A member of the Parliament since its creation, Hutt holds the record for the longest serving Welsh Government minister and has served in every administration to date. She served continually in government from May 1999 until the November 2017 reshuffle, returning in December 2018. Hutt has held several of the most senior government offices, including Minister for Finance, Minister for Health and Social Services, and Minister for Education.
Hutt was one of the founder members of Welsh Women's Aid, a feminist organisation campaigning on behalf of women who are victims of domestic violence. She was appointed as a coordinator of the group in January 1978.
Hutt held non-political appointments as director of the equal opportunities' organisation Chwarae Teg and non-executive director of the Cardiff Community Health Care Trust. Member New Deal Task Force. School Governor. Welsh member on the New Opportunities (UK) Fund.
Hutt was elected to the Senedd in 1999 and has been re-elected at every subsequent election. She served as a government minister for a total of 18 years, 5 months, 23 days (or 6,751 days) from 12 May 1999 to 3 November 2017 making her the then longest serving Labour Minister in UK history. Her record was surpassed in 2018 by Carwyn Jones who served a total of 6,868 days.
She made her first appearance on the back benches on 14 November 2017.[7]
She again returned to the government as Chief Whip on 13 December 2018.
Ministerial roles
Following the Assembly's creation in 1999 she immediately became Health Minister. She remained in post until January 2005 when she was removed from the position, following strong criticism over long hospital waiting lists.[8] An independent report showed that even though waiting list time targets were higher than in England and Scotland, Hutt had still failed to meet them.[9] As a result, she faced criticism from all the major political parties in Wales, with the strongest coming from within her own party. As a result, her position became untenable, as some became worried that the problems could even damage the case for further Welsh devolution.[10]
Advisory video of Hutt in August 2020
She became Minister for Assembly Business and Chief Whip, with additional responsibility for Openness in Government; Communications Strategy; co-ordinating Government policy in relation to children and Equality of Opportunity. In the first Cabinet of the Third Assembly, she was appointed Minister for Budget and Assembly Business (31 May 2007). In the coalition, Cabinet announced on 19 July 2007 she became Minister for Children, Education, Lifelong Learning and Skills.
She left the government during the November 2017 reshuffle, but returned as Chief Whip thirteen months later under new First Minister Mark Drakeford. She is the only MS to have served as a Minister in every Welsh Government to date, serving in the cabinet of six First Ministers.
In July 1984, Hutt married Labour councillor Michael Trickey. They have two daughters.[12]
Notes
^ abAs Minister for Social Justice 2021-2024; and held the Culture portfolio, as Cabinet Secretary for Culture and Social Justice from July to September 2024.
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