Daily Politics from the New Statesman

Rishi Sunak has agreed a deal with the EU on the Northern Ireland protocol. He has hailed this as a “new chapter” in relations, but will he reap the rewards? Anoosh Chakelian, Freddie Hayward and Rachel Wearmouth discuss the “Windsor framework”, as the deal is known, and what the DUP and hardline Tory Brexiteers will do now. They also debate whether Labour will be forced to drop its “Make Brexit Work” slogan. Then in You Ask Us, a listener asks what is behind Keir Starmer’s missions, which are outlined in his cover essay for this week’s New Statesman magazine.If you have a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskus Subscribers can get an ad free version of the NS Podcast on the New Statesman appPodcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer. Just visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer. LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Anoosh Chakelian and Zoë Grünewald are joined by two parliamentary researchers to delve into the working conditions, power imbalances and abuses that take place within Westminster. Jenny Symmons and Holly Brazier Tope are senior researchers for Labour MPs and representatives of parliamentary staff for the GMB union. They open up about the problems at their workplace, ranging from diseased drinking water, fires and asbestos to bullying, outrageous assignments and sexual misconduct.  The team discuss the dangers of being employed by an individual MP, including poor pay and being fired at will, why parliamentary staffers are considering strike action, and whether a more inclusive and less toxic workplace is possible.Subscribers can get an ad free version of the NS Podcast on the New Statesman appPodcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer. Just visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer. LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For a hot moment Kate Forbes was favourite to replace Nicola Sturgeon as SNP leader and Scotland’s first minister. But revealing her socially conservative views in a series of interviews, including being against equal marriage, gender self-identification and sex outside of marriage, has dismayed her supporters and jeopardised her campaign. Anoosh Chakelian and Ben Walker discuss the SNP’s socially liberal base and the parallels between Forbes and Tim Farron, who resigned as Liberal Democrat leader in 2017 after he was repeatedly challenged about his views on gay sex. Anoosh then speaks to Farron himself about how he rates Forbes’ prospects given his own experience, her brutally honest strategy, and whether a leader with her views is compatible with the SNP’s progressive agenda. Then in You Ask US, Ben answers listeners’ polling questions on where Britain stands on strikes, apathy towards Brexit, and the significance of the West Lancashire by-election result, as forecast by Britain Predicts, the New Statesman’s new polling model.Subscribers can get an ad free version of the NS Podcast on the New Statesman app If you have a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskus Podcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer. Just visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer. LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Widespread use of autonomous cars is on the horizon. Self-driving vehicles are already out on our roads. And autonomy will change our relationship with our vehicles. But what will the new immersive world inside a vehicle be like? In the third episode of a three-part special series partnered with Wejo, the smart mobility tech company, a panel of expert guests discuss how legislation and policy are enabling self-driving vehicles – and how AVs will change our lives. Will our children do their homework in the car on their way to school? Will we watch films on long journeys on the motorway?Alona Ferber, editor of the New Statesman’s Spotlight policy channel, is joined by Richard Barlow, founder and chief executive of Wejo, Larry Burns, the former corporate vice president of Research and Development for General Motors who championed self-driving and electric vehicles – and now sits on Wejo’s board – Alex Kendall, CEO of AV2.0 start-up Wayve, and Amanda Stretton, the former racing driver, broadcaster, and automotive expert.LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With the criminal justice system under immense strain, from huge case backlogs to crumbling court buildings and staff shortages, Labour has seized the opportunity to attack the Tories’ record on crime. In a speech on Thursday 16 February the shadow home secretary, Yvette Cooper, declared that “only Labour is the party of law and order”. Rachel Cunliffe, Freddie Hayward and Rachel Wearmouth discuss Keir Starmer’s strategy, evoking Tony Blair, and whether this could be the deciding issue at the next election.  They also talk about the government’s attempt to cling on to its “tough on crime” credentials, which has been overtaken by Rishi Sunak’s “relentless” commitment to stop migrants in small boats arriving on Britain’s shores.Subscribers can get an ad free version of the NS Podcast on the New Statesman app If you have a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskus Podcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer. Just visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer. LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

