Kirsty Williams

For the BBC Radio Drama director and producer, see Kirsty Williams (drama).

Kirsty Williams AM
Leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats
Incumbent
Assumed office 8 December 2008
Preceded by	Mike German
Member of the Welsh Assembly for Brecon and Radnorshire
Incumbent
Assumed office 6 May 1999
Preceded by	New Assembly
Majority	2,757 (9.7%)
Personal details
Born	19 March 1971 (1971-03-19) Taunton, Somerset, United Kingdom
Nationality	British
Political party	Liberal Democrats
Spouse(s)	Richard Rees
Alma mater	University of Manchester

Victoria Kirsty Williams (born 19 March 1971) is a British politician. She is the leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats and the Member of the Welsh Assembly for Brecon and Radnorshire.

Early life

Williams was born in Taunton, Somerset to Welsh parents. She spent a few years living in Somerset and Liverpool before the family moved to Bynea, Carmarthenshire when Williams was three. After being educated at the village primary school, Kirsty had a private secondary education and attended St. Michael's School in Llanelli. St. Michaels School named a section of the school after her called the "Kirsty Williams Centre" due to her success as a politician. She attended the University of Manchester where she received a Bachelor of Arts in American Studies. The course included studying for a year at the University of Missouri.

After graduation she worked in the learning resources department of Carmarthenshire College in her home town Llanelli, before taking up a post as a marketing and public relations executive. She went to the same school as former Catatonia singer Cerys Matthews.

Political career

Kirsty Williams addressing the Liberal Democrats conference in the Harrogate International Centre in 2009

Williams joined the Liberal Party at the age of 15 and held numerous party posts in her home town of Llanelli, in the Welsh Liberal Democrats and the Liberal Democrat Youth and Students. She was Deputy President of the Welsh Liberal Democrats between 1998 and 2000.

In the 1997 General Election she contested the constituency of Ogmore coming third. For a long time she was a keen advocate of a Welsh Assembly, and campaigned hard in the 1997 referendum for the creation of the National Assembly for Wales. She was subsequently appointed to the National Assembly Advisory Group by Welsh Secretary Ron Davies.

In 1998 she succeeded in being selected as the Liberal Democrat Welsh Assembly candidate for the constituency of Brecon and Radnorshire. In 1999 she was elected for the constituency in the first ever Welsh Assembly elections. Although there was a slight swing towards the Conservatives, her majority was 5,852 (20.0%).

In her first term she became her party's health spokesman. She also served as Chair of the Welsh Assembly Health and Social Care Committee between 1999 and 2003.

In 2003 she defended the Brecon and Radnorshire constituency with an increased share of the vote, mainly at the expense of the Labour Party.

In the 2006 Welsh Yearbook Political Awards, she was voted "Member to Watch 2006" In a poll at the end of 2006, Williams was voted "Sexiest female Liberal Democrat" on the award-winning blog by Stephen Tall. She backed Sir Menzies Campbell in the 2006 Liberal Democrat leadership election and Nick Clegg in the 2007 Liberal Democrat leadership election.

In the Welsh Assembly elections of 2007, Williams retained the seat of Brecon and Radnorshire polling over 50% of the vote, beating Conservative candidate Suzy Davies into second place. She was the only member of the Welsh Assembly to have increased her share of the vote in each of the first three elections.

On 8 December 2008 Williams became leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats, having defeated Cardiff Central Assembly Member Jenny Randerson. She is the first female leader of any of the four big Welsh political parties.

In the Welsh Assembly elections of 2011, Williams retained her seat by polling 43% of the vote, with the Conservatives again second.

In 2011, as leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats, she agreed to support the Welsh Labour Government's 2012-2013 £14.5bn Budget on the basis, amongst other things, of securing the Welsh Pupil Premium: an extra £20m to spend on the education of the poorest pupils. Teaching Unions welcomed the deal, with ATL Cymru director Philip Dixon saying: "Our children are our future and investment in them is investment for all. Both Labour and the Lib Dems deserve credit for ensuring that our children, especially those in most need, will now get a better start in life."

Personal

Williams married Richard Rees in September 2000, and they now live at his family's farm just outside Brecon in the heart of her constituency. They have three daughters: Angharad (born 2001), Carys (born 2004) and Rachel (born 2006).

External links

• Kirsty Williams AM official site
• Kirsty Williams AM Profile at the site of Welsh Liberal Democrats
• National Assembly for Wales Website
• News Feeds from the Welsh Liberal Democrats
• Profile on BBC website September 1999

Offices held

National Assembly for Wales
New creation	Assembly Member for Brecon and Radnorshire 1999 – present	Incumbent
Party political offices
Preceded by Mike German	Leader of the Liberal Democrats in the National Assembly 2008 – present	Incumbent
	Leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats 2008 – present