Podcast
Daily political analysis from The Spectator’s top team of writers, including Michael Gove, Tim Shipman, Isabel Hardman, James Heale, Lucy Dunn and many others.
Daily political analysis from The Spectator’s top team of writers, including Michael Gove, Tim Shipman, Isabel Hardman, James Heale, Lucy Dunn and many others.
Coffee House Shots
Trump has been stealing the headlines when it comes to Ukraine this week, but Europe – and whether it can stay united in the face of the US pulling its support – remains an important subplot. At a summit yesterday, 27 countries backed the plan to increase spending on defence, but when will the cracks
Play 11 mins
Coffee House Shots
Labour have found themselves facing accusations of enabling ‘two tier policing’ following new guidelines from the Sentencing Council. Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick has been quick to criticise the government, but Labour’s Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood has also urged the council reconsider their recommendations. Yvette Cooper’s former adviser Danny Shaw joins Katy Balls and James
Play 12 mins
Coffee House Shots
With reports of ‘billions’ of spending cuts earmarked for the Chancellor’s Spring Statement, taking place later this month, Michael Gove and Kate Andrews join Katy Balls to discuss what exactly Rachel Reeves could cut. With little fiscal headroom and sluggish forecasts of growth, Reeves doesn’t appear to have many options. It’s likely that welfare will
Play 15 mins
Coffee House Shots
Overnight President Trump made another extraordinary move in his ongoing attempt to broker a deal between Ukraine and Russia, suspending all U.S. military aid to Ukraine. Katy Balls talks to James Heale and geopolitical analyst Mark Galeotti about how serious this development is and where it leaves Ukraine’s European supporters. Produced by Natasha Feroze and
Play 13 mins
Coffee House Shots
Along with the French President Emmanuel Macron, Keir Starmer seems to be spearheading Europe’s diplomatic efforts to secure a lasting peace deal for Ukraine in light of the new American administration’s animosity towards Zelensky. Among the proposals being discussed are a peace-keeping force in the country, as a part of efforts to show the Trump
Play 14 mins
Coffee House Shots
Zelensky’s much anticipated meeting at the White House finished in an angry clash between the Ukrainian President, JD Vance and Donald Trump. The Vice President accused Zelensky of leading ‘propaganda tours’ and culminated in the Ukrainian President leaving the White House without a signed minerals deal. Was Zelensky ambushed? European leaders quickly scrambled to show
Play 16 mins
Coffee House Shots
The Spectator’s Katy Balls, Michael Gove and Kate Andrews were joined by special guests Robert Jenrick and Jonathan Ashworth for a live podcast, recorded at the Emmanuel Centre in Westminster. The main topic of discussion was, of course, Donald Trump, whose inauguration has ushered in a new world disorder. His ‘shock and awe’ foreign policy
Play 70 mins
Coffee House Shots
Unbelievably, Keir Starmer arrives back from Washington today after a successful meeting with Donald Trump. In fact, it’s hard to see how it could have gone much better. Top of the list of victories: it looks like some headway was made in avoiding tariffs on the UK and, on Ukraine, the pair discussed the prime
Play 14 mins
Coffee House Shots
Keir Starmer is in D.C. for what will probably be one of the most important bilateral meetings of his premiership. The goal is to charm Trump and secure some guarantees for Ukraine’s security after a negotiated peace in the war. Can he succeed? Cindy Yu talks to James Heale and Peter Quentin, Rusi Associate Fellow
Play 12 mins
Coffee House Shots
For the second week in a row, the leader of the opposition seemed to struggle at Prime Minister’s Questions, ending up accusing Keir Starmer of being ‘patronising’ after having a couple of her questions rebuffed. Cindy Yu talks to James Heale and Isabel Hardman. Produced by Cindy Yu.
