Company who funded First Minister’s leadership campaign granted £400,000 Welsh Gov loan

More questions are being asked over Vaughan Gething’s judgement, as recent Companies House records show that ‘Dauson Environmental Group’ received a £400,000 loan from the Development Bank of Wales (DBW).

The loan was acquired whilst Gething served as Welsh Economy Minister and granted on the basis of building a solar farm.

Atlantic Recycling, which is connected to Dauson Environmental Group and controlled by David Neal, donated £200,000 to Gething’s leadership campaign earlier this year.

The DBW is owned and used by the Welsh Government to provide economic support to businesses.

Neal Soil Suppliers, a subsidiary of the Dauson Environmental Group, acquired the £400,000 loan whilst Gething was Economy Minister, a role which has the DBW under its portfolio.

In a letter addressing the current Economy Minister Jeremy Miles, Shadow Minister Samuel Kurtz MS questioned whether “companies run by David Neal needed to borrow £400,000, if they were in a position to donate 200,000 to Vaughan Gething – who was the Minister responsible for the Development Bank of Wales, at the time”.

Kurtz added: ‘‘Given that the Welsh Government owns 100 per cent of the shares of DBW, this calls into question the independence of their financing decisions, the use of public funds and the influence of the then-Economy Minister.”

LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:
‘How did we come to have this great devotion to a particular Roman saint?’‘Why would we trust Starmer on Brexit?!’ Carole Malone hits outBritons will be able to use NHS algorithm to sign themselves off sick

Miles has not commented on the £400,000 grant yet.

However, Miles was questioned on Sunday regarding the £200,000 donation made to Gething’s leadership campaign, Miles who was Gething’s leadership opponent, admitted he would not have accepted the donation.

Plaid Cymru said the revelations show a serious lack of judgement from Gething and “questions around transparency and proprietary just keep piling up for the First Minister”.

“He is seemingly being bankrolled by a man in debt to his own government – an astonishing state of affairs that is undermining Welsh democracy,” the nationalist party added.

“The First Minister must make an urgent statement on the floor of the Senedd next week.

GB News has approached the Welsh Government for comment.