James Heale

Ed Miliband has made his first major intervention as Foreign Secretary, with Britain set to announce a trade ban on Israeli settlements in the West Bank. The move comes amid increasingly strained relations between London and Jerusalem – and marks Andy Burnham’s first big foreign policy fight. Oscar Edmondson is joined by James Heale and Michael Stephens to discuss whether the sanctions will have any real effect, how far UK–Israel relations have deteriorated and whether Labour is simply moving with public opinion. Produced by Oscar Edmondson.

Sir Malcolm Rifkind joins Tim Shipman and James Heale to discuss the future of the conservatism and tells The Spectator why Kemi Badenoch is the person to bring the Conservative Party back from the brink. He explains why he thinks Reform is already losing momentum, why Nigel Farage is ‘not fit to govern’, and why Andy Burnham could actually help the Conservatives at the next election. He also reflects on Britain’s relationship with Israel and the United States, criticises Labour’s approach to sanctions on Israel, and gives his verdict on Donald Trump second term. Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Abigail Brierley.

Noa Hoffman, James Heale and Tim Shipman host a special live recording of Coffee House Shots from Reform conference. They discuss whether a damaging 48 hours for the party have breached the walls of Birmingham’s NEC, whether Nigel Farage can weather serious questions over Reform’s funding, and whether Zia Yusuf should throw his phone in the nearest river and get off Twitter. Produced by Oscar Edmondson, Henry Lloyd and The Spectator’s events team.

Chris Philp joins James Heale to discuss what the Conservatives got wrong on immigration – and how they plan to fix it. The shadow Home Secretary argues that mass immigration risks making Britain ‘ungovernable’, says the last Tory government made a ‘catastrophic mistake’ after 2020 and explains why he thinks Reform still lacks a credible plan for government. He also lifts the lid on his time inside the Home Office, from civil service resistance to the Rwanda scheme to the legal constraints he believes stop ministers controlling the borders. Produced Oscar Edmondson and Abigail Brierley.

After his first PMQs Andy Burnham came away relatively unscathed, although his dream of a 'new politics' may be rapidly falling apart. To dissect what went on in the chamber, James Heale is joined by Tim Shipman and Isabel Hardman to go over today's more feisty exchanges.

Politics is back – and it’s a bumper day in Westminster. Kemi Badenoch got ahead of the field yesterday by reshuffling her top team a day earlier than expected, and the changes are much more comprehensive than first thought. James Cleverly is off to run for the London mayoralty, while Priti Patel and Mel Stride have both been given the boot. Katie Lam takes over Cleverly’s housing brief, while Andrew Griffith will hope to bring some much-needed energy to the role of shadow chancellor. So what does the reshuffle tell us about Badenoch’s strategy – and what does it mean for the Tories’ economic offer? Elsewhere, Keir Starmer has resigned as an MP.

Former veterans minister Al Carns joins James Heale to discuss the government’s handling of Northern Ireland legacy cases – and why the issue helped drive him to resign. Writing in The Spectator this week, Al attacks the ‘two-track approach’ to legacy cases, which he says could cost taxpayers billions, and warns against allowing the history of the Troubles to be ‘rewritten through the courts’. He argues that Labour failed to listen properly to veterans before changing the law and sets out what more should be done to protect those who served in Northern Ireland. What was it like fighting the issue from inside government? Did Keir Starmer understand the strength of feeling – and will Andy Burnham take a different approach? Produced by Oscar Edmondson.