Shows / The Briefing Room
The Briefing Room
David Aaronovitch and a panel of experts and insiders present in-depth explainers on big issues in the news
Episodes
- The Briefing Room
What impact will the Northern Ireland election have?
The election in Northern Ireland saw nationalists, Sinn Fein, win the most votes. Their leader, Michelle O'Neill, becomes first minister. It has been heralded…
- The Briefing Room
How has the war in Ukraine changed German politics?
In late February, German chancellor Olaf Scholz described Russia's invasion of Ukraine as a ‘Zeitenwende’ - turning point - sparking the biggest shift in…
- The Briefing Room
What's the impact of the Shanghai lockdown?
What will the social and economic costs be of China's full-scale lockdown of Shanghai? David Aaronovitch examines the problems with the country's vaccination…
- The Briefing Room
Will the Rwanda plan work?
The Home Secretary, Priti Patel, has unveiled a plan to stop small boat crossings in the English Channel by sending asylum seekers to Rwanda. But will it work?…
- The Briefing Room
Russia's invasion: what more can the west do to help Ukraine?
It's a month now since Russian forces invaded Ukraine. The west have sanctioned Russia and provided aid packages to Ukraine but what more can it do to help…
- The Briefing Room
Russia's invasion: what could a peace deal look like?
Negotiations between Ukraine and Russia have been underway this week. At the same time Mariupol and other Ukrainian cities have come under savage bombardment…
- The Briefing Room
Russia's invasion: what level of support does Putin have at home?
What's the impact in Russia of painful sanctions and a war that's not going to plan? How is President Putin controlling information and what's required for…
- The Briefing Room
Russia's invasion: what's the military strategy?
The war in Ukraine is a week old. What have we learned about the military strength - and tactics - on both sides? And what might that tell us about how the…
- The Briefing Room
Russia's invasion: will sanctions work?
Russia is facing sanctions from around the world. Can they hit the country hard enough to make it change course and leave Ukraine in peace? In a live episode…
- The Briefing Room
What do drones mean for the future of warfare?
A few weeks ago a rebel group without an air-force managed to attack a foreign airport 1,000 miles away....from the air using drones. And theoretically what…
- The Briefing Room
Will the levelling up plans work?
One of Boris Johnson’s key campaign promises in the run up to the last election was to level up the country. Now the government has published a white paper…
- The Briefing Room
Is the Prime Minister’s Office fit for purpose?
How well 10 Downing Street functions is under scrutiny. Following Sue Gray's report into parties during lockdown, David Aaronovitch explores who does what at…
- The Briefing Room
How do we learn to live with Covid?
Plan B Covid restrictions in England have ended and the government says we must learn to live with Covid. But what does that actually mean and how sustainable…
- The Briefing Room
BBC Funding
With the longer term funding of the BBC under pressure, David Aaronovitch and guests explore the alternatives to the licence fee. How do other nations pay for…
- The Briefing Room
Inflation
Inflation is at a 30 year high. David Aaronovitch looks back to the 1970s when prices - and wages - soared. Are we returning to those times and how worried…
- The Briefing Room
Brexit: What Have We Learned?
It's nearly been a year since Brexit, so what have the costs and gains been so far, what's yet to be sorted out, and how has our relationship with our European…
- The Briefing Room
Who Do We Think We Are?
Four recent by-elections in the UK - Airdrie and Schotts, Hartlepool, Amersham and Chesham, and Batley and Spen - tell us four different stories about who we…
- The Briefing Room
Space Wars and Laws
Could space be the next frontier for conflict? And what would it look like? Recently the astronauts in the International Space Station had to shelter in their…
- The Briefing Room
Ukraine: Could There Be War?
Russian troops are amassed close to the Ukrainian border - could this mean war, or is something else going on? Tensions between Ukraine and Russia aren't new…
- The Briefing Room
Afghanistan: What Now? What Next?
From insurgency to government - the challenges for the Taliban and the West. Four months ago the Taliban stunned the world - maybe even themselves - when they…
- The Briefing Room
Living in a Variant World
What are variants? Where do they come from? Why do they develop and how do they take over? Currently Delta is the dominant variant in the UK and across much of…
- The Briefing Room
Europe's Covid Surge
As parts of Europe struggle to contain Covid cases we ask what that means for them and us. The World Health Organisation has warned that another 500,000 people…
- The Briefing Room
China Crisis?
For years China has been perhaps the most important economic engine driving growth around the world. Earlier this year it bounced back from the Covid shutdowns…
- The Briefing Room
Social Care - What's Changing?
For decades the difficult problem of social care - how to fund it, how to provide it - has been kicked into the long grass by government after government. But…
- The Briefing Room
Britain's Dirty Rivers
According to campaigners, Britain has some of the dirtiest rivers in Europe. Sewage, slurry from farms and chemicals are all a problem, too often ending up in…
- The Briefing Room
Non-Fungible Tokens
When a collage of digital images was sold in New York earlier this year for £50 million, the art world was convulsed. The reason? The picture couldn't be hung…
- The Briefing Room
The UK's Energy Crisis
The Business Secretary, Kwasi Kwarteng, has said there is 'no question of the lights going out' this winter as a result of a huge rise in gas prices. But many…
- The Briefing Room
Vaccine Passports and Booster Jabs
Government ministers have been blowing hot and cold about vaccine passports. Now the Westminster government says it is not planning to introduce them to…
- The Briefing Room
Universal Credit: The Challenge Ahead
At the start of the first pandemic lockdown the government announced a £20 uplift for those receiving Universal Credit, the benefit designed to help those of…
- The Briefing Room
The Afghan Refugee Crisis
The Taliban takeover over of Afghanistan has left millions of people internally displaced and hundreds of thousands more hoping to leave the country soon…
- The Briefing Room
HS2: On Track?
