{"id":2167,"date":"2026-04-20T07:00:39","date_gmt":"2026-04-20T06:00:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/thinking-wales\/?p=2167"},"modified":"2026-04-20T12:46:44","modified_gmt":"2026-04-20T11:46:44","slug":"2026-senedd-manifesto-analysis-tax-policy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/thinking-wales\/2026-senedd-manifesto-analysis-tax-policy\/","title":{"rendered":"2026 Senedd manifesto analysis: Tax policy"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em>By Guto Ifan, Ed Gareth Poole and Owain Cynfab<\/em><\/p>\n<p>One of the principal rationales for devolving tax powers to the Welsh Government was to enable parties to offer competing levels of taxation and public spending at elections. This Senedd election offers the clearest instance yet of a meaningful divergence in tax policy options for Welsh voters.<\/p>\n<p>This blog is the first in a <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/thinking-wales\/category\/senedd-election-2026\/\">series of manifesto analyses<\/a> as part of the 2026 Scotland and Wales Elections Project, conducted in partnership with the Fraser of Allander Institute and funded by the Nuffield foundation. It summarises the main tax policies set out in party manifestos and analyses the broader fiscal implications of the proposed changes.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>Summary <\/strong><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Both <strong>Reform UK<\/strong> and the <strong>Welsh Conservatives<\/strong> propose reducing income tax. The <strong>Welsh Conservatives<\/strong> propose lowering the basic rate by 1p in the pound, while Reform UK propose a 1p in the pound reduction across all three income tax bands. Both policies would be regressive. Under <strong>Reform UK<\/strong> plans, 90% of the gains would go to households in the top half of the income distribution, with 60% of the gains going to households in the top two deciles of income.<\/li>\n<li>All parties propose reviews, reforms or specific reliefs for Non-Domestic Rates (NDR). NDR revenues have fallen by a fifth in real terms since 2019-20 and tax cuts would have an impact on resources available for public services.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Reform UK <\/strong>and the <strong>Welsh Conservatives<\/strong> propose introducing a referendum requirement for Council Tax increases of 5% or more. Meanwhile, <strong>Plaid Cymru <\/strong>and <strong>Welsh Labour <\/strong>both promise to \u201cmake Council Tax fairer\u201d. While carrying through the planned 2028 revaluation may fulfil this promise, the lack of further detail on what reforms both parties would implement is disappointing.<\/li>\n<li>We estimate total <strong>Welsh Conservative <\/strong>tax cuts could amount to approximately \u00a3705 million by 2030-31, or 2.6% of day-to-day spending. On current spending projections, this would imply no real-terms growth in day-to-day spending over the next Senedd term. <strong>Reform UK\u2019s <\/strong>explicit tax cuts could cost approximately \u00a3450 million by 2030-31. As we highlighted in a <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/thinking-wales\/2026-senedd-election-analysis-the-fiscal-outlook\/\">previous blog<\/a>, the fiscal outlook is highly uncertain and the underlying UK government spending plans and the economic forecasts will likely change substantially. But tax cuts on this scale would make deep cuts to some public services likely.<\/li>\n<li>The other parties will also hope UK government spending plans change. If they do not, then achieving manifesto commitments and avoiding cuts to public services will be difficult without some tax increases, be it through Council Tax, Non-Domestic Rates or using income tax powers. In this context, the explicit promise from <strong>Welsh Labour<\/strong> not to increase income tax rates \u2013 the most progressive tax lever available \u2013 risks tying their hands, reminiscent of UK Labour\u2019s tax pledges at the 2024 General Election.<\/li>\n<li>Overall, the tax pledges contained in the manifestos do present a meaningful choice for voters and do tell us what each party would prioritise in the balance between taxation and spending on public services.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><strong>Parties differ on using the largest devolved tax lever, the Welsh Rates of Income Tax<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Since April 2019, the Welsh Government has had the power to vary rates of income tax through the WRIT. The UK government\u2019s basic, higher and additional rates were each reduced by 10p in the pound, with the Welsh Government able to set a Wales-specific rate to replace this portion.<\/p>\n<p>In practice, this means that the Welsh Government can increase or decrease income tax rates in Wales relative the rest of the UK, but the power to alter the thresholds remains reserved to the UK government. To date, the power to change the rates has not been used.<\/p>\n<p>Both <strong>Reform UK<\/strong> and the <strong>Welsh Conservatives<\/strong> propose reducing income tax.<\/p>\n<p>The <strong>Welsh Conservatives<\/strong> propose lowering the basic rate by 1p in the pound. The latest estimates from the Welsh Government suggest this would cost \u00a3325 million in 2027-28. We project this cost would grow to \u00a3367 million by 2030-31.<a href=\"#_ftn1\" name=\"_ftnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Reform UK <\/strong>propose a 1p in the pound reduction across all three income tax bands. The manifesto promises to enact this tax cut by the end of the Senedd term; we estimate that this would cost \u00a3444 million by 2030-31.<\/p>\n<p>At lower income levels, a significant share of income is not taxed due to the personal allowance, so the rate cuts apply to a lower share of income than for higher earners. Under the <strong>Conservatives\u2019<\/strong> proposals, the biggest beneficiaries relative to income would be those with a gross income of around \u00a350,270, for whom the decrease in total tax liability as a share of income would be 0.75% (saving \u00a3377 annually).<\/p>\n<p>For <strong>Reform UK<\/strong>\u2019s policy, the decrease in total tax liability a share of income would peak at 1% for those with incomes above \u00a3125,140 (who would save \u00a31,251 a year).<\/p>\n<p>Figure 1 shows the estimated percentage change in disposable household income by income decile. <strong>Reform UK<\/strong>\u2019s policy is regressive, with a typical household in the richest 10% of households\u2019 gaining three times as much as a typical household in the 5<sup>th<\/sup> decile as a share of their income. 90% of the gains would go to households in the top half of the income distribution, with 60% going to households in the top two deciles of income.<\/p>\n<p>The Welsh Conservative\u2019s policy is also broadly regressive, but to a lesser extent; the biggest relative gains would go to households in the 8<sup>th<\/sup> decile of income, with almost half of the gains going to households in the top two deciles of income.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Figure 1: % Increase in Disposable Household Income, per decile<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<figure id=\"post-2168 media-2168\" class=\"image align-none\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/thinking-wales\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/509\/2026\/04\/Tax-Manifesto-Blog-Fig-1.png\" alt=\"\" \/><\/figure>\n<p style=\"text-align: right\"><em>Source: Authors\u2019 calculations using UKMOD<\/em><a href=\"#_ftn2\" name=\"_ftnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, the <strong>Welsh Labour<\/strong> manifesto promises not to raise the Welsh Rates of Income Tax during the next Senedd term. It should be noted that income tax bills will continue to increase for Welsh taxpayers over coming years, since the continued freeze in income tax thresholds \u2013 determined by the UK government \u2013 will lead to more income being taxed as wages and prices increase.<\/p>\n<p>Labour also promise to \u201ccarefully explore\u201d the case for expanding Wales\u2019 income tax powers. Similarly, the <strong>Liberal Democrats<\/strong> call for full powers to change income tax rates and thresholds in line with Scotland, while <strong>Plaid Cymru<\/strong> want the ability to set income tax bands, in order to \u201cmake income tax fairer and more progressive\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Such powers over income tax thresholds would make the devolved taxes significantly more usable for those wanting to increase taxes \u2013 for example, enabling the protection of lower income households from broad income tax rises, as seen in Scotland. However, it should be noted that the current powers over income tax rates do allow increasing the size of the Welsh budget in a very progressive way.<\/p>\n<p>Only the <strong>Liberal Democrats<\/strong> explicitly mention the possibility of increasing income tax rates, proposing a 1p in the pound increase across all bands for an \u201cemergency period\u201d if \u201cWestminster fails to reform Wales\u2019 funding formula\u201d. This pledge acknowledges both the current tight fiscal outlook and the uncertainty in funding the next Welsh Government will face.<\/p>\n<p>However, depending on the methodology used, Wales is broadly funded in line with or above the estimate of relative need produced by the Holtham Commission back in 2010. As such, any reform of the Barnett formula would not necessarily lead to more resources for the Welsh Government.