The Politics Show

Reform UK is in crisis, amid a cascade of scandals The party’s poll rating has fallen from mid-thirties highs to the low twenties, with a recent poll showing them slipping to third place. This has come amid the “Burnham bounce” - Labour’s improved polling triggered by the change in Prime Minister. Anoosh Chakelian is joined by Megan Kenyon to discuss. LISTEN AD-FREE: 📱 Download the New Statesman...

Reform falls behind Labour and the Tories for the first time since the general election, how animals shape our voting patterns and 100 years of Winnie-the-Pooh. Anoosh Chakelian and Will Dunn round up the stories of the week. READ: https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/bursting-the-bubble/2026/10/our-mania-for-animals-warps-politics-priorities-and-personal-lives https://www.newstatesman.com/politi...

Ten years after the Brexit referendum, a British Prime Minister has said out loud what much of the country has concluded: Brexit did more harm than good. Andy Burnham has told his party that no credible ten-year plan for Britain can avoid the Europe question, and has since declined to rule out rejoining the EU in Labour’s next manifesto. Anoosh Chakelian is joined by Tom McTague and Ethan Croft to...

It’s been a tumultuous time for the Green Party. Their controversial “Zionism is racism vote” and leader Zack Polanski’s defeat in a by-election in North London has led to turmoil within the party. Meanwhile, is the long-suffering Tory party finally experiencing a “Kemi-bounce”? And how about the Lib Dems? Is leader Ed Davey facing a coup? Anoosh Chakelian is joined by Megan Kenyon and Ethan Croft...

Reform clearing its own officials of breaking party funding law, Kemi Badenoch’s inheritance tax gambit and was Britain really better off in the 1980s? Anoosh Chakelian is joined by Will Dunn for our weekly round up. READ: https://www.newstatesman.com/international-politics/2026/10/spains-warning-to-andy-burnham https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/the-sketch/2026/10/vegan-sausages-and-loathing-a...

Labour has held the Holborn and St Pancras by-election, with Sagal Abdi-Wali retaining the seat for the party despite a hard-fought contest from Green Party leader Zack Polanski. The result preserves Labour’s long-standing grip on the constituency, and disrupts Polanski’s momentum. Anoosh Chakelian is joined by Megan Kenyon and Ben Walker to discuss. LISTEN AD-FREE: 📱 Download the New Statesman a...

At the Green Party conference, party members backed a motion to describe Zionism as racism. Zack Polanski, currently campaigning in the Holborn and St Pancras by-election, missed the controversial vote, which called for Israel to be replaced by a single Palestinian state. Is this a watershed moment for the Green Party? Anoosh Chakelian is joined by Megan Kenyon. LISTEN AD-FREE: 📱 Download the New...

At this week’s Labour conference, Andy Burnham announced bigger and bolder policy ambitions than anyone expected. Was this too big a swing? Or the grand vision the country needs? Elsewhere, next Thursday, there is a by-election happening in Holborn and St Pancras, the seat vacated by Keir Starmer. Oli Dugmore is joined by business editor Will Dunn and political correspondent Megan Kenyon to discus...

Labour Conference 2026 draws to a close with Andy Burnham's speech. The PM's announcements included scrapping the triple lock pension, electoral reform, a new help-to-buy scheme, Great British Grid, an end to the public ownership ban on water companies and a range of options for our relationship with Europe which he will be looking into. Anoosh Chakelian is at the Labour Conference and is...

The Chancellor gives his conference speech just four weeks before his first budget and Andy Burnham proposes a national care service in England. Anoosh Chakelian, Ailbhe Rea and Ethan Croft bring you the latest from the Labour Conference. LISTEN AD-FREE: 📱 Download the New Statesman app MORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN: ❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday ⏰ Get our daily politics newslett...

The rise of balaclava Britain, Kemi Badenoch’s billionaire baloney and Donald Trump’s AI rebrand. Anoosh Chakelian and Will Dunn discuss the stories of the week. 📚 READ: https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/uk-politics/2026/09/ed-davey-has-a-superpower-immunity-from-embarrassment https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/bursting-the-bubble/2026/09/the-rise-of-balaclava-britain https://www.newstates...

For this week’s New Statesman, our Politics Show stars have been busy interviewing some key players in the past year of Labour turmoil. Ailbhe Rea, our Political Editor, had a fascinating encounter with the MP and former chief secretary to the Prime Minister, the Starmer loyalist Darren Jones. And speaking of Andy Burnham, Tom McTague, our Editor-in-Chief, has been busy profiling the Prime Ministe...

