Shows / The Politics Show
The Politics Show
Helping you make sense of politics – every week.
Anoosh Chakelian and the New Statesman team bring you sharp reporting, clear analysis and thoughtful conversations to help you understand what’s really going on in Westminster and beyond.
The New Statesman is Britain’s leading source of news and commentary on politics and culture with a progressive perspective. On The Politics Show, our journalists and expert guests cut through the noise of the headlines to explain the forces shaping our world…
Episodes
The Politics ShowHas your AI therapist got your back? | Audio Long Read
In May this year, an American woman sought the help of a chatbot on an eating disorders website. The bot, named Tessa and running on an evolving, generative…
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You Ask Us: Is Sunak a tech bro? Is Paddington a centrist?
On this week's You Ask Us we're getting to the heart of British politics and asking, is Paddington a centrist? But before we get there the team answers a…
The Politics ShowTackling the digital divide through partnership | Sponsored
20 million people in the UK lack the basic digital skills required to download apps, apply for jobs online, or use the internet with confidence. This results…
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Keir Starmer: "half fabulous, half ready to fight"
Arriving on stage to an attack of glitter from a protester, Labour leader Keir Starmer quickly recovered to deliver his speech. Amongst many mentions of…
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Rachel Reeves: 7 standing ovations but no big new policies
Darren Jones, Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury, joins the podcast to take us behind the scenes of the Shadow Cabinet's announcements at this year's…
The Politics ShowHow Britain became a dangerous place to have a baby
What are the roots of today’s maternity crisis? Recent research by the Care Quality Commission has found a “concerning decline” in England, with over half of…
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Labour takes Rutherglen: the end of SNP domination?
In what has been described by Keir Starmer as a 'seismic result', Labour has taken the Rutherglen and Hamilton West seat with more than twice the votes…
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Is Suella Braverman the future of the Conservative Party?
Rishi Sunak wrapped up this year's Conservative Party conference with an hour long speech in which he finally announced the long-rumoured cancellation of HS2…
The Politics ShowHow thriving cities can unlock productivity | Sponsored
Economic growth in the UK is stagnating. Can a radical reshaping of private and public sector roles in core cities help unlock productivity and prosperity in…
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Soft-launching the end of HS2
We're bringing you this episode from Manchester where this year's Conservative Party conference is taking place. Rachel Cunliffe, associate political editor…
The Politics ShowA year inside GB News: "what the hell have we done?"
For today’s Audio Long Read we’re bringing you one from our archives, which is suddenly extremely prescient. This week GB News is in the spotlight once again…
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You Ask Us: What was behind Suella Braverman's speech on immigration?
The Home Secretary made a speech this week in Washington to a right-wing US think tank called the American Enterprise Institute. She made a number eye-catching…
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Who really controls Britain's right wing?
The Conservatives have been in power for more than 13 years under five different prime ministers. We have experienced Cameroon austerity, Mayite statism…
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IQ fetishism, in Silicon Valley and beyond
Where does the concept of IQ fetishism originate? And why has it resurfaced in contemporary discussions, particularly within the tech-right movement? Join…
The Politics ShowThe philosopher and the crypto king: Sam Bankman-Fried and the effective altruism delusion | Audio Long Read
At the time of writing, the crypto billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried is due to stand trial on 3 October 2023. He stands accused of fraud and money-laundering on an…
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You Ask Us: How might a Labour government manage a Trump government?
With both the UK and US elections coming into view, the team consider what's happening with Labour's foreign policy agenda and how the relationship between a…
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Rishi Sunak and his environmental straw men
This Wednesday Rishi Sunak gave a speech rolling back on the government’s Net Zero pledges, pushing back the ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars from…
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Trussonomics isn't dead
Liz Truss thought she had two years to save the economy, but her mini-budget caused it all to blow up in less than two months. We're now a year on from her…
The Politics ShowHow Chile (almost) democratised Big Tech | Audio Long Read
Fifty years after Salvador Allende was ousted, might his greatest legacy be his battle with the emerging tech giants? On 1 August 1973, a seemingly mundane…
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You Ask Us: Why are so many councils going bust?
