Former probation officer Leanne Wood elected Plaid Cymru leader | Politics | The Guardian Plaid Cymru Former probation officer Leanne Wood elected Plaid Cymru leader Wood takes over from Ieuan Wyn Jones, who is standing down following party's poor showing in last year's assembly elections Leanne Wood, who has been elected as leader of Welsh nationalists Plaid Cymru. Photograph: Benjamin Wright/PA Thursday 15 March 2012 15.08 EDT First published on Thursday 15 March 2012 15.08 EDT Close This article is 4 years old Leanne Wood , a former probation officer from the Welsh valleys, has become the new leader of the Welsh nationalist party, Plaid Cymru. Wood will take over from Ieuan Wyn Jones, who announced he would stand down following the party's poor showing in last year's assembly elections after 10 years in charge. It means the party – once described as for "males" as much as for "Wales" – has a woman leader, chair, president and chief executive.

Wood beat fellow assembly members Elin Jones, a former minister in the One Wales government when Plaid ruled in coalition with Labour, and Dafydd Elis-Thomas, who has been the assembly's presiding officer. After her victory, Wood said: "This campaign has not been about individuals. It has been about a vision – a programme, a set of connected politics. Our task now is to build on the work of all of those who have gone before us. We may be small, as a party and as a country, but we can stand tall if we stand together and we stand up for our principles. "The election is over, now the real work begins. I may not be the leader of the official opposition, but I intend to lead the official proposition. The proposition that another Wales is possible. Our positive, ambitious alternative vision can only come from the party of Wales. "So here's my message today to the people of Wales: we are your party. The people's party, of Wales, for Wales. Join us. Help us to re-build your community. Help us to re-build our economy.

Together we'll build a new Wales that will be fair, a new Wales that will flourish and a new Wales that will be free." Plaid's chief executive, Rhuanedd Richards, said: "Our new leader has a crucial job to do for our nation over the coming years. Fighting for the future of Wales and our communities is very much at the forefront of people's minds. Plaid is the only party which will ensure that the interest of Wales and its people will be advanced. "I look forward to working with Leanne Wood as we continue the work of renewing the party. Plaid has a team of thousands of community activists and members who are already playing their part in moving Plaid and Wales forward. I know they too are looking forward to working alongside Leanne Wood over the coming years." She added: "It's interesting we now find ourselves in a position where we have women as chair, chief executive, president and now leader. I think it's an important development for the party." At 40 Wood , a mother-of-one, was the youngest and, in terms of party posts, the most junior of the three candidates.

She is well-known for her anti-war stance and in 2004 was accused of insulting the Queen when she referred to the monarch during an official visit as "Mrs Windsor". She later said: "I don't recognise the Queen. I called her that because that's her name." Wood still lives in the same street where she was brought up and has described the UK's coalition as a "hyper-competitive, imperial/militaristic climate-change-ignoring and privatising government". She told the Guardian last month that independence for Wales was no longer an "impossible dream" . She said: "We're in a position to be able to start talking about independence in a normalised way … I think now is a good time for the debate." Along with Wood and Richards, Plaid has two other women in very prominent roles. The Plaid MEP Jill Evans is president while Helen Mary Jones is chair. However, Plaid has never had a woman MP and Jones has called for the party to discuss having all-woman shortlists for parliamentary elections to address this. Plaid performed poorly in the Welsh assembly elections last year, losing seats and becoming only the third-biggest party behind Labour and the Tories.

It is hoping a new leader will give it another boost at an interesting time in the history of Wales with the future shape of devolution under discussion in Cardiff and Whitehall. Wood is a former probation officer and women's support worker in the valleys and lives in the Rhondda, where she grew up. Her political interests include issues affecting women and young people and the anti-war movement. One of the important challenges the new leader will face is appealing to voters in non-Welsh speaking areas. Many party members feel it has not done enough to capitalise on the increase in interest in Welsh identity and on support for the people of Wales to have greater control over their country's affairs. Labour has managed to present itself as the "Welsh party" in recent years – it now governs alone at the assembly with half of the 60 seats – while many believe Plaid has been sidelined as a party mainly appealing to Welsh speakers. As Plaid announced its new leader in Cardiff, the Commission on Devolution in Wales was holding its first public meeting down the M4 in Swansea. The commission has been set up to look at how devolution should develop.