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>All parties promise some tax reforms and reliefs for Welsh businesses<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Non-Domestic Rates (NDR), or business rates, are a key source of funding for local government budgets, worth over \u00a31.1 billion in 2026-27. Businesses pay NDR based on the rateable value of the property and the relevant multiplier, which is set nationally. There are various relief applied to specific property types and sectors.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Reform UK<\/strong>, the <strong>Welsh Conservatives<\/strong>, <strong>Plaid Cymru<\/strong> and the <strong>Liberal Democrats<\/strong> all propose targeted support towards specific sectors\/property types. <strong>Reform UK<\/strong> pledge to lower rates for pubs, hotels and hospitality venues to align with the rates in the rest of the UK. The <strong>Conservatives <\/strong>say they would completely scrap business rates for small firms, pubs, post offices, grassroots art and music venues, and small cinemas and theatres.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Plaid Cymru<\/strong> say that they would reform business rates to help high street businesses in hospitality, leisure and retail, though their manifesto does not give details on the exact changes they would enact.<\/p>\n<p>The <strong>Liberal Democrats<\/strong> commit to \u201cpermanently extending business rates relief on the retail, leisure and hospitality sectors\u201d though it is unclear what this means in practice. Smaller retail properties now already benefit from a lower multiplier. Therefore, the proposal could simply mean maintaining the existing structure for retail and extending it to the hospitality and leisure sectors. Alternatively, they may be referring to the temporary 40% relief provided in recent years. If so, it is unclear whether this would be applied as an additional discount on top of the current system, or whether they propose reverting to the previous system (a single multiplier rate applied to all businesses) under which the relief was delivered. The cost of a 40% relief was \u00a378m in 2025-26, but if it were to be applied on top of the current structure, the cost would be considerably lower.<a href=\"#_ftn3\" name=\"_ftnref3\">[3]<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Based on available data on the NDR tax base, we estimate the cost of <strong>Reform UK<\/strong>\u2019s proposed policy would be approximately \u00a310 million, whilst the <strong>Conservatives<\/strong> policy would cost roughly \u00a353 million<a href=\"#_ftn4\" name=\"_ftnref4\">[4]<\/a> \u2013 though it should be noted that these estimates come with a significant degree of uncertainty due to the nature of available Valuation Office Agency data.<\/p>\n<p>These reliefs would be welcomed by the targeted businesses and sectors. However, permanent reliefs and support of this kind would increase demand for a relatively fixed supply of commercial properties, increasing rents paid by businesses. This implies that the benefits may eventually go to landlords rather than the businesses leasing their properties.<\/p>\n<p>Both <strong>Welsh Labour <\/strong>and <strong>Reform UK<\/strong> promise a \u201croot and branch review\u201d of business rates. Labour want \u201cto make it fairer for all\u201d, while Reform UK would want to reduce \u201creliance\u201d on the tax. The <strong>Green Party <\/strong>propose reforming business rates to create a \u201cfairer and more progressive structure\u201d in the short term, with a longer-term aspiration of replacing it with a Land Value Tax (discussed below).<\/p>\n<p>On this point, it should be noted that NDR revenues have fallen significantly in real terms since before the pandemic, with revenues in 2026-27 falling by a fifth from 2019-20 levels in real terms. Although this reflects additional funding from UK government from its business rates policies in England, this real terms reduction has had a meaningful impact on the resources available for spending on public services in Wales.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>What to do about Council Tax? <\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>One of the big divergences in fiscal policy between Wales and other countries of the UK has been the <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/thinking-wales\/we-need-to-talk-about-council-tax-the-regressive-welsh-way-of-raising-taxes\/\">faster rise in Council Tax<\/a> bills. Average annual increases have averaged 5% since 1999, compared to 4% in England and just 2% in Scotland. These increases offset austerity for local services, but did so in a fundamentally regressive way.