Hywel Rhodri Morgan is a
WelshThe Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.John Davies argues that the origin of the "Welsh nation" can be traced to the late 4th and early 5th centuries, following the Roman departure from Britain, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
LabourThe 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...
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 MemberThe 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...
for
Cardiff WestCardiff West is a constituency of the National Assembly for Wales. It elects one Assembly Member by the first past the post method of election...
from 1999 to 2011. He is the longest serving Welsh First Minister to date, being in office continuously for 9 years and 10 months. He was elected chancellor of
Swansea UniversitySwansea University is a university located in Swansea, Wales, United Kingdom. Swansea University was chartered as University College of Swansea in 1920, as the fourth college of the University of Wales. In 1996, it changed its name to the University of Wales Swansea following structural changes...
on 24th October 2011.
Personal life
Born in
CardiffCardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
, Hywel Rhodri Morgan is the son of Professor
T. J. MorganThomas John Morgan , better known as T. J. Morgan, was a Welsh academic.He was born in the village of Glais, near Swansea, and he studied at Swansea University.In 1926, he met his future wife at the National Eisteddfod of Wales...
and the brother of the historian,
Prys MorganPrys Morgan FRHistS FSA FLSW is a Welsh historian.He was born in Cardiff, the son of academic T. J. Morgan. Like his brother, Rhodri Morgan, Prys Morgan was educated at Whitchurch Grammar School and St John's College, Oxford. He then joined the teaching staff of the University of Wales, Swansea,...
.
Morgan was educated at Whitchurch Grammar School (merged with Whitchurch County Secondary School to become the comprehensive
Whitchurch High SchoolWhitchurch High School is a large, co-educational, comprehensive secondary school in the suburb of Whitchurch in Cardiff, Wales. It is considered to be one of the better secondary schools in Cardiff, and was described in its 2009 Estyn report as a 'good school' which is 'moving forward from...
in 1972) in
WhitchurchWhitchurch is a suburb in the north of Cardiff, capital of Wales. It is approximately 3 miles north of the centre of the city on the A470 road and A4054 road. Its estimated population as of 2004 was 15,649. It falls within the Whitchurch & Tongwynlais ward.-History:Whitchurch draws its name from...
, Cardiff;
St John's College, Oxford__FORCETOC__St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford, one of the larger Oxford colleges with approximately 390 undergraduates, 200 postgraduates and over 100 academic staff. It was founded by Sir Thomas White, a merchant, in 1555, whose heart is buried in the chapel of...
studying
PPEPhilosophy, politics, and economics is a popular interdisciplinary undergraduate/graduate degree which combines study from the three disciplines...
; and
Harvard UniversityHarvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, where he gained an
MAA Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
in Government.
In 1967, he married former Labour MP for
Cardiff NorthCardiff North is aborough constituency in the city of Cardiff. It returns one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post voting system....
Julie MorganJulie Morgan AM is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Cardiff North from 1997 until 2010; she is married to former First Minister of Wales, Rhodri Morgan. Julie Morgan won the Cardiff North seat in the Welsh Assembly in the 2011 elections.-Early life,...
. The couple live in
Michaelston-le-PitMichaelston-le-Pit is a village to the west of the city of Cardiff, Wales.To the south lies Penarth, while to the south west lies the village of Dinas Powys....
(a village situated outside their constituencies), and are supporters of the
British Humanist AssociationThe British Humanist Association is an organisation of the United Kingdom which promotes Humanism and represents "people who seek to live good lives without religious or superstitious beliefs." The BHA is committed to secularism, human rights, democracy, egalitarianism and mutual respect...
. They have a son and two daughters.
In July 2007, Morgan was admitted to hospital where he underwent heart surgery. Even though he left hospital within the week, doctors said he would not be fully recovered for a few weeks.
Early career
Before entering politics, Morgan worked as an Industrial Development Officer for
South GlamorganSouth Glamorgan is a preserved county of Wales.It was originally formed in 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, as a county council area...
County Council from 1974 to 1980. He then served as Head of the
European Community'sThe European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
office in Wales from 1980 to 1987.
Westminster
Morgan was elected as
Member of ParliamentA 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) for
Cardiff WestCardiff West is a borough constituency in the city of Cardiff. It returns one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post voting system...
in 1987. From 1988 to 1994, he was a Shadow Environment Spokesman. He was also Chairman of the House of Commons
Select Committee on Public AdministrationThe Public Administration Select Committee is a Select Committee appointed by the British House of Commons to examine the reports of the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman and to consider matters relating to the quality and standards of administration provided by civil service departments,...
