Call for Tories to contemplate abolishing Senedd

A man who wants to take a significant role in the Welsh Conservatives is promising a debate about whether the Senedd should be scrapped, BBC Wales understands.

George Carroll - a close ally of and aide to the party's Senedd leader Andrew RT Davies - is running to take over as the party's Welsh chairman.

His stance is likely to be controversial among the Tories, which is officially pro-devolution but has many activists who feel otherwise.

Mr Carroll also promised to remove rules that help secure reselection for sitting Members of the Senedd for the next election in 2026.

It comes amid a row over the future of the party, with one MS complaining openly on X, formerly called Twitter, that officials should rule themselves out of the running for the Senedd.

That led one Welsh Tory source to compare Senedd Tories to violinists on the Titanic.

The chair of the Welsh Conservatives oversees the party's voluntary activists, and helps set rules on how it operates.

The leader's stance on devolution became the subject of a row in the summer when Andrew RT Davies asked on X what people's views were on whether the Senedd should be abolished.

One of his predecessors Nick Bourne warned Davies about "going down a blind alley".

Another former leader Preseli Pembrokeshire MS Paul Davies posted to X: "The Conservative Party is clear - it is not Party policy to abolish the Senedd so not sure why this question is even being asked."

Paul Davies's fellow Pembrokeshire MS Sam Kurtz appeared to support him, swiftly reposting the comment.

Mr Carroll, who is a Vale of Glamorgan councillor where he leads the Tory group, is bidding to replace current chair Tomos Dafydd Davies, who is standing down.

He wants to give members a greater say not only on who runs for the Welsh Parliament, but also over the party's policy on the future of the institution itself.

Mr Carroll will be on a joint ticket with Oliver Batt and Calum Davies as deputy chairs.

The winner of the contest will be announced at the party's Welsh AGM on 9 November.

Mr Carroll's comments about the right are likely to be interpreted as a warning over the threat posed by Nigel Farage's Reform party.

It is predicted to do well under the Senedd's new proportional representation voting system.

In a statement, Mr Carroll said: "Across Europe, established parties of the centre right have been smashed and replaced by challengers from their right.

"The general election showed that this is the fate of the Conservative Party without fundamental change. We lost touch with our own side of the political divide.

"If not held to account by members, our party is vulnerable to the group-think of cosmopolitan London and consensus-riven Cardiff Bay."

But a senior Welsh Conservative source expressed concern about the prospect of the party moving to the right.

Proposals for incumbency rights are not expected to go down well with Conservative MSs.

Last week James Evans the MS for Brecon and Radnorshire called for any candidates for chair and deputy to rule themselves out of the running for the Senedd and future elections during their term of office.

It is not known whether Mr Carroll intends to run for the Senedd in 2026.

In a response, a separate Welsh Conservative source told the BBC: "Senedd Members intervening in how voluntary party officers are elected shows a complete lack of focus.

"The Welsh Conservative Party is like the Titanic that has just hit the iceberg. Instead of escaping for the lifeboats, the Senedd members are the violin players going down with the ship.

"We are no closer to forming a government in 2026. That is the responsibility of the whole group for failing to offer a compelling alternative."