 After surprising the country by announcing her resignation as First Minister and SNP leader, Nicola Sturgeon leaves a vacuum in UK politics. The New Statesman’s Scotland editor, Chris Deerin, joins the podcast to discuss what's behind her decision and what it means for the Union, independence and the prospects of Scottish opposition parties. Then in You Ask Us, we try to work out who could replace her. Subscribers can get an ad free version of the NS Podcast on the New Statesman app LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ahead of the publication of his new book, Life in the Balance: A Doctor’s Stories of Intensive Care, Dr Jim Down speaks to Anoosh Chakelian about the struggles the NHS is facing, why privitisation isn’t the answer, and the toll the job is taking on the mental health of many doctors.Jim’s book is published on 23 February.Subscribe to the Morning Call newsletterLISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rishi Sunak is struggling to restore order over a divided and unruly Conservative party. His latest attempt, this week, takes the form of a cabinet reshuffle and a restructuring of Whitehall that created four new government departments. Anoosh Chakelian, Rachel Wearmouth and Freddie Hayward break down the main changes and talk about what this disruptive and expensive move tells us about Sunak’s grip on his party. They also discuss the appointment of the controversial “red wall rottweiler” Lee Anderson as deputy Conservative Party chairman and whether the new departments promise a new political direction. Then in You Ask Us a listener asks: what is the cost of strikes compared with the cost of giving workers pay rises?If you have a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskusPodcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer. Just visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer. LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Last week the government faced multiple defeats in the House of Lords on its wide-ranging Public Order Bill, which have peers warned would have a chilling effect on the right to protest.As the government continues to try to push its legislation through, Jodie Beck, head of policy and campaigns at the human rights organisation Liberty, talks to Rachel Cunliffe about why this bill is so controversial, how it will criminalise perfectly normal acts, and whether anything can be done to stop the assault on civil liberties.Watch our video on the Crime and Policing ActIf you have a question for You Ask Us, go to https://newstatesman.com/youaskus LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rishi Sunak is marking 100 days in office just after Britain was hit by the biggest day of industrial action in a decade and the IMF predicted that the UK will be the only major economy to shrink in 2023. With the Tory party engulfed in sleaze and sackings, Sunak is feeling the pressure. Andrew Marr joins Anoosh Chakelian and Freddie Hayward to discuss whether the Prime Minister is simply too inexperienced to weather this perfect storm, the clamour for tax cuts among the Tory ranks, and the key question buzzing around Westminster – is Boris Johnson about to make a comeback? In You Ask Us, a listener wonders if Brexit is behind the UK's gloomy economic outlook.If you have a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskusPodcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer. Just visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer. LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After a series of by-election victories, could the Lib Dem election machine be powering the party back to its late 90s levels of popularity? Anoosh Chakelian, Freddie Hayward and Ben Walker look at the party’s recent performance, how it is preparing to fight an upcoming election and why Brexit has changed the kinds of seats it is fighting for. Listen to our special on the Green Party. If you have a question for the podcast team go to Newstatesman.com/youaskusSubscribe to Morning CallLISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rishi Sunak promised to draw a line under the scandalous Boris Johnson era when he became Prime Minister, but Tory sleaze seems here to stay. He is facing serious questions over the integrity of his party after a succession of allegations against senior figures. Anoosh Chakelian, Freddie Hayward and Will Dunn, the New Statesman’s business editor, try to figure out what's going – from Boris Johnson’s loan allegedly facilitated by the BBC chairman Richard Sharp and his million-pound donation from the businessman Christopher Harborne, to the investigation into Nadhim Zahawi’s tax affairs. The team discuss Sunak’s political naivety and ask whether the stories are bad only for the government or, in fact, tarnish all politicians and parties. Then in You Ask Us a listener asks why campaigners keep calling for all sorts of new protected characteristics under the Equality Act. If you have a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskus Podcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer. Just visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer. LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With the crisis in the health service growing, the New Statesman’s medical editor Phil Whitaker speaks to Rachel Cunliffe about his prescription for fixing it. They discuss how the system is currently broken, why the Health Secretary Steve Barclay and the shadow health secretary Wes Streeting could benefit from spending time on the front line with GPs, and how to get back to a system in which the private insurance sector panics about not being needed. Subscribe to Morning CallLISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A special podcast from Spotlight, the New Statesman’s policy supplement - The New Statesman podcast will return tomorrow.  In 2020, the UK announced the end of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030. At the time, Boris Johnson’s government pledged £1.8bn to support greater uptake of zero emission vehicles, including £1.3bn to rollout more chargepoints for electric vehicles nationwide. Since then, the country has seen the biggest year-on-year growth in electric car registration for years. But there are millions of registered cars on the road in the UK – so how far have we come on the EV journey? In the second episode of a three-part special partnered series with Wejo, the smart mobility tech company, a panel of expert guests discuss what’s standing in the way of greater uptake of EVs, in the UK and elsewhere.  