Labour minister axed over sex claims ‘commits suicide’
Married father of four found dead at home days after he denied ‘distressing’ allegations
A SENIOR Labour politician has been found dead just days after he was sacked by the Welsh government over claims of sexual misconduct.
Carl Sargeant, 48, is thought to have killed himself at his home yesterday morning. Police said they were not treating his death as suspicious.
The married father of four was hauled before Welsh First Minister Carwyn Jones on Friday and sacked as cabinet secretary for communities after ‘several’ women made allegations against him.
He was also suspended from the Labour Party pending an investigation. No details of the allegations, or of the accusers, were made public.
Following his suspension, Mr Sargeant described the accusations as ‘shocking and distressing’ and pledged to clear his name.
As late as yesterday morning he was telling friends he still had no idea what he was being accused of or exactly who had made the allegations. That prompted questions last night as to whether the Welsh Labour Party had exercised a proper duty of care toward Mr Sargeant. ‘ Carl clearly thought he had been found guilty before he had had a chance to defend himself,’ said Rhodri Glyn Thomas, a former Plaid Cymru assembly member.
‘We need to develop a system which is fair to everybody, which defends everybody but doesn’t place people in the position where they feel they have no opportunity whatsoever to fight their cause.’
Jeff Jones, the former Labour leader of Bridgend council, also said there were concerns about the way the case had been dealt with.
‘Whatever the allegations, you couldn’t say that this has been handled well,’ he said. ‘I’ve never seen anything of this magnitude in Welsh politics in my lifetime.’
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said Mr Sargeant’s death was terrible and deeply shocking. He added: ‘All allegations [of sexual misconduct] must be examined but there also has to be great care for everybody involved in these accusations’.
Tory MP Nigel Evans, who has been campaigning for those accused of sexual impropriety to be given anonymity, said: ‘I still believe – I have held this view all along – that had the allegations been made and had he had some anonymity, he would probably be alive today. There is immense pressure. The whole thing is played out in the public eye.’
Mr Sargeant’s wife of 25 years, Bernie, who is a 48-year-old teaching assistant at a primary school, yesterday issued a statement with children Jack, 23, and Lucy, 26.
They said: ‘Carl was a much loved husband, father and friend. He wasn’t simply a part of our family.
‘He was the heart of our family. We loved him so very much. He was the most kind and caring husband, father, son and friend.
‘We are devastated beyond words, and we know our grief will be shared by all those who knew and loved him. We are in shock and grief.’
Police and paramedics were called to Mr Sargeant’s home in Connah’s Quay, north Wales, at around 11.30am yesterday. He was pronounced dead at the scene and his body was removed by private ambulance at around 2pm.
Mr Sargeant was born and raised in the town and lived in a former council semi two streets away from where he grew up.
A youth member of the Salvation Army, he later worked as a quality and environmental auditor and a firefighter at a chemical plant.
He was elected to the town council more than 20 years ago and entered the Welsh Assembly in 2003, representing Alyn and Deeside.
He became chief whip and deputy minister for assembly business following the 2007 election.
A number of roles followed before he became cabinet secretary for communities and children in May 2016. He had a flat in Cardiff.
Locals in Connah’s Quay last night described him as a Labour hero who never forgot his roots and who went into politics to make a difference.
Speaking from the Labour club, where Mr Sargeant’s election poster adorns an outside wall, life-long friend Bernie Attridge, 46, said he had lost a true friend.
Wiping away tears, the deputy leader of Flintshire county council said: ‘I’ve known him all my life. We grew up together. He was a local man who never forgot his roots.
‘He still lived in an ex-council property and was born and bred across the road from where he died.
‘ Our political journey started together. We both came onto Connah’s Quay town council because we wanted to make a difference to the lives of people who live in Connah’s Quay by standing up and being counted. He was very kind and sincere. You see other people become
‘He was a man of the people’
MPs and they forget where they came from, but Carl never forgot.
‘He was a man of the people and loved knocking on doors and getting out there and talking to people. The community will be devastated.’
Referring to the allegations being faced by Mr Sargeant, Mr Attridge added: ‘I am a great believer in innocent until proven guilty.’
Welsh Labour leader Mr Jones said he had had no choice but to remove Mr Sargeant from his post after learning of ‘certain incidents’.
He added: ‘Carl was a friend as well as a colleague and I am shocked and deeply saddened by his death.
‘He made a big contribution to Welsh public life.’
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