William Powell (Liberal Democrat politician)
 |
Cllr William Powell | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of the Welsh Assembly for Mid and West Wales | |
| In office May 2011 – May 2016 | |
| Preceded by | Nick Bourne (Conservative) |
| Succeeded by | Neil Hamilton (UKIP) |
| Personal details | |
| Nationality | British |
| Political party | Welsh Liberal Democrats |
| Alma mater | Pembroke College, Oxford |
William Powell is a Welsh Liberal Democrat politician. He has been a Powys County Councillor since 2004,[1] and was the Member of the Welsh Assembly (AM) for the Mid and West Wales Region from 2011 to 2016.
Background
[edit]Powell attended Talgarth Community Primary School[2] and Gwernyfed High School,[3] gaining a scholarship to read Modern Languages (French and German) at Pembroke College, Oxford.[4] He is a qualified teacher and has taught French and German at a number of schools in Wales and the Marches. Latterly, William was Head of German at Hereford Sixth Form College, where he was also the European Officer.[5]
In 1998 he was awarded County Winner of the Royal Welsh Agricultural Society Agri-Environment Award.[citation needed]
Powell has consistently attended the annual Cilmeri commemoration to mark the last battle of Prince Llywelyn.[6][7]
Political career
[edit]Powell represented Talgarth ward on Powys County Council since 2004 and has been active in rural regeneration projects, including the restoration of Talgarth Mill, of which he is a founder Director. He is also a Member of the FUW, a Governor of Talgarth CP School and Gwernyfed High School. He is also a member of the Lloyd George Society, where he serves on the Committee. He is a former member of the Brecon Beacons National Park Authority.
For many years Powell has been one of the central figures in the European Movement in Wales.[citation needed] He was a founding Board Member of Wales in Europe and is an active Member of Wales Council European Movement, which he chaired for over a decade. In addition, he is a Council Member of the European Liberal Democrats (ALDE) which includes Liberal sister-parties from across Europe. In 1999 he stood for the Pro-Euro Conservative Party in the European election in Wales but joined the Liberal Democrats shortly afterwards.
He was elected as the first Welsh Liberal Democrat Assembly Member for the Mid and West Wales region in the elections in May 2011.[8] Following the election he was Welsh Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Environment, Sustainable Development and Rural Affairs.
Within the Assembly, Powell was Chair of the Petitions Committee[9] throughout the 4th Assembly and a member for the Environment and Sustainability Committee.[10] He represented the Welsh Liberal Democrats in the National Assembly on both the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) and the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly (BIPA). He was also Chair of the Cross Party Group on Europe.
As Chair of the Assembly's Petitions Committee, he was central to a number of successful petitions, including one on term-time school holidays,[11] one calling for the construction of a second Dyfi bridge[12] and a further one which successfully resulted in the reinstatement of the Diabetes Reference Group for Powys.[13]
In January 2014, the BBC[14] and Western Mail[15] reported that Powell had been given a formal warning by the Liberal Democrats for inappropriate behaviour towards a young female party activist.
In July 2014,[16] Powell hit out at Alun Davies AM for seeking to gain personal information on him and four other Assembly Members, Andrew RT Davies, Llyr Huws Gruffydd, Kirsty Williams and Antoinette Sandbach, regarding EU farming subsidies received by their respective family businesses. Alun Davies believed this caused a conflict of interest, however the Minister's actions led directly to his sacking by First Minister Carwyn Jones and Alun Davies subsequently issued a personal apology to all AMs involved regarding EU farming subsidies received by their respective family businesses.[17]
In 2015 Powell was shortlisted for the Wales Green Energy Awards in recognition for his support for renewable energy throughout his time as an Assembly Member. He spoke about the topic during Plenary sessions, and worked with energy companies to try and advance their case, whilst at the same time ensuring that the communities and businesses he represents have their voices heard.[citation needed]
Powell lost his Welsh Assembly seat in 2016 to UKIP. He was re-elected as a County Councillor for Talgarth in Powys in 2017.[1]
Following the resignation of Kirsty Williams, Powell was chosen as the Liberal Democrat candidate for Brecon and Radnorshire at the 2021 Senedd election.[18] At the time, this was the party's only remaining seat in Wales.[19] Powell was unsuccessful in defending the seat, which was won by Conservative candidate James Evans.[20] However, Welsh Liberal Democrat leader Jane Dodds won a regional seat on the Mid and West Wales list.
Personal life
[edit]Powell lives with his family on their farm in the Black Mountains near Talgarth, Powys, where his ancestors have farmed since the 18th Century.[21]
On 26 March 2020, he was admitted to Nevill Hall Hospital in Abergavenny with COVID-19 symptoms.[22] He spent two and a half weeks of his three-week stay in an induced coma on a ventilator.[23]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Councillor details – Powell, William". powys.moderngov.co.uk. 12 April 2020.
- ^ Mosalski, Ruth (28 March 2021). "Senedd election 2021: Who is standing in Brecon and Radnorshire?". WalesOnline. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
- ^ "William Powell sends a personal message about his views on Gwernyfed High School Closure – FYI Talgarth". talgarth.fyinetwork.co.uk. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
- ^ "Powell is Liberal choice". mywelshpool. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
- ^ "William Powell". senedd.wales. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
- ^ "Featured articles". culture.cymru. 1 March 2013. Archived from the original on 29 January 2018.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ Misstear, Rachael (5 December 2014). "Llywelyn the Last memorial planned by group dedicated to his memory". WalesOnline.
- ^ "Wales elections – Mid and West Wales". Vote 2011. BBC News. Retrieved 17 May 2011.
- ^ Petitions Committee – Fourth Assembly, National Assembly for Wales.
- ^ "Committee Profile". National Assembly for Wales.
- ^ Hibbard, Sarah (7 December 2015). "Some term-time holiday fines 'unfair'" – via www.bbc.co.uk.
- ^ "Info" (PDF). www.senedd.assembly.wales. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
- ^ "Petition" (PDF). www.senedd.assembly.wales. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
- ^ "AM warned on inappropriate behaviour". 25 January 2014 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
- ^ McCarthy, James (25 January 2014). "Lib Dem AM William Powell given formal warning on inappropriate behaviour". WalesOnline.
- ^ "AM hits out at sacked minister". Brecon & Radnor Express. 9 July 2014.
- ^ "Sacked minister apologises to AMs". 9 July 2014 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
- ^ Jones, Matt (14 December 2020). "Lib Dems announce William Powell as B&R candidate for May's Senedd election". County Times. Retrieved 5 February 2021.
- ^ McAllister, Laura (30 January 2021). "Where did it all go wrong for the Liberal Democrats?". WalesOnline. Retrieved 5 February 2021.
Brecon and Radnorshire will be a crucial seat to watch on election night, as former MS William Powell battles to hold the party's single seat.
- ^ "Senedd Election 2021: Tories win Brecon and Radnorshire seat from Lib Dems". South Wales Argus. 8 May 2021.
- ^ "About Me". William Powell. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
- ^ Parry, Anwen (14 April 2020). "Councillor 'now conscious' after two and a half weeks in hospital with coronavirus". County Times. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
- ^ Mosalski, Ruth (9 April 2021). "Voters 'coming back' to the Liberal Democrats, says Senedd candidate". WalesOnline. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
