Katie Welch (she/her)
@kfwelch.bsky.social
Reposted by Katie Welch (she/her)
On 7 May 2026, Wales votes on the biggest Senedd changes in 25 years: 96 Members, 16 new constituencies, one vote each.
Whether it’s your first vote or not, here’s what’s changing—and why. https://bit.ly/4m9Of7T
Whether it’s your first vote or not, here’s what’s changing—and why. https://bit.ly/4m9Of7T
September 8, 2025 at 9:00 AM
On 7 May 2026, Wales votes on the biggest Senedd changes in 25 years: 96 Members, 16 new constituencies, one vote each.
Whether it’s your first vote or not, here’s what’s changing—and why. https://bit.ly/4m9Of7T
Whether it’s your first vote or not, here’s what’s changing—and why. https://bit.ly/4m9Of7T
Horribly depressing subject matter but a great read. Description of the committee stage of a bill (“a parody of forensic scrutiny”) as “a fucking cathedral of investigative prowess” compared to a delegated legislative committee is a highlight.
It's very telling what happens to the comment whenever I write on this subject. Every other week, the comments in my substack are witty, funny and kind. On this topic, they're bitter, vicious, demented.
open.substack.com/pub/iandunt/...
open.substack.com/pub/iandunt/...
The trans rights stitch-up
How government plans to silence debate on the new rules
open.substack.com
July 26, 2025 at 11:00 AM
Horribly depressing subject matter but a great read. Description of the committee stage of a bill (“a parody of forensic scrutiny”) as “a fucking cathedral of investigative prowess” compared to a delegated legislative committee is a highlight.
In todays episode of The Hunger Games in Real Life....
BREAKING: Israel to allow foreign countries to drop aid into Gaza from today, a senior IDF official told Sky News
news.sky.com/story/israel...
news.sky.com/story/israel...
Israel allows foreign countries to parachute aid into Gaza
Israel has said foreign countries can drop aid into Gaza from today.
news.sky.com
July 25, 2025 at 1:07 PM
In todays episode of The Hunger Games in Real Life....
"They must act now, before our broken system causes a democratic calamity"
Even the Tories now admit that our electoral system is toxic. When will Labour have the guts to fix it? | Polly Toynbee
Even the Tories now admit that our electoral system is toxic. When will Labour have the guts to fix it? | Polly Toynbee
Giving 16-year-olds the vote is good, not least to stop the rightward lurch, but real change would mean scrapping first past the post, says Guardian columnist Polly Toynbee
www.theguardian.com
July 23, 2025 at 12:34 PM
"They must act now, before our broken system causes a democratic calamity"
Reposted by Katie Welch (she/her)
“Nobody asks whether 75-year-olds are politically informed enough to vote. They get to do it anyway. I think for an awful lot of people, that age - 16, 17, 18 - is actually when they're at their most knowledgeable about our political system.”
Sunday School: Smells like teen spirit
❌ Game on for 16-year-old voters
📺 Game over for Stephen Colbert
@pimlicat.bsky.social and @mrkennycampbell.bsky.social wrestle with heavy democratic questions and light entertainment. Bet you can't weight...
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/s...
❌ Game on for 16-year-old voters
📺 Game over for Stephen Colbert
@pimlicat.bsky.social and @mrkennycampbell.bsky.social wrestle with heavy democratic questions and light entertainment. Bet you can't weight...
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/s...
Smells like teen spirit
Podcast Episode · Quiet Riot · 07/20/2025 · 57m
podcasts.apple.com
July 20, 2025 at 7:20 AM
“Nobody asks whether 75-year-olds are politically informed enough to vote. They get to do it anyway. I think for an awful lot of people, that age - 16, 17, 18 - is actually when they're at their most knowledgeable about our political system.”
Reposted by Katie Welch (she/her)
'They should be the start of an ongoing process of fundamental democratic renewal. And on some of the matters requiring further change, the need for action is urgent.'
