Daily Politics from the New Statesman

There is one question the environmental journalist and author George Monbiot is asked more than any other: how do you cope? When your job is to report on the climate crisis, where do you find hope? Monbiot’s answer is a very personal one: he goes sea kayaking – alone, often far off the coast, with (if he’s lucky) a pod of dolphins or a flock of shearwaters for company.In this evocative essay from the New Statesman’s summer 2023 issue, Monbiot explores the sea off the island of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides, his former home in Cardigan Bay, and his new home in South Devon – a coastline “featuring cliffs and rocky coves, clefts and chasms, reefs and skerries, sandy and shingle beaches and several estuaries”. He relives the dangers and joys of battling the waves in a very small boat, most recently with an underwater camera fixed to the hull. There is no permanent escape from ecological distress, he writes, from the warming seas and the waste pumped into them, “but for hours at a time, I lose myself”.Written by George Monbiot and read by Chris Stone.This article originally appeared in the 28 July-17 August 2023 New Statesman summer issue. You can read the text version here.https://www.newstatesman.com/environment/2023/07/escpaing-climate-sea-kayaking-george-monbiotListen to all our Audio Long Reads herehttps://podfollow.com/audio-long-reads-new-statesmanIf you enjoyed this episode, you might also enjoy Rebecca Solnit on hope, despair and climate action.https://www.newstatesman.com/podcasts/audio-long-reads/2022/10/rebecca-solnit-on-hope-despair-and-climate-actionDownload the New Statesman app:iOS: https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/new-statesman-magazine/id610498525Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.progressivemediagroup.newstatesman&hl=en_GB&gl=USSubscribe to the New Statesman from £1 per week:https://newstatesman.com/podcastofferSign up to our weekly Saturday Read emailhttps://saturdayread.substack.com/SAVE £££ THIS CHRISTMAS:⭐️ Gift big ideas, bold politics, and proper journalism from just £2LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Anoosh Chakelian, Freddie Hayward and Ben Walker answer listener questions.There have been multiple attempts to launch credible new political parties in recent years, but very few have taken hold. Why? A listener, quite possibly the youngest fan of the New Statesman Podcast, asks what it would take for a new party to gain ground in Parliament.And Greater Manchester Police face allegations of sexual assault and cover up. Andy Burnham, as mayor and police commissioner, has ordered a review – but our questioner asks how he has avoided scrutiny for the force's failings.Submit a question: https://www.newstatesman.com/YouAskUsDownload the app:iOS: https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/new-statesman-magazine/id610498525Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.progressivemediagroup.newstatesman&hl=en_GB&gl=USSubscribe to the New Statesman from £1 per week:https://newstatesman.com/podcastofferSign up to our daily politics email: https://morningcall.substack.com/SAVE £££ THIS CHRISTMAS:⭐️ Gift big ideas, bold politics, and proper journalism from just £2LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yet another by-election could provide a key opportunity for Anas Sarwar’s Scottish Labour to regain lost seats in Scotland.The former SNP MP Margaret Ferrier has been recalled by her Rutherglen and Hamilton West constituents, triggering a by-election. Ben Walker and Freddie Hayward join Anoosh Chakelian on the New Statesman podcast to discuss what the latest polls reveal about voting intention in the seat – formerly a Labour stronghold – and whether this might be the beginning of a Labour resurgence in Scotland.Submit a question: https://www.newstatesman.com/YouAskUsDownload the app:iOS: https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/new-statesman-magazine/id610498525Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.progressivemediagroup.newstatesman&hl=en_GB&gl=USSubscribe to the New Statesman from £1 per week:https://newstatesman.com/podcastofferSign up to our daily politics email: https://morningcall.substack.com/SAVE £££ THIS CHRISTMAS:⭐️ Gift big ideas, bold politics, and proper journalism from just £2LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When Labour won Westminster Council from the Conservatives in 2022, they made history.Now in power for the first time ever, the Labour council leadership is faced with the challenge and opportunity of running one of the UK’s richest councils – inheriting what council leader Adam Hug calls “mediocre” and “wasteful” Conservative policies.In this revealing interview, Anoosh Chakelian and Harry Lambert go behind the scenes of local government to ask the Westminster Council leader how he hopes to address the housing crisis, what Labour nationally should be doing about planning, development and free school meals, and why Oxford Street still won't be pedestrianised.This interview was recorded on 29th June 2023.Submit a question: https://www.newstatesman.com/YouAskUsDownload the app:iOS: https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/new-statesman-magazine/id610498525Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.progressivemediagroup.newstatesman&hl=en_GB&gl=USSubscribe to the New Statesman from £1 per week:https://newstatesman.com/podcastofferSign up to our daily politics email: https://morningcall.substack.com/SAVE £££ THIS CHRISTMAS:⭐️ Gift big ideas, bold politics, and proper journalism from just £2LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Conservative Private Members Committee, informally known as the 1922 Committee (or the ’22), is the Tory confessional, its trade union and backbenchers’ common room. If that makes it sound chaotic (and it sometimes is) it is also the assassination bureau that felled Margaret Thatcher, and, more recently, three prime ministers in four years: Theresa May, Boris Johnson and Liz Truss. Will it come for Rishi Sunak before the next election?In this week’s richly detailed and highly entertaining long read, magazine writer Tanya Gold reports on the secretive committee’s inner workings, hearing from decision-makers past and present about what happens when a leader loses the party’s confidence. “The ’22 can be turgid for months, even years,” she writes. “But people talk about Committee Room 14 during a leadership crisis as they might about seeing Bruce Springsteen, or a riot.” And over the next 18 months, they could be busy.Written by Tanya Gold and read by Rachel Cunliffe. This article