World Questions

This South American country has escaped from poverty and paramilitary violence that once threatened the state itself; huge reserves of natural resources have helped boost the economy. But political instability and high crime threaten those hard-won gains, sparking mass protests across the country. President Dina Boluarte was reckoned to be one of the world’s most unpopular heads of state. The programme was recorded on 7th October b...

Fixing Greece’s declining population is now the Government’s top priority, so how should it solve the crisis? Is the country at risk of being ruined by tourism? And could migrants from abroad help boost the Greek economy? Jonny Dymond is joined by a panel of leading politicians and analysts taking questions from a large and lively audience at the Megaron Concert Hall in the country’s capital, Athens.

The panel: Sofia Zacharaki: Mini...

Is there a lack of democracy in Serbia? Can the current student-led protests topple the Government? Will this Balkan country ever join the European Union? Allan Little chairs a panel of leading Serbian politicians and analysts who face tough questions from across the nation.

The panel: Marko Djuric: Minister of Foreign Affairs, Serbian Progressive Party Borko Stefanovic: Deputy Leader, Freedom and Justice Party Danica Ilic: Journali...

Should there be affirmative action to get more women to the top of the media? How about a law to make politicians keep their promises? Jonny Dymond chairs a diverse panel fielding questions from a passionate audience in Kuala Lumpur, as they critique their own laws on freedom of speech.

The Panel: Senator Dr Fuziah Salleh: Secretary General of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) and Deputy Minister for Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Dr T...

Sky-high tariffs, a federal election and US threats to annex their country: Canadians have a lot of issues to address. Jonny Dymond hosts a debate with leading politicians and people putting questions from across six time zones. Should Canada have an independent nuclear deterrent? Can it join the EU? What about housing, immigration and the climate impact on Canada’s extraordinary environment? It’s a deeply felt discussion as some C...

India is the world’s most populous nation, it has a young population and dynamic growth rates – yet problems persist. This debate, from the country’s technology capital, Bengaluru, tackles pressing issues such as IT workers’ rights, the city’s struggling infrastructure, and the national situation for religious minorities. The discussion is led by questions from the audience and chaired by Jonny Dymond.

The panel: Surabhi Hodigere: B...

It is the NATO frontline, but three years after the invasion of Ukraine, Lithuanians worry their country could be next. Defence spending is rising fast, NATO has committed a permanent brigade and Lithuanians are organising themselves into rifle clubs and citizen defence forces. The rights of minorities, US designs on Greenland and relations with Denmark all feature as Jonny Dymond and a high power panel debate Lithuania’s biggest i...

Soaring house prices, the rights of indigenous people, healthcare and knife crime – just some of the issues raised in this debate about the future of Australia. Jonny Dymond is joined by a panel of leading politicians and commentators who take questions from across this vast nation.

The panel: Katy Gallagher: Minister for Finance, Labor Party Senator Sarah Hanson-Young: Green Party John Pesutto: Liberal Party Alexandra Smith: Sydney...

Gangsterism, immigration, economic inequality, land reform and whether the historic prison of Robben Island could be turned into a luxury resort: World Questions is in Cape Town to debate issues raised by South Africans thirty years after democracy came to their nation. Crime is rampant, six out of ten young people are without a job and housing is still a massive issue but this year, elections returned a grand coalition of multiple...

Democracy, the deepening polarisation of politics, race relations and President Macron’s grip on power – all are up for debate as Jonny Dymond is joined by a panel of leading French politicians who take questions from the public.

The panel: Eléonore Caroit: National Assembly Deputy, Renaissance Fabrice Leggeri: Member of the European Parliament, National Rally Danièle Obono: National Assembly Deputy, France Unbowed Florence Faucher:...

Claudia Sheinbaum, Mexico’s first female President takes office while protests still rage over changes to the constitution. World Questions explores the challenges she faces with a sharply divided panel facing questions from around the country. Does scrapping the national police force and putting the army on the street, mean a safer Mexico? Will forcing the country’s judges to fight for election loosen the grip of the drug cartels?...

With less than a month until the election, the BBC’s flagship political debate programme Question Time broadcasts from the key swing state of Pennsylvania. The programme hears directly from American voters as they get the chance to put their questions to a panel of politicians and prominent figures, holding them to account on the topics which matter most as they prepare to go to the polls.

On the panel, Republican and Democratic m...

Mass migration, employment and opportunities, democracy, joining the EU and widespread corruption. Just some of the issues debated by a public audience in the Albanian capital, Tirana. Jonny Dymond chairs the discussion with a panel of leading politicians and civil society activists.

The panel: Lavdrim Krashi: MP for the governing Socialist Party Lulzim Basha: Leader of the Euro Atlantic Democrats Edlira Cepani: Lawyer and human rig...

Nomadic life and climate change, air pollution and endemic corruption - Mongolia’s economy has tripled in size since becoming a democracy thirty years ago and the sudden growth has brought many challenges. It is a nation of sweeping grassland pastures and an ever-growing Gobi desert, sealed between Russia to its north and China to its south. Such large autocratic neighbours bring a sense of threat to this fledgling democratic natio...

Anu Anand presents a lively debate over the lack of affordable healthcare, access to clean water, racial disparities, the war in Gaza and the upcoming Presidential election in the swing state of Michigan, USA. The panel: Sarah Anthony – Democrat State Senator John Damoose – Republican State Senator Professor Matt Grossmann – Michigan State University Kaitlyn Buss – Assistant Editorial Page Editor, The Detroit News Jennifer Root ...

Could a new amnesty law on Catalan independence threaten Spain's unity? The nation is also facing complaints about corruption, a critical water shortage and a growing inequality between the old and the young. Jonny Dymond asks Spanish people how they see the future of their country.

On the panel: Juan Fernando López Aguilar, MEP for the Socialist party which leads the government. Javier Zarzalejos, MEP from the People’s Party. Alfre...

Gaza, the West Bank and women's rights in Jordan. As war continues in neighbouring Israel, members of the public from around the Kingdom of Jordan raise questions for political leaders and key figures to debate. Jonny Dymond presents.

The panel: Senator Alia Hatoug Bouran: Former Ambassador to the United States Hadeel Abdel Aziz: Director of the Centre for Legal Aid in Jordan Senator Mohammed Al Momani: Former Government Spokesman O...

Jonny Dymond presents a debate from Manila, the capital of the Philippines. A large and lively audience ask questions about Chinese aggression in the South China Sea, constitutional reform, divorce laws, poverty, transport and the record of their President, "Bong Bong" Marcos Jnr

Panel - Justice Antonio Carpio - former Supreme Court judge Rafaela David - President of the Akbayan Citizens Action Party Richard Heydarian - author and...

After a bitter election, a new government takes power in Poland promising to de-politicise the state. But after courts are ignored, key people are sacked and opposition politicians are arrested in the Presidential Palace, is democracy being restored or undermined? Jonny Dymond chairs a panel of leading politicians as they debate the big issues put to them by the public in the Royal Castle of Warsaw.

The Panel: Mateusz Morawiecki, MP...