Ron Davies to re-marry

The pair say their age difference does not matter

Former cabinet minister Ron Davies is to marry his girlfriend - four years after the "moment of madness" which de-railed his political ambitions.

The former Welsh Secretary, 55, stood down as Wales Labour Party leader after an incident involving a stranger at Clapham Common, London, in October 1998.

He divorced from wife Christina in August the following year, admitting he was bisexual, and going on to win a Welsh Assembly constituency seat in his native Caerphilly.

Ron Davies' fianceé Lynne Hughes plays with a dog in her garden

Mr Davies has now announced he will wed fellow divorcee Lynne Hughes, 36, with whom he has been living since they met on a Welsh language course.

And the pair have said their 19-year age gap means nothing to them, ahead of their marriage next month.

The incident at Clapham Common destroyed his certain role as the Welsh Assembly's inaugural first secretary before it had begun.

He quit his place at the cabinet after a meeting with the Prime Minister Tony Blair.

'Architect of devolution'

He later admitted being bisexual and seeking out "high-risk situations" in locations frequented by gay men.

Donald Fearon, 40 - the man Mr Davies accused of robbery - last month failed to overturn his conviction and jailing for an attack on a female psychotherapist.

Widely hailed as "the architect of devolution," Davies is now rebuilding his political life as an assembly member.

Why did he have to resign for that? It's a dreadful shame. But then, I'm not Tony Blair

Lynne Hughes

He has lost weight after taking up jogging and claims to be "cured" after seeking psychiatric help from one of the UK's top specialist clinics.

He revealed he met Ms Hughes on a month-long Welsh course at Aberystwyth in August 1999, when the pair were each still with their previous partners.

"I'd gone through a hugely traumatic period ... it's fair to say the last thing I was considering or looking for was any emotional entanglement at all," he said.

"But ... she was the first person I spoke to on the Welsh course and I found her instantly very comfortable to be with. We had a few laughs and immediately established a rapport.

"It has ... allowed me to start re-emerging into politics. Lynne's political position is very sympathetic to mine."

Blossoming love

The couple now share a home in the village of Machen near Caerphilly with three dogs.

They will wed at Caerphilly Register Office on 5 August. It will be the AM's third marriage, a day after his 56th birthday.

Ms Hughes said love blossomed at the course in west Wales, but she said treatment of Mr Davies in the media and by senior politicians during the period was unfair.

She said: "It really seems the information [being given to people] was not right or relevant.

"We weren't actually thinking of the person behind the public persona.

"A little bit afterwards I thought: 'Why did he have to resign for that?' It's a dreadful shame that he's lost his job over something that was not really a resigning issue. But then I'm not Tony Blair."

Age difference

Mr Davies had been learning Welsh at an assembly course in Cardiff Bay, but later took up an intensive course, on which he suprised Ms Hughes.

She added: "Even when Ron said "Ron Dw'i" (I'm Ron), I wasn't entirely sure he was Ron Davies.

"You don't expect to be on a Welsh course with a famous politician.

"I thought he was a sweetheart. I was very aware of how difficult it must have been for him at the time, putting himself in a room full of strangers, all of whom were aware of his troubles. I thought he was very brave.

"The age difference between us means absolutely nothing - or only occasionally when I want him to come out dancing and he won't."