Steve Witherden
Steve Witherden | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2024 | |
| Member of Parliament for Montgomeryshire and Glyndŵr | |
| Assumed office 4 July 2024 | |
| Preceded by | Craig Williams |
| Majority | 3,815 (8.8%) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Wrexham, Wales |
| Party | Labour |
| University of Wales, Lampeter University of Wales, Aberystwyth (PGCE) | |
| Occupation |
|
Steve Witherden is a British Labour Party politician who has served as Member of Parliament for Montgomeryshire and Glyndŵr since 2024. Ideologically on the left, he is a member of the Socialist Campaign Group.
Early life and career
[edit]His father was a founding member of the Centre for Alternative Technology in Machynlleth, Powys. Witherden describes on his Facebook page[1] how in the 1970s his dad brought the family with him to Machynlleth and "a few years later I came along".
He was born in Wrexham, Wales.[2] He earned a degree in English Literature from the University of Wales, Lampeter, and a Postgraduate Certificate in Education from the University of Wales, Aberystwyth.[3]
Witherden worked as a teacher in his constituency for 18 years. He also served as a trade union representative from 2009 and as a county officer from 2015.[4]
Witherden is dyslexic and dyscalculic, and was illiterate until the age of 11. These experiences led him to become a teacher.[5]
Political career
[edit]Witherden won the Montgomeryshire and Glyndŵr seat with a majority of 3,815 votes. The former Montgomeryshire MP, Craig Williams, finished third. In his victory speech, Witherden stated that "Montgomeryshire is the only seat in Wales that had never had a Labour MP so history has been made here tonight".[6]
In his maiden speech, Witherden cited the creation of Great British Energy and the elimination of zero-hour contracts as his priorities.[5]
He sits on the Welsh Affairs Select Committee in Parliament.[7]
In November 2024, Witherden voted in favour of the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, a proposal to legalise assisted suicide.[8]
Witherden opposes the government's proposed welfare benefits reforms.[9]
In April 2026, Witherden was accused of plagiarising a constituent's letter of appeal, and idea, presented to him in February 2026, to have unused ventilators stored in the UK sent to Ukraine. A letter from Witherden, dated 3 days later, made the same appeal on behalf of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Cuba, in which he made similar points to his constituent's original letter of appeal.[10]
Witherden is the Chair of the APPG for Education [11] and Parliamentary Convenor of the Socialist Education Association.
Personal life
[edit]Witherden is married and has two children, a son and a daughter.[4]
References
[edit]- ↑ Witherden, Steve (14 April 2026). "Another video from my visit to Machynlleth last week, this time on their bid for Town of Culture 2028". Facebook.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ Hughes, Owen; Mosalski, Ruth (5 July 2024). "The full list of all eight MPs in North Wales and who they are". North Wales Live. Retrieved 10 August 2024.
- ↑ "Steve Witherden - Welsh Labour - Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr General Election 2024". Wrexham.com. Retrieved 10 August 2024.
- 1 2 "Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr - Steve Witherden". Welsh Labour. Retrieved 14 July 2024.
- 1 2 "Steve Witherden Maiden Speech". parliament.uk. Retrieved 16 August 2024.
- ↑ Jones, Matt (5 July 2024). "General Election 2024: Labour win Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr seat". The Leader. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
- ↑ "Montgomeryshire and Glyndŵr MP Steve Witherden elected to committee". County Times. 18 October 2024. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ↑ "Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr MP details his vote in favour of assisted dying bill". Wrexham.com. Retrieved 18 February 2025.
- ↑ "Labour's welfare reform U-turn not enough, says Welsh MP". BBC News. 27 June 2025. Retrieved 28 June 2025.
- ↑ "Ukraine volunteer claims MP stole idea to donate ventilators - to divert them to Cuba". BBC News. 29 April 2026. Retrieved 29 April 2026.
- ↑ https://educationappg.org.uk/about-the-appg/officers-and-members/
External links
[edit]
- Official website
- Profile at Parliament of the United Kingdom
- Contributions in Parliament at Hansard
- Voting record at Public Whip
- Record in Parliament at TheyWorkForYou
- Profile on OpenSanctions, an open database of sanctions and persons of interest
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