Mark Drakeford: Who is Wales’ outgoing first minister?

13 December 2023, 11:18 GMT

Updated 44 minutes ago

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Mark Drakeford is the most high profile first minister of Wales since devolution began

Wales’ First Minister Mark Drakeford has announced he is stepping down as Welsh Labour leader, triggering a leadership contest for a new first minister.

Mr Drakeford has been the most high profile first minister of Wales since devolution began in the late 1990s.

The coronavirus pandemic thrust the instinctively quiet and understated politician into the public eye when he imposed restrictions that few could have imagined.

In more recent times, his transport policies – including the decision to switch from 30mph to 20mph – have proved divisive.

Who is Mark Drakeford?

Mark Drakeford has been first minister of Wales and Welsh Labour leader for the past five years.

Labour is the largest party in the Welsh Parliament, or Senedd, after winning 30 seats in the 60-member chamber in 2021.

He was born and grew up in Carmarthen, studied Latin at the University of Kent in Canterbury and then started his working life as a probation officer in Cardiff in 1979.

He became a councillor with South Glamorgan County Council in 1985, and said it was the poor living standards of offenders in Ely, Cardiff, that made him want to stand for election.

He went on to become a lecturer at Swansea University and later a professor of social policy at Cardiff University.

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Mark Drakeford’s wife, Clare, died suddenly in January

Mark Drakeford’s wife, Clare, died suddenly in January aged 71. The couple had lived together in Pontcanna, Cardiff, for 30 years.

He has three grown-up children.

During the pandemic, it was revealed Mr Drakeford was living in a building in his garden to keep his family safe, saying his wife and mother-in-law were “vulnerable” and in the top four vaccination priority groups.

How did Mark Drakeford become first minister?

When Rhodri Morgan took over as first minister in 2000, Mr Drakeford became his main policy adviser after standing unsuccessfully for the Welsh Assembly.

In 2011, when Mr Morgan stood down from Cardiff Bay, Mr Drakeford succeeded him as assembly member for Cardiff West, while Carwyn Jones became first minister.

After a few years on the backbenches, Carwyn Jones appointed Mr Drakeford as health minister.

He later became finance minister and, effectively, Wales’ Brexit minister.

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Mark Drakeford won the leadership contest to succeed Carwyn Jones in 2018

When Mr Jones announced his departure in 2018, Mr Drakeford initially hesitated about running for the leadership due to concerns about the impact on his family.

Once he did throw his hat into the ring, he received overwhelming support from the left of Welsh Labour and was quickly seen as the frontrunner.

He went on to secure 53.9% of the vote after the count went to a second round, defeating rivals Vaughan Gething and Eluned Morgan.

What were Mark Drakeford’s challenges in office?

Without doubt, Mr Drakeford’s main challenge was leading Wales through the Covid-19 pandemic.

He imposed highly intrusive restrictions on people, as was the case across the rest of the UK and much of the world.

He became unpopular with some as a result, particularly when his decisions differed from those in England.

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Mark Drakeford hosted regular live news conferences during the pandemic

But he also gained a far higher profile, hosting regular live televised news conferences.

Since the pandemic, he has faced criticism for not agreeing to a Wales-specific inquiry into the handling of the pandemic, insisting a UK-wide investigation is sufficient.

He argued the policy would “lead to fewer deaths” and “fewer accidents”, and said he had received threats to his physical safety over the new law.

The scrapping of the building of major new roads, with a high bar set for new road projects, has also been controversial.

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People protest against the 20mph law change in Cardiff

The performance of the Welsh NHS during Mr Drakeford’s time in office has also drawn criticism.

He has also regularly complained about difficulties dealing with the UK government in the turmoil that has ebbed and flowed in the Conservative Party following the 2016 Brexit vote.

But last week, Mr Drakeford said it had been “easier” to deal with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak than his “immediate predecessors”, Liz Truss and Boris Johnson.

What were Mark Drakeford’s main achievements as first minister?

While there was criticism of Mr Drakeford over Covid and his subsequent opposition to a Wales-specific inquiry, his stewardship of the Welsh government during the pandemic was widely praised.

His grasp of detail and sheer hard work allowed him to cope with live questioning from journalists for up to 90 minutes with relatively few missteps.

The enormity of the pandemic means his handling of it overshadows much of his time in office.

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Mark Drakeford poses for a selfie in May 2021

He will also regard plans to expand the Senedd from 60 to 96 seats as a major achievement.

Agreed as part of the co-operation agreement with Plaid Cymru, it is a move that has been called for almost since devolution began in 1999.

It looks set to happen, but it remains possible that a spanner in the works could scupper the legislation in the coming months.

Rolling out free school meals to all state primary school children, as part of the Plaid Cymru cooperation agreement, is another policy which Mr Drakeford will likely be proud of.

Who will succeed Mark Drakeford and become Wales’ next first minister?

Thoughts have immediately turned to Mr Drakeford’s likely successor.

The two clear frontrunners are Economy Minister Vaughan Gething and Education Minister Jeremy Miles. Both are said to have leadership campaigns ready to go.

Mr Gething, who has served in the Welsh government since 2013, was the health minister during the pandemic and came second in the last leadership race in 2018.

Mr Miles, who was first elected in 2016, has previously served as counsel general and Brexit minister.

The current Health Minister Eluned Morgan, who stood to be leader in 2018, is also mentioned in any discussion about the next first minister.

Other potential candidates include the Climate Change Minister, Julie James, and the Deputy Minister for Social Partnership Hannah Blythyn.