Daily Politics from the New Statesman

In a desperate attempt to stabilise the financial markets Jeremy Hunt, the newly appointed Chancellor, has reversed “almost all” of the tax cuts announced in the government’s mini-Budget just three weeks ago.Anoosh Chakelian and Harry Lambert discuss the measures announced in Hunt’s emergency statement this morning, reports that he is now acting effectively as a caretaker PM, and who would succeed Liz Truss should she be ousted.In You Ask Us, a listener asks if the Tories can get away with switching leader again without calling a general election.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.

Emma Haslett, The New Statesman’s associate business editor, speaks to Gary Stevenson, an economist and former trader for Citibank, a job he initially won in a card game. In 2011 he became the bank’s most profitable trader globally by correctly predicting the economy would not recover from the 2008 financial crash. In 2014 Stevenson quit his job, and he now campaigns against wealth inequality and educates people on economics via his YouTube channel, GarysEconomics. They discuss the fallout from the Tories' disastrous mini-Budget and No 10’s attachment to trickle-down economics, as well as the reaction among Stevenson’s former colleagues in the City. Emma and Gary also offer their predictions for the economy this time next year. 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.

What was left of Liz Truss’s authority visibly dissipated in Prime Minister’s Questions this week. As Freddie Hayward reports, the atmosphere was “funereal”, with the Prime Minister repeating “I’m genuinely unclear” and refusing to talk about market turmoil or tax cuts, only the government’s energy package.Anoosh Chakelian, Rachel Cunliffe, Rachel Wearmouth and Freddie Hayward discuss the criticism of the mini-Budget and what Truss’s options are, whether Kwasi Kwarteng will survive as Chancellor and who would replace him, and Labour’s plans for a future without Truss.Then in You Ask Us, a listener asks what on earth the government’s much-touted “supply-side reform” is.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.

Anoosh Chakelian is joined by Dale Vince, a green energy industrialist and founder of Ecotricity, a renewable energy company. Vince’s book Manifesto: How a Maverick Entrepreneur Took On British Energy and Won was published in 2020, charting his journey from leaving school aged 15, to becoming a New Age traveller, and finally into the weird world that is Britain’s energy market. They discuss the government’s response to Britain’s energy and cost-of-living crises versus Labour’s pledge to create a publicly owned renewable power company, Great British Energy, the sense of frustration even among energy companies, and some solutions.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 conference season ends, our Political Editor, Andrew Marr, discusses the Conservative and Labour conferences with Freddie Hayward and Anoosh Chakelian. They reflect on the mood at the Conservative Party conference, whether Liz Truss will get any policy through parliament and if Labour really is more confident that it could return to government. Then in You Ask Us they answer a listener’s question on whether Keir Starmer is trying to be more left-wing. Read Anoosh’s piece on the country bracing for austerity, Andrew’s latest column and our exclusive polling on what Labour voters think of Starmer.  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.

Anoosh Chakelian is joined by Freddie Hayward, Rachel Wearmouth and Harry Lambert, who are reporting from the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham.They describe a sense of discord and dissent, with Liz Truss’s U-turn on abolishing the top rate of income tax damaging her credibility and emboldening Tory rebels. The team discuss the open speculation by Tory MPs about who might succeed the Prime Minister, including Boris Johnson as an “off the shelf” candidate, and the party’s response to a weak speech by Kwasi Kwarteng, the Chancellor.Then in You Ask Us a listener asks, will Liz Truss be able to cut benefits?If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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.

