Jonathan Edwards, the MP for Carmarthen East and Dinefwr, had been suspended since July 2020, but on Thursday the party said he was being readmitted to the Westminster team. But after his wife Emma Edwards denounced the move – which was opposed by a “significant majority” of the party’s ruling body – Edwards said he would not be rejoining to allow a “period of quiet reflection”. On Saturday, party leader Adam Price called on Edwards to resign as an MP and promised an urgent review of the party’s disciplinary procedures. In a statement posted on Twitter, Price said: “As mentioned, I strongly believe that Jonathan Edwards cannot continue to represent Plaid Cymru at Westminster and should stand down immediately. “I am also calling on Jonathan Edwards to leave the party. His actions do not represent our values and his standing as an MP sends the wrong message to survivors of domestic abuse in Wales and beyond.” Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. He added: “Our disciplinary processes must change to give victims of gender-based violence a central role in any investigations. This work will begin immediately and be given the urgency and seriousness it clearly deserves.” In a statement on his Facebook page, Edwards described the assault that led to his suspension as an “isolated incident” and said he had since enrolled in a domestic violence awareness class. He expressed concern that there was no space in public life for those who had made mistakes to show “sincere remorse” and criticized his treatment by some in the party. “In the last two years there have been periods when I felt suicidal as my personal and professional life fell apart and I was not offered any protection by the party,” he said. “I am also concerned that in recent weeks, senior party officials have abused their positions of power by subjecting me to vindictive and vindictive coordinated political attacks.” Mandu Reid, the leader of the Women’s Equality party, which ran in constituencies associated with MPs facing abuse allegations, had described Edwards’ reinstatement to the Plaid benches as “disgusting”.
