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Wales Online
22-05-2025
- Sport
- Wales Online
The World Rugby decision that's just massively upped the ante for Wales' Japan tour
The World Rugby decision that's just massively upped the ante for Wales' Japan tour Wales head to Japan looking to finally put an end to their dismal losing run Wales are ranked 12th in the world after their winless Six Nations campaign (Image: Annabel Lee-Ellis/Huw Evans Agency ) World Rugby have confirmed that the draw for the 2027 Rugby World Cup will take place in December this year, in a move that could have a major impact on Wales' tournament hopes. After the draw for the 2023 tournament in France was criticised having been held nearly three years earlier at the end of 2020, the draw for the next edition in Australia will take place with less than two years to go until the action gets under way Down Under. It also means that the seedings for the draw will be based on the world rankings at the end of the November international window, which could spell bad news for Wales. A winless Six Nations campaign saw Wales extend their dismal losing run to 17 successive Test matches, having not won at that level since their World Cup pool stage win over Georgia in October 2023. Unsurprisingly, it is the worst run of results for a Tier 1 nation in the professional era and one that leaves them in a dangerous position with the next World Cup draw now on the horizon. Sign up to Inside Welsh rugby on Substack to get exclusive news stories and insight from behind the scenes in Welsh rugby. Wales now head into the summer placed 12th in the World Rugby rankings. Having fallen behind Tier 2 side Georgia, they are now closer in the global standings to 13th-placed Japan, who they will face in a two-Test series in July. Article continues below Led by interim coach Matt Sherratt, the hope is that Wales will be able to finally put an end to their embarrassing losing streak against Japan and restore some much-needed confidence in order to start climbing back up the rankings. Two victories from two on the summer tour could well see Sherratt's side edge back up to 11th place and knock on the door of the global top 10, although this will almost certainly depend on results elsewhere. However, falling to a defeat - or even two - to Eddie Jones' side would not just see Wales' losing run continue but could spell disaster as far as the next World Cup is concerned. A first Test defeat to Japan would not only see the tourists get leapfrogged by their hosts in the world rankings, but also by Samoa, with Wales set to slip to a new record low of 14th in the world if that scenario plays out. It would also see them drop out of the second band of seeds - which is for teams ranked seventh to 12th in the world - for the World Cup in Australia and into the third, meaning they would likely face a brutal pool at the tournament if they were to remain there. Of course, with the draw not being made until December, Wales would also have the autumn internationals to turn things around. Article continues below But with a daunting line-up of Argentina, New Zealand and South Africa awaiting them in Cardiff in November, as well as a rematch with Japan, they will more than likely need an undefeated summer in order to give their global standing a boost and avoid dropping down to the third tier. While the potential World Cup ramifications will up the ante for the Japan tour, Wales will be encouraged by their strong record against their opponents this summer, having won 13 of their 14 previous meetings. However, their only defeat came the last time they faced the Brave Blossoms on Japanese soil, when the hosts won 28-3 against a Welsh side that had 15 players away with the British & Irish Lions in Australia at the time.
New Statesman
25-04-2025
- Business
- New Statesman
The net zero transition will not happen without local communities
Photo by Annabel Lee-Ellis/Getty Images We are living in the shadow of the previous Conservative government's failure to invest in renewable energy and insulate our homes. With Vladimir Putin's war on Ukraine, these failures have contributed to an energy crisis that has left households struggling with soaring bills and businesses facing crippling costs. Now more than ever, we need to strengthen our homegrown energy security and stop our dependency on fossil fuels that makes the UK vulnerable to volatile and uncertain energy prices. We have a huge opportunity to become a leader in the green industries of the future, particularly in offshore wind. It is ours to lose, though. While the UK ranks second globally for fully operational floating offshore wind projects, a lack of vision and investment over the past decade has meant that we have not developed our manufacturing capacity at the same clean power ambition of the UK government now must be delivered in a way that builds our supply chain capability. The prize must be a homegrown energy future, not one that is imported. Jobs in the oil and gas industry have halved over the past decade as the North Sea reserves have declined. We must pursue a just transition, reviving our manufacturing capacity by producing more wind components domestically and investing in our port infrastructure, home to some of our poorest communities. However, we can only deliver on this promise if we also empower communities through the transition. That is why my colleagues and I were pleased to bring about an amendment to the legislation to establish GB Energy, a new publicly owned clean energy company. It now includes explicit support for both community-owned energy projects as well as community benefits for those that host energy infrastructure. The transition must happen with communities and not be something that is just done to them. Communities and local authorities are under-utilised forces in the drive to lower emissions. Roughly one third of our emissions come from sectors directly influenced or shaped by local authorities. Local-led action could save £140bn in reaching net zero compared to a top-down approach, while delivering almost double the energy savings. More than national government or businesses, local authorities are uniquely positioned to connect climate action with actions that also restore local nature, manage flooding, reduce health inequalities and alleviate fuel poverty. Yet there is no current framework to empower them to do this. They should be given a clearly funded statutory duty to meet climate and nature targets. Subscribe to The New Statesman today from only £8.99 per month Subscribe At a time when Reform UK and the Conservatives seek to weaponise net zero and renewables, the path to building support for the energy transition is about winning people's trust by delivering tangible changes that benefit their lives. The majority of people polled say that they want to see more action on climate change. In my constituency, South Cambridgeshire, groups like the Zero Carbon Communities network, the Haslingfield and Harlton Eco-Group, 2G3S (Going Green in the Shelfords, Stapleford and Sawston), and Sustainable Shepreth are demonstrating that local action can be effective and impactful. This government has paid too little attention to tackling energy demand. The Climate Change Committee's seventh carbon budget clearly underscores the importance of upfront investment in low-carbon heating and insulation, particularly for low-income households, alongside the delivery of new homes built to the highest energy efficiency standards. This approach would help reduce household bills and address the shocking reality that far too many people are still living in cold, damp homes, with devastating consequences for their mental and physical health. In these volatile times, we must ensure the power, energy, and heating of our homes and businesses are in our hands; not in those of potentially hostile powers. Putin may have control over the gas supply, but he cannot shut off the wind, waves or sunshine. Related