This is a special episode recorded live at the New Statesman’s fringe event at this year’s Labour Party conference in Liverpool. Anoosh Chakelian sits down with Andy Burnham and Sadiq Khan to discuss what levelling up should look like under Labour, where they stand on electoral reform and why they have very different political styles.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 cost of debt rising and the pound still falling, just how much damage has the Conservatives’ mini-Budget done to the economy?To unpick what’s going on, Anoosh Chakelian is joined by David Gauke, who was work and pensions secretary and chief secretary to the Treasury under Theresa May, and by the economist and author Duncan Weldon, along with the New Statesman’s business editor, Will Dunn.They discuss why the markets reacted so badly to the Chancellor’s statement on 23 September, what the subsequent Bank of England intervention actually did, and what the impact of all of this might be on ordinary voters as well as the electoral prospects of the Tory party.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 and Freddie Hayward are joined by Ed Miliband, the shadow climate change and net zero secretary and former Labour leader, to discuss Keir Starmer’s speech from the Labour Party conference in Liverpool.They discuss the pledge to create a publicly owned “Great British energy” company to cut bills and the conference slogan “A fairer, greener future”; how the economic turmoil will affect their ability to deliver these promises; and whether Miliband would advise a note of caution to the optimistic party faithful. Then the New Statesman polling expert, Ben Walker, joins the podcast to discuss a recent YouGov poll that shows Labour leading the Tories by 17 points and whether the plunging pound has damaged public confidence in Liz Truss’s government.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, Freddie Hayward and Rachel Wearmouth report from the Labour Party conference in Liverpool.They discuss the remarkably upbeat mood among the party faithful, the headline policy announcements so far, and the alternative vision for the economy set out by the shadow chancellor, Rachel Reeves, as the pound continues to plummet after Liz Truss’s tax-cutting frenzy.Then in You Ask Us, they answer a listener’s question on the prospects of the party abandoning the first-past-the-post electoral system, after polls show a majority of the British public are in favour of change.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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.

Kwasi Kwarteng, the Chancellor, presented a mini-Budget today (23 September) whose centrepiece was the biggest tax cuts in decades in an attempt to stimulate the economy. Anoosh Chakelian, Rachel Wearmouth, Rachel Cunliffe and Emma Haslett take us through the announcements that shocked the House of Commons. They discuss how these ideological policies will disproportionately benefit the rich; the UK’s precarious financial position as borrowing costs jump; and whether this is a departure from the last twelve years of Tory rule, as was suggested by Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor.In You Ask Us, the team answer Rachel Cunliffe’s question: does this now mean that a post-2009 graduate on £50,000 a year will pay a higher marginal tax rate (including student loan repayments) than someone on £200,000 who went to university for free before tuition fees were introduced?If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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.

The UK has a housing crisis: in the past decade, decent and stable living arrangements have become an impossible dream for many.The New Statesman’s senior associate editor Rachel Cunliffe speaks to Hashi Mohamed, author of A Home of One’s Own, which draws on his own history of housing insecurity and his professional career as a planning barrister, about how we came to this point and what can be done.They discuss the segregating and alienating effects of housing insecurity, why successive governments have failed to act on this crisis, and how they can be persuaded that it’s a priority.Podcast listeners can get a subscription to the New Statesman for just £1 per week, for 12 weeks. Visit www.newstatesman.com/podcastofferLISTEN 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 newly appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer, Kwasi Kwarteng, is facing criticism after he sacked Tom Scholar, permanent secretary at the Treasury since 2016, and following reports that he plans to scrap caps on banker bonuses.  Anoosh Chakelian is joined by Harry Lambert, Freddie Hayward and Rachel Wearmouth to discuss what’s really behind the sacking of the Treasury's most senior civil servant, and Prime Minister Liz Truss’s plans to encourage economic growth through tax cuts during a cost-of-living crisis. Then, in You Ask Us, Rachel Cunliffe joins the team to answer a listener question on whether the police crackdown on anti-monarchy protestors is the result of the Police, Crime, Courts and Sentencing Act.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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.

The ceremonies following the death of the Queen continue this week. Freddie Hayward speaks to Anoosh Chakelian about what the mood has been like at the public events, and whether some of the policing has been heavy handed.Then in You Ask Us they answer a listener’s question about whether the events have affected parliament’s ability to scrutinise the new government.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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.

