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The WECA elections are taking place on 1 May. But what does the West of England Mayor even do, and who should Bristolians vote for? Here’s our complete guide to the candidates.

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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.

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.

Joy as resistance: inside the club night changing Bristol’s queer scene

With violence and political hostility towards trans and queer people on the rise, club night Soft Butch has become a vital space for community, connection, and liberation

Marvin Rees receives payment from energy giant he awarded massive contract to

US firm Ameresco is now a paying client of Lord Rees of Easton, who struck the £1 billion City Leap decarbonisation deal with the firm when he was Bristol’s mayor.

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.

What does the arrest of metro mayor and MP Dan Norris mean for his constituents?

The MP for North East Somerset and Hanham was arrested on suspicion of rape and child sex offences last week. He was immediately suspended from the Labour Party.

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

Listen: Bristol Unpacked with photographer Colin Moody on documenting the city, and the threats to its nightlife

In the first of a new season of Unpacked, Neil talks to Colin about his new book collaboration with Jasmine Ketibuah-Foley, celebrating Bristol's nightlife – and the challenges venues face in the post-Covid era.

Listen: The Debrief – Medact, the doctors fighting for Barton House residents

In February, doctors from health justice charity Medact presented a hard-hitting report to Bristol City Council about how the Barton House tower block evacuation had harmed residents' physical and mental health. Priyanka Raval hears more from the group's Dr Amelia Cussans.

Listen: Bristol Unpacked from the archive, with Green co-leader Carla Denyer on taking on Labour and tackling lazy views of her party

In our second raid on the Unpacked vaults, from 2021, Carla and Neil discuss overturning Green Party stereotypes, aiming for a kinder local politics and conquering the left-wing territory being vacated by Labour.

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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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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.

Education is the great liberator: the Bristol activists forging links with teachers in Palestine

Yasmeen Eshtaya is a Palestinian teacher whose life has been deeply affected by the brutal violence of the Israeli state. But she is committed to reconciliation and forming bonds through teaching Arabic – including to people in Bristol.

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?