THE Tories have refused to pardon Dic Penderyn, 184 years after he was wrongly hanged in the wake of the Merthyr rising.

Labour MP Ann Clwyd is campaigning for the socialist martyr, real name Richard Lewis, to finally be cleared of allegations that he stabbed a soldier who had been sent to crush the 1831 uprising.

She presented a petition to the House of Commons in June calling for the coalminer to receive the royal prerogative of mercy (RPM).

It states: “There is strong feeling in Wales that Richard Lewis was wrongly executed, that his conviction should be overturned and that he should be granted a pardon.”

In 1874, another man, Ianto Parker, allegedly confessed on his deathbed that he had stabbed the soldier, while James Abbott, who testified against Penderyn, later admitted lying under oath.

But in a written response issued yesterday, Police Minister Mike Penning ruled out a pardon unless new evidence is brought forward.

“By convention, the RPM is only used to grant a pardon where evidence has come to light which demonstrates conclusively that the convicted individual was innocent and that the relevant appeal mechanisms have been exhausted.

“As far as we are aware, no approach has been made to either the Court of Appeal or to the Criminal Cases Review Commission to review the conviction.”

Mr Clwyd told the Star yesterday that she would continue to pursue the petition and has been assured by Mr Penning that he will continue to “look into it.”

The Cynon Valley MP also revealed that she had received a letter of support this week from the family of Richard Lewis.