A special podcast from the New Statesman to reflect on the death of Elizabeth II and the accession of Charles III. Andrew Marr, political editor, Megan Gibson, international editor, and Rachel Cunliffe, senior associate editor, join Anoosh Chakelian, Britain editor, to discuss the impact that the Queen had on the country, the reaction to her death from around the world and what it means for the UK now.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 Prime Minister, Liz Truss, has announced her plans to help with the energy crisis. Anoosh Chakelian is joined by the New Statesman’s political editor, Andrew Marr, and deputy political editor, Rachel Wearmouth, to discuss Truss’s first few days in office and how her energy price cap is likely to go down with the public.Then, in You Ask Us, they answer a listener’s question on whether Boris Johnson is planning a political comeback.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 predicted, Liz Truss has beaten Rishi Sunak in the race to become the next prime minister of the UK. She won the Tory leadership contest by a comfortable majority, securing 81,326 votes (57 per cent) to Sunak’s 60,399 (43 per cent). Anoosh Chakelian, Rachel Wearmouth, Freddie Hayward and Ben Walker discuss her promises to “deliver” in a muted victory speech, why polls predicted a landslide victory that didn't quite emerge, and the series of daunting challenges that lie ahead for her – including economic crisis and an all-round lack of popular support. Then in You Ask Us, a listener asks about Truss’s plan for energy bills.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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 just days until we find out who Britain’s next prime minister will be, we take a look back at the outgoing Conservative leader: what shaped Boris Johnson? How did he rise to power? What do his three years in office mean for his successor and how the media will cover them?Rachel Cunliffe speaks to Adam Fleming about his BBC podcast series Boris, which examines the life of Johnson from his birth, in 1964 in New York, until the moment he was forced to resign as Tory leader in the wake of the partygate scandal.Radio 4’s Boris is available on BBC SoundsLISTEN 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 cost-of-living crisis and rapidly rising energy prices look set to push the UK into recession, how bad is the situation and what could be done about it?The economist and journalist Duncan Weldon speaks to Will Dunn, the New Statesman’s business editor, about just how serious the crisis is, how it compares to the 1970s and why Liz Truss will find that tax cuts just won’t cut 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.

The Conservative leadership contest limps towards its conclusion with Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak attending the final hustings this week. And as the country heads towards a difficult winter, raw sewage is being pumped into Britain’s waterways and the economy goes from bad to worse. Anoosh Chakelian, Freddie Hayward and Rachel Cunliffe discuss the leadership hopefuls’ latest campaign pledges and the distinct lack of enthusiasm for them among Tory members and MPs. They also talk about Truss’s U-turn on her emergency cost-of-living budget and whether her free-market conservatism is out of step with the concerns of the general public. Then in You Ask Us India Bourke, the New Statesman’s environment correspondent, joins to answer a listener’s question on what the sewage crisis means for the Conservative Party.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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 the US president Joe Biden starts to turn around his poor polling figures ahead of the midterm elections later this year, are there lessons that the Labour leader Keir Starmer can learn from his Democrat counterpart? The veteran campaigner Matthew McGregor, who worked for Ed Miliband and supported digital campaigns for the Democrats in the US, talks to Rachel Wearmouth about what Labour could learn from American politics, and why the party also needs to look at countries like Australia and Germany.They discuss the impact the Supreme Court overruling of Roe vs Wade, which federally guaranteed access to abortion, is having on US politics. Plus, how to make radical changes from the centre, and how Prime Minister's Questions is surprisingly popular among Washington DC politicos.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.

UK inflation has risen above 10 per cent for the first time in 40 years, driving the fastest fall in real pay on record. The defining challenge for the next prime minister will be preventing millions from facing destitution this winter.Rachel Wearmouth and Freddie Hayward are joined by Emma Haslett, the New Statesman’s associate business editor, to discuss the economic downturn and Britain’s “zombie” government. They also talk about recent polling indicating the Conservatives are no longer seen as more competent with the economy than Labour, and examine public sympathy with striking transport workers.Then, in You Ask Us, a listener asks whether the leaked recording of Liz Truss saying that British workers need “more graft” and lack the “skill and application” of foreign rivals like the Chinese, will damage her chances of becoming the next PM.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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.

