Peter Laws who last May overturned the 19,000 Labour majority in Blaenau Gwent has died from the brain tumour that was diagnosed during last year's general election campaign. He was also the Welsh AM for the area.
He stood down as a member of the Labour party in protest against them impossing women only short lists and in the end took what was Labour's safest seat in Wales. The list of previous holders of the seat is an impressive who's who of Labour politics, Llew Smith, Michael Foot and Aneurin Bevan. But only 100 of the 700 party members in the constituency voted for the five woman short list from which Maggie Jones, now a working peer, was selected but was eventually defeated by Laws by 9,121 votes on 5 May 2005.
The death of the 58 year old, voted Welsh Politician of the year in December, leaves his wife Trish a widow and two sons and three daughters without their father.
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