Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 30, 2020 11:28:12 GMT
It is awful isn't it? Was supposed to cost £11m ended up costing £69m and was unbelievably praised by AM after AM and assorted Nat's in endless sycophantic statements which clearly failed to acknowledge the irony ( disgrace) of the massive overspend and lack of value for money that just about sums up the whole organisation in a nutshell. Just imagine if a boss in a private firm appointed an employee as project manager of a scheme that came in even half over budget never mind 6 times over budget. The employee would be down the job centre before their feet could touch the ground, different rules for the Welsh Assembly of course. The finished building is indeed totally soulless, consisting inside of a number of bleak featureless grim meeting rooms replete in oversized portakabin 1990s scuffed drab decor. The building leaked like a sieve for a number of years after completion ( no idea if all the leaks were ever sorted out ) and the only interesting feature, the wood funnel thing and the rest of the decorative wooden roof has been looking decidedly washed out and needing revarnishing for quite some time now very much like those greying washed out unseasoned wood cladding facings on flat complexes and other buildings all over the UK. I expect the next announcement to be £millions to be spent refurbing the wood roof thingy. The slate frontage steps and low walls immediately in front of the building also look terribly washed out and unattractive and have aged very quickly into a drab unattractive mottled light grey depressing first impression instead of weathering into an attractive patina. The ultimate irony is that the shoddy glass greenhouse design was described as representing .......Openess and transparancy.........this in regards to an organisation which has turned down FOI request after FOI request like no other over the years. This edifice to incompetence and inefficiency is almost beyond parody. Looks half finished and sounds to be plagued by the same problems as the similarly soulless and grim Holyrood. the Old Royal High School should have been used as the Scottish Parliament building. I know nothing of Cardiff, but I daresay a better location than this abomination could have been found for the assembly.
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Post by Arthur Figgis on Jan 30, 2020 14:37:12 GMT
It is awful isn't it? Was supposed to cost £11m ended up costing £69m and was unbelievably praised by AM after AM and assorted Nat's in endless sycophantic statements which clearly failed to acknowledge the irony ( disgrace) of the massive overspend and lack of value for money that just about sums up the whole organisation in a nutshell. Just imagine if a boss in a private firm appointed an employee as project manager of a scheme that came in even half over budget never mind 6 times over budget. The employee would be down the job centre before their feet could touch the ground, different rules for the Welsh Assembly of course. The finished building is indeed totally soulless, consisting inside of a number of bleak featureless grim meeting rooms replete in oversized portakabin 1990s scuffed drab decor. The building leaked like a sieve for a number of years after completion ( no idea if all the leaks were ever sorted out ) and the only interesting feature, the wood funnel thing and the rest of the decorative wooden roof has been looking decidedly washed out and needing revarnishing for quite some time now very much like those greying washed out unseasoned wood cladding facings on flat complexes and other buildings all over the UK. I expect the next announcement to be £millions to be spent refurbing the wood roof thingy. The slate frontage steps and low walls immediately in front of the building also look terribly washed out and unattractive and have aged very quickly into a drab unattractive mottled light grey depressing first impression instead of weathering into an attractive patina. The ultimate irony is that the shoddy glass greenhouse design was described as representing .......Openess and transparancy.........this in regards to an organisation which has turned down FOI request after FOI request like no other over the years. This edifice to incompetence and inefficiency is almost beyond parody. Maybe that was a misunderstanding of the brief to include lots of leeks in the design, to emphasise its Welshness?
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cibwr
Plaid Cymru
Posts: 3,558
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Post by cibwr on Feb 1, 2020 13:06:12 GMT
I disagree, its not a good picture the roof is fantastic, far better pictures available, its a very unflattering angle. The building is beautiful and functional. The location in the heart of the docks was a vote for the regeneration of the area. Mind you is Russell Goodwage hadn't have been greedy it would have been in City Hall.
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Post by LDCaerdydd on Feb 1, 2020 15:36:16 GMT
In real life the Assembly is better than that photo, but it’s nothing to take a photo of/send a postcard home etc. This is especially true if you visit Cardiff Bay in the winter or worse still a winter’s evening.
Standing inside/up front admiring the view in the summer is lovely, but in the winter it’s grim and miserable. I find it utterly bizarre that the Wales Millennium Centre was built so close as it completely overshadows the place and is far more interesting to look at.