The Labour leader Keir Starmer has announced that the party wants to tackle the energy bills crisis by freezing the energy price cap, to be chiefly funded by a windfall tax. Has Labour finally shown its economic competence?Rachel Wearmouth is joined by Freddie Hayward and Ben Walker to discuss the plans, whether they’ve come at the right time, and what the Conservative response will likely to be. Then, in You Ask Us, they answer a listener's question on whether Labour should now be repurposing George Osborne’s austerity-era attack line about the governing party not fixing the roof when the sun was shining.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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.

Against the backdrop of a predicted massive increase in energy bills and the coming recession, the Tory leadership contest grinds grimly on. There is a palpable feeling that the country is adrift, with Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss focused on personal attacks and appealing to the Tory party membership. Rachel Cunliffe, Freddie Hayward and Ben Walker discuss the damage the campaigns are doing to the Conservative brand as the “blue-on-blue” bickering dominates the contest. They also talk about Keir Starmer’s notable absence from the limelight, and whether Truss’s campaign is gaining momentum after a video leaked to the New Statesman showed Rishi Sunak boasting to members of taking money from “deprived urban areas” to help wealthy towns.  Then, in You Ask Us, a listener asks whether the winner of the leadership contest, whether Sunak or Truss, will pivot and come out with some meaningful policies on the cost of living – or are they just running scared and hoping for a miracle?If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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 more factional strife within Labour, the academic and former Downing Street staffer Patrick Diamond speaks to Anoosh Chakelian about his new book: Labour's Civil War: How infighting has kept the left from power (and what can be done about it). They discuss the party’s history of fighting itself, what lessons can be learned from its time in government, and what Keir Starmer needs to do to end the conflict.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email: [email protected] 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.

This podcast is sponsored by Rio AI As the world faces a climate emergency, what power do ordinary people have to try and shape the way big companies behave. One of the biggest areas of investment is our pension funds – but do we have the information or ability to shape how companies invest our money?Philippa Nuttall discusses how to make our pension funds work for the environment with David Hayman from Make My Money Matter and Ros Altman, former pensions minister.Rio ESG is an intelligent sustainability software platform that helps equip corporate, public sector, financial services and investment management entities with the knowledge and technology to do better.From data capture to investment consultancy, Rio combines market-leading sustainability knowledge with its intelligent sustainability software platform to deliver award-winning, solution-based data analysis, governance and education tools, to help organisations of all sizes report on, and improve, their ESG metrics.Rio partners with organisations of all sizes to deliver bespoke sustainability solutions that reduce risk, increase investment prospective and deliver lasting impact, for both corporations and the planet.Visit www.rio.ai to begin your sustainable investment journey.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 Bank of England has raised interest rates by 0.5 per cent to 1.75 per cent, the highest increase in 27 years, and predicts that the UK will enter a deep recession within months. As the cost-of-living crisis worsens and with strikes planned throughout the summer, Labour remains split over frontbenchers joining picketing workers. Anoosh Chakelian, Rachel Wearmouth, Freddie Hayward and Rachel Cunliffe discuss Labour leader Keir Starmer’s softening stance on picketing – after shadow levelling up secretary Lisa Nandy joined striking telecoms workers and union leaders claimed that Labour was “irrelevant” to working people – and ask whether the party’s ambiguity can be sustained through a summer of strikes. Then In You Ask Us, a listener enquires about the communication issues and presentation style of Liz Truss’s Conservative leadership campaign.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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 Conservative leadership hopefuls offering competing promises of tax cuts, the New Statesman podcast looks at whether either has anything to say about Britain’s cost-of-living crisis.Anoosh Chakelian is joined by Rachel Wearmouth, deputy political editor, and Emma Haslett from the New Statesman’s business desk to pick through the promises, and ask whether Rishi Sunak’s campaign is looking more and more desperate.Then in You Ask Us, a listener asks if the shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves’s stance against nationalising utilities could put Labour’s plans for net-zero greenhouse gas emissions at risk.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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.

