First Minister set to defy Senedd no confidence vote
Emily Price
First Minister Vaughan Gething is set to defy a no confidence vote which he’s expected lose in the Senedd this afternoon.
The Welsh Conservatives tabled the motion following the collapse of the co-operation deal between Labour and Plaid Cymru amid a series of rows involving the First Minister.
Labour hold half of the 60 seats in the Welsh Parliament meaning Mr Gething needs the support of every backbencher in order to win the vote on Wednesday (June 5).
However, former deputy minister Lee Waters and recently sacked junior minister Hannah Blythyn are both off sick so will not be in attendance.
Mr Waters has broken ranks previously to call out the First Minister during a debate on political donations prior to the Senedd’s Whitsun break.
Both Plaid Cymru and the Welsh Tories have indicated they are not willing to agree to pairing arrangements where some MSs would not vote to cover for Labour absences.
Members of the Senedd can vote remotely and are able to get get a proxy vote for long term absence.
The vote comes amid concerns about the First Minister’s judgement.
Donation
He accepted a donation from a man convicted of environmental offences during his run to be Welsh Labour leader.
Mr Gething has also refused to show any evidence to explain why he sacked Ms Blythyn from his government, after he accused her of leaking messages to the media.
The no confidence vote is non-binding because it will fall in opposition time.
But it will signal trouble for the embattled First Minister if members of his own party do not have confidence in his leadership.
Even if the Tory motion is successful, Mr Gething and his supporters have indicated he would still remain in office.
Chair of the Labour group of MSs, Vikki Howells, told Radio Wales Breakfast that the First Minister would not stand down if he lost.
She described the motion as a “gimmick” adding that it was up to the “voting public to decide who is in the Senedd”.
Plaid Cymru hit back at Ms Howells saying even Labour had lost confidence in the First Minister.
A spokesperson said: “Vaughan Gething was not voted in as First Minister by the people of Wales but by Labour Members in the Senedd. By denying the legitimacy of a vote of no confidence in the First Minister, Labour are treating the Senedd with contempt.
“With a new revelation about Vaughan Gething’s lack of judgment hitting the headlines on a daily basis it’s little wonder that Labour in the Senedd are in disarray. It is clear that the people of Wales have lost confidence in the First Minister and it seems the Labour group are losing confidence too.”
‘Non-binding’
In the Senedd yesterday (June 4) Mr Gething said he understood why the Conservatives had put forward the motion, calling it “a non-binding vote, but a vote, nevertheless”.
He was met with shouts of “arrogance” from the opposition benches.
The First Minister added: “I am confident about tomorrow. I look forward to the debate, which I will attend.
“I could and should, in my view, have been elsewhere, but I will be in this Parliament to respond to the debate.”
Rhun ap Iorwerth, leader of Plaid Cymru, said the vote might be non-binding, but should be taken seriously, arguing the people of Wales have lost confidence in the First Minister.
Mr Gething was due to attend a D-day event on Wednesday, which he has now cancelled.
Former First Minister Mark Drakeford also appeared to break ranks on Tuesday afternoon when he called out his successors government for shelving school year reforms.
The policy joins a number of u-turns made by Mr Gething since he came to office in March.
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Gething is arrogant enough to carry on regardless. Unbelievable that he can defy a no confidence vote
not if you knew him, Mr Miles was the correct choice of leader as voted for by the members, it was the Unions that wanted Mr Vaughn
And his dodgy pals!
He may be able to defy the vote for a time but the pressure will be immense. I wonder if he can realistically hold on if his own members start quitting.
If Vaughan Gething refuses to stand down upon losing a vote of no confidence, this will be a slap in the face for the Labour Party in the short term but ultimately it will be a massive negative for devolution in the longer term. He must go as gracefully as he can right away.
‘She said that it was up to the “voting public to decide who is in the Senedd” ‘
Quite correct – and Gething is in the Senedd on that basis.
But it is not up to the voting public who fills the role of First Minister. That is a job for the Senedd.
When the Conservative Government appointed Liz Truss and then Rishi Sunak, the Labour party argued that they had lost the mandate to govern and should call an immediate general election. They can’t therefore argue that the same argument doesn’t apply to them! Labour can’t have their cake and eat it.
I think you might find they already have done
Oh, have they? They might win the UK election but I wouldn’t be so confident of them winning the next Senedd election given that 57% of the Welsh public believe Gething is performing badly.
I believe so, they will win the election by default as there is no viable alternative as for the senate don’t forget the sheep voters the local labour party covens will tell the members how to vote, if you are a union member same thing will happen there the whole lot’s a stitch up. The voting system needs change.
