Andrew RT Davies asked to step down as leader of the Welsh Conservatives by MSs

Emily Price 

The leader of the Welsh Conservatives Andrew RT Davies has been asked to step down amid criticism from within his own group.

A well placed source told us that a series of controversial “gaffes” by the most senior Tory in Wales had caused MSs to become “nervous” about the direction he was taking the party.

It is understood that the South Wales Central MS was informed on Wednesday evening (November 27) that more than half of his group had asked for him to resign from his leadership role.

Welsh Conservative MSs will gather on Thursday afternoon in Cardiff Bay where the Tory leader will be asked to step aside.

Halal

Pressure has been mounting on Davies since the Senedd’s summer recess when a number of senior Tory figures and members of his own shadow cabinet publicly lambasted his behaviour following a series of stories by Nation.Cymru.

In August, he was accused of Islamophic race-baiting by the Muslim Council of Wales after he posted a number of incorrect claims about Halal meat in Welsh schools to his social media.

One post published to X, formerly Twitter, went viral after it was amplified by anti-Muslim activist Tommy Robinson.

The rift in the Senedd’s shadow cabinet appeared to deepen further following another social media stunt at the Vale of Glamorgan show.

Davies and his team had constructed a home made ballot box to canvass the public on whether they thought the Welsh Parliament should be abolished.

Devolution 

Supporters and associates of the politician then began to secretly manoeuvre to change the party’s policy so it would support the abolition of the Senedd

Davies was later pressured by his Tory MSs to make an official statement rejecting calls for the party’s stance on devolution to change.

The rumblings of a coup appeared to lose pace after the group returned to the Senedd in the autumn for a new term.

But tension began to mount again this month after comments Davies made to the tabloids about a Welsh Government report which allegedly suggested dog-free zones could tackle racism.

The ethnic minority group at the heart of the viral news story said Davies had “cherrypicked” lines from the report “out of context, misrepresented and used as clickbait to drive engagement.”

An email exchange shown to Nation Cymru revealed how the head of organisation had reached out to Davies asking him to stop reinforcing the claims because some participants were being subjected to a “barrage” of racist abuse and hate mail.

Tommy Robinson

The Welsh Tory leader responded by doubling down on his stance and arguing that nothing he had said on the issue was “untrue”.

He later discussed the issues on a podcast famous for offering a platform to Tommy Robinson and other far-right figures.

Davies also attacked a Welsh Government incentive scheme to recruit BAME teachers – a cause previously supported by one of his group.

Despite some MSs disagreeing with their leader’s comments, a statement was put out backing Davies without the full group’s sign off first.

Many of Tory figure’s divisive talking points and trademark Twitter persona are said to be the handiwork of his chief aide George Carroll who is a councillor in the Vale of Glamorgan.

Carroll recently lost his bid to become the Chairman of the Welsh Conservatives.

During his campaign he promised a members ballot on whether abolishing the Senedd should become party policy.

He also planned to change the rules around incumbency rights for sitting MSs ahead of the 2026 Senedd election.

Such a move could have seen some current members deselected.

Davies threw his support behind his senior advisor while the rest of the Tory Senedd group backed the winning candidate.

Career

Davies joined the Welsh Conservatives in 1997 on the advice of his wife after he became  frustrated with the way rural communities were being treated by the government during the mad cow disease outbreak.

The Brexiteer was elected to the then National Assembly of Wales on the South Wales Central regional list in 2007.

He was elected the Leader of the Welsh Conservative Senedd group in 2011 but resigned from the position in 2018 when others in the party agitated for his removal.

Davies was re-appointed the role in January 2021 but took a leave of absence in September of that year after bouts of flu and Covid impacted his mental health.

Throughout his leadership he has at times sought a separate course from Westminster for his group.

In May 2022, he gave a speech at a party conference where he said the Welsh Conservatives should have their own identity.

Later during the event, he called on former prime minister Boris Johnson to hand over Wales’ fair share of HS2 consequentials – a request that was never granted.

In recent years, his Twitter account has been condemned for becoming a conveyer belt of populist talking points.

On Valentines day in 2023, he published a bizarre poem which read: “Roses are red. Violets are blue. Stop being woke. It’s not good for you!”

The farmer-turned-politician is known for his distinctive eccentric style during interviews – once telling a journalist he was a breech baby and that he was “blue when I was born and blue now”.

He’s been mocked for sounding like a horse racing commentator when answering questions and once promised that “Breakfast” instead of “Brexit” would be a success.

Born in Cowbridge, he is the President of Llantrisant Young Farmers Club, a life governor of the Royal Welsh Agricultural Society and a member of the NFU.

Despite being involved in front-line Welsh politics ever since his election he has always maintained that he’s a farmer first and foremost.

If Davies agrees to resign, the Welsh Conservatives will begin the process of electing a new leader.

Candidates will need to be nominated by at least four MSs – nominations would then be put forward to a membership ballot.