Since being recently surpassed by India, Britain has the world's sixth largest economy. But, one listener asks, how do we square this position with the reality…
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Angela Rayner can’t let the unions down now
The deputy labour leader and “trade union favourite” delivered a speech full of promises at the TUC. Now she has to deliver. Reaffirming Labour’s commitment to…
The Politics ShowLegacy tech & the move to sustainable computing | Sponsored
The UK is one of the largest producers of household electronic waste in the world. In 2022 we threw away nearly 24 kilos of things like plugs, mobile phones…
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Britain's great tax delusion
Rishi Sunak earned almost £5m in the past three years, yet this was only taxed at a rate of 22%. Britain's tax system is broken, focusing on income rather than…
The Politics ShowThe prime minister and the AI that solved the climate crisis
After the extreme heat of summer 2024, which saw children stretchered out of their exams, Britain’s prime minister calls a press conference in Westminster…
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Crumbling Britain, with Andrew Marr
We inhabit an economy too small to deliver the social goods British people expect, and now Britain is cracking. From the concrete crises affecting schools…
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You Ask Us: The big Labour reshuffle, promotions and demotions
Angela Rayner up, Lisa Nandy down - what’s motivated the moves in Keir Starmer’s shadow cabinet reshuffle this week and what does this tell us about the…
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The trappings of Western hyper-liberalism | Conversation
Can liberalism survive the horrors of our modern world? Will Lloyd is joined by John Gray political philosopher and author of The New Leviathans: Thoughts…
The Politics ShowSummer of Light: a new short story by Jonathan Coe | Audio Long Read
In the summer of 1924, a highly regarded painter falls – or is he pushed? – into the canal while celebrating his exhibition at the Venice Biennale. Two young…
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You Ask Us: if you're a centrist politician, how do you choose one party over another?
Rory Stewart, Tony Blair, Alastair Campbell: a listener writes in to ask why centrist politicians align themselves with one party over another? But before the…
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Ben Wallace and Nadine Dorries, the long goodbye
“History will not remember you kindly” Nadine Dorries’ wrote this weekend in her resignation letter to Rishi Sunak. But this is not the only departure which…
The Politics ShowEscaping Eden: life after the Plymouth Brethren | Audio Long Reads
For those who leave the ultra-conservative Christian sect, separation comes at great personal cost. The New Statesman’s assistant editor Pippa Bailey had…
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You Ask Us: will Labour stop the culture wars, and does the government control what journalists report?
The Conservatives seem intent on fighting the next election on "culture wars" issues. A listener asks, would a Labour government put an end to all that? Also…
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Have Conservatives forgotten education?
GCSE and A Level results are out, and the proportion of top grades have dipped since the pandemic years. It's an opportunity for the government and the…
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Russia’s war on the future | Conversation
After spending several days reporting in Pokrovsk, a small city in eastern Ukraine and the recent target of two missile strikes, Katie Stallard describes the…
The Politics ShowIn defence of counterfactual history | Audio Long Read
What if the rush to war in 1914 had been averted? What if the Berlin Crisis of 1961 had led to nuclear war? What if the liberal revolution of 1848 had been…
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You Ask Us: Should it be easier to recall MPs, and how do Rishi Sunak and John Major compare?
Various MPs, including Nadine Dorries, have been accused of not doing their jobs. Should there be a standard of work all MPs must meet? Anoosh and Freddie…
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Labour’s caution could turn to radicalism in office
Would Labour be radical in office? Freddie Hayward spoke to party insiders to find out – he joins Anoosh Chakelian to talk about how Labour can make meaningful…
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Where do Labour and the Tories differ on growth? With Bridget Phillipson and Bim Afolami | Conversation
Two visions for how Britain can increase productivity and boost growth. Freddie Hayward interviews shadow education secretary Bridget Phillipson and…
The Politics ShowWhat Simone De Beauvoir knew about loss, by Ali Smith | Audio Long Read
The novelist Ali Smith first came across the work of Simone de Beauvoir in an Inverness bookshop, aged 18 or 19, and was instantly compelled by her “tough…
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You Ask Us: Is Starmer haunted by Blair, and how do you raise voter turnout?
