I was born in Glasgow in 1948, educated at Whitchurch County Secondary School and at University College Cardiff (now Cardiff University) where I gained an honours degree in Mining Engineering and was President of Cardiff University Students Union 1974/75.

Prior to entering the National Assembly in 2003 I was employed by the Welsh Joint Education Committee (WJEC) as the head of the Asset to Industry Unit. This Unit worked on the development of vocational and industrial qualifications and standards.

Since becoming an Assembly Member, I have served as chair of the Objective One Project Monitoring Committee for West Wales and the Valleys, been a member of the Education, Lifelong Learning and Skills Committee; the European and External Affairs Committee , and the Legislative Committee. I also founded and cahir the All-Party Health Living Group.

In the current Assembly term I serve on the newly formed Enterprise and Learning scrutiny committee, European and External Affairs committeeand I will chair the Standards of Conduct committee, which governs the Assembly Members code of conduct. I sat on the Additional Learning Needs LCO committee, which was one of the first to look at devolving responsibility for additional learning to the National Assembly through the LCO process. I currently chair the Learning & Skills Measure committee which is looking at developing one of the Assembly's first Laws, known as Measures, which will deal with 14-19 learning pathways.

My particular interests include the promotion of vocational education and skills training. I would like to see the new Convergence funding used to raise skill levels within Wales. As a type 2 diabetic I have worked closely with a wide range of organisations (such as Diabetes UK) to raise the profile of healthy living across Wales.

I have been a Member of the Labour Party since 1967 and I am an active Trade Unionist, currently being the Co-ordinator of the UNITE (formally AMICUS) Group of Labour Assembly Members.