The Welsh first minister, Vaughan Gething, has expressed regret over the donations scandal that has beset his first weeks in office but rejected a fresh allegation that he may have committed perjury in statements made to the UK Covid inquiry concerning deleted messages.
In an interview with the Guardian, Gething said it was important not to “get lost” in controversy that drew attention away from the business of running Wales and winning the general election. He vowed to show “resilience” in the face of attacks on him.
Seven weeks into his leadership, Gething continues to face criticism for taking £200,000 from a company whose owner was convicted of environmental crimes, with Labour insiders warning the scandal is critically undermining his authority.
This is the best summary I could come up with:
The Welsh first minister, Vaughan Gething, has expressed regret over the donations scandal that has beset his first weeks in office but rejected a fresh allegation that he may have committed perjury in statements made to the UK Covid inquiry concerning deleted messages.
In an interview with the Guardian, Gething said it was important not to “get lost” in controversy that drew attention away from the business of running Wales and winning the general election.
This week, however, the pressure was ratcheted up by the emergence of an exchange with fellow Labour members from the time of the pandemic when Gething was health minister in which he said he was going to delete iMessages.
In the Senedd on Tuesday, the Plaid Cymru leader, Rhun ap Iorwerth, suggested Gething may have committed perjury in his evidence to the inquiry when he addressed the issue of how information from the period was retained.
During the Welsh leg of the inquiry in March, Gething blamed a “security rebuild” of his Senedd mobile phone for the deletion of WhatsApp messages from the time of the pandemic, calling it “a matter of real embarrassment”.
The latest developments come as the Senedd celebrates its 25th anniversary and on Wednesday was voting on expanding the size of the parliament from 60 to 96 members and bringing in a new electoral system.
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