originally appeared in the 21-27 July 2023 edition of the New Statesman, and you can read the text version here. If you enjoyed this episode, you might also enjoy The making of Prince William by Tanya Gold.Download the New Statesman app:iOS: https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/new-statesman-magazine/id610498525Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.progressivemediagroup.newstatesman&hl=en_GB&gl=USSubscribe to the New Statesman from £1 per week:https://newstatesman.com/podcastofferSign up to our weekly Saturday Read emailhttps://saturdayread.substack.com/SAVE £££ THIS CHRISTMAS:⭐️ Gift big ideas, bold politics, and proper journalism from just £2LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Anoosh Chakelian and Freddie Hayward answer your questions. After a routing in 2015, the Liberal Democrats have languished as a minor player in the Commons while the SNP have enjoyed the advantages of being the third largest party in parliament. Their positions could reverse at the next election. Our listener asks how politics would change if the Lib Dems became the third largest party.  Liz Truss’ premiership proved disastrous for the Conservatives – but did it scar Labour too? Anoosh and Freddie explore the long tail of the Truss debacle and its impact on both sides of the house.Submit a question: https://www.newstatesman.com/YouAskUsDownload the app:iOS: https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/new-statesman-magazine/id610498525Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.progressivemediagroup.newstatesman&hl=en_GB&gl=USSubscribe to the New Statesman from £1 per week:https://newstatesman.com/podcastofferSign up to our daily politics email: https://morningcall.substack.com/SAVE £££ THIS CHRISTMAS:⭐️ Gift big ideas, bold politics, and proper journalism from just £2LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Keir Starmer has faced criticism for appearing to water down some key environmental policies, particularly in light of Labour's narrow defeat in the Uxbridge and South Ruislip by-election. But is that criticism fair?Anoosh Chakelian and Freddie Hayward discuss how perceived opposition to the Net Zero agenda and schemes like London's Ulez have impacted the green policies of both Labour and the Conservatives, and how this is being viewed by voters.Submit a question: https://www.newstatesman.com/YouAskUsDownload the app:iOS: https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/new-statesman-magazine/id610498525Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.progressivemediagroup.newstatesman&hl=en_GB&gl=USSubscribe to the New Statesman from £1 per week:https://newstatesman.com/podcastofferSign up to our daily politics email: https://morningcall.substack.com/SAVE £££ THIS CHRISTMAS:⭐️ Gift big ideas, bold politics, and proper journalism from just £2LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Shadowy forces, deep state actors in the pay of nefarious oligarchs... or an important part of the political ecosystem?Rachel Cunliffe meets senior figures from three think tanks from across the political spectrum to find out how think tanks work, how they are funded, and the role they play in creating public policy.Guests:Robert Colvile, director of the Centre for Policy Studies (CPS)Carys Roberts, executive director of the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR)Matthew Lawrence, founder and director of Common WealthSubmit a question: https://www.newstatesman.com/YouAskUsDownload the app:iOS: https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/new-statesman-magazine/id610498525Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.progressivemediagroup.newstatesman&hl=en_GB&gl=USSubscribe to the New Statesman from £1 per week:https://newstatesman.com/podcastofferSign up to our daily politics email: https://morningcall.substack.com/SAVE £££ THIS CHRISTMAS:⭐️ Gift big ideas, bold politics, and proper journalism from just £2LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When Saudi cinemas reopened in 2018, for the first time in 35 years, they screened the Marvel movie Black Panther. Many saw parallels between the kingdom and the fictional world of Wakanda, as crown prince Mohammed bin Salman unveiled ambitious plans for modernisation and an economy that would diversify away from oil, investing in futuristic projects such as Neom, a half-trillion-dollar city.Saudi Arabia has since sought to position itself as a global investment powerhouse, focusing on tourism, sports sponsorships, financial services, green hydrogen production, and the electric vehicle industry. Long dependant on oil, can the kingdom transform itself into a major global force in a post-carbon future?In this week’s long read and magazine cover story, New Statesman contributing writer Quinn Slobodian explores the consequences of Saudi dominance on international politics, the climate crisis and our technological future. Written by Quinn Slobodian and read by Chris Stone.Listen to more: The Spanish election reveals the future of Europe, by Jeremy Cliffe: https://pod.fo/e/18c885Download the app:iOS: https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/new-statesman-magazine/id610498525Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.progressivemediagroup.newstatesman&hl=en_GB&gl=USSubscribe to the New Statesman from £1 per week:https://newstatesman.com/podcastofferSign up to our weekly Saturday Read emailhttps://saturdayread.substack.com/SAVE £££ THIS CHRISTMAS:⭐️ Gift big ideas, bold politics, and proper journalism from just £2LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In a terrible night of results for Rishi Sunak in rural England, Labour faltered in outer London.Rachel Cunliffe, Anoosh Chakelian, Rachel Wearmouth and Ben Walker analyse the results of the by-elections in Somerton and Frome, Selby and Ainsty, and Boris Johnson’s old seat of Uxbridge and South Ruislip.Submit a question: https://www.newstatesman.com/YouAskUsDownload the app:iOS: https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/new-statesman-magazine/id610498525Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.progressivemediagroup.newstatesman&hl=en_GB&gl=USSubscribe to the New Statesman from £1 per week:https://newstatesman.com/podcastofferSign up to our daily politics email: https://morningcall.substack.com/SAVE £££ THIS CHRISTMAS:⭐️ Gift big ideas, bold politics, and proper journalism from just £2LISTEN AD-FREE:📱Download the New Statesman appMORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning✍️ Enjoy the best of our writing via email every Saturday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.