In this podcast, the Hiraeth team (Matthew Hexter, Ceri Davies, and Richard Martin) recap the highlights and lowlights of 2022 and look forward to the issues that are on the horizon in Wales and elsewhere across Britain and Northern Ireland in 2023. Your hosts: Matthew Hexter: https://twitter.com/hexter101 Ceri Davies: https://twitter.com/ceritheviking Richard Martin: https://twitter.com/mimosacymru Hiraeth Podcast can be found @Hiraethpod on most social media, also Twitter: https://twitter.com/...
Jan 13, 2023•41 min
In this pod, our first live podcast recording, we discuss the state of the relationships between UK and Welsh/Scottish governments and the effect Brexit and the personalities of successive UK administrations has had on the effectiveness of government. We hosted this live event on the week that Gordon Brown produced his proposals for reforming the governance of the UK, so we discuss those proposals and how the Welsh dimension is addressed (or not). We also discuss the interim report from the Wels...
Jan 02, 2023•42 min
From time to time we run live events to debate important aspects of politics, policy, or current affairs from a Welsh perspective. This podcast is a recording of an event co-hosted with our friends at the Wales Governance Centre at Cardiff University, discussing the independence campaigns both north and west of the border with England, with Jess Blair of the Electoral Reform Society Cymru in the Chair. A video version of this podcast is also available: https://youtu.be/hI5HHCk0gv8 Our panellists...
Dec 29, 2022•51 min
Wales has the highest imprisonment rate in Western Europe for men and the third highest for women but until recently we simply didn't know about it. Unlike Northern Ireland and Scotland, Wales doesn't have control over its own justice and policing system and instead it is part of the 'England and Wales' system. Many would argue that this is de facto an 'England, including Wales' system as Wales is a relatively small part of the system and largely an afterthought and until very recently there sim...
Dec 22, 2022•41 min
From joining the Conservative Party in Wales in the 1980s, winning his first local government election in Llanelli in 1993 to holding some of the highest offices of state in the UK Government in the cabinets of PMs Boris Johnson and Liz Truss, Sir Robert Buckland's political career has spanned some extraordinary political times and subverts a number of stereotypes about Welsh politicians. Sir Robert joins us to discuss this journey, his time as Secretary of State for Justice, Lord Chancellor, an...
Dec 17, 2022•49 min
Vaughan Gething is one of the most well-known faces in Welsh Government, not least due to his role as Minister for Health during the Covid-19 pandemic, which saw the profile of the Welsh Government and devolution itself thrust into the public consciousness as the four nations of the UK each defined their own response to the crisis. Now Minister for the Economy, Vaughan is once more dealing with a crisis, as the cost of living skyrockets and inflation is at its highest for a generation. We discus...
Dec 09, 2022•26 min
Considering how close links are between Wales and Ireland in terms of history, trade, and culture, the low levels of knowledge about our respective political parties and their traditions is, perhaps, surprising. In this episode we speak with Cardiff-based researcher and journalist Lila Haines about her new book 'Radicals and Realists: Political Parties in Ireland' and try to explore the similarities and differences between the national politics on each side of the Celtic sea. You can find Lila o...
Dec 03, 2022•49 min
For some time there have been discussions about what would happen in the event of the passing of Queen Elizabeth II with regards the role of the Prince of Wales. Would it automatically pass to Prince William? Would he, like Charles before him, participate in an extravagant & controversial Investiture ceremony? How would the modern cultural landscape and civic institutions across the country respond to his appointment? Within a few short weeks, we have seen answers to these questions. We have...
Nov 25, 2022•43 min
Ahead of the FIFA World Cup, we discuss the huge cultural and political (with a small 'p') power of football with Noel Mooney, Chief Executive of the Football Association of Wales. We discuss Qatar, the relationship with Welsh Government, the domestic game, *that* World Cup song & video, the women's and girls game, and relations between Ireland and Wales. You can find Noel on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/NoelMooney13 And, of course, the latest from Hiraeth here: https://twitter.com/Hira...
Nov 18, 2022•53 min
As one of the most senior members of the Welsh Government after just 6 years in the Senedd, Jeremy Miles now holds one of the toughest ministerial briefs as the recovery from the twin crises of Covid-19 and subsequent economic turmoil leave the education sector battling for resources while trying to recover from the impact of the pandemic on learners across the country. We speak with Jeremy about his early career and rise to ministerial office, the responsibilities and challenges of the educatio...
