On 21 April 2018 he announced he would step down as First Minister that autumn, and in December 2018 Mark Drakeford (the Finance Secretary in Jones' cabinet) was elected as his replacement.[4]
Jones unsuccessfully sought the Labour nomination for the UK parliamentary seat of Brecon and Radnorshire in 1997;[10] he later said in a BBC interview[11] that he considered trying to become an MP, but in 1999, "had a chance" to stand for the Bridgend constituency in the first elections for the Welsh Assembly; he has held that seat ever since.
He became a Member of the National Assembly for Wales for Bridgend in 1999[7] and was appointed Deputy Secretary in the National Assembly for Wales on 23 February 2000.[12] On 23 July 2000, he was appointed to the Cabinet as Secretary for Agriculture and Rural Development in the Welsh Government,[1] before the title was changed to Minister in October 2000. His responsibilities in this role included the environment, countryside issues, town and country planning, sustainable development, agriculture and rural development. In June 2002, his brief was expanded when he was appointed Minister for Open Government in addition to his other duties. During this time, he was responsible for the Welsh response to the 2001 foot-and-mouth disease outbreak.[5]
Following the announcement by the Welsh Labour Leader and First MinisterRhodri Morgan in September 2009 that he would be resigning both posts in December 2009, Jones entered the subsequent election to become his successor, where his opponents were Edwina Hart and Huw Lewis. On 1 December 2009, Jones was elected the new Leader with over 50% of the vote.[2][3]
First Minister of Wales
Premiership of Carwyn Jones 10 December 2009–12 December 2018
Following the UK Coalition Government'sausterity programme,some members of the UK cabinet sought to criticise Jones. On 8 September 2012,in defending the UK government spending cuts,Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg accused Jones of blaming London. Clegg said,"(Jones) is very good at blaming London for everything and terrifically stirring in his speeches about how more needs to be done to help the Welsh economy and yet he does exactly the reverse." Clegg further claimed the Coalition Government was "doing all the heavy lifting,not the Welsh Government".[15]
A spokesman for Jones responded,"We’ve again witnessed another graceless visit to Wales by Nick Clegg. People would be right to ask themselves –why does he bother coming to Wales,if all he wants to do is hurl insults about issues that he’s clearly very poorly briefed on? The fact is,the Welsh Government is utterly focused on making up for the failure of the UK Government to stimulate adequate and sustainable growth to enable Welsh companies to survive and expand during these extremely difficult times. Business leaders right across Wales are telling us they need much more support from the UK Government. So they’ll be scratching their heads at the incoherence of the Deputy Prime Minister’s message and the paucity of ideas emanating from the UK Government. Wales deserves much better than this."[15]
Cardiff Airport
On 28 February 2012,Jones told the Welsh Assembly,"We would like to see many routes emerging from Cardiff Airport,but the airport must get its act together... Last week,I went to the airport and the main entrance was shut. People could not go in through the main entrance;they had to go through the side entrance. It is important that the airport puts itself in a position where it is attractive to new airlines,and,unfortunately,that is not the case at present." His criticism led to accusations that he was "talking down" Cardiff Airport whilst aviation industry professionals commented he was out of his depth in this area.
However,Jones returned to this theme on 7 March 2012 saying,"With the condition of the airport at the moment I would not want to bring people in through Cardiff Airport because of the impression it would give of Wales...I have to say the time has come now for the owners of the airport to decide to run the airport properly or sell it." Byron Davies AM,Shadow Minister for Transport,said,"It is a bit rich for the First Minister to publicly attack and run down Cardiff Airport,when he has failed to seize opportunities,which would massively increase the range of routes available from Cardiff,introduce direct routes to North America,opening our economy to trade and business with one of the world’s biggest economies."[16] LibDem AM Eluned Parrot said,"The First Minister needs to stop talking our capital city's airport down and instead he should be doing all he can to encourage visitors to Cardiff Airport. His comments are hardly going to encourage tourism and business to Wales."[17]
On 20 March 2012,Jones again attacked Cardiff Airport saying "business people" had complained to him "week after week,for many months about the airport". He asserted he had put their points to the owners of the airport but "they have been met with a shrug of the shoulders. That is just not good enough. I know of situations,and have seen them myself,where people have been locked in the baggage hall and where the front door was not open and people had to go in through a side door —I had to do that the last time I used the airport."[18] On 29 May 2012 it was announced that Jones would personally chair a "Task Force" on Cardiff Airport with the aim of "maximising its economic impact,commercially and for Wales".[19]
On 27 June 2012,the Task Force,comprising tourist chiefs,local government spokesmen and trade unionists,met for the first time. No airlines were invited to attend.[20] A bid to obtain the full minutes of the meeting under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 was refused by the Information Commissioner.[21]
Scottish independence referendum
In 2013,Jones came out against Scottish independence in the September 2014 referendum.[22]
2016 challenge