To mark the first public event, the commission published an ICM poll that showed 62% of people think the Welsh government should be able to vary some taxes. The survey also revealed that 66% were in favour of the Welsh government being able to borrow money to spend on capital projects such as building roads and hospital. However, when asked which level of government should have the most influence over the taxes people pay, 54% felt that responsibility should rest with the UK government. • This article was amended on 15 March. The original described Leanne Wood as a former social worker. This has been corrected Leanne Wood AM - Assembly Member Profile Leanne Wood AM National Assembly for Wales is not responsible for the content of any external link Membership Additional Information Key interests and achievements Leanne has been heavily involved in the trade union movement and was previously the chair of the all-party PCS Union group in the Assembly. During her tenure as AM, she has been responsible for the Sustainability, Environment, Social Justice, and Housing portfolios for Plaid Cymru. Outside of politics, her interests include learning Welsh and gardening. Other affiliations: Associate Member of the National Association of Probation Officers.

Palestine Solidarity Campaign Personal history Leanne Wood was born in the Rhondda where she continues to live today. She was educated at Tonypandy Comprehensive School, the University of Glamorgan and Cardiff University. Professional background Before her election to the National Assembly in 2003, Leanne worked as a professional tutor and lectured in social policy at Cardiff University. She also worked as a probation officer and a support worker for Cwm Cynon Women's Aid during 2001 and 2002. Political history Leanne has produced two major policy documents for Plaid Cymru. In 2008, she published Making Our Communities Safer which argued for the criminal justice system in Wales to be devolved. In 2011, A Greenprint for the Valleys was published, in which Leanne argued for a green job creation programme aimed at regenerating the former coalfield areas of the valleys. On 15 March 2012, Leanne was elected as leader of Plaid Cymru, becoming the first woman to lead the party. She was elected as Assembly Member for the Rhondda in May 2016.

Elections Leanne Wood (Politician) - Pics, Videos, Dating, & News Leanne Wood Female Born Dec 13, 1971 Leanne Wood AM, is a Welsh politician and the leader of Plaid Cymru. Born in the Rhondda, Wales, she has represented the South Wales Central region as a Member of the National Assembly for Wales since 2003. She was elected leader of Plaid Cymru on 15 March 2012. Wood, a socialist, republican and a proponent for Welsh independence, is the first female leader of Plaid Cymru and the first party leader not to be fluent in Welsh.… Read More related links Carwyn Jones 'closer To Plaid Than Corbyn' On Immigration Bbc News Google News - Dec 13, 2016 ' BBC News Carwyn Jones \'closer to Plaid than Corbyn\' on immigration BBC News First Minister Carwyn Jones has said his position on immigration is closer to that of Plaid Cymru than that of Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn.

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Carwyn Jones And Leanne Wood Have Joined Forces To Persuade You To Stay In The Eu Wales Online Google News - May 23, 2016 ' WalesOnline Carwyn Jones and <mark>Leanne Wood</mark> have joined forces to persuade you to stay in the EU WalesOnline The leaders of Labour and Plaid Cymru have put the storms in the Senedd behind them to make a joint appeal for the people of Wales to vote to remain in the European Union. The strength of euroscepticism in Wales is demonstrated by the election this ... E-cig ban dropped from bill says first ministerSouth Wales Argus First minister dismisses e-cigs ban plan in health billB... Uk Election: Uk Party Leaders Cast Votes In General Election Information Nigeria - May 07, 2015 ' \n Party leaders have been casting their votes in the United Kingdom general election.Â Polls opened at 07:00 BST at around 50,000 polling stations across the UK, which will remain open until 22:00.