Read our Deputy Director, @alanrenwick.bsky.social's, instant analysis of the elections white paper for @uclpolicylab.bsky.social 👇
Read our Deputy Director, @alanrenwick.bsky.social's, instant analysis of the elections white paper for @uclpolicylab.bsky.social 👇
Plans for electoral reform mark a major step forward in reforming our democracy
Speaking at the civil society summit, Sir Keir Starmer outlined a range of democratic reforms, including the introduction of votes for 16-year-olds. Professor Alan Renwick provides his in-depth…
www.ucl.ac.uk
July 20, 2025 at 7:00 AM
'They should be the start of an ongoing process of fundamental democratic renewal. And on some of the matters requiring further change, the need for action is urgent.'
Read our Deputy Director, @alanrenwick.bsky.social's, instant analysis of the elections white paper for @uclpolicylab.bsky.social 👇
Read our Deputy Director, @alanrenwick.bsky.social's, instant analysis of the elections white paper for @uclpolicylab.bsky.social 👇
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre... See for excellent analogy highlighting the benefits of proportional democracy (we all know which party would want to go out and get battered on Special Brew).
Here is the single thing Labour can do to see off Reform and make British politics work | Will Hayward
Farage’s party could win 42% of Commons seats with only 26% of the vote. That’s not the way civilised countries do democracy, says Guardian columnist Will Hayward
www.theguardian.com
June 27, 2025 at 9:57 AM
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre... See for excellent analogy highlighting the benefits of proportional democracy (we all know which party would want to go out and get battered on Special Brew).
"Life, it appears, is no longer a quest for meaning but a demented race to be the last one standing"
THE NEW STATESMAN: Shattering false dichotomies: How political division hampers progress and the urgent need for a return to nuanced values in an increasingly binary world.
- by Armando Iannucci
- by Armando Iannucci
It’s the nuance, stupid
Binary thinking has broken our politics. Is there a way back?
www.newstatesman.com
May 22, 2025 at 1:22 PM
"Life, it appears, is no longer a quest for meaning but a demented race to be the last one standing"
“Demonstrations rarely lead to immediate policy change. But they are essential to building community and long-term resistance”
Don’t believe the doubters: protest still has power | Jan-Werner Müller
Don’t believe the doubters: protest still has power | Jan-Werner Müller
Demonstrations rarely lead to immediate policy change. But they are essential to building community and long-term resistance
www.theguardian.com
April 22, 2025 at 2:48 PM
“Demonstrations rarely lead to immediate policy change. But they are essential to building community and long-term resistance”
Reposted by Katie Welch (she/her)
Protest in Cardiff
April 17, 2025 at 11:57 AM
Protest in Cardiff
Local citizens‘ assemblies: why do councils set them up and what can they do? constitution-unit.com/2025/02/11/l...
Local citizens‘ assemblies: why do councils set them up and what can they do?
Numerous citizens’ assemblies have been held by councils and other local bodies around the UK in recent years. Patricia Preller and Alan Renwick survey these processes to consider what lessons can …
constitution-unit.com
March 20, 2025 at 10:05 AM
Local citizens‘ assemblies: why do councils set them up and what can they do? constitution-unit.com/2025/02/11/l...
Reposted by Katie Welch (she/her)
TheyWorkForYou fans: Help me out by clicking a few things in a survey!
Do you use/like TheyWorkForYou/WriteToThem? Help us out by answering a survey about what you value about the services survey.alchemer.com/s3/8145841/t...
TheyWorkForYou/WriteToThem Supporters Survey
survey.alchemer.com
March 19, 2025 at 11:28 AM
TheyWorkForYou fans: Help me out by clicking a few things in a survey!
Reposted by Katie Welch (she/her)
This International Women’s Day, we celebrate women, but we also demand action. Instead of performative posts from businesses and multinational companies, let’s see real investment driving real change.
This is not an exhaustive list.
What do you want to see happen today?
#iwd #IWD2025
This is not an exhaustive list.
What do you want to see happen today?
#iwd #IWD2025
March 8, 2025 at 5:22 PM