Alona Ferber, editor of the New Statesman’s Spotlight policy channel, is joined by Richard Barlow, founder and chief executive of Wejo, Melanie Shufflebotham, founder and COO of the EV charging app, Zap_Map, Dale Vince, CEO of Ecotricity, and Philipe Vangeel, Secretary General of AVERE, the European Association for Electromobility.  The next episode of this special series explores the autonomous vehicles future that is nearly here. Click here for the first episode. LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rishi Sunak’s government has decided to block legislation to simplify gender recognition passed by the Scottish Parliament using a mechanism that’s being described as the “nuclear option”. The decision has precipitated a constitutional crisis, with Nicola Sturgeon calling the decision a “full-frontal attack” on devolution.Anoosh Chakelian, Freddie Hayward and Rachel Wearmouth discuss how a debate over policy has turned into one over Scotland’s power to govern itself. The team also covers claims that the government is trying to inflame tensions as part of a culture war and exploit divisions within the Labour Party over the bill.Then in You Ask Us a listener asks how the stalemate at Stormont, the Northern Irish Assembly, which has been without a government since February 2022, will end.If you have a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskus Podcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer. Just visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer.  LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Will Dunn, the New Statesman’s business editor, is joined by the journalist and former political adviser Duncan Weldon to discuss how Britain is facing a decline like never before. They talk about the country’s long history of economic woe and what we can learn from it, why we are feeling the current crisis more acutely than our neighbours, and if this calls for big ideas or – as Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng attempted in their disastrous mini-Budget – suffers from them.If you’ve got a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskus Podcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer. Just visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer. LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After the Prime Minister and the leader of the opposition met across the despatch box for the first time in 2023, Anoosh Chakelian is joined by the New Statesman's Political Editor Andrew Marr and Freddie Hayward to analyse whether Rishi Sunak can start turning his polling figures around.They discuss Sunak’s answers about his use of private healthcare and Labour’s potentially costly plans for the NHS.Then in You Ask Us, they answer a listener’s question on how Labour is responding to the government’s anti-strike legislation.If you have a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskusSubscribe to the Morning Call newsletter at https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/morning-call CORRECTION: On an earlier version of this episode of the New Statesman podcast, during a discussion about anti-strike legislation, there was a suggestion that individual workers may be arrested – this was incorrect. As we made clear in our intro to the topic, the law would be enforceable in two ways: allowing employers to fire workers who strike, and to sue unions that don’t ensure a minimum level of service. We have removed this from the podcast. LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In a devolution special for the New Statesman Podcast, we take a look at how the NHS crisis - and other political problems - are playing out in Scotland and Wales. Our Scotland editor, Chris Deerin, returns to the podcast to speak to Anoosh Chakelian about his own experience in a Scottish hospital, and how problems with the service are affecting the SNP. Then Anoosh is joined by the co-host of the Hireath Welsh politics podcast Matthew Hexter to analyse the impact on Wales, and how its Labour-run government is responding.Sign up for the Morning Call newsletterLISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer welcomed in 2023 with speeches setting out their priorities for the year and beyond. Anoosh Chakelian, Freddie Hayward and Rachel Cunliffe discuss Sunak’s five pledges and why he appears more Blue Peter presenter than prime minister. They also analyse Starmer’s embrace of a Brexit slogan with his promise to help voters “take back control” of their communities, why he is pitching to a new squeezed middle, and his reluctance to talk about big spending.Then in You Ask Us a listener asks whether the Conservatives are running the NHS down on purpose so they can sell it off.If you’ve got a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskus  Podcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer. Just visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer.  Read more:Freddie Hayward writes Keir Starmer takes the fight to the Tories by stealing their slogans.Zoë Grünewald writes Rishi Sunak's New Year speech showed how out of depth he is.Anoosh Chakelian asks are the Conservatives "defunding" the NHS in order to privatise it?LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Half of Britain (51 per cent) wants the voting system to change, according to the British Social Attitudes survey, while only 44 per cent want to retain the current system. Most Labour supporters are in favour and this year the Labour Party conference voted for a manifesto commitment to proportional representation for general elections. Anoosh Chakelian is joined by special guest Jess Garland, director of policy and research at the Electoral Reform Society, to talk all things voter reform. They discuss the significance of proportional representation and the recent rise in public support, where the various political parties stand on the issue, and how a change to the system could be brought about.You can submit a question for You Ask Us at newstatesman.com/youaskus, and sign up for the Morning Call politics newsletter at newstatesman.com/politics/morning-call.LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