BBC was there: \n A total of 650 Westminster MPs will be elected, with about 50 million people registered to vote.Â As well as the general election, there are more than 9,000 council seats being contested across 279 English local authorities.Â Mayors will also be elected in Bedford, Copeland, Leic... Learn about the memorable moments in the evolution of Leanne Wood. CHILDHOOD 1971 Birth Wood was born in Llwynypia Hospital on 13 December 1971, the daughter of Jeff and Avril Wood. … Read More She was brought up and still lives in the nearby village of Penygraig. She was educated at Tonypandy Comprehensive School (now Tonypandy Community College), and the University of Glamorgan (now the University of South Wales). Read Less 1976 4 Years Old Wood credits her political awakening to reading Marge Piercy's 1976 feminist classic Woman on the Edge of Time, and the 1984/5 UK miners' strike.

… Read More Her political heroes include Lewis Lewis, one of the leaders of the 1831 Merthyr Rising. Read Less TEENAGE 1991 19 Years Old After joining Plaid Cymru in 1991 aged 20, Wood was elected a councillor on Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council from 1995 to 1999. TWENTIES Show Less From 1997 to 2000, Wood worked with the Mid Glamorgan Probation Service as a probation officer. She unsuccessfully stood in both the 1997 and 2001 elections to the Parliament of the United Kingdom as a candidate in the Rhondda constituency. 1998 26 Years Old From 1998 to 2000 she was co-Chair of the National Association of Probation Officers. … Read More Wood worked as a support worker for Cwm Cynon Women's Aid from 2001 to 2002, where she has been Chair since 2001.

Wood lectured in social policy at Cardiff University from 2000, until her election to the National Assembly for Wales in 2003. Read Less 2000 28 Years Old After leaving the probation service in 2000, she was Jill Evans MEP's political researcher until 2001. THIRTIES 2002 30 Years Old Wood and her long-term partner, Ian Brown, have a daughter, Cerys Amelia Wood. In 2002, her then-partner David Evans committed suicide by ingesting an overdose of antidepressant drugs used for treatment of chronic fatigue syndrome. … Read More UK Parliament elections <br /><br /> Welsh Assembly elections Read Less Show Less Wood was Chair of Cardiff Stop the War Coalition from 2003 to 2004. Wood was then elected as a Member of the National Assembly for Wales (AM) in the election of 1 May 2003, representing the South Wales Central region for Plaid. She was the party's Shadow Social Justice Minister between 2003 and 2007.

2004 32 Years Old In December 2004, Wood was the first Assembly Member to be ordered out of the chamber, after referring to the Queen as "Mrs Windsor" during a debate. … Read More Lord Elis-Thomas, a fellow Plaid Cymru AM and the Presiding Officer, asked Wood to withdraw the remark on the grounds of discourtesy. When Wood refused, she was ordered to leave. She later said: "I don't recognise the Queen... I don't think I was treated fairly, I don't think it was necessary. I called her that because that's her name." Read Less Show Less Wood was arrested on 8 January 2007 for protesting against the UK's Trident nuclear missile programme at Faslane naval base in Scotland. Wood became Plaid Cymru's sustainability spokesperson from the formation of the One Wales government, a coalition between Labour and Plaid Cymru in July 2007, remaining in the role until the end of Assembly's term in 2011.

… Read More While in the role, Wood campaigned on green issues, including calling for more land to be made available for growing food.<br /><br /> During the 2011 referendum on extending the National Assembly for Wales' law-making powers, Wood was Plaid Cymru's representative on the all-party Yes for Wales steering group, which campaigned successfully for a 'Yes' vote. She is Chair of the PCS Cross-Party Group in the Welsh Assembly. According to the BBC, Wood's particular areas of interest are: poverty; women's issues; social services; criminal justice; social exclusion; mental health; anti-privatisation; and anti-war. Her Plaid Cymru profile includes her commitment to working "for Wales to become a self-governing decentralist socialist republic". Read Less 2008 36 Years Old Wood has produced two major policy documents. In 2008, she published Making Our Communities Safer. … Read More Drawing on her four yearsâ previous experience as Plaid Cymru's Social Justice and Regeneration spokesperson and committee member, as well as her previous work as a Probation Officer, it argued for the criminal justice system in Wales to be devolved.

