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 ShowYou asked, we listened ... to Liz Truss' podcast
In this week’s episode of You Ask Us, one listener wonders, is the media infatuated with Zack Polanski? And another challenges our journalists to listen to the…
The Politics ShowWes Streeting is "pretty frustrated, tbh"
Wes Streeting denied plotting to oust Keir Starmer. Ailbhe Rea met the Health Secretary to learn what he's really thinking. *** Ailbhe writes: Labour is in…
The Politics ShowNatalie Fleet MP: I won't report my rape
If you are raped in London today, you could be waiting until 2030 for a trial. Justice secretary David Lammy has stated that 60 per cent of rape victims drop…
The Politics ShowNigel Farage wants to be American
Why does the Reform leader spend so much time in the US? Freddie Hayward has been speaking to him to find out. -- Winston Churchill had an American mother…
The Politics ShowLabour’s Green attacks are misfiring
Keir Starmer described Green party policy as “nuts” and “dangerous” in an interview with the Observer yesterday. But is he underestimating one of Labour’s…
The Politics ShowHow can the UK win back the net zero narrative?
As the UK grapples with cost of living pressures, geopolitical shocks and a shifting political landscape, the case for net zero remains strong - but the story…
The Politics ShowIs Labour still Labour?
Is the Labour Party holding true to its founding principles? Have we lost trust in the police? Are we in a recession? Anoosh Chakelian is joined by Luke…
The Politics ShowLabour’s polling nightmare
A recent result from pollsters Find Out Now has put Labour support at just 14%, behind Reform, the Tories and the Greens. Just how bad are these polling…
The Politics ShowAngela Rayner vs. Wes Streeting: has the next leadership race begun?
Four senior Labour politicians are on manoeuvres. Ailbhe Rea reveals who's in the running to replace Keir Starmer. -- Keir Starmer has become desperately…
The Politics ShowInside the battle to lead Your Party
After months of deliberation it’s been decided, it’s not our party, it’s not their party, it’s Your Party. This weekend, thousands of the new left party’s…
The Politics ShowOur justice system is leaking from the sides
In the past three weeks, 12 prisoners have been accidentally released - Justice Secretary David Lammy announced this morning. This is in addition to the 91…
The Politics ShowKeir Starmer is in denial
Keir Starmer has backed Rachel Reeves – but the Prime Minister has miscalculated. After weekend front pages accused the Chancellor of lying about the "fiscal…
The Politics ShowLabour U-turn again, this time on employment rights
Another bit has fallen off Labour’s car as its MPs flee Westminster and bid a hasty retreat to their constituencies. This time, Labour has been accused of…
The Politics ShowCrap, trash and greed
It’s Black Friday and consumers are hunting for bargains. However, are Brits spending more and more money on goods that are getting worse and worse? Will Dunn…
The Politics ShowMiddle earners targeted by budget
While many on the left were calling for a wealth tax, yesterday the Chancellor delivered a smorgasbord of stealth taxes. How will this platter of sneaky…
The Politics ShowRachel Reeves’ tax-heavy budget
Tax in Britain will rise to an all-time high following Rachel Reeves’ budget. The Chancellor has unveiled her latest budget. She’s promised to remove the…
The Politics ShowRachel Reeves must climb out of a massive hole
The Chancellor has admitted that the economy feels stuck. But will tomorrow’s budget, which promises to “grip the cost of living” and looks likely to freeze…
The Politics ShowJeremy Corbyn: “I’m sorry” for Your Party’s messy launch
This summer, MPs Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana announced the launch of the provisionally named ‘Your Party’. The new party was created to fill a gap on the…
The Politics ShowHow Palantir conquered the world
For so long a fixture of public debate in the US, the software company Palantir is now increasingly being talked about here in Britain. In September the UK…
The Politics ShowWhere are Britain’s communist parties?
Whilst Your Party and the Green Party attempt to occupy the space on the left of British politics that they feel Labour has abandoned, our listener asks, what…
The Politics ShowHow much does immigration actually matter to the public?
