A Mucky Business with Tim Farron

Former Labour MP for Brent South and current Peer Lord Paul Boateng speaks to Tim Farron about his Christian upbringing, fleeing Ghana, how New Labour's ideas and discipline were what got them into power and why his big passion now is solving the huge disparities in access to healthcare across the world. As a lay preacher, he also explains why he thinks preaching is different to speaking in Parlia...

Gary Streeter talks about the changes he's seen in the number of Christian MPs since he was elected in 1992. The Conservative MP explains how he went from being an Atheist to being 'soundly, intellectually converted' and leading Christians in Parliament, which run Bible studies for MPs. Tim Farron asks Gary how Christians from different parties can share fellowship while strongly disagreeing on, f...

DUP MP Carla Lockhart feels passionately that she has been elected to Westminster to talk about the issue of abortion. But she also thinks the Church needs to step up its practical help and love towards women who feel they cannot raise a child. The MP for Upper Bann talks about her upbringing in Northern Ireland and host Tim Farron answers a question from a listener on his view of Israel and how t...

Kates Forbes is the second most senior politician in Scotland after Nicola Sturgeon and is the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy. Tim asks her how she copes with being a Christian in the public eye and answering difficult questions and how the SNP holds together militant secularists and committed Christians. Tim also shares his view that the fuel shortage is highlighting, once again, h...

Series 2 of A Mucky Business kicks off with Tim Farron, the former leader of the Liberal Democrats, talking to Dame Andrea Leadsom, who nearly became Prime Minister in 2016 and has had several top jobs in Cabinet. Andrea talks about why she gets annoyed when Christians suggest that ambition is wrong and what Boris Johnson said to her in *that* bus on the way to the EU debate in Wembley – the debat...

Find out about what's coming up in series 2 of 'A Mucky Business' and why MP Tim Farron is keen to see Christians around the UK engage in politics.    If you have any feedback or suggestions of guests, questions or topics, please email: farron@premier.org.uk or add 07711 701133 to your phone and send a message on WhatsApp. Series Producer: Cara Bentley

When major leaders including President Biden visited Cornwall in June for the G7 summit, most of them did not know how much prayer was going on behind the scenes. But the MP for St Ives and Christian, Derek Thomas, was right at the heart of the local church's involvement. Christians met weekly in the run-up to the event to pray for each leader and the discussions they would hold. How can your chur...

It’s time for the next episode of A Mucky Business with the Christian MP Tim Farron. This week he talks about taking the knee and racism in football, as well as what churches should do when the Covid restrictions, such as mask wearing, become guidance and not law. The guest this week is Cat Smith, a Labour MP and Methodist, who shares her view on whether the church has been treated unfairly during...

What is a Christian politician's duty when it comes to the family? Is it their role to encourage couples to marry, stay together and spend time with their children? Is that naive and dismissive of people in different circumstances? Tim Farron discusses this with Conservative MP Miriam Cates, who is passionate about helping families out via taxes and other support. Tim also shares how he would have...

Cara Bentley asks Tim Farron how he became a Christian, the recent oversight regarding donations which fund his parliamentary staff, why he doesn't want to force non-Christians to live by God's laws and whether he'd ever be a church pastor. Tim shares his thoughts on how to pray in light of Matt Hancock's affair and resignation and the comments of the Bishop of Manchester, who referred to it as 'a...

Michael Wear has prayed with President Obama and advised him on how to engage with evangelical voters - so what does he think about President Biden's approach to faith and about why Christianity is so tied to political parties in America? Tim Farron also shares his view on how to cope with change as Christians and answers a listener's question about singing in church. If you have a question for Ti...

How can you trust God when it feels like life has not gone to plan? Leader of the Welsh Lib Dems, Jane Dodds, became an MP in August 2019 and then lost her seat 4 months later in the General Election. She describes how her Christian faith helped her and how she was blessed by Christian friends, before being re-elected to the Welsh Senedd this May. She talks about the differences between the UK par...

