Tuesday 20 March 2018

Plaid expel McEvoy for 18 months as it fails to resolve issue.

The news that Neil McEvoy has been expelled from Plaid Cymru for 18 months following a party investigation into his conduct reflects badly on a Party who will be arguing that it can make the tough decisions as a Welsh Government,

Apparently the party's standing orders didn't allow for a permanent expulsion and a temporary exclusion gives the impression that the door is still ajar. 

According to the BBC

 it's very possible, barring a successful appeal, that Neil McEvoy has been dealt a potentially career ending blow by his party.
He could be in exile when prospective candidates battle it out for the regional list nomination. Neil McEvoy might never stand for Plaid again but the party hasn't heard the last of him either. 


The man suspended for his conference arrival last year will be there again this year, albeit under very different circumstances.

Plaid Cymru said the South Wales Central AM had breached a series of party rules.
It found him guilty of misconduct over his behaviour at the 2017 Plaid Cymru spring conference.

The spring conference in 2017 came days after a tribunal found that a remark Mr McEvoy made to a Cardiff council officer amounted to "bullying behaviour" - leading to him to being suspended for a month.
According to copies of complaints against Mr McEvoy, Plaid chairman Alun Ffred Jones said he had asked the AM to not hold a rally at the spring conference at the spring conference, a request that was ignored when a welcoming party greeted Mr McEvoy at the Newport venue.
He was asked by Mr Jones not to make any reference to the tribunal in his speech to conference, but Mr Jones said Mr McEvoy made frequent references to it.
"Mr McEvoy... did everything possible to take attention away from the Conference message so that the Leader and others were on the back foot answering questions on this issue rather than on Plaid's message for the forthcoming elections," Mr Jones wrote.


There are more details on the Wales Online website here, 

Well it is likely that Mr McEvoy will repeat his actions and turn up to Plaids Spring Conference this weekend.

Unless of course there has been some agreement on allowing an appeal if he does not cause any trouble.

Unlikely to happen

Mr McEvoy said the process was "completely flawed from the very beginning" and that he intended to appeal against the decision.

Mr McEvoy said:

 "Plaid members need to know that I have been expelled from the party for 18 months for being welcomed at a conference by members and for not allowing the Chair to change my conference speech.
"Freedom of speech and association are fundamental human rights which Plaid members fight to uphold."
He claimed to have evidence that Mr Jones had begun the investigation into him before any written complaints were received and that "others were aware of the complaints, whilst I was not".
"This is an unbelievable abuse of process," Mr McEvoy said.
"There has been no due process or natural justice, just a sustained effort by lobbyists to undermine me," he added.
"The complaints have not been dealt with in accordance with the party's own rules and standing orders.

 I am not a fan of Mr McEvoy and I don't like his populist style of politics but Plaid have taken a year to get to this  decision and clearly have not ended it 

But the process of taking disciplinary  action against him, seems to have taken age. and clearly it is not over.

It will be interesting  to see how much support Mr McEvoy can gather this weekend and it looks like if he going to be forced out of the Party  , or reinstated  either way the saga will damage the Party in the lead up to the 2021 Assembly Elections.



4 comments:

Gwyn Isaac said...

Glyn, do you think he will be re-elected as an AM if he stands as an Independent candidate?

TheStone said...

McEvoy beat Wood in the first round regional selection elections last time round, now he is forbidden to stand. Moscow style politics in wales.

glynbeddau said...

It's possible but how much support does he have outside Cardiff West?

Leigh Richards said...

You omitted to mention the fact Leanne beat Neil McEvoy in the final round of the regional selection contest you refer too. No idea what you mean by 'moscow style politics' - Neil McEvoy was disciplined as the result of a number complaints against him by fellow party members being upheld, but as Glyn points out Neil McEvoy still has the right to appeal against the decision.

PS it seems to have been forgotten by some that Neil McEvoy actually owes his place on the Senedd to Leanne Wood - her victory over Leighton Andrews in the Rhondda seat allowed Neil McEvoy to take the place in the Senedd Leanne would have taken if she hadn't won her constituency.