Vaughan Gething insists that he is proud of his record as he resigns to Senedd
Vaughan Gething addressing the Senedd on Tuesday
First Minister Vaughan Gething has made a statement to the Senedd confirming his intention to quit.
At the conclusion of a speech, which largely followed his earlier statement, Mr Gething said: “There will and there must be in the future a government that looks like the country it serves.
“A government for all of us to make Wales a better place with, and for, all of us.”
There was applause from members in the chamber as Mr Gething finished his short speech.
The outgoing First Minister said he remains confident in the Labour Party and he is looking forward to seeing who is chosen to replace him.
During First Minister’s Questions on Tuesday, he said his party had got on with the job “despite all the noise”.
He added: “I am confident and positive about what my party can do in government and go before the people of Wales in 2026.
“I look forward to my party choosing from each of our members in a one member one vote contest to decide who that person will be, but I will carry on doing my duty for my country until such time that a new person is selected to take my place.”
Vaughan Gething also insisted that he is proud of his record.
The outgoing First Minister told the Senedd: “I’m proud of my record in all the things I have done before coming here and since coming here in 11 years as being a minister.
“I’m sad that today sees the start of that process coming to an end, but I remain full of optimism of what this place can do and what Welsh Labour leadership can provide to my country and all the people who are proud to call Wales their home.”
Welsh Conservative leader Andrew RT Davies says the First Minister refused to shake his hand
This came in response to Welsh Conservatives leader Andrew RT Davies who said Mr Gething had declined to shake his hand earlier on Tuesday when he expressed his condolences.
When pressing Mr Gething, Mr Davies said: “Was it the acceptance of the £200,000 donation to your leadership campaign, or was it your appointment of your leadership contender and his leadership team to your cabinet that ultimately cost you the role of First Minister?”
He added: “Are the Labour group in this Senedd so driven that you are unable to complete that mandate.
Today the First Minister released uncensored versions of text messages that were leaked to the media
First Minister Vaughan Gething maintained that he was telling the truth over the alleged leak of messages and said he was “trying to protect other people”.
Referring to his written statement which related to the sacking of former social partnership minister Hannah Blythyn, Mr Gething said: “It sets out what did happen, it sets out why the evidence is so clear, as I said that I can be pretty clear that there was a photograph of that member’s phone.
“Now everything I’d said before then was about trying to avoid all the events of last week that have rolled on and on and on, I’ve done that in trying to protect other people.
“And I’ve been prepared to take flak and criticism for doing that, and that is exactly what has happened, but I expected at some point there’d be a pause to recognise that what I’d said was actually the truth, and that didn’t happen.”
Mr Gething continued: “Other people need to reflect on what they wish to do in the future and how they exercise their own judgments and I hope all members take that seriously.”
Plaid Cymru leader Rhun ap Iorwerth called for a snap election
Rhun ap Iorwerth, the leader of Plaid Cymru, said the outgoing First Minister was “on borrowed time”.
He said: “You must remember that the four ministers that called on him to go voted to show their confidence in him not that many weeks ago.
“It was hardly decisive action by them but today had to come.”
Mr ap Iorwerth said the people of Wales did not want a “revolving door” of Labour First Ministers. He said: “They should be asked what king of people they want and Plaid Cymru is ready for that election. We’ve had a UK general election, we now need to focus on what kind of government we want for Wales.
“I’ve no doubt that this is a Labour government, that’s been in government for 25 years now, that is losing the confidence of the people of Wales.”
Mr ap Iorwerth insisted he was not someone with “a massive appetite for lots of elections”, following the Conservative leader Andrew RT Davies saying if a snap election was held now another one would need to be carried out in 2026.
He added: “All I’m seeing is the chaos that we had because of the actions of Vaughan Gething over the last three months and how slow Labour were to take that step to get rid of him.”
Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To know...