James Forsyth is former political editor of The Spectator.
From our UK edition
10 min listen
The government has announced the most ambitious planning reforms of a generation – but could they backfire? Meanwhile, as the contacting tracing regime continues to lag, health officials launch a new coronavirus app that will tell people if they may be at risk from the virus. Katy Balls talks to James Forsyth and Kate Andrews.
From our UK edition
10 min listen
Douglas Ross has won the Scottish Conservatives leadership election – but can take on the SNP without risking a second independence referendum? Meanwhile, pressure is growing on the Tories to suspended a former minister accused of rape. Finally, a new report by a cross-party group of MPs suggests the failure to impose quarantine on travellers at the height of the pandemic could have worsened the coronavirus crisis. Gus Carter talks to James Forsyth and Katy Balls.
From our UK edition
14 min listen
Today marks the start of the 'Eat Out to Help Out' scheme – but can the move save Britain's restaurants without risking a second spike? Katy Balls speaks to James Forsyth and Kate Andrews about the Treasury initiative, as well as the possibility of more local lockdowns.
From our UK edition
It is remarkable to think that just 15 days ago, Boris Johnson was setting out a plan to end all social distancing by November. But, as I say in The Times this morning, the mood in government has become much more pessimistic in the last week or so. This winter the government could be dealing with flu, Covid, flooding, mass unemployment and all the issues arising from the end of the Brexit transition period. What most worries ministers, though, is what the uptick in Covid cases now means for the winter. August should be the most straightforward month for dealing with this virus. People are happy to socialise outdoors, the NHS isn’t under pressure from flu and there aren’t hundreds of thousands of people with a cough and a fever as there will be come November.
From our UK edition
13 min listen
Overnight, the government announced a return of stricter social distancing measures in Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire and East Lancashire, with multiple households no longer allowed to meet indoors or in pubs and restaurants. Then, in an impromptu press conference today, the Prime Minister also called off the reopening of bowling alleys, casinos and indoor concert venues. What prompted the sudden change, and are we entering a second lockdown? Cindy Yu speaks to James Forsyth and Katy Balls.
From our UK edition
10 min listen
New figures show that England had the highest excess death rate across Europe in the first half of 2020. With another coronavirus wave looking imminent, can the government figure out why this happened in time for a second spike? Cindy Yu speaks to James Forsyth and Katy Balls.
From our UK edition
12 min listen
Fears of a second wave dominate Westminster chat, but how much of it is the government trying to fight the last battle? Cindy Yu talks to James Forsyth and Katy Balls over the difficult task the government has to balance the lessons learnt from the first wave of the pandemic, to the economic concerns prompting the lockdown.
From our UK edition
10 min listen
Boris Johnson said there are signs that a second wave of coronavirus will soon sweep through Europe. Should Brits still go on their holiday abroad, and could the UK cope with another lockdown? Katy Balls talks to James Forsyth and Kate Andrews.
From our UK edition
15 min listen
Within a few hours, the government enacted a quarantine policy for those returning from Spain (including the Transport Secretary Grant Shapps, and almost including our own Economics Correspondent Kate Andrews). There's been confusion and unhappiness over the speed with which this was put in place, but did the government have any choice? Cindy Yu talks to James Forsyth and Katy Balls.
From our UK edition
18 min listen
Boris Johnson probably didn't expect his first year as Prime Minister to shake out quite the way it did. From winning a landslide majority, to leading the country during a global pandemic, it's the sort of year that, if shown in a TV show fans would complain about too much being squeezed into one season. On the podcast, Katy Balls talks to James Forsyth and former MP and director of Political Insight, Stewart Jackson, about this turbulent last year.
From our UK edition
12 min listen
New plans are being drawn up to tackle obesity in Britain, with proposals including a ban on adverts of junk foods and calorie content shown on restaurant menus. Will Boris get his war on obesity succeed, and will it meet opposition within his own party? Cindy Yu talks to Katy Balls and James Forsyth. Also on the podcast: when is normality going to return, and are anti-vaxxers 'nuts'?
From our UK edition
'UK Prime Minister visits Scotland' shouldn’t really be a news story. But so infrequent have prime ministerial visits been in recent years that it is. The fact it is news that the Prime Minister is in Scotland today has allowed Nicola Sturgeon to fire off a bunch of rather sarcastic tweets about how, given his polling numbers, Johnson’s visit is a birthday present to her. No. 10’s aim should be to make prime ministerial visits to Scotland so frequent that they cease to be regarded as events in and of themselves.But the battle for the Union must not just be fought in Scotland. At the 1922 committee last night, Johnson made the point that the break-up of the Union would be catastrophic – not just for Scotland but the rest of the UK too. This is crucial.
From our UK edition
18 min listen
The Prime Minister visits Scotland today as parliament goes into recess. The Union is in grave danger, as a previous episode discussed. But can the government woo back the wavering Scots? Cindy Yu talks to James Forsyth and Katy Balls.
From our UK edition
From tomorrow, you’ll have to wear a mask in shops as well as on public transport. There is a case to be made for masks at this point in time, both in terms of slowing the spread of the virus and giving people the confidence to go out. But one of the things that does, understandably, worry people is that this temporary measure could become permanent – just think of income tax. It is one thing to be required to wear a mask now, but quite another for it to become a part of our everyday wear for decades to come. All of which makes a parliamentary answer from the Department of Health and Social Care to Graham Brady, the chairman of the 1922 Committee, rather alarming.
From our UK edition
Boris Johnson’s end of term address to Tory MPs offered a preview of what the government wants its agenda to be this autumn. He told the backbench 1922 committee that his generation had ‘had it far, far easier’ in terms of getting on the housing ladder. He argued that they had to ‘build, build, build’ to ensure that the younger generation had the same opportunities. He emphasised that nothing could be more Conservative than that. If the virus remains in retreat, the government will be able to turn to this new agenda The Prime Minister’s tone suggests that he is preparing to face down any backbench opposition to the government’s planning reforms, which are expected to be announced in the next few weeks.
From our UK edition
14 min listen
Keir Starmer was keen to put clear blue water between himself and Corbyn's Labour party today, on both the apology to anti-Semitism whistleblowers and the Russia report. Will this cut through to the voters? Cindy Yu talks to James Forsyth and Katy Balls.
From our UK edition
13 min listen
The long-awaited Russia report is finally out, so what are the revelations within it? Katy Balls speaks to James Forsyth and the New Statesman's Political Editor, Stephen Bush.
From our UK edition
16 min listen
Now that Huawei is banned, China hawks in the Conservative Party are turning their attention to social media platform TikTok, which is owned by a Chinese company. It comes as the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo arrives in the UK today to meet with Conservative backbenchers and the government to discuss China further. Cindy Yu talks to James Forsyth and Katy Balls about what to expect from the government on China next. Also on the episode: the race to buy up vaccines and Cabinet's return to normality.
From our UK edition
15 min listen
James Forsyth writes in this week's Spectator that the Union is the biggest challenge facing this government, despite everything that is going on with the pandemic. Support for Scottish independence continues to grow north of the border. On the podcast, Cindy Yu talks to James Forsyth and our Scotland Editor Alex Massie about what the Tories can do about this.
From our UK edition
12 min listen
In a press conference from Downing Street today, Boris Johnson set out the road to 'significant normality' - but not until November. It's a more cautious position than had been previously briefed, but is even this timeline too optimistic? John Connolly talks to James Forsyth and Fraser Nelson.