Read Less 2009 37 Years Old Between 2009 and 2011, Wood led the exposure of excesses at the Wales Audit Office, while under the control of Jeremy Colman, Auditor General for Wales. … Read More Through the Freedom of Information Act, she uncovered a severance package of Â£750,000, personally authorized by Colman, to the former chief operating officer Anthony Snow. Further scrutiny uncovered more self-authorised expenses, including training costs for Colman and Snow and the Â£464 cost of hiring a chauffeur-driven Mercedes for Snow to attend a meeting on how to save public money.

Read Less Left-wing republican elected new leader of Plaid Cymru | An Phoblacht Left-wing republican elected new leader of Plaid Cymru ‘WALES WILL BE INDEPENDENT IN MY LIFETIME’ – Leanne Wood Socialist republican Leanne Wood AM has been elected as the new leader of Plaid Cymru – The Party of Wales » John Hedges An Phoblacht Editor ‘We’re a party of the Left, we reflect the Welsh radical tradition and we will continue to do that under my leadership’ – Leanne Wood WELSH nationalist party Plaid Cymru’s new leader is a 40-year-old left-wing republican who says she will see independence for Wales in her lifetime. Leanne Wood is the first female leader of Plaid Cymru - Party of Wales and is the first leader of the party who is not a native Welsh speaker although she is learning Welsh and is a keen advocate of the language. A former probation officer, Women’s Aid support worker, tutor at Cardiff University and local councillor in Rhondda Cynon Taf, she was first elected to the Welsh Assembly in 2003.

A year later, the staunch republican was ordered out of the Welsh Assembly when she refused to back down when describing the queen of England as ‘Mrs Windsor’. In 2007, she was arrested for protesting against Britain’s Trident nuclear missile programme at the Faslane naval base in Scotland. She says she is committed to working for Wales to become “a self-governing decentralist socialist republic”. After her election on 16 March, the BBC looked at why Plaid Cymru isn’t the force it could be: “The party has successes to shout about after going into coalition with Labour in 2007. The coalition built the case for reforming the way the Welsh Assembly is funded, secured primary law-making powers and passed legislation to protect the Welsh language - all key aims of Plaid Cymru. But it failed to capitalise on them at last year’s election. In her analysis of why Plaid lost seats, Ms Wood said that after ticking off so many of its short-term goals while in government, Plaid failed to offer voters a unique selling point.” Two key planks of Leanne Wood’s leadership election campaign were the economy and independence.

She knows where Plaid has come from, where it is and where it is going. “We’re a party of the Left, we reflect the Welsh radical tradition and we will continue to do that under my leadership.” #GE2015: The key players in race to Downing Street — RT UK Tags Election , UK , Politics , Austerity There are 650 seats in the House of Commons, Parliament’s lower house, which means a party needs 326 seats to hold a majority. Neither the Conservatives nor Labour are expected to win an outright majority, so another coalition government appears likely. But who will be the kingmaker? RT takes a look at the big contenders for office in the 2015 General Election. David Cameron, Conservative Cameron has served as prime minister since 2010 and has been leader of the Conservative Party since 2005.

His government legalized same-sex marriages in England and Wales, agreed to hold a Scottish independence referendum in September 2014, met the UN target of spending at least 0.7 percent of GNI on aid to developing countries and promised an 'In/Out' referendum on the UK's membership of the European Union in 2017 if the Conservatives are re-elected. He failed to secure a Conservative majority in 2010, but took power with the support of the Liberal Democrats in a coalition. While a charismatic leader, Cameron has struggled to shed his ‘posh’ image, made worse by the growing social inequality that has characterized his tenure. Ed Miliband, Labour Miliband has been the Leader of the Labour Party and leader of the Opposition since 2010. Miliband, who was born in London, first worked as a television journalist and a visiting scholar at Harvard University. Former Prime Minister Tony Blair made Miliband parliamentary secretary to the cabinet office and Blair’s successor Gordon Brown made Miliband minister for the cabinet office and chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. From 2008 to 2010 he was secretary of state for energy and climate change.

