Member of the Welsh Parliament for Aberconwy
Shadow Minister for Social Care, Children, Young People, and Older People
Janet Finch-Saunders represented the ward of Craig-y-Don and Craig side in Llandudno as a Conwy County Borough Councillor for 8 years and Llandudno Town Council for 17 years. In 2004 Janet was elected as the Mayor of Llandudno, following in the footsteps of her parents, both of whom have been long serving Welsh Conservative Councillors in Aberconwy.
In her previous council role of Cabinet member Janet held the portfolio for Community Safety, Disabilities and Equalities, Food Safety, Animal Welfare, Trading Standards, Member Development and the Welsh language.
In 2008, Janet became the Welsh Conservative Group Leader and Leader of the Opposition on Conwy County Borough Council. Janet has previously stood for the Welsh Parliament in 2003 in Wrexham and in 2007 on the North Wales regional list.
In July 2010, following the first ever open primary selection to be held in the target seat of Aberconwy, Janet was selected as the Conservative Welsh Parliament Candidate. She was then subsequently elected as the member of the Welsh Parliament for Aberconwy in the 2011 Welsh Parliament election. In the 2016 election, she made history as the first person to ever be re-elected twice in a row for the constituency.
Janet is a long standing campaigner for increased direct funding for local hospices and she is passionate about supporting much needed investment and economic growth for Aberconwy, with a firm commitment to seeing a better deal for small businesses, tourist operators and farmers in North Wales.
As a keen business woman and entrepreneur, Janet has founded a number of successful local businesses. She is supportive of new start-ups and established SMEs, and initiated the Cross-Party Group on Small Shops during the Fourth Assembly (2011-2016), in which she is now the Chairman.
Janet is married to Gareth and they have a grown up son Adam and a daughter Hannah. Janet's interests include walking, horse riding, water sports, and she is an avid motor car enthusiast.
Janet served as Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Local Government from 2011 to 2018, before becoming the Shadow Minister for Social Care, Children, Young People and Older People.