Nov 10, 2022•38 min
The long-running boundary review for UK Parliament constituencies has reached another milestone as the Boundary Commission for Wales has published its proposals for its final round of consultation. Famously, this will see the number of UK Parliament MPs elected from Wales reduced to 32 from the current 40, based on the rules set by the UK Government. This means that there are no easy decisions (except the protected seat of Ynys Môn) and we thought it would be great to catch up with one of our fa...
Nov 04, 2022•16 min
Recorded on Halloween and haunted by the spectres of UK Governments past, we review the events of October 2022 from a Welsh perspective with long time friend of the pod, Plaid Cymru councillor and project lead for Banc Cambria, Mark Hooper. We also look forward to the upcoming events in November and what they have in store for Wales and Welsh Politics. You can hear more from Mark on his Twitter feed: https://twitter.com/markjhooper Matthew is here: https://twitter.com/hexter101 Richard is here: ...
Nov 03, 2022•45 min
Few members of the Senedd are near-universally respected by those of all political persuasions (and none) in the way that Kirsty Williams is. From being an enthusiastic campaigner for devolution in the 1990s, Kirsty became a much-admired constituency AM/MS for 22 years representing Brecon and Radnor including a spell leading the Welsh Liberal Democrats and finishing her Senedd career with a term as Education Minister in the Welsh Government 2016-2021. In the course of her time in frontline polit...
Oct 28, 2022•52 min
While Westminster continues to swirl in chaos and the UK Government flails in search of stability and policy, politics in Wales carries on its largely stable path, stable in no small part to the Cooperation Agreement between the Welsh Labour Government and Plaid Cymru that has paved the way for key policy developments such as free school meals for an increasing number of children in Wales. We speak with one of the key figures in making that Cooperation Agreement work, Cefin Campbell, MS for Mid ...
Oct 19, 2022•39 min
This week, we take a look at the reasons behind the limited use and limited nature of the tax powers that the Welsh Government has, why this affects delivery of policies supported by the electorate and what - if anything - can be done about it. We are joined by representatives of two of Wales's leading think tanks to discuss: Dr Victoria Winckler is Director of the Bevan Foundation: https://twitter.com/BevanFoundation Harry Thompson is Economic Policy Lead at the Institute of Welsh Affairs: http...
Oct 13, 2022•50 min
The British union is under a lot of strain thanks to the tension between growing independence movements in Wales and Scotland and the post-2016 UK Government's brand of muscular unionism which offers a rigid and inflexible vision of centralised authority in the UK. Adding to these pressures are the implications of Brexit, specifically with regards Northern Ireland and its relationship with both Ireland and the UK. For those who want to see the union persist and thrive, structural reform is one o...
Oct 06, 2022•50 min
All across the UK and much of the wider world, health services are struggling to address a backlog of medical referrals and treatments that built up during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of these services were themselves not operating optimally before the pandemic, which has compounded existing problems. Wales is no exception. The NHS here is under considerable strain and despite the efforts of the Welsh Government to address these issues, the recent announcement that 1 in 4 people in Wales are on ...
Sep 29, 2022•49 min
When Liz Truss became Prime Minister, her 'first 100 days' grid probably didn't look like this. It has been an extraordinary time in the United Kingdom over the week and our planned schedule for season three of Hiraeth has been thrown off course, of course! So before we resume our normal schedule of bringing you the best weekly pods on politics and policy in Wales, the Hiraeth team take a look at the Welsh response to the events of the last few weeks and look ahead to the coming Senedd term. You...
Sep 21, 2022•39 min
With Liz Truss now confirmed as UK Prime Minister replacing Boris Johnson, and her cabinet and government taking shape, what should we expect with regards to impact on Wales and Welsh politics? This podcast features a number of our guests speaking at our live Twitter Space as the announcements of UK Government appointments were incoming. We hear their initial thoughts and answer a handful of audience questions. Our Guests: Anthony Pickles: https://twitter.com/antpickles Jonathan Williams: https:...
Sep 07, 2022•1 hr 7 min
As Cardiff, Wales welcomes World Wrestling Entertainment's 'Clash at the Castle' live event to the city this weekend, we speak to Dr David (Dai) Moon, Senior Lecture at the University of Bath, about Welsh Government's involvement in the event and his longstanding interest in professional wrestling and how it crosses over into the world of politics and political theory. You can follow Dai on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/David_S_Moon Or contact him at the University of Bath here: https://rese...