The Opposition leader has been plagued by a hostile press, which has branded him ‘Red Ed’ – labeling his calls for moderate reform too radical. His critics say he lacks the charisma to be an effective prime minister. However, polls indicate he may overtake Cameron. Nick Clegg, Liberal Democrats Clegg is the current deputy prime minister because his party the Liberal Democrats are the coalition partner of the Conservatives. Clegg is fluent in five languages and attended the University of Cambridge and the University of Minnesota. He worked as a journalist for the Financial Times and as an adviser to the late Leon Brittan, a Thatcher government minister. His approval rating collapsed, particularly among young voters, after he broke his pledge not to hike tuition fees. As a result, Clegg may lose his seat. Nigel Farage, UKIP Farage is the leader of the UK Independence Party. The former commodities broker became leader in 2010. He is a Euroskeptic known for his anti-immigration rhetoric and often controversial remarks. Farage, a founding member of UKIP, was elected to the European Parliament in 1999 for South East England and re-elected in 2004, 2009 and 2014.

Nicola Sturgeon, Scottish National Party Sturgeon is the current first minister of Scotland and leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP). She studied law at the University of Glasgow and worked as a solicitor. In 1992, she became Scotland's youngest parliamentary candidate. After Alex Salmond resigned as leader of SNP following the defeat of the Yes Scotland campaign in the 2014 Scottish independence referendum, Sturgeon became party leader. The SNP, Plaid Cymru and the Greens said they plan to unite to combat the austerity policies of the three mainstream political parties in an ‘anti-austerity alliance’. Sturgeon wants to remove the £26,000 annual benefits cap and wants to scrap Britain's Trident nuclear weapons program. Natalie Bennett, Green Party Natalie Bennett is the leader of the Green Party of England and Wales. She was born in Sydney, Australia, and moved to the UK in 1999. She worked as a journalist – as a deputy-editor of Guardian Weekly and for the Independent and the Times newspapers. In 2006, she joined the Green Party and was elected leader in 2012.

Leanne Wood, Plaid Cymru Wood was elected leader of the Welsh nationalist party Plaid Cymru in March 2012, becoming the first woman to lead the party. She briefly worked as a probation officer and lectured in social policy at Cardiff University. She suggested Plaid Cymru would support a Labour government. Who is Leanne Wood? Profile of the Plaid Cymru leader - Mirror Online News Who is Leanne Wood? Profile of the Plaid Cymru leader Plaid Cymru leader Leanne Wood will take part in Thursday's live TV debate - but how much do you know about her? Share Plaid Cymru leader Leanne Wood (Photo: Getty) Share Get politics updates directly to your inbox + Subscribe Thank you for subscribing! Could not subscribe, try again laterInvalid Email Leanne Wood is Plaid Cymru's first female leader - and she'll be up against Ed Miliband and David Cameron in the live TV debates on Thursday. The debate will be the only time the Labour and Tory leaders will debate face to face live on TV before the election - but there'll be five other party leaders jostling for attention.

While her party's only likely to pick up a handful of Westminster seats in the general election, they have a history of working with the Labour party in Wales. They've said they could back a Labour government on an issue-by-issue basis. Here's a quick guide to Plaid Cymru's leader. Who is Leanne Wood? The leader of the political party Plaid Cymru, Leanne Wood speaks during a Welsh Leaders' debate (Photo: Getty) Leanne Wood is the leader of Plaid Cymru, the Welsh nationalist party. She was born on December 13th, 1971 in the Rhondda, Glamorganshire. Before becoming a member of the Welsh Assembly, Wood worked as a probation officer and lectured in social policy at Cardiff University. She joined Plaid Cymru in 1991 aged 20 and worked as a researcher for Jill Evans MEP from 2000 to 2001. Wood was elected to the Welsh Assembly in 2003, representing the South West Wales region. She was appointed shadow social justice minister between 2003 and 2007.

