Inside Briefing with the Institute for Government

Nobody predicted a massive diplomatic bust-up with Greece, so is Rishi Sunak losing his marbles? PoliticsHome editor Laura Silver joins the podcast team to catch up on the extraordinary row over the Elgin Marbles.Access talks – the moment that opposition parties begin meeting the civil service ahead of a general election – haven’t started yet, but the pressure is building. So what happens next and how important are they?Cabinet secretary Simon Case is still on medical leave – but what does his absence mean for how the government is functioning? A restless gaggle of Conservative backbenchers, and even some frontbenchers, are waiting for Rishi Sunak’s new plan to get his Rwanda asylum flights off the ground. So what could the prime minister’s scheme look like and what are its next steps in Parliament?Hannah White presents, with Alex Thomas, Alice Lilly and Alex Thomas. Produced by Candice McKenzie. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jeremy Hunt has framed the autumn statement as the biggest tax cut in British history, but do the chancellor's sums add up? The podcast team crunch the numbers and discuss what Hunt's big day in Parliament told us about the state of the economy, what the government is trying to do, and when the next general election might take place.  Giles Winn, a former Treasury special adviser, joins the podcast team to reveal what really goes into planning a big fiscal statement - and trying to secure a set of positive headlines.Cath Haddon presentsWith Gemma Tetlow and Giles WilkesProduced by Candice McKenzie. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Supreme Court's verdict has left the government's Rwanda asylum policy in tatters - but Rishi Sunak says he has a plan to get planes taking off by the spring. So what is the prime minister proposing, and is there any chance it will work? That won't be a job for Suella Braverman, with the controversial now ex-home secretary the biggest loser in this week's reshuffle. The biggest winner was David Cameron, who surprised everyone with his return as foreign secretary. Francis Elliott, editor of the House Magazine and Cameron's first biographer, joins the podcast to run the rule over the reshuffle and weigh up Sunak's Rwanda scheme.Plus: How big a problem did this week's resignations create for Keir Starmer?Emma Norris presents, with Jill Rutter and Rhys Clyne.Presented by Milo Hynes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The reshuffle rumour mill went into overdrive over the weekend, and on Monday morning Rishi Sunak kicked off a day of sackings - and surprise appointments. So the IfG team wolfed down their breakfasts, raced to the office, and assembled in the podcast studio for an emergency recording of Inside Briefing.Who is in and who is out? What does this reshuffle tell us about how Rishi Sunak wants to govern - and how he plans to fight the general election? And is David Cameron’s return to the Cabinet a masterstroke or a desperate roll of the dice?Hannah White presents with Jill Rutter, Cath Haddon and Tim Durrant.Produced by Milo Hynes  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The King’s Speech on Tuesday meant a day of dashing uniforms and galloping horses, but was there anything of substance behind the pomp and ceremony? The Sun’s Noa Hoffman is this week’s podcast guest as the Inside Briefing team weigh up the legislative agenda on offer from Rishi Sunak.The home secretary is in the news. When isn’t she? We unpick Suella Braverman’s rows with the country’s most senior policeman and ask how Rishi Sunak handles an increasingly outspoken member of his cabinet. And the Covid inquiry is in the news. When isn’t it? We’ll catch up on the latest evidence sessions. Hannah White presents with Alex Thomas and Cath Haddon.Produced by Milo Hynes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Astonishing revelations and appalling language made for a gripping week at the Covid inquiry, with Dominic Cummings dominating headlines once again with his account of Boris Johnson’s chaotic No10. The BBC’s health reporter Jim Reed joins the podcast team to work out what we’ve learnt from the evidence sessions, Whatsapp messages, witness statements and diary entries. The autumn statement is looming, and chancellor Jeremy Hunt is under pressure to come up with some additional funding for struggling public services – and the IfG’s Performance Tracker 2023, our annual stocktake of nine key public services, published with CIPFA, sets out the scale of the problem. We chat to the report’s author about what could be done to fix it. Rishi Sunak has been busy hosting his AI summit – and taking part in a slightly surreal interview with X boss Elon Musk. How did the two-day gathering at Bletchley Park work out, will the robots rule whr world, and what is the next step to working with this new technology? Hannah White presents. With Emma Norris, Nick Davies and Matthew Gill. Produced by Milo Hynes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Charlotte Aldritt, Chief Executive of the Centre for Progressive Policy, and Adam Hawksbee, Deputy Director of Onward, delve into the progress and challenges of devolution in England. They discuss the effectiveness of the devolution revolution and examine its impact on local governance, particularly in the West Midlands and Greater Manchester. The conversation also addresses Labour's potential approach to enhancing devolution and the importance of clear objectives for power transfer, local accountability, and sustainable funding to ensure inclusive growth.

Rishi Sunak has clocked up 365 days as Prime Minister – but is the anniversary a cause for celebration or just a moment of relief? Politico’s Dan Bloom joins the podcast team to weigh up Sunak’s first year in the job, assess his achievements and failures and how he has surprised us, and explore what might come next.From the man in Number 10 to a woman who might fancy a tilt at the top job… Rachel Reeves enjoyed a successful Labour conference, and this week the Shadow Chancellor launched her new book – which has already caused some controversy – at the IfG. The podcast team take a look at Reeves’s ambitions and challenges, as well as an increasingly complicated party problem for Keir Starmer.With Hannah White, Cath Haddon and Giles Wilkes. Produced by Milo Hynes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Labour's double by-election win has sent shockwaves through Westminster. So what does it mean for Keir Starmer? What does Rishi Sunak do now? And what might it tell us about the battleground on which the general election might be fought? The FT's Lucy Fisher joins the pod team to react to the results.Talking of the general election… everyone is guessing when it might be held. Could it be next May? Early Autumn. Late Autumn? Maybe as late as January 2025? We plot the paths and game the scenarios.Could a second referendum on Scottish independence be back on the cards? The SNP think they have come up with a route. So what is it and could it work?Presented by Hannah White.With Cath Haddon, Alex Thomas and Jess Sargeant. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Will it be May? Maybe October? Perhaps November? Surely not January 2025? Yes, everyone is talking about when the next general election is going to be held – and speculating when Rishi Sunak will decide to go to the country. So is it right for the prime minister to have the power to choose the date of a general election? What are the key considerations to make when looking at the polls – or the weather forecast? And what does history tell us about when is the right time to call an election – and when is the wrong time to stick rather than twist? This special episode of Inside Briefing brings together three veterans of elections that were – or maybe weren’t – to look back on their experiences and discuss what might happen next.  Former Labour MP Jacqui Smith was home secretary when Gordon Brown chose not to call a general election in the autumn of 2007. Katie Perrior was working as the Number 10’s director of communications when Theresa May decided to call a snap election in 2017. Political adviser and pollster James Johnson worked in No10 as a strategic adviser to Theresa May between 2016 and 2019.  Presented by Tim Durrant.Produced by Milo Hynes and Podmasters. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices