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Llew Smith
Llewellyn Thomas Smith (16 April 1944 – 26 May 2021) was a British Labour Party politician. Early life and education According to Smith, his father was born in England and moved to Wales as a child. He began working at the local colliery ( Newbridge) at the age of thirteen, and his brother died in a tragic accident while also working there. Smith's father eventually died of cancer and pneumoconiosis, a group of diseases typically associated with mineworkers. Smith was educated at Coleg Harlech as an adult, referring to himself as a "second chance" student. Before becoming a politician, he worked as a labourer and computer operator. Political career Smith was Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for South Wales East from 1984 to 1994, being re-elected in the 1989 European election. While in this position, he worked with members like Alex Falconer, Stan Newens, and Alf Lomas to improve the democratic accountability of the parliament. At the 1992 general election he wa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Member Of Parliament (United Kingdom)
In the United Kingdom, a Member of Parliament (MP) is an individual elected to serve in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Electoral system All 650 members of the UK House of Commons are elected using the first-past-the-post voting system in single member United Kingdom Parliament constituencies, constituencies across the whole of the United Kingdom, where each constituency has its own single representative. Elections All MP positions become simultaneously vacant for elections held on a five-year cycle, or when a snap election is called. Since the Dissolution and Calling of Parliament Act 2022, Parliament is automatically dissolved once five years have elapsed from its first meeting after an election. If a Vacancy (economics), vacancy arises at another time, due to death or Resignation from the British House of Commons, resignation, then a constituency vacancy may be filled by a by-election. Un ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alex Falconer (Scottish Politician)
Alex C. Falconer (1 April 1940 – 12 August 2012) was a Labour Party politician in Scotland. He was the Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for Mid Scotland and Fife from 1984 to 1999. He was a campaigner on international development, globalisation, equalities, human rights and environmental issues. He was prominent in leading a number of campaigns throughout the Margaret Thatcher years, including against the poll tax and water privatisation. Early life and career Born in 1940, Alex Falconer left school without any formal qualifications. His first employment was as a lodge boy in the Blackness Foundry in Dundee. After being made redundant in 1958, he joined the Royal Navy, in which he served for nine years. After a short period as a labourer in the Ministry of Public Building and Works, and a year as a stoker in a Dunfermline hospital, he joined Rosyth Dockyard as a lagger in 1969. He became a shop steward in 1970, and served on many negotiating committees in the Civi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Plaid Cymru
Plaid Cymru ( ; , ; officially Plaid Cymru – the Party of Wales, and often referred to simply as Plaid) is a centre-left, Welsh nationalist list of political parties in Wales, political party in Wales, committed to Welsh independence from the United Kingdom. It campaigns on a platform of social democracy and civic nationalism. The party is a supporter of the European Union and is a member of the European Free Alliance (EFA). The party holds 4 of 32 Welsh seats in the UK Parliament, 12 of 60 seats in the Senedd, and 202 of 1,231 principal local authority councillors. Plaid was formed in 1925 under the name ''Plaid Genedlaethol Cymru'' (English: The National Party of Wales) and Gwynfor Evans won the first Westminster seat for the party at the 1966 Carmarthen by-election. In 1999 National Assembly for Wales election, 1999 (in the first devolved Senedd, Welsh Assembly election), Plaid Cymru gained considerable ground in traditionally Labour heartlands. These breakthroughs were pa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2001 United Kingdom General Election
The 2001 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday 7 June 2001, four years after the previous election on 1 May 1997, to elect 659 members to the House of Commons. The governing Labour Party led by Prime Minister Tony Blair was re-elected to serve a second term in government with another landslide victory with a 166-seat majority, returning 412 members of Parliament versus 418 from the previous election, a net loss of six seats, although with a significantly lower turnout than before—59.4%, compared to 71.6% at the previous election. The number of votes Labour received fell by nearly three million. Blair went on to become the only Labour prime minister to serve two consecutive full terms in office. As Labour retained almost all of their seats won in the 1997 landslide victory, the media dubbed the 2001 election "the quiet landslide". There was little change outside Northern Ireland, with 620 out of the 641 seats in Great Britain electing candidates from the sam ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1997 Welsh Devolution Referendum
The 1997 Welsh devolution referendum was a pre-legislative referendum held in Wales on 18 September 1997 over whether there was support for the creation of a National Assembly for Wales, and therefore a degree of self-government. The referendum was a Labour manifesto commitment and was held in their first term after the 1997 election under the provisions of the Referendums (Scotland and Wales) Act 1997. This was the second referendum held in Wales over the question of devolution: the first referendum was held in 1979 and was defeated by a large majority. The referendum resulted in a narrow majority in favour, which led to the passing of the Government of Wales Act 1998 and the formation of the National Assembly for Wales in 1999. Background A referendum was held in 1979 (with a parallel referendum in Scotland) proposing the creation of a Welsh Assembly, under James Callaghan's Labour government. The referendum stipulated that a Welsh Assembly would be created if supporte ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ron Davies (Welsh Politician)
