Political Currency
By Persephonica
Ed Balls and George Osborne take us behind closed doors into the rooms where decisions are made. Having battled it out across the despatch box, the former Chancellor and shadow chancellor now meet in the studio to discuss the decisions that affect the nation’s pockets. Our frenemies have the knowledge and experience to explain how good politics follows the economics - and expose how the powerful become powerless when faced with market forces and political currents they can’t control. Join us every Thursday.
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Political Currency is a Persephonica production.
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Latest episode
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Can the UK-France deal solve the migrant crisis?
There was a lot of ceremony and back-patting this week as Emmanuel Macron visited the UK. But behind the smiles, thorny issues like migration and post-Brexit power dynamics are back on the table. George and Ed ask what this renewed Franco-British … -
EMQs: Our Keir Year, modern Machiavellis and fairness in politics
What is a fair way to govern? In response to a long time listener who feels a victim of his own success – disproportionately hit by taxes and ineligible for certain benefits – Ed Balls explains three different philosophical concepts of ‘fairness’.… -
Week from Hell for Reeves and Starmer
Some incredible scenes in PMQs this week - in which Chancellor Rachel Reeves was openly crying - has Ed Balls and George Osborne considering just how bad things have got for the Labour government. Mere days after a dramatic climbdown over welfare … -
EMQs: Can the G20 still keep the peace?
Is the G20 still a force for peace and diplomacy, or just a stage for political performance? Ed Balls and George Osborne kick off this week’s EMQs with a question about nuclear non-proliferation and whether South Africa should push it up the agend… -
Will the welfare rebellion be the end of Starmer?
Daddy’s back in the (White) House! Ed Balls and George Osborne go over the major event of the week - starting with the NATO meeting in The Hague. Allies have agreed to up defence spending to 5 percent, but that’s not what’s grabbing the headlines.… -
EMQs: Is politics worth the family sacrifice?
What happens when politics clashes with family life? Ed Balls and George Osborne take on big questions this week, starting with Michael Gove’s ex-wife, Sarah Vine, who asks whether David Cameron should have stayed on after Brexit. Her daughter Bea… -
How far will Trump go on Iran and what could it mean for Britain?
Donald Trump is keeping everyone guessing on Iran. After Israel’s surprise strike and Tehran’s retaliation, George Osborne brings fresh insight from Washington on how far Trump might really go - and what it means for Britain if he does. Ed Balls a… -
EMQs: Could PMQs save America?
Could a weekly grilling like Prime Minister’s Questions fix US politics? In the wake of Original Sin - Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson’s damning account of Joe Biden’s final days in office - Ed Balls and George Osborne ask whether a PMQs-st… -
Reeves's Spending Review ‘gamble’: continuity or change for Labour?
Rachel Reeves has finally delivered her much-anticipated Spending Review, but has it done anything to shift Labour’s story? George Osborne calls it “continuity Sunak,” arguing that the big spending pledges are less a break from the past and more a… -
EMQs: The art of political sacking
Two Members of Parliament (and a former too!) are seeking Ed Balls’ and George Osborne’s counsel this week. The pair consider the impact of AI, courtesy of a question from Alan Mak, the MP for Havant and the Shadow Secretary of State for Science, …
