Goronwy Roberts, Baron Goronwy-Roberts

Who was Goronwy Roberts, Baron Goronwy-Roberts?

Goronwy Owen Goronwy-Roberts, Baron Goronwy-Roberts PC, MA was a Labour Member of Parliament. The younger son of E. E. and Amelia Roberts from Bethesda, Gwynedd, he was educated at the University of Wales and the University of London and appointed a Fellow of the University of Wales in 1938.

He was MP for Caernarvonshire from 1945 until 1950, and then for Caernarvon from 1950 until February 1974, when he lost his seat to Dafydd Wigley of Plaid Cymru. Since then, no Labour candidate has won the seat. He was a Member of the House of Commons Panel of Chairmen in 1963-64, and served in government as Minister of State at the Welsh Office from 1964–66, Minister of State, Education and Science from 1966–67, Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 1967-69, Minister of State for Trade 1969-70. When Labour lost power in 1970, Roberts became an opposition spokesman on Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs.

On his defeat at the February General election in 1974 he was created a life peer as Baron Goronwy-Roberts, of Caernarfon and of Ogwen in the County of Caernarfonshire. He returned to government as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 1974-75 and as Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 1975-79. He was Deputy Leader of the House of Lords, 1975-79.