There was the option of Cardiff a Council selling City Hall to house the Assembly from day one, but Rt Hon Cllr Russell Goodway AMs his ego vetoed that.
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Post by 🏴☠️ Neath West 🏴☠️ on Feb 1, 2020 18:24:37 GMT
It is awful isn't it? Was supposed to cost £11m ended up costing £69m and was unbelievably praised by AM after AM and assorted Nat's in endless sycophantic statements which clearly failed to acknowledge the irony ( disgrace) of the massive overspend and lack of value for money that just about sums up the whole organisation in a nutshell. Just imagine if a boss in a private firm appointed an employee as project manager of a scheme that came in even half over budget never mind 6 times over budget. The employee would be down the job centre before their feet could touch the ground, different rules for the Welsh Assembly of course. The finished building is indeed totally soulless, consisting inside of a number of bleak featureless grim meeting rooms replete in oversized portakabin 1990s scuffed drab decor. The building leaked like a sieve for a number of years after completion ( no idea if all the leaks were ever sorted out ) and the only interesting feature, the wood funnel thing and the rest of the decorative wooden roof has been looking decidedly washed out and needing revarnishing for quite some time now very much like those greying washed out unseasoned wood cladding facings on flat complexes and other buildings all over the UK. I expect the next announcement to be £millions to be spent refurbing the wood roof thingy. The slate frontage steps and low walls immediately in front of the building also look terribly washed out and unattractive and have aged very quickly into a drab unattractive mottled light grey depressing first impression instead of weathering into an attractive patina. The ultimate irony is that the shoddy glass greenhouse design was described as representing .......Openess and transparancy.........this in regards to an organisation which has turned down FOI request after FOI request like no other over the years. This edifice to incompetence and inefficiency is almost beyond parody. I suggest we disband the Welsh Assembly and bulldoze the building to create a Park. Better still, convert it into a Wetherspoons pub.
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cibwr
Plaid Cymru
Posts: 3,558
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Post by cibwr on Feb 2, 2020 9:37:10 GMT
In real life the Assembly is better than that photo, but it’s nothing to take a photo of/send a postcard home etc. This is especially true if you visit Cardiff Bay in the winter or worse still a winter’s evening. Standing inside/up front admiring the view in the summer is lovely, but in the winter it’s grim and miserable. I find it utterly bizarre that the Wales Millennium Centre was built so close as it completely overshadows the place and is far more interesting to look at. There was the option of Cardiff a Council selling City Hall to house the Assembly from day one, but Rt Hon Cllr Russell Goodway AMs his ego vetoed that. I rather like the building, the view over the bay is great, the coffee is relatively cheep and even on a winter's day its pleasant place to be. I think most buildings are miserable in driving rain! As for the cost, replacing the self cleaning glass with more secure glass due to security (bomb resistant!) - which wasn't a consideration originally drove the cost up. The over all cost includes the cost of fitting it out, including the technology, which wasn't in the original 11 million figure. Compared to several billion for refurbishing the Palace of Westminster its a drop in the ocean. The roof is spectacular. The leaks are a thing of the past, and all new buildings have such teething issues. The chamber works very well, again unlike the Commons and the Lords! Lets face it much of the opposition to the Senedd isn't about the building but the institution. And some of those opposed would even abolish the post of SoS for Wales and abolish Wales full stop.
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carlton43
Non-Aligned
Posts: 48,510
Member is Online
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Post by carlton43 on Feb 2, 2020 9:44:40 GMT
In real life the Assembly is better than that photo, but it’s nothing to take a photo of/send a postcard home etc. This is especially true if you visit Cardiff Bay in the winter or worse still a winter’s evening. Standing inside/up front admiring the view in the summer is lovely, but in the winter it’s grim and miserable. I find it utterly bizarre that the Wales Millennium Centre was built so close as it completely overshadows the place and is far more interesting to look at. There was the option of Cardiff a Council selling City Hall to house the Assembly from day one, but Rt Hon Cllr Russell Goodway AMs his ego vetoed that. I rather like the building, the view over the bay is great, the coffee is relatively cheep and even on a winter's day its pleasant place to be. I think most buildings are miserable in driving rain! As for the cost, replacing the self cleaning glass with more secure glass due to security (bomb resistant!) - which wasn't a consideration originally drove the cost up. The over all cost includes the cost of fitting it out, including the technology, which wasn't in the original 11 million figure. Compared to several billion for refurbishing the Palace of Westminster its a drop in the ocean. The roof is spectacular. The leaks are a thing of the past, and all new buildings have such teething issues. The chamber works very well, again unlike the Commons and the Lords! Lets face it much of the opposition to the Senedd isn't about the building but the institution. And some of those opposed would even abolish the post of SoS for Wales and abolish Wales full stop. It is a dreadful building that looks awful but there is truth in your final paragraph. My solution would be to form three separate countries after England absorbs Flint, Denbigh, Brecon, Radnor, Montgomery,Monmouth and Pembroke. The remains to form Tough Wales, Daft Wales and Odd Wales.
