Kaiesha Page

2025 was not meant to be a defining year in Welsh politics. There was no Senedd election, no dramatic constitutional moment, and little expectation of disruption. Yet events had a way of intruding. Flooding hit communities across Wales, exposing long-standing vulnerabilities in infrastructure and emergency preparedness. In Caerphilly, a by-election punctured assumptions about political certainty, drawing attention precisely because of its timing.

The cost of living crisis didn’t end in Wales. It simply slipped out of the headlines. Energy bills have stabilised but not returned to pre-crisis levels. Food prices remain stubbornly high. Rent, transport, and basic household costs continue to rise in ways that outpace wages. For many people across Wales, particularly those on fixed or low incomes, “recovery” feels like a word used by someone else. What has changed is not the pressure itself, but the public conversation around it.

A nation shaped by continuity, facing mounting pressure for change Since the dawn of devolution, Wales has remained reliably red, returning Labour governments election after election. While Scotland broke from Labour and England spent much of the past decade under Conservative rule, Welsh politics settled into a pattern of continuity that came to feel almost immovable. For some voters, that stability offered reassurance. For others, it bred complacency.