The Forgotten Decade: Political Upheaval and Industrial Strife in 1980’s Wales.   Gwynoro Jones. Alun Gibbard.

The 1980s - a decade of considerable upheaval and change which saw industrial tension during the Miners Strike, social unrest and riots on the streets, seismic political changes and Cold War nuclear tension. This book is a chronological account of political, economic and social events that unfolded in that decade.

This is a powerful and relevant reminder of the pain and turmoil of a decade that changed many of our communities forever, of the roots of still current inequalities, and of the obstacles that our political system places in the way of progressive change. It also benefits from being the account of an engaged and passionate witness. 

Geraint Talfan Davies.  Chairman Institute of Welsh Affairs 1992-2014.

Margaret Thatcher won the General Election on 4 May 1979, the day the Eighties began. The Conservatives were creating their new order. Labour had to respond to the electoral failing and the damage done to them by a series of strikes. From this Labour unrest, the SDP was formed, the first major new party in British politics for decades.

The main section of The Forgotten Decade is a year-by-year account of the 1980’s, from the 1980 of Thatcher’s early days through to the 1989 of the fall of the Berlin wall, political and social changes in Wales are documented, with extensive use of newspaper cuttings from Gwynoro Jones’ personal archive. This section is book-ended by a look at the decade leading up to the 1980’s and an analysis of what has happened in the decades since the ‘80’s.

With the publication of The Forgotten Decade, videos that were made in 2016, and have remained 'private' on Gwynoro's YouTube channel since then are now being made 'public'.

All of them were recorded live and are uncut or edited. No pre recording preparation took place for any of the 1980s videos, it was just Gwynoro's on the spot recollections of events. Because of that, inevitably there will be some errors of fact regarding personalities, events, dates and timelines. The authentic record however is chronicled in the book.

This video is about events in 1984/5 and concentrates mainly on happenings in Carmarthen when Dr Roger Thomas, the then MP, faced considerable pressures and turmoil. 

This book provides us with an informative and eyewitness account of unfolding events of The Forgotten Decade of Welsh political evolution. Written in a semi diary style the book is ideal as a memory jogger for those that lived through this period themselves or for historians or the general readers who wish to learn exactly what was happening at the heart of Welsh politics in the 1980s.

Professor Russell Deacon

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Forgotten-Decade-Political-Upheaval-Industrial/dp/1953109632/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=1980s%20gwynoro%20jones&qid=1663093306&sprefix=%2Caps%2C52&sr=8-2&fbclid=IwAR1xYuAIDqncPq_83U1AXwVnXU9F7pOjhvPJdT1RAmODKvp1icA1HZUR-1M

Also available of Wales Books Council site

Former broadcaster and politician Wyn Thomas reviews The Forgotten Decade

This book serves as a reminder of events in the 80’s that need to be understood and recalled if the current situation in Wales, and the UK, is to be understood properly. 

I’m in the ninth decade of my life and some are recalled more easily because of events and individuals that gave that period a historical identity. The 1940’s were my first years, the era of the Second World War and the social revolution of the Attlee government,  Then the 50’s, the time when rations gave way to the Tory slogan saying “We never had it so good” and they were the era of ‘rock and roll’. This was followed by the ‘swinging sixties’, which for me was a time of trade union and political activity and while being one of the group invited to recommend the Welsh Labour party’s devolution policy I first met Gwynoro Jones, the co-author of the book ‘The Forgotten Decade’ and then Labour’s Research and Public Relations officer at Transport House, Cardiff. He immediately struck me as an intense, inspirational, determined and likeable young man. 

The 70’s started with a general election when, surprisingly, the Labour Leader, Harold Wilson, lost to the Tory Leader, Ted Heath. Not surprisingly I failed to be elected in the Montgomeryshire constituency. The disappointment was eased with the news from Carmarthen that Gwynoro, after a bitter battle, had beaten the President and idol of Plaid Cymru, Gwynfor Evans. Mr Evans had himself caused a political shock in a by-election in Carmarthen immediately after the 1966 General Election, when Labour had won a sweeping victory, when he won the seat to become Plaid Cymru’s first elected Member of Parliament. I was persuaded not to pursue a career in the House of Commons, but to maintain my interest in current affairs by becoming a journalist in broadcasting. The 70’s was a decade offering much to discuss from the failures of Heath, the miners strike, blackouts, strikes leading to the ‘winter of discontent’ and the beginnings of the Thatcher era – all discussed in the book

Then we get to the 1980’s, a decade described in this book by Gwynoro and his writing partner Alun Gibbard as ‘The Forgotten Decade’. At first glance this is a very surprising title for a period which saw the Falklands war, marriage of Prince Charles to Diana Spencer, the miner’s strike and the fall of the Berlin wall, establishing the Welsh language television channel, S4C. But it will mostly be remembered as the decade that launched Thatcherism, when Margaret Thatcher became the first female prime minister, a forceful, idealistic, free-marketeer and dedicated anti trade unionist. She took on the NUM and won a year long strike. It was ten years when Wales faced changes that were as great as the start of the industrial revolution which brought the heavy industries of coal, iron, and slate with new populations inhabiting new towns and villages. Pits, iron works that established those 200 years ago.  Come to think of it, perhaps Gwynoro and Alun were perhaps correct in their choice of title, with all that upheaval who would want to remember such a decade.

