Capital Thoughts
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Editor John Osmond Associate Editor Rhys David Administration Helen Sims-Coomber and Clare Johnson spring 2005 Design WOOD&WOOD Design Consultants. wood2.com To advertise Telephone 029 2066 6606 capital thoughts his year’s centenary of Cardiff as a city warrants a close examination of its role and in particular its relationship with the rest of Wales. Set against other cities around the British Isles Cardiff has no obvious Institute of Welsh Affairs tparallel. It lacks the grace, visual grandeur, and easy confidence of Edinburgh. St Andrew’s House 24 St Andrew’s Crescent Compared with Dublin it lacks critical economic and cultural mass. In size it Cardiff CF10 3DD measures up to a medium English city such as Nottingham. Yet it has ambitions which are far more extensive. After all, it is our capital city. What Telephone 029 2066 6606 E-mail [email protected] English city of equivalent size has a Cathays Park, a National Museum, a Web www.iwa.org.uk Millennium Stadium, a Millennium Centre for the Performing Arts, or a landmark building to house a National Assembly, now rising in Cardiff Bay? The IWA is a non-aligned independent think-tank and research institute, based in Cardiff Although Cardiff is also celebrating 50 years as the capital of Wales with branches in north and during 2005 it is undeniable that many Welsh people have yet to come to west Wales, Gwent, Swansea Bay and London. Members (annual terms with its role. One thing that unites many Welsh people outside the subscription £30) receive agenda three city is a perception that too much wealth is concentrated within it. For times a year, the Gregynog Papers, and instance, in our special feature in this issue David Blackaby and Stephen can purchase reports at half price. Drinkwater ask whether Cardiff has benefited more from being our capital branches city than Wales has benefited from having Cardiff as it capital. Would such a question be asked of London, Edinburgh, Belfast or Dublin? North Wales Secretariat c/o Andrew Parry North East Wales Institute (NEWI) Part of the mixed feelings about Cardiff can be attributed to the changing Plas Goch Mold Wrexham LL11 2AW character of the Welsh industrial experience, explored by Peter Stead in his Telephone 01792 354243 contribution. Although the overwhelming majority of Welsh people live in Gwent Secretariat c/o Geoff Edge an urban environment, in their imagination they often live somewhere University of Wales Newport Caerleon Campus P O Box 179 else. Most of us have a rural location somewhere in our hinterland. Newport NP18 3YG Perhaps as Peter Stead suggests, we continue to inhabit in our heads what Telephone 01633 432005 the late Sir Glanmor Williams described as “an archipelago of small towns West Wales Secretariat and villages.” Such an outlook rests uneasily with the realities of the c/o Robin Lewis The MAGSTIM Co. Ltd metropolitan world that Cardiff increasingly represents. Spring Gardens Whitland Carmarthenshire SA4 0HR Telephone 01792 354243 Contradictions like these can only be worked through over time. Maybe another fifty years are required. In the meantime what can the city fathers Swansea Bay Secretariat c/o Marc Clement do to address them? One thing they can certainly do is to improve Electrical and Electronic Engineering Department University of Wales Swansea Cardiff’s connections with the country it serves in a more focused and Singleton Park Swansea SA2 8PP determined way. For example, a notable failing is Cardiff’s transport links, Telephone 01792 295489 both internally between the city centre and the Bay, and beyond, Wales in London especially its connections with the Valleys that were responsible for its c/o Welsh Development Agency 1 6th Floor Tower 42 creation. What we need as a start is a modern, light rail or tram network, 25 Old Broad Street of the kind common in other European cities, to integrate Cardiff with the London EC2M 1HY Telephone 020 7222 2822 Vale and Valleys. spring 2005 upfront politics & policy 4 power broke 19 watershed john osmond looks at the denis balsom lsuggests that career of Denzil Davies to the 2005 general election will discover some clues on the have a lasting impact on Wales future role of Welsh MPs at Westminster 22 high hopes vernon bogdanor queries whether Welsh politics have yet ‘come of age’ 24 an alternative government nick bourne argues that the opposition parties in the National Assembly need to entertain the idea of coalition 33 swimming in clear 38 blogging futures red water tomos grace looks at the role david morris explains why of the Internet in reinforcing Welsh Labour activists have Welsh identity 8 news formed a new ‘grassroots’ organisation 40 digital divide wil thomas says computers broadcasting should be located somewhere capital thoughts between the blender and the 36 microwave. 