Paul Windsor Davies (born 1969) is a British politician who currently serves as
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
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 ...
, a position he has held since
2007 election. He gained the seat from
Labour
Labour or labor may refer to:
* Childbirth, the delivery of a baby
* Labour (human activity), or work
** Manual labour, physical work
** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer
** Organized labour and the labour ...
and was re-elected in May 2011, May 2016 and again in May 2021.
Davies served as Leader of the
Welsh Conservatives
The Welsh Conservatives ( cy, Ceidwadwyr Cymreig) is the branch of the United Kingdom Conservative Party that operates in Wales. At Westminster elections, it is the second most popular political party in Wales, having obtained the second-large ...
and
Leader of the Opposition in Wales
In the Senedd, the Leader of the Opposition ( cy, Arweinydd yr Wrthblaid) (officially the Leader of the Opposition in the Senedd) is the leader of the largest political party in the Senedd that is not part of government and provides the official ...
from 27 June 2018 to 23 January 2021, having previously been Deputy Leader from 2011 to 2018 and Acting Leader in 2011 and 2018. He resigned as Welsh Conservative Leader after possible breaches of
Welsh COVID-19 rules.
Background
Davies grew up in
Pontsian. He attended Tregroes Primary School and
Llandysul Grammar School
Ysgol Dyffryn Teifi was a bilingual (Welsh and English) comprehensive school in Llandysul, Ceredigion. It stood on the site of the previous Llandysul Grammar School. The school was established in 1984 following the re-organisation of education in ...
, obtaining
A levels
The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational aut ...
at
Newcastle Emlyn
Newcastle Emlyn ( cy, Castellnewydd Emlyn) is a town on the River Teifi, straddling the counties of Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire in West Wales. It is also a community entirely within Carmarthenshire, bordered by those of Llangeler and Cenarth ...
Comprehensive School. Davies now lives in
Blaenffos, north
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 ...
.
Professional career
On leaving school in 1987 aged 18 Davies started working for
Lloyds TSB
Lloyds Bank plc is a British retail and commercial bank with branches across England and Wales. It has traditionally been considered one of the " Big Four" clearing banks. Lloyds Bank is the largest retail bank in Britain, and has an exten ...
as a bank clerk based in
Haverfordwest. He remained with the bank until his election to the
National Assembly
In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repre ...
in 2007, having risen to become a Business Manager.
Political career
In February 2000, Davies was adopted as the
Conservative Party
The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right.
Political parties called The Conservative P ...
candidate in the
Ceredigion by-election; he came in third place in the results having improved the Conservatives' vote. He then fought the seat in the
2001 general election. In the
Senedd election of 2003, he fought
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 ...
where he increased the share of the vote from 23% to 30%, cutting the Labour Party's majority to 1,326.
Davies has also held office within the Conservative Party including chairman of
Ceredigion Conservative Association and Deputy Chairman of Mid and West Wales Conservatives.
He was first elected to the Senedd in 2007. Until March 2009 he served as
Shadow Minister for Culture, the Welsh Language and Sport. From March 2009 until the Senedd in 2011, Davies held the role of
Shadow Minister for Education and the Welsh Language. After his re-election as Senedd Member for Preseli Pembrokeshire in May 2011, he briefly held the role of Interim Leader of the Welsh Conservative Senedd Group before being appointed as Deputy Leader of the Welsh Conservative Senedd Group, and
Shadow Minister for Finance.
Davies was elected
Leader of the Welsh Conservatives in September 2018. He resigned as
Leader of the Welsh Conservatives and
Leader of the Opposition
The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...
on 23 January 2021, after he was exposed as being involved in an incident with possible breaches of
Welsh COVID-19 regulations in December 2020. In April 2022 Paul Davies was cleared of breaking the Senedd's code of conduct.
References
External links
Paul Davies MS own website
Member Profile Senedd website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davies, Paul
1969 births
Living people
People from Pembrokeshire
Conservative Party members of the Senedd
Wales AMs 2007–2011
Wales AMs 2011–2016
Wales MSs 2016–2021
Wales MSs 2021–2026
Welsh-speaking politicians