Welsh Conservative Leader Andrew RT Davies to Face Confidence Vote

Welsh Conservative Senedd members are scheduled to vote next Tuesday on a motion of confidence in their leader, Andrew RT Davies, BBC Wales reports. Davies reportedly initiated the vote following a meeting with some of his Senedd members on Thursday, where concerns regarding his leadership were voiced. He has encountered both public and private criticism from some of his MSs over the past six months, partly due to several posts he made on social media. Davies faced condemnation from a Muslim group in a dispute concerning the availability of non-halal meat in schools and received reprimands from members of his own party for a social media post at a summer fayre that questioned the future of the Senedd. For several months, it has been apparent that a segment of Senedd Conservative politicians express dissatisfaction with Davies’ leadership. However, Tory sources have suggested that this group constitutes a minority. The exact number of attendees at the Thursday afternoon meeting remains undisclosed. BBC Wales understands that two Tory Senedd members withdrew from scheduled broadcast appearances on Thursday. Davies, who serves as a Member of the Senedd (MS) for South Wales Central, has held the position of leader for the Welsh Conservatives in the Senedd for the majority of the past 13 years. He was first elected in 2011. After he quit in 2018, he returned unopposed in 2021 after Paul Davies stood down. Pressure has mounted on Davies since the summer regarding internally expressed concerns about his social media activity on X. A Muslim group accused Davies of “Islamophobic race-baiting” after he wrote about allegations that non-halal meat was not available at a school in the Vale of Glamorgan. The school had said that was incorrect. Tory MS for South Wales East Natasha Asghar informed the BBC that she had raised concerns with the leader over the issue. Davies also initiated a controversy concerning devolution when he posted on X that he had inquired of attendees at an agricultural exhibition if they thought the Senedd should be abolished or not. Davies said he was just asking people’s views, but his predecessor Lord Bourne warned the party against going down a “blind alley”. Within the party, apprehension has also arisen regarding his management of the behavior of Tory MS Laura Anne Jones. Jones apologised after it emerged she had used a racist slur in a WhatsApp chat. She is also subject to a police probe over her expenses – allegations that she denies. Jones has not been suspended as a Conservative MS, but has been removed from the front bench as a spokeswoman. During October, Davies was determined to have discredited the Welsh Parliament by describing Wales’ 20mph speed limit as a “blanket” policy via social media. Andrew RT Davies had insisted that his choice of words was “a matter of opinion”.