Glyn Davies (politician)

Educated at Castle Caereinion Primary School and Llanfair Caereinion High School. At the age of 50, he attended Aberystwyth University, where he gained a diploma in international law and politics.{{cite news | title=UK: Wales: AMs | publisher=BBC News | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/static/uk/wales/13118.stm |date=1 September 1999 | access-date=17 February 2017}}

He spent his early working life running the family farm near Castle Caereinion, Welshpool on which he was born and in which still has a business interest. He now lives at Cil Farm, Berriew in a house once owned by Arthur Humphreys-Owen who served as an MP for Davies' seat from 1894–1906.{{cite web|url=https://www.theyworkforyou.com/debates/?id=2010-07-20c.278.0|title=Thank you, Mr Speaker, for calling...: 20 Jul 2010: House of Commons debates - TheyWorkForYou|website=TheyWorkForYou}}

In 2002, Davies underwent major surgery for rectal cancer. He went on to make a full recovery and in 2006 competed in a rugby game alongside Jonah Lomu to promote the message that is possible to make a full recovery following a serious illness and to raise money for charity.{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/4669740.stm|title=AM's message of life after cancer|date=1 February 2006|via=news.bbc.co.uk}}

Davies was a farmer. He is a former chairman of the Development Board for Rural Wales and also served as a Member of the Welsh Development Agency and the Welsh Tourist Board.

Davies' career in politics began in 1980 when he was elected to his local District Council. He was Chairman of Montgomeryshire District Council from 1985–89, having previously served as Chair of the Planning Committee and Chair of the Finance Committee.

Member of the National Assembly for Wales for the Welsh Conservative Party in the Mid and West Wales region from 1999 to 2007. Chair of the Agriculture and Rural Development Committee in the First Assembly; and the Environment, Planning and Countryside Committee in the Second Assembly.

Following the loss of his place in the National Assembly for Wales due to Conservative success elsewhere in the region, Davies challenged Lembit Öpik, the Liberal Democrat MP for Montgomeryshire, at the 2010 UK General Election, having unsuccessfully challenged Öpik at the 1997 General Election in the same seat. He beat Öpik to become the Member of Parliament for Montgomeryshire.{{cite news| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/election_2010/wales/8666699.stm | publisher=BBC News | title=Lembit Opik loses Montgomeryshire | date=7 May 2010}} In September 2010 it was announced that Glyn was appointed Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to Cheryl Gillan as Secretary of State for Wales,{{cite news | url=http://www.politicshome.com/uk/article/14512/cameron_approves_pps_appointments.html | work=Politicshome | title=Cameron approves pps appointments | date=10 September 2010 | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110715102203/http://www.politicshome.com/uk/article/14512/cameron_approves_pps_appointments.html | archive-date=15 July 2011 | df=dmy-all }} a role he lost in the 2012 Cabinet reshuffle.{{cite news|title=Cabinet reshuffle: Cheryl Gillan loses Wales Office|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-19473310 | publisher=BBC News | date=4 September 2012}}

In 2015, he was re-elected in that year's general election with 45% of the vote. One of the votes for him was a drawing of a penis in the box next to his name, which was ruled valid.{{cite news|title='Penis' drawn on ballot paper 'deemed valid vote'|url=http://www.scotsman.com/news/odd/penis-drawn-on-ballot-paper-deemed-valid-vote-1-3767513|access-date=8 May 2015|work=The Scotsman|date=8 May 2015}}

Davies was again re-elected in the 2017 general election, with a majority of 9,285.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/politics/constituencies/W07000063|title=Montgomeryshire parliamentary constituency - Election 2017|publisher=BBC News|access-date=2017-06-09|language=en-GB}}

In July 2017, it was confirmed that Davies would resume his previous role (2010–2012) as Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to the Secretary of State for Wales Alun Cairns.{{cite web |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/634600/PPS_List_July_2017.pdf |title=List of Parliamentary Private Secretaries (PPS): July 2017 |publisher=Prime Minister's Office |website=GOV.UK |date=1 August 2017 |access-date=17 March 2018}}

On 13 May 2019, Davies announced he would not be standing for re-election at the next general election.{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-politics-48281122|title=Welsh Tory MP Glyn Davies stepping down|date=15 May 2019|publisher=BBC News|access-date=29 November 2019|language=en-GB}}

In October 2016, Davies tweeted a series of remarks about 'academics', suggesting that they lacked the status of experts and were universally out of touch with the real world.{{Cite tweet |user=glyndaviesmp |author=Glyn Davies |number=792386609396191233 |date=29 October 2016 |title=Personally, never thought of academics as 'experts'. No experience of the real world.}} The remarks caused a significant backlash from the public, the press, and peers from within the Conservative Party.{{cite news|title=Welsh Tory MP's attack: the experts strike back|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-politics-37853031|access-date=18 April 2017|publisher=BBC News|date=2 November 2017}} Since the incident, Davies has ceased using Twitter as a form of communication, and has refused to offer a public apology for his remarks.{{citation needed|date=November 2018}}

