Moral Maze

In her first public comments since leaving office, the Ex-PM Liz Truss has argued that her plans to boost economic growth were brought down by "the left-wing economic establishment". Losing the confidence of the financial markets at a time of global uncertainty has made us all more aware of our income and expenditure. If the news accurately reflected our lives, it would be hard to escape the conclusion that life is all about money - inflation, interest rates, pay demands and profits. The overriding objective of measuring economic growth is to help as many people as possible to have more money. But how have we become so pre-occupied with what is, after all, an artificial construct that is intrinsically valueless – paper and numbers in themselves morally neutral? The love of money may be the root of all evil, but its use demands trust and co-operation, its possession brings freedom and agency. Money may have given much of humanity richer lives, in every way, but it’s made us into transactional, rather than relational beings, and it corrupts as much as it enables; a tool that so often seems our master. It’s impossible for us to judge when we have enough of it.If the best things in life are free, can we imagine a world without money – and would it be better?With Charlie Mullins, Darren McGarvey, Tomáš Sedláček and Anitra NelsonProducer: Dan Tierney.

Boris Johnson has described a chilling phone call in which Vladimir Putin threatened him with a missile strike in the run-up to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Almost a year on from the start of the war, it’s tempting to see it as a clear-cut conflict between good and evil; Putin the malign aggressor bent on destruction and conquest, Zelensky the courageous defender of liberty and his country. It may be true, or at least substantially so, but is it helpful? Seeing events through the prism of good and evil enables us to make moral judgements and define what we value. But it can also brush aside the ambiguities of complex situations and de-humanise both those we deem evil, and those we regard as good. Plato and St Augustine thought they were not opposites; that evil was the absence of good, a lack of moral imagination. Psychologists might prefer to dispense with the term ‘evil’ altogether, seeing it as human behaviour to be explained and understood.Does evil exist? If so, what is it? And how should we deal with it? With Ed Condon, Professor Scott Atran, Professor Lars Svendsen and Professor Tony MadenProducer Dan Tierney

Should teenagers have the right to vote and change their legal gender? The podcast explores the arguments for and against, discussing youth engagement, climate activism, and the virtues of young people. It also debates the role and responsibility of young people, explores the concept of adulthood, and discusses the implications of lowering the voting age.

“Neither a borrower nor a lender be,” advised Shakespeare’s Polonius. These words seem hopelessly out of touch in cost of living crisis with soaring inflation and astronomical levels of personal debt. The charity StepChange has warned that money borrowed by UK households to pay for Christmas could take years to repay. Meanwhile, a study by the Resolution Foundation suggests the British public are the worst in the developed world at saving. How did we get here? For some, our eye-popping indebtedness begins with a failure of personal responsibility, an absence of prudence, and an inability to discern between our ‘wants’ and needs’. For others, the real problem is systemic, where borrowers are victims of a consumerist society that both pressurises and stigmatises the poorest. Pragmatists argue that debt itself is morally neutral and merely part of the furniture of modern life. Free market libertarians see debt as a democratising force, giving people greater personal agency. Whereas many religious and philosophical traditions have long believed that there is something intrinsically immoral about charging interest on lending.Is debt inevitable? Or a moral failing? If so, whose?Producer: Dan Tierney.

This podcast discusses the moral obligations within family relationships, exploring the value of family bonds and the challenges they bring. It delves into the complexities of family dynamics, the impact of divorce on trust, and the concept of abolishing the family. The participants also discuss tolerance and prejudice in families and governments, as well as explore alternative family structures.

Controversy surrounding Jeremy Clarkson's offensive remarks about Meghan Markle and the prevalence of nastiness. Exploring the moral obligations and complexities of kindness in journalism. The distinction between kindness and empathy. Debating journalistic responsibility towards migrants and the complexities of kindness. The importance of empathy and understanding in a divided world. Reflections on book reviews and the cultural origins of kindness.

The podcast explores the changing perception of work, the value and rewards of work, the moral case for idleness, the motivations behind strikes, and the concept of work as a vocation. It discusses issues such as fair wages, public service ethos, class-based assumptions, and the impact of work on mental health.

For the first time, fewer than half of people in England and Wales describe themselves as Christian. For centuries in the West, Judeo-Christian values have underpinned moral reasoning and grounded our ethics. While ticking “no religion” on the census doesn’t necessarily mean having no religious belief, should it concern us that this central story of our culture is fragmenting?Implicit in utilitarianism is the idea that we can do ethics without metaphysics. The Enlightenment hailed the triumph of scientific rationality over sacred revelation. Whereas, the French sociologist Emile Durkheim argued that in any society in a state of ‘anomie’ – that is, lacking a shared moral code – there would be a rise in suicide. Secularists argue that the greatest examples of social progress of the last century have come about as a result of a loss of deference to religious moral authority. Religious leaders believe that it is precisely this moral authority that makes a society cohesive. Others think it doesn’t matter where you get your moral guide from as long as you’re looking for it. We live in an era of rapid social change, facing a new technological revolution, and all the ethical questions it poses. Does a religious-based ethics have the answers? Can ethics survive the death of religion?Producer: Dan Tierney.

Protests in China, women's rights in Iran, and LGBTQ+ rights in Qatar are highlights. Universal Declaration of Human Rights debated as either protecting dignity or imposing Western morality. Arguments for and against global human rights movement. Balancing individual rights and responsibilities discussed. Case of Jessica Yeneve's rights explored. Value of institutions in protecting democratic culture emphasized.

People like us... you know what I mean. Snobbery? It's everywhere, and most of us would admit to it, at least occasionally. But beyond the caricatures of snooty and disdainful types who enjoy looking down on the tastes, habits and backgrounds of others, there's the serious matter of how it affects people's life chances. The British Psychological Society has launched a campaign to make social class a legally protected characteristic, like sex, race and disability. It would force employers and others to tackle discrimination on the basis of class. The idea is to reduce the damaging effects of class-based prejudice across education, work and health, and create a fairer society. People from working class backgrounds are less likely to get into a top university or land a highly paid job, but how much of that is down to the snobbery of others? Is a change in the law really going to shift prejudices that have been embedded over generations? Is it right to use the law in this way? More broadly, what’s wrong with expressing a preference about how other people present themselves? Isn't some behaviour that gets labelled as snobbery just an attempt to defend high standards, whether in speech, writing, taste or manners? Is there a moral case for snobbery? With Bridgette Rickett, D.J. Taylor, David Skelton and Alex Bilmes.Producers: Jonathan Hallewell and Peter Everett Presenter: Michael Buerk