 In a special episode of the New Statesman Podcast, Harry Lambert joins Anoosh Chakelian to look back at the year in politics.They cast their minds back to the three prime ministers, two monarchs, one controversial beer and korma, and the collapse of more “walls” than you can shake a comedy Lib Dem prop at.You can submit a question for You Ask Us at newstatesman.com/youaskus, and sign up for the Morning Call politics newsletter at newstatesman.com/politics/morning-call.LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the very near future, your car will use data from your mobile device to help you navigate and stay safe. But vehicles already generate useful data. In the first episode of a three-part special partnered series with Wejo, the smart mobility tech company, a panel of expert guests discuss how connected vehicle data is already changing the world.Real-time data, information generated by vehicles driving around towns and cities as we speak, is already being used to help ease traffic congestion, help prevent accidents, and support the move to a net zero economy.Read more and watch the video on the New Statesman website: https://www.newstatesman.com/spotlight/2022/12/how-connected-vehicle-data-is-going-to-change-the-world-with-wejoIn the first episode of this special series, the panel traces the origins of connected vehicle data and looks at potential problems around data privacy. The discussion also explores the potential of data for local authority service delivery, and highlights examples of where vehicle data is already being put to use for wider social benefits.Alona Ferber, editor of the New Statesman’s Spotlight policy channel, is joined by Richard Barlow, founder and chief executive of Wejo, John Stenlake, director of Vehicle Innovation & Mobility at Microsoft, and Peter Van Manen, the former managing director of McLaren Electronic Systems, the company that supplies control and data systems to all competitors in the Formula One, NASCAR and indyCar racing series.One application of vehicle data has been to reduce insurance premiums, Barlow, who started Wejo ten years ago, explains on the episode: “In the first year I worked with an insurance provider, and my thought process with insurance providers was that if they had access to data, then they would be able to provide better policies, more cost effective policies for all drivers.”“It became very apparent that the insurers were very much ingrained with the idea that they could produce their premium costs for high risk drivers, but not for all drivers, just a very small percentage,” he says. “And then at the same point, it became clear that motor manufacturers were also making more of their vehicles be available in terms of the data they make available."And it was a massive disconnect. I realised there was an opportunity there to work with the motor manufacturers and to actually go beyond insurance, but actually use data to provide better mobility services. And now today we see data from 90 million journeys every day. We have over 20 million vehicles on [Wejo’s] platform.”The next episodes of this special series will look at obstacles to mass electric vehicle adoption and the autonomous vehicles future that is nearly here.  LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A special Boxing Day episode hosted by Rachel Cunliffe, looking back at the best (and worst) of the year in culture. She is joined by Tom Gatti, the New Statesman’s executive editor for culture, Kate Mossman, senior writer, and Rachel Cooke, our regular TV critic, to talk about their picks across TV, music, books, and film. In music, they discuss the high-art cabaret of Christine and the Queens’ Redcar and Kate’s nerve-wracking interview with Nick Cave about his deepening faith and grieving for two sons. In film, the stand-out was The Quiet Girl, based on Claire Keegan’s story of early-1980s rural Ireland which left Rachel Cooke and Tom weeping. In TV, they move from the indulgent theatre of the Harry and Meghan documentary to the exquisite observations made in the BBC series Marriage, and explain why people can’t stop the watching the second season of The White Lotus. And in books, highlights include the nasty but brilliant novel Vladimir by Julia May Jonas and Katherine Rundell’s The Golden Mole, while the unanimous lowlight is Matt Hancock’s retrospectively constructed and entirely delusional Pandemic Diaries.Subscribe to the Morning Call newsletter at https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/morning-call LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s been an unprecedented week of strike action involving both nurses and ambulance workers – and the government still refuses to negotiate with NHS unions over pay. Anoosh Chakelian and Zoë Grünewald, the New Statesman’s political reporter, are joined by Dr Emma Runswick, a mental health doctor and deputy chair of council for the British Medical Association (BMA), a doctors’ trade union.They discuss the poor pay and conditions that have led to strike action and why junior doctors might be next, plus the government’s refusal to consider pay negotiations, and the shadow health secretary Wes Streeting’s recent critique of the BMA. The team also covers the wider problems in the NHS after years of poor planning and underfunding – such as ambulance delays, staff shortages and long waiting lists – and whether these issues are changing patient attitudes towards the healthcare system. Then in You Ask Us, a listener asks: with the NHS in such a state after the Conservatives have slowed its funding, is there a reason Labour or the Lib Dems don’t attack the government harder on the NHS? Is it because there is a fear of sounding critical of the NHS itself.If you have a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskusPodcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer: visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer to learn more LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In a special festive edition of the New Statesman Podcast, NS columnist Jonn Elledge speaks to Rachel Cunliffe about the highs and lows of the year, how Love Actually messed up our politicians, and why residents of a town in Sweden spend every Christmas trying to burn a wooden goat. If you have a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskus You can find Jonn Elledge’s books Conspiracy and The Compendium of (Not Quite) Everything at all good bookshops, and hear him talk about Conspiracy on the NS podcast.LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nurses in England, Wales and Northern Ireland went on strike today for the first time in their history. With the UK facing “winter lockdown” following the latest wave of strikes and with inflation still high, Rishi Sunak’s government is under pressure. Labour leader Keir Starmer has described the nurses' strike as a “badge of shame for this government”, while the Prime Minister has unveiled his plan to crack down on migrants claiming asylum in Britain.Anoosh Chakelian, Rachel Wearmouth and Freddie Hayward discuss public support for the strikes, which remains relatively high, and how long the momentum behind them can last, as well as Labour's position and why shadow health secretary Wes Streeting is challenging the British Medical Association. Then in You Ask Us, a listener asks: is Nigel Farage making a comeback?You can read all our Spotlight Cybersecurity coverage here.If you’ve got a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskus Podcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer. Just visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer. LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After figures showed record net migration to the UK in 2022, is immigration still a toxic political issue? Freddie Hayward talks to Sunder Katwala, director of the think tank British Future, about how public attitudes to immigration have changed, the impact of Brexit, and why the Conservatives may not get much electoral benefit from discussing the topic. If you’ve got a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskus LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The writer, satirist and broadcaster Armando Iannucci returns to the New Statesman Podcast to co-host our third series of Westminster Reimagined. In six special episodes Iannucci explores parts of British public life he believes to be broken, and is joined by guests from inside and outside Westminster to work out how to fix them. In this final episode of the season Iannucci and Anoosh Chakelian, the New Statesman’s Britain editor, examine whether Britain’s leaders want to be too powerful. Boris Johnson spoke often of a personal mandate, and Tony Blair enforced more control from the centre. Have our leaders got too strong – and can anything be done about it?  Our guests for the episode are Alastair Campbell, Tony Blair’s director of communications and now a diarist and podcaster, and Catherine Haddon, resident historian of the Institute for Government. The panel discusses whether prime ministers have always wanted more power, how much Johnson tried to change the rules of the game and why prime ministers should make the most of their cabinets.LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Keir Starmer dubbed Rishi Sunak the “blancmange prime minister” – comparing him to a particularly weak and wobbly dessert – after he U-turned on new onshore wind farms and mandatory housing targets this week under pressure from Tory MPs. Rachel Wearmouth and Freddie Hayward are joined by Andrew Marr, the New Statesman’s political editor, to discuss Sunak’s struggle to control a divided Tory party as the prospect of electoral defeat looms. They also cover Rachel’s exclusive interview with Keir Starmer as he plots Labour’s route back to power and the launch of a major report authored by Gordon Brown that recommends a radical overhaul of the constitution. Then in You Ask Us, a listener wonders: should we abolish the House of Lords?If you have a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskusPodcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer. Just visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer.LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Keir Starmer has used Winchester, the elite independent school Rishi Sunak attended, to attack the Tory party over tax benefits for private schools, saying it amounted to “trickle-down education”. Meanwhile, the Prime Minister defended private schools as a personal choice, accusing Starmer of “attacking the hard-working aspirations of millions of people in this country”. Rachel Cunliffe is joined by Sam Freedman, a former senior adviser on schools at the Department of Education, to discuss Labour’s policy to remove the charitable status of private schools and VAT exemption on school feels, the rage Starmer’s comments have sparked, and the quality of state education. In You Ask Us, they answer a listener’s question: how much do private schools give out in bursaries to poorer children, and is that more or less than the cost of Labour’s private-school policy proposals?If you have a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskusPodcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer: visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer to learn more LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The writer, satirist and broadcaster Armando Iannucci returns to the New Statesman Podcast to co-host our third series of Westminster Reimagined. In six special episodes, Iannucci explores the parts of British public life he believes are broken and works out how to fix them with guests from inside and outside Westminster.  