Coffee House Shots

UK debt has hit £2 trillion, the Office for National Statistics said today - an increase of over £200 billion on last year. What does this mean for the economy, how does the UK compare to the rest of Europe, and does Boris Johnson plan to keep on spending? Katy Balls speaks to Fraser Nelson and Kate Andrews.   Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to specta...

Birmingham and Oldham are on the brink of reentering lockdown, with cases in both rising significantly in comparison to the rest of the country. But how severe is the outbreak, and can the government risk shutting down the UK's second largest city? Cindy Yu speaks to Kate Andrews and Katy Balls about the contenders for Britain's next local lockdown, and also asks whether there are alternatives to...

A new poll today shows that support for Scottish independence is at a record high of 55 per cent. On the podcast, Cindy Yu talks to Katy Balls and Fraser Nelson about why - in particular, how does Nicola Sturgeon continue to exceed Westminster's expectations? Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more. For more Spectato...

Matt Hancock today confirmed that Public Health England will be scrapped and replaced by a new National Institute for Health Protection, which will be led by Baroness Dido Harding - who currently runs the Test and Trace scheme. John Connolly speaks to Katy Balls and Kate Andrews about why. Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to f...

Gavin Williamson announced this afternoon that pupils receiving A-level and GCSE results this year would be awarded teacher-predicted marks. Why has the government finally changed its mind, and will Gavin Williamson stay in the Cabinet? Cindy Yu speaks to Fraser Nelson and Katy Balls. Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find o...

As the backlash to the government's exams fiasco continued over the weekend, Gavin Williamson has been steadfast in not U-turning. But with GCSE results out later this week and Ofqual's algorithm revealing significant inequalities, is this position sustainable? John Connolly talks to Katy Balls and Fraser Nelson. Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spe...

Kaya Ilska is a free school meals student, coming from a single mother family. She is incredibly bright - and was predicted 4 A*s by her teachers, a set of grades high enough to meet her offer to study Medicine at UCL. But the government's exams algorithm this week downgraded her results down to AABB, which means she not only misses the UCL offer but also her back-up at Cardiff. On the podcast, Ka...

After much speculation, France has been put on the quarantine list, along with Netherlands, Monaco, and Malta. But do the numbers really back it up? Cindy Yu talks to Fraser Nelson and Kate Andrews about this decision. Also on the podcast, further lockdown easing and, are schools actually returning? Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/a...

It's A-Level results day and much as expected, a large minority of A-Level grades from across England, Wales, and Northern Ireland have been downgraded. For some schools and colleges, more than half of their students have been affected. On the podcast, Cindy Yu talks to Fraser Nelson and Mary Curnock Cook, former head of Ucas about the government's approach, educational inequality, and why a new c...

Gavin Williamson last night announced that A-level students getting their results tomorrow could appeal using mock exam grades. Meanwhile, today, new figures showed that the UK economy contracted by over 20 per cent between April and June. Amidst all this, why has Labour failed to show how they could govern the country better? Fraser Nelson speaks to Kate Andrews, the Spectator's economics corresp...

After a week of feet dragging, the Scottish government has today dramatically U-turned on downgrading exam results for 76,000 students. Those who received lower marks will now revert to the original predicted grades given by their teachers. Meanwhile, we are two days away from the English A-Level results being out, so will Gavin Williamson also reconsider the way results are moderated in England?...

Over the weekend, the city of Preston in the north of England was partially locked down. But on what basis? Cindy Yu talks to Kate Andrews and Fraser Nelson about whether the government is implementing local lockdowns based on the right metrics. Subscribe to The Spectator's first podcast newsletter here and get each week's podcast highlights in your inbox every Tuesday. Become a Spectator subscrib...

The Liberal Democrat leadership race will finally come to an end this month but, after December's crushing election defeat, is the party over too? In a special Saturday edition of Coffee House Shots, Gus Carter speaks to Katy Balls and Nick Tyrone, author of Politics is Murder , about how a new leader could pull the Lib Dems back from the brink of extinction. Subscribe to The Spectator's first pod...