This book serves as a reminder of events in the 80’s that need to be understood and recalled if the current situation in Wales, and the UK, is to be understood properly.

There are libraries that could be filled with books about events and people from the 1980’s, but this one is different. It is not an objective history account of ten important years as recalled by one person, Gwynoro Jones. His experience as a researcher has given him the advantage of collecting an archive of papers, journals, notes and press cuttings that give access to minutiae of records of this decade. His much respected co-writer the BBC journalist and author, Alun Gibbard, will also have access to archive material that adds to the historical accuracy of the book.

Gwynoro retained his Carmarthen seat by 3 votes, after five recounts, in the February General Election of 1974 before losing to Gwynfor Evans in the other General Election of that year; it was the end of his parliamentary career, but not of his political ambitions.

During his parliamentary career he was Parliamentary Secretary to Roy Jenkins the Home Secretary. His relationship with Jenkins continued after the 1974 loss of power when Roy Jenkins was in Brussels as President of the European Commission.

Jenkins and Gwynoro had become disillusioned with the leftward direction of the Labour Party and they discussed how a new third force in British politics could be established. By 1981 Gwynoro helped to establish the SDP, the Social Democratic Party with other former prominent Labour figure figures, Roy Jenkins, Shirley Williams, Dr David Owen and Bill Rogers, ‘The Gang of Four’.

They supported electoral reform, European integration and a decentralised state. They would also have gained the wrath of many in the Labour Party by rejecting the possibility of trade unions being too influential. These policies would be attractive to members and supporters of the Liberal Party and developing a policy of co-operation between the two parties could often become vexed and eventually to see the end of the SDP as an independent political party.

The story of establishing and the demise of the SDP in Wales and the UK through Gwynoro’s eyes and experience dominate this book, perhaps in too much detail at times, give us a detailed history of this important period through the eyes of one of Wales’ most prominent, influential and easily recognised political commentators. Thanks to his vast archive of notes, cuttings, minutes of many, many meetings, broadcasts, and clear recollections we are given a chronological and lively journey through the 1980’s which is very revealing about important events, the personalities involved and the internecine fights that led to the establishing and the ending of the SDP. Newsprint photographs of newspaper cuttings and events litter the book, but sadly the quality of reproduction spoils some of them.

Two matters that run through the SDP story in the book is the emphasis on how the SDP in Wales kept the aspiration of devolution and an Elected Assembly for Wales at the top of their agenda – when the labour party and Plaid Cymru ignored the topic after the drubbing in the 1979 Referendum. The other was the determination of the party’s Welsh members to secure a clear, separate voice from the party’s London base. Often it led to direct conflict between Gwynoro and David Owen.

Gwynoro will describe himself as a “Welsh radical” rather than a socialist, but his regard for devolution and a form of independence for Wales, his social conscience and regard for his fellow beings make him into a person, as this book shows, a person that would have added a great deal to the benefit of Wales should he have been able to align his ‘radicalism’ with a political party that has influence and power.

Those familiar with Gwynoro will be aware of his strong convictions and readiness to share them. In the 19^th century he would have been a reforming, non-conformist preacher performing sermons that would get his congregations shouting “clywch, clywch” and “diolch iddo”. The SDP enjoyed his oratory skills and in this book we can all enjoy the ‘hwyl’ that he brings to his own history.

Dr John Ball reviews The Forgotten Decade

 

For students of political history or indeed the occasional reader interested in one of the most turbulent decades of the twentieth century, Jones and Gibbard The Forgotten Decade is a very readable, if long, read. It covers a wide range of events that happened in that decade

Subtitled Political Upheaval and Industrial Strife in 1980s Wales, it is ultimately a history of the SDP, its growth and failure set against the economic and political confusion and disorder of that unsettled decade.

The book begins with birth of the SDP. The need for a third force in UK politics, the optimism and excitement, the experience and status of its founders and early growth are all dealt with clear enthusiasm. However, despite early successes and anticipation of further success, the party became in turn a victim of the political fallout that followed the Falklands war and ultimately Westminster’s first past the post voting system with the failure to retain the Commons seats of those who had left their former political parties.

As the decade wore on the cracks began to appear. It soon became clear that this was a party without a guiding philosophy and even in the very early days, differences in opinion and approach between the founding leaders. Of the four founders, Roy Jenkins was the thinker and political leader but lacked an outgoing, public charm; David Owen was the opposite, charismatic, determined and very much a public figure. As David Owen eventually became the leader and “face” of the party, another characteristic came to the fore – his overbearing personality and the need to have his own way in all matters. Although to a great extent “forced” to collaborate with the Liberal leader David Steel, he did not like the Liberals, regarding them as soft on the fundamental issues. It was this view that led to his implacable opposition to the (eventual) merger of the SDP and Liberals and his decision, unsuccessfully, to maintain a separate SDP. Differences in approach also underpinned a different problem that helped to undermine the SDP. The media constantly raised the issue of coalition and the potential role of the SDP and Liberals as potential coalition partners. The question was not addressed but gave the impression that whatever transpired, neither party – nor especially the SDP – were strong enough to form a government and thus in the public mind questioned the value in voting for either party.

The lack of guiding philosophy meant that the SDP never really knew why it existed and where it was going. This comes through strongly in the book, throughout the entire decade there were endless meetings about rules, structure and policy, endlessly discussing the same issues. The impression given is one of not knowing what to do or say, so just keep talking; policy such as it was appears to have been at best flexible, at worst irrelevant.