Shabana Mahmood was back in the Commons today outlining her controversial immigration plans. Meanwhile, Clive Lewis said he’d give up his seat for Andy Burnham…
The Politics ShowThe bond markets could bring down Rachel Reeves
Meet the money men with Britain's future in their hands. * Next week Rachel Reeves will deliver her budget and, for all the talk of fiscal rules, headroom and…
The Politics ShowLabour has given up on integration
Home secretary Shabana Mahmood has set out her plans for the biggest shake up of asylum laws in 40 years. It divided the Labour party, impressed some…
The Politics ShowShabana Mahmood's asylum plans split Labour
Shabana Mahmood, the home secretary, has unveiled a series of changes to the migration and asylum system. The plans, which have been trailed over the weekend…
The Politics ShowBooker winner: Keir Starmer should read 'Flesh'
"If he feels talking about his favourite novel is politically disadvantageous, that's a sad state of affairs" - David Szalay on Keir Starmer's reading habits…
The Politics ShowWhat Wes Streeting should do next
We share our strategy advice for the Labour rebels allegedly trying to oust Keir Starmer. Ailbhe Rea and Luke O'Reilly join Rachel Cunliffe to answer listener…
The Politics ShowWhy is Rachel Reeves U-turning on income tax?
After weeks of preparing to break their manifesto pledge, Starmer and Reeves have ditched their plans to raise income tax. They’re scared it would have angered…
The Politics ShowThere’s no “fundamental institutional bias” at the BBC | Lewis Goodall interview
The BBC is still reeling from the dramatic resignation announcement of its director general Tim Davie on Sunday. Rachel Cunliffe gets Lewis Goodall’s insider…
The Politics ShowMutiny in the Labour Party
Labour hit its lowest-ever poll rating last week, coming fourth at just 17 per cent. Westminster is full of chatter about a leadership coup at the hands of Wes…
The Politics ShowWill world leaders ever fix climate change?
It's now "impossible" to limit climate change to 1.5 degrees. Can COP30 achieve anything material at all? -- Keir Starmer has been in Brazil ahead of COP30 -…
The Politics ShowCrisis at the BBC
Yesterday evening, BBC director general Tim Davie resigned, as first reported in the New Statesman by our new political editor Ailbhe Rea, along with his head…
The Politics ShowHas Labour let down millennials?
Has Labour let down Millennials? Are tax hikes on the horizon? And what would happen to the commonwealth if Britain dumped our King? Rachel Cunliffe joins…
The Politics ShowSteve Reed's £7bn affordable housing fund | Exclusive interview
“The dream of home ownership is closed off to younger people today” - Steve Reed, Housing Secretary Steve Reed exclusively tells the New Statesman about the…
The Politics ShowWhat Labour must learn from Zohran Mamdani
Voters in New York City have elected a socialist, Muslim, 34-year old Mayor. Here's what Labour need to learn from Zohran Mamdani's campaign. -- Zohran Mamdani…
The Politics ShowBritain’s next maternity scandal
A four-month investigation with Channel 4 News reveals harrowing failings at one of Britain’s most prestigious hospitals. Oli Dugmore speaks to the New…
The Politics ShowHuntingdon train attack: knife crime in suburbia
Is Britain becoming a country of mass violence? On Saturday evening, a Doncaster to London train was forced to stop in Huntingdon after eleven people were…
The Politics ShowWhat's Farage's plan for the economy?
Today, Nigel Farage set out his updated vision for the UK economy. At a speech and press conference in London, The Reform UK leader talked tax, immigration…
The Politics ShowDo we have too many leftist parties?
Is Build Baby Build doomed? Is Katie Lam running for leader? Where is Priti Patel? Can the UK really support 5 large leftist parties? Luke O’Reilly joins…
The Politics ShowDavid Lammy's plan to stop Farage | Exclusive interview
The Deputy PM believes that Labour can beat the threat of the populist right, Nigel Farage and Reform. Lammy says that Labour can achieve this by tackling the…
The Politics ShowEngland's most deprived areas revealed
Which are the most deprived neighbourhoods in England and how might this map onto voter intent? Anoosh Chakelian is joined by senior data journalist Ben…
The Politics ShowAbolish the rotten monarchy
Another bad week for Prince Andrew. You could say the man hasn’t had a good week since 2011. Although, actually, he does live in a 30-bedroom mansion in…
The Politics ShowCan Labour afford to raise taxes?
