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0:00:33 > 0:00:38- The Amman Valley is a small valley, - eight or nine miles long.
0:00:38 > 0:00:42- Very tightly packed in that area...
0:00:42 > 0:00:44- ..is a feeling of belonging.
0:00:44 > 0:00:50- Belonging to each other and also - to a tradition going back centuries.
0:00:52 > 0:00:56- For me, - Ammanford is Wales in microcosm.
0:00:56 > 0:01:02- The industrial and rural - come together in a unique union.
0:01:03 > 0:01:05- My love for Wales...
0:01:05 > 0:01:11- ..and for Ammanford and the - Amman Valley are one and the same.
0:01:12 > 0:01:14- Ammanford
0:01:20 > 0:01:23- As my mother sometimes reminded me, - I was an accident.
0:01:23 > 0:01:27- An afternoon shift child - as it's known locally.
0:01:28 > 0:01:31- My mother was born in England...
0:01:31 > 0:01:36- ..but returned - to her mother's village, Betws.
0:01:36 > 0:01:40- Dad comes from Llandybie - - the other side of Ammanford.
0:01:40 > 0:01:43- My father and mother - went to London...
0:01:43 > 0:01:46- ..because my father - turned professional as a boxer.
0:01:47 > 0:01:50- That's where my brother Andrew - was born.
0:01:50 > 0:01:54- They decided to raise their children - in English...
0:01:55 > 0:01:57- ..partly because - they lived in England.
0:01:57 > 0:02:01- They also thought that English - was the language of getting on.
0:02:01 > 0:02:05- They returned, - going back to the mine.
0:02:05 > 0:02:07- Adrian was born.
0:02:07 > 0:02:11- Adrian, because of the history of - the area and the strong culture...
0:02:11 > 0:02:14- ..started to explore his Welshness.
0:02:15 > 0:02:17- He learnt Welsh...
0:02:17 > 0:02:21- ..and through that, - through osmosis almost...
0:02:21 > 0:02:26- ..I started to speak Welsh too.
0:02:35 > 0:02:40- This is the lower school, - as I knew it.
0:02:41 > 0:02:44- I was in the second language - Welsh class.
0:02:45 > 0:02:50- Through effort and the encouragement - of some teachers...
0:02:50 > 0:02:51- ..I became fluent.
0:02:53 > 0:02:55- This is where I learnt the language.
0:02:59 > 0:03:03- Some people at the time - would have thought of me as a swot.
0:03:03 > 0:03:07- I wore a blazer, as I'm doing now.
0:03:09 > 0:03:10- Some things never change!
0:03:11 > 0:03:12- I had a briefcase.
0:03:14 > 0:03:16- I really went for it...
0:03:16 > 0:03:19- ..until I reached a certain age.
0:03:21 > 0:03:24- Then, I wouldn't say I rebelled...
0:03:24 > 0:03:27- ..but I started to reinvent myself.
0:03:28 > 0:03:31- Up the hill was the Gorsedd...
0:03:32 > 0:03:35- ..where I'd spend some time.
0:03:35 > 0:03:38- Others would be smoking - and courting.
0:03:38 > 0:03:40- I'd be reading poetry.
0:03:40 > 0:03:41- Rather odd.
0:03:42 > 0:03:44- But I still got into trouble.
0:03:45 > 0:03:48- I was seen to be mitching - even though I was reading.
0:03:48 > 0:03:50- Give me some credit.
0:04:03 > 0:04:06- This is the mining museum...
0:04:06 > 0:04:12- ..that was largely created by former - colliers at the Miners Welfare Hall.
0:04:14 > 0:04:16- The Welfare - was a second home for many of us...
0:04:17 > 0:04:19- ..during the miners' strike.
0:04:19 > 0:04:22- This was the location - of the soup kitchen.
0:04:23 > 0:04:27- The organizing work for the strike - was done here too.
0:04:27 > 0:04:29- Working class people...
0:04:29 > 0:04:34- ..discovered they had skills - they never imagined they had.
0:04:36 > 0:04:38- It was inspirational.
0:04:39 > 0:04:44- The strike - was the cauldron for my politics...
0:04:45 > 0:04:48- ..and my personality - on a broader level.
0:04:50 > 0:04:56- Through the strike, - I discovered the person I am today.
0:04:58 > 0:04:59- Here in Ammanford...
