Emlyn Hooson

it was sad to learn of Emlyn Hooson's death this morning, and I have been thinking of him not only as a great figure in the politics of Wales and the UK, but as a great personal friend over half a century. One of the first engagements I undertook after my own by-election was to speak at Emlyn's by-election in Llanidloes, and we were close allies in the successful campaign to revive the Liberal Party in the sixties, We holidayed together in Brittany, where we spoke for devolution in the French political system, and Emlyn taught me the few sentences of Welsh that I have used whenever I have spoken in Wales. For years he was a brilliant performer in the Lords, and there he always spoke up for Wales. It is a privilege to have been a companion of Emlyn, one of the finest and truest Liberals of our generation.