Belgium, Andorra and the Bahamas were added to the UK’s quarantine list yesterday evening, meaning Brits returning from those countries will be required to stay at home for two weeks. With Belgium’s neighbour, France, also seeing a surge in coronavirus cases, will they be next? Gus Carter speaks to Katy Balls – who is on holiday in Paris – and James Forsyth about air bridges, exam results and the...

The government has announced the most ambitious planning reforms of a generation – but could they backfire? Meanwhile, as the contacting tracing regime continues to lag, health officials launch a new coronavirus app that will tell people if they may be at risk from the virus. Katy Balls talks to James Forsyth and Kate Andrews.  Subscribe to The Spectator's first podcast newsletter here and get eac...

Douglas Ross has won the Scottish Conservatives leadership election – but can take on the SNP without risking a second independence referendum? Meanwhile, pressure is growing on the Tories to suspended a former minister accused of rape. Finally, a new report by a cross-party group of MPs suggests the failure to impose quarantine on travellers at the height of the pandemic could have worsened the c...

Pizza Express today announced that 1,100 jobs are at risk as they close 67 outlets. With the Chancellor's furlough scheme winding up in November, should we expect more mass redundancies when the government support is cut? Gus Carter speaks to Katy Balls and Kate Andrews about the UK's economic outlook, and also asks whether the UK's track and trace system is ready for children returning to school...

Today marks the start of the 'Eat Out to Help Out' scheme – but can the move save Britain's restaurants without risking a second spike? Katy Balls speaks to James Forsyth and Kate Andrews about the Treasury initiative, as well as the possibility of more local lockdowns. Subscribe to the Spectator's podcast newsletter here and get each week's podcast highlights in your inbox every Tuesday. Become a...

Statistics released this week showed that England had the worst excess death rate in Europe during the first half of 2020. Katy Balls speaks to Kate Andrews and Carl Heneghan, professor of Evidence-Based Medicine at Oxford University about what's behind the numbers.  Subscribe to the Spectator's first podcast newsletter here and get each week's podcast highlights in your inbox every Tuesday. Becom...

Overnight, the government announced a return of stricter social distancing measures in Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire and East Lancashire, with multiple households no longer allowed to meet indoors or in pubs and restaurants. Then, in a press conference today, the Prime Minister also called off the reopening of bowling alleys, casinos and indoor concert venues. What prompted the sudden change,...

New figures show that England had the highest excess death rate across Europe in the first half of 2020. With another coronavirus wave looking imminent, can the government figure out why this happened in time for a second spike? Cindy Yu speaks to James Forsyth and Katy Balls. Subscribe to the Spectator's first podcast newsletter here and get each week's podcast highlights in your inbox every Tues...

Fears of a second wave dominate Westminster chat, but how much of it is the government trying to fight the last battle? Cindy Yu talks to James Forsyth and Katy Balls over the difficult task the government has to balance the lessons learnt from the first wave of the pandemic, to the economic concerns prompting the lockdown. Subscribe to the Spectator's first podcast newsletter here and get each we...

Boris Johnson said there are signs that a second wave of coronavirus will soon sweep through Europe. Should Brits still go on their holiday abroad, and could the UK cope with another lockdown? Katy Balls talks to James Forsyth and Kate Andrews. Subscribe to the Spectator's first podcast newsletter here and get each week's podcast highlights in your inbox every Tuesday. Become a Spectator subscribe...

Within a few hours, the government enacted a quarantine policy for those returning from Spain (including the Transport Secretary Grant Shapps, and almost including our own Economics Correspondent Kate Andrews). There's been confusion and unhappiness over the speed with which this was put in place, but did the government have any choice? Cindy Yu talks to James Forsyth and Katy Balls. Subscribe to...

Katy Balls presents the highlights from the Sunday interviews, with Dominic Raab, Dido Harding, Jonathan Ashworth and Tony Blair.  Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more. For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts . Contact us: podcast@spectator.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more...