Mark Drakeford has called for a General Election following the announcement that Boris Johnson is to quit UK Prime Minister. Their working relationship has been frosty as best, with some damning words issued from Cardiff Bay towards Westminster.
Boris Johnson has now signalled that he will resign having lost the support of his party and cabinet, see the latest updates from Downing Street here. Both Welsh Labour leader Mr Drakeford and SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon have issued statements welcoming the Prime Minister's decision.
Mark Drakeford said: "I’m pleased the prime minister has now done the right thing and agreed to resign. All four nations need a stable UK government. The way to achieve that is by a general election so the decision about the next prime minister is made by the people and not by the narrow membership of the Conservative party."
READ MORE: Live updates as Boris Johnson announces he will resign
On Wednesday, July 6, he said: "We need a UK Government and a Prime Minister the country can trust. Instead we have a UK Government solely focused on propping up the Prime Minister as he lurches from one crisis to another. It’s time for a change."
Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon also tweeted her response. "There will be a widespread sense of relief that the chaos of the last few days (indeed months) will come to an end, though notion of Boris Johnson staying on as PM until autumn seems far from ideal, and surely not sustainable? Boris Johnson was always manifestly unfit to be PM and the Tories should never have elected him leader or sustained him in office for as long as they have. But the problems run much deeper than one individual. The Westminster system is broken.
"For Scotland the democratic deficit inherent in Westminster government doesn’t get fixed with a change of PM. None of the alternative Tory PMs would ever be elected in Scotland. And in policy terms, it is hard to see what real difference hard Brexit supporting Labour offers.
"Independence only happens if a majority living in Scotland choose it - but there is no doubt it offers the real and permanent alternative to Westminster, and the opportunity to fulfil our potential at home and play our part as a good global citizen. It’s time for that choice.
"Lastly, my differences with Boris Johnson are many and profound. But leadership is difficult and brings with it many stresses and strains, and so on a personal level I wish him and his family well."
Michelle O'Neill, First Minister (Designate) of Northern Ireland tweeted: "Brandon Lewis undermined the Good Friday Agreement and our political stability by placating the DUP, and his actions gave us a daily reminder why those with no mandate or votes here will only ever act in their own political interests, and never ours.
"It has been an utter absurdity that the people here have been subjected to Boris Johnson for any length of time. He is a figure of absolute disrepute. Anyone who tries to sabotage our peace agreements, a quarter century of progress and our shared future is truly no friend of ours"
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