Peter Law
Encyclopedia
Peter John Law was a Welsh
politician
.
Councillor and subsequently Labour Co-operative
Assembly Member
(AM) for Blaenau Gwent
. Latterly he sat as an independent Member of Parliament
(MP) and AM for the same constituency.
, Law ran a General Store
and became a councillor in Blaenau Gwent
in 1974. He was subsequently appointed chair of Gwent Healthcare NHS Trust
.
, MP for Blaenau Gwent from 1992, and was selected for the constituency in the first elections to the National Assembly for Wales
in 1999, winning the seat easily. He was appointed to the cabinet of Alun Michael
as Assembly Secretary for Local Government and Housing, but lost his post in a cabinet reshuffle in 2000 by successor First Minister for Wales
Rhodri Morgan
.
When Morgan formed a coalition government with the Liberal Democrats, Peter Law made no secret of his opposition to the decision and was not retained in the administration. He became a vociferous backbench critic and following the 2003 election stood as candidate for the Deputy Presiding Officer of the Welsh Assembly. However, the Labour AMs voted instead for John Marek who was an Independent AM, thereby ensuring that an opposition member was in the Chair and unable to vote against the Welsh Assembly Government.
Law left the Labour Party in protest at the use of an all-woman shortlist in selecting the candidate for the general election
, which was used to replace the retiring Llew Smith. Law believed all-woman shortlists were being selectively imposed on local parties only where a leadership supported male candidate was unlikely to be selected, citing the example of Ed Balls
and Pat McFadden
as new leadership-supported male candidates, and noting that use of all-woman shortlists had been stopped in Scotland
.
Smith had enjoyed a majority of 19,313, making it the safest parliamentary seat in Wales
. Law won the seat with 58.2% of the vote, defeating Labour candidate Maggie Jones
, and gaining a majority of 9,121 votes.
Law followed just a handful of previous MPs and AMs in Wales who won the same constituency as both a party candidate and an independent, following S. O. Davies
who was MP for Merthyr Tydfil
from 1934 until his death in 1972, who was deselected by the local Labour Party
on grounds of age prior to the 1970 general election
but ran against the official candidate as an independent and won; and John Marek who remained AM for Wrexham
, later forming his own party, Forward Wales.
Law died peacefully at home in Nantyglo
, aged 58, suffering from a recurrent brain tumour first diagnosed during the 2005 election campaign. As a result of his death, there were by-elections in Blaenau Gwent
for both the UK Parliament and the Welsh Assembly seats. In the by-elections Law's former agent, Dai Davies
, won the election to Law's former Westminster seat, while his widow Trish Law
succeeded him in the Welsh Assembly. Both stood under the banner of the Blaenau Gwent People's Voice Group
.
His widow has claimed that he was offered a peerage not to stand against Labour in Blaenau Gwent in 2005, an allegation categorically denied by Labour, and also denied by Law himself in an interview from late 2005. The claim had considerable media impact because of the ongoing Cash for Peerages
police investigation, although the police announced on 9 May that they would not be investigating it.
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
.
Labour Co-operative AM and Independent MP
For most of his career Law sat as a LabourLabour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
Councillor and subsequently Labour Co-operative
Labour Co-operative
Labour and Co-operative describes those candidates in British elections standing on behalf of both the Labour Party and the Co-operative Party, based on a national agreement between the two parties....
Assembly Member
National Assembly for Wales
The National Assembly for Wales is a devolved assembly with power to make legislation in Wales. The Assembly comprises 60 members, who are known as Assembly Members, or AMs...
(AM) for Blaenau Gwent
Blaenau Gwent (UK Parliament constituency)
Blaenau Gwent is a county constituency in South Wales, represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.- History :...
. Latterly he sat as an independent Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP) and AM for the same constituency.
Background
Born in AbergavennyAbergavenny
Abergavenny , meaning Mouth of the River Gavenny, is a market town in Monmouthshire, Wales. It is located 15 miles west of Monmouth on the A40 and A465 roads, 6 miles from the English border. Originally the site of a Roman fort, Gobannium, it became a medieval walled town within the Welsh Marches...
