Helping is better than inspecting

In one local authority, a revolution has taken place.  The food safety inspectors have abandoned their clipboards and white coats, and are focussing their efforts on how best to engage with business owners – and…

Government misses the bus

The debate in the Senedd on the “Prioritised National Transport Plan” on Tuesday 31st January sounds like the usual rubber-stamping of a Welsh Government proposal.  Despite the dull title there are some important commitments in the…

‘Joe Bach’ and the Holocaust

Today is Holocaust Memorial Day when we pledge to challenge the language of hatred, give voice to the voiceless and work to create a society free from persecution and hatred.

Whenever I think of the Holocaust I…

How much does a baby cost?

Some time ago the UK Government made the decision to change the Maternity Grant, which means you now only receive the £500 one-off grant for your first child, and not for any children you may later have. …

Learning from history

What can Co-operative Development learn from history? As the Welsh Government considers a proposed ‘Co-operative Commission’ to help pave the way for innovative co-operative development in Wales, what lessons can history teach us?

With all the attention being…

The race online

The starting gun of the race online was fired years ago but the finishing line is not yet in sight.

In 2010 as many as 785,000 people in Wales were not online and were therefore missing out…

Nobody gets rich on benefits

The discussion about the impact of so-called benefit cap is generating a lot of heat and very little light, and risks being a diversion from the real issues in the UK Government’s welfare reform agenda.

The limit of…

Cutting crisis loans

Cuts Watch Cymru is a coalition of third sector organisations in Wales who are concerned with the impact of the spending cuts on people in Wales.  There are almost 700,000 people in Wales already living beneath the…

Staying in control

Keeping control of our lives – Mutual Retirement Housing.  Wales has an ageing society.  Improved health services and better diets mean that people are living longer.  Nowadays there are more pensioners than youngsters under 18 years.  But…

Crossing the line

Why Wales’ new parliamentary boundaries place maths above geography.

Re-drawing Welsh parliamentary constituencies was always going to be a thankless task for the Boundary Commission forWales.  The Parliamentary Voting Systems & Constituencies Act (2011) not only reduced…