Tributes paid to Islwyn MP Touhig (From Campaign Series)

Tributes paid to Islwyn MP Touhig

5:30pm Monday 1st February 2010

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COLLEAGUES of Don Touhig paid tribute to the Islwyn MP who announced at the weekend his plans to step down at the next election.

Cllr Tom Williams, chairman of Islwyn Labour Party said: “Don has been an extremely hard working MP. He has helped so many people and has always been a strong supporter of local community groups.

“I would like to thank him for his years of service to the Islwyn constituency - he will be a hard act to follow.”

MP for Torfaen, Paul Murphy, also paid tribute to Mr Touhig.

He said: “I want to pay tribute to him as a very effective and successful Minister in the Wales Office and Ministry of Defence, and as a committed constituency MP for Islwyn.

“Neil Kinnock was some act to follow, but Don did that with aplomb. The Commons will be a poorer place without him.”

Mr Touhig, 62, joined the Labour party aged just 15, and has spent 45 years in politics as an MP and a Gwent county councillor.

He said he plans to continue his work with the many voluntary organisations he supports, including Newbridge Memo, and is looking forward to spending time with his family.

The Pontypool-born MP told Islwyn Labour party of his decision at a meeting on Friday.

Mr Touhig, of Blackwood, said he will miss the variety that comes with the job but mostly he will miss the regular contact he has with his constituents.

“I will miss the contact with lots of people who come for help, that will be a wrench.

“I remember when Anuerin Bevan became an MP, he said ‘Westminster is a palace but just remember that you are there to do a job. You work on behalf of the people of Islwyn’ and that is what I have sought to do,” he said.

The former parliamentary under secretary of state for Wales said the proudest moment of his 15 years as an MP was leading a successful campaign to get compensation for miners who suffered with health problems caused by years working underground.

Since winning the campaign, which was supported by the Argus, more than £50 million has been paid out to miners living in the Islwyn area.

He said: “Of all the things I have been involved in, that was the most satisfying.”

One of the things he says he is most disappointed about was the failure by parliament to pass a bill he put forward to protect whistle blowers from victimisation if they exposed failures in the companies they worked for.

The bill was later passed when Labour gained power but Mr Touhig said he was disappointed it was not passed earlier to protect those who had spoken out.

The father-of-four and grandfather-of-three said his family supported his decision to stand down and said he was looking forward to taking his grandchildren to school, something he is currently unable to do during his 70-hour working week.

He said: “You need a very understanding wife and loving partner in this job and my wife Jennifer has been that. She is hugely supportive and now we can find some time for eachother.”

Mr Touhig said he owed a great debt to the Labour party and will continue to support it.

From editor to MP Mr Touhig was born in Abersychan, Pontypool in 1947.

Between 1968 and 1994 he worked as a journalist and editor at the Argus’ sister paper the Free Press in Monmouthshire and later as general manager of the Free Press Group.

From 1973 to 1995 he was a councillor for Gwent county councillor before being elected as MP for Islwyn in a by-election in 1995.

In 2005 he was appointed the under secretary of state for defence and minister for veterans and in 2006 was made a member of the Queen’s Privy Council.

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