<\/p>\n<p>Both <strong>Reform UK<\/strong> and the <strong>Welsh Conservatives<\/strong> propose requiring referendums for Council Tax increases of 5% or more. In 2026-27, 16 out of 22 local authorities have increased Council Tax by more than this threshold, while all 22 local authorities did so in the two preceding years. Given the <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/thinking-wales\/2026-senedd-election-analysis-the-fiscal-outlook\/\">current fiscal outlook<\/a>, a cap of 5% would likely represent a binding constraint for most local authorities over the course of the Senedd term (though bill increases have tended to be lower when local elections are held). In the absence of successful referendums, a cap may require more funding from the Welsh Government or cuts to local services. Since this is a nominal terms cap, the real terms effect of the policy will also depend on how inflation changes over coming years.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Figure 2: Annual Band D Council Tax (nominal terms) changes by local authority<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<figure id=\"post-2168 media-2168\" class=\"image align-none\">\n<figure id=\"post-2169 media-2169\" class=\"image align-none\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/thinking-wales\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/509\/2026\/04\/Tax-Manifesto-Blog-Fig-2.png\" alt=\"\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n<p style=\"text-align: right\"><em>Source: Author\u2019s calculations based on Council tax levels by billing authority, <\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/stats.gov.wales\/en-GB\/1988b6af-2a9c-43b6-8939-83e6cceb3903\/data#dataset-nav\"><em>StatsWales<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Both <strong>Plaid Cymru <\/strong>and <strong>Welsh Labour<\/strong> manifestos pledge to \u201cmake council tax fairer\u201d. A long-overdue revaluation is set to take place in 2028. A simple revaluation without further reforms, however \u2013 while hugely welcome \u2013 would not represent a much more progressive system. Further rapid increases in Council Tax levels would still take disproportionately more from lower income households.<\/p>\n<p>The lack of further detail on what reforms both parties would implement at the revaluation is therefore disappointing. <strong>Plaid Cymru<\/strong>\u2019s 2021 manifesto, for example, promised to increase the number of bands at the higher end of house valuations and ensuring the tax was more proportional to the value of properties.<\/p>\n<p>As with Non-Domestic Rates, the <strong>Green Party <\/strong>propose replacing council tax with a Land Value Tax, claiming this would mean \u201cthe average household pays less while owners of the most valuable properties contribute more\u201d, suggesting a more progressive structure than Council Tax. There are numerous theoretical advantages to taxation based on land values, in terms of efficiency and equity. There are, however, key administrative, institutional and data hurdles which means implementation would likely take some time.<a href=\"#_ftn5\" name=\"_ftnref5\">[5]<\/a><\/p>\n<h3><strong>What about other taxes? <\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>The <strong>Welsh Conservatives <\/strong>promise to abolish the Land Transaction Tax paid on main residential properties. We estimate the \u2018static\u2019 cost of this policy would amount to approximately \u00a3213 million in 2027-28, growing to \u00a3277 million by 2030-31, though underlying forecasts are likely to change significantly given the likely impact of recent events on the housing market.<a href=\"#_ftn6\" name=\"_ftnref6\">[6]<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Given the existing tax discourages mutually beneficial transactions and household mobility, such a policy would improve the efficiency of the housing market. Increased demand from first time buyers and those moving homes would push up demand and property prices. In the absence of reforming annual property taxes (such as introducing a more progressive Council Tax system), existing owners of properties worth over \u00a3225,000 would arguably be the main beneficiaries of the policy.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Plaid Cymru<\/strong>, <strong>Welsh Labour<\/strong> and the <strong>Green Party <\/strong>all commit to introducing a Vacant Land Tax. The aim of such a tax would be to prevent land-banking and encourage development of residential and business properties. The 2014 Wales Act created the framework for the Welsh Government to introduce new taxes, but only with the consent of the UK government. After years of attempts to gain that consent, an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.wales\/written-statement-agreement-consult-devolution-powers-vacant-land-tax-wales\">agreement<\/a> was reached in February to a joint consultation (though with HM Treasury controlling the timing and process).