The Briefing Room

The Briefing Room's David Aaronovitch is joined by a team of experts to find out more about the Wagner group, the mysterious private organisation, that's acknowledged by the Russian government to have been supplying soldiers to fight its war in Ukraine. Wagner's leader, Yevgheny Prigozhin, was once known as Vladimir Putin's 'chef'. Soldiers fighting for him won the battle for Soledar - one of few military successes for Russia in Ukraine in recent months. Has his prowess on the battlefield re-invigorated Russia's army - or turned Prigozhin into a potential rival to Putin?Joining David Aaronovitch in The Briefing Room are: Samantha De Bendern, Associate Fellow at the Royal Institute of International Affairs, Chatham House Joana De Deus Pereira,Senior Research Fellow at the Royal United Services Institute Europe Marina Miron, Post-doctoral researcher at the Department of War Studies at King’s College London Andras Racz, Senior Research Fellow of the German Council on Foreign Relations in BerlinProduced by: Daniel Gordon, Ben Carter, Kirsteen Knight Edited by: Richard Vadon Sound engineer: James BeardPHOTO: Graffiti praising soldiers from the Wagner Group (Getty)

The WHO have described last week's Turkey-Syria earthquake as one of Europe's worst natural disasters in the last 100 years. David Aaronovitch finds out why it was so deadly.Joining David Aaronovitch in The Briefing Room are:Stephen Hicks, Seismologist at University College London Professor Dina D’Ayala, Co-Director of the Earthquake and People Interaction Centre at UCL, and UNESCO Chair on Disaster Risk Reduction and Resilience Engineering. Firdevs Robinson, London-based journalist, broadcaster and commentator specializing on Turkey, the Middle East, Caucasus and Freedom of the Media. Dr Lina Khatib, Director of the Middle East and North Africa programme at Chatham HouseProducers: Kirsteen Knight, Dan Gordon and Ben Carter Production Coordinators: Janet Staples and Siobhan Reed Sound mix: Rod Farquhar Editors: Richard Vadon and Charlotte McDonald

Avian flu has devastated poultry farms and wild bird populations around the world and now it's spread to mammals such as mink and seals. Cases in humans have been rare but worryingly fatal in more than half of the recorded incidences. How worried should we be about the risk of a new global pandemic?Joining David Aaronovitch in The Briefing Room are: Wendy Barclay, Head of the Department of Infectious Disease and Chair in Influenza Virology at Imperial College London Dr Wendy Puryear, Molecular virologist, Tufts University Prof Ian Brown, Head of Virology at the Animal and Plant Health Agency Marion Koopmans, Head of the Department of Virology at the Erasmus Medical Centre in RotterdamProducers: Kirsteen Knight, Cecilia Armstrong and Ben Carter Production Coordinators: Siobhan Reed and Maria Ogundele Sound mix: Rod Farquhar Editor: Richard Vadon

The government wants hundreds of thousands of over 50s to return the workforce as Britain mounts an economic recovery. More than half million people in that age bracket have left work since 2019. Will the promise of a 'midlife MOT' encourage people to come back to work? And do employers want them?Joining David Aaronovitch in The Briefing Room are:Torsten Bell, Chief Executive of the Resolution Foundation Mike Crowhurst, Director at Public First Tony Wilson, Director Institute for Employment Studies Bee Boileau, a research economist in the retirement, saving and ageing sector at the Institute for Fiscal Studies, James Kirkup, Director of the Social Market Foundation Producers: Kirsteen Knight, Daniel Gordon and Ben Carter Production Coordinators: Siobhan Reed and Sophie Hill Sound mix: Neil Churchill Editor: Richard Vadon

The next round of rail strikes look set to compound long-running problems with Britain's railways. But the problems on the network go far beyond this spate of industrial action. David Aaronvitch asks the experts in The Briefing Room this week the reasons why our rail network has acquired such a reputation for unreliability, and what can be done to put it right. Contributors: Christian Wolmar Mark Smith Jennifer Williams Gareth DennisProducers: Kirsteen Knight Ben Carter Daniel GordonProduction Coordinators: Siobhan Reed Sophie HillSound mix: Rod FarquharEditor: Richard VadonImage: Train timetable board Credit: Martin Pope via Getty

