Derek Vaughan is a

Welsh Labour Welsh Labour (), formerly known as the Labour Party in Wales (), is an autonomous section of the United Kingdom Labour Party (UK), Labour Party in Wales and the largest party in modern Welsh politics. Welsh Labour and its forebears have won a p ...

politician who served as a

Member of the European Parliament A member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been Election, elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the European Coal and S ...

(MEP) for

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

between 2009 and 2019.

Early life and career

Vaughan was born in

Merthyr Tydfil Merthyr Tydfil () is the main town in Merthyr Tydfil County Borough, Wales, administered by Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council. It is about north of Cardiff. Often called just Merthyr, it is said to be named after Tydfil, daughter of K ...

, first studying at Afon Taf High School before working locally as an engineering apprentice and later for the

Valuation Office Agency The Valuation Office Agency is a government body in Great Britain. It is an executive agency of His Majesty's Revenue and Customs. The agency values properties for the purpose of Council Tax and for non-domestic rates in England and Wales ...

. He then went on to study Politics and History at

Swansea University Swansea University () is a public university, public research university located in Swansea, Wales, United Kingdom. It was chartered as University College of Swansea in 1920, as the fourth college of the University of Wales. In 1996, it chang ...

after which he returned to the Valuation Agency and then full-time as a

trades union A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

official for the Public and Commercial Services Union, a role he held until 2004.

Political life

Vaughan was first elected to

Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council (or simply Neath Port Talbot Council) is the local authority for the county borough of Neath Port Talbot, one of the 22 Principal areas of Wales, principal areas of Wales. The council was controlled by the ...

in 1995, representing Neath North. He became leader of the Labour group, and leader of the council, in 2004 before standing down in 2010 following his election as MEP. He was also leader of the Welsh Local Government Association from 2005 to 2008 and deputy leader from 2008 to 2009. In 2009, Vaughan was the first candidate on the Labour Party list for the

2009 European Parliament election The 2009 European Parliament election was held in the 27 member states of the European Union (EU) between 4 and 7 June 2009. A total of 736 Member of the European Parliament, Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) were elected to represent s ...

in Wales, and was elected on 8 June. He stood successfully for re-election in the European Election 2014. In the European Parliament, he is vice-chair of the Committee on Budgetary Control and a member of the Committee on Regional Development. He is also part of the delegation for relations with Australia and New Zealand. In 2016, the Welsh Election Study found that Vaughan, along with two other Welsh MEPs from Plaid Cymru and the Conservatives, had less name recognition than an invented name. Vaughan was appointed

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(CBE) in the

2019 Birthday Honours The 2019 Queen's Birthday Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vaughan, Derek 1961 births Living people Alumni of Swansea University People from Neath Welsh Labour MEPs MEPs for Wales 2009–2014 MEPs for Wales 2014–2019 Councillors in Wales People from Aberfan Commanders of the Order of the British Empire