Political Fix

Maga arrived in Chipping Norton this week, heralding an intense round of British diplomacy ahead of the Trump-Putin summit in Alaska on Friday. Ukraine is top of the agenda and both Prime Minister Keir Starmer and foreign secretary David Lammy have been doing their bit liaising between US vice-president JD Vance and President Donald Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and several European leaders. In this week’s episode,...

Political Fix is on a break this week. In its absence, we're taking the opportunity to introduce you to its sister podcast, Swamp Notes, the weekly US politics podcast from the Financial Times. Six months after the Trump administration gutted the US Agency for International Development, experts are tracking the impact of its absence. The FT’s David Pilling and the Brookings Institution’s George Ingram describe the surprising ways c...

Prime Minister Keir Starmer plans to recognise a Palestinian state in September at the UN General Assembly. The decision comes after some Labour MPs and cabinet ministers accused him of being too slow to respond to the Gaza crisis. Host George Parker is joined by FT columnists Stephen Bush, Robert Shrimsley and deputy opinion editor Miranda Green to discuss how the prime minister arrived at this decision, and whether UK recognition...

As MPs head back to their constituencies for the summer, the Political Fix panel reflects on the year in opposition for Kemi Badenoch and her Conservative party. Host George Parker is joined by Robert Shrimsley to discuss their exclusive interview with the party leader, along with Anna Gross and Jim Pickard to talk Reform, the right-wing agenda, and the rhetoric that some fear could stoke a repeat of last summer's riots.

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One of the gravest security lapses in UK history came to light this week after a judge lifted a superinjunction on a catastrophic data leak that could have affected 100,000 Afghans, as well as British spies and special forces members. Political Fix’s Lucy Fisher, one of the journalists who broke the story, returns to the show to talk with host George Parker about how the FT uncovered the secret scheme, the superinjunction that was ...

Emmanuel Macron made his state visit to the UK this week – the first EU leader to do so since Brexit. It heralded a reset between France and Britain, dubbed the ‘entente amicale’ by King Charles. Macron and Starmer announced a joint crackdown on migration with a ‘one-in one-out policy’ for asylum seekers and closer cooperation on defence. But it wasn't all hard talk, with much of the limelight focused on a soft-power push: the anno...

This week marks a year of Keir Starmer’s government. But if Labour was expecting to celebrate the anniversary – it didn't pan out that way. Despite claiming a narrow victory with the contentious welfare bill, the government appeared to have one of its roughest weeks on record. Host George Parker is joined by Stephen Bush, Miranda Green and Robert Shrimsley to discuss how Labour got here, and where it can go next. To mark the occasi...

Sir Keir Starmer faced a huge rebellion from within his own party this week after scores of MPs opposed changes to make it tougher to collect some disability benefits. This episode — recorded just before the prime minister’s concessions on welfare reform — unpacks why the rebellion took place, what it says about Starmer’s leadership and where next for Labour. Host Miranda Green is joined...

Will he? Won’t he? President Donald Trump has given little indication as to whether America will join in the conflict between Israel and Iran. So where does this leave the UK and its assets in the region? How does the prime minister play his hand with the president, and what does that mean for his relationship with his own party, especially given Labour's track record? Host George Parker is joined by the FT’s Middle East editor And...

Labour’s long-awaited spending review dropped this week. Rachel Reeves unveiled funding settlements for government departments – and a newly upbeat tone after the gloomy promise of hard times in her previous Commons set pieces. The NHS and defence were prioritised but other departments and services face a squeeze. Are dividing lines now clear as Labour fights for a second term in power? Why did even the experts call Reeves’ speech ...

UK chancellor Rachel Reeves has had an action-packed week. She made a U-turn on winter fuel payments, announced plans to spend billions of pounds on new transport schemes and, following the prime minister’s latest announcement, she now has to find yet more money to fund a rise in defence spending. So where does this leave the chancellor ahead of the spending review next Wednesday? And who will be the winners and losers? Host George...

In a special six-part series of The Economics Show, Martin Wolf, the FT’s chief economics commentator, and Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman discuss the economic events reshaping the world in the wake of US President Donald Trump’s election. 

Subscribe and listen to this series on The Economics Show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts or wherever you listen to podcasts. 

Episodes will also be available on ...

Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Reform party leader Nigel Farage clashed on economic issues this week. Farage said his party was the champion of the working class, while Starmer warned Farage’s proposed spending rises amounted to “fantasy promises”. Host George Parker is joined by the FT’s Stephen Bush, Chris Giles and Anna Gross to discuss Reform’s fiscal plans. Plus, Labour’s chancellor Rachel Reeves has plenty of fiscal problems...

The UK and EU announced a historic deal to ‘reset’ their relationship this week. Keir Starmer called the deal a “win-win”, while a “gobsmacked” Kemi Badenoch labelled it a “surrender”. Who’s right? Host George Parker is joined by the FT’s Miranda Green, Peter Foster and Andrew Bounds who unpack the agreement and analyse who came out on top. Plus, the prime minister has handed over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, and it didn't come...

It’s been another turbulent week for Labour after Keir Starmer announced a crackdown on legal migration. The prime minister gave what has since become a controversial speech suggesting the UK is at risk of becoming an “island of strangers” – and home secretary Yvette Cooper announced an end to all social care visas, tighter rules for highly skilled visas, more rigorous English language tests, and more. Host Lucy Fisher is joined by...

Our first Q&A special episode is finally here! You sent in questions, now our panel answers them. Is the UK-US trade deal worth the paper it’s signed on? Could the UK benefit from a brain drain from the US? Is there any chance of Keir Starmer being booted out by his party before the next election? Host Lucy Fisher is joined by the FT’s Stephen Bush, Miranda Green and Robert Shrimsley to discuss a range of topics spanning politi...

This week, we’ve seen Reform UK trounce Labour and the Conservatives across England in local elections. 

Nigel Farage’s party has secured a fifth MP, clinched two mayorships and seized control of at least seven councils.

In response, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is vowing to go harder and faster with his reforms, while Kemi Badenoch’s leadership of the Conservative party is coming under scrutiny.

Host Lucy Fish...

Ahead of England’s local elections next week, the Political Fix team pick the races to watch and what’s at stake for the main parties, as voters head to the polls to elect 1,600-odd councillors, six mayors and one new MP. Host Lucy Fisher is joined by podcast regulars Miranda Green and Anna Gross, plus the FT’s Northern correspondent Jennifer Williams, to ask whether Reform UK will live up to high expectations, and just how far bot...

The UK Supreme Court issued a landmark ruling this week about the legal definition of a woman in equality legislation. Judges ruled that a woman is someone who is born biologically female. Host Lucy Fisher is joined by the FT’s Anna Gross and Robert Shrimsley to discuss the political significance of this decision and the reaction of rival parties, as well as what it’s likely to mean in practice. Plus, FT industry correspondent Sylv...