HS2, a high-speed railway linking up London, the Midlands and the North of England has been in development for more than a decade. It was described by Boris…
- The Briefing Room
What next for President Biden’s foreign policy?
‘The likelihood there’s going to be the Taliban overrunning everything and owning the whole country is highly unlikely,’ said President Joe Biden six weeks…
- The Briefing Room
Who's supporting the Taliban?
The Taliban’s relentless march across Afghanistan continues – taking control of provincial capitals, rural districts and the financially lucrative border…
- The Briefing Room
Taiwan and the Threat to Peace
Only a handful of small states officially recognise Taiwan as an independent country, though in many ways this democratic territory has the trappings of an…
- The Briefing Room
Where Are All the Workers?
A supermarket chain is offering £1000 welcoming handshakes to new truck drivers - just one indication of the shortages in the haulage industry. The Road…
- The Briefing Room
COP26: Floods, Fire, and the Future
Right across the world unpredictable and extreme weather has led to devastating consequences: homes washed away by floods in Europe and China with hundreds…
- The Briefing Room
Stepping into the Unknown
Some are calling it Freedom Day. Others are much more circumspect. The lifting of Covid restrictions on 19th July in England is, to a certain extent, an…
- The Briefing Room
How Unsettled is EU Status?
European Union and European Economic Area citizens living in the UK should have applied for so-called settled status in Britain before July 1st. Over five…
- The Briefing Room
The Ransomware Threat
You might receive an innocuous looking email – it might even look like it’s from your boss – asking you to click on a link. Watch out! It could be the start of…
- The Briefing Room
Hamas
Gaza is one of the most crowded places on earth. Most of its two million residents live in refugee camps and around half are unemployed. Gaza is governed by…
- The Briefing Room
Hong Kong: Beijing Tightens Its Grip
Hong Kong has long been at the centre of a tussle between mainland China and the outside world - certainly since the British took it as a colony in 1842. That…
- The Briefing Room
India's Covid Catastrophe
In February India's governing party, the BJP, congratulated itself and its “visionary” leader, the prime minister, Narendra Modi,, for “defeating Covid.” Two…
- The Briefing Room
Could Germany Go Green?
The German Chancellor Angela Merkel bows out of politics later this year after 16 years at the head of the German government. She seems likely to be replaced…
- The Briefing Room
Northern Ireland: how fragile is the peace process?
There’s been violence on the streets of Northern Ireland in recent days, most of it in Protestant areas. On occasion it spilled over the sectarian divide. The…
- The Briefing Room
Global supply chains: is the UK vulnerable?
When the 400 metre long Ultra Large Container Vessel, Ever Given, got wedged diagonally across the Suez Canal at the end of March, it brought one of the…
- The Briefing Room
Covid-19 and the World
No crisis has had the global reach and impact of Covid-19. There have been more than 120 million recorded cases of the Coronavirus and 2.7 million people have…
- The Briefing Room
Brexit Business
Britain's transition period with the EU ended on December 31st. For the first time since the inception of the single market in 1992, British companies were on…
- The Briefing Room
Out of Lockdown
The prime minister is due to announce on Monday his plan for lifting the current lockdown in England. He says he wants progress to be cautious but…
- The Briefing Room
“Turmoil” in the SNP
The prospect of independence for Scotland may never have been brighter for the SNP. Elections to Holyrood are due in May and the party has promised to seek a…
- The Briefing Room
GameStop Shock
There was pandemonium on the US stock market when shares in a chain of video game shops went through the roof. At one point GameStop’s stock, which averaged…
- The Briefing Room
The Irish Question
This year marks 100 years since the creation of Northern Ireland, in May 1921. But in the light of Brexit, which has left Northern Ireland inside the EU’s…
- The Briefing Room
Putin vs Navalny
Millions of people have been watching a film in the past two days that was released by Alexei Navalny, Russia's leading opposition figure, even as he…
- The Briefing Room
Covid and the NHS
More than 80 thousand people in the UK have now died with Covid-19; there are currently more than three million confirmed cases across the country and in the…
- The Briefing Room
America: what just happened?
The past day has been an extraordinary one in the history of modern America. Firstly, the Democrats secured a majority in both houses of Congress. Secondly…
- The Briefing Room
Facebook's Monopoly Problem
US federal regulators and dozens of state prosecutors are suing Facebook accusing it of illegal actions in buying up rivals and stifling competition. It's one…
- The Briefing Room
The Climate Crisis: Are We Moving Fast Enough?
While the world’s attention has been distracted by Covid, the climate crisis has continued to pose an existential threat. But there have been significant…
- The Briefing Room
Living with the Taliban
The war in Afghanistan has just entered its twentieth year. It has come at an enormous cost, most notably to Afghan civilians, but also to Britain. Nearly 500…
- The Briefing Room
Brexit: Is It Oven Ready?
With just weeks to go till the Brexit transition period ends, David Aaronovitch and The Briefing Room team explore Britain’s readiness for 2021. What will it…
- The Briefing Room
How Broke is Britain?
Thanks to the pandemic, Britain’s borrowing is forecast to hit nearly £400bn this year, and the economy is expected to contract by more than 11 per cent. How…
- The Briefing Room
The President's In Tray
Whoever wins the US presidential election, what policy priorities await the next man in the White House? David Aaronovitch, asks what are the domestic…