FT News Briefing

Will Germany lead Nato?

Feb 15, 2024

11:02

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Topics discussed in this podcast include UK chancellor considering slashing public spending for tax cuts, Germany's efforts to boost defense spending, Citigroup tracking private bankers' calls to clients, and the dangers of meditation retreats explored in a new podcast.

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Quick takeaways

UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt is considering cutting public spending to fund tax cuts, which is driven by the need to boost the Conservative party's chances in the polls.

Germany, being a key European country, is under pressure to increase its defense capabilities due to ongoing conflicts and concerns about Russian aggression.

Deep dives

UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt considering cutting public spending to finance tax cuts

UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt is considering cutting billions of pounds in public spending to make tax cuts. This move comes as the Conservative party is behind the Labour Party in the polls, and borrowing money to finance the tax cuts is not viable due to high interest rates. Hunt is expected to provide more details on the UK's budget plans on March 6th.

Introduction

4min

Germany's Defense Spending and Rebuilding Military Capabilities

3min

Germany's Defense Capability, Citigroup's Wealth Management, and 'Untold the Retreat' Podcast

2min

Exploring the Dark Side of Intensive Meditation Retreats

2min

Investigating the Impact of an Organization's Retreats and Meditation Courses

2min

UK chancellor Jeremy Hunt is considering slashing public spending to fund pre-election tax cuts, Germany is looking to boost its defence spending at a crucial time for Europe, and Citigroup has started tracking how many calls its private bankers are making to clients. Plus, the FT’s Madison Marriage talks about her new podcast on the dangers of meditation retreats.

Mentioned in this podcast:

Jeremy Hunt faced with slashing UK public spending to fund tax cuts

Will Germany deliver on its grand military ambitions?

Citi starts tracking how often private bankers call clients

Untold: The Retreat

The FT News Briefing is produced by Fiona Symon, Sonja Hutson, Kasia Broussalian and Marc Filippino. Additional help by Sam Giovinco, Peter Barber, Michael Lello, David da Silva and Gavin Kallmann. Our engineer is Monica Lopez. Topher Forhecz is the FT’s executive producer. The FT’s global head of audio is Cheryl Brumley. The show’s theme song is by Metaphor Music.

Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com

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