Sep 03, 2022•48 min
Following his previous book ‘Lockdown Wales’, Will Hayward (Welsh Affairs Editor, WalesOnline) has taken on the challenge of writing about one of the most contested and salient topics that came to the fore just before and during the Covid pandemic - Welsh independence. Long considered a minority interest commanding only 10-15% support, with even only ⅔ of Plaid Cymru supporters showing support for independence, the topic burst onto wider public discussion after a series of well attended rallies ...
Aug 30, 2022•51 min
Under a blazing sun and record temperatures, the Royal Welsh Show reasserted its status as the premier event in the annual agricultural calendar this year, holding its first full in-person show since the Covid-19 pandemic. With evident impact of climate change creating new conditions for farming across the country and the national and UK governments pursuing different post-Brexit agendas for agriculture and the environment, it is an interesting time for the sector. We speak with Emma Rees of the...
Jul 31, 2022•48 min
In this show we speak to renowned economist Prof. Danny Blanchflower. Danny's links to Wales go back a long way, including school days at Cardiff's Cantonian High School, a postdoctorate from the University of Wales and even a time teaching at University of Wales College, Cardiff. We cover a range of topics in this discussion including a look at the current UK economy, Brexit, guessonomics, the state of British Conservative and Labour Parties, and the economics of independence for emerging small...
Jul 26, 2022•54 min
As the Senedd heads towards recess, we sit down with Luke Fletcher, Plaid Cymru MS for South Wales West, to discuss his party's proposal for Wales to rejoin the the EU single market and customs union. We also discuss the Welsh Government/Plaid Cymru cooperation agreement, responses to the cost of living crisis and free school meals. You can follow Luke on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/FletcherPlaid And find out the latest from Hiraeth here: https://twitter.com/HiraethPod If you're enjoying t...
Jul 14, 2022•34 min
With change in the air in the Senedd as the Welsh Labour green light is given for expansion and introduction of proportional list systems, we speak here with Hefin David MS (Caerphilly) on matters of electoral reform in Wales and on Britain more widely. As one of the long-term champions of proportional representation and a confederal future for Britain, Hefin discusses the evolution of the Senedd, the prospect of coalitions in Westminster and Labour's constitutional review under Gordon Brown. He...
Jul 10, 2022•31 min
It's been an eventful week in the world of politics on Britain. While the UK Government has spent the week self-immolating, work in the Senedd has been carrying on as normal and the work of legislating for creating a larger parliament with more members has begun. This, of course, follows a decision at Labour conference that was hard won by the First Minister in the face of opposition from some MPs, unions, and constituency parties. We thought it would interesting to take a long look not just at ...
Jul 09, 2022•37 min
We've heard much recently about the Welsh Government's 'social partnership approach' that avoided strike action in Wales while rail disputes between the UK Government, operating companies, and unions brought many services to a standstill. But what does is mean to work in 'social partnership' and what is included in the Welsh Government's Social Partnership and Public Procurement Bill? Our guests from the Trades Union Congress Wales explain and also address some of the questions that have arisen ...
Jul 04, 2022•39 min
In our wrap up of the last month of political events affecting Wales, we explore the impact of the latest Westminster by-election results, Labour's public disagreements about Senedd reform, the recent industrial action by the RMT & barristers and finally look at Brexit and a few other Welsh Government announcements. Please listen to a message at the end from friend of the pod Shaun Bendle of 'That's Devolved!' and the Equal Power, Equal Voice Mentoring Programme. He is hopping on the pod to ...
Jul 01, 2022•58 min
How can rail services in Wales be so powerfully impacted by the RMT's recent industrial action when, as we have been reminded by a succession of MPs on broadcast rounds, "there are no strikes in Wales"? In this pod we take a deep dive into the state of rail in Wales, explore how and why parts of the network now fall completely under the control of the Welsh Gov & Parliament, what the plans and opportunities are for future development and how well-developed policies are to coordinate infrastr...
Jun 23, 2022•52 min
With the plans now given the Senedd's stamp of approval, we speak with an expert in the form of Jess Blair, Director of the Electoral Reform Society Cymru, in detail about the Labour/Plaid Cymru agreement on Senedd reform and expansion. Is this a genuine step forward for Welsh democracy and are the accusations of the larger parties working in their own interests fair? We address these questions and more. You can find Jess on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/JessBlair7 And ERS Cymru here: https:...
Jun 16, 2022•35 min