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Post by 🏴☠️ Neath West 🏴☠️ on Feb 2, 2020 10:58:01 GMT
I rather like the building, the view over the bay is great, the coffee is relatively cheep and even on a winter's day its pleasant place to be. All it needs is cheap beer and food and it would be an excellent budget pub... It really doesn't. It's basically a cramped committee room. That it's an improvement on the previous one (which resembled a lecture theatre) doesn't mean it's any good. The institution certainly needs reform so that it can better focus on tasks that would be more appropriately done on an all-Wales level. Part of that reform should be moving it out of Cardiff. Nice try at a straw man, but the only people who have called for the abolition of the Secretary of State for Wales are Lord Elis-Thomas and Plaid Cymru (although they seem now to have deleted that view).
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cibwr
Plaid Cymru
Posts: 3,558
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Post by cibwr on Feb 2, 2020 12:12:31 GMT
This is really off topic for polls, and I suppose I shouldn't feed the trolls, but there is nothing wrong with the chamber, it seats all members and there is plenty of room. Everyone can see each other and the acoustics are good.
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Post by finsobruce on Feb 2, 2020 19:35:33 GMT
I rather like the building, the view over the bay is great, the coffee is relatively cheep and even on a winter's day its pleasant place to be. I think most buildings are miserable in driving rain! As for the cost, replacing the self cleaning glass with more secure glass due to security (bomb resistant!) - which wasn't a consideration originally drove the cost up. The over all cost includes the cost of fitting it out, including the technology, which wasn't in the original 11 million figure. Compared to several billion for refurbishing the Palace of Westminster its a drop in the ocean. The roof is spectacular. The leaks are a thing of the past, and all new buildings have such teething issues. The chamber works very well, again unlike the Commons and the Lords! Lets face it much of the opposition to the Senedd isn't about the building but the institution. And some of those opposed would even abolish the post of SoS for Wales and abolish Wales full stop. It is a dreadful building that looks awful but there is truth in your final paragraph. My solution would be to form three separate countries after England absorbs Flint, Denbigh, Brecon, Radnor, Montgomery,Monmouth and Pembroke. The remains to form Tough Wales, Daft Wales and Odd Wales. The really good bits could be Killer Wales.
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Post by yellowperil on Feb 2, 2020 21:18:55 GMT
It is a dreadful building that looks awful but there is truth in your final paragraph. My solution would be to form three separate countries after England absorbs Flint, Denbigh, Brecon, Radnor, Montgomery,Monmouth and Pembroke. The remains to form Tough Wales, Daft Wales and Odd Wales. The really good bits could be Killer Wales. call it Orcadia
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Post by finsobruce on Feb 2, 2020 21:33:07 GMT
The really good bits could be Killer Wales. call it Orcadia Those with Tory majorities "Blue Wales".
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Tony Otim
Green
Suffering from Brexistential Despair
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Post by Tony Otim on Feb 2, 2020 22:19:28 GMT
I await the suggestions for which parts should form Sperm Wales and Humpback Wales...
