Biography

As someone born and raised in the South Wales valleys, it is an honour to be elected to represent the community of Caerphilly in Parliament.
I was brought up in Wattstown, a small village in the Rhondda Fach. I attended Aberllechau Primary School and Porth County Comprehensive School before studying for my ‘A’ Levels at Pontypridd College. Later, I graduated from Trinity College, Carmarthen with a history degree, a subject I am still very much interested in.

ABOUT ME

Working Life

After university, like other members of my family, I worked in betting shops spending three years with Jack Brown Bookmakers.

From there, I became a Personal Account Manager with Lloyds TSB before moving on again. First for a short stint at the University of Glamorgan and then again in 2004 when I was appointed an Area Secretary with the Union of Finance staff, based in Cheltenham.

Representing finance workers gave me a sense of helping people and a realisation that collective action could really make a difference as we managed to save a number of jobs from being relocated to call centers overseas.

Following this, I was proud to have worked for Don Touhig, my predecessor as MP for Islwyn, as a parliamentary researcher. In 2024, I was elected as MP for Caerphilly after serving as MP for Islwyn since 2010.

Years Experience

My Campaigns

My maiden speech focused on payday lending. Loan sharks and providers of high-interest credit have been a sad feature of Valleys communities for many years. It is my belief that everyone should have access to affordable financial services. That is why I have continued this campaign throughout my time as a Member of Parliament and in March 2012 I tabled a 10-minute rule bill calling for the introduction of legislation to tackle the problem of financial exclusion.

I was also pleased to discover that I was the first person to raise the issue of Inflammatory Bowel Disease when I led a Westminster Hall to debate on employment opportunities for people with the illness. I called for the debate after being shocked to learn just how many people suffer in silence; too embarrassed or afraid to speak openly about a condition that affects every aspect of their day-to-day life.

Another issue I have been heavily involved in during my time in Parliament is my work with the Motor Neurone Disease (MND) Association. Some of the issues that I have worked with the MND Association on are the ongoing problems with access to NHS continuing healthcare (CHC) for MND patients and lobbying the Department for Work and Pensions to remove the 6-month rule for people with a terminal illness claiming benefits. I am currently supporting their work with the United to End MND campaign which is seeking a £50 million investment from the Government over five years for targeted MND research.

Political Life

My interest in politics began when I was given a book about JFK, when I was 13. This eventually led to me joining the Labour Party at 15 and since then I have held positions at every level of the party, from Youth Officer to Ward Secretary. I stood for my first Council seat at the age of 21.

Growing up in the Thatcher years and seeing the devastation as family and friends lost their jobs I felt politics was the best way of bringing about change.

In April 2004, I was selected as the Labour candidate in Cheltenham for the following year’s General Election. On Election Day, I held the vote upon a very bad night for Labour. I thoroughly enjoyed being on the campaign trail, meeting so many people and hearing their stories. This opportunity reaffirmed to me that politics can really make a difference.

When Don Touhig decided to stand down, I had the privilege of replacing him as the Labour candidate for the General Election in 2010. It meant a lot to be selected as Don’s replacement in a constituency I knew so well through my work over the years.

I was elected as the Labour and Co-operative Member of Parliament for Islwyn on May 6th 2010 with a majority of 12,215. I was re-elected in 2015 with a majority of 10,404, in 2017 with a majority of 11,412 and in 2019 with a majority of 5,464. Following Parliamentary boundary changes, I was elected as Member of Parliament for Caerphilly in 2024 with a majority of 6,419.

Outside Politics

Although I enjoy politics I believe it is important to have outside interests. In my spare time, I enjoy running and boxing.

Further to this, I enjoy reading as well as being an avid sports fan. In September 2017 I wrote and published a book Fearless Freddie: The Life and Times of Freddie Mills. My latest book, Don Revie: The Definitive Biography, was published in October 2021.

ABOUT OUR

Constituency

The constituency of Caerphilly, which I have represented as Member of Parliament since July 5th 2024, comprises a wide range of towns and villages in the South Wales Valleys surrounding Caerphilly town. These include the council wards of Aber Valley, Bedwas and Trethomas, Pengam, Hengoed, Llanbradach, Machen and Rudry, Maesycwmmer, Morgan Jones, Nelson, Penyrheol, Pontllanfraith, St Cattwg, St Martins, Van, Ynysddu, and Ystrad Mynach.

The wards of Pengam, Maesycwmmer, Pontllanfraith and Ynysddu have been represented in the Welsh Parliament since May 2016 by Rhianon Passmore, Member of the Senedd for Islwyn. The rest of the constituency been represented in the Welsh Parliament since May 2016 by Hefin David, Member of the Senedd for Caerphilly. Both constituencies are part of the South Wales East Senedd region.

The Caerphilly Parliamentary constituency forms a majority of the Caerphilly County Borough Council local authority area. The constituency is also home to ten Town and Community councils.

Caerphilly Council Site

Caerphilly Constituency

The Caerphilly parliamentary constituency is formed of a series of towns and villages scattered along the mountains and valleys of west Gwent and Mid Glamorgan surrounding Caerphilly town. The constituency has a population of just over 96,000 people divided between urban and rural areas.

On the eastern side of the constituency, in the Sirhowy Valley, are the communities of Pontllanfraith, leading down towards Wyllie, Ynysddu, Cwmfelinfach, Brynawel, and Wattsville. In the centre is the Rhymney Valley, including the towns and communities of Nelson, Ystrad Mynach, Hengoed, Llanbradach, Pengam, Fleur-de-Lys, Britannia, and the largest town in the constituency – Caerphilly. Further along the Rhymney river are the towns of Bedwas, Trethomas and Machen. Towards the west of the constituency is the Aber Valley, which includes the communities of Abertridwr and Senghenydd.

Situated within the historic South Wales coalfield, Caerphilly and its surrounding communities were a bastion of the coal-mining industry. In modern times, a variety of employment opportunities exist within town centres, retail parks, business parks and industrial estates around the constituency. Many also travel to the nearby cities of Newport and Cardiff for work.

Education is offered principally through age 11-16 comprehensive and welsh-medium schools, in addition to post-16 education at the Coleg Y Cymoedd Campus in Ystrad Mynach.

The constituency’s name, Caerffili, means the ‘Fort of Ffili’ – however the identity of ‘Ffili’ remains a topic of debate. Caerphilly is home to an impressive castle – the largest in Wales and second largest in the UK. The castle also has a leaning tower, rivalling the world-famous Leaning Tower of Pisa in Italy. Caerphilly is also the home of the renowned crumbly white cheese of the same name.