Bristol Unpacked The Bristol Cable

Emma Edwards is the leader of Bristol Green Party who could well be in charge of the council for the first time after May's local elections. She chats to Neil about the Green's vision for doing politics in a more transparent and collaborative way, how they'd sort out our public transport, and whether they're ready to make the tricky transition from party of opposition to party of power.
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Neil Maggs sits down with Mark Weston, who was first elected as a councillor nearly 20 years ago, and has led the local Tory party for a decade. On the eve of the local elections, they discuss the Tories miserable national polling, the so-called 'war on motorists' being waged by Bristol City Council, and the cultural divides between Bristol's inner city and suburbs.
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Jos Clark is an experienced local councillor now leading the Lib Dems into Bristol's local elections. A party that used to have strong support in the city has seen its seats dwindle over the last decade. The critic of Marvin Rees and the mayoral system, who helped manoeuvre the referendum on introducing the new committee system, talks to Neil Maggs about libraries, Bristol's failing bus services and her prediction that Labour will take a kicking after eight years in power
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Just three years after being first elected as a councillor, Labour's Tom Renhard is now leading the party into May's local elections.
Neil Maggs asks him about his record as the city's housing chief, why he thinks the Greens aren't up to the task of being in power and Labour's plans for building new homes, campaigning for rent controls and bringing buses back into public ownership.
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Salma, a lawyer who spent her childhood in Gaza, shares the 'dystopian' experience of life under occupation and knowing your family are in a war zone, as well as discussing happier memories and pro-Palestinian activism in the UK.
Content warning: contains graphic descriptions of war and violence
Salma Hajjar is a young trainee solicitor who spent her childhood up to age eight in Gaza, where decades of oppression and violence have been succeeded by a return to the horrors of all-out war.
In the latest episode of Bristol Unpacked, the last of the current run, Salma offers a devastating personal perspective on the war – which has taken the lives of some of her loved ones – and on the “dystopian” experience of living under occupation. She reflects on happier memories of the beauty of Gaza – its beaches, its food and its community – and on the pain and loss of being separated from home, and the desire to return one day. 
Salma, who has now lived in Bristol for five years, also discusses her love for the city, the solidarity she has found, including from Jewish friends, and the value of activism in changing public opinions – and holding politicians’ feet to the fire.
With the International Court of Justice recently demanding measures to reduce the suffering inflicted on Palestinian civilians – and continuing to weigh a genocide case brought against Israel by South Africa – pressure for a ceasefire in Gaza is continuing to mount. 
But under what conditions can such a deal take place? Do the court’s actions go far enough? And are there any grounds for longer-term optimism around an end to Israeli-Palestinian conflict and progress towards a two-state solution?
Join Salma and Neil Maggs for a sometimes harrowing but always thought-provoking finale to the winter season of Bristol Unpacked – and with elections on the horizon, be sure to stay tuned for the team’s next moves during the spring.
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Neil chats to Ruth, a daughter of the Windrush generation, on her decades of work with Bristol's voluntary and community groups, how that's changed as public services have been cut – and whether she feels conflicted about receiving an honour associated with empire
Ruth Pitter has been a stalwart of Bristol’s voluntary sector for decades – and in January 2024 was awarded an MBE as part of the New Year’s honours list for ‘services to equality, charity and community’ in the city.
This has included work with Voscur, the umbrella organisation that supports Bristol’s voluntary sector, and SARI, which battles racism and provides support for people who have faced hate crimes. She has also been a pioneer in the local community arts space, co-founding two unique theatre companies – Breathing Fire and Black Women Let Loose – for women of African and Caribbean heritage.
Ruth’s career has spanned a period during which councils have faced massive cuts, with community organisations expanding and competing to fill the resulting gaping holes in services – and often bringing innovation to how things have done. What is the role of the voluntary sector these days? Is it right that things have to be this way in the UK? Do countries like Germany, where the state still takes care of things, offer a better model?
What has been the impact of Ruth’s theatre companies among communities who are much less likely to feel represented in the audience – or the productions – of mainstream Bristol theatres such as the Old Vic? 
And as a daughter of the Windrush generation who has spent her life fighting for fairness, does Ruth feel conflicted about accepting an honour that is inextricably linked to empire? 
Lock in with Neil and Ruth as they chew over these questions and many more, in the latest unmissable episode of Bristol Unpacked.


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