Whether gething’s performance is good or bad the man has his golden wonka card he’s there for the duration or until you send the rat catcher in
Farce Minister Vaughan Gething is doing a good impression of dictator. And this is the very reason why we need to vote Welsh Labour out if office in 2026. Absolute power corrupts absolutely, or in his case, grease my palm with sliver. 😉
The only sensible choice is Plaid Cymru, then push for independence!
Or call him Siggi if you are old enough to know
Two MSs too ill to vote in the Labour camp !
So, use ARTD or Rhun as their proxy!
They don’t have proxies as they aren’t long-term sick.
Are AMs exempt from voting if they are on sick leave or is it just a convenient excuse not to show their true feelings on the current situation?
Very good question, considering who the two sick members are – sacked Hannah Blythyn and Lee Waters, who has been highly critical of VG.
He has to go, and he will go eventually because the situation is unsustainable. It’s just a question of when. At some point Keir Starmer will step in behind the scenes. I imagine a calculation is currently being made that it would cause more damage to Labour’s UK General Election campaign – the only test for all decisions right now – for Gething to resign that not (i.e. it’s currently a small story in UK terms whereas an actual resignation would give Sunak much more ammunition). That could change very quickly. The moment it does then Gething will be told… Read more »
I am sure if the election of Labour FM had been up to the general public Jeremy Miles would have won by a mile.
I think that is a good assessment Alun. I was wondering how the situation was going to play out, given the 2 Labour members stance with the FM to date (i.e. the ones of sick). If there was not a General Election going on, then ordinarily some Labour Senedd members may well have voted against the FM? Given that there is a GE in the background, then am suspecting that 2 pivotal members (Lee Waters spoke out against the FM, and Hannah Blythyn was dismissed) being off sick is an attempt by the party to dampen down the situation in… Read more »
I think Gething is only hanging on until he’s negotiated a spot as the support act on Liz Truss’s next lecture tour.
Apparently this is not a formal vote of no confidence. According to BBC article covering this story, a formal no confidence motion has to be tabled by six Senedd members. There are strict rules governing formal no confidence motions. Who knew, eh?
Either way, he is incredibly arrogant to believe he can just carry on as if nothing happened and, hopefully, this will influence the electorate on the day of the general election!
I’m sure a more formal one can be arranged, particularly if he loses this one!
I don’t see how he can carry on if he loses, not in the long-term anyway.
Yes and yes!
What is this fool waiting for probably a Knight hood or a peerage, stamers lackey in wales. Lots of people are talking about a labour government in Westminster and labour out of the senedd in 2026 that would be nice.
Who knew? Wales now has it’s very own version of Boris Johnson in charge: dodgy dealings, bare-faced lies, complete disregard for the rules, and more scandals clocked up in two months than Johnson could manage in two years. No wonder things are going so well in Wales.
Ms V Howells sounds like a solid careerist politician who thinks she knows which side of her bread the butter is on. All good until VG gets toppled then she might be out just after him. Unless of course she is a very solid long term careerist in which case when the time is right she will be among the first to get the knife in. Such nice people, aren’t they ?
Indubitably
Didn’t the Welsh government give this company a £400,000 grant? They then give £200,000 to VG. If so did the tax payers pay for VGs campaign? Just asking like.
Strictly speaking it was the Welsh Development Bank which supposedly makes independent investment decisions but it certainly does look like your assessment is accurate.
Mike Hedges and Hefin David’s contribution in the Senedd debate were appalling. Gaslighting rubbish, swinging insults at other members and thinly veiled accusations of racism. As for Gething, he looked for pity and turned to stirring yet empty rhetoric. Not on one occasion did he accept that his actions called his judgement into question. Just on the Neal donation – he accepted an unprecedented sum of money from a man with a criminal conviction for offences carried out by his company, lobbied for them and asked NRW to withold information in the event of an FOI request. And he hides… Read more »
It makes me incredibly angry whenever politicians (of any party) use the phrase “But I didn’t break any rules,” because they are the same bl***y people that make the bl***y rules!
The uk and devolved parliaments all need reform to make them more democratic and more democratically accountable.
There should be an external body or individual with the authority to determine when (prime/first) minister is obeying rules (and/or laws) and if they should be sacked, even if that results in a (general) election. My preference would be an elected president.
So he loses a vote of confidence and then it would appear he is going to ignore it.
Welsh Labour seem to have a record of ignoring what people around him want. Voters and now even members of the Welsh Senedd. Oh what a complete mess by a not so honourable head of Welsh government.
I’m sorry but there is no way that I am going to vote for a party whose chosen leader cries and sniffles when it looks like they can’t get their own way. But I do understand a person crying when losing a loved one, or encountering a dreadful event in their life.
Hard times are ahead and Wales needs strong leadership and I don’t see that we will get that with Gething at the head of our country.
A coward if there was one the man has no shame and shpuld resign immediately