With the Autumn budget looming, the government has some tough decisions to make. Rachel Reeves has to find a predicted £30bn in extra revenue to meet her…
The Politics ShowShould Labour sack Starmer to beat Reform?
The Caerphilly by-election proves Reform can be beaten. But is Keir Starmer the man to do it? Last week voters in Caerphilly confounded pundits by electing…
The Politics ShowTwo decades later, Booker Prize winner Kiran Desai returns
The youngest winner of the Booker Prize fell silent. Now she's back with a new novel. -- With only her second novel The Inheritance of Loss, Kiran Desai won…
The Politics ShowThe death of Welsh Labour
Is Welsh Labour dead? Plaid Cymru won a historic victory in the by-election, trouncing Labour who had been dominant for over 100 years. The "middle child" as…
The Politics ShowLabour loses Caerphilly for first time in over 100 years
After 14 attempts, Lindsay Whittle has won the Caerphilly seat in South Wales for Plaid Cymru. Reform came in second with over a third of the vote, and Labour…
The Politics ShowAndrew Marr: Keir Starmer is failing Britain
Andrew Marr says he thought Labour would fix everything, but: "I was wrong". -- Andrew Marr is stepping down as political editor of the New Statesman. In this…
The Politics ShowWhy the Trump-Putin summit fell apart
Donald Trump's planned summit with Vladimir Putin is cancelled. Here's why. -- Less than a week after Donald Trump offered to meet Vladimir Putin in Budapest…
The Politics ShowYour Party and the UK's left crisis
James Schneider, the former director of strategic communications for Jeremy Corbyn, was involved in the founding of Your Party earlier this year. He has since…
The Politics ShowAndrew, duke no more
Andrew had already stepped down as a working royal, after that disastrous Newsnight interview in 2019, but he’s now gone a step further and agreed to…
The Politics Show100 years of Thatcher, with Charles Moore
A century on from the her birth, Tanjil Rashid sits down with the Iron Lady's official biographer, Charles Moore. LISTEN AD-FREE: 📱Download the New Statesman…
The Politics ShowIs liberalism dead? with John Gray
For over 30 years, John Gray has written for the New Statesman on everything from Artificial Intelligence to Friedrich Nietzsche. He joins deputy editor Will…
The Politics ShowUnlock the triple lock
Andrew Marr joins Rachel Cunliffe to discuss his column in this week's magazine, Tax the old. They also discuss the latest developments in the China spy case…
The Politics ShowEmperor Trump and his British courtiers
"All I've done all my life is deals. The greatest deals just sort of happen…” President Trump announced at a celebratory peace-deal signing attended by dozens…
The Politics ShowThe UK needs a China reset
Did Keir Starmer's government quash an espionage case to curry favour with China? -- There's fury in Westminster over the case of two alleged China spies which…
The Politics ShowTrump wins peace in the Middle East
All 20 remaining, living hostages have returned to Israel after 2 years in captivity, following the October the 7th Hamas attacks. The remains of the 28…
The Politics ShowIs Labour just mild-mannered Faragism?
Is Labour reading from the Reform handbook? And what is the government doing to address rising child poverty? Oli Dugmore is joined by Rachel Cunliffe to…
The Politics ShowOn the ground in the new Calais Jungle
Almost 10 years ago the Calais 'Jungle' was demolished by the French authorities, structures were burned to the ground and the migrants were forced to flee…
The Politics ShowLabour's deja vu problem
Andrew Marr joins Tom McTague to discuss the ascension of Shabana Mahmood, and the Blairites haunting Keir Starmer's government. LISTEN AD-FREE: 📱Download the…
The Politics ShowTory conference through the eyes of the NS ... and GB News
You might have missed it, many people did, but this week the Conservatives met for their annual party conference in Manchester. Rachel Cunliffe is joined by…