Ronald Davies (born 6 August 1946) is a retired Welsh politician, former Secretary of State for Wales, former Member of Parliament and former member of the Welsh Assembly. He describes himself as a politician belonging to the "traditional left" who had "spent his life looking for a socialist progressive party". He was a member of the Labour Party (until 2004), and then of Forward Wales (2004–2009); he was subsequently an independent candidate and eventually joined Plaid Cymru in 2010. Davies is credited with being the "architect of devolution" in Wales and led the campaign to create the National Assembly for Wales. He became the first Cabinet Minister to resign from Tony Blair's Cabinet in 1998, following what became known as a "moment of madness" when he was mugged at knifepoint after agreeing to go for a meal with a man he had met at the well-known gay meeting place of Clapham Common. Early and personal life Born in Machen in the Rhymney Valley in Monmouthshire, he was e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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, Its role is to scrutinise the Welsh Government and legislate on devolved matters that are not reserved to the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It is a bilingual institution, with both Welsh and English being the official languages of its business. From its creation in May 1999 until May 2020, the Senedd was officially known as the National Assembly for Wales () and was often simply called the Welsh Assembly. The Senedd comprises 60 members who are known as members of the Senedd (), abbreviated as "MS" (). Since 2011, members are elected for a five-year term of office under an Additional-member system, in which 40 MSs represent smaller geographical divisions known as "constituencies" and are elected by first-past-the-post voting, and 20 MSs represent five "electoral regions" using the D'Hondt method of pr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Devolution In The United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom, devolution (historically called home rule) is the Parliament of the United Kingdom's statutory granting of a greater level of self-government to parts of the United Kingdom, such as to Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and parts of England, specifically to London and the combined authorities. Statutory powers have been awarded to the Scottish Parliament, the Senedd (Welsh Parliament), and the Northern Ireland Assembly, with authority exercised by their associated executive bodies: the Scottish Government, Welsh Government, and Northern Ireland Executive respectively. While in England, oversight powers and general responsibility have also been given to the London Assembly, which oversees the Greater London Authority and Mayor of London, and since 2011 various mayoral combined authorities throughout England. There have been further proposals for devolution in England, including national devolution, regional devolution (such as to northern Englan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Iraq War
The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with 2003 invasion of Iraq, the invasion by a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition, which resulted in the overthrow of the Ba'athist Iraq, Ba'athist government of Saddam Hussein. The conflict persisted Iraqi insurgency (2003–2011), as an insurgency arose against coalition forces and the newly established Iraqi government. US forces Withdrawal of United States troops from Iraq (2007–2011), were officially withdrawn in 2011. In 2014, the US became re-engaged in Iraq, leading a new coalition under Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve, as the conflict evolved into the ongoing Islamic State insurgency in Iraq (2017–present), Islamic State insurgency. The Iraq invasion was part of the Presidency of George W. Bush, Bush administration's broader war on terror, launched in response to the September 11 attacks. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tony Blair
Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He was Leader of the Opposition (United Kingdom), Leader of the Opposition from 1994 to 1997 and held various shadow cabinet posts from 1987 to 1994. Blair was Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Sedgefield (UK Parliament constituency), Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007, and was special envoy of the Quartet on the Middle East from 2007 to 2015. He is the second-List of prime ministers of the United Kingdom by length of tenure, longest-serving prime minister in post-war British history after Margaret Thatcher, the longest-serving Labour Party (UK), Labour politician to have held the office, and the first and only person to date to lead the party to three consecutive general election victories. Blair attended the independent s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Private Finance Initiative
The private finance initiative (PFI) was a United Kingdom government procurement policy aimed at creating "public–private partnerships" (PPPs) where private firms are contracted to complete and manage public projects. Initially launched in 1992 by Prime Minister John Major, and expanded considerably by the Blair government, PFI is part of the wider programme of privatisation and macroeconomic public policy, and presented as a means for increasing accountability and efficiency for public spending. PFI is controversial in the UK. In 2003, the National Audit Office felt that it provided good value for money overall; according to critics, PFI has been used simply to place a great amount of debt "off-balance-sheet". In 2011, the parliamentary Treasury Select Committee recommended: In October 2018, the Chancellor Philip Hammond announced that the UK government would no longer use PFI for new infrastructure projects; however, PFI projects would continue to operate for some time ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Socialist Campaign Group
The Socialist Campaign Group, also simply known as the Campaign Group, is a UK parliamentary caucus of the Labour Party (UK), Labour Party including Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Members of Parliament in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons. The group also includes some MPs who formerly represented Labour in Parliament but have had the Whip (politics), whip withdrawn or been expelled from the party. The group was formed in 1982 following the 1981 Labour deputy leadership election when a number of soft left MPs, led by Neil Kinnock, refused to back Tony Benn's campaign, leading a number of left-wing Benn-supporting MPs to split from the Tribune Group to form the Campaign Group. It was at a meeting of the Campaign Group in 2015 that the decision was taken that Jeremy Corbyn would contest for the Leader of the Labour Party (UK), leadership of the Labour Party. The Campaign Group maintains close links with Momentum (organisation), Momentum. Origins ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