0:04:59 > 0:05:04- ..we welcomed the Lesbian and Gays - Support the Miners group.
0:05:04 > 0:05:07- It was the first time - I'd met gay people who were out.
0:05:08 > 0:05:11- I don't think I was aware - of that term back then.
0:05:11 > 0:05:14- I knew what my sexuality was...
0:05:15 > 0:05:18- ..and the fact that the miners - and the communities...
0:05:18 > 0:05:23- ..had taken to the gay community - helped me in the long run.
0:05:27 > 0:05:30- Before the strike, - I was quite religious.
0:05:31 > 0:05:33- I was an evangelical Christian.
0:05:33 > 0:05:34- During the strike...
0:05:35 > 0:05:40- ..I was disappointed in the most - conservative elements of the church.
0:05:40 > 0:05:43- The evangelicals - tended to be apolitical.
0:05:43 > 0:05:48- I decided - it wasn't part of my gospel...
0:05:49 > 0:05:51- ..to step aside...
0:05:51 > 0:05:55- ..while an entire community - was asking for guidance.
0:05:56 > 0:06:00- I decided to focus - on the political path.
0:06:04 > 0:06:05- I joined Plaid Cymru.
0:06:06 > 0:06:09- At 14 years old, - I co-founded with my family...
0:06:10 > 0:06:12- ..a Plaid Cymru branch in Ammanford.
0:06:12 > 0:06:15- There was already a branch here...
0:06:15 > 0:06:19- ..but it was a traditional branch - of the national party.
0:06:20 > 0:06:21- This branch...
0:06:21 > 0:06:26- ..was full of miners, - families and miners' supporters...
0:06:26 > 0:06:28- ..who were all socialists.
0:06:29 > 0:06:33- The branch - met at the Miners Welfare Hall.
0:06:33 > 0:06:36- I think that part of the reason...
0:06:36 > 0:06:41- ..why the party grew - in this part of Carmarthenshire...
0:06:41 > 0:06:46- ..was the fact the party - had been there during the strike.
0:06:46 > 0:06:52- Here, in the middle of the action, - in a labour club even...
0:06:53 > 0:06:56- ..we gained respect for our stance.
0:07:10 > 0:07:14- We're in the Ammanford Social Club.
0:07:14 > 0:07:20- It's known in Ammanford as The Pick - - short for pick and shovel.
0:07:21 > 0:07:25- The club was founded in 1936...
0:07:26 > 0:07:30- ..after the bus strike dispute - in West Wales.
0:07:31 > 0:07:32- After that...
0:07:32 > 0:07:38- ..many miners - who were part of that dispute...
0:07:39 > 0:07:42- ..decided to establish - their own club.
0:07:43 > 0:07:47- In this room, - only politics could be discussed.
0:07:47 > 0:07:50- That was the rule.
0:07:50 > 0:07:56- There was a green room - to play cards and so on...
0:07:57 > 0:08:00- ..and a blue room - where only politics was discussed.
0:08:01 > 0:08:06- I remember coming in here - in the '80s...
0:08:06 > 0:08:12- ..and hearing miners and members - of the Communist Party...
0:08:12 > 0:08:16- ..discussing politics - and the miners' strike.
0:08:16 > 0:08:19- The Morning Star - was on the tables.
0:08:20 > 0:08:24- My heroes - were the people sat in this room.
0:08:32 > 0:08:37- Ammanford has been - the foundation for my whole life.
0:08:37 > 0:08:42- It sent me out into the world - with a clear idea of who I was...
0:08:43 > 0:08:47- ..and what I wanted to achieve - in life.
0:08:47 > 0:08:52- I look around me - with mixed feelings.
0:08:52 > 0:08:54- Pride. Yes, definitely.
0:08:54 > 0:08:56- Hope.
0:08:56 > 0:08:58- But also concern.
0:08:58 > 0:09:03- Will those foundations - be there for future generations?
0:09:03 > 0:09:07- That's the question - that keeps me awake at night.
0:09:15 > 0:09:19- After leaving Ammanford, - I went to Cardiff University.
0:09:19 > 0:09:25- I graduated and worked for a decade - in economic development.
0:09:25 > 0:09:31- I then got the opportunity to stand - for the 2001 Westminster election...
0:09:31 > 0:09:32- ..and I won.
0:09:32 > 0:09:38- I got to represent Ammanford - and the region in Parliament.