Are tech companies turning apocalypse into profit? In 2022, we were all having fun with a new chatbot called ChatGPT. Meanwhile, ministers and civil servants of the British government were imagining how it might go horribly wrong.  Four years ago, AI experts were concerned about what people might do using their technology. Today, they fear what the technology is doing on its own, wi...

Reform UK received two £36 million donations from crypto billionaire Ben Delo. This has sent shockwaves through Westminster and thrown the question of political finance reform into sharp relief. Labour is caught in an uncomfortable bind - appalled by the scale of Reform's fundraising, but reluctant to cap donations in a way that could threaten trade union funding and destabilise its own finances....

The fallout from Reform’s latest scandal, John Healey’s first major speech as Chancellor and Ukraine’s plan to tax porn stars. Anoosh Chakelian and Will Dunn discuss the stories of the week. Read: https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/uk-politics/2026/09/the-gospel-according-to-nigel-paul-farage LISTEN AD-FREE: 📱 Download the New Statesman app MORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN: ❓ Ask a question – we a...

Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband has unveiled the biggest reset in UK relations with Israel for decades, and, in typical fashion, is putting his stamp on his new role. Meanwhile, the scandal surrounding Reform and their finances continues, with the Met Police announcing they are launching a criminal investigation. Pippa Bailey is joined by Ailbhe Rea, and guest Ben Judah, to discuss. LISTEN AD-FREE:...

Labour’s missing money metaphor, the millionaires still getting benefits and Dyson’s £420 toothbrush.  Anoosh Chakelian is joined by Will Dunn to round up the stories of the week. READ:  https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/bursting-the-bubble/2026/09/andy-burnham-cant-explain-the-economy https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/2026/09/britain-must-stop-paying-benefits-to-millionaires &nb...

This week was Andy Burnham’s first in the Commons as Prime Minister, facing his inaugural head to head with Kemi Badenoch at PMQs. As for the Tories, they have undergone a major reshuffle. Anoosh Chakelian is joined by Ailbhe Rea and Tom McTague. LISTEN AD-FREE: 📱 Download the New Statesman app MORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN: ❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday ⏰ Get our daily politics...

As the UK faces hotter summers, wetter winters and more unpredictable weather, its historic buildings will need to adapt. But how can Britain make them more resilient without compromising the heritage that makes them worth protecting?   Host Sarah Dawood is joined by Dame Caroline Dinenage MP, Chair of the House of Commons Culture, Media and Sport Committee, and Tor Burrows, Chief Sustainabil...

The investigation into Nigel’s “Farage Fest” election party, Andy Burnham’s Ukrainian jam session and Pope Leo XIV making it onto Vanity Fair’s best dressed list. Anoosh Chakelian and Will Dunn round up the stories of the week. LISTEN AD-FREE: 📱 Download the New Statesman app MORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN: ❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday ⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every mo...

It’s nearly a year since Zack Polanski took the reins of the Green party.  In many ways the party has never been so successful – with five MPs, leading six local authorities and a leader who cuts through with the public.  But now the Greens have to contend with a new – and relatively popular – Prime Minister, and internal factions within the party threaten to make life difficul...

One of the first big decisions of Andy Burnham’s premiership is looming: whether to drill for North Sea oil and gas.  Labour made a manifesto promise not to grant new licences for oil and gas exploration, but the question of whether to go ahead and drill at the Rosebank and Jackdaw sites - offshore oil and gas fields that have pre-existing licences - remains. After a summer of wildfires and h...

What constitutes a wealthy society, Richard Tice saying we should “enjoy” climate change and the clamour around Harry and Meghan’s return to the UK.  Anoosh Chakelian and Oli Dugmore discuss the stories of the week. LISTEN AD-FREE: 📱 Download the New Statesman app MORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN: ❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday ⏰ Get our daily politics newsletter every morning ✍...

On the one hand, Burnham may never be as popular as he is now. On the other, the PM could lose an election if he calls it soon, bringing his long-held dream of being prime minister to a horribly premature end. Anoosh Chakelian is joined by political editor Ailbhe Rea. LISTEN AD-FREE: 📱 Download the New Statesman app MORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN: ❓ Ask a question – we answer them every Friday ⏰ G...

The UK still sends millions of tonnes of waste to landfill, creating environmental risks while losing resources that could be put to better use. Given there will always be some waste that we cannot reuse or recycle, what role should government and industry play in finding a more sustainable alternative? Host Emma Haslett is joined by Toby Perkins MP, chair of the Environmental Audit Select Committ...