Politics Unpacked

As parliament is gripped by a sexual harassment storm, Matt Chorley is in Westminster to find out what the so-called “dirty dossier” of Tory MPs means and asks how the culture in politics can be changed so people feel safe going to work. Times reporters Henry Zeffman and Hannah McGrath describe the challenge of corroborating the swirling litany of anonymous allegations.Jess Phillips, a Labour MP, warns that listing people in consenting relationships alongside those accused of serious offences risks discrediting victims.Jane Merrick, a Red Box columnist, describes her own experience of being humiliated by a Tory MP and Times columnist Rachel Sylvester warns of a rising tide of misogyny on the hard left. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week Matt assembles a panel of people who do politics differently. Forget politicians, or think tanks or even journalists. This episodes focuses on those who bring about change outside the party system.On the panel: David Babbs from the online petition website 38 Degrees, campaigner Caroline Criado-Perez, who’s successes include getting Jane Austen on the £10 note, and Matteo Bergamini from the youth politics website Shout Out UK.They'll be answering: what role can technology play, and what response there should be to the rise in youth engagement in the political process? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Matt Chorley returns to the studio after the party conference season and due to popular demand this episode is a Brexit free zone.This week: Lucy Fisher, senior political correspondent for The Times, on cutting cronyism in the Lords, Katie Perrior, Theresa May’s former director of communications now Times columnist on the perils of reshuffles, and columnist Daniel Finkelstein on Corbyn's proposed assault towards traditional foreign policy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Matt Chorley braves his fourth and final conference of the season this time with the SNP in Glasgow.He asks, have we reached, 'peak Nat', is Brexit making the case for independence harder, and with leaving the union not mentioned throughout conference, how do the SNP continue to motivate party members?The questions are put to Hamish Macdonell, Times Scottish political editor, Times columnist Alex Massie, and SNP MPs including Kirsty Blackman, Stewart McDonald and Stephen Gethins. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the final conference special Matt Chorley welcomes a panel of Times political columnists and journalists including Matthew Parris, Hugo Rifkind and Rachel Sylvester, who dangerously try to predict the future of British politics once more and answer, who will lead the Conservatives next? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this special podcast Matt Chorley interviews Ruth Davidson MSP in front of a packed fringe event at the Conservative party conference in Manchester. Davidson speaks on a variety of issues including, firing Boris Johnson, not wanting a second Brexit referendum, parking her tanks on Alex Salmond's lawn, how the party should fight Corbyn and whether she will ever stand for the Tory leadership.In the second part of the podcast the leader of the Scottish Conservatives takes questions from the floor, explaining why she's a "Majorite", answering whether she's the female Boris Johnson and outlining why the party has to speak people 18-25 "not as if they're a separate species". **NB due to circumstances beyond our control the sound quality varies in this podcast** Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the second special from Brighton, Matt Chorley is joined by shadow education secretary Angela Rayner MP, to reflect on the changed mood of the Labour party conference.They also discuss why she took the job in the first place, why she's comfortable saying Labour lost, how teenage pregnancy turned her life around and how her upbringing informs her politics. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The first Red Box debate of conference season comes from Brighton, Matt Chorley welcomes Times senior political correspondent Lucy Fisher, Times columnist Philip Collins, and journalist Rachel Shabi, to try and answer whether Corbyn can become prime minister?In an extended podcast, the panel grapple with the key issues surrounding the topic before taking questions from the audience. **NB: the start of this episode sounds a bit "wedding disco" don't worry it's only for the first thirty seconds** Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this special episode, Matt Chorley takes a trip to the seaside to cover the Lib Dem conference in Bournemouth. He encounters former special advisors, James McGrory and Vannesa Pine, who share the tribulations of preparing a leader for a major speech.Matthew Parris and Henry Zeffman, try to work out if the Lib Dems have a message for the general public whilst on a cliff top. And Times sketch writer Patrick Kidd tells us the mood of conference and how a change in membership has upended traditional drinking habits. There's also mini golf at the end. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Still armed with his "Brexit Buzzer" Matt Chorley welcomes a panel to debate anything but the B-word. Times columnist, Rachel Sylvester asks if the Tories will ever be forgiven for taking a hardline on the big issue of the day by a generation that overwhelmingly supports Remain. (01:03)Roland Watson, foreign editor of The Times, ponders solving a problem like Korea. With the United Nations divided, where does that leave the balance of power in president Trump's first test of brinkmanship? (10:48)And Grant Tucker, Times diarist, questions why politicians think it's a good idea to make big decisions in the middle of the night? (22:47) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.