Vaughan Gething’s campaign to become the new Welsh first minister has had a setback after it emerged that he accepted a £200,000 donation from a company run by a man convicted of environmental offences. David John Neal was given a three-month suspended prison sentence in 2013 for illegally dumping waste on the environmentally sensitive Gwent Levels in south Wales. Gething, who would become the first black leader of a European country if he wins the race to replace Mark Drakeford, has received two donations of £100,000 each from the Cardiff company Dauson Environmental Group, of which Neal is a director. Another of Neal’s companies, Resources Management UK, recently faced action by Natural Resources Wales (NRW) after complaints about the smell at a landfill site called Withyhedge in Pembrokeshire. Residents called it “a stink bomb on steroids”. Asked about the donations at a BBC leadership debate, Gething said: “All donations are checked and filed properly with the Electoral Commission and declared to the Senedd. The issue in Pembrokeshire is one, I understand, is being resolved in accordance with NRW guidance and requirements and that work should be completed in the coming weeks.” Gething’s sole rival in the leadership race, Jeremy Miles, refused to be drawn into the row, saying only: “Donations to Vaughan’s campaign are a matter for him. My manifesto makes it clear I will have the most stringent environmental regulations.” Lee Waters, a Labour Senedd member and a supporter of Miles, said on X: “I’m sorry but £200k on an internal election in a cost of living crisis is completely unjustifiable. I don’t want this to become a negative campaign but I am genuinely shocked and angry by this. It’s wrong.”
Other Labour party members and politicians have privately expressed concerns about the size of the donation and its origin. A former Welsh Labour minister, who did not want to be named, said: “At a time when Keir Starmer is calling out Tory sleaze, this looks like appalling judgment by Vaughan Gething.” A spokesperson for Gething’s campaign said: “Dauson Environmental Group Limited has donated to Vaughan Gething’s leadership campaign. All donations are declared to both the Senedd and the Electoral Commission in line with the rules and Vaughan’s commitment to transparency. “We are aware of the current issues relating to Withyhedge Landfill and, as with any such cases, would encourage that the issues be fully investigated and resolved as soon as possible. We have been in touch with the firm and been assured it is addressing the issues and is on course to meet NRW’s timetable. “Vaughan Gething’s leadership manifesto pledges to strengthen enforcement action to protect the environment and pledges stricter penalties for those who break environmental rules.” Electoral Commission records show that Miles has received £32,300 from three individuals and two businesses – a construction company and a translation and subtitling firm. The new Welsh Labour leader – and thus the new first minister – will be announced on Saturday 16 March.