Claimed to be the essential component for the regeneration of south Cardiff, the Cardiff Bay Barrage turned out to be one of the costliest - and to many, most unnecessary - civil engineering projects ever undertaken on the British coastline. Developers and politicians stand accused of circumventing the wishes of local residents, ignoring the advice of expert witnesses, and bringing the democratic process into disrepute.

’A Whim Set in Concrete’ is a record of what happens when unregulated development meets the opposition of ’ordinary people’. it also offers a fascinating insight into the machinations of politics.