Dealing with Wales during this decade is where the book comes into its own. Set against the background of Thatcherism and the disappointment of the 1979 referendum, the SDP emerged very much as Wales “nationalist” party. Not surprisingly it attracted members from across the Welsh political landscape. What is truly notable is the success of Welsh members in successfully maintaining a separate Welsh party and insisting that the establishment of an Assembly was central to policy. Reflecting David Owen’s centralist view, the SDP in London was clearly unsure of this separate organisation but significantly was totally opposed to an Assembly being central to policy. It is to the major credit of the members at this time that this policy was maintained throughout the decade and certainly contributed to the referendum result less than a decade after the SDP’s demise.

Although not central to the narrative, the failure of the 1979 referendum, the loss of dozens of councillors and the dismal performance in the general election of that year, resulted in Plaid Cymru all but disappearing during the decade. This was not helped by Dafydd Elis Thomas’ unsuccessful attempt to turn the party into a left-wing socialist movement. The irony of politics is that as the decade ended, the SDP and its glorious hopes had disappeared and Plaid Cymru began to re-emerge as a political force.

Written from Gwynoro Jones’s extensive archive, who was central in the activities of the SDP in Wales. The book sometimes reads as an autobiography. However, his commitment both to the need for a new force in politics within the UK, coupled with his determination that there should be a national voice for Wales, clearly shines through and makes this book highly readable.

Overall, for those reading this book today, it provides a fascinating picture of what might have been and how things have changed. Indeed, this was in some ways the forgotten decade and yet also one of upheaval and strife. The eighties did change the political landscape and informs life in Wales today – and Gwynoro Jones was there.

The Forgotten Decade - political and industrial upheaval in 1980s Wales

 

The Forgotten Decade - political and industrial upheaval in 1980s Wales

With the publication of The Forgotten Decade, videos that were made in 2016, and have remained 'private' on my YouTube channel will now be made 'public'.

The video in this post is about events leading up to the 1983 General Election.

This is a powerful and relevant reminder of the pain and turmoil of a decade that changed many of our communities forever, of the roots of still current inequalities, and of the obstacles that our political system places in the way of progressive change. It also benefits from being the account of an engaged and passionate witness. 

Geraint Talfan Davies.  Chairman Institute of Welsh Affairs 1992-2014.

Whilst the book covers a wide range of events in Wales, the UK and internationally that happened throughout the decade, there is also a sizeable portion which is centred on the SDP in Wales and its Alliance with the Welsh Liberals.

The videos are the story of the SDP in Wales.

There are some eight in all. All of them were recorded live in 2016 and are uncut or edited. No pre recording preparation took place for any of them it was just my on the spot recollections of events. Because of that, inevitably there will be some errors of fact regarding personalities, events, dates and timelines.

The authentic record is chronicled in the book. Until some months back, minutes, policy papers, press cuttings, conference material and many more (some 15 boxes ) followed me as I moved house some three/four times over 40 years. Now however they are at the Wales Political Archive. 

The book took Alun Gibbard and I some two years to complete.

Book available on

 Amazon - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Forgotten-Decade-Political-Upheaval-Industrial-ebook/dp/B0BG99JWMY

Also Welsh Books Council site  - gwales.com

The Forgotten Decade - political and industrial upheaval in 1980s Wales

With the publication of The Forgotten Decade videos that were made in 2016, and have remained 'private' on my YouTube channel will now be made 'public'.

The video in this post is about 1982 and part of 1983.

This is a powerful and relevant reminder of the pain and turmoil of a decade that changed many of our communities forever, of the roots of still current inequalities, and of the obstacles that our political system places in the way of progressive change. It also benefits from being the account of an engaged and passionate witness. 

Geraint Talfan Davies.  Chairman Institute of Welsh Affairs 1992-2014.

Whilst the book covers a wide range of events in Wales, the UK and internationally that happened throughout the decade, there is also a sizeable portion which is centred on the SDP in Wales and its Alliance with the Welsh Liberals.

The videos are the story of the SDP in Wales.

There are some eight in all. All of them were recorded live and uncut. No pre recording preparation took place for any of them it was just my on the spot recollections of events. Because of that, inevitably there will be some errors of fact regarding dates and timelines.

The authentic record is chronicled in the book. Until some months back, minutes, policy papers, press cuttings, conference material and many more (some 15 boxes ) followed me as I moved house some three/four times over 40 years. Now however they are at the Wales Political Archive. 

The book took Alun Gibbard and I some two years to complete.

This video is essentially about the run up to the Gower by-election 1982, events during the by election and then onwards to the 1983 General Election in Gower.

The Forgotten Decade - political and industrial upheaval in 1980s Wales

With the publication of The Forgotten Decade videos that were made in 2016, and have remained 'private' on my YouTube channel will now be made 'public'.

 Whilst the book covers a wide range of events that happened throughout the decade in Wales. UK and internationally, there is also a sizeable portion which is centred on the SDP and Alliance with the Welsh Liberals.

This book provides us with an informative and eyewitness account of unfolding events of The Forgotten Decade of Welsh political evolution. Written in a semi diary style the book is ideal as a memory jogger for those that lived through this period themselves or for historians or the general readers who wish to learn exactly what was happening at the heart of Welsh politics in the 1980s.

