A tale of two Thomases and their fall from grace

Until February 2026, Dave Thomas was the ‘main man’ in Welsh Reform. A self-employed window cleaner and councillor in Torfaen, he joined Reform when it was a small organisation. He quickly became a big fish in a small pond.

Dave was hastily appointed Director of Wales, and his fallings-out with journalists and Reform members are well documented. Many describe him as a hard worker but with no people skills. Whatever his shortcomings, he put considerable effort into building Reform in Wales when the party was still finding its feet.

In late 2025, Dave was pushing for his close friend and fellow Torfaen councillor, Jason O’Connell, to be Welsh leader, telling HQ he was someone he could control. This would have kept Dave at the steering wheel of Welsh Reform.

The only other big figure in Welsh Reform was Llyr Powell, but he quickly became ‘damaged goods’ after he failed to win the Caerphilly by-election. Rumour has it he was on the verge of a nervous breakdown during that campaign.

Then Dan Thomas came along. A very different kind of Thomas from Dave. A well-educated property millionaire with a penchant for bespoke suits and £10,000 watches. A ‘Valleys boy done good’, Dan impressed Reform HQ with his career in London and 20 years of senior experience on a large council.

Another factor in Dan’s favour was that he had nothing to do with the ‘love-hate triangle’ of Dave, Llyr and Jason. Dan was fresh and had leadership experience in public office that the others couldn’t match.

It’s fair to say the Welsh rank and file embraced Dan, and on 7 May, he led Reform to the higher end of its seat expectations. This sealed his position as Welsh leader for the next Senedd elections — or so it was thought.

This is rumoured to be the main reason James Evans decided to announce that he would step down in 2030. He knew there was no bigger role for him in the Senedd group while Dan was at the helm.

The new MS group got behind Dan, apart from Llyr Powell, whose only loyalty is to himself. He was privately running Dan down, even though Dan gave him the job of chief whip, which many, including Dave Thomas, thought he shouldn’t have.

Llyr has been a divisive presence within the Senedd group, gossiping in the Dock pub and picking on defenceless staffers. He would eventually become an example of Dan putting too much faith in people who would later cause him issues. This was an inherent problem within the new group: nobody really ‘knew’ each other.

After the election, Dave Thomas was quick to ask for the chief of staff job in the Senedd, but it soon became obvious that his insecure and confrontational style didn’t work in a small office of Gen Zs.

The atmosphere was febrile, and on one occasion, Dave and Llyr squared up to each other in the group office. Dan was visibly unimpressed, telling colleagues it was the kind of uncouth behaviour he had left behind at his Valleys comprehensive.

That said, Dan and Dave got on well in their own way. They were often seen having a laugh in Dan’s office. Llyr was jealous of their relationship, and there was no love lost the other way, with Dave telling everyone Llyr should be replaced by Jason as whip.

That was the problem with Dave: too opinionated and getting involved in issues that shouldn’t concern a chief of staff. Complaints about his abrupt and unprofessional behaviour were rife and still linger today. Dave’s loyalty to Reform was never questioned; his problem was knowing where his responsibilities ended.

Dave wasted no time getting his wife, Rachel, and inexperienced 17-year-old son, Sam, well-paid jobs in the Senedd. This raised eyebrows, but nobody dared say anything. At one point, they were taking home well over £100,000 between them from the taxpayer. It was probably one of Dan’s weakest judgements, and although Llyr was very critical of it, Dan was keen to repay Dave for his support during the campaign.

After the elections, with disgruntled branch members still reeling from not being selected to stand for the Senedd, some Reform branches began to fall apart. There is still a constant churn of branch chairs and committees. Dave inherited some difficult people and situations, but his approach often made matters worse rather than better.

Instead of peacemaking in the branches, Dave was pacing around the Senedd office calling people ‘rats and c*nts’, taking photos of journalists with his smart glasses, canvassing for Jason, trying to get ‘that chubby little rat’ Llyr sacked and interfering with committee appointments.

Secret access

Dave even asked for secret access to MSs’ private offices without them knowing. Dan said ‘no’. And that was the pattern: Dave would push, and Dan would clip his wings.

Despite this, Dan kept a lid on any major issues and, except for some minor leaks that seemed to benefit those who disliked Llyr and Laura Anne Jones, the Senedd group was disciplined and outwardly united.