Two years after it was commissioned, the Forde report into infighting in the Labour Party during the years of Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership has finally been published. Such tensions have never fully gone away. Keir Starmer sacked Sam Tarry, a shadow transport minister, on July 27 after he joined a rail picket line against the leadership’s instructions.Anoosh Chakelian, Rachel Wearmouth and Freddie Hayward discuss what led to the Forde inquiry, its key findings and why this is unlikely to spell the end of the party's deep factionalism.Then in You Ask Us, a listener asks what the point of the Labour Party is when they don’t support organised labour.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email: [email protected] 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 Boris Johnson talked of a "deep state" undermining his ability to govern, have we entered an era of conspiracy theories? Jonn Elledge, one of the authors of a new book, Conspiracy: A History of Boll*cks Theories and How Not To Fall For Them, talks to Rachel Cunliffe about how conspiracy theories are nothing new. They discuss QAnon, whether a few hundred years of European history were just made up – and why Britney Spears shows that sometimes obscure internet theories can be true.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 Penny Mordaunt having been eliminated from the contest on Wednesday 20 July, either Rishi Sunak or Liz Truss will become Britain’s next prime minister.  Anoosh Chakelian and Rachel Cunliffe speak to the New Statesman’s political editor, Andrew Marr, about how the Johnson “loyalist” and the “traitor” emerged victorious, whether Boris Johnson will indeed be back as he hinted in his final PMQs, and the climate emergency that overshadows this race.  Then, in You Ask Us, a listener asks: why Liz Truss? What are the qualities that her a backers believe would make her a good PM?If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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.

This evening one of the remaining five candidates to be the next prime minister will be eliminated in a vote of MPs. Anoosh Chakelian is joined by Rachel Cunliffe, Ben Walker and Rachel Wearmouth, our new deputy political editor, to discuss who came out of the two debates over the weekend best and why Labour has enjoyed watching the candidates tear strips out of each other on live TV.Then, in You Ask Us, they answer a listener’s question on what Boris Johnson might do next.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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.

Rory Stewart, the former international development secretary and Conservative leadership candidate, speaks to Rachel Cunliffe about the lessons he learned from running for leader in 2019. They talk about whether this year’s candidates show growing diversity in the party, why our political culture has got so bad at argument and debate, and what he got wrong when he was in government.Stewart’s new series, The Long History of Argument, starts on BBC Radio 4 on 19 July at 9am.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.

Nadhim Zahawi, Jeremy Hunt and Suella Braverman have been eliminated from the Conservative leadership election, with Penny Mordaunt climbing to second place behind Rishi Sunak. Anoosh Chakelian, Freddie Hayward and Harry Lambert discuss the remaining candidates in this unpredictable race, the latest polling on front-runners Penny Mordaunt and Rishi Sunak, and whether being a “fresh face” will ultimately decide the contest. Then in You Ask Us, NS Environment Correspondent India Bourke joins the podcast to answer a listener's question on which of the Conservative candidates would be best and worst for the environment and why.If you have a You Ask Us question, email [email protected] 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.