Professor Russell Deacon

The videos are therefore the story of the SDP in Wales.

There are some eight in all. All of them were recorded live and uncut. No pre recording preparation took place for any of them it was just my on the spot recollections of events. Because of that, inevitably there will be some errors of fact regarding dates and timelines.

The authentic record is chronicled in the book. Until some months back, minutes, policy papers, press cuttings, conference material and many more (some 15 boxes ) followed me as I moved house some three/four times over 40 years. Now however they are at the Wales Political Archive. 

The book took Alun Gibbard and I some two years to complete.

This video covers events in 1981. The setting up of the SDP in Wales, its organisation, the creation of a constitution, efforts to ensure that the party in Wales would have a voice and policy making powers. Refers to the impact of the Falkland War on the SDP's progress and how Labour, under Neil Kinnock's leadership eventually had to change from being anti Europe and anti NATO.

My contention always has been that it wasn't Mrs Thatcher that made Labour change but the presence and impact of the SDP.

New book - The Forgotten Decade : 1980s Wales

 The Forgotten Decade: Political Upheaval and Industrial Strife in 1980’s Wales.   Gwynoro Jones. Alun Gibbard.

The 1980s - a decade of considerable upheaval and change which saw industrial tension during the Miners Strike, social unrest and riots on the streets, seismic political changes and Cold War nuclear tension. This book is a chronological account of political, economic and social events that unfolded in that decade.

This is a powerful and relevant reminder of the pain and turmoil of a decade that changed many of our communities forever, of the roots of still current inequalities, and of the obstacles that our political system places in the way of progressive change. It also benefits from being the account of an engaged and passionate witness. 

Geraint Talfan Davies.  Chairman Institute of Welsh Affairs 1992-2014.

Margaret Thatcher won the General Election on 4 May 1979, the day the Eighties began. The Conservatives were creating their new order. Labour had to respond to the electoral failing and the damage done to them by a series of strikes. From this Labour unrest, the SDP was formed, the first major new party in British politics for decades.

Former MP Gwynoro Jones left the Labour party to join the SDP at its beginning, becoming Chair of the SDP in Wales. Alun Gibbard worked for BBC Wales News throughout the decade, reporting on all the major events covered in this book. He is now a full-time author.

The main section of The Forgotten Decade is a year-by-year account of the 1980’s, from the 1980 of Thatcher’s early days through to the 1989 of the fall of the Berlin wall, political and social changes in Wales are documented, with extensive use of newspaper cuttings from Gwynoro Jones’ personal archive. This section is book-ended by a look at the decade leading up to the 1980’s and an analysis of what has happened in the decades since the ‘80’s.

This is a timely book. The story it tells has a strong resonance with the political and social climate of today.

This book provides us with an informative and eyewitness account of unfolding events of The Forgotten Decade of Welsh political evolution. Written in a semi diary style the book is ideal as a memory jogger for those that lived through this period themselves or for historians or the general readers who wish to learn exactly what was happening at the heart of Welsh politics in the 1980s.

Professor Russell Deacon

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Forgotten-Decade-Political-Upheaval-Industrial/dp/1953109632/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=1980s%20gwynoro%20jones&qid=1663093306&sprefix=%2Caps%2C52&sr=8-2&fbclid=IwAR1xYuAIDqncPq_83U1AXwVnXU9F7pOjhvPJdT1RAmODKvp1icA1HZUR-1M

Both authors are available for interview – gwynoro2@sky.com  alungibbard@gmail.com  or 07710 451845;  07506 928921

 

Whose Wales? is ‘a work that does Wales a huge favour’

Former broadcaster and politician Wyn Thomas on the book Whose Wales?

The much travelled and winding political path followed by Gwynoro Jones is fascinating, and reflects the agonies that so many in the UK-wide left of centre parties have suffered over the last half century.

After a campaign that reflected the bitter battles scarring the relationship between the Labour Party and Plaid Cymru in the General Election of 1970, Gwynoro defeated Gwynfor Evans who had by then become the first Plaid Cymru MP in a Carmarthen by-election four years previous.

It was one of the most emotionally charged and turbulent periods in Welsh politics – an experience that has not been replicated since. Plaid Cymru accusing Labour in Wales of just being a London dominated and focused party, and Labour painting Plaid as ‘separatists’ which were seeking to create a one-party fascist nation.

When the Labour party swung to the left wing during the 1980s, Gwynoro joined 'the Gang of Four' former prominent Labour MPs in the newly formed Social Democratic Party. The SDP, and later the Liberal Democrats, would welcome his centre-left radical style of politics and his excellent oration skills, but regretfully failed to take him back to Westminster, Brussels or the Senedd. Though my socialism differs from Gwynoro, it is a sad loss that we do not have his reforming zeal, strength of character and patriotism represented in any of these parliaments.

The one constant in his political journey has been a commitment to securing Wales’s political identity as a distinct nation through devolution or some form of independence.

During the late 1960s I joined Gwynoro and a committee of highly regarded young political academics from within the Welsh Labour Party to develop a devolution policy that led to the party’s evidence to the Crowther/Kilbrandon Commission on the Constitution.

After months of discussion and consideration of the benefits and problems presented by various forms of devolution models from the status quo, the final proposal put to the executive of the Labour Party in Wales was to establish a legislative assembly with tax raising powers. When George Thomas, then Secretary of State for Wales, read these recommendations he blew his top!

George attended one of our last committee meetings and promptly denounced us as neo-nationalists stating: ‘Look at you all, university people, the lot of you. What this committee needs are some horny handed sons of toil.’ He then left the meeting to work on the divisive pantomime of the Prince of Wales’s investiture in Caernarfon.

I felt a duty to read Whose Wales? when it was published last month, but believed it might cover some very familiar ground to my own life experience. How wrong was I to be? It takes us through some 150 years of ensuring Wales’s own political identity from the Cymru Fydd movement of the 1880/90s to today’s Senedd and the growing discussion on what form of independence we should aim for as we head into the third decade of the 21st century - a politically or culturally motivated one?

In an engaging and readable book, the authors provide a profile of Wales during various periods of its political story - from the people that fought for a Welsh Parliament and against separatism; the long campaigns over decades to establish a Secretary of State for Wales; two devolution referendums, and the Commissions and reports that gradually advanced the cause of Welsh self-determination. Gwynoro and Alun give us a fascinating and enjoyable read full of interest and facts essential to understanding how the Wales we now live in came about.

At present, there is much talk of breaking-up the UK Union, where the concept of corralling the various nations of these islands into a single unitary state - as happened some three centuries ago - can no longer be justified without question. Brexit and the coronavirus have highlighted the weaknesses of Westminster’s centralised approach. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have shown that they need and are able to act independently and with nuance in response to their specific contexts.

Be you a pupil, student, historian, politician or anyone interested in the Wales we have inherited and the Wales of tomorrow this is an essential read. It is both an informative and timely volume considering current constitutional debates.

Indeed, Whose Wales? The Battle for Welsh Devolution and Nationhood: 1880 to 2020 is a work that does Wales a huge favour.

Dyma ddywedodd  Wyn yn Gymraeg

Mae'n rhaid l longyfarch, Gwynoro Jones ac Alun Gibbard , am glamp o lyfr pwysig iawn ar holl agweddau datganoli ac anibynniaeth yng Nghymru. Fe ddylai hwn fod yn lyfr ar gyfer bob disgybl a myfyriwr sydd yn astudio hanes Cymru. Fe ddyliau bob un sydd yn cynreichioli Cymru mewn unrhyw ffordd ei ddarllen..

Nid tasg fyddai ei ddarllen, mae'r arddull yn ddiddorol, Yn gymwys, ac yn cydio ym mhob agwedd, personoliaethau, pleidiau, dulliau gweithredu, mesurau, mudiadau ac eraill. Testunau sydd yn swnio'n sych braidd, ond mae Gwynoro a Alun wedi gwneud pob un yn ddifyr ac yn hawdd i'w ddarllen.

I wir adnabod gwleidyddiaeth Cymru a'I hunaniaeth o gannol y 19eg ymlaen, mae'n orfodol darllen y llyfr yma. Mae’r awduron wedi llwyddo i ddod a nifer o ffynhonnellau ynghyd ac i ychwanegu at ein gwybodaeth o'r hanes, gan gyflwyno i ni'r Cymry lyfr mor bwysig yn hanes y DU a Chymru'n arbennig.

Book review of Whose Wales? on The Constitution Society’s website

The following are extracts from an article which appeared on the website of The Constitution Society on 16^th June 2021.

‘Jones and Gibbard investigate the extensive history of calls for self-government, from the Cymru Fydd initiative of 1880/90s through to the Parliament for Wales movement of the 1950s, in order to provide a context for the intricate devolution campaigns of the 1970s.’

‘Jones’s experience in preparing Labour’s evidence to the Crowther/Kilbrandon Commission on the UK constitution, quite apart from his long engagement with Welsh and European politics, provides a unique insight into the intriguing twists and turns of the era and the fractious relationships between many key protagonists, including himself and Plaid Cymru’s then President, the notable Gwynfor Evans. Indeed, Whose Wales? is compelling for its original analysis of the subject matter.’

‘The authors suggest that devolution as introduced by the Tony Blair government of the late-1990s, a generation after the failed 1979 referendum for a Welsh Assembly, marked a return to concepts and trends which were largely put on hold by the demands of fighting two world wars in the first half of the 20^th century and the economic challenges faced in their aftermath.’

‘Martin Shipton, in his preface to the book, affirms.’

‘Gwynoro Jones and Alun Gibbard provide irrefutable evidence that people from all four political parties in Wales played a role in promoting the cause of Home Rule… However, after nearly a quarter of a century of devolution, the future of the UK is uncertain. Within a few years, both Scotland and Northern Ireland may have left the UK. At that point, the people of Wales would have to decide on their future. Would they be content to face permanent domination by their much bigger neighbour to the east? Or would they take the plunge and decide on independence?’

‘Appendices titled A Federal Model for the UK and A Sovereign Wales in an Isle-wide Confederation articulate alternative constitutional futures for the UK.’

‘The book comes endorsed by former First Minister of Wales, Carwyn Jones, whose recommendation indicates the text’s historical breadth and the perhaps surprising nature of the story which it tells…’

 

Whose Wales? The battle for Welsh devolution and nationhood is available here.

Review by Publishing Push: Whose Wales? Compelling new book dissects long-running Welsh devolution debate...

The highly-anticipated Whose Wales? The battle for Welsh devolution and nationhood, 1880-2020 has been released to wide acclaim. At the heart of this comprehensive and unique overview of the devolution battles in Wales lies one question:

So whose Wales is it? 

