A Welsh politician who accepted a caution for common assault will remain as an independent MP and not rejoin Plaid Cymru, despite his 12-month ban from the party ending within days.
Jonathan Edwards will see a year-long suspension imposed last year end on Thursday (July 15).
Mr Edwards has been the Member of Parliament for the Carmarthenshire constituency of Carmarthen East and Dinefwr since 2010, when he successfully contested the seat on behalf of Plaid Cymru, replacing Adam Price, who has since gone on to be the party’s leader.
He has served as an independent MP since July 2020 following an incident at his home two months earlier.
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He was arrested by police and released on bail, with Plaid Cymru confirming at the time that the whip had been withdrawn from the 45-year-old politician pending the conclusion of a police investigation. That investigation concluded with Mr Edwards being cautioned for common assault after a decision by the Crown Prosecution Service.
It is understood that he is to remain as an independent MP, rather than rejoin Plaid Cymru, with the party confirming that no such request has been made by Mr Edwards.
In a brief statement, a spokesman on behalf of the MP said: “Mr Edwards is completely focused on the task of representing the constituents of Carmarthen East and Dinefwr to the best of his abilities, as he has done for the last 11 years. He will not be making any further comment for the time being.”
Following the incident in May 2020, Mr Edwards referred himself to Plaid Cymru’s disciplinary panel and cooperated fully with an investigation, one which led to the implementation of the 12-month suspension.
Plaid Cymru confirmed in July last year that any lifting of the suspension would be dependent on Mr Edwards appearing before the party’s disciplinary panel “to demonstrate that he has undertaken a period of self-reflection and learning to address his actions.”
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