Elizabeth Joyce Watson (born 1955) is a
Welsh Labour
Welsh Labour ( cy, Llafur Cymru) is the branch of the United Kingdom Labour Party in Wales and the largest party in modern Welsh politics. Welsh Labour and its forebears won a plurality of the Welsh vote at every UK general election since 1922 ...
politician who has been a
Member of the Senedd
A Member of the Senedd (MS; plural: ''MSs''; cy, Aelodau o'r Senedd; , plural:) (AS)., group=la is a representative elected to the Senedd (Welsh Parliament; ). There are sixty members, with forty members chosen to represent individual Senedd ...
(MS) for
Mid and West Wales
Mid and West Wales or Mid and South West Wales refers to an ambiguous region of Wales that is sometimes used, consisting broadly of the preserved counties of Dyfed and Powys, sometimes Swansea and sometimes parts of Gwynedd. It is also used ...
since
2007
File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...
.
Career
Watson was educated at Manorbier School, Cosheston School and Cardigan Comprehensive before going on to
Pembrokeshire College
Pembrokeshire College is a further education college with a campus in Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, in Wales.[politics
Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that studies ...](_blank)
at
Swansea University
, former_names=University College of Swansea, University of Wales Swansea
, motto= cy, Gweddw crefft heb ei dawn
, mottoeng="Technical skill is bereft without culture"
, established=1920 – University College of Swansea 1996 – University of Wa ...
, later gaining an honours degree at the same time as running Labour's successful parliamentary campaign for
Preseli Pembrokeshire
Preseli Pembrokeshire (, ; cy, Preseli Sir Benfro) was one of six local government districts of Dyfed in West Wales from 1974 to 1996. Until 1987 the name of the district was Preseli. The district took its name from the Preseli Hills.
Creation
Th ...
.
An active
Labour Party member, Watson was elected to
Pembrokeshire County Council
Pembrokeshire County Council ( cy, Cyngor Sir Penfro) is the governing body for Pembrokeshire, one of the Principal Areas of Wales.
Political control
The first election to the council was held in 1995, initially operating as a shadow authorit ...
at the inaugural elections in
1995
File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is O. J. Simpson murder case, acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the 1994, year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The ...
, capturing a seat in
Haverfordwest
Haverfordwest (, ; cy, Hwlffordd ) is the county town of Pembrokeshire, Wales, and the most populous urban area in Pembrokeshire with a population of 14,596 in 2011. It is also a community, being the second most populous community in the county, ...
from the Independents. She retained her seat in
1999
File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...
and
2004
2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO).
Events January
* January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...
. She was leader of the Labour group on Pembrokeshire Council for six years.
Watson was elected as an
Assembly Member Assembly Member or AM may refer to:
* A Member of the London Assembly (2000–pres.)
*A Member of the Tobago House of Assembly (1980–pres.)
Defunct titles
* A Member of the National Assembly for Wales (1999–2020), now Member of th ...
for
Mid and West Wales
Mid and West Wales or Mid and South West Wales refers to an ambiguous region of Wales that is sometimes used, consisting broadly of the preserved counties of Dyfed and Powys, sometimes Swansea and sometimes parts of Gwynedd. It is also used ...
in
May 2007.
and re-elected in 2011 and 2016.
She is currently a member of the Assembly Commission, the corporate body for the National Assembly for Wales, with responsibility for equalities and Assembly staff. She sits on the Assembly's Equality, Local Government & Communities committee and chairs the Cross-Party Groups on Construction and Human Trafficking.
In 2016 she was elected chair of the Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians (CWP) British Islands & Mediterranean region, having previously chaired the Wales branch of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA). She has represented Wales on the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly (BIPA) and the Council of Europe's Congress of Local & Regional Authorities.
She is involved in a number of high-profile campaigns. She champions the White Ribbon cause, enlisting support to End Violence against Women. In 2010 she wrote ''Bordering on Concern'', a report on Human Trafficking in Wales. Following its publication, the Welsh Government appointed the UK's first anti-Trafficking commissioner. In 2009 she launched the Women in Construction network; she continues to work with employers and trade bodies to get more young people and women into the construction industry.
Personal life
She is married to Colin and has three children, Heather, Fiona and William.
and has run several businesses – public houses, restaurants and retail outlets in
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. Cere ...
,
Carmarthenshire
Carmarthenshire ( cy, Sir Gaerfyrddin; or informally ') is a county in the south-west of Wales. The three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford. Carmarthen is the county town and administrative centre. The county is known as ...
and
Pembrokeshire
Pembrokeshire ( ; cy, Sir Benfro ) is a Local government in Wales#Principal areas, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. It is bordered by Carmarthenshire to the east, Ceredigion to the northeast, and the rest by sea. The count ...
.
Watson's father was a prisoner of war during the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, and upon his return to the UK he was suspected of being a German spy. This was because he spoke
Welsh
Welsh may refer to:
Related to Wales
* Welsh, referring or related to Wales
* Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales
* Welsh people
People
* Welsh (surname)
* Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...
as a first language and very little
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
but had learnt some
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
while overseas. Following his ordeal he brought up his children only speaking English.
Watson is now learning Welsh, and her children were all educated in Welsh medium schools.
References
External links
Joyce Watson AM WebsiteWelsh Labour Party WebsiteWebsite of the Welsh Assembly GovernmentMember's page on the website of the National Assembly for Wales
{{DEFAULTSORT:Watson, Joyce
1955 births
Living people
Councillors in Wales
Welsh Labour members of the Senedd
Wales AMs 2007–2011
Wales AMs 2011–2016
Wales MSs 2021–2026
Alumni of Swansea University
Female members of the Senedd
Women councillors in Wales