The track record of all four main players, Liberal, Labour, Conservative, and Plaid Cymru, is looked at, from the time of Queen Victoria to these days of devolution and Yes Cymru. 

Whose Wales? delves deeper into the degree of ambiguity that runs through Welsh politics that in turn has hindered discussions of a clear Welsh political identity. Can any one party claim to have done more than any other in the fight for securing and then developing Welsh devolution?

From one of the leading proponents of the devolution of Wales, former MP Gwynoro Jones, and an award-winning author and former BBC journalist, Alun Gibbard, this all-encompassing, well-illustrated book, Whose Wales? The battle for Welsh devolution and nationhood, 1880-2020, looks at these often-bitter claims and counterclaims. 

Intriguingly, the authors approach the subject matter from different perspectives. Alun Gibbards’ insightful documenting and analysis complement Gwynoro Jones’ first-hand experience and knowledge in a publication that is unique in both its scope and structure. Whose Wales? is a compelling book for this original analysis. 

One of the most interesting and turbulent periods in Welsh political history during the 20th century is told by former MP for Carmarthen, Gwynoro Jones, who was one of the two protagonists in three bitter elections in the constituency. He shares the story of the tensions and disagreements between himself and Plaid Cymru’s Gwynfor Evans. He also recounts his years forming the SDP with David Owen, David Steel, Roy Jenkins and Shirley Williams and his involvement in European politics, in the context of devolution.

Well written and comprehensive in its political content and breadth of historic detail, Whose Wales? is constructed into 27 thought-provoking chapters and four distinct sections: 

o The Devolution Crucible 1880 – 1966

o The Carmarthen Cauldron 1966 -1974

o The Road to Referendum 1974 – 1979

o Years of Respite and Return 1979 – 2020

The volume contains a preface by historian and former University vice-chancellor Professor Sir Deian Hopkin and Political Editor Martin Shipton. Two appendices, by David Melding CBE and Glyndwr Cennydd Jones, offer differing constitutional solutions for Wales in the years to come.

In support of the book, Carwyn Jones, First Minister of Wales 2009-2018 says:

‘Alun Gibbard and Gwynoro Jones have traced the revival of Wales from the industrializing country of the 1880s and the nonconformist consciousness that led to Sunday closing. They describe the bitter battles over devolution in the 1970s through to the small margin in favour of a Welsh Assembly in 1997 and on to the well-established lawmaking, tax-varying Parliament with solid public support that we see today. We were not meant to be here. This book shows how we survived.’   

Professor Sir Deian Hopkin states:

‘The rhetorical question in the book’s title, Whose Wales? echoes the kind of questions that historians and political commentators have raised over the decades, from Gwyn Alf Williams’ When was Wales? to Dai Smith’s enigmatic question in the title of his book on Welsh politics, Wales! Wales?’  

Book preview: Whose Wales? to be released in June

 The battle for Welsh devolution and nationhood 1880-2020 

We’re almost there! After more than two years of work by my co-author Alun Gibbard and me, the book will be released soon.

In a nutshell, it asks whether any one political party can claim the credit for securing the devolution we now have in Wales today. We look at the various twists, turns, and battles from Lloyd George, to Gwynfor Evans, to Mark Drakeford.

What started as a project expected to be around 60,000 words in length, turned out in the end to approach 115,000 - there was indeed a great deal to say!

The volume contains prefaces by historian Professor Sir Deian Hopkin and Political Editor Martin Shipton. There are two appendices, one by David Melding CBE, the former Conservative MS, on a federal model solution for Wales and the other by Glyndwr Cennydd Jones on an isle-wide confederation. 

The book also includes an interesting contribution by Carwyn Jones, the former First Minister for Wales...

What do the polls for Senedd Elections 2021 tell us ?

Can they accurately point to the final outcome?

Wales is more or less halfway through the Senedd election campaign. Hitherto it is proving to be a rather subdued campaign as well – although I doubt whether the candidates in the constituencies are of that opinion. Nevertheless, the noise and bustle seem to be missing.

Perhaps that was always going to be inevitable during the pandemic period.

Be that as it may, the pollsters on the other hand have been busy. Three polls in three weeks or so all giving contrasting sets of data.

The first poll was in the third week of March when the usual You Gov/ITV Wales poll showed that Labour could be heading for trouble. They were on 32%, the Conservatives on 30%, Plaid Cymru on 23% and the Welsh Liberal Democrats on 6%. The reasons for Labour's decline is for another time.

What was intriguing about this poll was that First Minister Mark Drakeford was seen as doing a good job by 57% of those interviewed and only 34% with a negative opinion. Over 70% of Labour and Plaid Cymru voters gave Drakeford the thumbs up. Plaid Cymru came in behind the Conservatives on the popularity contest for First Minister. Adam Price and his party just do not seem able to make a breakthrough according to the polls. The issue of independence for Wales is a similarly intriguing set of polls but again, that is for another day.

But despite that, the poll highlighted that Labour could lose seven seats – 5 to the Conservatives and 3 to Plaid Cymru. The Conservative gains would be in Cardiff North, Gower, Vale of Glamorgan, Vale of Clwyd and Wrexham.  Plaid Cymru projected to gain Blaenau Gwent, Cardiff West and Llanelli. Lee Waters has been very active on social media and he like Helen Mary Jones has also come in for criticism recently. How much that will impact the Llanelli result is speculative.

