Westminster Insider

As Westminster heads back to work after the summer recess, host Jack Blanchard talks to six political experts about what’s coming up in the months ahead. The FT’s Stephen Bush and the Spectator’s Katy Balls discuss the challenges facing new Prime Minister Keir Starmer this autumn, and consider the Tory leadership contest is likely to play out. Ben Zaranko of the Institute for Fiscal Studies runs the runes over the U.K. economy, with one eye on the all-important budget of October 30. POLITICO’s own Eli Stokols and Shawn Pogatchnik discuss the looming general elections in the U.S. and Ireland, and how they might impact upon Britain. And geopolitical analyst Sophia Gaston considers how wider global issues such as the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East could yet blow Starmer off course. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Host Sascha O'Sullivan meets a few of the new parliamentarians slowly figuring out their way through Westminster.New Labour MPs — and soon-to-be office buddies — Jake Richards and Chris Curtis give Sascha rundown of their whirlwind first few days in SW1 and a taste of their plans to make a difference in parliament.Lola McEvoy, newly elected Labour MP for Darlington, re-lives the nerves of giving her maiden speech directly after Reform Leader Nigel Farage. She explains the challenges of very quickly having to get on top of an inbox with thousands of emails from constituents — before she'd even had a chance to hire staff.As if being a new MP wasn't challenging enough, Sascha talks to Sarah Sackman, the representative for Finchley and Golders Green and newly-minted solicitor general, on how to find your way around parliament with a ministerial red box.Another fresh face, Andrew Snowden, Conservative MP for Fylde, tells Sascha about being courted by senior Tories as they jostle for the upper hand in the leadership contest.And new Lib Dem MP Bobby Dean attempts to answer the thorny question of "what's the point of the Liberal Democrats" now they have their highest ever number of seats in parliament. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our next season of Westminster Insider is gearing up with new episodes next week. To whet your appetite, we’ve reached into our extensive back catalogue to bring you one of our fan-favorite episodes – whether you’re new to the show or been a listener from the beginning, we hope you enjoy revisiting this historical deep dive into what ex-prime ministers do once the gig is up, hosted by Aggie Chambre. Former Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng, fired by Truss 38 days into her 45 day premiership, talks of the “emptiness” and “numbness” that comes with leaving Downing Street, and how he felt “let down” by his old friend.  Speaking agency founder Jeremy Lee, recently retired, is gloriously indiscreet as he regales Aggie with stories of his conversations with ex-prime ministers seeking riches down the years.  Political biographer Anthony Seldon takes Aggie through the history of former prime ministers, and how the role has changed since Winston Churchill’s Champagne-fueled heyday. Unherd journalist Tom McTague explores Tony Blair’s increasingly powerful Institute for Global Change, while POLITICO’s Annabelle Dickson tells tales of tracking down Boris Johnson in downtown Dallas. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As Keir Starmer enters 10 Downing Street on the back of a landslide election victory, host Sascha O'Sullivan takes us inside the night power shifted in the U.K. In the final episode of the season, she brings us an hour by hour account of the most consequential general election for a generation, speaking to political insiders for their take on events as they unfolded.At the moment the 10 p.m. exit poll dropped, Sascha spoke to Tom Lubbock, pollster and co-founder of JL Partners, about the implications for the Labour Party and whether or not the Conservatives could save face.She went on to the New Statesman party to speak to an elated Sadiq Khan, mayor of London, and Rachel Cunliffe, the New Statesman's associate political editor, as major Tory scalps were claimed by Labour candidates.And she spoke to Lucia Hodgson, former Conservative Party adviser and partner at Charlesbye, about how it feels to leave No. 10 for the last time — and what it will be like for a generation of Conservatives tasting general election defeat for the very first time.From the POLITICO election night watch party, Sascha spoke to Playbook author Stefan Boscia and checked in with colleague Bethany Dawson, who was at Clacton-on-Sea as upstart Reform leader Nigel Farage was elected an MP. We also heard behind the scenes as former Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn won Islington North as an independent after being booted out out by Starmer.And, in the final push of the evening, as dawn broke Sascha traveled to the secret Labour victory party, where Starmer addressed the party faithful, newly minted MPs and volunteers.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the general election reaches its final week, host Sascha O'Sullivan takes us inside the last push of the campaign. She explores how parties use every trick of the trade, from advertising to frantic leafleting, to try to capture every possible vote and travels to the BBC debate in Nottingham where the main party leaders had one final face off.Ayesha Hazarika, broadcaster and former adviser to Ed Miliband, explains how many voters begin tune into an election campaign only once they reach the last 10 days, and warns about the impact of gaffes during the final stretch.Former Conservative Party staffer Cleo Watson tells Sascha a scandalous story from the last week of the Vote Leave campaign which never made it to the press. Ben Guerin, one of the advertising masterminds of Boris Johnson's 2019 election victory, relates how parties use attack ads in the last few days. And Craig Oliver, Downing Street Director of Communications for David Cameron, gives us tips for winning the "ground war" by focusing relentlessly on the constituencies which matter the most.Sascha also speaks to pollster James Johnson who says that in the last week, many candidates can be overcome with a misguided optimism about their prospects — and tells us what happens campaign HQs get their data wrong. Also, Jeremy Corbyn's former deputy director of communications and strategy Steve Howell takes us inside Labour’s 2017 campaign, while Sean Kemp, former special adviser to Nick Clegg, gives us a run down on Lib Dem targeting tactics in the final week. