John Andreas Bufton (born 31 August 1962 in
Llanidloes[Party Profile]
/ref>) is a former UK Independence Party
The UK Independence Party (UKIP; ) is a Eurosceptic, right-wing populist political party in the United Kingdom. The party reached its greatest level of success in the mid-2010s, when it gained two members of Parliament and was the largest par ...
(UKIP) Member of the European Parliament
A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament.
When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the ECSC) first met in 1952, its ...
(MEP) for Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
,[
]
Early life
Bufton was educated at Elan Village Primary School and Llandrindod Wells High School, and joined the family haulage business before embarking on a career managing a residential care home for the elderly with the local authority.[
]
Political career
Bufton's political career began when he was elected onto Rhayader
Rhayader (; cy, Rhaeadr Gwy; ) is a market town and community in Powys, Wales, within the historic county of Radnorshire. The town is from the source of the River Wye on Plynlimon, the highest point of the Cambrian Mountains, and is locate ...
Town Council
A town council, city council or municipal council is a form of local government for small municipalities.
Usage of the term varies under different jurisdictions.
Republic of Ireland
Town Councils in the Republic of Ireland were the second t ...
in 1987. In 1995
File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The Great Hanshin earthquake str ...
, he was elected to Powys County Council
Powys County Council ( cy, Cyngor Sir Powys) is the local authority for Powys, one of the administrative areas of Wales. The County Hall is in Llandrindod Wells.
History
The county of Powys was created on 1 April 1974 under the Local Govern ...
. In the 1997 General Election, he ran for the Referendum Party
The Referendum Party was a Eurosceptic, single-issue political party that was active in the United Kingdom from 1994 to 1997. The party's sole objective was for a referendum to be held on the nature of the UK's membership of the European Union ...
in the Montgomeryshire
, HQ= Montgomery
, Government= Montgomeryshire County Council (1889–1974)Montgomeryshire District Council (1974–1996)
, Origin=
, Status=
, Start=
, End= ...
constituency.
In 2000, he ran as UKIP candidate in the Ceredigion
Ceredigion ( , , ) is a county in the west of Wales, corresponding to the historic county of Cardiganshire. During the second half of the first millennium Ceredigion was a minor kingdom. It has been administered as a county since 1282. Cer ...
by-election, coming fifth with 1.9% of the vote. He also ran for UKIP in the 2005 General Election, 2007 Welsh Assembly Elections and 2008 Powys County Council election.[
In 2009, Bufton became UKIP's first MEP for Wales, picking up the fourth available seat from Labour. Bufton was appointed to serve on the Committee on Regional Development, at the European Parliament. In May 2013, Bufton announced his intention to stand down at the following European elections.]Nathan Gill
Nathan Lee Gill (born 6 July 1973) is a British politician, who was the Leader of Reform UK Wales from March to May 2021, when he resigned from the party. He previously served as Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for Wales from 2014 to J ...
.
References
1962 births
Living people
UK Independence Party parliamentary candidates
Members of Powys County Council
People from Llanidloes
Referendum Party politicians
UK Independence Party MEPs
MEPs for Wales 2009–2014
People educated at Ysgol Calon Cymru
{{UK-MEP-stub