North Wales Tories in turmoil as would-be MS explains why he quit the candidates’ list
Martin Shipton
A would-be Tory Senedd Member has resigned from the candidates’ list because of the Welsh Conservative chairman’s “autocracy” and the controversial decision to grant sitting MSs automatic top slots in next year’s election.
The resignation of Richard John Jones is further evidence of turmoil in the Welsh party.
Earlier this month we revealed how office holders of the North West Wales Conservative Federation had been sacked by the UK party after complaining about Tory MS Janet Finch-Saunders being awarded the leading position on the party’s “closed list” in the new super-constituency of Bangor Conwy Môn. The federation was also put into “special measures” – officially “supported status” – by the central party.
Under the expanded Senedd’s new electoral system, six MSs will be elected from each of 16 super-constituencies by the closed list system of proportional representation. The electorate will vote for parties, not individuals, and parties will decide in which order their candidates will be elected.
Welsh speaker
Richard John Jones told Nation.Cymru: “I’m a fluent Welsh Speaker based on Ynys Môn: there aren’t many Tories that can say that up in these parts.
“I formally resigned as a candidate on April 29, having passed the assessment process and receiving, in my own opinion, glowing feedback.
“The reasons for resigning my candidacy were as follows.
1. [Party chairman] Bernard Gentry’s autocratic demeanour and hostility towards ‘any’ candidate that dared to challenge or even question any of his or the party’s policies. During one Zoom briefing chaired by Bernard Gentry, he responded to one particular candidate with ‘This is not a debate’, effectively muzzling him and others on the spot.
2. The hugely controversial Incumbency rule. Janet Finch-Saunders was elected as our lead candidate by 20 votes to 8 with a majority of 12 [over another sitting MS] in a federation of over 500 members. Some of the ward reps that voted for her had only been members of the party for a matter of weeks and one particular individual had been made a ward rep (a person with voting rights) three days after joining the party. The person in question happens to be the sister of Janet Finch-Saunders’ staffer, who’s also a candidate. Make your own mind up as to the optics of that.
“The wider membership were not allowed to vote on the number 1 position but they do get to vote on positions 2,3,4 etc which is nothing but tokenism, in my opinion, seeing as those candidates have a significantly reduced likelihood of being elected in comparison to the lead candidate.
3. Thomas James, the suspended director of the Welsh Conservatives [who is facing trial on a charge of placing an illegal bet on the date of last year’s general election] sat in front of us at executive meetings and had the gall to preach to us about democracy and ‘job Security’ for MSs on £80k a year while trying to force the incumbency rule upon members.
“It was a double glazing type hatchet job hard sell that the membership completely rejected. Thomas James sat in front of us alongside Bernard Gentry knowing that he was subject to an investigation by the gambling authorities. How he could do that as a salaried employee of the Welsh Conservatives and show such a high level of contempt towards members and activists is beyond me.
“Then we had [Montgomery MS] Russell George’s readoption presided over by Bernard Gentry on a Saturday, something very unusual and uncommon, Only for Russell George to be charged by the gambling authorities less than 48 hours later.
4. [Welsh Conservative Senedd leader] Darren Millar’s refusal to rule out a ‘deal’ with Plaid Cymru and the fact that I would have to sign a ‘Candidate Contract’ and accept every decision made by the party. I couldn’t accept working with Plaid Cymru.
5. The deselection of devo-sceptic candidates.
6 Members and Conservative voters on my home Island of Ynys Môn telling me that they would not vote for the Welsh Conservatives if Janet Finch-Saunders was the lead candidate.
‘Cesspitty’
Mr Jones added: “The Welsh Conservatives are a little too ‘cesspitty’ for me to consider standing for them at the moment. I hold Conservative values and I will continue to support the party in any way that I can, but I also put a high price on my own credibility amongst members and voters.
“It’s the currency in which politicians trade and as soon as it’s gone it can very rarely be restored. I’m not prepared to stand on the doorstep and look anyone in the eye until I know that we have our own house in order. This has never been about money for me, because if it was I wouldn’t have resigned and instead I could have applied for one of the vacant lead positions in as many as five other constituencies.
