“WHAT I have learned in politics is you should never take anything for granted.”
It has been 12 years since the creation of the Welsh Assembly in Cardiff, and Kirsty Williams is one of the few familiar faces left from the class of ‘99.
This year’s election has produced 24 new members, and a fierce struggle between Liberal Democrats and Conservatives across Powys.
Despite coalition cosiness in Westminster, the political playing field across Montgomeryshire and Brecon and Radnorshire has been anything but, with the Conservatives capturing a Lib Dem seat in Montgomeryshire and cutting in to Kirsty’s majority in the south of the county.
Speaking to the County Times this week, the returning AM paid tribute to her Conservative opponents.
“The Conservatives always work very hard in their seat,” said Kirsty. “If you look at the history of Brecon and Radnorshire, it’s always been a Lib Dem/Conservative marginal, you never write them off.
“It was a tough battle in Montgomeryshire having lost the MP seat last year, issues such as wind farms, and the incident with Mick Bates. It was always going to be a very tough battle, and I’m very sorry indeed that Wyn Williams wasn’t elected as he would have been a fantastic representative.”
The Conservative candidate for Brecon and Radnorshire, Chris Davies, came a close second in the elections two weeks ago, falling short by around 3,000 votes.
Regardless of national opinion of the Liberal Democrats, the Welsh campaign went well, said Kirsty.
“Clearly this was a more difficult campaign for the Welsh Liberal Democrats, as it was the first we had had to fight with the Westminster party in power,” she said.
“It made it difficult to get our message across when all journalists and opponents want to talk about was Westminster.”
How does the AM predict the now solo Labour government in the Welsh Assembly will do things differently?
“It is too early to say how the Labour party are going to behave,” she said. “But the Liberal Democrats will continue to campaign and fulfill the things we were saying during the election – getting more people back to work, equalise the class funding between Welsh and English schools.
“There is going to be give and take between all parties, and we’re not afraid to support Labour if we think they are right or disagree if we think they’re wrong.
“My priority has always been fighting for the people of Brecon and Radnorshire in Cardiff Bay, speaking up on their behalf,” Kirsty said.
“I will continue to fight for a recognition that rural communities deserve decent public services, and the same investment as the M4 corridor, for example.
“I feel strongly about it because I live here too, I’m bringing up my family here, the services that my constituents rely on I rely on as well, so for me it’s also about my own family’s access to education and social care.”
Speaking about issues of local importance, how did the returning AM react when she heard that an allowances increase for the new Powys County Council cabinet was voted through?
“I think the councillors have made a mistake,” she said. “I don’t think it’s appropriate at this time that councillors of the cabinet are having increased pay.
“Me and Roger [Williams MP] were quite clear that we didn’t support it.”
As someone who has also served in Cardiff for over a decade, how did the AM react to the departure of Ieuan Wyn Jones as the leader of Plaid Cymru?
“I don’t think it’s a surprise,” she said. “Even if results had been better, all leaders have a natural shelf life, it’s not a surprise that he’s looking to move on.
“Party leaders usually don’t go much past 10 or 11 years – we all have a sell-by date.”