0:09:41 > 0:09:44- Westminster
0:09:44 > 0:09:47- There was a sense of excitement - in that period...
0:09:47 > 0:09:53- ..the late '90s - and the start of the new millennium.
0:09:53 > 0:09:56- The city - was bubbling with positive energy.
0:10:00 > 0:10:05- I was determined to try and keep - my public life in Westminster...
0:10:06 > 0:10:09- ..and my personal life - on different tracks.
0:10:09 > 0:10:13- One thing about being gay...
0:10:15 > 0:10:19- ..is that you're part of a community - that exists everywhere.
0:10:19 > 0:10:23- You have something in common - with people who live in London.
0:10:23 > 0:10:27- You have another community...
0:10:27 > 0:10:30- ..that you can connect with.
0:10:32 > 0:10:34- That's what I did.
0:10:35 > 0:10:36- And then...
0:10:37 > 0:10:40- ..I formed a group of friends...
0:10:41 > 0:10:45- ..and met my partner, - who's a Londoner.
0:10:45 > 0:10:49- I have to be grateful to London - for that!
0:10:59 > 0:11:02- Here we are in Westminster Hall.
0:11:02 > 0:11:06- It dates back a thousand years.
0:11:07 > 0:11:08- In this place...
0:11:09 > 0:11:13- ..a number of statesmen - and members of the royal family...
0:11:13 > 0:11:19- ..have lain in wait - for their state funerals...
0:11:19 > 0:11:23- ..such as Winston Churchill - and the Queen Mother.
0:11:38 > 0:11:43- We're now walking - into the modern parliament.
0:11:43 > 0:11:45- This is the central lobby.
0:11:45 > 0:11:47- It doesn't look modern.
0:11:47 > 0:11:51- It's been built - in the neo-Gothic style.
0:11:51 > 0:11:53- It's an attempt...
0:11:53 > 0:11:58- ..at copying architecture - from a thousand years ago.
0:11:58 > 0:12:04- Through here - is the House of Commons chamber.
0:12:28 > 0:12:30- I came here to challenge the system.
0:12:31 > 0:12:37- Part of that was challenging some - of the rules that I found strange.
0:12:37 > 0:12:38- One of those...
0:12:39 > 0:12:44- ..is the idea you can't speak until - you've given your maiden speech.
0:12:45 > 0:12:46- I broke that rule.
0:12:46 > 0:12:51- I rose to my feet and asked - a question before I gave a speech.
0:12:52 > 0:12:56- I got a telling off from the Speaker - for doing so.
0:12:57 > 0:13:00- Alex Salmond from the SNP told me...
0:13:01 > 0:13:04- ..that if you haven't been - thrown out from the chamber...
0:13:05 > 0:13:07- ..in the first few years...
0:13:07 > 0:13:09- ..you're not doing your job.
0:13:09 > 0:13:11- So it became a goal of mine.
0:13:12 > 0:13:15- I succeeded after four years.
0:13:15 > 0:13:17- Not bad.
0:13:17 > 0:13:20- I called Tony Blair a liar.
0:13:21 > 0:13:25- Tomorrow is the second anniversary - of the vote on the war in Iraq.
0:13:26 > 0:13:28- A motion of impeachment - is before us.
0:13:28 > 0:13:33- There's compelling evidence that the - Prime Minister misled this House.
0:13:33 > 0:13:35- Isn't it high time - we held him to account?
0:13:36 > 0:13:40- Order. Order. The honourable - gentleman must withdraw that remark.
0:13:41 > 0:13:45- I said, "I can't. I'm telling the - truth. He's the one telling lies."
0:13:45 > 0:13:48- I ask the honourable gentleman - to leave the chamber.
0:13:49 > 0:13:54- I was then barred from - the whole estate for a few days.
0:13:54 > 0:14:00- I had to depend on staff to bring - letters out to the street and so on.
0:14:00 > 0:14:03- It's an insight to this place...
0:14:03 > 0:14:09- ..I told the truth but I was the one - who was barred, not Tony Blair.
0:14:16 > 0:14:19- In Aneurin Bevan's book - In Place Of Fear...
0:14:19 > 0:14:23- ..he talks about - the architecture of this place...
0:14:23 > 0:14:27- ..and how it's designed...
0:14:27 > 0:14:32- ..to put the working class MP...
