Since the early 1970s, Dafydd Elis-Thomas has been an important and colourful figure in Welsh politics. He is an often controversial figure with a compelling intellectual grasp of political events and history and one who has moved from left-wing ideologue to peer in the House of Lords and presiding officer of the National Assembly.
This biography is a measured assessment of Thomas’s political strengths and weaknesses, exploring both his achievements and impact, and his political shortcomings. Grounded firmly in the subject’s personal and political context, it takes due account of the role and influence of other politicians and individuals in Plaid Cymru, the Labour Party and beyond. It examines the relationship between some of these figures and shows how they have differed from Thomas in their views, priorities and impact. The private person as well as the public figure is revealed through interviews with Thomas himself, and with his supporters and opponents.
This work is more than a straightforward political biography, as it also sheds light on Wales and Welsh politics since the early 1960s.
Laura McAllister is Professor of Governance at the University of Liverpool School of Management. She was a member of the Richard Commission on the Powers and Electoral Arrangements of the National Assembly for Wales. She has written extensively on devolution, the National Assembly, elections in Wales, and, more widely, on public administration, and gender and politics. She is author of Plaid Cymru, The Emergence of a Political Party (Seren, 2001).