English: Diolch, Llywydd. I would like, on behalf of my group and my party, also to repeat the condolences, which have been given to Julie and other members of Rhodri's family. I overlapped in the House of Commons with Rhodri for 10 years, from 1987 to 1997 and despite our political differences, Rhodri was an engaging and genial companion who always had time to talk. He was a gentle man and a gentleman. I warmed to him because it was immediately clear that, whilst fiercely loyal to his own party, he was always going to be his own man and a fully paid-up member of the awkward squad. Just as important, he was adamantine in his devotion to the fundamental decencies of life and politics. As a sincere person himself, he was always able to accept the sincerity of others. He bore no personal rancour towards anyone, even those whose opinions diverged radically from his. Unlike some, he never believed that democratic debate was improved by personal abuse and mud-slinging. He was broadminded enough to recognise that people can be equally sincere in their desire to do good even though they may differ fundamentally in their political prescriptions. He was part of that strand of socialist thinking, which in Morgan Phillips's words owed more to Methodism than to Marx. But Rhodri was a nonconformist in a general sense: his unruly hair being a metaphor for his sturdy refusal to be controlled by anything other than his own conscience. His obituary in 'The Daily Telegraph' described him as 'Off-message Labour MPwho defied Tony Blair to become First Minister'. And he was deeply disappointed in 1997 when Tony Blair failed to offer him a ministerial post. But in retrospect, he might have agreed that Blair did him a favour, as Martin Shipton has written: 'What it really amounted to was that Rhodri - while certainly no wild man of the left - was the antithesis of the technochratic type of politician that Blair favoured.' As a loyal party man he sublimated his personal disappointment and used the freedom of the backbenches to throw himself enthusiastically into the campaign for the establishment of this National Assembly. In consequence, he has been rightly dubbed as the father of Welsh devolution, not only for his role in the original referendum campaign but also his 10 years as First Minister. And he did as much as anyone to establish this Assembly as a permanent feature of Welsh life, confounding the initial scepticism of people like me. It may not be the strongest argument in his favour to say that without him I wouldn't be here today, but who can deny that this forum for the vigorous clash of opinions will be his lasting memorial. In the Assembly election campaign last year, Rhodri and I made a tv programme for S4C, and like all men in their anecdotage we entertained each other with stories of the old days in the House of Commons and the characters who had crossed our paths. Always his own man, he announced his surprise decision to resign as First Minister on his seventieth birthday and he said, 'There's never a right time to go' - better not to outstay his welcome. Well, he may have been right about that then, but at only 77 years old this is certainly not the right time for him to go finally, and Wales is much the poorer for his untimely departure. As a selfless public servant he was universally respected across the political spectrum and loved as the warmest of human beings by legions of people he encountered in all walks of life. Dr Johnson said that 'In lapidary inscriptions a man is not upon oath.' But I can truly say that Rhodri was one of the most admirable men I've had the pleasure to know in half a century of public life, and it's an honour to walk in his shadow.