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As we approach the final lap of the 2024 general election, host Sascha O'Sullivan discovers what life is like for the photographers who trail hot on the heels of Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer.She speaks to PA photographer Stefan Rousseau, who talks about the blunders of this campaign, the photos we'll remember long after votes have been cast, and how special advisers try their hardest to frame their boss's image.Former Labour aide Ayesha Hazarika relives the turmoil of Ed Miliband's bacon sandwich moment, splashed across front pages in the 2015 election campaign, and the photographer who took that iconic picture, Jeremy Selwyn, tells Sascha how it looked from the other side of the lens.Freelance photographer Hollie Adams describes what a gift Boris Johnson was to Westminster's snappers, and Sascha finds out if the rumors really are true: did the former PM mess up his hair before facing the cameras?Andy Parsons, the official Downing Street photographer under several PMs, justifies No. 10 keeping a personal snapper on its staff, while Rousseau claims the practice has closed down access to the press. And former U.S. President Barack Obama's personal photographer describes capturing the famous picture of the White House Situation Room as Osama bin Laden was taken out. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As Reform teeters close to overtaking the Conservative in the polls, Aggie Chambre goes inside Nigel Farage’s party and asks if he will could actually achieve his takeover of British politics.Starting in January, when Aggie first asks Farage if he’s planning to return to frontline politics, she tracks the party’s journey from small start-up to a shock poll putting it ahead of the Conservatives.In February, she hears from the Wellingborough candidate Ben Habib about the progress he has made on selling Reform on the street.With material spanning months and with help from shunted aside Leader Richard Tice, the party’s only London Assembly member and pollster Alex Wilson and Farage himself, Aggie tells the story of how Farage threw a grenade into the U.K. election, and looks at their electoral chances on July 4.And she spends an entertaining day with Lee Anderson, the only man to ever be a Reform MP. The former deputy chairman tells her his views on female firefighters and global warming, and admits he’d rather Keir Starmer was PM than Rishi Sunak. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer prepare to launch their manifestos, host Sascha O’Sullivan takes a look at what goes into the making of the crucial documents that spell out each party’s plan for government.Former Tory adviser Cleo Watson recalls how it all went wrong for Theresa May at the 2017 election when a manifesto pledge on social care blew up.Authors of the 2019 manifesto Rachel Wolf and Rob Colvile explain how the slogan “Get Brexit Done” got the election done for Boris Johnson.Stalwart of the New Labour years Patrick Diamond, who wrote manifestos for Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, recalls struggling to pinning ministers down agree on policy, while Torsten Bell, 2015 manifesto author, discusses how to stick to pledges in government.And Sascha also speaks to Andrew Fisher, writer of the Labour Party’s 2017 and 2019 manifestos, who fesses up to historic mistakes and talks about how the leaking of Jeremy Corbyn’s 2017 plan ended up being a boon rather than a bust. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ITV's host Julie Etchingham and guests discuss the art of TV debates, revealing behind-the-scenes preparations, tips for winning, and the impact of debates on election outcomes. Former spinners and journalists share insights on the importance and challenges of televised debates in shaping political campaigns.

Will the Sun win it? After Rishi Sunak called a shock general election, host Aggie Chambre set out to discover just how much influence newspapers will have in this campaign. Former Labour Leader Neil Kinnock tells her what it was like being attacked in the press in the run up to the 1992 election.Former Sun editor David Yelland reminisces about Rupert Murdoch and Tony Blair's relationship — and said it was like a "love affair." He says getting the backing of Fleet Street can be a "self fulfilling prophecy." Sky News Political Editor Beth Rigby explains how Labour Leader Keir Starmer is going about trying to get a "fair hearing" in the press, and talks about the symbiotic relationship between broadcast and print. Former News of the World editor and director of comms Andy Coulson explains how you go about securing newspaper endorsements and says everyone underestimates how much they still matter. And finally, former Downing Street director of comms Lee Cain explains how the way we consume news has changed. And says he believes Brexit still would have won even without the backing of some newspapers. This episode has been updated to correct the attendees of a 2005 dinner. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices