Shows / This Is Why
This Is Why
The world’s a pretty confusing place right now – so how do you make sense of it all? This Is Why takes one story every day, explains how we got here and why it matters to you. Sky News’ Niall Paterson speaks to experts and correspondents from around the world, getting simple answers to some complex questions. Available every weekday afternoon. This Is Why is a Sky News podcast – if you have a question, contact us: why@sky.uk
Episodes
This Is WhyToxic workplace culture and what to do about it
After a string of high-profile accusations about toxic cultures in workplaces, the Sky News Daily hears from a Harvard professor credited with turning around…
This Is WhyJohnson, Sturgeon and Trump: Former leaders and the latest fallouts
Niall Paterson speaks to Sky News correspondents on a day of big political stories – with Boris Johnson’s decision to stand down as an MP on Friday still…
This Is WhyBoris Johnson goes. How do Rishi Sunak and the Tories react?
Sky News political correspondent Rob Powell and chief political correspondent Jon Craig discuss the fallout from Boris Johnson’s decision to step down as an…
This Is WhyIs the Nova Kakhovka dam breach the most significant moment in the war so far?
Thousands of people have been evacuated after a dam in the Russian-occupied Kherson region of Ukraine was breached on Tuesday. International intelligence…
This Is WhyHarry v Daily Mirror publisher: Day three and what happens next
Prince Harry has finished making his case to a High Court judge after another day of cross-examination by Andrew Green, the KC representing the Daily Mirror’s…
This Is WhyHarry v Daily Mirror publisher: What happened on day two?
Prince Harry has given evidence for the first time at the High Court in his legal battle against Mirror Group Newspapers. The Duke of Sussex set out his case…
This Is WhyHarry v Daily Mirror publisher: What happened on day one?
The Duke of Sussex has been accused of wasting the High Court's time on the opening day of his case against Mirror Group Newspapers. Prince Harry did not…
This Is WhyThe secret Iranian Russian arms deal
Sky News has seen a document which – if real - appears to be the first hard evidence that Iran has sold ammunition to Russia for its war in Ukraine. An…
This Is WhyGreedflation: are businesses profiteering from the cost of living crisis?
As food inflation rises to 19.2%, its highest rate in 42 years, the European Central Bank has suggested that it could be down to, in part, businesses…
This Is Why'I'm scared': What it's like to be LGBTQ+ in a country where you could be killed
New anti-LGBTQ+ laws have been passed in Uganda, expanding on rules which already criminalised same-sex acts and carried a maximum penalty of life…
This Is WhyMigrant crisis: The people found at sea
Sky News has been on board one of the biggest-ever migrant rescue missions on the Mediterranean Sea. More than 600 people were spotted by rescue forces crammed…
This Is WhyStudent loans in England: is the degree still value for money?
Changes to student finance this September will see future graduates paying back their university debts earlier and for longer than any generation before them…
This Is WhyNet migration: What it means for the UK
Net migration to the UK rose to 606,000 in the 12 months to December 2022, the highest number for a calendar year on record - despite a Tory 2019 manifesto…
This Is WhyRon DeSantis: The Republican rival who could trump Trump
There had been months of speculation, but Ron DeSantis has now officially launched his bid for the White House - filing a declaration of candidacy with the US…
This Is WhyHow 'fake' families are smuggled into the UK on skilled worker visas
Criminal gangs are exploiting Britain's need to fill jobs by using the skilled worker visa system as a route to traffic people into the country. Under the…
This Is WhySuella Braverman and the speeding ticket row
Home Secretary Suella Braverman has been accused of breaking the ministerial code of conduct by asking civil servants to arrange a private speed-awareness…
This Is WhyTrophy hunting: The row about conservation and colonialism
Earlier this year, MPs voted to stop trophy hunters bringing back the body parts of endangered animals – such as rhino horns - into Britain. However, not…
This Is WhyCould AI really take your job?
As BT announce they’re expecting to cut up to 10,000 jobs in the next decade due to advances in Artificial Intelligence, concerns remain over the country's…
This Is WhyWhat is happening to the Uyghurs in China?
Western journalists have been inside Xinjiang, China's largest region in the northwest of the country for the first time since COVID restrictions were lifted…
This Is WhyThe desperate parents stealing formula to feed their babies
The cost of baby formula has soared in price, causing some desperate families to take unsafe measures to feed their children - including buying dangerous…
This Is WhyZelenskyy visit: How long can the West pay for Ukraine's war?
Ukraine’s President Zelenskyy made a surprise visit to the UK on Monday for face-to-face talks with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he…
This Is WhyPrisoner to would-be president: The rise of Wagner's Yevgeny Prigozhin
The Wagner Group of mercenaries has been fighting in Ukraine since Russia's first invasion in 2014, but very little was known about the group, or its leader…
This Is WhyPublic Order Laws: Are we losing the right to protest?
The Metropolitan Police has faced criticism following the controversial arrest of six anti-monarchy protesters during King Charles III’s coronation under new…
This Is WhyEurovision: The Ukrainians who fled to Liverpool
This year's Eurovision Song contest will take place in Liverpool after the UK was chosen to host the competition on behalf of war-torn Ukraine, which won the…
This Is WhyPutin's "real war" speech - what did he actually mean?
Russia’s annual Victory Day parade, usually commemorating the surrender of Nazi Germany in the Second World War, is a more muted affair this year. There’s no…
This Is WhyVaping: The ‘epidemic’ among teens
Parents and teachers are facing an "epidemic" as the number of under 18s who are vaping has exploded. According to the NHS, 9% of 11 to 15-year-olds regularly…
This Is WhyLocal election results: What do they tell us?
Sir Keir Starmer has declared that the “road to a better Britain” is being “paved with Labour wins” as the party celebrated a series of local election…
This Is WhyThe Republican Royalist
This weekend sees the coronation of King Charles III – but how much do we really know about the man who wears the crown and the woman by his side, Queen…
This Is WhyFrom Scilly to Scotland: What people think of King Charles
Ahead of the coronation of King Charles III, Niall Paterson has visited parts of Britain - including Edinburgh, York, Birmingham and Cornwall - to gauge the…
This Is WhyLocal elections: What's at stake?
This week millions of voters will head to the ballot box as more than 8,000 council seats in England are in contested in local elections. The vote will be the…
This Is WhyA Royal coronation: How the monarchy and Britain has changed since 1953
This weekend sees the coronation of King Charles III but for some people, this will be the second British monarch they have seen crowned during their lifetime…
This Is WhyHow long can Wrexham's Hollywood dream last?
Wrexham AFC have been promoted to the English Football League after 15 years in the lower divisions, but their Hollywood owners, Ryan Reynolds and Rob…
This Is WhyTrump v Biden - Round Two
President Joe Biden has announced his intention to run for a second term in the White House. Already the oldest president in US history, he would be 86 after…
This Is WhyDiane Abbott, antisemitism and a ‘hierarchy of racism’ in the UK
Former Shadow Home Secretary Diane Abbott has been suspended from the Parliamentary Labour Party after she wrote a letter to the Observer newspaper which said…
This Is WhySudan crisis: The Britons left behind
As other nations scramble to extract their citizens from Sudan, thousands of Britons are still stuck with no clear government plan to help them escape the…
This Is WhyVoter ID: “Threat to democracy” or sensible fraud prevention?
For the first time in England, people turning up at polling stations to vote in May’s local elections will need photographic ID to cast their ballot. Some…
This Is WhyDominic Raab resigns: What does it mean for the Prime Minister?
The Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab has resigned from the government over a report investigating bullying allegations against him. Raab, who was also…
This Is WhyThe Ukrainian children rescued from Russia
Natalya ran a children's care home in southeastern Ukraine when Russian forces invaded in February 2022. Soldiers turned up at her door saying they were taking…
This Is WhyWhy does the UK have the highest inflation in the G7?
The government has made it its primary aim to halve inflation by the end of the year but things aren't quite going to plan. Britain has shot up the leader…
This Is WhyHillary Clinton on Northern Ireland, Biden and Ukraine
The former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaks to Sky News’ political editor Beth Rigby about the war in Ukraine, next year’s US presidential election…
This Is WhyIs Sudan heading for civil war? Why it matters
By Monday, close to 100 civilians – including at least three UN workers - had lost their lives in Sudan following violence that broke out between the African…
This Is WhyTony Blair on restoring power-sharing to Stormont
Global leaders have been visiting Northern Ireland to mark 25 years since the Good Friday Agreement, the peace treaty that bought an end to 30 years of…
This Is WhyRana Plaza Factory Collapse: 10 years on, how much has changed?
On 24 April 2013, a tower block in Bangladesh collapsed killing 1,134 people and leaving thousands more with life-changing injuries. Most of those killed and…
This Is WhyPentagon leak: The secret Ukraine files explained
Classified US documents purportedly about the war in Ukraine have been circulating online, in what's been called by some the most damaging intelligence…
This Is WhyAre Labour’s attack ads working?
The Labour Party have launched a series of 'attack ads' taking aim at the Conservative Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak. The adverts attack his stance on gun crime…
This Is WhyWhy do so many US presidents like to say 'I'm Irish'?
Almost every US President since John F Kennedy claims to come from Irish ancestry - and it's not just the White House. Some 45 million Americans claim Irish…
This Is WhyThe Good Friday Agreement: 25 years of peace, hope and paralysis
The seismic Good Friday Agreement brought Northern Ireland's long period of violence to an end. It set out fundamental rights for the people of Northern…
This Is WhyHidden victims: What happens to the children of sex offenders?
A senior police officer has told Sky News that children of sex offenders are "hidden victims" and called for services, especially mental health provision, to…
This Is WhyWhat’s life in witness protection like?
Police praised her bravery, and they described the evidence she gave to a court as "powerful and emotional". This woman helped them convict the drug dealer who…
This Is WhyDonald Trump indictment: A help or hindrance for his 2024 ambitions?
Donald Trump is the first former US president in history to face criminal charges. The charges stem from an alleged $130,000 (£105,000) hush money payment to…
This Is WhyAndrew Tate released from jail: Why does his appeal continue?
For months, Andrew Tate has been in prison in Romania. Along with his brother Tristan and two Romanian women, the controversial influencer is being…
This Is WhyJeremy Corbyn: Life after Labour
Labour's governing body has voted to block Jeremy Corbyn from standing as a Labour candidate at the next general election. Mr Corbyn is already suspended as a…
This Is WhyIs AI becoming too clever?
The government is unveiling a new approach to regulating AI in the UK in the hope of building public trust in the technology it hopes can benefit the economy…
This Is WhyIsrael protests: Is its democracy on the brink of a crisis?
Protests have broken out in Israel by many of the country’s secular Jews against the government’s plans to “radically” reform the legal system which would…
This Is WhyHumza Yousaf promises independence: What can new SNP leader deliver?
Humza Yousaf made a few big promises as he succeeded Nicola Sturgeon as SNP leader – including healing divisions in his party, redoubling efforts to lift…
This Is WhyPrince Harry V The Press
In the next 12 months, Prince Harry will be launching multiple lawsuits against multiple newspapers, as part of what he describes as his ‘life’s work’ to…
This Is WhyLocal tree rows and why they’ve become a big deal
Some councils in England have come under fire for unnecessarily felling old healthy trees to make way for regeneration projects. In Plymouth more than a…
This Is Why"Hand on Heart": Boris Johnson swears he’s telling the truth
The former prime minister has been questioned by a cross-party group of MPs for more than three hours, with Boris Johnson's political career on the line over…
This Is WhyMisogyny, racism and homophobia – it's not just the Met police’s problem
The Metropolitan Police is institutionally racist, misogynistic and homophobic, according to the independent police review conducted by Baroness Casey. She was…
This Is WhyCredit Suisse: Are we teetering on the edge of a banking crisis?
Credit Suisse, one of Switzerland's largest banks, has been swallowed up by its rival UBS for £1bn. The shotgun merger happened less than a week after the UK…