George Thomas

Thomas George Thomas, Viscount Tonypandy (1909-1997) was a Labour politician and statesman; MP for Cardiff Central 1945-83. A deeply religious man and a former teacher, he was one of the first on the scene of the Aberfan disaster, which occurred while he was a Minister at the Welsh Office. As Secretary of State for Wales 1968-70, he presided over the Prince of Wales' Investiture arrangements of 1969. During his term of office as Speaker of the British House of Commons (1976-1983), the first broadcasting of Parliamentary proceedings brought him unprecedented public attention, but he proved more impartial than party colleagues had expected. In 1983, he was created Viscount Tonypandy[?]. Always an anti-Nationalist, one of his final political acts was his public opposition to the devolution proposals of 1997.