In this episode, Iannucci and Anoosh Chakelian, the New Statesman’s Britain editor, discuss the B-word. Six years after Britain voted to leave the EU, Boris Johnson’s promise to Get Brexit Done rings hollow. The Northern Ireland protocol is an ever-present sore spot, the Office for Budget Responsibility believes bluntly that Brexit has delivered a “significant adverse impact” on trade and, according to a YouGov poll, the number of Britons who believe it was a mistake now stands at 56 per cent. Our special guests this week are two brothers divided by Brexit, each with businesses that deal with Europe. Ian Baxter, founder and chair of Baxter Freight, voted Remain in the 2016 referendum, while his brother, Nigel Baxter, managing director of RH Commercial Vehicles, voted Leave. Can they come together and unite after years of division? The panel discusses why the brothers found themselves on opposing sides of the Brexit debate, and how their decisions have impacted their relationship, businesses and world-view. Plus, if they have any regrets, and how we as a society can begin to move on.Podcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer: visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer to learn more LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For the first time since 2010, constituency boundaries are set to be redrawn. The Boundary Commission for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland has published its final proposals, to be followed by final recommendations in 2023 that are likely to be adopted in time for the next election.Anoosh Chakelian and Rachel Wearmouth are joined by Ben Walker, who has made a detailed map of the changes for England and Wales for the New Stateman’s State of the Nation. The team discuss which MPs stand to lose and gain, why the shake-up is controversial, and the emerging political consequences.Then in You Ask Us a listener asks how Labour would solve the wage crisis.If you have a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskusPodcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer: visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer to learn more LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As the Conservative Party deadline approaches for MPs to say whether they want to run in the next election, many young Tory MPs have already announced that they’ve had enough, including the Bishop Auckland MP Dehanna Davison. Charlotte Ivers, the Times Radio presenter and columnist for the New Statesman and Sunday Times, joins Rachel Cunliffe to talk about why this is, and how Rishi Sunak’s first month in office has gone. They also talk about whether Matt Hancock’s third place in I’m a Celebrity has done him more good than harm. If you have a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskus.Sign up for our Morning Call newsletter.LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The writer, satirist and broadcaster Armando Iannucci returns to the New Statesman Podcast to co-host our third series of Westminster Reimagined. In six special episodes Iannucci explores parts of British public life he believes to be broken, and is joined by guests from inside and outside Westminster to work out how to fix things.In this episode, Iannucci and Anoosh Chakelian, the New Statesman’s Britain editor, look at how politics can operate in a post-truth world. Is there any way to counter misinformation and disinformation? And what effect are they having on our politicians and elections?Our special guests are James Ball, journalist and author of Post-Truth: How Bullshit Conquered the World, and Mae Dobbs, a digital campaigner who worked on the presidential campaigns of Barack Obama and Joe Biden. Plus, we hear from former BBC executive Pat Younge on how the broadcaster could do much more to tackle a culture of outright lying among politicians.The panel discusses whether objective news really is now harder to find or whether it’s always been difficult, the extent to which social media is making things worse, and what can be done to tackle the problem. Podcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer: visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer to learn more LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rishi Sunak has denied reports that the government is preparing to seek a “Swiss-style” deal with the EU over the next decade to rebuild economic ties with the trading bloc.Rachel Cunliffe, Rachel Wearmouth and Freddie Hayward discuss why the Prime Minister is incurring the wrath of hardline Tory Brexiteers, the signs of rising public discontent with Brexit, and whether this is a window of opportunity for Labour.Meanwhile Suella Braverman, the Home Secretary, has once again come under fire as she struggled to explain to the MPs on the Home Affairs Select Committee how someone fleeing persecution would legally seek asylum in the UK. The team discuss how long Braverman can hold on as Home Secretary and why she is a symptom of a government in disarray.Then in You Ask Us a listener asks: should England have boycotted the Qatar World Cup?If you have a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskusPodcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer: visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer to learn more LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In 2014, the then prime minister David Cameron commissioned a review into a worrying global phenomenon: an increase in drug-resistant infections. “If we fail to act,” he warned, “we are looking at an almost unthinkable scenario where antibiotics no longer work and we are cast back into the dark ages of medicine.”  The economist Jim O’Neill, who chaired the review, predicted that by 2050 “ten million lives a year” and a “cumulative cost of $100trn of economic output” would be at risk from bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites increasingly resisting treatment. Six years on, however, anti-microbial resistance (AMR) continues to endanger humanity.  