Ann Clwyd the journalist died at 86

In 1994, she staged a sit-in at Tower Colliery, near Hirwaun, in protest at British Coal's decision to close the last deep pit in Wales.

The miners were given the go-ahead to re-open the colliery the following year, after pooling their redundancy money to take it over. It continued producing coal until 2008.

A former BBC journalist, she stood down as Labour MP for Cynon Valley in 2019, after 35 years representing a seat she first won in a by-election in 1984, following five years as an MEP.

Labour leaders past and present have led the tributes to the long-standing former MP Ann Clwyd after it was announced that she had died at the age of 86.

Clwyd represented her Cynon Valley constituency in South Wales for 35 years, eventually becoming the oldest woman to sit in the House of Commons before she stood down at the 2019 election. Clwyd was first elected in a byelection in 1984 and had already served as an MEP for Mid and West Wales for five years in the European parliament.

She was a student teacher at Hope School in Flintshire, before training as a journalist. She then worked for BBC Wales as a studio manager, and then became Welsh correspondent for the Guardian and Observer newspapers.

She had been a journalist before entering parliament, writing for the Guardian and Observer until 1979. She held a series of roles during her parliamentary career. She was first made a shadow minister by Neil Kinnock in 1987, but was later sacked for rebelling over further spending on nuclear weapons.

She represented the Cynon Valley constituency in South Wales for 35 years, becoming the oldest woman to sit in the House of Commons before standing down in 2019.

Mrs Clwyd also went on to be appointed as a Special Envoy on Human Rights in Iraq by Tony Blair. ‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌​

The news of her death was confirmed via a post to her official Twitter account.

It read: "Ann died peacefully at her home in Cardiff last night, 21 July 2023, with her family and cats around her. She will be remembered as a formidable journalist, MEP and, for over 34 years, Labour MP for Cynon Valley. She was campaigning until the end. A memorial service will be held in due course."

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Sarah H

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