The Another Europe Podcast

As American democracy faces the most troubling moment in its modern history, hosts Zoe Williams and Luke Cooper talk to one of the world's leading experts on the far right about where it all went wrong. Cas Mudde is Professor of International Affairs at the University of Georgia he challenges the conventional wisdom that sees Trump as 'evil' and the Republican party as 'moderate'. Instead he explains how Trump is a symptom of the shift in American Republicanism towards the populist radical right - a move that has huge implications for American democracy in the century ahead. We also pick his brains on the challenge the authoritarian right represents to the future of democratic societies this side of the Atlantic and ask - above all - what we can do about it.  For more on the ideas discussed in today's podcast check out these links:  The Republican convention is proof that traditional Republicans have given up The Far Right Today (Book)  One thing all sides agree on: the 2020 election is about the soul of America How Orbán played Germany, Europe’s great power

It is no exaggeration to say that dark money is now a major factor in our politics - and the lack of transparency threatens the democratic process. The 2016 Brexit referendum was the pilot episode of a new global horror show: nationalistic politics fuelled by hidden global donors. In this episode hosts Luke Cooper and Zoe Williams talk to Peter Geoghegan on his path-breaking new book, Democracy for Sale. In a jaw dropping discussion he explains how we still have no idea about the ultimate source of the huge amounts of cash that the Democratic Unionist Party and Arron Banks spent in the 2016 referendum.  This podcast is part of an on-going collaboration between the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung and Another Europe Is Possible. For more information on the ideas discussed in this podcast check out Peter's book:  https://www.hive.co.uk/Product/Peter-Geoghegan/Democracy-for-Sale--Dark-Money-and-Dirty-Politics/24294091

In this podcast Another Europe's Zoe Williams talks to Nick Dearden, director of Global Justice Now, about his new book, Trade Secrets. They unravel the corporate agenda at the heart of modern trade policy and the terrible implications it has for our food standards, consumer rights and environmental protections. To get your copy of the book go to the Global Justice Now website.

He made a fortune in the last financial crisis betting against a recovery. Now one-time City trader Gary Stevenson tells his jaw-dropping story. He won his job in a card game at one of the world's top universities and was the most profitable trader globally at Citigroup in 2011. But his maths-based predictions of currency movements hit upon a problem: global inequality was paralysing the economic future of the entire world. In this podcast, Gary tells hosts Zoe Williams and Luke Cooper why the system has to change. He laments the failure of the Economics discipline to steer a new course and believes we are on the cusp of the total destruction of social mobility in every country in the world.  This podcast is part of an on-going collaboration between the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung and Another Europe Is Possible. For more information on the ideas discussed in this podcast check out these bits of reading:  Gary's Stevenson's articles for Open Democracy  For a more technical, economics-take on the issues discussed see this paper from the economists Gary mentioned in the podcast. 

Paul Mason and Christabel Cooper ... The Coronavirus crisis has turned on its head many assumptions about how politics works. It used to be taken for granted that the Tories want to make the state smaller, and the market bigger. But does that assumption still hold? And if not what is the nature of the new Toryism being formed through the course of the Coronavirus crisis? On this episode hosts Luke Cooper and Zoe Williams are joined by journalist and author Paul Mason and data scientist and Labour councillor Christabel Cooper, to discuss how the centre-right is evolving. They place the analysis in a global and historical perspective and ask if Thatcherism is indeed coming to an end, then what happens next? The alternative, sadly, isn't necessarily better and could even be seen as continuity neoliberalism but with a big dose of nationalism and authoritarianism.  This podcast is part of an on-going collaboration between the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung and Another Europe Is Possible. For more information on the ideas discussed in this podcast check out these bits of reading: Paul Mason's Clear Bright Future The Devastating Defeat The Dangers Ahead

The killing of George Floyd unleashed a huge global uprising. Black Lives Matter has become a global movement against racism and for social and political justice. In Britain and across Europe discussion of American politics can sometimes serve as a convenient way to avoid discussing the issues faced by people of colour on this side of the Atlantic. In this podcast we set out to challenge this tendency by politely pointing out that black lives often don't matter in Europe too. And mass movements have erupted to demand that we too have a reckoning with the huge injustices faced by ethnic minorities. To explore these linkages we talk to Ndindi Kitonga, a Black Lives Matter activist based in Los Angeles, Quinsy Gario, a performance artist and activist in the movement against Zwarte Piet from Amsterdam. And Shaista Aziz, a Labour councillor in Oxford involved in the Rhodes Must Fall campaign.  This podcast is part of an on-going collaboration between the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung and Another Europe Is Possible.

