Liz Saville Roberts

Liz Saville Roberts
MP
Member of Parliament
for Dwyfor Meirionnydd
Assumed office
8 May 2015
Preceded by Elfyn Llwyd
Majority 4,850 (16.0%)
Personal details
Born (1964-12-16) 16 December 1964
Eltham, London, England
Political party Plaid Cymru
Spouse(s)
Dewi Wyn Roberts (m. 1994)
Children 2
Alma mater Aberystwyth University
Website www.lizsavilleroberts.org

Elizabeth Saville Roberts (née Saville; 16 December 1964)[1] is an English born Plaid Cymru politician. She was first elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Dwyfor Meirionnydd in May 2015.[2]

Early life

Saville Roberts grew up in Eltham, London, before moving to Aberystwyth, aged 18, to study languages. She worked in Welsh-medium further education.[3]

Political career

In 2004, she became a member of Gwynedd Council for Morfa Nefyn and Edern.[4] In 2008 she became the authorities cabinet member for education.[5]

She was elected to Parliament in 2015 representing Dwyfor Meirionnydd becoming Plaid's spokesperson for Home Affairs, Education, Health, Environment, Energy, Equalities and Local Government.[6] In her maiden speech to parliament she emphasised her and Plaid Cymru's commitment to public education, and highlighted issues facing rural Wales.[7] She is the first ever female MP for Plaid Cymru.[8]

She stood down as a Councillor following her election to parliament.[9]

In 2016, Saville Roberts introduced a bill to the House of Commons which tackled online bullying and cyber crime.[10][11]

She retained her seat in the 2017 snap general election with an increased majority.[12] Following the 2017 election she became the leader of the Plaid Cymru Westminster group and party spokesperson for Home Affairs, Justice, Business, Energy, Industrial Strategy, Women and Equalities.[13]

She has hinted about standing for the National Assembly in 2021.[8]

In early 2017, Saville Roberts argued in favour of introducing a US-style rape shield law to prevent cross-examination of rape victims' sexual history in courtrooms, and tabled a private members bill on the matter. The government launched an emergency review in response.[14][15] Later that year in November 2017, she led calls for a system of electronic tagging to be implemented for domestic abusers and stalkers which would allow their victims to be alerted if they were near by.[16][17]

In 2018, Saville Roberts opposed UK involvement in the 2018 bombing of Damascus and Homs, which she described as a "tokenistic action" that would do "little to allay the human suffering on the ground in Syria nor to bring stability to the region." She also criticised Prime Minister Theresa May for not having given Parliament a vote on the air strikes before proceeding.[18][19]

She is the Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Digital Crime.[20]

Personal life

Saville Roberts has lived in the village of Morfa Nefyn in Gwynedd with her husband since 1993. They married in 1994 and have twin daughters.[1][21]

References

  1. 1 2 "Saville Roberts, Elizabeth, (born 16 Dec. 1964), MP (Plaid Cymru) Dwyfor Meirionnydd, since 2015". Who's Who. 2015. doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.283990.
  2. ↑ "Dwyfor Meirionnydd". BBC News. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
  3. ↑ Jamieson, Sophie (29 April 2015). "Female MPs: Parliament's future front bench stars". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
  4. ↑ "Liz Saville-Roberts". Plaid Cymru. Retrieved 15 May 2015.
  5. ↑ "Liz Saville Roberts is Gwynedd Council's schools leader". Daily Post. 4 June 2008. Retrieved 6 June 2018.
  6. ↑ "Liz Saville Roberts MP". UK Parliament.
  7. ↑ Cornock, David (23 June 2015). "New MP's rural economy warning". BBC News. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  8. 1 2 "Plaid Cymru MP may seek assembly seat". BBC News. 17 December 2017. Retrieved 6 June 2018.
  9. ↑ "Morfa Nefyn By-election: 9 July 2015". Gwynedd Council. Retrieved 6 June 2018.
  10. ↑ Laville, Sandra (4 March 2016). "Online abuse: 'existing laws too fragmented and don't serve victims'". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  11. ↑ "Bill targets online abuse and crime". BBC News. 9 March 2016. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  12. ↑ "Dwyfor Meirionnydd parliamentary constituency - Election 2017". BBC News. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
  13. ↑ "Plaid Cymru announces Westminster spokespeople". Plaid Cymru. 23 June 2017. Retrieved 23 June 2017.
  14. ↑ "MP hopes review will help rape victims". BBC News. 2017-02-12. Retrieved 2018-06-26.
  15. ↑ Travis, Alan (2017-02-08). "MP proposes UK rape shield law to protect victims in court". the Guardian. Retrieved 2018-06-26.
  16. ↑ "Convicted stalkers and domestic abusers should be forced to wear GPS trackers, campaigners say". The Independent. 20 April 2018. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
  17. ↑ Evans, Martin (23 April 2018). "Calls for stalkers and domestic abusers to be fitted with electronic tags to alert victims". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
  18. ↑ "Long-term plan call after Syria strikes". BBC News. 14 April 2018. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
  19. ↑ Williamson, David (17 April 2018). "What is the evidence Assad used chemical weapons - and what did we bomb?". WalesOnline. Media Wales. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
  20. ↑ Commons, The Committee Office, House of. "House of Commons - Register Of All-Party Parliamentary Groups as at 21 July 2016: Digital Crime". publications.parliament.uk. Retrieved 2018-06-26.
  21. ↑ "Liz Saville Roberts". HuffPost. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
Elfyn Llwyd		 Member of Parliament
for Dwyfor Meirionnydd
2015–present		 Incumbent


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