Investigations

A Unison inquiry has found ‘compelling evidence’ Black members facing race discrimination have been ‘inadequately’ represented by the union and its solicitors. Two former Bath Spa University staff, who took their own claims to a tribunal, say their case shows how the system has let people down.

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Editorial: Why the Cable will be shining a light on child imprisonment

The Cable's investigations lead introduces our new long-term reporting strategy that puts impact at its heart – starting with a deep-dive on child prisons and exclusion from society.

East Bristol Liveable Neighbourhood: Good intentions aren’t enough

Real climate justice isn’t about green mobility zones or bike lanes—it’s about dignity, equity, and solidarity

East Bristol’s ‘liveable neighbourhood’: Is this really progress?

The Cable has been collecting data since November on how residents of east Bristol feel about the scheme and how it has impacted them so far. Hundreds of people responded to our call out, and their message is clear…

Listen: People Just Do Something – investigative journalist Sian Norris on going undercover with the many men of Reform

As a well-known left-leaning journalist, how does one turn up at a Reform rally and go undercover without being outed? This week, Sian Norris breaks that down for Isaac and Priyanka, as well as discussing the party’s rise and the far right’s wider attack on reproductive rights.

Listen: Bristol Unpacked with David Jubb of Citizens in Power – can citizens’ assemblies relight our democratic fires?

Neil sits down with David Jubb to talk citizens' assemblies: how do they work, why are they a better way of doing politics, and what's the new one he's helping run here in the West of England all about?

Labour see off challenge by Reform UK to narrowly hold on in West of England Mayor election

Labour’s Helen Godwin has been elected West of England Mayor, leaving Reform UK’s Arron Banks a close second place

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From audio investigations and Bristol Unpacked to deep-dives into local issues and recordings of live events.

Listen: People Just Do Something – Isaac meets the Great Baldini at Cribbs Causeway’s Tesla Takedown

Who are the people taking part in the global Tesla Takedown at the local dealership for Elon Musk's cars, in Cribbs Causeway. And do they have an effective protest strategy? Isaac hits the road to try to find out.

Listen: Bristol Unpacked with the BBC’s Pete Simson on the WECA mayoral election, making politics interesting and why snacks matter

Neil talks to Pete Simson, BBC Politics West editor, about the race to become the new mayor of the West of England Combined Authority and whether an upset in the 2025 election is likely after Arron Banks' entry.

Listen: People Just Do Something, with Palestinian activist Iyad Burnat on the power of nonviolent resistance in the face of genocide

In the first episode of a new season, Isaac talks to Iyad Burnat, head of the Bil'in Popular Committee against the Wall, about the decades he’s spent peacefully resisting Israeli occupation in the West Bank.

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Investigations

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Uncovering injustice and wrongdoing

‘We need to move the dials’: Avon and Somerset Police must show real change on institutional racism

The police have been gaslighting us for generations – and officers’ use of intrusive stop-and-search powers is still blighting Bristol’s young Black boys, a local racial justice advocate argues.

Enduring trauma, and a struggle for justice: one year on from the Barton House high-rise evacuation

On 14 November 2023 an east Bristol tower block was evacuated over fears it could collapse, making national news. A year on, residents tell the Cable about the disruption to their lives, the ongoing impact on their wellbeing and their children's – and how a community has been left traumatised.

Black children and adults strip searched 25 times more often than white peers in Avon and Somerset, leaked report reveals

EXCLUSIVE: The sensitive ‘deep-dive’ review also reveals the police officers who prolifically and disproportionately stop and search Black people in Bristol

This Better Work

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A series with in-depth and informative coverage on the world of work in Bristol and beyond.

Tech workers need unions too

With mass layoffs and poor working conditions becoming widespread across the sector, it’s time for techies to get organised. 

‘Everyone should do something, but it needs to be useful’: unions walk out in support of Palestine

Workplace days of action encourage workers to engage in a lunchtime walkout in solidarity with the Palestinian people. The actions have generated debate within unions, but build on a long history of international solidarity in Bristol.

Explained: What is Labour’s new Employment Rights Bill, and what does it mean for Bristolians?

In October Labour introduced the Employment Rights Bill, calling it the 'biggest upgrade to rights at work in a generation'. Why does it matter, where could it be better – and when will it make a difference to people's lives?

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‘Theatre should belong to everyone’: the Bristol artist exploring social change on stage

Portuguese artist Carlota Matos, who made her home in Bristol, uses theatre to tell stories by and with marginalised communities

Bristol’s queer communities are taking the fight against pinkwashing genocide

Pinkwashing, when powerful entities adopt a veneer of supporting LGBTQIA+ rights, has been a prominent PR tactic used by Israel to gloss over its brutal occupation of Palestinian territories. Queer communities are pushing back.

From Bristol to the West Bank: the power of internationalism in Palestine

The Palestinian people have shown astonishing defiance and resilience in the face of Israeli violence and persecution. International volunteers, including Bristolians, are travelling to the West Bank to stand in solidarity with them.

Explained: What do council funding reforms mean for Bristol?

After austerity hollowed out council budgets, the new government is changing how local authorities are funded, so is there light at the end of the tunnel for Bristol?

Watch: How Section 60 contributes to rifts between police and the communities they serve

Youth workers, community leaders and the founder of a police monitoring group explain the damaging and traumatising impact of controversial 'suspicionless' search powers in Bristol.

VIDEO: Chief constable challenged on ‘anti-racist policing’ progress and stop and search reform

It’s been a year since Avon and Somerset’s chief constable Sarah Crew admitted her service was institutionally racist, but what is she actually doing about it?