The First Minister of Wales, Mark Drakeford, announced this Wednesday the resignation of the leader of the Welsh Labor Party, after five years in office, which triggered an internal election for the succession.
Mark Drakeford, 69, was elected in December 2018 to lead the Welsh Labor Party and, consequently, preside over the regional government, which has powers over issues such as health, education and transport.
“When I stood for election as leader of the Welsh Labor Party, I said I would resign during the current Senedd term. [parlamento galês]. The time has come,” he wrote on the social network X (formerly Twitter).
When I stood for election as leader of the Welsh Labor party, I said I would resign during the current Senedd term.
That moment has already arrived.
-Mark Drakeford (@MarkDrakeford) December 13, 2023
Drakeford said he hoped his successor would be chosen by the party before Easter and that he would remain in the role until then.
“We have achieved a lot in the last five years, in some of the most difficult times we have faced,” he continued, referring in particular to “Brexit” and the “chaos in Westminster”, the London Parliament dominated by the Conservatives.
“Our biggest task still lies ahead: to bring a Labor government back to the UK and begin to repair the enormous damage inflicted by the Conservatives over the last 13 years,” he added.
Mark Drakeford, university lecturer in social sciences, was first elected to the Welsh Assembly in 2011 and since 2013 has held various ministerial positions.
Its popularity has declined in recent months, especially after reducing the speed limit in some residential areas to about 30 kilometers per hour.
National Labor leader Keir Starmer described Mark Drakeford as “a true giant” of Welsh politics and the Labor Party, while British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak wished him “all the best as he turns the page after many years.” of public service”.
Drakeford’s departure is part of a series of transitions in British politics over the past four years, notably the leadership of the British executive by Boris Johnson, Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak, and the resignation of former Scottish first minister Nicola Sturgeon after eight years in office.
Source: TSF
