What Future for Wales in a Fractured Union?

Recent debates about the state of the UK focus mostly on the prospects of Scottish independence or on Northern Ireland’s special status at the crossroads of Britain, Ireland and the EU. But what about Wales? Wales did not predominantly vote to leave the EU in the 2016 referendum and is geographically closely aligned to England. However, the relationship between the Welsh and the UK Governments has become increasingly strained. While public support for Welsh independence has grown remarkably over the last years, the Welsh Government has pursued internal and external policies that are clearly distinct from those of the UK Government. In the meantime, Westminster has passed legislation that undermines the powers of the Senedd. In light of these challenges, this panel discusses Wales’ political future in a fractured Union by looking at voting behaviour, powers relations, and proposals for constitutional change.

Richard Wyn Jones is a Professor of Welsh Politics, Director of Cardiff University's Wales Governance Centre and Dean of Public Affairs. He has written extensively on contemporary Welsh politics, devolved politics in the UK and nationalism and is considered to be one of the founders of Critical Security Studies. He is a regular and widely respected broadcaster, commentating on Welsh politics in both Welsh and English for the BBC in Wales and across the UK.

Jo Hunt is a Professor of Law in Cardiff School of Law and Politics and Director of Research for the Department of Law. She was a member of the Welsh Government First Minister's European Advisory Group, and her research engages with the processes and consequences of the UK’s withdrawal from the EU. in relation to devolution and the UK's territorial constitution.

Dan Wincott holds the Blackwell Law and Society Chair in Cardiff University’s School of Law and Politics. He is Research Director of UK in a Changing Europe based at King’s College London, and a Fellow at the Centre on Constitutional Change at Edinburgh University, the Learned Society of Wales, and at the Academy of the Social Sciences. His expertise includes comparative territorial politics and constitutional law, public attitudes and national identity politics, social policy and the welfare state.

This is an online lecture. Please register at: events.gbz@hu-berlin.de to receive the zoom details.