She's been no stranger to controversy during her time in the assembly. She was ordered out of the chamber for referring to the Queen as "Mrs Windsor" - and arrested during a 2007 protest against Trident. When and how did she become leader? The leader of the political party Plaid Cymru, Leanne Wood looks on during a Welsh Leaders' debate (Photo: Getty) Wood was elected leader of Plaid Cymru in March 2012, defeating Elin Jones and Dafydd Elis Thomas. She became the first female leader of the party, and the first leader to be a non-native Welsh language speaker. What are her key policies? The leader of the political party Plaid Cymru, Leanne Wood speaks during a Welsh Leaders' debate (Photo: Getty) Under her leadership Plaid Cymru's key policies include: A living wage for all employees by 2020 An extra 1000 doctors for the Welsh NHS Scrapping the bedroom tax Transferring control of criminal justice and policing to Wales Scrapping the renewal of Trident Wales to get the same powers as Scotland Is she on Twitter? Yes, she is.

She's a regular tweeter and can be found at @LeanneWood Like us on Facebook UK Election: What is the Plaid Cymru? UK Election: What is the Plaid Cymru? 2015-04-24 Simple put, Plaid Cymru is the Party of Wales. Current party leader: Leanne Wood Previously a Probation Officer and co-Chair of the National Association of Probation Officers, Wood was elected in March 2012 becoming the very first female party leader in Plaid Cymru´s history. She is a vocal socialist, feminist and republican who has stated that she does not recognise the Queen. Wood also holds anti-war and pro-immigration views. She has been asked to withdraw from the Welsh Assembly chamber in December 2004 as the very first member of the assembly. History of Plaid Cymru: The party was founded on 5th August 1925 based on the need for promotion of the Welsh language and political independence of Wales, their first contest at general elections taking place in 1929.

The membership has grown rapidly in 1960s and in 1970, Plaid Cymru contested all seats in Wales for the very first time, gaining over 175,000 votes. They later secured a self-government for Wales in the European Union and attract members from various communities. Today, they contest every seat for the European Parliament, Westminster, National Assembly and local council seats. Plaid Cymru retains close links to the Scottish National Party. Plaid Cymru’s Current Party Constitution: Plaid´s main aims, taken from their current constitution are as follows: “2.1 To secure independence for Wales in Europe. 2.2 To ensure economic prosperity, social justice and the health of the natural environment, based on decentralist socialism. 2.3 To build a national community based on equal citizenship, respect for different traditions and cultures and the equal worth of all individuals, whatever their race, nationality, gender, colour, creed, sexuality, age, ability or social background. These are the Party’s core values. 2.4 To create a bilingual society by promoting the revival of the Welsh language.

2.5 To promote Wales’s contribution to the global community and to attain membership of the United Nations.” Detailed constitution can be found here: Plaid Cymru’s Main Policies: 1) The same powers to Wales as to Scotland Leanne Wood has stated in March 2015 that Plaid Cymru would „back a minority Labour government on a case-by-case basis“ ( ) She has also added that Plaid Cymru would negotiate jointly ( ) with SNP (Scottish National Party) and the Green Party if no party gains a clear majority in the May elections. 2) Opposing privatisation of NHS if that affects NHS funding in Wales Plaid Cymru also propose to increase the number of trained and recruited doctors and community nurses and supported taxes imposed on alcoholic and soft drinks. 3) New National Curriculum Plaid Cymru oppose the “free school” model 4) Increasing the number of jobs Plaid Cymru want to establish public contracts with Welsh companies to create more jobs, propose zero business rates for Welsh businesses and increase minimum wage and the number of opportunities for women. They also oppose the VAT at the tourism industry in order to boost the number of jobs.

