Cardiff’s Common Ground Alliance turns spotlight on Labour council’s controversial planning decisions

Votes are currently being cast to decide the winner of the Cardiff ‘Calamity Cup’, a competition being organised to highlight some of the most controversial planning decisions undertaken by Cardiff’s Labour Council during its last five years in power.

Voting closes later today to decide the winner in a final face-off between plans for a Military Museum to be built in Butetown and the bulldozing of the Northern Meadows in Whitchurch for a new hospital to be built.

Organised by the Common Ground Alliance between the Green Party and Plaid Cymru in Cardiff, campaigners  describe the competition as a ‘timely reminder of some of the huge issues that have come to pass in the last five years’.

One of the organisers behind the ‘cup’, Huw Williams, said: “With the Council elections on the horizon, we felt it was timely that to remind the citizens of Cardiff of some of the huge issues that have come to pass in the last five years.

“In the build up to the pandemic there was increasing anger around a number of issues across the city, but for a number of obvious reasons the last couple of years have perhaps drawn people’s attention away from these controversies.”

“However, there’s now an opportunity for the people of Cardiff to express their opposition at the ballot box, and we want to fix firmly in people’s minds the sense of injustice, frustration and powerlessness that so many have felt over the last five years.

“Moreover, when Cardiff Labour launched what they termed their “100 achievements” through Huw Thomas’s twitter feed, we felt a pointed but irreverent response was required, that drew attention to the fact that the Council’s ‘achievements’ are dwarfed by their misdemeanours.”

Cardiff Central Bus Station

The online Cup paired together 16 of the biggest “calamities” from the capital city, drawn from this website drawing attention to a number of high profile issues over the last 5 years, from the destruction of working class heritage such as the Paddle Steamer café and Roath Park Pub, to the non-appearance of the new Cardiff Central Bus Station.

The cup has been run by the Cardiff Branch of the Wales Green Party from their twitter account as part of the new Common Ground Alliance with Plaid Cymru, and community campaigners, which is looking to promote a new politics in the capital city.

Helen Westhead, the deputy leader for the Wales Green Party who is standing for the Alliance in the local elections in May, added. “The Alliance is all about a new politics that is seeking to democratize the city and give a voice to grassroots campaigners.

“Cardiff Labour have so many atrocious decisions over the past few years and have prioritized developers over the people and the environment for too long.  It’s fitting in some sense that the two ‘finalists’ voted for by the public are related to the destruction of nature and the closing down of open green space.”

If you want to cast your vote to decide the eventual winner/loser you can do so here.

It's the 🏆#CalamityCup🏆 FINAL! The people of #Cardiff have chosen two of the Council's worst moves. But which is the greatest calamity of all? 🌳#NorthernMeadows🌳 destruction? OR the Museum of Medical Military History? Please vote and RT!

— Cardiff, Vale, and the Valleys Green Party (@cardiffgreens) April 16, 2022