0:14:32 > 0:14:36- ..from somewhere like the - South Wales Valleys back in his box.
0:14:38 > 0:14:41- We have nothing like this at home.
0:14:41 > 0:14:45- It's a kind of cathedral - rather than a parliament.
0:14:46 > 0:14:48- It's majestic...
0:14:48 > 0:14:53- ..for the same reason - that cathedrals are grand...
0:14:53 > 0:14:56- ..in order to make you feel small.
0:14:56 > 0:15:01- By making you feel small, - it silences you.
0:15:02 > 0:15:04- It makes you censor yourself.
0:15:04 > 0:15:07- It makes you change - the way you speak...
0:15:07 > 0:15:11- ..even the way you walk - - I've seen that from a few MPs.
0:15:12 > 0:15:15- But most of all, - it changes the way you think.
0:15:15 > 0:15:19- I wasn't prepared to do that - while I was here.
0:15:19 > 0:15:22- But after nine years, - I was ready to come home.
0:15:30 > 0:15:35- Looking back - at my nine years here...
0:15:35 > 0:15:38- ..there were frustrations.
0:15:39 > 0:15:43- The feeling - that the British establishment...
0:15:43 > 0:15:46- ..epitomized in that building...
0:15:46 > 0:15:51- ..did everything it could to prevent - me from representing the people.
0:15:51 > 0:15:56- But at the end of the day, it was - an excellent learning experience.
0:15:56 > 0:15:58- You won't get any better - in the world.
0:15:59 > 0:16:02- If you want to be - a spokesman or a politician...
0:16:02 > 0:16:07- ..what better canvas, - what better stage...
0:16:07 > 0:16:09- ..than that parliament?
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0:16:16 > 0:16:16- Subtitles
0:16:16 > 0:16:18- Subtitles- - Subtitles
0:16:24 > 0:16:28- After nine years in Parliament, - I went to Cambridge, Boston...
0:16:28 > 0:16:32- ..to the School of Government - at Harvard University...
0:16:32 > 0:16:38- ..to rediscover the fire in my belly - and the belief in politics...
0:16:39 > 0:16:42- ..that had been ignited - in Ammanford.
0:16:45 > 0:16:50- Everything changed - and I felt exhilarated.
0:16:50 > 0:16:53- It was a clean slate.
0:16:53 > 0:16:59- The course I did was Mid-career - Master in Public Administration.
0:16:59 > 0:17:02- It was full of people - in their thirties and forties.
0:17:03 > 0:17:08- Ex-bankers, politicians - and soldiers.
0:17:08 > 0:17:11- Lots of people - at the end of a chapter...
0:17:11 > 0:17:15- ..and trying to decide - what the next one should be.
0:17:15 > 0:17:18- On January 28, 1838, - 28-year-old Abraham Lincoln...
0:17:19 > 0:17:23- ..spoke to the Young Men's Lyceum - in Springfield, Illinois.
0:17:23 > 0:17:25- He spoke about citizenship.
0:17:25 > 0:17:28- Tonight, - I'll speak about citizenship.
0:17:28 > 0:17:31- The comparison between the two of us - ends there.
0:17:32 > 0:17:36- No-one turns down an invitation - to speak at Harvard.
0:17:37 > 0:17:42- Heads of state have spoken here...
0:17:42 > 0:17:48- ..as have - many Nobel Peace Prize winners.
0:17:48 > 0:17:50- It's an amazing experience...
0:17:51 > 0:17:56- ..to be so close to the people who - are writing the history of our time.
0:17:56 > 0:17:59- Our enemy is not opposition.
0:17:59 > 0:18:03- I don't ever have anybody say, - "Bad idea! We shouldn't do that."
0:18:04 > 0:18:08- What we're facing is inertia. - Our opponent is do nothing.
0:18:10 > 0:18:11- You're surrounded...
0:18:12 > 0:18:17- ..by some of the most intelligent - and interesting people in the world.
0:18:17 > 0:18:21- Many of the new ideas - that everyone will read about...
0:18:22 > 0:18:26- ..in The Guardian, in The - New York Times, in every paper...
0:18:26 > 0:18:31- ..will come from here, - a few feet from where I'm standing.
0:18:31 > 0:18:32- Ideas in all fields.
0:18:33 > 0:18:37- You meet these people - while having a Chinese...
0:18:38 > 0:18:43- ..you go for a pint with them or you - get to know them through a friend.
