Despite our traditional reputation for political stability, Britain has played host to a number of short-lived political leaders over the past few years. From Liz Truss’ lettuce-length stint as Prime Minister to Humza Yousaf’s ill-fated time as Holyrood chief, political longevity seems hard to come by in an era of economic stagnation, declining cohesion, and ever-expanding bureaucracy. 

The most recent addition to this political rogue’s gallery is Vaughan Gething, Labour’s latest First Minister of Wales, who was turfed out of office earlier this week after just four months in post. Gething’s resignation follows revelations about a £200,000 donation to his leadership campaign from a company owned by a man prosecuted twice for environmental offences in the 2010s. He refused to quit after losing a vote of confidence in the Senedd, Wales’ Parliament, but was finally forced out after four ministers resigned from his government on Tuesday.

In other words, Gething has achieved nothing of note as First Minister

Yet despite his disgraceful exit from the job, who can forget Gething’s titanic achievements as First Minister? There was the time that he launched a consultation into whether or not to ban free refill drinks at restaurants and cafes in a bid to reduce obesity. Oh, and there was the time that he announced plans for new regulations around disused mines and quarries. And uh, that’s about it.

In other words, Gething has achieved nothing of note as First Minister, continuing in a proud Welsh Labour tradition of administrative mediocrity. This is, after all, the land of the 20mph speed limit and some of the world’s strictest Covid rules. Here be dragons. 

And yet despite his poor record of achievement, senior Labour figures have attempted to paint the Zambian-born Gething as a political trailblazer, touting his dubious achievement as “Wales’ first-ever black First Minister”, and “the first black leader of a country [sic] in Europe”. Never mind the fact that Wales has only had five First Ministers, or the fact that Wales is, er, not actually an independent country. 

In a statement issued on Twitter, Keir Starmer thanked Gething for his service, and listed a single notable achievement from the former First Minister’s tenure — “being the first black leader of any country in Europe.” Labour’s new Defence Secretary, John Healey, meanwhile, insisted that Gething had “paved the way for future generations of black children”. On a more conspiratorial note, Welsh Transport Secretary Ken Stakes seemed to suggest — albeit tentatively — that Gething may have been a victim of racism from his Welsh Labour colleagues. 

Even more insidiously, Gething’s resignation has brought to the surface a litany of race-baiting charities and advocacy groups that have bloomed like mushrooms in the low-scrutiny environment of Welsh politics. Judge Ray Singh, chairman of “Race Council Cymru”, lamented Gething’s early departure, heralding him as “an inspiration”. Incidentally, RCC has received more than £1.4 million in taxpayer cash from the Welsh Government since 2017.

Like it or not, we may be entering a world in which identity, rather than competence, is the defining feature of political success

If you want a vision of the future of British politics, look no further than this. An incompetent leader who spent his brief time in office on managerial fiddling, felled by a minor scandal, but posthumously vindicated in the name of identity politics. It should concern us all that senior Labour figures think that an ineffectual politician can be excused for a record of failure by reference to his race. Like it or not, we may be entering a world in which identity, rather than competence, is the defining feature of political success. 

But perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised that Wales’ potemkin Parliament has turned out such a mediocre leader. Far away from the prying eyes of the national press, the Welsh Parliament in Cardiff Bay has incubated some of the worst policymaking in recent British history. A mixture of ever-expanding responsibility — handed over thoughtlessly by Westminster and Whitehall — and ever-absent accountability creates the perfect conditions for toxic policy.

In just the past few years, the Welsh government has mandated that heritage sites, including the country’s National Coal Museum, must offer a “decolonised” view of the past, and “tell stories through the lens of BAME people’s experiences.” It has also called for a “decolonisation” of statues and plaques, and provided free bus and train travel to asylum seekers. 

And yet Welsh policymakers aren’t just engaged in the rampantly progressive — they’re also known to indulge in the parochial. Last year, new restrictions on meal deals were put in place in an effort to tackle obesity. Tedious regulations like these are part and parcel of Welsh political life. When these are the terms of Wales’ national debate, perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised that Gething was able to rise to the top of that particular tree. 

So what lessons can we learn from the sorry tale of Vaughan Gething? For one, it should remind us that not even relatively homogenous Wales is safe from the all-consuming diversity lobby. In fact, the low-accountability environment of devolved politics has served as a perfect breeding ground for these ideas. 

It should also remind us that, if we’re not careful, Britain will soon become a country in which political success is a feature of identity politics rather than of competence. As Keir Starmer’s comments demonstrate, this assumption is already well-rooted amongst senior Labour figures. Continue along our current trajectory, and Britain is bound to be cursed with more Vaughan Gethings.