Robin Wales
Sir Robin Wales | |
|---|---|
Wales in 2012 | |
| Mayor of Newham | |
| In office 6 May 2002 – 6 May 2018 | |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | Rokhsana Fiaz |
| Leader of Newham Council | |
| In office 1995 – 5 May 2002 | |
| Preceded by | Mike Brown |
| Succeeded by | Office abolished |
| Member of Newham Council | |
| In office 9 July 1992 – 2 May 2002 | |
| Ward | Little Ilford (1992–1994) Manor Park (1994–1998) Canning Town and Grange (1998–2002) |
| In office 6 May 1982 – 8 May 1986 | |
| Ward | Castle |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Robert Andrew Wales 18 January 1955 Kilmarnock, Scotland |
| Party | Reform UK (2026–) |
| Other political affiliations | Labour Party (until 2026) |
| Alma mater | Glasgow University (BSc) |
Sir Robert Andrew "Robin" Wales (born 18 January 1955) is a British Reform UK politician who served as Mayor of Newham from 2002 to 2018, as a Labour Party member. Prior to taking up that newly created role, he was leader of Newham council from 1995, having been a councillor from 1982 to 1986 and 1992 to 2002.
Wales was a member of the Labour Party, and became Labour's first directly elected mayor in England in 2002. He was re-elected in 2006, 2010 and 2014. In 2018 he was replaced as Labour's candidate for mayor by Custom House councillor Rokhsana Fiaz, who won with 861 votes in a ballot of Labour Party members to Wales' 503.
During his mayoralty he said that improving the economic prosperity of Newham's residents was a priority. In his role as mayor, Wales' visibility arguably increased after London won the bid to host the 2012 Olympics and Paralympics, as more than 60% of the Games took place in Newham. However, he was also involved in a number of controversies during his time as mayor.
He currently works with the centre-right think tank Policy Exchange.