Huw Edwards could lose series of Welsh honours

Huw Edwards was inducted during the National Eisteddfod in Tregaron in 2022

Former BBC news presenter Huw Edwards could lose a number of Welsh honours after pleading guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children.

He could be expelled from the Gorsedd of the Bards – one of the highest accolades in Welsh public life – when it meets at the National Eisteddfod in Pontypridd next week.

He has also lost his position as vice-president of the National Churches Trust, and Cardiff and Bangor universities have said they are reviewing honours granted to him.

Edwards was one of Wales’ most high-profile public figures, as one of the main presenters on BBC One’s News at Ten, and often fronted coverage of major events.

Gorsedd recorder Christine James said the issue would be discussed when it meets next week, but that it “does not have a process or a specified mechanism to expel members”.

The Gorsedd inducts new members each year who have contributed to Welsh life.

This is one of the major events of the National Eisteddfod - the week-long annual Welsh language cultural festival, that includes competitions in music, dance and literature, and attracts around 160,000 visitors every year.

It takes place in a different location in Wales each year.

Edwards was inducted at the Eisteddfod in Tregaron, Ceredigion, in 2022.

He admitted having 41 indecent images of children, which had been sent to him by another man on WhatsApp, Westminster Magistrates' Court heard on Wednesday 31 July.

They included seven category A images, the most serious classification - two of which showed a child aged between about seven and nine.

Until last year, Edwards was one of the main presenters on BBC One's News at Ten and often fronted coverage of major national events.

He was arrested last November and charged last month and is due to be sentenced on 16 September.

The man who shared the images with Edwards was 25-year-old convicted paedophile Alex Williams, the Metropolitan Police said.

The force said Williams was sentenced to a suspended 12-month jail sentence at Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court in March, having pleaded guilty to possessing and distributing category A, B and C images, as well as possessing prohibited images of children.

Police said an investigation into Edwards began after a phone seized by officers as part of an unrelated probe revealed the broadcaster’s participation in a WhatsApp conversation.

Fellowship reviewed

Edwards has honorary fellowships at several universities and a college in Wales.

Cardiff University said after the guilty plea is "is actively reviewing procedures in relation to the honorary fellowship award and his position as an honorary professor".

Bangor University also said it was reviewing an honorary fellowship it had granted him.

The Learned Society of Wales, the country’s national scholarly academy, also said it was reviewing Edwards’ fellowship, to which he was elected in May 2023, in the wake of his guilty plea.

The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama and Swansea University said they were not able to comment.

Edwards is a former vice-president of the church building society, National Churches Trust, and has appeared on Songs Of Praise.

After news of the charges emerged on Monday the trust said: "Huw Edwards is no longer a vice-president for the charity".

"We are shocked and saddened by the recent developments."

The Welsh language broadcaster S4C said: "We have not commissioned any content involving Huw Edwards since his departure from the BBC".

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