This synopsis would give a Senedd seat distribution of Labour on 22 seats, the Conservatives on 19, Plaid Cymru on 14, Welsh Liberal Democrats on 1 and the remaining 4 seats probably to the Abolish Welsh Assembly party.

By 20^th April a new poll emerged, this time from Opinium for Sky News and this one gave a completely different result. This time Labour was forecasted to be within a couple of seats of returning to Government. Labour would win 29 seats, the Conservatives on 19, Plaid Cymru on 10, Liberal Democrats with 1 and Abolish the Assembly with 1. This one showed that Plaid had taken the main hit, down by 4.

Soon after there followed the second YouGov/ITV Wales poll confirming the Opinium poll and a Labour recovery. This time the poll result forecasted Labour with 26 seats, the Conservatives on 14 but Plaid Cymru with 17 replacing the Conservatives as the main opposition party in the next Senedd. Abolish the Welsh Assembly party remained on two seats and Welsh Lib Dems with their solitary one.

So what is going on with these polls?

The first thing to say is that every poll result has a margin of error in its findings of around +/- 4%. So for example, if a poll finds that Labour is on say 29% that means it could actually be in a range of support between 25% to  33%.

Then of course whilst pollsters do their utmost to get their say 1,000 interviewed sample as near as possible to cohere with the actual composition of the population of Wales the sample may not actually be truly accurate.

These two factors really make making seat projection from polls somewhat hazardous, particularly when you consider marginal seats and of course the 20 regional list seats. So possibly the pollsters should be reporting on the range of seats for each party in a given poll rather than being so specific in their findings.

There are aspects that I will return to before polling day such as likely voting turnout; that in this election because of Covid the figure using postal ballots will be probably much higher; then there is the matter of 16-17 year-olds voting for the first time and in what numbers will they turn out to vote; and finally the extent and impact of tactical voting in a number of key marginal seats.

So where are we at present?

First of all polling headlines could be misleading. But it does look that at present as if Labour will be just short of overall control. That is not unusual, because in four of the last five Assembly/Senedd terms it has had to rely on either formal coalitions or the support of non-Labour members to govern.

But there are still two weeks of campaigning left and as we have discovered in the last 36 hours unforeseen events can and will happen. Just Ask Boris Johnson!

Alan Evans Llanelli Online interviews Rob Phillips of the Prospect Union

The latest news and information on the National Library of Wales

The discussion follows Welsh Government's change of heart and after a 15,000 petition calling for more financial support to the National Library.

Although welcomed, the £2.25m additional funding is only a stop gap measure.  

Required is a medium term strategy and a development plan for the way ahead, placing the Library on a sound financial footing and ending uncertainty including job security. 

https://ceredigiononline.com/newyddion-news/an-interview-with-rob-phillips-union-rep-at-the-national-library-of-wales/

I was also at the zoom meeting making a contribution after posting week or so back...

https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/6193048010130023309/7759643716511621479

Cyfweld Rob Phillips o Undeb Prospect

Newyddion am y Llyfrgell Genedlaethol

Ychydig ddyddie 'nol cefais air gyda Rob Phillips ar ol i Lywodraeth Cymru newid ei meddwl a chyfrannu dros £2.25m i'r Llyfrgell dros y flwyddyn nesa. 

'Roedd hyn ar ol i'r Senedd derbyn deiseb oddiwrth tua 15,000 o fobl.

Gwrandewch ar y drafodaeth yma:

 https://ceredigiononline.com/cymraeg/cyfweliad-gyda-rob-phillips-o-undeb-prospect-ynglyn-a-llyfrgell-genedlaethol-cymru/

My experience working with a hyperlocal pioneer – Alan Evans

We run 6 news sites, 5 hyperlocals, one national news, and a Talk Radio

I first met Alan Evans (editor of Llanelli Online) in 2018 he was at the time involved in compiling a half-hour video on Jim Griffiths, the former MP for Llanelli and Charter Secretary of State for Wales. He came to my home, full of exuberance and ideas. His journalistic, camera work and broadcasting skills stood out immediately.

He ran the business from a small room adjacent to the kitchen in his then home in Pontyates and I was immediately impressed with his set up and know how the few times I visited him a year later, in the summer of 2019. What was also a surprise to me was that were always two and sometimes three media students helping him and ‘learning the trade’ as it were.

As we talked during the summer months I became more and more interested in his ideas and particularly taken by his determination, work rate, skills, professionalism, and vision for journalism in Wales.

I had run my own business for 20 years and knew full well what it takes and the commitment involved. Come the autumn there was a small office in John Street Llanelli where I started volunteering, not on any significant scale but more as a colleague to assist in the future planning and development of the business. At times he endeavoured to teach me some extra IT skills so that I could be of more help on the journalism and broadcasting side. At my age the lessons were hard but with Alan’s perseverance, I became quite adept and valued as a member of his team.

 

To cut a long story short since the early spring of 2020 I have become more involved and my contribution has broadened from being of assistance with business development, dealing with press release content, and covering the Welsh language side of the by now six online sites. We also have a partnership agreement, which Alan handed me as a thank you for my contributions.

To be honest I wasn’t too much into ‘community’ news and the term ’hyperlocal’ was new to me – I was familiar with ‘hypermarket’! But by now I fully realise the importance of hyperlocal news and the value of this public news service we now provide.    

Increasingly over the last five years, if not longer, hard copies of weekly local papers have been in serious decline. Indeed many have ceased publishing I daresay that the coronavirus pandemic will add further to that decline. Weekly newspapers, once so dominant in the communities of Wales, have suffered enormously and many are a pale shadow of their former selves and indeed many have gone to the wall. Even daily national and regional papers have seen their print sales significantly decrease and as a result, they have been increasingly switching to online publishing and very recently emulating Alan’s pioneering hyperlocal style.

Increasingly as the ‘bigger boys’ turn to a variant of the hyperlocal and the result is that this development places greater financial pressure and presents a competitive challenge to the original ‘community’ independent groupings. I fear that unless we’re careful it could become the same old story, as in so many other sectors of business, when the bigger companies notice something going well, developing and expanding they then muscle in.

Hyperlocals contribute greatly to community news and participation, they add to the essential task of holding authority to account, encouraging wider involvement and campaigning, giving communities a voice, covering local stories and events, reflecting cultural identity, and promoting civic life and pride. They also fill the gaps in news provision so obviously lacking even from the giant BBC.

I came across that most vividly covering the General Election 2019 from Selwyn Samuel Centre. Llanelli Online and Wales News Online in-depth reporting and live interviews on the night were of a high order. There were candidates interviewed that otherwise would never have received any coverage.

These smaller, independent, entrepreneurial businesses by now play an important part in ensuring a thriving news sector in Wales. It is vital that they are no longer put at a disadvantage because they find it difficult to access the same level of funding and support, as so often is the case when compared to the traditional newspapers and broadcast media, which can dominate and influence too much of the scene in Wales.

We run 6 news sites, 5 hyperlocals, one national news, and a Talk Radio

Our visitor figures at the end of 2020 were as follows:

Llanelli Online: launched July 2016.Total 3,505,506 visitors. 792k in 2020 (68k per month)

Wales News Online: Launched April 2019. Total 1,114,258 visitors. 519k in 2020 (44k per month)

Ceredigion Online: Launched November 2020. Total to date 33,300 visitors

Carmarthenshire Online: Launched November 2020 Total to date 17,000 visitors

Pembrokeshire Online: Launched December 2020 and is slowly gaining a following

Swansea Online: Launched December and attracted 10,000 visitors by mid-January.

Llanelli Talk Radio: Launched mid-2020 120k session listeners in 115 countries

Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and video channel with over 25k followers

We have built a very successful news model for Wales and we have advised others in the industry to share our experiences openly. We maintain that Wales needs 4 regional hubs for news production and training and we see ourselves as being able to fulfill the role for a South West Wales hub.

Alan and his wife Angharad have a working day that can be up to 15 hours such is the volume of news we process. My daily input is much less in time than that. We also run a 24/7 online radio station, which has taken off and is gathering a large audience. We promote the Welsh language throughout our service. We do not have any political agenda. We maintain plurality publishing news from all political parties with no preference at all.

We process hundreds of PR’s from sources across Wales but we also actively seek out news from within each of the communities and from organisations embedded in the communities like the NFU, Cylch Meithrin, Schools, colleges, Local Businesses, RNLI stations, RSPCA. We also take content from other news agencies, former journalists, and the BBC Local Democracy Reporters Service.

We have given placements to students from several universities, all of whom have gone on to find work in the industry.

Because of Covid our advertising, which was increasing in 2019, has suffered. We now face an uncertain 2021 unless we can secure some funding.

The pervasive view of businesses and those who wish to advertise or publicise is that the newspaper is the place to do so. They still get public notices, part of the NHS advertising budgets, and other notices we are excluded from They too benefit from the supply from the BBC local democracy service.

I find it intriguing that old habits die hard. The 3,000 printed copies of a local newspaper is more often than not the preference of many when it comes to advertising, even though online news outlets such as ours cover well over one hundred thousand visitors a month. What is more, advertisements appear within every news story.

We have had a modest amount of funding from the Welsh Government, which came in two tranches and was greatly appreciated by us all.

The first tranche was in the autumn of 2019 supporting hyperlocals. We used the majority of the money to fund two new members of staff and open an office in the centre of Llanelli. When the funding ended and news of the pandemic emerged it was clear that the office had to close. So using our own resources we set up a very professional studio operating from Alan Evans’s home in Mynydd y Garreg.

Despite all the difficulties the commitment and enthusiasm that we have has resulted in us opening four new online sites in late 2020 for Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion, Pembrokeshire and Swansea/Neath Port Talbot. In two short months, visitors to those sites exceed 60 k. The studio uses cutting edge technology and it could be said that what most are experiencing, having to work from home and interview online is something Alan was trying to persuade the media industry and the offices of public servants to do all those years ago. His operation has been described as a hyperlocal beacon by the Independent Community News Network and was invited to become a board member of that organization.

Despite the setbacks and the far from a level playing field we have stuck with it and adapted to make use of whatever we could to maintain a very valued hyperlocal and national news service for the people of Wales.

 

W www.walesnewsonline.com

w www.swanseanewsonline.com

W www.llanellionline.news 

W www.carmarthenshirenewsonline.com

w www.pembrokeshirenewsonline.com

W www.ceredigiononline.com

W www.llanellitalkradio.com