Welsh Labour's leader Ken Skates has spoken publicly for the first time about anxiety and depression he has experienced since childhood, describing periods where he felt disconnected from his own life and surroundings. He told interviewers that his symptoms became severe while he was a student at the University of Cambridge, where he was later diagnosed with generalised anxiety disorder and depression. Skates said he now manages the condition through treatment and talking therapies, though he still notices traces of the anxiety that shaped his early life.
Skates made the comments during a wide-ranging interview recorded for a BBC Walescast episode released on 14 August 2026. According to BBC's Walescast programme, the conversation formed part of a summer series in which the podcast travels across Wales to speak with senior politicians. The episode, which runs for 45 minutes, was recorded at the John Summers Clock Tower on the site of the former Shotton Steelworks, according to the audio programme's episode listing.
What did Skates say about his time at university?
He recalled that arriving at Cambridge exposed him to an environment that felt completely foreign, triggering a spiral of anxious thoughts about whether he belonged there at all.
"Where I went was unfamiliar to me, it was like nowhere I'd ever been before, and there were practices and behaviours that were completely alien to me," he added.
"I'd never worn a jacket before, or a blazer, let alone a gown."
"To do that in the first few days, while having wine tasting, set me off I think, and made me question: 'Why am I here? What am I doing here? This is not me. I'm really worried about this place.'"
"It got worse and worse, this feeling that I didn't really belong here."
He explained that these pressures led to episodes of dissociation, a symptom often linked to anxiety and depression in which sufferers feel cut off from themselves and their environment.
"It feels like you're dreaming your day away," he said.
Although he initially found it difficult to access support, he was eventually diagnosed and prescribed antidepressants, a process that led him to reflect on how far the anxiety stretched back into his life.
"Actually growing up, I was incredibly anxious. Really anxious," he said.
"I was always keen to please. And I think it was about just this need to avoid conflict."
Does the anxiety still affect him today?
Skates indicated that some of those feelings have never fully disappeared, but that he has since developed tools to keep them in check.
"Yeah, definitely. But I'm very mindful of it."
He credited talking therapies with giving him a clearer understanding of his own condition and practical strategies for coping with it, describing the experience as transformative.
"That was just like a game changer."
How did his upbringing shape his politics?
Skates, who was born in Wrexham and grew up near Mold in Flintshire, was the first person in his family to attend university. He said his childhood was marked by the economic hardship that followed heavy job losses at the Shotton steelworks, where both of his parents had worked, and that witnessing this instilled in him a lasting sense of injustice that eventually drew him toward political life. As a child he was, by his own account, anxious and eager to please, often going out of his way to avoid confrontation—traits he says he still recognises in himself.
What is Skates' role in Welsh Labour now?
Skates, who represents Fflint Wrecsam as a Member of the Senedd, was confirmed as Welsh Labour's permanent leader on 15 July 2026 after receiving an unopposed endorsement from the party's Senedd group, according to a BBC report on his confirmation. Welsh Labour's own website states that he currently serves as interim leader of the party as well as its spokesperson for Health, Care and National Security, and that he has sat in the Senedd since 2011, holding senior Welsh Government positions for more than a decade, according to Welsh Labour's official profile page.
His elevation to the leadership followed a heavy defeat for the party in the Senedd election held in May 2026, which brought to an end 27 years of Welsh Labour government. Plaid Cymru went on to form the new Welsh government, Reform emerged as the largest opposition party in the Senedd, and Labour's representation collapsed to just nine of the chamber's 96 seats.
What comes next for Welsh Labour under Skates?
According to a LabourList interview published in July 2026, Skates intends to draw up a new mission statement for the party after holding discussions with members, local branches and trade unions, with the document expected to be unveiled in autumn 2026. The plan signals an early effort by the new leader to reset the party's direction following its historic losses in May.
Skates said he has been affected by mental health difficulties since childhood but has learned, through diagnosis and therapy, to manage symptoms that once left him questioning his place at university and, at times, feeling detached from his own reality.
Key Facts
- Ken Skates represents Fflint Wrecsam in the Senedd and was confirmed as permanent Welsh Labour leader on 15 July 2026.
- He was diagnosed with generalised anxiety disorder and depression after his symptoms intensified at the University of Cambridge.
- The BBC Walescast interview, recorded at the John Summers Clock Tower on the former Shotton Steelworks site, was released on 14 August 2026 and runs 45 minutes.
- Welsh Labour lost power in the May 2026 Senedd election after 27 years, falling to nine of 96 seats as Plaid Cymru formed a new government.
- Skates plans to unveil a new party mission statement in autumn 2026 following consultations with members, branches and trade unions.
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