At the time of recording, 11 Conservative MPs had launched official bids to replace Boris Johnson as prime minister. Anoosh Chakelian, Freddie Hayward and Ben Walker discuss the candidates' prospects, promises and pitfalls – as well as how the leadership election could reshape the Conservative Party.Then in You Ask Us, a listener asks which Tory candidate would pose the biggest threat to the Labour Party.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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 dramatic twenty-four hours in which over fifty ministers and advisors resigned from government, Boris Johnson has finally admitted defeat and announced he will step down as prime minister and leader of the Conservative Party. In his speech to the public at lunchtime today, he set out his desire to remain in post as a caretaker PM until the party elect his replacement. Indeed he continues to appoint new ministers to cabinet to fill the vacuum left by those who quit.In this episode of the New Statesman podcast, Anoosh Chakelian is joined by New Statesman editor Jason Cowley and colleagues Rachel Cunliffe and Freddie Hayward to discuss what happens next. They explore the likely candidates to replace Boris Johnson as Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative party, and discuss whether he will be allowed to stay on until the autumn.They also answer a listener question on whether “Johnsonism” will continue to define the Conservative party beyond Boris Johnson’s tenure.If you'd like to ask a question for You Ask Us, please email [email protected] to the New Statesman for just £1 a week, using our special podcast offer: www.newstatesman.com/podcastofferLISTEN 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 torrid 24 hours in Westminster for Boris Johnson, in which Rishi Sunak and Sajid Javid both resigned, Anoosh Chakelian is joined by Harry Lambert, Ben Walker and Rachel Cunliffe to discuss whether this, finally, is a mess that the Prime Minister can't get out of. Is this the straw that broke the camel’s back? And what is going to happen next?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.

This special episode was recorded live at the New Statesman’s Politics Live event.  Keir Starmer speaks to Rachel Wearmouth, currently the senior political correspondent at the Mirror, but soon to join the New Statesman as deputy political editor. They discuss the radical views of his youth, his promise for economic growth, and why he is scrapping the 2019 Labour Party manifesto.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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.

Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s First Minister and leader of the SNP, has announced that she wants to hold a second independence referendum on 19 October 2023. The constitutional debate was widely seen to be at a political deadlock, but now it enters a new phase.Anoosh Chakelian is joined by Chris Deerin, the New Statesman Scotland editor, to discuss the motivations behind this latest bid for independence and the means of securing it. They also touch on how Scots have said they would vote in recent polls, and whether plans to fight the next general election on this single issue could backfire, presenting an opportunity for Scottish Labour. Then in You Ask Us, Anoosh is joined by the New Statesman’s political reporter Freddie Hayward to answer a listener’s question on whether, by rejecting Corbynism, Keir Starmer has dropped the party’s most appealing policies.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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 the official measure of inflation in the UK hits 9.1 per cent, Anoosh Chakelian is joined by the New Statesman business team, Will Dunn and Emma Haslett, to discuss why inflation is hitting the country so badly.How much is Brexit making matters worse, and is inflation simply a worldwide problem? And what can the government do about it?Then in You Ask Us, the panel answer a listener’s question on Labour’s lack of a clear response to the rail strikes.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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.

In a major blow to Boris Johnson, the Conservatives have lost the seats of Tiverton and Honiton and Wakefield to the Liberal Democrats and Labour respectively, by double-digit margins. In the wake of the results, Oliver Dowden, the co-chairman of the Conservative Party, became the first cabinet minister to resign (if implicitly) over the PMs leadership.Anoosh Chakelian is joined by Harry Lambert and the New Statesman’s polling expert Ben Walker to discuss the crushing Tory defeat, the power of tactical voting, fatigue among Tory activists and Keir Starmer’s strategy, or lack thereof, as Labour leader.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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 just a few days until the Tiverton and Honiton by-election on 23 June, Anoosh Chakelian is joined by the New Statesman’s business editor and Devonian Will Dunn, who has returned from a reporting trip to the south-west constituency. They discuss how cost of living is the big issue on the doorstep, why the Lib Dems have a mountain to climb to win the seat, and why the Labour candidate feels a bit miffed about being ignored.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.

