Former local Member of Parliament and former Leader of the Liberal Democrats in the House of Lords, Shirley Williams, has been chosen as the President of the local party, Stevenage Liberal Democrats. Following the local party Annual General Meeting, an in

Former local Member of Parliament and former Leader of the Liberal Democrats in the House of Lords, Shirley Williams, has been chosen as the President of the local party, Stevenage Liberal Democrats. Following the local party Annual General Meeting, an invitation was sent to Shirley which she accepted.

Local Chair of Stevenage Liberal Democrats, Councillor Robin Parker said: "We are absolutely delighted that Shirley has accepted our invitation to be local party President. She has a wealth of experience and knowledge gained from decades at the top in politics, in the UK and abroad, and she is still active in a number of fields. We look forward to welcoming her back to Stevenage whenever she can spare the time from her busy schedule."

Baroness Williams (Shirley Williams) has maintained her links with local Liberal Democrats and has also attended a number of functions of Stevenage Borough Council in recent years.

Shirley is currently a commissioner on the International Commission on Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament. She still lives in Hertfordshire.

Political history of Shirley Williams:

1964 - 1974 Labour MP for Hitchin (which included Stevenage)

1974 - 1979 Labour MP for Hertford and Stevenage

1981 Formed the Social Democratic Party (SDP) as one of the "Gang of Four"

1981 - 1983 SDP MP for Crosby

1988 Supported the merger of SDP and Liberals to form the Liberal Democrats

1993 Made Baroness Williams of Crosby of Stevenage

2001 - 2004 Leader of the Liberal Democrats in the House of Lords

Whilst a member of Labour governments in the 1970s, Shirley was at different times Secretary of State for Education and Science, Paymaster General, Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection.