Plaid Cymru leader Ieuan Wyn Jones was returned with a reduced majority

A Plaid Cymru MP has predicted that Ieuan Wyn Jones will be challenged for the leadership after their party's poor showing in the assembly election.

Mr Jones has issued a defiant statement that he would not stand down.

But Ceredigion MP Simon Thomas indicated that he thought the president would have to fight to keep his job.

Mr Thomas also raised the possibility that the next leader could be one of its MPs.

'Grit and courage'

Plaid suffered a serious blow at the polls, and saw its 17 AMs reduced to just 12. It lost all the gains it had made in 1999 in industrial south Wales and its only constituency wins were in its traditional heartland areas in the north west and west.

Plaid issued a statement saying Mr Jones had shown "grit and courage in the face of sniping from other parties".

The malaise... rests at many levels of the party, from the grassroots up to and including Ieuan Plaid Cymru MP Simon Thomas

The statement also included supportive comments from senior party figures such as former leader Dafydd Elis Thomas and chairman John Dixon.

Mr Jones said: "These results are undoubtedly disappointing, but it's simply not in my nature to run away from problems. I'm a fighter not a quitter.

Simon Thomas says Plaid Cymru doesn't dump its leaders lightly

"We need to look very hard at what went wrong, and also to listen to what the voters are saying to us on a whole range of issues. As leader of the party I have to make sure that we face up to the facts, learn the lessons, and move forward."

Lord Elis-Thomas said the problems were "to do with the party not personalities".

But, speaking on BBC Radio Wales's Called to Order programme on Friday, Simon Thomas said there would be "serious questions asked at all levels of the party about why we did so badly".

He said: "It's important to say at this stage the malaise, if you like, we saw doesn't just rest with the leader, it rests at many levels of the party, from the grassroots up to and including Ieuan.

There is no question of a change of leadership. What the party needs now is stability Rhodri Glyn Thomas, Plaid Cymru

"We haven't got a history of dumping our leaders as a party. We've only had four since WW II, so I don't think you go into these things lightly.

"The first job, obviously is to get the National Assembly group up and running again and within the constitution it is possible to have a leader of the party who is separate from the National Assembly group as well.

"If you look over the next four years and we ask ourselves what position that we as Plaid Cymru contest the next National Assembly election then I think Ieuan at some stage will be challenged."

Ieuan Wyn Jones took over as party president from former Caernarfon AM and MP Dafydd Wigley in summer 2000.

Dafydd Wigley had led Plaid to its greatest success at the first assembly elections, but he stood down as leader on health grounds.

We have definitely got lessons to learn and we have to sit back and reflect and learn from this Helen Mary Jones

There was support for Mr Jones from Plaid's Rhodri Glyn Thomas, who held on to his Carmarthen East and Dinefwr seat. He said: "There is no question of a change of leadership.

"What the party needs now is stability so that we can examine what went wrong and build for the future."

Mid and West Wales AM Helen Mary Jones, who had stood for the leadership against Mr Jones, also pledged her support.

"It's very tempting to look for simple solutions but I don't think it is as simple as that," she said.

"We have definitely got lessons to learn and we have to sit back and reflect and learn from this."