest. ...

(in the Aberconwy constituency, but prior to boundary changes in his constituency).

Professional career

He was the chairman of the

Welsh Language Board The Welsh Language Board ( cy, Bwrdd yr Iaith Gymraeg) was a statutory body set up by Her Majesty's Government under the Welsh Language Act 1993. It was an Assembly Sponsored Public Body. It began its life under John Walter Jones, and its las ...

between 1994 and 1999, and is a former member of the

Arts Council of Wales The Arts Council of Wales (ACW; cy, Cyngor Celfyddydau Cymru) is a Welsh Government-sponsored body, responsible for funding and developing the arts in Wales. Established within the Arts Council of Great Britain in 1946, as the Welsh Arts C ...

and the

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

where he was Chairman of Screen between 1992 and 1999. He was also a director and vice-chairman of Cynefin Environmental Ltd. between 1992 and 1999. A former university lecturer, he has also been the president of

Bangor University , former_names = University College of North Wales (1884–1996) University of Wales, Bangor (1996–2007) , image = File:Arms_of_Bangor_University.svg , image_size = 250px , caption = Arms ...

since 2000, as well as currently being a member of the governing body of the

Church in Wales The Church in Wales ( cy, Yr Eglwys yng Nghymru) is an Anglican church in Wales, composed of six dioceses. The Archbishop of Wales does not have a fixed archiepiscopal see, but serves concurrently as one of the six diocesan bishops. The pos ...

Political career

UK Parliament

Having come third at

Conwy Conwy (, ), previously known in English as Conway, is a walled market town, community and the administrative centre of Conwy County Borough in North Wales. The walled town and castle stand on the west bank of the River Conwy, facing Deganwy on ...

in 1970, Thomas served as Member of Parliament for the

Merioneth , HQ= Dolgellau , Government= Merionethshire County Council (1889-1974) , Origin= , Status= , Start= 1284 , End= , Code= MER , CodeName= ...

constituency between 1974 and 1983, initially as the "

Baby of the House Baby of the House is the unofficial title given to the youngest member of a parliamentary house. The term is most often applied to members of the British parliament from which the term originated. The title is named after the Father of the Hous ...

", and the Meirionnydd Nant Conwy constituency from 1983 to 1992. On entering the House of Commons in 1974, he became one of the first MPs to be allowed to take the oath of allegiance in the

Welsh language Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic language of the Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people. Welsh is spoken natively in Wales, by some in England, and in Y Wladfa (the Welsh colony in Chubut Province, Argentina). Historically, it h ...

as well as in English. He was made a

life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. In modern times, life peerages, always created at the rank of baron, are created under the Life Peerages ...

in 1992, and changed his surname from Thomas to Elis-Thomas by

deed poll A deed poll (plural: deeds poll) is a legal document binding on a single person or several persons acting jointly to express an intention or create an obligation. It is a deed, and not a contract because it binds only one party. Etymology The ...

, enabling him to take the title Baron Elis-Thomas, of Nant Conwy in the County of Gwynedd. He sat as a

crossbench A crossbencher is an independent or minor party member of some legislatures, such as the British House of Lords and the Parliament of Australia. They take their name from the crossbenches, between and perpendicular to the government and oppositi ...

peer because at that time he had taken on the non-political role of chair of the Welsh Language Board; in 2012 he took the Plaid Cymru whip in the Lords.

Senedd

Elis-Thomas was elected to the newly established

National Assembly for Wales The Senedd (; ), officially known as the Welsh Parliament in English and () in Welsh, is the devolved, unicameral legislature of Wales. A democratically elected body, it makes laws for Wales, agrees certain taxes and scrutinises the Welsh Go ...

(now called "Senedd Cymru" or "the Welsh Parliament", or simply

) in 1999, representing the Meirionnydd Nant Conwy constituency until the 2007 election, and then the Dwyfor Meirionnydd constituency. He also held the position of Presiding Officer from the Assembly's inception in 1999 until 2011. During his tenure as Presiding Officer, he expelled Assembly member

Leanne Wood Leanne Wood (born 13 December 1971) is a Welsh politician who served as the leader of Plaid Cymru from March 2012 to September 2018, and served as a Member of the Senedd (MS) from 2003 to 2021. Born in the Rhondda, she was elected as to the ...

from the Assembly chamber during a December 2004 debate after Wood referred to Queen

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states durin ...

as "Mrs Windsor" during a debate and refused to withdraw the remark, the first time an AM was ordered out of the chamber on those grounds. From 2011, Elis-Thomas was Plaid Cymru's spokesperson for Environment, Energy and Planning before transferring to Rural Affairs, Fisheries and Food in 2012. In October 2016 he left Plaid Cymru, but remained in the Assembly as an Independent member. In November 2017, as part of a

reshuffle, Elis-Thomas was appointed as Minister for Culture, Tourism and Sport. Elis-Thomas is also Honorary President of the anti-fascist organisation Searchlight Cymru. He announced on Dewi Llwyd's

BBC Radio Cymru BBC Radio Cymru is a Welsh language radio network owned and operated by BBC Cymru Wales, a division of the BBC. It broadcasts on two stations across Wales on FM, DAB, digital TV and online. The main network broadcasts for hours a day from ...

programme on 12 April 2020 that he will not be standing in the

next Senedd Election The next Senedd election is due to be held in or before May 2026 to elect 60 members to the Senedd (Welsh Parliament; ). It will be the seventh devolved general election since the Senedd (formerly the National Assembly for Wales) was establis ...

in 2021. After long consideration he said that he will not be standing in Dwyfor Meirionnydd in 2021, but said that there are many other ways to serve society.

References

External links

National Assembly for Wales
Member profile * {{DEFAULTSORT:Elis-Thomas, Dafydd 1946 births Crossbench life peers Living people Plaid Cymru members of the Senedd People from Carmarthenshire Leaders of Plaid Cymru Plaid Cymru MPs UK MPs 1983–1987 UK MPs 1974 UK MPs 1974–1979 UK MPs 1979–1983 UK MPs 1987–1992 Wales AMs 1999–2003 Wales AMs 2003–2007 Wales AMs 2007–2011 Wales AMs 2011–2016 Wales MSs 2016–2021 Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Life peers created by Elizabeth II Presidents of Bangor University Welsh-speaking politicians Presiding Officers of the Senedd Independent members of the Senedd