5) EU and Immigration questions No withdrawal from the European Union unless all four nations are in agreement. Plaid Cymru also oppose the EU-US free trade agreement stating that it gives too much power to corporations. They also want to create a Welsh Migration Service so the immigration to Wales „meets the Welsh needs“ and end austerity politics. Detailed Manifesto can be found here: Leanne Wood: 'Wales's natural left-ness is reflected in Plaid Cymru' | Politics | The Guardian Plaid Cymru Leanne Wood: 'Wales's natural left-ness is reflected in Plaid Cymru' Plaid Cymru's new leader reiterates her party's socialist ideals and says a strong economy is key to Welsh independence Leanne Wood: 'Plaid Cymru has socialism in our aims, to create a decent socialist world.' Photograph: David Levene Friday 23 March 2012 11.52 EDT First published on Friday 23 March 2012 11.52 EDT Close This article is 4 years old It has been a good few days for Leanne Wood .

Her first official engagement as the new leader of Plaid Cymru was to congratulate the victorious Welsh rugby team, fresh from its grand slam in the Six Nations. Her opening week at the helm ended with a rousing welcome from the party faithful at the nationalists' spring conference on a sun-dappled racecourse in west Wales. In between, she launched an economic commission, enjoyed a typically robust exchange with the Welsh first minister, reshuffled her spokespeople and had time to repeat time and again that she would not dilute her strong opinions on everything, from the monarchy – she was once expelled from the Welsh assembly after calling the Queen Mrs Windsor – to women's rights. "We are living in unusual and difficult times economically and that means that people are thinking differently about the kind of politics and politicians they want to see," she said. "Electing more women and becoming more radical is part of that. We can't go on in the old way, electing the same old faces, the same old friends. Let's try something different. I recognise that to get things done some compromise is inevitable but I have very firm principles and I have no intention of dropping them." So does she regret the run-in over the monarchy? "I'm a republican.

I always have been and always will be. I think the monarchy is an antiquated institution and something that symbolises inequality and I'm in favour of equality," she said. Wood threatens to be one of the most interesting politicians to emerge in Wales for some time. A 40-year-old former probation officer and women's support officer from the Rhondda Valley in south Wales, Wood sums herself up on Twitter as: "Plaid Cymru. Welsh Socialist & Republican. Environmentalist. Anti-racist. Feminist. Valleys." During her leadership campaign she dismissed the Tory-Lib Dem coalition at Westminster as a "hyper-competitive, imperial/militaristic climate-change-ignoring and privatising government". She also insisted that independence for Wales was no longer an "impossible dream" and it was possible to start talking about independence in a "normalised way". Wood was seen as an outsider for the leadership but won in style. She is still regarded as a gamble – several delegates pointed out that holding the conference at the Ffos Las racecourse in Carmarthenshire seemed fitting – but her party hopes that she will be able to poach traditional Labour voters in areas such as the valleys and attract younger people and women.

The danger is that Wood, not a fluent Welsh speaker, could lose some more conservative members. But a party that was once derided as being for males as much as for Wales now has four women in the key posts of leader, chief executive, chair and president. "Women are running the party," said Wood. "It's certainly a change from what we've had in the past." For all the talk of a new kind of politics, she is not afraid to speak of old-fashioned socialist values , too. "Socialism is an old-fashioned word and for some people an offputting word. But I describe myself as a socialist. Plaid Cymru has socialism in our aims, to create a decent socialist world. That's the direction we are going to continue in. "But it's not anything out of the mainstream. People in Wales tend to be on the left, that's reflected in election results going back over a century. I think there's a natural left-ness in Wales that is reflected in Plaid Cymru . In these times I think we can do a lot with that." Wood emphasises how important the Rhondda, where she has lived in the same street since she was five, is to her.

