Vaughan Gething officially elected first minister of Wales
This is the moment Vaughan Gething was officially elected as first minister.
New Welsh Labour leader Vaughan Gething has been elected as the first minister of Wales.
He succeeds Mark Drakeford, who resigned in an emotional speech on Tuesday after holding the position since 2018.
Mr Gething was elected as the Welsh government leader by members of the Senedd on Wednesday.
He won the support of all the Labour members as well as Jane Dodds, the Senedd’s only Liberal Democrat member.
The Conservative and Plaid Cymru members voted for their respective party leaders.
The opposition parties putting forward alternative choices was largely symbolic, with neither having enough votes to secure the Welsh government leadership role.
The Senedd is made up of 60 members, but one member of Plaid – Rhys ab Owen – is currently suspended for acting inappropriately towards two women on a work night out.
Mr Gething will not be the official first minister until he has written to the King.
Once the King has approved the position, he will be sworn in and a cabinet can be formed.
Welsh Labour members narrowly chose Mr Gething, 50, to be their next party leader on Saturday, receiving 51.7% of the vote compared to rival Jeremy Miles on 48.3%.
Vaughan Gething saw the support of all the Labour members as well as Jane Dodds, the Senedd’s only Liberal Democrat member.
The Conservative and Plaid Cymru members voted for their respective party leaders.
The opposition parties putting forward alternative choices was largely symbolic, with neither having enough votes to secure the Welsh Government leadership role.
The Senedd is made up of 60 members but one member of Plaid – Rhys ab Owen – is currently suspended for acting inappropriately towards two women on a work night-out.
He will be the country’s fifth leader since the National Assembly for Wales, now called the Senedd, was established in 1999, and the first black leader of any European country.
However, the BBC has reported that 14 Welsh Labour politicians met earlier this week to discuss concerns about a £200,000 donation Mr Gething received from a company that was found guilty of environmental offences in January.
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Atlantic Recycling, which is part of Dauson Environmental Group and controlled by David Neal, gave the new First Minister’s campaign £100,000 on December 18 2023 and £100,000 on January 11 2024.
Atlantic Recycling was also fined £300,000 over one of its workers’ deaths in February after it pleaded guilty to breaching health and safety at work rules.
Mr Gething and his team have rejected calls to pay back the money, insisting the donation was declared in line with Senedd and Electoral Commission rules and that the minister is committed to transparency.
Mr Gething defended his decision to take the donation and said “everyone has lessons to learn”.
The outgoing First Minister, Mr Drakeford gave an emotional speech in the Senedd on Tuesday, thanking the people of Wales.
He said: “My aim throughout, as First Minister, has been to use the mandate my party and my Government secured to keep the promises we made to people across Wales.
“That has meant being prepared to do the things that are difficult today because we know that the benefits will lie in the lives of the generations to come.”
He was emotional as he spoke about the personal tragedy he had suffered in early 2023, when his wife of 46 years, Clare, died suddenly aged 71.
Mr Drakeford, who will return to the backbenches, described the last 12 months as the “hardest and the saddest of my life”.
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