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clyde1998
SNP
Green (E&W) member; SNP supporter
Posts: 1,765
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Post by clyde1998 on Feb 4, 2020 17:36:57 GMT
A few more results have been published from last week's poll. There are two samples, one with and one without sixteen and seventeen year-olds. Listed below are the 18+ responses, not that it makes any major difference. Which of the following do you think would make the best First Minister of Wales?Mark Drakeford 8% Paul Davies 6% Adam Price 12% Don't Know 71% Should Wales be an independent country?Yes 21% No 56% DK 12% WNV 8% Should Wales abolish the National Assembly for Wales?Yes 24% No 47% DK 17% WNV 8% Thinking about the National Assembly for Wales, which of these statements comes closest to your view?There should be no devolved government in Wales 17% The National Assembly for Wales should have fewer powers 8% We should leave things as they are now 24% The National Assembly for Wales should have more powers 18% Wales should become independent, separate from the UK 14% Don't Know 16% On the scale shown below, where 0 means no devolution for Wales at all, and 100 means complete political independence for Wales, where would you place…Things as they are right now?Mean 47 Median 49 How you would like to see Wales being governed?Mean 52 Median 51 Regardless of whether you support or oppose Wales becoming an independent country, for these questions please imagine it did become independentIn this scenario, do you think the Head of State would be…The British Queen 46% A new independent monarch 3% An elected President 29% Other 5% Don't Know 18% In this scenario do you think Wales’ currency would be…Pound sterling 68% Euro 7% A new Welsh currency 12% Other 0% Don't Know 13% In this scenario do you think Wales would or would not be part of NATO?
Wales would be part of NATO 63% Wales would not be part of NATO 9% Don't Know 29% Please imagine Scotland left the United Kingdom and became an independent country. In general, do you think it would have a positive or negative impact on Wales?Net: Positive 18% Net: Negative 23% Neither 37% Don't Know 20% Below is the list of candidates standing to be the next Leader of the Labour Party. Using a scale that runs from 0 to 10, where 0 means strongly dislike and 10 means strongly like, how do you feel about…?Keir Starmer 4.9 (44% don't know) Rebecca Long Bailey 3.0 (46% DK) Lisa Nandy 4.0 (54% DK) Jess Phillips 4.1 (49% DK) Emily Thornberry 3.4 (48% DK) Which of the following candidates do you think would make the best Leader of the Labour Party?Keir Starmer 24% Rebecca Long Bailey 4% Lisa Nandy 6% Jess Phillips 6% Emily Thornberry 3% Don't Know 58%
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Post by tonygreaves on Feb 6, 2020 23:15:45 GMT
"The chamber works very well, again unlike the Commons and the Lords!"
Oddly enough the Lords Chamber works quite well. And it's a rather nice place to make a speech. I say "oddly" because the layout is on the face of it rather ridiculous.
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Post by london(ex)tory on Feb 7, 2020 10:48:31 GMT
"The chamber works very well, again unlike the Commons and the Lords!" Oddly enough the Lords Chamber works quite well. And it's a rather nice place to make a speech. I say "oddly" because the layout is on the face of it rather ridiculous. Not as ridiculous as a large proportion of its members.
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Post by LDCaerdydd on Feb 11, 2020 18:35:43 GMT
I’ve said it else where so I’ll say it here too. I’ll bet that either UKIP will merge with them or Gareth Bennett will defect to to them by 2021. It seems to be happening
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Post by tonygreaves on Feb 16, 2020 17:16:06 GMT
It is an interesting feature of the last two or three years that much of the Conservative right, formerly a passionate defender of the Lords in its present form (and one of the main reasons it still exists in its present form) has now adopted a populist view that the Lords are rubbish and should be abolished.
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Post by 🏴☠️ Neath West 🏴☠️ on Feb 17, 2020 21:09:20 GMT
It is an interesting feature of the last two or three years that much of the Conservative right, formerly a passionate defender of the Lords in its present form (and one of the main reasons it still exists in its present form) has now adopted a populist view that the Lords are rubbish and should be abolished. On the contrary, the Conservative right has always despised the mediocre post-1997 life peers and wished to restore something of the dignity of the House of Lords before New Labour wrecked it with hordes of mediocre Labour, Lib Dem, and Crossbench peers. Call-me-Dave Cameron's heir-to-Blair contributions have not improved matters either.
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Post by greenchristian on Feb 18, 2020 0:45:17 GMT
It is an interesting feature of the last two or three years that much of the Conservative right, formerly a passionate defender of the Lords in its present form (and one of the main reasons it still exists in its present form) has now adopted a populist view that the Lords are rubbish and should be abolished. On the contrary, the Conservative right has always despised the mediocre post-1997 life peers and wished to restore something of the dignity of the House of Lords before New Labour wrecked it with hordes of mediocre Labour, Lib Dem, and Crossbench peers. Call-me-Dave Cameron's heir-to-Blair contributions have not improved matters either. You seem to be claiming that the hereditary peers were not mediocre...
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