Oliver Hanlon

Gair Rhydd •

Cardiff University Concedes on Job Cuts as The UCU Vows To Continue Action - Gair Rhydd

Following six months of negotiations, the UCU have stated that Cardiff University have agreed to guarantee that there will be no compulsory redundancies for staff at the university in 2026. The university has also agreed to remove 187 academics from the scope of redundancies within the schools of MUSIC, MLANG, and SHARE. The university has also committed to no compulsory redundancies as part of the current restructuring of professional services staff, and a further commitment to offer suitable a...
Gair Rhydd •

Cardiff University Concedes on Job Cuts as The UCU Vows To Continue Action - Gair Rhydd

Following six months of negotiations, the UCU have stated that Cardiff University have agreed to guarantee that there will be no compulsory redundancies for staff at the university in 2026. The university has also agreed to remove 187 academics from the scope of redundancies within the schools of MUSIC, MLANG, and SHARE. The university has also committed to no compulsory redundancies as part of the current restructuring of professional services staff, and a further commitment to offer suitable a...
Gair Rhydd •

NUS President Slams Tuition Rise For Students in Wales - Gair Rhydd

By Oliver Hanlon


In late November, the Senedd decided that tuition fees would rise from £9,535 to £9,790 for courses beginning on or after August 1, 2026. This will see students at Welsh universities facing increasingly higher student debt, with the third increase in tuition fees since 2024, which will see tuition fees in Wales go from £9,000 in 2023 to £9,790 in September 2026. In the announcement of this increase, Vikki Howells (Labour, MS for Cynon Valley) minister for further and higher e...
Gair Rhydd •

Is Heath Park An Afterthought? - Gair Rhydd

By Oliver Hanlon

In a surprise to many at the AGM, the Students’ Union proposed and passed a change to the sabbatical officer structure that will see the VP for Heath Park axed and replaced with a VP Undergraduate Officer. Heath will be relegated to having two campaign officers, unlike a sabbatical role—campaign officers are an unpaid position, which is unlikely to work for Heath students.

This is because that portion of the student body is almost entirely composed of healthcare students, who...
Gair Rhydd •

Cardiff University Students Vote "No" to NUS Affiliation - Gair Rhydd

By Oliver Hanlon
In what was supposed to be a routine vote, members present at Cardiff University’s Student Union’s annual general meeting delivered a shock result, choosing not to renew the union’s affiliation with the NUS. 
Sabbatical officer Joshua Tandy’s argument that “we need to be in the union to change it” was ineffective to dissuade the AGM from beginning a process that could see CUSU formally disaffiliating from the NUS later this year. There will likely be another vote later this year...
Gair Rhydd •

Students' Union Finances, All is Well - Gair Rhydd

By Oliver Hanlon

In a speech to the AGM, Cardiff Student’s Union CEO Daniel Palmer delivered news that the Union’s finances were in improved shape, citing increased income and less debt as the contributing towards this.

Income showed decent improvement from 2024 figures, having risen from £12,908,971 to £14,039,688. This has allowed for more savings and enabled spending to increase to £13,108,936 from £12,835,212 in 2024. Palmer stated that expenditure had been used to fund several projects im...
Gair Rhydd •

Lindsay Whittle on his Recent By-Election Win, Reform UK, and Wales' Oldest Cat - Gair Rhydd

Image credits: Senedd Cymru / Welsh Parliament
Q: You’ve been in the local politics of Caerphilly for some time. Why did you start, and why have you continued? Was there a time in your life when you became invested in politics, or is it just in your nature?

A: I became interested in politics following the election of Gwynfor Evans in 1966, when he became the first member of Plaid Cymru elected to the House of Commons. I had an inkling that I was excited about politics when they flooded Tryweryn...