As Boris Johnson is set for a video conference negotiation with the EU next week, we look at the sorry state of his Brexit negotiations. Hosts Luke Cooper and Zoe Williams are joined by Laura Bannister of the Trade Justice Movement and Christos Katsioulis, the director of the London office of Friedrich Ebert Stiftung to talk about the state of the Brexit negotiations. As the world is facing multiple, deeply serious crises, Brexit appears as an absurd distraction. But the results of the UK-EU talks will have a huge impact on the future economic prosperity of the UK (and to a lesser extent, the EU too) and the ability to recover from Covid-19. We discuss how the EU's ideas for this trade deal are quite different from their traditional approach to other trade deals such as the failed attempt to strike a deregulating deal with the United States. Laura explains how the Trade Justice Movement have developed a new plan for trade deals that prioritises the public interest and environmental regulations, not the profits of big multinationals. This podcast is part of an on-going collaboration between the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung and Another Europe Is Possible. For more information on the ideas discussed in the podcast check out: Sustainable Regulation and Trade Agreements for the EU-UK relationship As Brexit talks continue, we need a deal fit for a post-Covid world

We are at a pivot moment in history. The choices we make today could determine the fate of future generations. Coronavirus has been correctly recognised as a giant wake up call to the realities of a failing system. Without question huge opportunities exist to catalyse positive change. But what comes next might well be worse: a much more authoritarian system, with huge inequalities protected by the state and legitimised by political nationalism. In this podcast hosts Zoe Williams and Luke Cooper talk to writer, academic and campaigner for universal basic income, Guy Standing, about his analysis of 'rentier capitalism' and the threat it represents to 'the commons'. He tells the story of the 'free market' myth. At every stage in the development of the system often referred to as 'neoliberalism', state intervention has been mobilised to protect the interests of the hyper wealthy minority.  It's time for change. But how? Find out in a great discussion.  This podcast is part of an on-going collaboration between the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung and Another Europe Is Possible. 

There aren't too many good news stories about. But here's a great one. A new model for financing sustainable development projects in a democratic and participatory way. Hosts Luke Cooper and Zoe Williams talk to democratic finance geeks Bruce Davis and Mark Davis about type of debt they've developed for local councils. It's a whole new mission for local government to put itself at the heart of green sustainable investment. By raising money through local municipal bonds local councils can develop local forms of energy production but also fund other things like social housing. It really could transform our economy.  For more on the ideas discussed in the podcast check out their report.  Production: Zoe Williams and Luke Cooper  Editing: Ben Higgins Millner 

It seems some things don't change after all. A now familiar row has broken out in the Labour Party over the idea of patriotism and nationality. This has been a continuous theme of the party's travails in the post-Blair era. But as debates go it's pretty thin gruel: lots of angst but little in the way of ideas. In this episode we try to go a little deeper and lay out the pitfalls and power of patriotism as a way of doing politics. To shed light on these topics, hosts Zoe Williams and Luke Cooper are joined by Labour MP Jon Cruddas, who has argued for some time now the left need to engage pragmatically with the politics of land and territory associated with nationality, and Ash Sarkar, Senior Editor at Novara Media, who has repeatedly told the likes of Piers Morgan and David Starkey that criticising your country doesn't mean you hate it. They discuss George Orwell's famous essay, 'notes on nationalism', and the work of Stuart Hall, the founder of Cultural Studies and one of the most eminent figures on the post-war new left.  Editor: Camilo Tirado  Producer: Luke Cooper  The podcast is published as a collaboration between the Another Europe Is Possible team and the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung London office.  For more information on ideas discussed in today's podcast check out these links:  George Orwell's "Notes on nationalism" Stuart Hall interview: "we need to talk about Englishness"  Jon Cruddas critque of "cyborg socialism"