Out of the blue, Dave got a call from Nigel himself, asking him to go back to his old job in the party. Some think Dan put Nigel up to it to get Dave out of the Senedd. Dave agreed but quietly got a part-time job in Jason O’Connell’s office so he could keep a pass to the Senedd.

Straight after the summer recess, Dan’s sudden downfall came out of nowhere. A lot of Reform members think it was an establishment stitch-up, designed to hit Reform on its first day back in the Senedd.

The Reform hierarchy blindly stood by Dan, based wholly on his own version of events. If Dan is cleared, his towering presence on the Senedd back benches will cause a headache, not least for the small number of his colleagues who circled like vultures the second rumours started about his arrest.

But Dan’s downfall meant Dave and Co.’s time had finally come. Dave could get his hands back on the steering wheel via a proxy like James or Jason.

Llyr was willing to put animosity aside to keep his job under any new leader. He persuaded a naïve colleague to start canvassing for James Evans, even before MSs fully knew what had happened to Dan. This backfired, and those concerned were shunned by the wider group.

Strange strategy

Dave and Co. rallying around James was a strange strategy, given that he had lost all credibility with his early announcement that he would stand down in 2030. He’s also considered very wet; he didn’t support tabling the motions on nation of sanctuary and face coverings, and he didn’t attend those debates.

James didn’t have the numbers, despite what he said. So Dave and Co. rallied around Jason instead. He lost to Helen Jenner, despite using smart glasses to give the false impression that his speech to the group was unscripted. Jason lacks personality and ‘oomph’, and he keeps bad company — one of his staffers was featured in the ITV investigation making racist remarks.

Dave canvassing for James, and then Jason, raised a lot of eyebrows, given his supposedly neutral party role. It also proved his political immaturity and fickleness. His behaviour eventually reached Reform HQ, and he was told to scale back his time in the Senedd. He took it deeply personally and can’t see how his own behaviour was to blame.

Dave’s now using his newfound time to do his proper day job, belatedly touring Welsh branches to recruit council candidates. The Senedd office is said to be more peaceful without him, but his recent sycophantic tweets about certain MSs have caused speculation that he is not happy with the Welsh leadership.

So what about ‘Dan the Man’, as they call him? He’s been away, ‘sorting his life out’ between sun loungers in Sardinia and Spain and shooting pheasants in Somerset.

Those in the know are aware that Dan loves the sun, speedboats and ‘living it up’. He’s successfully kept his lifestyle under wraps, keen to present himself as returning to his Valleys roots when he really spends a lot of his spare time living as a country gent.

Mediterranean luxury

In fact, Dan’s ‘difficulties’ have been the perfect excuse for him to keep his head down while enjoying Mediterranean luxury and escapes to what he calls his ‘bolthole’ in the Cotswolds. After his three-week absence, Dan can be seen on Senedd TV returning to the chamber tanned and relaxed, as if nothing had happened.

Now he’s back, Dan is said to be the real power behind the Welsh leader’s throne, quietly advising and coaching colleagues and protecting his protégée, Helen Jenner. His influence remains considerable.

If Dan stepped away for some reason — if he simply had enough or his ‘legal issues’ consumed him — it would be open season again within the Reform Senedd group.

James Evans, usually insular and abrasive, has been making an out-of-character effort in the tea room and group office. Is he on manoeuvres? Will he want another go, despite his recent aborted bid and his announcement that he’s stepping down in 2030? How does being group leader align with his newfound desire for a private family life? Many dislike his temperament, and resigning from the shadow cabinet in a sulk was not a good look.

Conduct

Dave Thomas played an important part in building Reform’s Welsh organisation, but his conduct and involvement in Senedd affairs have attracted significant criticism. Dan Thomas, meanwhile, brought experience and stability to the new Senedd group, although his judgement over appointments and management of internal tensions warrant scrutiny. Both men have shaped Welsh Reform, and both leave questions about the party’s direction and internal governance.

Both Thomases have been humbled over the last month. There may be opportunities for them to redeem themselves, but when, or if, that happens, will they come together to bolster the party, or will Dave’s need for absolute control be a constant source of tension, especially for Helen Jenner, whom he didn’t back to be leader?

Will Dan get bored of the unglamorous Senedd and seek a seat on the green benches, leaving a hole in the group for a second time?

For now, the waters at Cardiff Bay have calmed for Welsh Reform, but there’s a sense that another storm will hit in the near future.