Carl Sargeant sacking info should not have circulated, says minister

Information about Carl Sargeant's removal from the cabinet had circulated prior to his sacking

Information about Carl Sargeant's sacking and allegations against him should not have been "circulating" before he was told, economy minister Ken Skates has said.

The communities secretary killed himself days after he was sacked from the cabinet in 2017 following claims of inappropriate behaviour towards women.

An inquiry found information about his removal circulated before his sacking.

Mr Skates's interpretation of the report was "wrong", a source claimed.

The only people who knew about the allegations against Mr Sargeant were "people who needed to know as part of the disciplinary process. It never went beyond that", the source added.

Economy minister Ken Skates said reshuffles should be confidential.

Meanwhile figures have revealed that the amount of cash spent by the Welsh Government on inquiries related to Carl Sargeant has come to £676,000.

• Sacked ministers need support, coroner says

• Sargeant leak report 'not worth the paper'

The findings of a Welsh Government inquiry into whether information his sacking in November 2017 was leaked before the cabinet reshuffle happened was published last week.

It found "some information about the nature of the allegations made against Mr Sargeant and his removal from the cabinet were circulating prior to the first minister meeting him on the 3rd November 2017.

"All Welsh Government disclosures of this information have been investigated and found to be authorised disclosures."

Government sources said last week that there was speculation about the reshuffle in the days leading up to it but no information was shared.

The inquiry publication followed the end of Mr Sargeant's inquest last Thursday. Coroner John Gittins said more support should be available to sacked ministers.

Ken Skates said he was surprised information had circulated about Carl Sargeant's sacking

Mr Skates told BBC Wales that information should not have been circulating and he was surprised that it was.

He added: "We're always assured that reshuffles are conducted confidentially with no prior information being released and that's the way we've always been assured it operates.

"And that's the way it should operate in the future."

The Welsh Conservatives have called for more details from the leak inquiry to be published.

• Sacked ministers need support, coroner says

• Sargeant leak report 'not worth the paper'

Ministers in the Welsh Government have 56 days to respond to Coroner John Gittins's findings about the late AM for Alyn and Deeside's death.

The coroner was right to identify the need for politicians to have support, Mr Skates said.

"We are human beings after all and whether you're sacked or even if you resign, going from one day in a high profile job to often still being incredibly exposed but also living in very difficult circumstances, having change thrust upon you, is incredibly challenging and therefore of course additional support is required."

Lessons are being learned about "how to ensure this doesn't happen again in the future", Mr Skates said.

He hoped the 56 days would be used by the government "to consult with existing ministers, former ministers, to determine the best possible support that should be put into action when events like this happen in the future".

£676,000 costs

The cost to the Welsh Government of the various inquiries in the wake of Carl Sargeant's death is at least £676,000 so far, in figures revealed by the Welsh Government in response to questions by the Plaid Cymru AM Bethan Sayed.

Mr Jones was accused of misleading the Assembly when he told AMs that no allegations of bullying were made to him in 2014.

An inquiry into the matter, led by lawyer James Hamilton, found that Carwyn Jones had been telling the truth. The Counsel General, Jeremy Miles, told Ms Sayed in written answer that the "total cost of the Hamilton inquiry" was £35,891.96.

Another investigation into Mr Jones' handling of Mr Sargeant's sacking, led by the QC Paul Bowen, has yet to begin but the costs of that are already £414,044.89.

The protocol adopted by the Bowen inquiry was successfully challenged in court by Carl Sargeant's family and has now been revised. The cost of that challenge to the Welsh Government is at least £135,000.

The inquest into Mr Sargeant's death cost £72,759.24 and an unsuccessful legal challenge by the lawyer for the First Minister's Office cost an additional £18,732.18.

The figures relate to the cost to the Welsh Government's legal services department and external costs and do not include wider civil service resources.

Bethan Sayed, the Plaid AM for South Wales West, said: "It's clear that this is a substantial sum of money out of the public purse. Many people will rightly feel uneasy at such a significant amount being spent to defend a former First Minister."

She went on to raise concerns that the Sargeant family had paid their legal bills for the inquest out of their own pocket. The Welsh Government is covering the family's costs for the Bowen inquiry.

A Welsh Government spokesman said: "The bulk of the costs relate to the Independent QC Investigation, which is being set up to independently scrutinise the actions and decisions of the former first minister. This includes legal costs for the Sargeant family.

"Ongoing legal support is provided to the former first minister where necessary in relation to actions and decisions taken in his official capacity."