The Social Review

Strong language throughout as The Social Review gang look over the weekend from hell for the Labour Leadership, its implications for the Labour Party and UK Politics as a whole.

Join Julia & friends for a bumper episode as they unpick and unpack the upcoming set of Welsh and Scottish Parliament elections as well as the local elections in England. The gang dissects the current state of play in British Politics and what the picture looks like for the Labour Party. Tyron also does his level best to get banned from Wales forever!

We're back! Join The Social Review team for our first episode back off hiatus as Joe interviews Matthew Lawrence and Laurie Laybourn-Langton about their new book Planet on Fire: A Manifesto for the Age of Environmental Breakdown. Together they examine the scope of the challenge facing states when it comes to the prospect of environmental collapse, as well as what can be done to remedy it.

Historian Jon Lawrence (author of 'Me, Me, Me? The Search for Community in Post-War England') sits down with Jasper to discuss his article on 'Vernacular Social Democracy' in the latest issue of Renewal. They dissect what the concept means, the intersection of liberal individualism with communitarianism, how Keir Starmer is doing so far, the weirdness of 2017, and much more.

We're back! Jasper chats to Peter Mason, National Secretary of the Jewish Labour Movement, to delve into the EHRC's Report on antisemitism within Labour, its long-term history and why left-wing thought is so susceptible to it, the future plans of JLM, and much more.

Joe, Lines and Julia meet to discuss two big new books about Corbyn's Labour Party: 'This Land: The Story of a Movement' by Owen Jones, and 'Left Out: The Inside Story of Labour Under Corbyn' by Gabriel Pogrund and Patrick Maguire. The team discuss the book's different conclusions, whether it casts new light on Corbyn's Labour or not, the importance of interpersonal relationships in politics, and...

How does a bastard, orphan, son of a... you get the gist. Jasper sits down with Christian Parenti, author of 'Radical Hamilton: Economic Lessons From a Misunderstood Founder' (Verso, 2020) to discuss the political and economic legacy of the ten-dollar founding father. Was Hamilton really a free-trading capitalist, or a statist radical? How do Hamiltonianism and Jeffersonianism continue to influenc...

Honey, time to break international law! Jasper catches up again with Shadow Minister for International Trade, Bill Esterson, about the government's plan to breach their Withdrawal Agreement, whether Tony Abbott's appointment as trade advisor is just to whip up the culture war, and much more.

Morgan and Pete found a way to connect to the internet, and take a deep dive, helped by Annie Kelly (UK Correspondent, QAnon Anonymous), into the world of the QAnon conspiracy theory. How proliferate is it? How do well-meaning individuals become radicalised? How can they be de-radicalised? And what's the world's first conspiracy theory, and what does it have to do with Edward II?

It's August and, with nothing better to do, Morgan embarks on an epic quest to discover what Modern Monetary Theory is, enlisting the help of trusty companions Megan Corton Scott (fellow-not-knower-of-what-MMT-is), William Sorenson (TSR writer, Labour Tenants), David Klemperer (TSR writer, former Institute for Government researcher) and Shreya Nanda (Economist at the IPPR).

After a calamitous U-turn on exams, Jasper chats to Andrew Lawrence (Teach First Ambassador, HeadStartNE Co-Founder) and Fabia Crole (Head of Partnerships, Future Frontiers) about their respective work with disadvantaged students, what the algorithm revealed about Ofqual and government policy, the long-term impact on the class of 2020 and much more.

This week, Jasper & Morgan speak to Eve from We Can't Consent to This, which campaigns for legal change in how men who kill and injure women during sex are prosecuted. Eve outlines the modern history of the rough sex defence, the stories of women killed by their partners, and future plans for the group - as well as lessons from running a campaign, porn, enacting cultural change, and much more. Web...

To discuss the government's new anti-obesity campaign, Jasper talks to TSR writer Liam Stewart about his essay on the measures for the website. They discuss their personal histories with food and weight, the socio-economic complexity of obesity, how bodies are socially judged, the internal tensions on the left between individual and collective responsibility of weight, and much more (CN: food, eat...

Jasper meets Dr Florence Sutcliffe-Braithwaite (Lecturer in 20th Century British History at UCL and Co-Editor of Renewal: A Journal for Social Democracy) to chat about how old ideologies and orthodoxies continue to shape the Conservative Party, continued narratives of the undeserving poor, who gets to define what is political and what is not, the increasing complexity of class strata and much more...

Jasper chats to Ana Oppenheim (Labour activist, Momentum NCG member) about Poland's presidential election result: how did the far-right Andrzej Duda win again? What is the state of the left in Polish politics? And is this a sign that global illiberal populism still has some fight left in it? Fill in our listeners' consultation! https://forms.gle/UqvB7d7hneQdSRTY9

Jasper and Morgan talk to Sam Goodman, Senior Political Advisor to Hong Kong Watch, to discuss China's imposition of a National Security Law on the territory - what it means for human rights, how the UK should respond, possible futures, and how much responsibility the rest of the world bears for China's actions.

Jasper and Wrenna sit down with Cathy Rowland, Headteacher of Dobcroft Infants School (and Wrenna's mum), to discuss life on the ground in schools right now, how the Department of Education has handled the crisis, the long and short-term impacts of school closures, keeping children safe online in lockdown, and much more.

Jasper meets singer/songwriter Jermain Jackman, and Labour activists Jake Cable and Amen Tesfay, to discuss the 1987 Caucus, a new movement to enhance the representation and power of black men within Labour. They discuss racism in Labour, changing public perceptions of racism, how the Conservative Party may be trying to appeal to black voters, and much more. Theme composed by Katrina Toner. Jermai...

In light of the murder of George Floyd, Jasper speaks to Richie Floyd, an organiser for the Democratic Socialists of America in Florida, to discuss the protests in the USA, abolishing the police, the intersection of racism and capitalism, and much more. Our new theme was composed by Katrina Toner: https://soundcloud.com/user-197477190

One year on from the launch of The Social Review Podcast, Jasper looks back at the transformations and changes in British politics, what lessons we can learn, and what the future - uncertain as it is - may hold.

Jasper sits down with Robert Verkaik, journalist and author of 'Posh Boys: How the English Public Schools Ruin Britain,' discussing the history of private education, how it could be dissolved and what could replace it. Plus, Jasper chats to Callum O'Dwyer about his journey in suffering from Covid-19.

Jasper and Morgan sit down with A.M. Gittlitz, author of 'I Want To Believe: Posadism, UFOs and Apocalypse Communism,' to discuss the life and afterlife of Posadas, UFology, and the history of revolutionary socialism and cosmism. Plus, in a new series on life in lockdown, Jasper chats to Kirsten Kurt-Elli about her work running a food bank and a baby bank. Buy the book from Pluto Press and use the...

Jasper meets Ben Fernando and Daniel A. Villar of Scientists for Labour to discuss their work on Covid-19, how a socialist response to the pandemic would look, what happens when scientists become politicians, and whether coronavirus really will change the world.

Joe and Jasper chat to Mathew Lawrence, Director of the think tank Common Wealth, to catch up on their work over the past year and their latest report on democratising private companies; they discuss the interplay between nation-states and international corporations, the future of air travel, and how Covid-19 will change globalisation.

Jasper sits down with Bill Esterson, MP for Sefton Central and Shadow Minister for International Trade, to discuss the future of Labour's trade policy; how coronavirus will impact globalisation, and what kind of story Labour needs to tell about Britain's place in the world - as well as, of course, the most punk rock thing he's ever done.