(1997–1999), and
OppositionIn politics, the opposition comprises one or more political parties or other organized groups that are opposed to the government , party or group in political control of a city, region, state or country...
Front BenchIn many parliaments and other similar assemblies, seating is typically arranged in banks or rows, with each political party or caucus grouped together. The spokespeople for each group will often sit at the front of their group, and are then known as being on the frontbench and are described as...
Spokesman on
EnergyIn physics, energy is an indirectly observed quantity. It is often understood as the ability a physical system has to do work on other physical systems...
(1988–92) and Welsh Affairs (1992–1997). He stepped down from the House of Commons at the
2001 General ElectionThe United Kingdom general election, 2001 was held on Thursday 7 June 2001 to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. It was dubbed "the quiet landslide" by the media, as the Labour Party was re-elected with another landslide result and only suffered a net loss of 6 seats...
.
First Assembly (1999)
A committed supporter of Welsh
devolutionDevolution is the statutory granting of powers from the central government of a sovereign state to government at a subnational level, such as a regional, local, or state level. Devolution can be mainly financial, e.g. giving areas a budget which was formerly administered by central government...
, Morgan contested the position of Labour's nominee for the (then titled) First Secretary for Wales. He lost to the then
Secretary of State for WalesThe Secretary of State for Wales is the head of the Wales Office within the British cabinet. He or she is responsible for ensuring Welsh interests are taken into account by the government, representing the government within Wales and overseeing the passing of legislation which is only for Wales...
, Ron Davies. Davies was then forced to resign his position after an alleged sex scandal, whereupon Morgan again ran for the post. His opponent,
Alun MichaelAlun 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...
, the new Secretary of State for Wales, was seen as a reluctant participant despite also having a long-standing commitment to Welsh devolution, and was widely regarded as being the choice of the UK leadership of the Labour Party.
Michael was duly elected to the leadership but resigned a little more than a year later, amid threats of an imminent no-confidence vote and alleged plotting against him by members of not only his own party, but also Assembly groups and Cabinet members. Morgan became Labour's new nominee for First Secretary, and was elected in February 2000, later becoming First Minister on 16 October 2000 when the position was retitled. He was also appointed to the Privy Council in July 2000. Morgan stepped down from the House of Commons at the
2001 General ElectionThe United Kingdom general election, 2001 was held on Thursday 7 June 2001 to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. It was dubbed "the quiet landslide" by the media, as the Labour Party was re-elected with another landslide result and only suffered a net loss of 6 seats...
.
Morgan's leadership has been characterised by a willingness to distance himself from a number of aspects of UK Labour party policy, particularly in relation to plans to introduce choice and competition into
public servicesPublic services is a term usually used to mean services provided by government to its citizens, either directly or by financing private provision of services. The term is associated with a social consensus that certain services should be available to all, regardless of income...
, which he has argued do not fit Welsh attitudes and values, and would not work effectively in a smaller and more rural country. In a speech given in
SwanseaSwansea is a coastal city and county in Wales. Swansea is in the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower Peninsula and the Lliw uplands...
to the
National Centre for Public PolicySwansea University is a university located in Swansea, Wales, United Kingdom. Swansea University was chartered as University College of Swansea in 1920, as the fourth college of the University of Wales. In 1996, it changed its name to the University of Wales Swansea following structural changes...
in November 2002, Morgan stated his opposition to foundation hospitals (a UK Labour proposal), and referred to the "
clear red water" separating policies in Wales and in
WestminsterThe Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
.
Second Assembly (2003)
On 1 May 2003, Labour under Morgan's leadership was re-elected in the Assembly elections. Morgan managed to win enough seats to form a Labour-only administration (the election was held under
proportional representationProportional representation is a concept in voting systems used to elect an assembly or council. PR means that the number of seats won by a party or group of candidates is proportionate to the number of votes received. For example, under a PR voting system if 30% of voters support a particular...
, and Labour won 30 of the 60 seats in the Assembly and the overall majority was achieved when
Dafydd Elis-ThomasDafydd Elis Elis-Thomas, Baron Elis-Thomas, PC, AM, is a Welsh politician and was the Presiding Officer of the National Assembly for Wales until 2011...
AM was elected Presiding Officer of the Assembly) and named his cabinet on 9 May. In that election, Labour easily took back all of the former strongholds they lost to
Plaid Cymru' is a political party in Wales. It advocates the establishment of an independent Welsh state within the European Union. was formed in 1925 and won its first seat in 1966...
at the height of Alun Michael's unpopularity in 1999.