<\/p>\n<p>The <strong>Welsh Conservatives <\/strong>and <strong>Reform UK <\/strong>both pledge to remove the powers for local authorities to apply a Visitor Levy in their areas \u2013 a \u00a31.30 per person, per night charge for overnight stays in tourist accommodation (currently set to be in place by 2027 if local authorities wish to introduce it).<\/p>\n<h3><strong>A meaningful choice for Welsh voters?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>What about the overall fiscal implications of the parties\u2019 proposed tax policies?<\/p>\n<p>The explicit tax cuts proposed by the <strong>Conservatives<\/strong> and <strong>Reform UK<\/strong> would have a significant impact on day-to-day spending, in the context of an already tight budget outlook.<\/p>\n<p>We estimate that together, the <strong>Conservative <\/strong>tax cuts could amount to approximately <strong>\u00a3705 million<\/strong> <strong>by 2030-31<\/strong>, or 2.6% of day-to-day spending.<\/p>\n<p>On current spending projections, this would imply no real-terms growth in day-to-day spending from 2026-27 to 2030-31. The manifesto also promises to \u201cincrease spending on health and social care in real terms in each and every year of the next Senedd term\u201d \u2013 this would therefore need to be matched by equivalent real terms cuts to other spending areas. As we\u2019ll explore in our next blog, the manifesto also contains significant non-NHS spending commitments too.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Reform UK<\/strong>\u2019s explicit tax cuts are on a smaller scale but could still cost approximately <strong>\u00a3450 million by 2030-31<\/strong>, or 1.7% of day-to-day spending. Real terms growth in day-to-day spending would average just 0.2% per year from 2026-27 to 2030-31. If NHS spending continues to grow in real terms \u2013 as is implied by manifesto commitments \u2013 the tax cuts would equate to cutting 4% of non-NHS spending.<\/p>\n<p>As we highlighted in a <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/thinking-wales\/2026-senedd-election-analysis-the-fiscal-outlook\/\">previous blog<\/a>, the fiscal outlook is highly uncertain and the underlying UK government spending plans and the economic forecasts will likely change substantially. But tax cuts on this scale would make deep cuts to some public services likely.<\/p>\n<p>As for the other parties, they will also hope that UK government spending plans change, and that the likely increase in inflation this year is offset by more funding. If they do not, then achieving manifesto commitments and avoiding cuts to public services will be difficult without tax increases \u2013 be it through local authorities increasing Council Tax, allowing Non-Domestic Rates to rise or through using income tax powers. In this context, the explicit promise from <strong>Welsh Labour<\/strong> not to increase income tax rates \u2013 the most progressive tax lever available \u2013 risks tying their hands, in a way reminiscent of UK Labour\u2019s tax pledges at the 2024 General Election.<\/p>\n<p>Overall, the tax pledges contained in the manifestos do present a meaningful choice for voters. Amidst <a href=\"https:\/\/ifs.org.uk\/welsh-election-2026\">valid questions<\/a> on the feasibility of delivering manifesto plans and the huge uncertainty in the fiscal outlook, these tax promises do tell us what each party would prioritise in the balance between taxation and spending on public services.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>****<\/p>\n<p>This work is supported by the Nuffield Foundation.\u00a0The Nuffield Foundation is an independent charitable trust with a mission to advance social well-being. It funds and undertakes rigorous research, encourages innovation and supports the use of sound evidence to inform social and economic policy, and improve people\u2019s lives. The Nuffield Foundation is the founder and co-funder of the Nuffield Council on Bioethics, the Ada Lovelace Institute and the Nuffield Family Justice Observatory. Find out more at:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/eur02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nuffieldfoundation.org%2F&amp;data=05%7C02%7Cjoao.sousa%40strath.ac.uk%7Cc33ca2ffb3614295ebda08de6e364e17%7C631e0763153347eba5cd0457bee5944e%7C0%7C0%7C639069377218646114%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=ary1rAoeA%2FGj47uyuAL1HqPJMUyzAphnuB8f9gnuR4I%3D&amp;reserved=0\">nuffieldfoundation.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The views expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the Foundation.