Alona Ferber, editor of the New Statesman's Spotlight policy channel, is joined by three expert guests to discuss why AMR is so complex, how far we have come in tackling it since the 2016 review, and what our best hopes are for getting this dangerous trend under control: Pfizer UK's managing director and country president Susan Rienow, the UK government's AMR envoy Sally Davies, and the microbiologist Laura Piddock, scientific director of the Global Antibiotic Research and Development Partnership in Geneva.  This special episodes has been funded by Pfizer Limited. Non Pfizer panelist's views are independent, but content has been reviewed by Pfizer Limited for A B P I code compliance. LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In a special episode of the New Statesman podcast, recorded live at the Cambridge Literary Festival, Rachel Wearmouth, Freddie Hayward and Ben Walker look back at the last few weeks in politics, including the fall out from the Autumn Statement, how Rishi Sunak is going down with voters and whether Labour is finding its voice.Then they take questions from the audience on everything from Brexit, to Jeremy Corbyn running as independent parliamentary candidate, to whether it matters if Twitter collapses under Elon Musk's leadership.If you have a question for You Ask Us go to newstatesman.com/youaskusLISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The writer, satirist and broadcaster Armando Iannucci returns to the New Statesman Podcast to co-host our third series of Westminster Reimagined. In six special episodes Iannucci explores parts of British public life he believes to be broken, and is joined by guests from inside and outside Westminster to work out how to fix things.  In this episode, Iannucci and Anoosh Chakelian, the New Statesman’s Britain editor, examine whether the UK is falling apart at the seams. In 2010 the Conservative Party came to power promising to fix “Broken Britain”. Today, with unions around the country striking, the NHS buckling, and communities increasingly stepping in to provide vital services following a 37 per cent cut in local council funding, we ask: how can Britain carry on like this? Our special guests are Michelle Dornelly, founder of Children with Voices, which runs Hackney Community Food Hub, and Emilie De Bruijn, who set up Hartlepool Baby Bank. The panel discusses why these two women founded front-line services for their local communities, the lack of resources, the dangers of burning out, and why the state is sitting back and relying on their goodwill, as well as what can be done to remedy the problem. Podcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer: visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer to learn more LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rachel Cunliffe, Freddie Hayward and Rachel Wearmouth dissect the Autumn Statement, which will leave Britain with highest tax burden since the Second World War. They discuss what to make of the Office for Budget Responsibility’s bleak forecast that living standards are set to collapse by the largest amount on record, and recap how we got to this point just 55 days after Kwasi Kwarteng’s ill-fated tax-cutting “mini-Budget”.If you have a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskusPodcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer. Just visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer.LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As Rishi Sunak and Jeremy Hunt prepare for a Budget that will likely mean years of austerity, Rachel Cunliffe talks to the Conservative commentator John Oxley about the mess the party finds itself in. They discuss whether the damage done by Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng is reversible, or if the party was in terminal decline anyway. Plus, what hopes Tories have at the next election and the impact of euroscepticism on the party.LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The legendary writer, satirist and broadcaster Armando Iannucci returns to the New Statesman Podcast to co-host our third series of Westminster Reimagined. Across six special episodes, Iannucci explores parts of British public life he believes to be broken, and is joined by guests from both inside and outside the Westminster world to work out how to fix things.  In this episode, the American satirist and broadcaster Jon Stewart and British radio presenter turned Arizona podcaster Sam Walker join Iannucci and Anoosh Chakelian, the New Statesman’s Britain editor, to compare US and UK politics. They discuss whether the chaos and division of US political life is a warning for the UK, and whether discourse in Britain is heading in a similar direction.  LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Gavin Williamson has resigned from the cabinet as minister without portfolio after a string of bullying allegations, including expletive-laden texts to a female colleague. It’s not the first time he has lost a government job: he was sacked twice before, under Theresa May and Boris Johnson.Anoosh Chakelian, Rachel Wearmouth, Freddie Hayward and Emma Haslett discuss the scandal and controversies that pepper Williamson’s career, and what his resignation tells us about the Rishi Sunak leadership and the way Westminster works. Plus, the moves Keir Starmer had made to put Labour on an election footing.Then in You Ask Us, a listener asks to what extent George Osborne’s post-2010 period of austerity has led UK politics to where it is now.If you have a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskusPodcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer. Just visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer.LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As Cop27, the UN climate conference, starts in Egypt, Anoosh Chakelian is joined by India Bourke, our environment correspondent, to discuss why Rishi Sunak U-turned and is now attending, what might be announced and why it’s disappointing that the leaders of so many other countries are not going.Read more:Carbon emissions tracker 2022: How do countries compare? Greta Thunberg on why Cop27 is a “scam”“I haven’t met a politician ready to do what it takes”: Greta Thunberg and Björk in conversationMapped: Fracking sites could impact one in four Tory constituenciesLISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The writer, satirist and broadcaster Armando Iannucci, returns to the New Statesman Podcast to co-host our third series of Westminster Reimagined. In six special episodes Iannucci explores parts of British public life he believes to be broken, and is joined by guests from inside and outside Westminster to work out how to fix things.   