At the end of 2022, with winter approaching, there were warnings right across Europe of an impending energy crisis. There was talk of potential electricity blackouts. But today, in the depths of that same winter, why are energy storage facilities well topped up and prices of oil and gas falling instead? David Aaronovitch finds out from the experts with him in The Briefing Room this week.Contributors: Nathalie Thomas Javier Blas Kate Mulvany Sir Dieter HelmProducers: Kirsteen Knight Ben Carter Daniel GordonProduction Coordinator: Siobhan ReedSound mix: Rod FarquharEditor: Richard VadonPhoto: Vertigo3d/Getty Images

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has promised 'urgent action' to tackle the NHS crisis. The experts in The Briefing Room with David Aaronovitch this week consider what can be done to tackle problems such as: chronic staff shortages; the thousands of 'bed blockers' and the backlog of people waiting for surgical procedures. Contributors: Annabelle Collins, Senior Correspondent, Health Service Journal Nigel Edwards, Chief Executive, Nuffield Trust Jill Manthorpe, Professor of Social Work at King's College London Mark Pearson, Health Expert, OECD Sally Warren, Director of Policy, King's FundProducers: Daniel Gordon Rosamund Jones Kirsteen Knight Editor: Richard Vadon Studio Manager: Rod Farquhar Production co-ordinators: Helena Warwick-Cross, Sophie Hill and Siobhan Reed

David Aaronovitch and a panel of experts evaluate the current situation in Ukraine and explore how the war might evolve in the remaining winter months and into the Spring. Joining David Aaronovitch in The Briefing Room are:Michael Clarke, Professor of Defence studies and Specialist Advisor to the Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy Sir Lawrence Freedman, Emeritus Professor of War Studies at King's College London Samantha de Bendern, Associate Fellow at the Royal Institute of International Affairs, Chatham House Shashank Joshi, Defence Editor of The EconomistProducers: Ben Carter, Dan Gordon and Kirsteen Knight Editor: Richard Vadon Studio manager: James Beard Production co-ordinators: Helena Warwick-Cross, Sophie Hill and Siobhan Reed

For years, the major problem of world demography was thought to be the risk of over-population. Now, it's the fact that the global population is ageing fast.According to the United Nations, the number of people over 65 is set to double between now and 2050, to 1.6 billion people. And, at the same time, the birth rate in most of the world is falling, often sharply. This demographic shift comes with huge social and economic implications. What are they, and what can we do to cope with them? Joining David Aaronovitch in The Briefing Room are:Stephanie Hegarty, BBC Global Population Correspondent Marco Valerio Lo Prete, Economics Editor at Italian State Broadcaster RAI and author of “Italians: The Unhappy Few” Robert Kelly., Professor of Political Science at Pusan National University, South Korea Camilla Cavendish, Senior Fellow at Harvard University Ian Goldin, Professor of Globalisation and Development at the Oxford Martin SchoolProducers: Simon Watts, Kirsteen Knight and Octavia Woodward Editor: Richard Vadon Studio manager: Rod Farquhar Production co-ordinators: Sophie Hill and Siobhan Reed

The first mission in NASA’s Artemis space programme returned to Earth earlier this month, after a journey of over 1.3 million miles around the Moon and back. Over next few years NASA will launch Artemis missions two and three, with the help of the European and Japanese space agencies, as well as Elon Musk's Space X. The aim is eventually to build a permanent base for scientific - and possibly economic development - on the Moon. Meanwhile, China is pursuing a lunar exploration programme of its own. So why is the Moon back in fashion? And is the world in the grip of a new space race?Joining David Aaronovitch in the Briefing Room are: Rebecca Morelle, BBC Science Correspondent John Zarnecki, Emeritus Professor of Space Sciences at the Open University Jack Burns, Professor of Astrophysics and Professor of Physics, University of Colorado Boulder Joanne Wheeler, Space Lawyer Bleddyn Bowen, Associate Professor of International Relations, Space Policy/Warfare Expert, University of LeicesterProducers: Daniel Gordon, Kirsteen Knight and Ben Carter. Editor: Simon Watts. Studio Manager: Neil Churchill. Production co-ordinator Sophie Hill.PHOTO CREDIT: The launch of NASA's Artemis 1 rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida (Getty Images)