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Tributes paid after death of former Welsh culture minister Jenny Randerson
Randerson spearheaded free entry to national museums and gave the go-ahead for Cardiff's Millennium Centre
Liberal Democrat politician Jenny Randerson, a former Welsh culture minister, has died at 76.
Randerson’s legacy includes free entry to Wales’s national museums, which she announced in 2001.
Jane Dodds MS, leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats, said: “Jenny dedicated her life to serving the people of Cardiff and Wales. From free entry to Wales’s national museums to the decision to build Wales Millennium Centre, her work as a minister left an indelible mark on our politics and society.
“She will be deeply missed by her family, friends, colleagues, and the many individuals whose lives she touched through her public service.”
After studying for a BA in History at Bedford College, University of London, and a PGCE at the Institute of Education, Randerson’s professional career began in education as a secondary school teacher and later as a lecturer at Coleg Glan Hafren in Cardiff. She also served as a Cardiff councillor from 1983 to 2000.
In 1999, she was elected as the first Assembly Member for Cardiff Central in the newly established National Assembly for Wales.
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She became the first female Liberal Democrat minister anywhere in the UK as minister for culture, sport, and the Welsh language from 2000 to 2003, and was acting deputy first minister from July 2001 to June 2002. She was instrumental in introducing Creative Future, a cultural strategy for Wales, and Iaith Pawb, a strategy aimed at promoting the Welsh language.
After stepping down from the Assembly in 2011, she was appointed a life peer as Baroness Randerson of Roath Park. In the House of Lords, she continued her commitment to public service, serving as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Wales from September 2012 to May 2015.
Randerson was also a patron of various charities including Wales Council for Deaf People, the Cardiff and Vale Youth Wind Band and the African Mothers' Foundation.
She is survived by her husband, Peter Randerson, two adult children and three grandchildren.