308 | What Does Jeremy Think?

This week we talk to Suzanne Heywood about her memoir of her late husband, Cabinet Secretary Jeremy Heywood - the man who helped to run Britain for more than two decades, working with four different prime ministers. From Black Wednesday to Brexit, from the Blair/Brown battles to the surprising successes of the Coalition, Jeremy Heywood had a unique position at the heart of British politics. We discuss what he did, what he learned and what he wished had turned out differently.

280 | Can Boris Survive Brexit?

This week we come back to Brexit and ask whether Boris Johnson has a good way out of the current negotiations with the EU over a trade deal. First we talk with Kenneth Armstrong, Professor of European Law, about the thinking and the reality behind the government's Internal Market Bill. Then David, Helen and Chris Brooke explore the politics of success and failure in the negotiations. Can the Union survive?  Does the government have a coherent strategy? And how much trouble is Johnson really in?

204 | What if Remain Had Won...?

This week Helen and David explore some counterfactuals: What if Remain had won in 2016? What if Corbyn hadn't got on the leadership ballot in 2015? What if Scotland had voted for independence in 2014? We consider whether British politics would be very different or whether a lot of what we are seeing in 2019 was coming anyway. Plus we explore if there are any circumstances in which the stranglehold of the two main parties could be broken in a general election and why the Lib Dems have so spectacularly failed to break it this time.

169 | The Party Splits! (In 1846!)

The current crisis for the Conservatives is often described as the worst since the party split over the repeal of the Corn Laws in 1846.  So we talk to historian Boyd Hilton about what really happened back then and what it meant for British politics.  Why were the Corn Laws so divisive?  How did public opinion impact on the politicians?  Did Peel betray his party or did he do what needed to be done?  And what are the real lessons for Brexit and for the Conservative Party today?  With Helen Thompson. 

156 | Brexit Lessons

We try to draw some wider lessons from the nightmare that the Brexit process has now become.  What have we learned about the relationship between parliament and the executive?  Is there any way that the Article 50 process could have worked?  And what conclusions will other countries reach about how hard it is to leave the EU?  Plus we talk about the recent report from the Hansard Society indicating that the British public is more open than ever to the idea of a 'strong leader'.  With Helen Thompson and Kenneth Armstrong.

142 | Back to Brussels

An extra episode as David and Helen try to work out where we've got to with Brexit after this week's votes in the Commons.  Can Tory unity hold?  Can EU unity hold?  Something's got to give - but what?  And when?