Most Welsh voters have a shaky knowledge over who runs what in Wales
Martin Shipton
With just over two months until the Senedd election, a new Cardiff University/YouGov survey has revealed widespread public confusion about the responsibilities of the Welsh Government, with many people misidentifying who is accountable for key policy decisions.
The representative poll further discovered low public awareness of Welsh party leaders and the Senedd’s new voting system, with many people heavily reliant on UK-wide news.
Since UK-wide media or English produced news often has limited coverage of Welsh politics, its leaders and whether an issue is devolved or reserved to Westminster, this new research raises important and urgent questions about enhancing public knowledge ahead of May’s Senedd election.
The survey of 1,544 of people in Wales carried out between February 12 and 24 2026 found striking gaps in knowledge about key issues:
Policing: Most people were wrong or didn’t know (69%) who is responsible for policing, with 45% mistakenly attributing it to the Welsh Government, while only 31% correctly identifying Westminster as holding this power.
Broadcasting: A majority (58%) misidentified or do not know who oversees broadcasting, including a quarter who incorrectly thought it was the responsibility of the Welsh Government, while just 42% correctly said it was the responsibility of Westminster.
Economic development: Roughly half – 51% – of people did not know or were unclear over who was responsible for economic development (51%), with 30% incorrectly assigning economic development to Westminster, while 49% accurately named the Welsh Government.
Social care delivery: Public understanding was weakest on social care delivery, with 81% answering incorrectly or saying they did not know who was responsible, including 56% who assumed it was a Welsh Government and 8% who said Westminster, with only 19% correcting saying it was local councils.
The survey further found greater public understanding of high profile issues, but still found close to third (between 29% and 35%) of the public lacked knowledge in key areas:
Immigration: A clear majority (71%) of people correctly said that immigration was the responsibility of the Westminster Government, while 29% were incorrect or didn’t know, including 13% who said the Welsh Government.
Education: Seven in ten respondents correctly said that education was the responsibility of the Welsh Government, while 30% were incorrect or didn’t know, including 12% who stated Westminster.
Health and social care: A clear majority (69%) of people knew that health and social care was the responsibility of the Welsh Government, while 32% were incorrect or didn’t know, including 13% who thought Westminster.
Transport: Almost two thirds of respondents (65%) correctly said that transport is the responsibility of the Welsh Government, while 35% were incorrect or didn’t know, including 14% who said Westminster.
Overall, 70% of respondents identified the government responsible for at least half (4) of the areas correctly, though only 1% were able to correctly identify all of them.
Knowledge of party political leaders
Welsh Labour – Eluned Morgan: Eluned Morgan is known to 62% of the public, while a further 17% say they have heard of her but cannot confidently identify who she is and 21% have not heard of the Welsh Labour leader at all. This is a substantial rise compared to a YouGov poll in 2023, when she was Minister for Health and Social Services, in which only 31% had heard of her and knew who she was, with a further 23% saying they had heard of her.
Plaid Cymru – Rhun ap Iorwerth: Just under half (47%) recognised Rhun ap Iorwerth and knew who he is, with another 17% unsure despite having heard his name and 36% saying they have never heard of Plaid Cymru’s leader.
Reform in Wales – Dan Thomas: Only 10% said they knew who Dan Thomas was, with 13% recognising the name but unable to place him, and 77% admitting they have not heard of Reform’s new leader in Wales.
Reform UK – Nigel Farage: Nigel Farage has near‑universal name recognition, with 94% correctly identifying him, only 5% having heard of him without being sure who he was and just 1% saying they have not heard of the Reform UK leader.
Welsh Liberal Democrats – Jane Dodds: Jane Dodds was recognised by 18% of people, with a further 27% staying they have heard of her but were unsure who she was and 55% who said they do not know the Welsh Liberal Democrat leader.
Welsh Conservatives – Darren Millar: Darren Millar was known by 21% of respondents, while 18% have heard of him but cannot identify him, and 61% have never heard of the Welsh Conservative leader.
Wales Green Party – Anthony Slaughter: Awareness of Anthony Slaughter was very limited, with only 4% saying they knew who he was, 15% who have heard the name but cannot place him and 81% said they have not heard of the Wales Green Party leader.
Knowledge of the voting system for the May 2026 Senedd election
When asked about the voting system that will be used for May’s 2026 Senedd election, only 7% correctly identified the new Closed List system, while 18% believed it would be First Past the Post, 13% thought it would use the Additional Member System, 4% selected the Single Transferable Vote and a majority (58%) said they didn’t know.
Knowledge of UK politics from media examples
When shown an excerpt of a BBC news story headlined “Doctor strike during flu outbreak would be ‘reckless’, says Starmer” from December 2025 and asked where it applied, almost half of respondents (48%) incorrectly believed it referred to doctors across the UK, while only 41% correctly recognised that it applied solely to doctors in England, and a further 11% said they did not know. In other words, a majority of people (59%) did not know the story related to junior doctors striking in England only, or were wrong.
In another simulation to explore how people interpreted news reporting, respondents were shown two posts on X about housing (headlined “Government set to miss 1.5m target, housebuilders warn”) and fracking (headlined “‘We sent those frackers packing. I say let’s ban fracking and vow to send this bunch of frackers packing too’. Energy Secretary Ed Milliband takes aim at Reform’s environmental policies”).
They were then asked to tick which political institution had responsibilities over these issues (either the Westminster government, the Welsh government, local councils or the European Union). Just 2% correctly identified both the Westminster government and the Welsh government as being responsible for both issues, with 92% not getting either question correct.
