Super spin and speedy despatch of Ron Davies’ resignation by
Downing Street were expected by the media.
On 28 October, Peter Riddell in the Times said no one was likely to
question Mr Blair’s handling of the matter, which involved a 45-minute
meeting in Downing Street, one media interview and the former Welsh
Secretary’s departure to Wales. However, the Times leader expressed
doubt about the Prime Minister’s resoluteness the very next day.
One question was why Ron Davies’ candidature for the First Minster of
Wales was not renounced directly.
But the main problem was that the explanation of the events given by the
MP was never adequate, and no one accepted that if he resigned, that was
all we needed to know.
Why didn’t Downing Street get the whole truth? It was not offered. The
agenda was already turning to the new Welsh candidates by 30 October,
but the failure to get the full details at the start meant that the
embarrassment will continue.
Evaluation and analysis by CARMA International. Cuttings supplied by the
Broadcast Monitoring Company. ’What The Papers Say’ can be found at:
www.carma.com.
