What the politicians vying to succeed Mark Drakeford as Wales’s first minister have to say

Last week, Mark Drakeford announced he would be stepping down as first minister of Wales after five years in the role.

Two politicians have thrown their hats in the ring to succeed him as the leader of Welsh Labour.

Jeremy Miles is minister for education and the Welsh language and was previously counsel general – the government’s top legal job.

Vaughan Gething is the Welsh government’s economy minister and was previously health minister during the pandemic.

Sky News spoke with both of them to see what they would offer as first minister.

Mr Miles said he thinks he can “offer the leadership that Wales needs in the years ahead”.

“I’ve got a track record of delivery in a number of big government portfolios, and in 20 years of working life before politics, so I feel that I am ready to lead.”

Mr Gething said he had a “level of experience that no previous first ministerial candidate has had”.

“The extraordinary times that we lived through in the pandemic, when you had to make really difficult, big calls and go out and front them up on a daily basis,” he said.

Whichever candidate wins will mark a significant milestone in Welsh politics.

Mr Gething would be Wales’s first black first minister, and Mr Miles the government’s first openly gay leader.

But both candidates said it was “disappointing” that no women had entered the race to lead the party and said it was important to “listen” to and “understand” their experiences.

What about policies?

On the tourism tax, which is due to come before the Senedd by the end of next year, both candidates insisted Wales remained “open for business”.

“We want to see a Wales which is absolutely open for business, which encourages people to come to Wales, to enjoy the facilities, the tourist offer that we have got in all parts of Wales,” Mr Miles said.

“Wales is absolutely open for business,” Mr Gething said.

“If you go around many parts of the world, North America, go to most of mainland Europe, you’ll find people are paying a small tourism levy of some sort or another.”

They said it was right the default 20mph speed limit in Wales’s built-up areas was being reviewed – but they were both committed to it in principle.

“I think there’s a case for bringing forward that review, making sure that councils have the guidance they need to make the discretions they already have within a national framework,” Mr Miles said.

“I think the policy’s the right policy but I think we need to review it and to bring forward the point at which that happens.”

Mr Gething added: “I think we’re going to need to review it. There’s not a question about that, it’s about how and when.

“I’ll have a bit more to say as we go into the months ahead, but we had a commitment in our manifesto to introduce a new limit,” he said.

Read more:
What’s in the Welsh government’s draft budget?
Welsh public has time to ‘get used to’ 20mph limits
A look back at Mark Drakeford’s career

How would both candidates sum up their respective leadership styles?

“Values-driven, fresh ideas and bold,” Mr Miles offered, while Mr Gething said he was “experienced, engaging and ambitious”.

Both candidates will outline a range of policies in the New Year.

The result of the leadership election will be announced on 16 March.