Both these policies have been devolved to the Welsh government, which means UK government ministers make decisions about housing and fracking for England. Since both posts did not explicitly state which government was being referred to, it was perhaps understandable that so many respondents did not realise housing and fracking are the responsibility of the UK Government and the Welsh Government.
In the X post about housing, a majority of respondents attributed responsibility to Westminster (59%), with far fewer naming the Welsh Government (15%). Around a third (34%) said they didn’t know, while 13% thought local councils and 1% thought it was the responsibility of the European Union. Only 5% selected the correct combination of The Westminster Government and the Welsh Government.
In the X post about fracking, a majority of respondents once again attributed responsibility to Westminster (62%), with under one in ten identifying the Welsh Government (9%). A third (33%) said they didn’t know, while 6% attributed responsibility to local councils and 2% to the European Union. Only 3% selected the correct combination of the Westminster Government and the Welsh Government.
Unsure
Professor Stephen Cushion of Cardiff University said: “The survey revealed that large numbers of voters remain unsure about who controlled key areas of public policy, and that many rely on UK‑wide news that does not regularly a story’s relevance to England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. During the devolved election campaigns, clarity in reporting will be essential, as voters in Wales will be relying heavily on UK‑produced broadcast, online and social media news to make sense of and understand the promises made by political parties.
“Ensuring that news stories accurately label devolved and reserved powers will help the public understand and make an informed decision about how Wales will be governed in future years.”
The research was funded by the Welsh Government via Creative Wales.
Support our Nation today
For the price of a cup of coffee a month you can help us create an independent, not-for-profit, national news service for the people of Wales, by the people of Wales.
This article illustrates the benfites of federalism. If all devolved governments had the same powers it would be easier for people to understand who is responsible for what.
It would still necessitate media cooperation. For instance, the BBC main UK news not covering UK government policy that only affects England. Leaving that for the local news segment.
This federaliseation would really be the UK’s last chance to save itself.
To have any effect it must be done now and implemented within the next couple of years,
However, it may be too late even now for most of the damage has already been done to the peoples of those countries,
Perhaps, the natural progression will be is for the 4 nations to be independent within the greater European Union.
Wales voted to leave the EU. Hardly a good starting point for your project, is it?
Not surpring when you read some of the comments sections.
It’s a scarily low amount of people that have never even looked at their candidates voting history to give them a guide to reality. Everyone can make promises, but voting history gives the facts.
The economy in Wales isn’t devolved in any meaningful way with all macroeconomic levers and about 70-80% of fiscal control remaining with Westminster. The limited powers that are available were further restricted by Boris Johnson with his insidious Internal Market and Subsidy Control Acts as demonstrated by ongoing attempts to block development of critical economic infrastructure. Pretending that Wales could’ve been rich by now without a serious partner in Westminster, but Cardiff Bay blocked it, is the go-to of the abolishers.
About 35-40% of money spent in Wales is ‘westminster controlled.’ This is almost entirely made up of pensions/benefits.
80% of your taxes go to London.
How can fiscal control be otherwise as long as Wales uses the pound and the Bank of England as lender of last resort?
The assertions on federalism are about as reliable as those made about independence. The questions in the survey are fair, but the conclusions that federalism or independence are the answers are kite-flying. It has been the same with devolution, or privatisation, neither of which has brought benefits to the people, except for a few in high places. Beware of politicians bringing gifts.
So just accept the status quo and don’t bother complaining. Are you Boris Johnson?
Of course, we can complain, as I am now. If we have a change, it shouldn’t be a leap in the dark, as often happens. Let’s have a depth of argument, not sound bites. The onus is on the proposer to defend their plan.
Decentralised economies outperform centralised economies in terms of long-term growth, innovation adaptability and resilience. That’s not controversial. If you’re not happy with the status quo the only debate that matters is which decentralised system is better.
What would a follow-up question to this survey asking: what are positions of the parties on devolved policy areas, reveal? The referendum in 1997 may have created an institution in Cardiff Bay, but has been less successful at repatriating politics from Westminster to Wales. Would it be helpful if a single leaflet were to be distributed to every household on which the parties and independents were required to state in ~200 words their policies in regards the devolved competences together with a short statement of why you should vote for their party or them personally if an independent.
Far better would be the development of a home-grown Welsh media that is run from Wales, putting Wales front and centre.
As it is Wales has to rely on either the Daily Post or the Western Mail in terms of tradional print media, and the new output of BBC Wales and ITV Wales, neither of which are exaclty mainstrem viewing. Apart from those, there are the brave attempts of the independent sector such as this site which provides an essential service in mainstreaming Welsh news and current affairs.
The lack of a distinct Welsh media exacerbates the democratic defecit.
I dare say it isn’t unique to Welsh politics. Look at the dimness of the Brexit debate. There is a lack of political understanding or education in the UK. This site seems to focus on results of polls and not policies. A home grown media isn’t going to change this
It’s been 26 years since the Senedd first sat, and yet all these years later, a section of the Welsh public is still unsure who controls what. It’s simply not good enough. Obviously, any failure lies with Welsh Labour, given that health is devolved — but, to be fair, it’s difficult to get your message across when another country controls broadcasting. Ironically, during the Covid pandemic, when our First Minister and Welsh Health Secretary were announcing Wales’s Covid response — rather than Boris Johnson’s idiocracy in London — the profile and awareness of the Senedd’s responsibility for health rose significantly.… Read more »
What gives you the idea that any government controls the media here or anywhere in the UK? Unless you can prove otherwise, we don’t have State media.
What is the ‘English Conservative government? Are there no Welsh members of their Parliament?
What was the good news about Covid that you refer to?