, Law ran a General Store
General store
A general store, general merchandise store, or village shop is a rural or small town store that carries a general line of merchandise. It carries a broad selection of merchandise, sometimes in a small space, where people from the town and surrounding rural areas come to purchase all their general...
and became a councillor in Blaenau Gwent
Blaenau Gwent
Blaenau Gwent is a county borough in South Wales, sharing its name with a parliamentary constituency. It borders the unitary authority areas of Monmouthshire and Torfaen to the east, Caerphilly to the west and Powys to the north. Its main towns are Abertillery, Brynmawr, Ebbw Vale and...
in 1974. He was subsequently appointed chair of Gwent Healthcare NHS Trust
NHS Trust
A National Health Service trust provides services on behalf of the National Health Service in England and NHS Wales.The trusts are not trusts in the legal sense but are in effect public sector corporations. Each trust is headed by a board consisting of executive and non-executive directors, and is...
.
Political career
He was latterly a close ally of Llew SmithLlew Smith
Llewellyn Thomas Smith is a former Welsh Labour Party politician.Smith was Member of the European Parliament for South Wales East from 1984 to 1994, and at the 1992 general election he was elected as Member of Parliament for Blaenau Gwent. A member of the Socialist Campaign Group, he stood down...
, MP for Blaenau Gwent from 1992, and was selected for the constituency in the first elections to the National Assembly for Wales
National Assembly for Wales
The National Assembly for Wales is a devolved assembly with power to make legislation in Wales. The Assembly comprises 60 members, who are known as Assembly Members, or AMs...
in 1999, winning the seat easily. He was appointed to the cabinet of Alun Michael
Alun Michael
Alun Edward Michael is a British Labour Co-operative politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Cardiff South and Penarth since 1987. He was formerly First Minister of Wales and leader of the Welsh Labour Party from 1999 to 2000.-Education:Michael was born at Bryngwran Anglesey, son of...
as Assembly Secretary for Local Government and Housing, but lost his post in a cabinet reshuffle in 2000 by successor First Minister for Wales
First Minister for Wales
The First Minister of Wales is the leader of the Welsh Government, Wales' devolved administration, which was established in 1999. The First Minister is responsible for the exercise of functions by the Cabinet of the Welsh Government; policy development and coordination; relationships with the...
Rhodri Morgan
Rhodri Morgan
Hywel Rhodri Morgan is a Welsh Labour politician who, as First Secretary for Wales, and subsequently First Minister, was leader of the Welsh Assembly Government from 2000 to 2009. A former leader of Welsh Labour, he was the Assembly Member for Cardiff West from 1999 to 2011...
.
When Morgan formed a coalition government with the Liberal Democrats, Peter Law made no secret of his opposition to the decision and was not retained in the administration. He became a vociferous backbench critic and following the 2003 election stood as candidate for the Deputy Presiding Officer of the Welsh Assembly. However, the Labour AMs voted instead for John Marek who was an Independent AM, thereby ensuring that an opposition member was in the Chair and unable to vote against the Welsh Assembly Government.
Law left the Labour Party in protest at the use of an all-woman shortlist in selecting the candidate for the general election
United Kingdom general election, 2005
The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 to elect 646 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party under Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, but with a majority of 66, reduced from 160....
, which was used to replace the retiring Llew Smith. Law believed all-woman shortlists were being selectively imposed on local parties only where a leadership supported male candidate was unlikely to be selected, citing the example of Ed Balls
Ed Balls
Edward Michael Balls, known as Ed Balls, is a British Labour politician, who has been a Member of Parliament since 2005, currently for Morley and Outwood, and is the current Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer....
and Pat McFadden
Pat McFadden (British politician)
Patrick Bosco McFadden is a British Labour Party politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Wolverhampton South East since 2005...
as new leadership-supported male candidates, and noting that use of all-woman shortlists had been stopped in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
.
