‘HEARTLESS’ LABOUR LEADER’S DEFIANCE
He won’t quit and defends his sacking of tragic minister Insiders tell of bullying at ‘toxic’ Welsh Assembly
LABOUR’S leader in Wales was fighting for his career last night as he defended his handling of sex allegations against one of his ministers.
Carwyn Jones insisted he would not quit over his ‘heartless’ sacking of Carl Sargeant, who took his own life days after being accused of misconduct.
Sources yesterday said the Welsh First Minister had considered resigning and was ‘50/50 to go at lunchtime’. But he decided to stay after holding a crisis meeting with Labour Assembly members. In a public statement, Mr Jones claimed he had acted ‘by the book’ and had ‘no alternative’ but to sack the Alyn and Deeside Assembly Minister rather than simply suspend him. He also said he would try to provide answers which Mr Sargeant’s family deserved.
But Mr Jones now faces a noconfidence motion in the Welsh Assembly, which could see him forced out of office.
Labour does not have a majority in the Welsh Assembly – the Tories, Ukip, Plaid Cymru and the Liberal Democrats combined have 31 votes to Labour’s 29.
After Mr Jones had given his statement, a spokesman for Ukip Wales said: ‘Carwyn Jones has no authority to continue in the position of First Minister.
‘The Labour party cannot credibly claim to have a social conscience if it treats its own “family” members so heartlessly and unjustly. In the light of his refusal to step down, Ukip Wales is calling for a motion of no confidence in the First Minister.’
Andrew RT Davies, the leader of the Welsh Conservatives, added: ‘Today’s statement from the First Minister has left many unanswered questions and fails to provide the answers Carl’s family deserve.’ In another sign of Mr Jones’s precarious position, Jeremy Corbyn pointedly refused to offer his support.
Yesterday Mr Jones faced fresh claims over the ‘toxic’ atmosphere within Welsh Labour which had seen Mr Sargeant ‘deliberately undermined’. Former Welsh gov- ernment minister Leighton Andrews alleged there was a culture of ‘ minor bullying, mindgames, power-games, favouritism’ at the Assembly. Mr Andrews also strongly criticised Mr Jones for commenting publicly on the allegations against Mr Sargeant after he had referred the matter to the Labour Party. He said: ‘Friends in North Wales tell me those interviews fuelled Carl’s despair.’ And Mr Sargeant’s close friend Bernie Attridge, the deputy leader of Flintshire Council and a councillor in Mr Sargeant’s home town Connah’s Quay, said he was ‘appalled and shocked’ that Mr Jones had not resigned. He pledged to fight for justice for his ‘true friend’. Speaking about Mr Jones, he said: ‘I’ve got no confidence in the man. I’m appalled and shocked that he hasn’t done the decent thing… but our fight for justice continues.’
Chris Risley, the chairman of the town council in Connah’s Quay, questioned why Mr Jones had not simply suspended Mr Sargeant.
Mr Jones also faced new questions about what he knew of the allegations against Mr Sargeant and when. On Monday he said he had only heard of them last week but sources told the BBC he had been told of one allegation 18 months ago.
He was also asked why Mr Sargeant was not told the nature of the allegations against him.
Mr Sargeant, 49, was sacked from his ministerial role and suspended by the Labour Party on Friday, after allegations were made to the First Minister’s office last week of ‘unwanted attention, inappropriate touching or groping’. Mr Sargeant had vowed to clear his name.
His family have now called for an independent inquiry, saying his distress at being unable to defend himself meant he was not afforded ‘common courtesy, decency or natural justice’. An inquest into his death will be opened and adjourned on Monday.