Welsh: Diolch, Llywydd. Hoffwn, ar ran fy ngrŵp a'm plaid, ailadrodd y cydymdeimlad hefyd, sydd wedi eu mynegi i Julie ac aelodau eraill o deulu Rhodri. Bûm yn Nhŷ'r Cyffredin ar yr un pryd â Rhodri am 10 mlynedd, o 1987 i 1997, ac er gwaethaf ein gwahaniaethau gwleidyddol, roedd Rhodri bob amser yn gydymaith diddorol a hynaws a chanddo amser i siarad bob amser. Roedd yn ddyn addfwyn ac yn ŵr bonheddig. Roeddwn i'n teimlo'n agos ato oherwydd ei bod yn amlwg ar unwaith, er ei fod yn ffyrnig o deyrngar i'w blaid ei hun, nad oedd fyth yn mynd i fod yn was i neb ond yn aelod llawn o garfan y lletchwith. A'r un mor bwysig, roedd yn ddi-ildio yn ei ymroddiad i gwrteisi sylfaenol bywyd a gwleidyddiaeth. Ac yntau'n ddyn didwyll ei hunan, roedd yn gallu derbyn didwylledd eraill bob amser. Nid oedd yn magu unrhyw ddrwgdeimlad personol tuag at neb, hyd yn oed y rhai a oedd a barn wahanol iawn i'w farn ef ei hun. Yn wahanol i rai, ni chredodd erioed fod dadl ddemocrataidd yn cael ei gwella drwy sarhad personol a phardduo. Roedd yn ddigon eangfrydig i gydnabod y gall pobl fod yr un mor ddiffuant yn eu hawydd i wneud daioni er eu bod yn gwahaniaethu'n sylfaenol o ran eu daliadau gwleidyddol. Roedd yn rhan o'r elfen honno o'r meddwl sosialaidd, a chanddi, yng ngeiriau Morgan Phillips, fwy o ddyled i Fethodistiaeth nag i Marx. Ond roedd Rhodri yn anghydffurfiwr mewn ystyr cyffredinol: ei wallt afreolus yn cyfleu ei wrthwynebiad pendant i gael ei reoli gan unrhyw beth heblaw ei gydwybod ei hun. Mae ei ysgrif goffa yn 'The Daily Telegraph' yn ei ddisgrifio fel AS Llafur a oedd yn torri ei gwys ei hun ac a anwybyddodd Tony Blair i ddod yn Brif Weinidog Cymru. Ac roedd yn siomedig iawn yn 1997 pan fethodd Tony Blair â chynnig swydd weinidogol iddo. Ond o edrych yn ôl, efallai y byddai wedi cytuno bod Blair wedi gwneud cymwynas ag ef, fel yr ysgrifennodd Martin Shipton: Mewn gwirionedd, swm a sylwedd y peth oedd - er nad dyn gwyllt ar y chwith mohono'n sicr - fod Rhodri yn gyferbyniad llwyr i'r math o wleidydd technocrataidd yr oedd Blair yn ei ffafrio. Gan ei fod yn ddyn ffyddlon i'w blaid fe roddodd ei siom bersonol o'r neilltu a defnyddio rhyddid y meinciau cefn i ymroi'n frwdfrydig i'r ymgyrch dros sefydlu'r Cynulliad Cenedlaethol hwn. O ganlyniad, cafodd yr enw haeddiannol o fod yn dad datganoli yng Nghymru, nid yn unig am ei waith gydag ymgyrch y refferendwm gwreiddiol ond hefyd ei 10 mlynedd o fod yn Brif Weinidog. Ac fe wnaeth cymaint â neb i sefydlu'r Cynulliad hwn yn nodwedd barhaol ym mywyd Cymru, gan beri cryn syndod i rai fel fi a oedd yn llawn amheuon ar y cychwyn. Efallai nad y ddadl orau dros ei achos yw dweud mai hebddo fe, ni fyddwn i yma heddiw, ond pwy all wadu na fydd y fforwm hwn ar gyfer gwrthdaro egnïol rhwng safbwyntiau yn gofeb barhaol iddo. Yn ymgyrch etholiad y Cynulliad y llynedd, gwnaeth Rhodri a minnau raglen deledu ar gyfer S4C, ac fel mae pob dyn â'i hanesion yn ei henaint roeddem ni'n diddanu ei gilydd â straeon am yr hen ddyddiau yn Nhŷ'r Cyffredin a'r cymeriadau yr oeddem wedi eu cyfarfod. Fyth yn was i neb, cyhoeddodd ei benderfyniad annisgwyl i ymddiswyddo o fod yn Brif Weinidog ar ei ben-blwydd yn ddeg a thrigain a dywedodd, 'Does 'na byth amser iawn i fynd - roedd hi'n well peidio â mynd yn hyfach na'i groeso. Wel, efallai ei fod yn iawn yn hynny o beth bryd hynny, ond ac yntau ond yn 77 mlwydd oed, yn sicr nid dyma'r amser cywir iddo'n gadael am y tro olaf, ac mae Cymru yn llawer tlotach o'i ymadawiad cyn ei amser. Fel rhywun a oedd yn gwasanaethu'r cyhoedd yn anhunanol cafodd ei barchu gan bawb ar draws y sbectrwm gwleidyddol a'i garu fel y cynhesaf o ddynion gan y llu o bobl y daeth ar eu traws ym mhob agwedd ar fywyd. Dywedodd Dr Johnson fel hyn Nid yw dyn yn mynd ar ei lw mewn ysgrifau a dorrwyd ar faen Ond gallaf ddweud yn onest bod Rhodri yn un o'r dynion mwyaf cymeradwy y cefais y pleser o'u hadnabod mewn hanner canrif o fywyd cyhoeddus, ac mae'n anrhydedd i rodio yn ei gysgod.