First time votes for 16 and 17 year olds in Wales – what Westminster can learn This week we saw history happen in Wales. After years of ERS Cyrmu campaigning for the rights of 16 and 17 year olds to vote in Wales, the first election with an expanded franchise took... Posted 07 May 2021
My 20 years of campaigning for votes at 16 This is a guest post from Kelly Harris, a qualified youth worker who has worked with children and young people for 20 years across Wales. I still find it hard to believe that it has been... Posted 26 Apr 2021
Welsh democracy is under threat, we need more members of the Senedd now more than ever Just a few short weeks out from the Senedd elections and it’s clear that the election campaign has now hit full swing. With polls suggesting some uncertainty parties are already setting out their stalls on... Posted 09 Apr 2021
Welsh civil society launches ‘democracy manifesto’ for 2021 Senedd elections Civil society groups led by ERS Cymru have launched their ‘democracy asks’ for the 2021 Welsh Senedd elections, throwing down the gauntlet for Welsh parties to back real democracy for voters. Posted 06 Jul 2020
The campaign for a fairer franchise just secured a major victory 16 and 17 year olds in Wales have officially secured the right to vote for Senedd elections, after a crucial piece of legislation received Royal Assent on Wednesday. 16 and 17 year olds in Wales... Posted 15 Jan 2020
Revealed: Abuse and harassment in Welsh politics is rife. Here’s how to stamp it out We got a sense of the shocking scale of abuse in Westminster last year. But there has been relatively little heard about the issues surrounding harassment and diverse representation in Wales. It turns out the situation... Posted 12 Jul 2018
Open letter – Wales needs an Assembly which has the resources to do the job Open letter from former Welsh Assembly Members responding to the National Assembly for Wales’ Expert Panel on Electoral Reform. Wales needs an Assembly which has the resources to ensure that the financial, policy and legislative... Posted 13 Dec 2017
Wales needs a stronger Senedd that’s fit for the future In 20 years of its existence – through the growth in the Assembly’s responsibilities to the expansion of the Welsh Government and its powers, one thing has changed very little: the Senedd’s capacity to scrutinise,... Posted 12 Dec 2017
An inconvenient truth – It’s time for more Assembly Members Jess Blair says the case for a larger Assembly has to be made beyond Cardiff Bay to the people it will impact. Having more Assembly Members isn’t necessarily on anyone’s Christmas list, but it should... Posted 06 Nov 2017
A stagnating Senedd? In general, diversity in Parliaments is on the rise across the UK and the world. But it’s by no means inevitable, or uniform – and making our often archaic institutions reflect the public they represent... Posted 25 Apr 2016