Politics from the New Statesman
The New Statesman
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 Politics, our journalists and expert guests cut through the noise of the headlines to explain the forces shaping our world. From the battles inside the Labour Party to the future of the Conservatives, from the rise of Reform UK to the debates that dominate Parliament, we provide the clarity you need to follow UK politics.--START HERE:▶︎ Kemi Badenoch isn't working | Cover Story with Tom McTague▶︎ Do billionaires really benefit the UK?▶︎ One year of Labour rule: can things still only get better?--LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download and subscribe in the New Statesman app to enjoy all our episodes without the ads.--MORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question - we answer them on the podcast every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter in your inbox every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday--Hosts:Anoosh ChakelianRegular contributors and co-hosts:Tom McTague, Editor-in-chiefAilbhe Rea, Political editorProduction team:Senior podcast producer: Catharine HughesPodcast and video producer: Rob Le MareAssistant producer: Biba KangExecutive producer: Chris Stone Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Jan 31, 2022 • 33min
Why Christian Wakeford crossed the floor
Ailbhe interviews the Bury South MP Christian Wakeford, who dramatically defected from the Tories to Labour at the height of partygate. They talk about why he did it, what the reaction has been from friends as well as new colleagues, and how the whips threaten new MPs. If you have a question for You Ask Us, email podcasts@newstatesman.co.ukLISTEN 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.
Jan 27, 2022 • 29min
What does the police inquiry into “partygate” mean for Boris Johnson?
As Westminster waits for Sue Gray’s report on Downing Street’s lockdown-breaking parties, the Metropolitan police has announced that it will begin an investigation into the alleged incidents. Stephen Bush, Ailbhe Rea and Anoosh Chakelian discuss Boris Johnson’s confident performance at Prime Minister’s Questions and why the investigation matters. Then in You Ask Us, a listener asks whether Keir Starmer can create a guiding political project and rise in the polls without a once-in-a-generation event to define himself against, as was the case with the 2008 financial crash and austerity under David Cameron.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email podcasts@newstatesman.co.ukLISTEN 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.
Jan 24, 2022 • 23min
Could the Scottish Conservatives split from the Tory party?
The New Statesman’s Scotland editor Chris Deerin joins Ailbhe Rea and Stephen Bush to discuss the growing rift between the Scottish Conservatives and the national party in Westminster.They talk about how the Scottish Tories have become alienated from the party, whether it could harm them in the local elections in May, and whether they could eventually form a breakaway party.Then in You Ask Us, the team answers a listener's question on the Welsh government’s review into radical federalism.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email podcasts@newstatesman.co.uk.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.
Jan 21, 2022 • 26min
Alleged blackmail: the dark side of Boris Johnson’s survival
The senior Conservative MP William Wragg has accused government ministers of intimidating and attempting to blackmail colleagues who they suspect oppose the Prime Minister, adding that the incidents should be reported to the police. While Christian Wakeford’s defection appears to have united Conservative MPs to help Boris Johnson survive another week, the PM is not in the clear yet. Anoosh Chakelian and Ailbhe Rea discuss the extraordinary allegations and the cost of saving your own skin. Then in You Ask Us, a listener asks if a change in Conservative leadership would be a disaster for Labour.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email podcasts@newstatesman.co.uk.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.
Jan 19, 2022 • 18min
SPECIAL: Will Boris Johnson “in the name of God, go”?
A special episode of the NS podcast recorded immediately after a dramatic Prime Minister’s Questions. Boris Johnson is facing an escalating leadership crisis over allegations that a string of parties were held across Whitehall during lockdown. Christian Wakeford, the MP for Bury South, defected to Labour just minutes before PMQs, while in an equally dramatic moment David Davis urged him to “in the name of God, go”. These damaging moves come as members of the 2019 intake of Conservative MPs plot to oust the Prime Minister. Anoosh Chakelian, Ailbhe Rea and Stephen Bush discuss what has been dubbed the “pork pie plot” as it unfolds, and what the defection signals for the Labour Party.If you have a question for You Ask Us, email podcasts@newstatesman.co.uk 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.
Jan 18, 2022 • 29min
How bad can the polls get for Boris Johnson?
The New Statesman’s polling expert Ben Walker joins Anoosh Chakelian, Ailbhe Rea and Stephen Bush to talk about the latest polls in the aftermath of the No 10 party revelations. They discuss whether this could do long-term damage to the Conservative Party, how soft the labour lead is and why Ben was wrong on North Shropshire. Then in You Ask Us they answer a listener’s question on how well Keir Starmer is doing compared to other opposition leaders If you have a question for You Ask Us, email podcasts@newstatesman.co.ukLISTEN 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.
Jan 13, 2022 • 38min
Will Boris Johnson’s non-apology save him?
Boris Johnson has been caught red-handed and forced to admit that he attended a party in the Downing Street garden in May 2020, however he claimed that he believed it was a “work event”. Stephen Bush, Anoosh Chakelian and Ailbhe Rea, discuss his chances of survival and the awkward questions this culture of insouciance raises for his potential successors. Then in You Ask Us, a listener asks if Labour is right to speak positively about Tony Blair and the New Labour government given Blair’s unpopularity.If you have a question for You Ask Us, send an email or voice note to podcasts@newstatesman.co.ukLISTEN 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.
Jan 11, 2022 • 48min
Prime Ministerial, from the New Statesman | Margaret Thatcher
Welcome to Prime Ministerial. In each episode Jonn Elledge and Stephen Bush will look at the legacy of the previous six prime ministers and ask whether they achieved success on their own terms. This final episode examines Margaret Thatcher’s premiership. The first woman to be prime minister and one of the Conservative Party’s most successful election winners, she was a divisive figure in British politics, and her legacy remains so. Thatcher won three general elections before being deposed by her MPs and replaced by her chancellor John Major, but she leaves a long shadow over the party today. Stephen and Jonn speak to the historian Florence Sutcliffe-Braithwaite, and Thatcher’s former aide, the MP John Whittingdale. Produced by Adrian Bradley and May Robson, with thanks to Caroline Crampton and Nick Hilton.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.
Jan 7, 2022 • 33min
Will Boris Johnson survive 2022?
Boris Johnson’s approval rating plummeted at the end of 2021 following a string of Christmas parties at No 10, sleaze scandals and senior resignations – and his troubles continue into 2022. Anoosh Chakelian and Stephen Bush discuss whether the Prime Minister can survive as energy bills soar, taxes rise in April and pressure mounts on an overwhelmed and underfunded NHS. Then in You Ask Us, a listener asks what’s behind the Greens’ surge, after they managed to gain more council seats in by-elections this year than any other party, and how successful will they be in the next general election? If you have a question for You Ask Us, send an email or a voice note to podcasts@newstatesman.co.uk 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.
Jan 4, 2022 • 50min
Prime Ministerial, from the New Statesman | John Major
Welcome to Prime Ministerial. In each episode Jonn Elledge and Stephen Bush will look at the legacy of the previous six prime ministers and ask whether they achieved success on their own terms. This episode examines John Major’s premiership. Major inherited a majority government in 1990 after Margaret Thatcher was driven out of office. Against the odds, he won the 1992 election. But, in the wake of economic upheaval following Black Wednesday and a Conservative civil war, as well as the challenge from a resurgent Labour Party, the party suffered a huge defeat. Stephen and Jonn speak to the satirist and former Spitting Image writer John O’Farrell and Jonathan Hill, a former adviser to John Major. Produced by Adrian Bradley and May Robson, with thanks to Caroline Crampton and Nick Hilton.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.
