Pressure builds on Andrew RT Davies after Stephen Crabb attack

Emily Price 

Beleaguered Conservative Senedd leader Andrew RT Davies has come under fire for "cheap and disrespectful" comments he made against an ex Tory minister, despite claiming the party needed to unite "or die".

Earlier this week, former Welsh Secretary Stephen Crabb cast doubt on whether Mr Davies should lead the Tories into the next Senedd election.

He told the BBC the 2026 vote would be "tough" for the party and that it "probably" needed a leadership "refresh".

In a later interview with Golwg, Mr Davies said that Mr Crabb should text him regarding any "concerns" as he is "is obviously used to sending text messages".

The jibe - which has been described as a "low blow" - appeared to be alluding to claims in 2017 that the former Preseli Pembrokeshire MP had sent suggestive text messages to a woman.

Several well placed sources told Nation.Cymru they were "incredulous" about Mr Davies' "hypocritical" comments and his ongoing behaviour - some even suggested the party needed a new leader.

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'Playing badly'

Boris Johnson's former Downing Street PR chief Guto Harri said the Senedd Tory leader needs to "raise his game spectacularly" or "let someone else have a go".

He said: "Andrew RT is a big character with a warm heart. But over 25 years of devolution the Conservative Party in Wales has failed to offer a coherent and compelling alternative to unbroken Labour rule.

"Andrew has had two stints at the helm so he either needs to raise his game spectacularly or let someone else have a go.

"In sport you don’t get picked repeatedly if you keep playing badly and you certainly don’t get to captain the team. Likewise in business

"The Welsh Conservatives need a leader who is 100 percent committed to devolution, broad in his or her appeal, sure footed in their statements, genuinely determined to lead a government in Cardiff Bay and crucially offering voters an attractive alternative to Labour."

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'Childish'

Another Tory Senedd source said the "personal and childish" attack on Mr Crabb was "unbecoming of any MS, let alone the leader of a political party".

They said: "Talk about hypocrisy. Andrew has been preaching about the need for the party to ‘unite or die’ and then goes and pulls a stunt like this.

"He is not bringing the party together, he’s actively doing the opposite with this indecorous attack on a highly respected and popular colleague.

"Andrew has been dining out on Paul Davies’ mandate for far too long, and it is now time he reflects on the damage he is causing and puts the party first.

"As things stand there is no captain steering the Welsh Conservative ship in any direction. The party is just aimlessly bobbing along.

"My worry is that the longer Andrew remains leader, the bigger the punishment we will receive at the ballot box come May 2026."

Another Tory source accused the MS for South Wales Central of lashing out because "Stephen is everything Andrew is not - well liked and well respected".

They said: "Andrew has spent the last few days banging on about the need to be a united party, and then goes on the attack against one of his own colleagues in public. You couldn’t make it up.

“The Conservatives were wiped out in Wales earlier this summer, and the same fate will be awaiting many of the current Welsh Conservative MSs come 2026 if we don’t get rid of Andrew."

Racism

Pressure has been mounting on Mr Davies following rows over Halal meat in schools and a social media stunt that saw him quiz the public on whether the Senedd should be abolished.

He was accused of "Islamophobic race baiting" and "dog whistle racism" by the Muslim Council of Wales following an opinion column he penned headlined ‘Children SHOULD NOT be forced to eat Halal school lunches’.

Mr Davies said he was following up on the concerns of his constituents.

A senior Welsh Conservative source said: "Andrew regularly calls for unity in the Welsh Conservative Party because divided parties don’t win elections, and he’s right.

"What he fails to realise, however, is that he is the single biggest block on unity in the Welsh Conservative Party.

"He regularly causes division with his inflammatory language on social media and attacks on colleagues in the press.

"If Andrew truly wants a united Welsh Conservative Party ahead of the next Senedd elections in 2026, he should understand that he’s the one preventing it from happening."

Another source close to the Welsh Conservatives told us they felt Mr Davies was "one of the leading reasons" behind the wipe out of Tory MPs in Wales at the General Election.

They said: "Andrew’s a thin-skinned captain standing in denial whilst he sinks the ship.

"Criticising one of your own colleagues while failing to land easy attacks on a weakened Labour Government shows his desire to appease a Reform Party which lost his friends and colleagues their jobs."

Challenge

Plans to mount a leadership challenge against Mr Davies appeared to wane following the start of the Senedd's autumn term despite calls from some MSs to address the events of the summer.

One Tory source said: "Under Andrew’s leadership, the Welsh Conservatives are no longer presenting as a viable alternative for the future, an economically common sense based and true British values party - we look like an angry, outdated and bitter party under his leadership who will remain in opposition for the foreseeable.

"We need a fresh start if we are going to have any chance in 2026, with someone at the helm who will take accountability and responsibility for changing the course of our party and allowing people in Wales to see the real positives that Conservative ideology can actually deliver.

"None of this can happen under Andrew as far as I can see. It’s time for him to go, and to be honest from the recent media interviews where he’s clearly clutching at straws - I think deep down even he knows too".

Andrew RT Davies with contacted for comment but did not respond.