Welsh First Minister Refuses To Resign After Losing Motion Of No Confidence



"I'm here, proud to be the First Minister of Wales, serving and leading my country. That's what I did today. That's what I will continue to do", he told journalists, after the vote, quoted by the public broadcaster BBC.


The motion of no confidence, tabled by the opposition Welsh Conservative Party, received 29 votes in favor and 27 against.


Despite holding half of the 60 seats in the Senedd, the opposition voted as a bloc and two Labor MPs were absent for health reasons.


The Conservative, Plaid Cymru and Liberal Democrat parties called for Gething's resignation, as did the minister for British Wales, David TC Davies.


"Labour Prime Minister Vaughan Gething lost the vote of no confidence. His position is now untenable and he must resign immediately," Davies wrote on social media site X.


The result leaves the Welsh First Minister, in office for less than three months since March, weakened, but the motion to the Prime Minister is political and not binding.


The motion of no confidence was called for a number of reasons, starting with criticism of Gething for accepting a £200,000 (€235) donation to the party's leadership campaign from a recycling company whose owner was found guilty of environmental offences. and violation of health and safety standards.


Gething denied any irregularities and stated that the donations were properly declared in accordance with electoral rules.


Later, last month, text messages exchanged with other members of the government during the pandemic were released, in which Gething appeared to indicate his intention to delete them.


Days later, Gething fired the deputy minister for social partnership, Hannah Blythyn, for allegedly publishing the messages, which she denied.


Blythyn was one of the Labor MPs absent from the vote today.