The Prospect Podcast

20 years on from the US led invasion of Iraq, what is life like in Baghdad today? Award-winning Iraqi journalist Ghaith Abdul-Ahad joins Alan Rusbridger to discuss his new book—which has been fourteen years in the making—A Stranger in Your Own City: Travels in the Middle East's Long War. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With growing numbers of people crossing the channel in small boats and the backlog of asylum claims at record levels, immigration has become a key issue for a government whose approach to fixing the system has favoured rhetoric over results. For the cover story of our April issue, David Normington, former permanent secretary for the home office from 2006-2010, and May Bulman, investigations editor at Lighthouse Reports, discuss how the government could solve the immigration crisis. They join deputy editor Ellen Halliday on the podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How do memories of the 1966-76 Cultural Revolution shape modern China? And why does Xi Jinping seek to control the ways people remember? Tania Branigan—a Guardian leader writer and author of Red Memory: Living, Remembering and Forgetting China’s Cultural Revolution—and Isabel Hilton, who is a contributing editor at Prospect and founder of China Dialogue, join Ellen Halliday to discuss China's relationship with its own history. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Most conflicts end through negotiation. But how can Putin be trusted given the horrors of his war in Ukraine? Jonathan Powell, who represented the UK government in forging the Good Friday Agreement, and Vladimir Milov, who was Russia’s Deputy Minister of Energy in 2002, join Ellen Halliday to discuss whether peace talks will ever be possible. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is Labour on track to win the next general election? Does Keir Starmer have the right strategy? Seasoned political journalist and pollster Peter Kellner and former head of political strategy for the Labour party, Greg Cook, join Alan Rusbridger to discuss why the next election is Labour’s to lose.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How can you satirise a government as farcical as the current one? If Labour wins the next election, how mockable will Keir Starmer be? Alan Rusbridger is joined by actor and comedian Rosie Holt—whose impersonation of a Tory MP set the internet on fire during the lockdowns—and comedian and producer Josh Berry, who in December 2019 created the fictional character of Rafe Hubris, an Eton-educated, implacably self-confident special advisor to Boris Johnson. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Tens of thousands of working age people with terminal illnesses are dying in poverty in the UK, as the safety net fails to catch them in their final year of life. Could a relatively cheap and simple policy change solve this cruel problem? Helen Barnard, associate director at the Joseph Rowntree Foundation and Sam Royston, Director of Policy and Research at Marie Curie join assistant editor Sarah Collins on the podcast. If you enjoyed this podcast, why not have a listen to our Prospect Lives podcast? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As the winter of discontent continues, with a building public service crisis and escalating industrial action, the government has responded by trying to pass legislation to control the unions and clamp down on protests. But what are the political consequences of this approach? What does the public think? And what will happen next? Veteran political journalist and pollster Peter Kellner and Naomi Smith, chief executive of campaigning organisation Best for Britain join Alan Rusbridger to discuss. If you enjoyed this podcast, why not have a listen to our Prospect Lives podcast? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

More than 320 days into Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Rafael Behr and Francesca Ebel join Alan Rusbridger to discuss how Russians themselves have responded to the war. Are they fighting, fleeing or resisting? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The team discuss the turbulent year that's passed and give predictions for the year ahead, as well as sharing their highlights from Prospect in 2022. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.