Labour’s dominance in the polls draws obvious comparisons with 1997-era New Labour. But is it fair to compare Keir Starmer with Tony Blair – and what should…
The Politics ShowRishi Sunak's asylum policy is all at sea
The first residents have boarded the Bibby Stockholm barge moored off the coast of Dorset. Anoosh Chakelian visited Portland to meet locals and asylum seekers…
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The Trump trial and the internet conspiracy infecting the world | Conversation
An internet hoax conceived on a fringe message board grew into an online conspiracy theory so far-reaching that it sparked the January 6 attack on the US…
The Politics ShowGeorge Monbiot: how I escape climate despair | Audio Long Read
There is one question the environmental journalist and author George Monbiot is asked more than any other: how do you cope? When your job is to report on the…
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You Ask Us: Is a new party possible, and has Andy Burnham avoided policing scandal?
Anoosh Chakelian, Freddie Hayward and Ben Walker answer listener questions. There have been multiple attempts to launch credible new political parties in…
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Rutherglen by-election: Labour’s key to unlock Scotland?
Yet another by-election could provide a key opportunity for Anas Sarwar’s Scottish Labour to regain lost seats in Scotland. The former SNP MP Margaret Ferrier…
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All politics is local, with Westminster council leader Adam Hug
When Labour won Westminster Council from the Conservatives in 2022, they made history. Now in power for the first time ever, the Labour council leadership is…
The Politics ShowThe 1922 committee: inside the Conservatives’ assassination bureau | Audio Long Read
The Conservative Private Members Committee, informally known as the 1922 Committee (or the ’22), is the Tory confessional, its trade union and backbenchers’…
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You Ask Us: How would a Lib Dem return change parliament? And why Liz Truss was worse for Labour.
Anoosh Chakelian and Freddie Hayward answer your questions. After a routing in 2015, the Liberal Democrats have languished as a minor player in the Commons…
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Are Labour and the Tories u-turning on green policies?
Keir Starmer has faced criticism for appearing to water down some key environmental policies, particularly in light of Labour's narrow defeat in the Uxbridge…
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What does a think tank actually do?
Shadowy forces, deep state actors in the pay of nefarious oligarchs... or an important part of the political ecosystem? Rachel Cunliffe meets senior figures…
The Politics ShowHow Saudi Arabia is buying the world | Audio Long Read
When Saudi cinemas reopened in 2018, for the first time in 35 years, they screened the Marvel movie Black Panther. Many saw parallels between the kingdom and…
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By-election special: Tory wipeout, interrupted
In a terrible night of results for Rishi Sunak in rural England, Labour faltered in outer London. Rachel Cunliffe, Anoosh Chakelian, Rachel Wearmouth and Ben…
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You Ask Us: Why won't Keir Starmer undo the two-child cap - and can we fix rip-off banks?
Keir Starmer says he’ll keep the two-child cap on benefits. Is this a knee-jerk reaction to public opinion, or an attempt at “fiscal discipline”? The New…
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Brexit "has broken Britain" - Stephen Flynn interview
Stephen Flynn, Westminster leader of the SNP, speaks to Zoë Grünewald at the New Statesman's Politics Live conference. They discuss the SNP’s ambitions for…
The Politics ShowThe Spanish election reveals the future of Europe | Audio Long Read
Since 2018, prime minister Pedro Sánchez has led a surprisingly durable and impactful Spanish government, implementing progressive policies such as improved…
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You Ask Us: Who replaces Rishi Sunak – and could Labour MPs defect?
The Conservatives are on track to lose the next election. Who would lead them in opposition? Anoosh Chakelian, Rachel Wearmouth and Zoë Grünewald answer a…
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Are Labour's missions enough - and is a reshuffle ahead?
Keir Starmer has finished announcing Labour’s five missions. Are they enough to get Labour into government? Vocational education, social mobility, and breaking…
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The Keir Starmer interview: “my mortgage is up – and Sunak doesn’t get it.”
In this wide-ranging interview with Rachel Wearmouth, Keir Starmer discusses the “really damaged economy” Labour will inherit if they win the next election –…
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You Ask Us: Will Keir Starmer do electoral reform - and Andy Burnham ever be Prime Minister?
Anoosh, Freddie and Zoë answer your questions in You Ask Us. Keir Starmer has said that voter reform is not a priority for the Labour party. But in the event…
The Politics ShowWhy Britain is broke, with Ed Conway
The UK is experiencing higher inflation than any other G7 country. Ed Conway, Economics editor for Sky News, joins Anoosh, Freddie and Zoë on the New Statesman…