The year ahead in 49 minutes

With Keir Starmer fighting for his political life after the most perilous week of his premiership, the prime minister and his inner circle have been engaged in a desperate rearguard effort to shore up his position. This week on Westminster Insider, host Patrick Baker lifts the li ...  Show more

The Victorians called Britain and Germany “awkward cousins.” These days, Keir Starmer is trying to revive that Anglo-German amity as part of a broader reset with the European Union. The prime minister has wooed Chancellor Friedrich Merz since the Christian Democrat leader took po ...  Show more

Gideon talks to Roula Khalaf, FT editor, and Martin Wolf, chief economics commentator, about the extraordinary events of 2020 - from Covid-19 to the US election and unexpected signs of reconciliation between Israel and Arab Gulf states.<hr>

This week we analyse prime minister Boris Johnson’s game on social care reform, what the plan involves and whether the Conservative party and its voters will swallow tax rises. Political editor George Parker and economics editor Chris Giles dissect the details.

Plus we l ...

Last week, the government unveiled around £30bn worth of cuts to public services as it attempts to plug a fiscal hole. Governments have attempted to rein in spending in the past and struggled to do so.Philip Coggan takes a look at why public spending tends to rise in the long run ...  Show more

This week we examine the row about outside interests for British MPs. Is it acceptable to be earning hundreds of thousands of pounds a year on top of their parliamentary work? And do voters care? Chief political commentator Robert Shrimsley will analyse the situation with poli ...