Following the 2016 National Assembly for Wales election,the Labour Party was two seats short of an overall majority in the Assembly and Jones began negotiations with opposition parties to keep his party in power.[23]
Both Carwyn Jones and Leanne Wood were nominated for the position of First Minister. This vote followed discussions held by Plaid AM Adam Price with both The Welsh Conservatives and UKIP.[24] Adam Price later told The Western Mail's Martin Shipton that the Conservatives were "not exactly enamoured by the prospect of electing Leanne as First Minister with no offer of a place in government. But they agreed to go along with the plan",as did the UKIP group after Neil Hamilton "embraced the idea enthusiastically and didn’t need any persuasion."[25]
In a vote on 11 May 2016 both Jones and Wood tied on 29 votes each in the vote to elect a First Minister.[26] Under the Government of Wales Act 2006,if a First Minister is not elected within 28 days of the Assembly elections,those elections would need to be repeated.[26]
Following negotiations with the Plaid Cymru leader,a second vote on 18 May saw an unopposed Jones re-elected as First Minister,enabling him to begin the process of forming a minority government.[27] He was sworn in as First Minister on 19 May,after which he said that he was "delighted to introduce the team who will be taking Wales forward over the next five years". Among his appointments was the former Welsh Liberal Democrat leader Kirsty Williams,who became Wales's Education Secretary.[28]
Death of Carl Sargeant and calls for resignation
Following the death of the Welsh Assembly Member Carl Sargeant,some had called for Jones to resign as First Minister. Allegations of inappropriate sexual touching had been reported against Sargeant,prompting Jones to remove him from his cabinet position. Later,Sargeant was found dead at his home as a result of suspected suicide.[29] Critics considered it unfair that Sargeant seemingly had not been told details of the allegations and therefore was not put in a position to respond to them adequately.[30]
Intention to stand down
He returned to the media spotlight in April 2018 when he was cleared by independent investigator James Hamilton of accusations that he had misled the Assembly about bullying problems in the Government which were first alleged in 2014,and which Jones in 2017 told the Assembly had been resolved.[31]
Shortly after the completion of the investigation,on 21 April 2018,Jones announced that he would stand down as First Minister in the autumn.[32] In May 2018,Jones announced he would leave the Welsh Assembly at the next Assembly election in 2021.[33]
Following the election of Mark Drakeford as Leader of Welsh Labour,on 6 December 2018,Jones tendered his resignation as First Minister to the Queen on 12 December 2018,and was succeeded by Drakeford as First Minister the following day.[34] He remained a Member of the Senedd for Bridgend as previously indicated until the 2021 Senedd election.[35]
Post-leadership career
In 2019,he was subject to further press coverage when discussion emerged around the evidence given by Jones during the inquest into the death of Sargeant. The coroner,John Gittins,confirmed that Jones had given a statement as evidence,but that Jones had later withdrawn a particular remark regarding his actions upon hearing of Sargeant's death. Gittins stated that Jones was either mistaken,or more controversially,"perhaps deliberately" misleading about the facts he had originally stated.[36] Jones strenuously denied the latter. Gittins later accepted in his judgment that Jones had acted "perfectly properly".During the inquest Jones had also sought to have evidence admitted pertaining to Sargeant;however,this had been rejected by Gittins. Jones later appealed against the decision but this was rejected in the High Court.[37]
Since stepping down from the leadership,Jones has participated in a number of public discussions on a range of Welsh civic issues. These have included the debating of Welsh independence,including one event at the National Eisteddfod in which he conceded that Wales was "not too poor to be independent". He has,however,continued to argue for greater devolution rather than independence,[38] arguing that independence is "not as easy as some think".[39]
Jones was announced as a senior contributor to the non-political "business to business news platform" Business News Wales.[40] He has launched a podcast series with the website entitled "Carwyn Meets",where he has interviewed the Welsh Rugby Union CEO Roger Lewis,the Economy,Infrastructure and Skills Minister Ken Skates,the Celtic Manor Resort CEO Ian Edwards,and the Transport for Wales' CEO James Price,among others.[41]
It was announced on 15 January 2020 that Jones had been appointed as Professor of Law at Aberystwyth University,and would work in the law and criminology department on a part-time basis.[42]
In November 2020,Jones was elected as the representative of Welsh Labour on the Labour party's national executive committee.[43] Shortly before the election he told Labourlist (a news website with a focus on Labour party affairs) that he wished to "make sure that we have an NEC that is a critical friend of the leadership,but is also committing to seeing a Labour government elected again."[44]
In May 2021,Jones was announced as the Chair of Trustees for the Welsh Climate Charity,Size of Wales.[45]
Personal life
Jones met his wife Lisa,who is from Belfast,while they both studied at Aberystwyth University.[46] They have two children.[46]
The Senedd,officially known as the Welsh Parliament in English and Senedd Cymru in Welsh,is the devolved,unicameral legislature of Wales. A democratically elected body,it makes laws for Wales,agrees to certain taxes,and scrutinises the Welsh Government. It is a bilingual institution,with both Welsh and English being the official languages of its business. From its creation in May 1999 until May 2020,the Senedd was known as the National Assembly for Wales.