Smith had enjoyed a majority of 19,313, making it the safest parliamentary seat in Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
. Law won the seat with 58.2% of the vote, defeating Labour candidate Maggie Jones
Maggie Jones, Baroness Jones of Whitchurch
Margaret Beryl Jones, Baroness Jones of Whitchurch is a British trade union official and Labour politician. She was Chair of the Labour Party from 2000 to 2001....
, and gaining a majority of 9,121 votes.
Law followed just a handful of previous MPs and AMs in Wales who won the same constituency as both a party candidate and an independent, following S. O. Davies
S. O. Davies
Stephen Owen Davies was a Welsh politician, and a member of the House of Commons from 1934 to his death....
who was MP for Merthyr Tydfil
Merthyr Tydfil
Merthyr Tydfil is a town in Wales, with a population of about 30,000. Although once the largest town in Wales, it is now ranked as the 15th largest urban area in Wales. It also gives its name to a county borough, which has a population of around 55,000. It is located in the historic county of...
from 1934 until his death in 1972, who was deselected by the local Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
on grounds of age prior to the 1970 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1970
The United Kingdom general election of 1970 was held on 18 June 1970, and resulted in a surprise victory for the Conservative Party under leader Edward Heath, who defeated the Labour Party under Harold Wilson. The election also saw the Liberal Party and its new leader Jeremy Thorpe lose half their...
but ran against the official candidate as an independent and won; and John Marek who remained AM for Wrexham
Wrexham (UK Parliament constituency)
Wrexham is a parliamentary constituency in North Wales which is represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom...
, later forming his own party, Forward Wales.
Law died peacefully at home in Nantyglo
Nantyglo
Nantyglo is a village in the ancient parish of Aberystruth and county of Monmouth situated deep within the South Wales Valleys between Blaina and Brynmawr in the county borough of Blaenau Gwent.- Places of interest in Nantyglo :...
, aged 58, suffering from a recurrent brain tumour first diagnosed during the 2005 election campaign. As a result of his death, there were by-elections in Blaenau Gwent
Blaenau Gwent by-elections, 2006
Two by-elections were held for the constituency of Blaenau Gwent in Wales following the death of Member of Parliament and Assembly Member Peter Law on 25 April 2006. As Law was the MP and Assembly Member , his death required by-elections in both the parliamentary seat and the equivalent Welsh...
for both the UK Parliament and the Welsh Assembly seats. In the by-elections Law's former agent, Dai Davies
Dai Davies (politician)
David Clifford Davies, commonly known as Dai Davies, was the Blaenau Gwent People's Voice Member of Parliament for the Blaenau Gwent constituency in South Wales from 2006 to 2010...
, won the election to Law's former Westminster seat, while his widow Trish Law
Trish Law
Patricia Law, née Bolter was the Blaenau Gwent People's Voice AM for Blaenau Gwent in Wales between 2006 and 2011.-Background:...
succeeded him in the Welsh Assembly. Both stood under the banner of the Blaenau Gwent People's Voice Group
Blaenau Gwent People's Voice Group
The Blaenau Gwent People's Voice Group was a political party based in the Blaenau Gwent area of Wales.The group was formed in the aftermath of the election to the House of Commons of Peter Law as an independent Member of Parliament, beating the official Labour candidate. Peter Law stood against the...
.
His widow has claimed that he was offered a peerage not to stand against Labour in Blaenau Gwent in 2005, an allegation categorically denied by Labour, and also denied by Law himself in an interview from late 2005. The claim had considerable media impact because of the ongoing Cash for Peerages
Cash for Peerages
Cash for Honours is the name given by some in the media to a political scandal in the United Kingdom in 2006 and 2007 concerning the connection between political donations and the award of life peerages...
police investigation, although the police announced on 9 May that they would not be investigating it.
External links
- Peter Law Campaign literature from the 2005 General Election
- Guardian Unlimited Politics - Ask Aristotle: Peter Law MP
- TheyWorkForyou.com - Peter Law MP
- The Lost Valley, The Independent on Sunday, 10 July 2005.
- Labour challenger Peter Law dies, BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
, 25 April 2006. - Peter Law - obituary, Tony Heath, 26 April 2006, The Guardian