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref1\" name=\"_ftn1\">[1]<\/a> This projection uses the <a href=\"https:\/\/obr.uk\/efo\/economic-and-fiscal-outlook-march-2026\/\">latest forecast<\/a> for devolved income tax revenues from the Office for Budget Responsibility and assumes a proportionally similar behavioural response to the Welsh Government\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.wales\/sites\/default\/files\/publications\/2026-01\/welsh-rates-of-income-tax-ready-reckoner-2026-to-2027.pdf\">Income Tax Ready Reckoner<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref2\" name=\"_ftn2\">[2]<\/a> T<em>he results presented here are based on <\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.microsimulation.ac.uk\/ukmod\/ukmod-explore\/\"><em>UKMOD Explore<\/em><\/a><em>. UKMOD is maintained, developed and managed by the Centre for Microsimulation and Policy Analysis (CeMPA) at the University of Essex. The process of extending and updating UKMOD was financially supported by the Nuffield Foundation (2018-2021) and the abrdn Financial Fairness Trust (2023-2024). The results and their interpretation are the author\u2019s sole responsibility.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref3\" name=\"_ftn3\">[3]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.wales\/written-statement-non-domestic-rates-support-2025-26\">Written Statement: Non-domestic rates support in 2025-26 (10 December 2024) | GOV.WALES<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref4\" name=\"_ftn4\">[4]<\/a> Crucially, we have taken the <strong>Conservatives<\/strong> policy to scrap business rates for small firms as meaning all businesses with properties with a rateable value of under the current \u00a312,000 threshold for Small Business Rates Relief would not pay any business rates. This would, however, create a notable cliff-edge at the \u00a312,000 threshold. If reliefs were tapered for businesses over this threshold, then the cost of the policy would increase.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref5\" name=\"_ftn5\">[5]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.wales\/local-land-value-tax-technical-assessment\">Local land value tax: technical assessment | GOV.WALES<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref6\" name=\"_ftn6\">[6]<\/a> The Office for Budget Responsibility publishes forecasts for residential LTT excluding additional properties, but this also includes \u2018main rate\u2019 taxes paid on purchases of second homes and rental properties. We assume this proportion of the forecasted revenues remains constant from recent outturn data. We also do not account for any positive effect on revenues from likely increases in property prices.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By Guto Ifan, Ed Gareth Poole and Owain Cynfab One of the principal rationales for devolving tax powers to the Welsh Government was to enable parties to offer competing levels [&hellip;]","protected":false},"author":1297,"featured_media":2138,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[60,172],"tags":[34],"class_list":["post-2167","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-finance","category-senedd-election-2026","tag-elections"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8iFWs-yX","meta_box":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/thinking-wales\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/509\/2026\/03\/Senedd_building_Cardiff_Bay_2-scaled.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/thinking-wales\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2167","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/thinking-wales\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/thinking-wales\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/thinking-wales\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1297"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/thinking-wales\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2167"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/thinking-wales\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2167\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2174,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/thinking-wales\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2167\/revisions\/2174"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/thinking-wales\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2138"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/thinking-wales\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2167"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/thinking-wales\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2167"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/thinking-wales\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2167"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}