Davies blogs semi-regularly, on his web page '[http://www.glyn-davies.blogspot.com/ A View from Rural Wales]'. The British blogger Iain Dale is quoted as describing Davies as "By common consensus the best politician blogger in Wales and he's a real character".{{cite web|url=http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/politics-news/tm_headline=the-blogger-s-world-is-huge&method=full&objectid=19138628&siteid=50082-name_page.html|title=The blogger's world is huge|publisher=Wales on Sunday|date=20 May 2007|access-date=21 July 2008}} Davies kept up blogging after losing his seat in the National Assembly.{{citation needed|date=September 2011}}

In 2008, Davies defended the sacked former blogger Christopher Glamorganshire, and is quoted as saying "The Christopher Glamorganshire blog was on my list of 'my favourites'. It seemed to me to be written in a sensible and rational manner. Clearly, if his contract of employment said he was not allowed to blog, he doesn't have much of a case. But if it is simply a question of supposedly contravening the code, I think sacking him is very harsh and heavy-handed. This all smacks of the heavy hand of the state."{{cite web|url=http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/politics-news/2008/07/09/sacked-blogger-s-taking-case-to-tribunal-91466-21308104/|title=Sacked blogger's taking case to tribunal|publisher=Western Mail|date=9 July 2008|access-date=21 July 2008}}

His blog was voted the second most popular Welsh political blog in Iain Dale's Total Politics Guide to Blogging 2008–09,{{cite web|url=http://iaindale.blogspot.com/2008/08/top-40-welsh-blogs.html|title=Top 40 Welsh blogs|publisher=Iain Dale's Diary|date=26 August 2008|access-date=6 October 2008}} a position he has maintained from the previous year.{{cite web|url=http://iaindale.blogspot.com/2007/09/guide-to-blogging-2007-top-twenty-welsh.html|title=Top 20 Welsh blogs|publisher=Iain Dale's Diary|date=18 September 2008|access-date=6 October 2008}}

• Parliamentary Private Secretary to Cheryl Gillan MP, September 2010 – July 2012
• Parliamentary Private Secretary to Alun Cairns MP, July 2016 – December 2019{{cite web |title=PARLIAMENTARY PRIVATE SECRETARIES – JUNE 2019 |url=https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/810316/PARLIAMENTARY_PRIVATE_SECRETARIES_-_JUNE_2019-.pdf |website=GOV.UK |access-date=24 February 2022}}

{{Reflist|2}}

• [http://www.glyn-davies.co.uk Glyn Davies MP] official constituency website
• [http://www.glyn-davies.blogspot.com/ Glyn Davies View from Rural Wales blog]
• [http://www.conservatives.com/People/Members_of_Parliament/Davies_Glyn.aspx Glyn Davies MP] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100521012853/http://www.conservatives.com/People/Members_of_Parliament/Davies_Glyn.aspx |date=21 May 2010 }} Conservative Party profile
• [http://www.welshconservatives.com/person/glyn-davies-mp Glyn Davies MP] Welsh Conservative Party profile
• [http://www.montgomeryshireconservatives.com Montgomeryshire Conservatives]
• {{UK MP links | parliament = glyn-davies/4041 | hansard = | hansardcurr = | guardian = 12643/glyn-davies | publicwhip = Glyn_Davies | theywork = glyn_davies | record = Glyn-Davies/Montgomeryshire/1350 | bbc = 33513.stm | journalisted = glyn-davies }}

{{s-start}}

{{s-par|wal}}

{{s-new}}

{{s-ttl

| title = Assembly Member for Mid and West Wales

| years = 1999–2007

}}

{{s-aft | after=Alun Davies }}

{{s-par|uk}}

{{s-bef|before=Lembit Öpik}}

{{s-ttl|title=Member of Parliament for Montgomeryshire|years=2010–2019}}

{{s-aft|after=Craig Williams}}

{{s-end}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Davies, Glyn}}

Category:1944 births

Category:Living people

Category:UK MPs 2010–2015

Category:Conservative Party (UK) MPs for Welsh constituencies

Category:Councillors in Wales

Category:Conservative Party members of the Senedd

Category:Wales AMs 1999–2003

Category:Wales AMs 2003–2007

Category:People from Welshpool

Category:Alumni of Aberystwyth University

Category:British bloggers

Category:UK MPs 2015–2017

Category:UK MPs 2017–2019

Category:Welsh-speaking politicians