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I see dylan and will37 have said they feel that recent puzzles have been easier, a feeling I have also had. However, I’m pleased to let you know I’ve concluded that in fact we’re all getting cleverer ;-)

I am sure many of us are getting cleverer. We all tend to do that unless we are in the (thankfully) small minority who experience a preterminal decline.
I have a Times subscription and so often have a go at old Listener puzzles. I am currently working through 2012. I often struggle to complete the old puzzles but hardly ever have problems with the contemporary stuff. I an convinced the Listener is getting easier.

Foinaven - nothing seedy about 20d: example is given n Chambers as a definition.

35ac Church music rector recalled (4)

I have an answer I’m fairly sure is correct, but “church” doesn’t seem to work with my parsing. Am I missing something?

Never mind
Just figured it out
I did indeed have the wrong answer

All done - both locations identified and entered, the Shining Path deduced and relevant substitutions made, and all now real words throughout - so ready to post it.
Generally anice one - thank you, eXternal

But the clue to 32d continues to baffle me - letters1,2 & 4 have to be what they are, but original letter 3 remains a total mystery - the wordplay could suggest an acronym for Flower People that would make the original letter 3 the same as the altered one (which does make a real word) - but no possible definition in the clue seems to work as a word in Chambers.

Even knowing the additional letter to be dropped down, the clue seems completely opaque - to me, anyway.

Is the original an acronym that I've failed to spot in Chambers, rather than a word?

As nobody else has mentioned this it must just be me missing the b***** obvious yet again. Can someone give me a subtle push?

Quixote, this could be nonsense...
I have the original answer to the clue as six letters, and defined it as 'people'. There's a four-letter flower, with two very usual abbreviations inside.

Malone, I assume you’re looking towards Baghdad, and as always you’re spot on

Ah!
Malone - thanks so much. It took only seconds after reading your nudge for the light to dawn.
Particularly tricksy clueing - those capital letters got me fixated on the People who hand out gold medals at Hampton Court every year - particularly as my daughter won one at her first attempt).

Quixote, thanks - and glad that helped. My parsing is not always ... accurate, so I now adopt an air of hesitancy.

Quisling, thanks - and yes, that's where I was headed.