0:18:43 > 0:18:46- This place - drowns under the weight of ideas...
0:18:46 > 0:18:49- ..and the interesting discussions.
0:18:49 > 0:18:54- These discussions can go on until - the early hours, which is great too.
0:19:07 > 0:19:11- The other side of the river, - in Boston, is the Business School.
0:19:13 > 0:19:17- Here's where the future leaders, - certainly in the private sector...
0:19:17 > 0:19:20- ..are educated in America.
0:19:24 > 0:19:26- As an MP, one of the negatives...
0:19:27 > 0:19:32- ..is that it engenders the feeling - that you're special.
0:19:32 > 0:19:35- Here, you can't depend on that.
0:19:36 > 0:19:39- It's down to - the depth of your mind...
0:19:39 > 0:19:42- ..the originality of your ideas...
0:19:42 > 0:19:47- ..and your ability to - prove your point and communicate it.
0:19:47 > 0:19:52- Your CV, letters after your name - or your business card...
0:19:52 > 0:19:55- ..mean nothing in a place like this.
0:20:12 > 0:20:17- We're in the Harvard Coop Bookstore, - which is owned by the students.
0:20:18 > 0:20:22- It's one of the cornerstones - of Harvard University.
0:20:23 > 0:20:27- To some extent, it sums up - the spirit of the place.
0:20:30 > 0:20:32- It's something I really treasure.
0:20:33 > 0:20:34- I was able to have the time...
0:20:35 > 0:20:38- ..to browse the books, - step aside and think.
0:20:38 > 0:20:41- Through thinking, - I reinvented myself.
0:20:54 > 0:20:57- This is the central part - of the university.
0:21:00 > 0:21:03- Here's where, - around six years ago...
0:21:04 > 0:21:09- ..I had the honour and privilege - of being one of the speakers...
0:21:09 > 0:21:15- ..at Commencement Day - the end of - one period and the start of another.
0:21:15 > 0:21:18- I was proud - to represent the Kennedy School...
0:21:18 > 0:21:21- ..and, more than that, - to represent Wales.
0:21:21 > 0:21:25- I was determined, with 36,000 people - sat in the yard here...
0:21:25 > 0:21:30- ..many of them becoming important - and influential in the future...
0:21:31 > 0:21:33- ..not only in the USA - but across the world...
0:21:34 > 0:21:36- ..that I wanted to put Wales - on the map.
0:21:36 > 0:21:40- Lined up on the opposite banks - of the Charles River...
0:21:40 > 0:21:43- ..were hundreds - of my Welsh ancestors...
0:21:44 > 0:21:46- ..The Royal Welch Fusiliers...
0:21:46 > 0:21:51- ..fighting for the British Army - against the American revolution.
0:21:55 > 0:21:58- So I guess I'm here to apologize - really.
0:22:01 > 0:22:05- You seem to have made a success - of this independence thing.
0:22:06 > 0:22:09- Well done, - and thanks for leaving us Canada.
0:22:11 > 0:22:17- The message I decided to focus on...
0:22:17 > 0:22:20- ..was the need - to go out into the world...
0:22:21 > 0:22:25- ..and not to lose - your unique message.
0:22:26 > 0:22:29- Don't settle for reinforcing - other people's ideas.
0:22:30 > 0:22:34- Find your unique voice and - be a radical, a bit of a rebel, too.
0:22:35 > 0:22:38- The world needs less of the same.
0:22:38 > 0:22:42- It needs us to work together - and think for ourselves.
0:22:42 > 0:22:45- It needs the commonwealth of us - and the republic of you.
0:22:46 > 0:22:51- Together, let's make today - our independence day...
0:22:52 > 0:22:56- ..and in our liberty, - strive to serve the common good.
0:23:14 > 0:23:17- I don't think I'd have returned - to politics in Wales...
0:23:17 > 0:23:19- ..if it wasn't for this place.
0:23:20 > 0:23:24- Sometimes, you have to travel far - to go back.
0:23:25 > 0:23:28- The challenge for me now...
0:23:28 > 0:23:34- ..is to transfer the faith and - the inspiration that I got here...
0:23:34 > 0:23:39- ..to Cardiff Bay - as a member of the Senedd.
0:23:54 > 0:23:56- S4C Subtitles by Testun Cyf.
0:23:56 > 0:23:56- .