The by-election in Wakefield on June 23 will be a crucial test of whether Labour can win the Red Wall back from the Conservatives. The election was triggered by the resignation of the Conservative MP Imran Ahmad Khan after he was found guilty in April of sexually assaulting a teenaged boy. Khan was elected in the 2019 general election as the first non-Labour MP in the seat, two thirds of which voted Leave in the EU referendum, since 1932. Victory for Labour would send a powerful signal that the party can regain the Red Wall and form the next government.Anoosh Chakelian, reporting from Wakefield, is joined by Rachel Cunliffe to discuss the mood on the ground, new polling that suggests Labour has taken a massive lead and what this might mean for the party.Then she speaks to Anand Menon, professor of European politics and foreign affairs at King’s College London and director of the UK in a Changing Europe research initiative. He discusses the issues affecting his home city, why it shifted from red to blue in 2019 and what challenges face the candidates.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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.

The New Statesman podcast takes a special look at the Green Party, following their success in the local elections. Why did they do so well in May? And how can they build on this to become a major player in UK politics? Anoosh Chakelian is joined by our polling expert, Ben Walker, and environment correspondent India Bourke. If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson is attempting yet another relaunch of his government just days after 148 MPs told him they don’t have confidence in his leadership. Anoosh Chakelian, Rachel Cunliffe and Harry Lambert discuss the rebels' next move, what this means for the government, and whether Keir Starmer should have been more aggressive at PMQs. Then in You Ask Us, they answer a listener's question on why any MP would want to support Boris Johnson right now. If you have a question for You Ask Us email [email protected] Podcast listeners can subscribe to the New Statesman for just £1 a week for 12 weeks using our special offer. 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.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has won a vote of confidence from Conservative MPs. But 148 members voted against him, leaving a split party. In this special episode of the New Statesman Podcast, recorded at the Tate Britain just down the road from the Palace of Westminster, Rachel Cunliffe interviews the political editor Andrew Marr on where this development now leaves Johnson and the country.They discuss how this is good for the opposition but bad for government, why there is no coordinated plot among the Tories to remove Johnson, and why his days in office must now surely be numbered.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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.

On the day that Boris Johnson faces a vote of no confidence in his leadership, Rachel Cunliffe speaks to Harry Lambert, senior political correspondent, and Ben Walker, the New Statesman’s polling expert, about how we got here.They talk about the Prime Minister’s chances of survival, the damage done to him already and what to expect from by-elections in Wakefield and Tiverton and Honiton on June 23.If you have a question for You Ask Us email [email protected] 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.

The campaign to remove Boris Johnson as Prime Minister is building. The steady trickle of letters from Conservative MPs declaring they have no confidence in him and criticism from high-profile dissenters has sparked speculation that there could be a vote as early as next week.Anoosh Chakelian, Rachel Cunliffe and Freddie Hayward discuss what’s causing the widespread discontent among the Tory ranks, what would happen should the party stumble into a vote, and the broader identity crisis in the government.Then in You Ask Us, in reaction to Johnson’s plan to revive imperial measures, a listener asks how many ounces in a pound.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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.

Fresh from Sydney, Professor Marc Stears, a former Labour speechwriter and author of its 2015 manifesto, tells Anoosh Chakelian what Labour can learn, and where Keir Starmer is going wrong.Stears reflects on how Anthony Albanese, the new Labor prime minister of Australia, avoided culture warring with Scott Morrison, his predecessor, what Keir Starmer can learn from this, and his concerns about Labour's lack of policy direction - and its fear of the Daily Mail.The UCL Policy Lab was launched on 30 May 2022.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.

Sue Gray’s long-awaited report has been published at last. It contains lurid details of excessive drinking and partying at Downing Street during lockdown, as well as a “lack of respect and poor treatment” towards cleaners and security guards. But what does it mean for Boris Johnson? Anoosh Chakelian, Rachel Cunliffe, Freddie Hayward and Harry Lambert discuss the mood among Tory MPs and why they continue to support Johnson, the “God complex” in Downing Street that created a culture of rule-breaking, and whether the police investigation has in fact saved the PM. Then in You Ask Us, a listener wonders: what would it take for Tory MPs to oust Johnson?If you have a question for You Ask Us, email [email protected] 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.