The wife of the First Minister of Wales, Clare Drakeford, has died. The news was confirmed by a Welsh Government spokesman on Saturday.
A statement read: "It is with deep sadness that we confirm the sudden passing of Clare Drakeford, wife of the First Minister. The thoughts of everyone in the Welsh Government are with the family at this time and we ask that their privacy is respected.”
Mark and Clare Drakeford were married in 1977 and have three children together. The couple were living in Cardiff at the time of Mrs Drakeford's death.
The First Minister has rarely spoken about his family life but in February 2021, he revealed he had been isolating from his wife for most of 2020 during the coronavirus pandemic in order to keep her and her elderly mother safe while they were shielding due to their health conditions.
Mr Drakeford said he had been living in a separate building in the garden of his family home while Mrs Drakeford stayed inside the main home. Speaking on an ITV Wales podcast, the First Minister said: "It is a bit emotional. I’ve been married for a very long time and not to be in the house and to be at a physical distance, even though we saw each other every day and talked every day, it was a puzzling experience in that sort of way and for that to be over it is a bit emotional for everybody.”
Mr Drakeford has been the First Minister of Wales since 2018 - succeeding Carwyn Jones. BBC Wales previously reported that before he threw his hat into the ring, he was hesitant at first - with the family man considering what the impact on his wife and their three children may be.
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