First Minister wins vote on investigation of his conduct

Carwyn Jones has narrowly avoided a defeat in the Senedd over allegations of bullying at the top of his government. He won a vote by 29 AMs to 27 on how to carry out an investigation into whether he misled the Assembly. Opposition demands for an AM led inquiry, held in public, were rejected in favour of an examination by an independent adviser that he's already appointed.

In the aftermath of Carl Sargeant's apparent suicide just days after being sacked as a minister, allegations emerged that the former cabinet secretary was one of the victims of a culture of bullying. The First Minister had denied in 2014 that he was aware of such problems and now faces accusations that he misled the Assembly.

The Conservatives had proposed that the Assembly's Committee for the Scrutiny of the First Minister should hold an investigation. After the Tories tabled their motion last week, the First Minister appointed an independent adviser, an idea he had opposed in 2014.

Both Plaid Cymru and UKIP backed the Conservative motion. Plaid's leader argued that it was wrong for the First Minister to decide what should happen.

But Labour AMs backed Carwyn Jones, arguing that holding the debate two days before Carl Sargeant's funeral was inappropriate.

Tempers flared when Llanelli AM Lee Waters accused the Conservative leader, Andrew RT Davies of heckling Lynne Neagle, claiming that she had "taken the shilling". Mr Davies flatly denied accusing Ms Neagle of anything and later said that his heckle had been directed at the former Plaid Cymru leader Dafydd Elis-Thomas.

Lord Elis-Thomas now sits as an independent AM and recently became a deputy minister in the Welsh Government. Labour has a majority in all whipped votes only because of his support, together with that of the former Welsh Liberal Democrat Leader Kirsty Williams, who's now Education Secretary.