Opinion

Opinion

Recent floods show once again that it’s high time to formally recognise the rights of the River Avon

Rivers are rights-bearing beings that deserve to have a voice in our decision-making structures – and to be treated as life-sustaining ecosystems, not vessels to carry away human waste.

Becca Blease
Becca Blease

No to Section 60

Portrait of a person with a beard in front of a stylized background featuring abstract shapes and documents.

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

Desmond Brown

Opinion

‘Bristol can lead the way in pushing for legalising cannabis’

Steve Rolles
Steve Rolles
An illustration of tower blocks that look old and battered, with tools laid out in front of them

Opinion

‘Bristol’s council housing failings are shocking – but are just the tip of a massive national iceberg’

Decades of underinvestment in council homes by central government have led to unacceptable living standards for tenants, in our city and across the country. A national solution is needed.

Paul Smith
Paul Smith (Elim Housing Association)

Opinion

Scotland will open the UK’s first safer drug consumption facility – Bristol should be next

Martin Powell
Martin Powell

Opinion

‘Freedom of information laws have been working for nearly 25 years – but warning lights are flashing’

Ben Worthy
Ben Worthy

Opinion

A photo of Barton House

Analysis: The national high-rise saga behind Barton House’s emergency evacuation

Housing journalist Peter Apps, who has written for years about Grenfell, explains how even the sudden collapse of a similar high rise block in London 50 years failed to spark enough action to make other towers safe.

Peter Apps
Peter Apps

Future of Cities

Cities of the future must prioritise the health of people and the planet

Preventing ill-health from poor-quality urban environments, and promoting fairness, are at the heart of a project Bristol is helping to lead.

Daniel Black
Daniel Black (Program director of TRUUD)

This Better Work

Will AI free us from drudgery – or reduce us to robots?

Artificial intelligence already helps employers treat workers like robots – and the fear is that it could also take their jobs. Its huge potential benefits will only be shared if unions get to have their say.

Adam Cantwell-Corn
Adam Cantwell-Corn

Future of Cities

Illustration: Laurence Ware

Why Bristol needs to build a sustainable food system – before disaster strikes

Bristol is recognised as a leading city in sustainable food. But with international food systems creaking and the impact of climate change on the horizon, even more needs to be done.

Louise Delmege
Louise Delmege (Bristol Food Network)

Opinion

‘The Illegal Migration Bill is not only deeply cruel. But also a shameless attempt to embolden extremism.’

Bristol Refugee Rights, who see first-hand the hardship that asylum seekers are already put through, slam the Illegal Migration Bill as a cynical attempt to inflame anti-immigration feeling in order to win the next election.

Tom Daly Calum Dawkins
Tom Daly (Bristol Refugee Rights) and Calum Dawkins (Bristol Refugee Rights)

Opinion

A fresh approach to regulating e-scooters would help both consumers and the industry

Extended e-scooter trials hand operators such as Voi an effective monopoly on local use. More thoughtful regulation would be fairer, and could help drive the innovation the technology needs to prove its green credentials.

Nick Scott
Nick Scott
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