Institute of Welsh Affairs

The Institute of Welsh Affairs (IWA) is the principal independent policy organisation tracking Welsh politics and the 2026 Senedd election. Alongside the Wales Governance Centre, it provides the analytical infrastructure for understanding Welsh political realignment — including the hardening of the progressive Welsh/Left and British/Right blocs identified in pre-election research.

Founded in 1987, the IWA is a membership-funded think tank based in Cardiff. It publishes the journal The Welsh Agenda and produces briefings on Senedd committees, Welsh Government policy, and constitutional questions. It does not receive core Welsh Government funding, preserving its editorial independence. Unlike the Wales Governance Centre, which is an academic unit at Cardiff University, the IWA operates as a civil society body engaging business, civic groups, and the public alongside policymakers.

With the 2026 Senedd election described as the most consequential since 1999, the IWA's election analysis has taken on added weight. Wales is running its first expanded 96-member Senedd under a new electoral system, and the IWA is one of the few organisations with the depth and independence to scrutinise how the new system shapes representation.