In this episode, Iannucci and Anoosh Chakelian, the New Statesman’s Britain editor, examine why in Britain the rich are richer and the poor are poorer than in other European countries. The income gap is the largest it has been in ten years, food-bank use has doubled since 2014 and nearly a third of low-income families are unable to heat their homes; meanwhile the richest 1 per cent of households in the UK are worth £3.6 million each.   Special guests for the episode Dominic Watters, a social worker living on the breadline who campaigns against food insecurity and wrote Social Distance in Social Work: Covid Capsule One, and Adrienne Buller, director of research at the Common Wealth think tank and author of The Value of a Whale.   The panel discusses living in fuel and food deserts, how hostility toward the “undeserving poor” is baked into the welfare system, and whether a minister for income inequality might be one potential solution. Podcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer. Just visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer.LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Anoosh Chakelian, the New Statesman’s Britain editor, is joined by Andrew Marr, political editor, and Rachel Wearmouth, deputy political editor, to assess Rishi Sunak’s first ten days in Downing Street, from the damaging re-appointment of Suella Braverman as Home Secretary to mixed messages on his government’s commitment to the climate.They discuss his tricky mandate, the prospect of tax rises and spending cuts, and how Keir Starmer is facing up to him.Then in You Ask Us: is it ever OK to comment on a politician’s appearance or presentational style?If you have a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskusPodcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer. Just visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer.Read more:Andrew Marr on whether Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer’s “centrist” styles can speak to the anger of the dayRachel Wearmouth on how the Prime Minister and Labour leader compareAnoosh Chakelian on the appetite for an election around an exasperated countryLISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With the Conservatives on to their fifth prime minister in just six years, we talk to the political scientist and author Brian Klaas about the leadership problem in politics: why the top jobs attract the worst people; why it was a good thing that Truss was able to fail so quickly; and what we need to do to defend democracy. If you have a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskus Read more:Brian Klaas on why we choose the wrong leadersLISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rishi Sunak attended his first PMQs on Wednesday 26 October, and seemed to buoy up his divided party with Johnsonite attack lines on Labour – but can he hold on to unity and win back the country’s trust? Anoosh Chakelian is joined by Rachel Cunliffe, Rachel Wearmouth and our business editor, Will Dunn, to discuss Sunak’s first few days in charge, the fallout from his reappointment of Suella Braverman, and what to expect from the now-delayed Autumn Statement.Then, in You Ask Us, they answer a listener’s question on whether Sunak’s past mistakes show he’s out of touch.If you have a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskus LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The UK is to have a new prime minister whose policies are unknown and no one but Tory MPs voted for. Public appetite for a general election is high. What will Rishi Sunak, the former chancellor, do when he officially enters No 10, and why did Boris Johnson drop out of the Conservative leadership race this weekend?Anoosh Chakelian, the New Statesman’s Britain Editor, is joined by Rachel Wearmouth, Deputy Political Editor, and our polling expert Ben Walker to analyse the challenges ahead, what Sunak’s victory means for the Conservative Party’s dire poll ratings, and how Labour feels about its new opponent.Then, in You Ask Us, we answer a listener’s question: why are there Tory MPs who oppose Rishi Sunak, and will the party remain divided?Read more:Rishi Sunak becomes Prime Minister after Penny Mordaunt fails to make Tory ballotCan anyone save the Tories?LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this bonus episode of the New Statesman Podcast, Rachel Cunliffe interviews the Daily Star deputy editor-in-chief Jon Livesey about how a lettuce livestream helped chronicle the downfall of Liz Truss’s calamitous time in office. They talk about why it cut through to the public, what’s happening to the lettuce now, and which vegetable will come next.LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Liz Truss has announced she will stand down as prime minister after her government was plunged into chaos yesterday. The Home Secretary was forced to resign, the chief whip attempted to resign, and Tory MPs were allegedly manhandled and reduced to tears over a fracking vote which was (maybe?) a vote of confidence. Rachel Cunliffe, Ben Walker and Rachel Wearmouth discuss Liz Truss’s resignation and then Freddie Hayward joins the podcast to take us through how the madness unfolded, minute by minute.If you have a question for You Ask Us, go to newstatesman.com/youaskusPodcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer. Just visit newstatesman.com/podcastoffer.LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.