Paul Flynn

Political views Flynn was a republican and in 1996 tabled a bill to abolish the monarchy via a referendum. He also supported replacement of the House of Lords with an elected second chamber and opposed the British honours system. He was also a long-standing opponent of nuclear power in the United Kingdom, especially the new Hinkley Point C nuclear power station across the Bristol Channel from his constituency.

Flynn was a firm critic of the Iraq War and the War in Afghanistan. In 2009 he read out the 176 names of UK military personnel who had died in Iraq in a Commons speech.

Flynn was a "a titan in the UK drug law reform movement" according to the Transform Drug Policy Foundation, a think tank of which he was a patron. This involved asking numerous oral and written parliamentary questions at the request of Transform, tabling early day motions and private members bills, hosting events in Parliament on behalf of the charity, as well as doggedly raising the issue of drug law reform in the house in a series of memorable barnstorming speeches. His speeches included objecting to the classification of psilocybe mushrooms as illegal in the Drugs Act of 2005, in which he said: "We cannot make nature illegal. Magic mushrooms are part of the natural world. Some might describe them as a gift from God." Flynn called for the legalisation of cannabis for medical purposes and decriminalisation for general use. In August 2017 he said in the House of Commons: "I would call on people to break the law. To come here and use cannabis here and see what happens".

Flynn was critical of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, arguing that the parliamentary expenses scheme should be replaced with a flat rate allowance dependent on the distance of each MP's constituency from Westminster. He claimed that the current procedure was too bureaucratic and time-consuming.

Following the poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal in March 2018, Flynn tweeted that the Conservative Party were "officially sponsored by NERVE GAS KILLERS R US". He later deleted the post.

Flynn was a staunch pro-European, and described Brexit as "the biggest political disaster of (his) lifetime", despite Newport West voting to leave the EU by 54 to 46 percent. He served as a delegate to the Council of Europe and the Western European Union.

Endowment Justice

Endowment Justice, a company working on a contingency fee basis for borrowers, held talks with Flynn over its concerns about bad practices at several complaints-handling firms. In 2005 Flynn named them, however, in accusations about the whole sector. Flynn agreed to pay the company's legal costs of £35,450, plus £1,000 in damages, which the company said it would donate to the NSPCC. He also agreed to publish an apology on his website.

War in Afghanistan Flynn was a harsh critic of the War in Afghanistan, and particularly the decision of the Labour government to expand involvement with the Helmand province campaign in 2006. Flynn read out the names of UK military personnel who had died in his commons speeches, and subsequently tabled motions naming all the military casualties so they were listed in Commons papers. After Britain withdrew from Afghanistan, Flynn stated the war, in which 456 British military lost their lives, could be the "worst military blunder in our history since the charge of the Light Brigade", and called for a public inquiry.

On 18 September 2012, Flynn was suspended from the sittings of the House of Commons for five days and docked a month's wages, after he accused Defence Secretary Philip Hammond of lying to Parliament by saying that military operations in Afghanistan were not reduced following attacks on NATO troops operating as trainers, and subsequently refused to withdraw the allegation when instructed to do so by Speaker John Bercow.

Ambassador to Israel In November 2011, Flynn expressed concern that Matthew Gould, the UK's ambassador to Israel, had "proclaimed himself to be a Zionist". Martin Bright, writing in The Jewish Chronicle, reported that when challenged, Flynn said that Gould was vulnerable to accusations "of having Jewish loyalty" and that the position should be given to "someone with roots in the UK". Flynn said, "there hasn't been a Jewish ambassador to Israel and I think that is a good decision – to avoid the accusation that they have gone native." These comments drew criticism from Middle East Minister Alistair Burt, who stated that "Paul Flynn should take some time to consider his comments, which could easily be misconstrued. There is absolutely no reason why our ambassador to Israel should not be Jewish. Any allegations about Matthew Gould's conduct are utterly unsubstantiated. He is a first-class ambassador." Flynn later apologised for his comments, saying "There is no reason that anyone of any race or religion should be debarred from public office."

Intended retirement In October 2018, Flynn announced that he would stand down as an MP before the 2019 general election due to his rheumatoid arthritis. However, he was the only MP (apart from the Speaker, Deputy Speakers, tellers and abstentionist Sinn Féin members) who did not vote in the House of Commons "meaningful vote" on the Brexit withdrawal Agreement on 15 January 2019. He did not formally step down before his death the following month.

Other activities Flynn learned Welsh while a pupil at St Illtyd's College and said he fell in love with the language at that time. As a fluent speaker he commented about issues on Welsh-language TV and radio. He was a member of the Gorsedd of Bards.

Flynn was one of the first MPs to use the Internet to communicate with constituents, and in 2000 won the New Statesman New Media Award for his website, He was an early adopter of Hansard CD-ROMs, and wrote a book, Dragons Led by Poodles, about the devolution campaign in Wales in the 1990s, in which he criticised some of his fellow MPs severely.

Flynn was chairman of the Broadcasting Council for Wales, and member of the South Wales Docks Board and the Council of University College, Cardiff.

Flynn said that the best description of him was one by the late political sketch-writer Simon Hoggart, who had said he was "the thinking man's Dennis Skinner"; Flynn thought this could be his epitaph. The couple divorced in 1984 and the following year he married Samantha Morgan Cumpstone, with whom he had two children.

In 2007 Flynn suffered a transient ischaemic attack.

Death Flynn died in Newport, Wales, on 17 February 2019, eight days after his 84th birthday, after a long illness. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn described him as "an independent thinker who was a credit to the party" and Wales' First Minister Mark Drakeford called him a "giant of the Welsh Labour movement". Speaking at Prime Minister's Questions on 20 February, Theresa May said of Flynn, "He was an outstanding Parliamentarian, a tireless campaigner and championed his constituency of Newport West and Wales with energy and enthusiasm for over 30 years." Fellow Labour MP Jo Stevens described Flynn as a "kind, principled, fascinating man". Constituency neighbour Jessica Morden stated in a blog post, "In his 31 years as Newport West's MP he never let up campaigning against injustice, holding those in authority to account and championing his beloved City. He did this in his own inimitable style with wit, humour and as a passionate Newportonian."

Publications Television in Wales by Paul Flynn, 1974 Commons Knowledge: How to Be a Backbencher by Paul Flynn, 1997, Seren Books Baglu 'Mlaen (Cyfres Y Cewri) by Paul Flynn, 1998, Cyhoeddiadau Mei Dragons Led by Poodles: Inside Story of a New Labour Stitch Up by Paul Flynn, 1999, Politico's Publishing The Unusual Suspect by Paul Flynn, 2010, Biteback Publishing How to Be an MP by Paul Flynn, 2012, Biteback Publishing Clockwinder Who Wouldn't Say No: The Life of David Taylor MP, 2012,