Dafydd Elis-Thomas

"Dafydd Thomas" redirects here. For the Little Britain character, seeDaffyd Thomas.

The Right Honourable The Lord Elis-Thomas PC
Official portrait, 2019
Minister for Culture, Sport and Tourism
In office 3 November 2017 – 13 May 2021
First Minister	Carwyn Jones Mark Drakeford
Preceded by	Ken Skates
Succeeded by	Dawn Bowden
1stPresiding Officer of the National Assembly for Wales
In office 12 May 1999 – 11 May 2011
Monarch	Elizabeth II
First Minister	Alun Michael Rhodri Morgan Carwyn Jones
Deputy Presiding Officer	Jane Davidson John Marek Rosemary Butler
Preceded by	Position established
Succeeded by	Rosemary Butler
Assembly Member forDwyfor Meirionnydd Meirionnydd Nant Conwy(1999–2007)
In office 6 May 1999 – 29 April 2021
Preceded by	Position established
Succeeded by	Mabon ap Gwynfor
UK Parliamentary representation Member of the House of Lords Lord Temporal Incumbent Assumed office 18 September 1992 Life peerage Member of Parliament forMeirionnydd Nant Conwy (Merioneth,1974–1983) In office 28 February 1974 – 16 March 1992 Preceded by William Edwards Succeeded by Elfyn Llwyd
Personal details
Born	Dafydd Elis Thomas (1946-10-18)18 October 1946 Carmarthen,Carmarthenshire,Wales
Political party	Independent(2016–present)
Other political affiliations	Plaid Cymru(1970–2016)
Spouse(s)	Elen Williams Mair Parry Jones (present)
Children	3

Dafydd Elis Elis-Thomas, Baron Elis-Thomas,PC(néThomas;born 18 October 1946), is a Welshpoliticianwho served as the leader ofPlaid Cymrufrom 1984 to 1991 and represented theDwyfor Meirionnyddconstituency in theSeneddfrom 1999 to 2021.

Born inCarmarthen,Wales, he was raised inCeredigionand theConwy Valley.He representedMerionethand laterMeirionnydd Nant Conwyas amember of Parliament(MP) from 1974 to 1992, and wasPresiding Officer of the National Assembly for Walesfrom the office's inception in 1999 to 2011. Elis-Thomas has been a member of theHouse of Lordssince 1992 and aprivy counsellorsince 2004. In 2016, he left Plaid Cymru to supportCarwyn Jones's governmentin the Senedd, sitting as an independent. He joined the Welsh government in November 2017 and wasMinister for Culture, Sport and Tourismuntil May 2021. Elis-Thomas applied to rejoin Plaid Cymru in August 2023,but withdrew his application later in the year.

Personal

Dafydd Elis Thomas was born on 18 October 1946 at Priory Hospital, Carmarthen, and brought up in theLlandysularea of Ceredigion, and inLlanrwstin 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 theCampaign for Nuclear Disarmament(CND). In 1993, he married Mair Parry-Jones. He lives inLlandaff,Cardiff(when working at the Senedd) andBetws-y-Coed(in the Aberconwy constituency, but prior to boundary changes in his constituency).

Professional career

He was the chairman of theWelsh Language Boardbetween 1994 and 1999, and is a former member of theArts Council of Walesand theBritish Film Institutewhere 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 ofBangor Universitysince 2000, as well as currently being a member of the governing body of theChurch in Wales.

Political career

UK Parliament

Having come third atConwyin the1970 general election,Thomas served as MP forMerionethbetween 1974 and 1983, initially as theBaby of the House,and subsequently as MP forMeirionnydd Nant Conwyfrom 1983 to 1992.On entering the House of Commons in 1974, he became one of the first MPs to be allowed to take theoath of allegianceinWelshas well as in English.

He was created alife peeron 18 September 1992 asBaron Elis-Thomas, of Nant Conwy in the County of Gwynedd,with a change of his surname fromThomastoElis-Thomas.He sat as acrossbenchpeer 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 Cymruwhipin the Lords until leaving the party in 2016.

Senedd

Elis-Thomas was elected to the newly establishedNational Assembly for Wales(now called "Senedd Cymru" or "the Welsh Parliament", or simplySenedd) in 1999, representing theMeirionnydd Nant Conwyconstituency until the 2007 election, and then theDwyfor Meirionnyddconstituency.He also held the position ofPresiding Officerfrom the Assembly's inception in 1999 until 2011.During his tenure as Presiding Officer, he expelled Assembly memberLeanne Woodfrom the Assembly chamber during a December 2004 debate after Wood referred to QueenElizabeth IIas "MrsWindsor"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 aWelsh Governmentreshuffle, Elis-Thomas was appointed asMinister for Culture, Tourism and Sport.

Elis-Thomas is also Honorary President of the anti-fascist organisationSearchlight Cymru.

He announced on Dewi Llwyd'sBBC Radio Cymruprogramme on 12 April 2020 that he will not be standing in the2021 Senedd election.After long consideration he said that he will not be standing inDwyfor Meirionnyddin 2021, but said that there are many other ways to serve society.

External links

• National Assembly for WalesMember profile
• Hansard1803–2005:contributions in Parliament by Dafydd Elis-Thomas