In his second term, Morgan's administration continued its theme of "Welsh solutions for Welsh problems", a marked contrast to the Blairite public service reform agenda. Instead of competition, Welsh Labour emphasised the need for
collaborationCollaboration is working together to achieve a goal. It is a recursive process where two or more people or organizations work together to realize shared goals, — for example, an intriguing endeavor that is creative in nature—by sharing...
between public service providers.
Third Assembly (2007)
Labour is the biggest party with 26 out of the 60 seats, five short of an overall majority. After one month of
minority governmentA minority government or a minority cabinet is a cabinet of a parliamentary system formed when a political party or coalition of parties does not have a majority of overall seats in the parliament but is sworn into government to break a Hung Parliament election result. It is also known as a...
, Morgan signed a
coalition agreementIn multiparty democracies, a coalition agreement is an agreement between the parties that form the cabinet. It codifies the most important goals and objectives of the cabinet. It is often written by the leaders of the parliamentary parties.-Examples:...
(
One WalesOne Wales is the coalition agreement for the National Assembly for Wales between Labour and Plaid Cymru agreed to by Rhodri Morgan, First Minister of Wales and leader of Welsh Labour, and Ieuan Wyn Jones, leader of Plaid Cymru, on 27 June 2007. It was negotiated in the wake of the preceding...
) with
Ieuan Wyn JonesIeuan Wyn Jones, AM is a Welsh politician, who was the Deputy First Minister in the Welsh Assembly Government from 2007 until 2011. Jones is the current leader of Plaid Cymru and Member of the National Assembly for Wales for the Ynys Môn constituency...
, leader of
Plaid Cymru' is a political party in Wales. It advocates the establishment of an independent Welsh state within the European Union. was formed in 1925 and won its first seat in 1966...
, on 27 June 2007. Rhodri Morgan is the first modern political leader of Wales to lead a law-making government.
As head of the civil service in Wales, Morgan's
administrationSir Jon Shortridge KCB is a British Civil Servant. He served as the Permanent Secretary of the Welsh Office in March 1999 and of the National Assembly for Wales on its creation in May 1999. He became Permanent Secretary of the Welsh Assembly Government on its establishment as a separate...
has been faced with a number of legal issues including an employment tribunal when the service dismissed blogger Christopher Glamorganshire in the Autumn of 2007, and a civil court action from Christine Davies after an accusation of sexual harassment from a senior manager was ignored. Davies went on to confirm that "sexual harassment and bullying is widespread in the Welsh Assembly – and that women are intimidated by some male bosses on a daily basis".
Retirement
In July 2005, Morgan announced his intention to lead the Welsh Labour party into the 2007 general election, but retire as leader and First Minister sometime in 2009, when he would be 70. On his 70th birthday (29 September) he set the exact date as immediately following the Assembly's budget session on 8 December 2009.
Counsel GeneralThe Counsel General for Wales advises the Welsh Government on Welsh legislative matters and advises on legislative competency. The position of the Counsel General for Wales is described in the Government of Wales Act 2006 and controlled in Standing Order 5 ....
Carwyn JonesCarwyn Howell Jones is a Welsh politician and the First Minister of Wales. The third official to lead the Welsh Government, Jones has been Assembly Member for Bridgend since 1999. In the coalition government of Welsh Labour and Plaid Cymru, he was appointed Counsel General for Wales and Leader of...
, Health Minister
Edwina HartEdwina Hart, MBE, AM is a Welsh Labour politician who has represented the constituency of Gower since the National Assembly for Wales was established in 1999. Hart was appointed Minister for Health and Social Services in the Welsh Government in May 2007.-Background:Hart was born and raised in...
and
Merthyr Tydfil and RhymneyMerthyr Tydfil and Rhymney is a constituency of the National Assembly for Wales. It elects one Assembly Member by the first past the post method of election...
AM
Huw LewisHuw Lewis AM is a Welsh Labour Co-operative politician. Born in Merthyr Tydfil, Glamorgan, Lewis has represented the Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney constituency since the National Assembly for Wales was established in 1999.-Early life:...
entered a leadership contest to elect a new Labour leader in Wales. On 1 December 2009 the winner was declared as Carwyn Jones, who assumed office as First Minister on 10 December 2009. Morgan remained a backbench AM until April 2011, when the Third Assembly was dissolved prior to the general election on 5 May 2011.
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