Welsh First Minister Vaughan Gething is facing a new scandal this morning, over allegations he misled the official Covid Inquiry regarding deleted WhatsApp messages.
In a statement to the inquiry at the start of its probe, the now-First Minister said he had WhatsApp’s automatically deleted messages setting turned on, meaning key records of his time as Welsh health minister during the pandemic were missing as evidence.
His inquiry “statement of truth” was signed by him, pledging that the claims were true, and acknowledging that proceedings may be brought against anyone who makes false statements.
However this morning the website Nation.Cymru claims to have received a leaked WhatsApp showing Mr Gething admitting to deleting messages to avoid them being released by a Freedom of Information request.
Nation.Cymru, which has published a screenshot of the text, says it was sent in August 2020, while Wales was still subject to Covid restrictions following the first lockdown.
Mr Gething is seen having texted: “I’m deleting the messages in this group. They can be captured in an FOI and I think we are all in the right place on the choice being made.”
Despite party political posturing, both the Tories, SNP and Labour have all been accused of deleting WhatsApp messages during their time leading the response to Covid in their respective regions.
During an inquiry hearing this March, Mr Gething agreed that retaining messages is “important [so] the public can see not just the choices we made but why we have made those choices”.
Pro-independence party Plaid Cymru has slammed Mr Gething this morning, following Nation.Cymru’s leaked revelations.
Their leader, Rhun ap Iorwerth said: “The revelation that Vaughan Gething, as the former Health Minister of Wales, deliberately deleted messages at the height of the pandemic, strikes a devastating blow to those who lost loved ones and who, like us in Plaid Cymru, have long called for a Welsh inquiry to get to the bottom of Government decisions”.
“We all sought transparency but were told all was in the open for the UK Inquiry to see. This undermines any belief that that is the case.
“It shows blatant disregard for honesty and transparency, further undermining trust in the Labour First Minister on the back of his donations scandal. The leaked message shows that the Welsh Labour Cabinet was complicit in allowing this deception.
They added that Baroness Hallett, the chair of the Inquiry, should “immediately recall Vaughan Gething to give clarity on what he said under oath”.
“Vaughan Gething is running away from an independent investigation into a donation to his Labour leadership campaign but must not be allowed to dodge an investigation into this extremely serious matter.”
Meanwhile the Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice group said the revelation is “shocking” and showed a “blatant disregard for honesty and transparency”.
“His misleading of the UK Covid Inquiry is not only outrageous but indicative of a systemic failure within the Welsh Labour Cabinet which has been complicit in allowing this.”
Mr Gething is already facing immense political pressure over a separate row regarding a £200,000 donation his leadership campaign accepted from a company whose owner was convicted of environmental crimes.
The row then further escalated when it emerged the company had received a £400,000 loan from Wales’ investment bank, which Mr Gething oversaw at the time as Finance Minister.
While Mr Gething denies any impropriety and insists he was not involved in the loan decision, there is growing anger and concern within the Labour Party about his actions, and warnings it is “critically undermining his authority”.
The UK Covid Inquiry has now responded to claims Mr Gething misled them, with a spokesperson saying: “These reports have been brought to the attention of the Inquiry this morning.
“The Inquiry is considering the information available and whether it is necessary to seek further evidence from Mr Gething.”
The Welsh Government was approached for comment regarding Mr Gething’s message deletion.