Tim Farron interviews the MP who is the link between parliament and the Church of England - Andrew Selous. As well as being a Christian and a Conservative MP, Andrew is the Second Church Estates Commissioner, meaning he answers MPs' questions about the church. Tim asks him about his role and whether the C of E being tied to the state is good or bad. Tim also shares his thoughts on foreign aid and...

Tim Farron speaks to former MP and Lib Dem minister Sir Steve Webb about the Coalition government and working with Christians of different political persuasions. Steve worked with Iain Duncan Smith in the Department for Work and Pensions - a department jokingly called the 'department for worship and prayer' as there were so many Christians. What was it like working alongside Conservative Christian...

Every now and again Tim Farron asks a Christian from a different mucky business to share their story, to shed some light on politics from an outsider's perspective. This week, Jeremy Marshall former CEO of C. Hoare and Co. - a private bank - describes his own journey with uncertainty as he deals with cancer. How can the gospel help us combat political, cultural and personal uncertainty? Tim Farron...

How should Christians engage in the Scottish independence debate? The finance spokespeople for the Scottish Conservatives and the SNP are both Christian but on opposite sides. This week, the Conservative MSP Murdo Fraser describes what role he thinks Christians ought to play when discussing independence and how he thinks Scotland's future should be prayed for. Murdo also explains why he didn't kno...

How much time do MPs spend on constituency work in comparison to on Westminster debates? Tim Farron and Labour's Ruth Jones discuss how MPs actually help people as well as how she answered an altar call to become a Christian at 14. And is it a Christian duty to vote? Tim and Ruth share their views as the country heads to the polls.   To get your question answered by Tim in the next episode email f...

This week Tim Farron asks SNP MP and Christian Dr Lisa Cameron about what happened when she voted against introducing abortion in Northern Ireland and asks how Christians should engage with their MP if they disagree with their views. A year before becoming MP, Lisa wasn't even a member of the SNP and was working as a clinical psychologist. She describes why her life suddenly changed and what her m...

This week Tim Farron shares his views on the European Super League and asks Conservative MP Nick Fletcher, who left the church as a teenager, what made him come back to faith as an adult to become a born-again Christian. Nick's constituency of Don Valley was part of the crumbling 'Red Wall' - having been Labour since 1922 until he won it in 2019 - and he describes what it's like being a Tory in an...

Tim Farron chats to Jim Shannon, the DUP MP for Strangford in Northern Ireland. They discuss the incredible story of Jim being selected, the recent escalation of tensions in Belfast and what Jim prays for every day.   Tim also share his view on David Cameron's recent lobbying of Rishi Sunak and what the Bible has to say about it...   To ask Tim a question, send a voice note on Whatsapp to: 07711 7...

Tim Farron asks independent peer Lord David Alton how campaigning has led to him being sanctioned by China. David is a passionate advocate for religious freedom and has recently led a campaign to make sure the UK does not trade with countries found to have conducted genocide. The former Liberal MP explains that although his specific amendment didn't pass, a comprimised version did, and he says pro...

Tim Farron asks Conservative MP Danny Kruger whether the Bible's plan for human flourishing should try to be advanced by Christian MPs or not. Are these morals for everyone or just those changed by the Holy Spirit? Danny believes there should be more support for marriage and that society should recognise that its values come from Christianity and explains his concept of a social covenant. He also...

Tim Farron asks business owner Gary Grant, who started The Entertainer toy chain, how he had to change his business model when he became a Christian and how he had to change it again when lockdown came. What does he think of the Government help offered to businesses and how has he managed to maintain his Christian principles of generosity in such a tough year for profits?   With the death of Sarah...

Tim Farron discusses Christian persecution with Fiona Bruce MP, the PM's new Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion or Belief and long advocate for religious freedom. Fiona explains how people can get involved in campaigning and how it has changed her role. She also shares how she became a Christian and why she doesn't always toe the Conservative party line.   With Harry and Meghan's interview stil...

Tim Farron discusses Scottish independence with SNP MP David Linden, a Christian friend on the opposite side of the debate. David, who joined the SNP aged 11, explains why he wants Scotland to leave the UK, how he became a Christian as a teenager and how he was treated differently in politics after his conversion, when he was previously seen as a 'rising star'.   As Rishi Sunak delivers his plan f...