“For me, this is about starting as I mean to go on in politics. With integrity. By that I mean honesty and a set of strong moral principles that I refuse to change. I want members and voters to take confidence in the fact that I will always act in complete alignment with their values and beliefs. Something Bernard Gentry refuses to do, by continuously slapping down the membership.”
Mr Gentry has not engaged with party members who have protested about the decision to remove the officers of the North West Wales Conservative Federation.
He also has not responded to Nation.Cymru’s request for a statement.
Meanwhile another disenchanted party member in north Wales sent us a picture of Ms Finch-Saunders, Mr Gentry and a small number of activists taking a break from campaigning over the Bank Holiday weekend.
Frustrations
The party member said: “Many of us have held senior management and director roles in the real world and our frustrations are very real. How can we be put into ‘special measures’ without any notice, any consultation or any explanation? We still don’t know what we are supposed to have done. All we can do is speculate.
“Also it might be interesting to note the number of people who turned out to support Janet Finch Saunders’ campaigning session on Saturday.
“In the picture there’s Janet; her member of staff (and likely no 2 on the Senedd slate for Bangor Conwy Môn) Mostyn Jones; Sam Rowlands’ member of staff (and likely no 3 on the slate and chair of the federation till about three weeks ago when he stood down but didn’t tell anyone) Harry Saville and her former member of staff (and Welsh Conservatives Chair) Bernard Gentry. Plus one member. And a dog.
“That’s our top three candidates and the Welsh Chair and this is all the support they can muster because so many members are refusing to help now. This is playing straight into the hands of Reform.”
Ms Finch-Saunders was invited to comment, but did not respond to our message.
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1. The extensive rantings of this person moaning are (not quite entirely) irrelevant (they are relevant to me – read on). 2. There is no such thing as ‘WELSH’ Conservatives, only anti Welsh. 3. Those of their party who tirelessly force themselves on a country which has told them for a quarter of a millennia that WE DO NOT WANT THEM are attempting to force upon us, yet again, a person who stood up and lied in our Parliament to our people that they would not pay more than £2000 in a year for their energy, a Westminster line fed… Read more »
I’m am not a tory voter but why can’t someone be Conservative and pro-Wales at the same time? Nick Bourne and David Melding were hardly anti-Welsh. Its not their ideology thats the problem its their stubborn unionist mentality thats the problem. A London-centric government under Thatcher that couldn’t give 2 sh*ts about Wales or Scotland. Boris Johnson purging the moderates in his party shifting it further to the right and forcing muscular unionism on us. But if the Tories under Darren Millar are capable of taking votes away from Reform then good luck to them, because there are plenty of… Read more »
Unbelievable they’re all drinking foreign drinks in that picture.
So, the members of the Cesspit are turning on each other 😂😂 Let’s watch it burn, burn, burn 🤣🤣
This gentleman moans about the The “deselection of devo-sceptic candidates”. They are not devo-sceptic but anti-Welsh candidates. Under the UK constitution all power resting outside Westminster is devolved. Yet these so called “devo-sceptics” are not against the existence of devolved Police and Crime Commissioners and County, Town or Parish councils and I doubt they would be against devolved elected mayors in Wales if they mirrored those in England. The only devolved institution they are against is a national Welsh Parliament which makes separate decisions from the rest of the UK.
I’m really getting sick of the term “Welsh Tory”. This implies that the decent people of Wales want anything to do with this vile bunch of crooks and perverts.
These items fill me with joy.
Welsh Conservative Grift Club in full effect – yet again!
Richard John Jones talks a load of hogwash. Any Conservative Member who wished could attend themeeting to vote on whether Janet Finch-Saunders should be adopted as No. 1 M.S. candidate for the W.G. . She was adopted by substantial margin. She is the most pro-active politician in Wales, always fighting for improvements and righting injustices. Once elected she will help anyone regardless of party. The tone of most people on this thread is breathtakingly racist. You are in cuckoo land if you believe Wales will ever break away from UK. No one with a shred of common sense would vote… Read more »
Ireland was (forced to be) heavily dependent on Westminster like Wales and Scotland. How has it managed for the last 104 years? How has Norway managed without Sweden for the last 120? JFS is certainly proactive trying to get rid of the rocks off Llandudno north shore beach to expose the seafront properties to flooding. Great work what?