Owen Smith was elected as the Labour MP for Pontypridd in May 2010. Owen joined the Labour Frontbench in October 2010, initially as Shadow Minister for the Wales Office, later as a member of the Shadow Health Team. In the recent reshuffle, Owen was promoted to the role  of Shadow Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury.
 
Prior to being elected, Owen worked for five years in the Biotechnology and Pharmaceuticals industry, latterly as a Director and member of the UK and Ireland Board of Amgen, the global biotechnology company. Owen began his career as a BBC journalist, where he worked for ten years on network radio and television programmes, including BBC Radio 4’s ‘Today’. After leaving journalism, he spent three years working as a Government Special Adviser, principally at the Northern Ireland  Office. 
 
Owen was brought up in Pontypridd and lives in the constituency with his wife and three children.