Government U-turns and the blame game
Political Fix29 Aug 2020

Government U-turns and the blame game

Prime Minister Boris Johnson made yet another abrupt policy change this week to get pupils in England back to school. Are the wrong people in government making these decisions, and how much is the civil service at fault? Plus, we discuss the election of Ed Davey as the new leader of the Liberal Democrats and whether the party can reclaim the centre ground of British politics.


Presented by Sebastian Payne, with Laura Hughes, Robert Shrimsley and special guest Lib Dem MP Daisy Cooper. Produced by Anna Dedhar and Josh de la Mare. The sound engineer is Breen Turner and the editor Liam Nolan. Music by Metaphor Music.


Review clips: Parliament, Times Radio, BBC Newsnight

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episoder(574)

Mandelson, money - and the risk to the prime minister

Mandelson, money - and the risk to the prime minister

Fresh revelations about Peter Mandelson’s relationship with the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein have sparked a political explosion in Westminster, reopening questions about Keir Starmer’s decis...

6 Feb 34min

Chinese whispers — at home and abroad

Chinese whispers — at home and abroad

Sir Keir Starmer is 5,000 miles away in China, meeting President Xi Jinping to drum up investment and deepen relations, but back on the home front the PM’s leadership looks increasingly beset. Manches...

30 Jan 36min

When the ‘special relationship’ isn’t so special

When the ‘special relationship’ isn’t so special

From ‘brilliant ally’ to ‘weak and stupid’ within the same paragraph, it’s hard to know how to handle the impulsive outbursts from America’s 47th President. And yet, this is the position in which the ...

23 Jan 35min

Disloyalty and defection: the Tory-Reform psychodrama

Disloyalty and defection: the Tory-Reform psychodrama

First he was pushed and then he jumped: high drama at Westminster after Kemi Badenoch sacked her rival for the Tory leadership Robert Jenrick - his crime was plotting a defection to Reform UK. Hours l...

16 Jan 34min

Trump trouble: Starmer's tricky start to 2026

Trump trouble: Starmer's tricky start to 2026

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer had wanted to kick off the new year with a strong domestic start, tackling the cost of living crisis head on, in the hopes of improving his dire poll ratings. Instead, ...

9 Jan 34min

Swamp Notes: Is the US economy really K-shaped?

Swamp Notes: Is the US economy really K-shaped?

Imagine a graph with one line going up over time. Below it, another line does just the opposite. It kind of looks like the letter K. On the FT's Swamp Notes podcast, Claire Jones and Rob Armstrong bre...

2 Jan 19min

Quizmas special: Political Fix’s 2025 nerd-out!

Quizmas special: Political Fix’s 2025 nerd-out!

Can you name all the Labour frontbenchers who resigned or were sacked during the past year? Why was Peter Mandelson delayed from returning to the UK after being sacked as US ambassador? And who will b...

19 Des 202550min

Political Fix Live: Labour’s year in review

Political Fix Live: Labour’s year in review

It’s been another turbulent year in politics. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has faced down rebellions from within his own party, overseen scandals and sackings, and delivered a constant barrage of bad n...

12 Des 202538min

Populært innen Politikk og nyheter

giver-og-gjengen-vg
aftenpodden
i-retten
stopp-verden
forklart
aftenpodden-usa
popradet
det-store-bildet
nokon-ma-ga
dine-penger-pengeradet
aftenbla-bla
hanna-de-heldige
fotballpodden-2
rss-gukild-johaug
rss-ness
rss-dannet-uten-piano
frokostshowet-pa-p5
bt-dokumentar-2
grasoner-den-nye-kalde-krigen
e24-podden