First Minister of Wales resigns

There can’t be many surprises that Vaughan Gething, the First Minister of Wales has resigned. The political wind has been blowing against him ever since he was appointed.

Mr Gething’s allies say it has been an orchestrated campaign from within. His opponents in Welsh Labour say he had too many awkward outstanding questions and too few convincing answers.

And, finally, with temperatures rising and poorly disguised infighting metaphorically spilling out into the street - four Ministers delivered the coup de grace when they resigned this morning.

Mr Gething had been determined to carry on. He faced down a recent vote of no confidence which he lost in the Senedd when the Conservatives and Plaid Cymru joined forces against him, and the absence on the day of two former Labour Ministers - previously dismissed by Mr Gething - tipped the vote against him. Acrimony continued behind the scenes, while in public Labour called a ceasefire during the general election. But hostilities resumed shortly afterwards.

Mr Gething’s supporters point towards Jeremy Miles, who stood against their man - and lost - in the leadership race. I understand that last night, in a heated cabinet meeting, three cabinet members declared their intention to resign - and were joined by Mr Miles this morning.

Mr Gething had been accused of unfairly sacking Hannah Blyddyn, a Minister for Social Partnership, when it was claimed that confidential What’s App messages were leaked to the press from her phone. She strenuously denied the charge. But I understand that Mr Gething had decided to produce the evidence today which he said categorically affirmed the allegation. That appears to have been the trigger which caused his opponents to move first..to take the initiative and to spike the headlines. 

Mr Gething has also been facing difficult questions about his acceptance of a £200,000 donation from a businessman who has been convicted of criminal charges relating to the illegal dumping of waste on environmentally sensitive sites. Mr Gething maintains that he did nothing wrong and has consistently faced down the media and political foes who have kept that issue alive.

Vaughan Gething was the first black leader of any country in Europe, a fact which he celebrated with pride.

In his resignation statement this morning Mr Gething denied any wrongdoing and that he had always adhered to high standards expected of him;

“I have this morning taken the difficult decision to begin the process of stepping down as the leader of Welsh Labour and as a result, First Minister. Having been elected as the leader of my party in March this year I had hoped that over the summer, a period of reflection, rebuilding and renewal could take place under my leadership. I recognise now that this is not possible. A growing assertion that some kind of wrongdoing has taken place has been pernicious, politically motivated and patently untrue.

In 11 years as a Minister, I have never ever made a decision for personal gain. I have never ever misused or abused my ministerial responsibilities. My integrity matters. I have not compromised it. I regret that the burden of proof is no longer an important commodity in the language of our politics. I do hope that can change. To those in Wales who look like me - many of whom I know feel personally bruised and worried by this moment, I know that our country can be better. I know that cannot happen without us. There will - and there must be - a government that looks like the country it serves.”

This is an embarrassing episode for Labour, and will be a significant blow to Sir Keir Starmer, who is thought to have supported Mr Gething, and was photographed with him, when Sir Keir toured Britain after his landslide election win. 

In one way, it is history repeating itself. After his landslide victory in 1997, Tony Blair’s honeymoon was cut short because of Welsh politics, when, after the vote for devolution, Welsh Labour rejected his preferred candidate for First Minister, Alun Michael.

This time, 25 years on, it isn’t clear how much say the Prime Minister will have had - if any - in the First Minister’s decision to stand down.

But this is undoubtedly a dark day for the party, which, since the general election, has taken overwhelming control of government at every level in Wales.

The question is who will emerge as the leader to take the party forward into the Welsh Senedd elections in 2026. 

It is suggested that two strong early contenders - capable of pulling the warring sides together - are Transport and North Wales MInister, Ken Skates, and Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change, Huw Irranca- Davies.

With Summer recess imminent, it is likely that there will be an interregnum with a temporary leader appointed to oversee a new leadership contest. The party, at all levels, will want to see calm prevail and order restored.

But there’s much to do. The wounds are open and bleeding.