10 wales behind: broadcasting europe in front barricades sue balsom on Ofcom’s peter finch finds delicate COVER STORY COVER medium term rescue package light in anonymous Cardiff 27 democratic deficit adam price says that with its for ITV1 Wales 12 city reflections permanent majority the peter stead wonders where Assembly is replicating Welsh urbanity begins and Westminster’s ‘conformity of ends indivisible power’ 15 a cuckoo in the nest 29 seats and votes david blackaby and stephen john cox argues for ‘enabling 2 drinkwater argue that legislation’ to implement 42 y filter sqwar Cardiff’s growth is increasing Richard and says STV is key aled rowlands reports on an economic disparities between to maximising turn out in experiment measuring Welsh east and west Wales Assembly elections inter-connectivity Cover: 1995 sculpture, ‘A Private View’ by Kevin Atherton, commissioned by CBAT and South Glamorgan County Council, and located on the Taff Viaduct in Cardiff Bay. Photo by Pat Aithie of Ffotograph. newsflash coming up… • Cardiff Lunch: The Future of the BBC with guest speaker Michael Grade, BBC Chairman Hilton Hotel, Cardiff, Monday 12 June 2005. £27.50 for IWA members; £32.50p for non-members social policy environment • Debate: A National Gallery of Modern Art 53 64 22 June 2005, Glynn profit and loss in haunt of the horse Vivian Gallery, Swansea. charles de winton reports on rural wales 6.00pm Debate harold carter argues that the Wales’ latest long distance 7.30pm. Reception with economic imperatives that footpath, the Epynt Way artists William Wilkins drive commercial decisions and Ifor Davies and arts should not be applied to 66 greening consultant Dave Clarke. sparsely populated areas consumption Chaired by Peter Stead. alan knight says retailers 56 size matters should work with government • IWA National james foreman-peck finds in producing environmental Eisteddfod Lecture that Welsh secondary schools impact assessments for the Wales and the should not grow any bigger products they sell Future of Europe Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas, Presiding Officer, 59 health performance culture marcus longley and tony National Assembly beddow examine what The Pagoda, 68 cafeteria catholicism 45 build it but don’t toll it health professionals really National Eisteddfod, harri pritchard jones Caernarfon, 12 noon anthony beresford examines think about the Welsh NHS assesses the impact of Tuesday 2 August, 2004. the arguments surrounding Benedict XVI on a church Lecture to be delivered the proposed M4 relief road that punches above its in Welsh with south of Newport weight in Wales simultaneous translation europe 70 glanmor williams 1920 – 2005 just published… 48 creu cyfle – kenneth o morgan on the cultural explosion founder of the 20th Century • Wales on the Web eluned haf outlines school of Welsh historians Gregynog Paper by a project promoting links Andrew Green, National Librarian of between Wales and the ten the last word EU Accession States Wales, £7.99 88 peter stead • Integrated Children’s 50 promoting cohesion Centres in Wales glenys kinnock argues the EU Interim report from is about pooling sovereignty ongoing IWA research for mutual benefit project, £10 • Welsh Politics Come of 62 a programme that Age: Responses to the answers back Richard Commission 3 alun burge reports on Book edited by John progress with Communities Osmond £14.99 First more information: All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recorded or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher, Institute of Welsh Affairs. ISSN 1464-7613 www.iwa.org.uk upfront power broke john osmond looks at the career of Denzil Davies to discover some clues on the future role of Welsh MPs at Westminster ollowing a bruising These realities are presently disguised by the large electoral contest it may Scottish presence in the outgoing British Cabinet, in be an unkind question, particular Gordon Brown as Chancellor, John Reid as fbut in the age of devolution Health Secretary, Alistair Darling at Transport, and what are Welsh MPs for? In formerly Robin Cook as Foreign Secretary. However, this the general election predominance is likely to prove merely an echo from the campaign health issues pre-devolution age. dominated much of the debate and MPs report that In future, too, we are likely to have fewer Welsh MPs. this remains a constant issue Certainly, this was the view of the Richard Commission for their constituents. Yet in which examined the case for extending the powers of the Wales decisions on health Assembly. It argued that sooner or later the National reside with the National Assembly will achieve full legislative powers and when that Assembly. The same applies happens the number of AMs will need to increase, probably to schools, council tax, from 60 to 80. At the same time, and following the precedent environmental issues such as wind farms and much of the already set in Scotland, the number of Welsh MPs will have rest of the domestic agenda.