Play 12 mins
Coffee House Shots
Kemi Badenoch has today given a major speech outlining the Conservatives’ commitment to ‘realism’ in their foreign policy. She said, ‘You cannot help others if you cannot help yourself’, and that the sovereignty and strength of Britain matters ‘above all’. She also pressed Keir Starmer to push defence spending north of the 2.5 per cent
Play 15 mins
Coffee House Shots
Today marks three years since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. From early fears of a swift Russian victory to the Kharkiv offensive and the slow war of attrition that has played out since, each stage of this war has been hard to predict. None more so than this stage, with the USA
Play 13 mins
Coffee House Shots
Simon Hart joins James Heale to talk about his new book Ungovernable: The Political Diaries of a Chief Whip. Having stepped down at the 2024 election, Simon has become the first former Chief Whip to publish his diaries. What are his reflections on the Conservatives’ time in office? Simon explains why his decision to resign under
Play 35 mins
Coffee House Shots
‘What does a party get after nearly two decades in office, collapsing public services, an internal civil war and a £2 million police investigation? Re-election again – perhaps with an even bigger majority’, writes James Heale in The Spectator this week. He’s talking about the SNP, whose change in fortunes has less to do with their leader
Play 11 mins
Coffee House Shots
Donald Trump’s latest comments on Ukraine and its leader have united the British political spectrum in condemnation – almost. Nigel Farage has tread a careful path given his friendship with the U.S. President, but also the fact that the majority of the British public disagree with Trump’s critical attitude towards Ukraine. Can he keep this
Play 9 mins
Coffee House Shots
Foreign affairs are inescapable this week, with the readout from the meeting yesterday between Russian and American diplomats in Saudi Arabia. We understand that Trump told Putin that Ukraine will be part of the next round of peace talks. However, Trump’s shock-and-awe foreign policy continues to deliver significantly more shock than awe, especially after he
Play 14 mins
Coffee House Shots
The future of Ukraine is being decided in a meeting between US and Russian diplomats in Saudi Arabia today. So far, we understand that America will insist that Ukraine is recognised as a sovereign nation, but NATO membership remains off the table. Meanwhile, European leaders have been cut out of the conversations. In response, they
Play 14 mins
Coffee House Shots
There is lots to make sense of today in a huge week for European and world politics, with the fallout of the Munich Conference and today’s emergency summit in Paris. European powers are trying to navigate peace in Ukraine in the face of a belligerently isolationist Trump administration. The UK is caught between preserving its
Play 14 mins
Coffee House Shots
It is 50 years since Margaret Thatcher was elected Conservative leader, and at this week’s shadow cabinet meeting, Lord Forsyth was invited as a guest speaker to mark the occasion. He noted the similarities between 1975 and 2025. Back then, the party was broke, reeling from defeat and facing the fallout from a reorganisation of
Play 15 mins
Coffee House Shots
Leaders from around the world are gathering at the Munich Security Conference, with the UK represented by Foreign Secretary David Lammy. All attention has turned to Ukraine, given statements this week by President Trump that he had spoken to Putin (and later Zelensky) about ending the Russia-Ukraine war. Trump’s statements, for example that NATO membership
Play 13 mins
Coffee House Shots
On this special episode of Coffee House Shots, economics editor Kate Andrews is joined by shadow home secretary Chris Philp to discuss the Tories’ newly announced plan to tackle immigration. On legal migration, their proposal includes plans to end worklessness in order to stop the reliance on low-paid migrant workers. And on illegal migration, the line is ‘zero
Play 38 mins
Coffee House Shots
It’s a double celebration for Rachel Reeves today. Not only is it her birthday, but the UK economy grew by 0.1 per cent in the last three months of 2024, according to the Office for National Statistics’ latest report. December, when the economy expanded by 0.4 per cent (the market consensus had been 0.1 per
Play 11 mins
Coffee House Shots
Today was the final PMQs before recess, and Kemi Badenoch had been hoping to leave on a high before the break. She started promisingly, opening with the case of a family from Gaza being granted asylum in the UK under the scheme designed for Ukrainians. Starmer replied to say he disagreed with the decision of
Play 14 mins
Coffee House Shots
Kemi Badenoch has been Conservative Party leader for 100 days. Her party is fighting for survival, and she faces an uphill task greater than many of her predecessors: Reform UK surging in the polls, a depleted talent pool of just 121 MPs, and the hangover of 14 years of Conservative rule leaving her hamstrung on
Play 18 mins
Coffee House Shots
From Churchill to Thatcher to Blair to Farage, Parliament has seen some truly fantastic rhetoricians over the years. But last week came the news that – in a bid to improve his own oratorical skill – Keir Starmer employed a voice coach: former actress Leonie Mellinger. Mellinger has been at the centre of a fresh
Play 31 mins
Coffee House Shots
While both Nigel Farage and Kemi Badenoch are quick to talk down speculation of a pact between the Tories and Reform, listeners may be surprised to hear that around Westminster such conversations are already taking place. With every new poll, Conservative MPs grow a little more anxious that by the time they go to the
Play 19 mins
Coffee House Shots
This week saw the publication of Patrick Maguire and Gabriel Pogrund’s new book Get In: The Inside Story of Labour Under Starmer. It’s the second in their tell-all series of books on the Labour Party’s ups and downs and has caused quite a stir in Westminster. From the revelations about Keir Starmer’s voice coach causing a
Play 23 mins
Coffee House Shots
The Bank of England has cut interest rates for the third time since the inflation crisis, taking the base rate to 4.5 per cent. The Monetary Policy Committee voted by seven to two to further reduce rates by 0.25 percentage points – a move that was widely expected by markets, but had been put into
Play 12 mins
Coffee House Shots
Trump has blown the Overton window wide open. In a press conference yesterday alongside Benjamin Netanyahu, the US president outlined his intention to ‘take over the Gaza Strip’, displacing 1.8 million Palestinians in the process. His plan – if you can call it that – is to build ‘the Riviera of the Middle East’. Many
Play 14 mins
Coffee House Shots
It’s happened. Reform are now ahead of Labour, according to a voting intention poll by YouGov. Reform leads the landmark poll with 25 points, with Labour languishing all the way down in second place on 24 points. Meanwhile, the Conservatives place third on 21 per cent, the Liberal Democrats are on 14 per cent and
Play 13 mins