"I know everyone in the street. It's a proper community. In the Rhondda, and throughout Wales, there is a very strong community spirit and that is something we should harness now. We need to go back to old values. Our communities in the past were built by using the pennies and the time of miners who built institutions like our libraries. If they did it in the 20s and 30s there's no reason why people can't come together now and make sure local communities can thrive and survive." Last spring was horrible for Plaid. The party had been governing in coalition with Labour but during the assembly election campaign its partner managed to present itself as the party that would protect Wales against cuts imposed by the Tory-Lib Dem coalition at Westminster. Labour grabbed half of the assembly's 60 seats and set up a minority government. Plaid dropped into third place behind the Tories and was in danger of looking irrelevant. Wood, who was speaking ahead of her maiden conference speech as leader, said she was frustrated at the "lack of ambition" in Welsh Labour. "There's an economic crisis causing serious hardship for may people and communities in Wales. It's shocking the number of people who can't afford to put food on the table.

Labour needs to pull its finger out." Her first major initiative was to set up an economic commission headed by the former Plaid MP Adam Price, one of the party's brightest sparks. "Our economy in Wales is very weak," said Wood. "I want to bring together some of the best brains and talents in and out of Plaid Cymru and put together a long-term economic plan to turn around our misfortunes. We've got to get to the point where we refuse to accept poverty is inevitable and grasp the opportunities that exist." In his conference welcome, the leader of the Plaid group on Carmarthenshire county council, Peter Hughes Griffiths, compared Wood to Princess Gwenllian, who led a Welsh army into battle against the Normans in the 12th century and died at Kidwelly castle, just down the road from the racecourse. The economy is the modern battleground. Wood believes that if the economy grows strong again, it will be possible for Wales to become independent. "I'm calling for real independence. Not constitutional change for the sake of it but change so we can sort out things like our economic problems, so we can make decisions for ourselves.

"The situation we've got at the moment [is] where the Welsh economy is tied into the bigger UK economy in which London and the south-east gets all the attention. Wales as a peripheral part of the UK will always lose out so if we're going to prosper we will have to make the break. We have to take this twin-track approach: strengthen the economy now and create as many jobs as possible and in the long term we can become an independent nation in charge of our own destiny." Leanne Wood - The Party of Wales Leanne Wood Like Leanne Wood's Facebook page Follow Leanne Wood on Twitter Leanne Wood was born in the Rhondda where she continues to live today. She was educated at Tonypandy Comprehensive School, the University of Glamorgan and Cardiff University. Before her election to the National Assembly in 2003, Leanne worked as a professional tutor and lectured in social policy at Cardiff University. She also worked as a probation officer and a support worker for Cwm Cynon Women's Aid during 2001 and 2002.

‘She is an honorary President of Rhondda Cynon Taf Women’s Aid, having previously been the chair of the Board of Trustees.’ ‘She has been heavily involved in the trade union movement and was previously the chair of the all-party PCS Union group in the Assembly.’ During her tenure as AM, she has been responsible for the Sustainability, Environment, Social Justice, and Housing portfolios for Plaid Cymru. Leanne has produced two major policy documents for Plaid Cymru. In 2008, she published Making Our Communities Safer which argued for the criminal justice system in Wales to be devolved. In 2011, A Greenprint for the Valleys was published, in which Leanne argued for a green job creation programme aimed at regenerating the former coalfield areas of the valleys. It contains initiatives including: a Green Construction Skills College; implementing an integrated transport plan for the valleys; creating a land bank for renewable energy and food production; and a programme to renovate heritage buildings. It also advocates providing loan-based financial support for home energy efficiency measures and for the setting up of green co-operatives.

‘In 2011 Leanne represented Plaid Cymru on the cross-party referendum campaign which turned the Assembly into a law-making Parliament.’ On 15 March 2012, Leanne was elected as leader of Plaid Cymru, becoming the first woman to lead the party. Outside of politics, her interests include learning Welsh and gardening.

Question: Former probation officer Leanne Wood was elected leader of which party in March 2012?
Answer: PLAID CYMRU