Rhodri Glyn Thomas is a Welsh politician. He was the Plaid Cymru National Assembly for Wales Member for Carmarthen East and Dinefwr from 1999 to 2016,when he did not re-stand for election. Following his retirement from the Assembly he was appointed President of the National Library of Wales.
Elin Jones is a Welsh politician who has served as the Llywydd of the Senedd since 2016. A member of Plaid Cymru,Jones has been the Member of the Senedd (MS) for Ceredigion since 1999.
Bridgend is a constituency of the Senedd. It elects one Member of the Senedd by the first past the post method of election. Also,however,it is one of seven constituencies in the South Wales West electoral region,which elects four additional members,in addition to seven constituency members,to produce a degree of proportional representation for the region as a whole.
Leanne Wood is a Welsh politician who served as the leader of Plaid Cymru from March 2012 to September 2018,and served as a Member of the Senedd (MS) from 2003 to 2021.
Welsh independence is the political movement advocating for Wales to become a sovereign state,independent from the United Kingdom.
Carl Sargeant was a Welsh politician who was the Cabinet Secretary for Communities and Children in the Welsh Government. He represented the constituency of Alyn and Deeside in the National Assembly for Wales from 2003.
Thomas Alun Rhys Davies is a Welsh Labour and Co-operative party politician serving as the Member of the Senedd (MS) for Blaenau Gwent since 2011,and formerly Mid and West Wales from 2007 to 2011. He has served in several Welsh government offices,including Cabinet Secretary for Local Government and Public Services,Minister for Lifelong Learning and Welsh Language,and Minister for Natural Resources and Food.
Vaughan Gething is a Welsh Labour and Co-operative politician serving as Minister for the Economy since 2021. He previously served as the Minister for Health and Social Services from 2016 to 2021. He has been the Member of the Senedd (MS) for Cardiff South and Penarth since 2011.
The second Jones government was a Labour minority government.
Mark Drakeford is a Welsh politician serving as First Minister of Wales and Leader of Welsh Labour since 2018. He previously served in the Welsh Government as Cabinet Secretary for Finance from 2016 to 2018 and Minister for Health and Social Services from 2013 to 2016. Drakeford was first elected as the Member of the Senedd (MS) for Cardiff West in 2011.
Neil John McEvoy is a Welsh politician who is currently the leader of the Welsh nationalist political party Propel. He previously represented the South Wales Central region in the Senedd from 2016 until 2021.
This is a list of Assembly Memberselected to the fifth National Assembly for Wales at the 2016 election. In May 2020,the representatives were renamed to Members of the Seneddin the fifth Senedd,they would be known as the fifth Senedd for the remainder of their term. From the 2021 election members would be elected under this new title of Senedd. There are a total of 60 members elected,40 were elected from first past the post constituencies with a further 20 members being returned from five regions,each electing four AMs through mixed member proportional representation. In between elections,members of the legislature may not necessarily be of the same party or the same candidate elected in 2016.
The third Jones government was a Labour–Liberal Democrat coalition government formed after the results of the 2016 general election in Wales. On 14 October 2016,Dafydd Elis-Thomas left Plaid Cymru in order to support the coalition government and to give them a ruling majority;he later sat as an independent in the Senedd. The government was replaced by the Drakeford government on 13 December 2018,following the resignation of Carwyn Jones as First Minister the previous day.
The fourth Morgan government was a Labour–Plaid Cymru coalition government led by First Minister for Wales,Rhodri Morgan.
The 2009 Welsh Labour leadership election was held following the resignation of Rhodri Morgan,who stepped down after nine years as First Minister of Wales. Morgan had made clear his intent to resign in 2009 as far back as 2005. As Morgan had been elected unopposed in 2000,this was the first contested election for the Welsh Labour leadership for more than a decade.
This article is about the particular significance of the year 2018 to Wales and its people.
The 2018 Welsh Labour Party leadership election took place between 9 November and 6 December 2018 to elect a successor to Carwyn Jones as leader of the Welsh Labour Party.
Events from the year 2019 in Wales.
In the run-up to the 2021 Senedd election,various organisations carried out opinion polling to gauge voting intentions. Results of such polls are displayed in this list. Most of the pollsters listed are members of the British Polling Council (BPC) and abide by its disclosure rules.
References
1 2 "Page 25"(PDF). Assembly.wales. Retrieved 24 April 2018.
Presiding Officer: Elin Jones † = Party leaders. × Member of the Conservative group but not party ×× Suspended from Conservative group 2 Jan 2020 to 13 Feb 2020 ××× Suspended from Labour group 19 Jan - 23 Feb 2021
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
