Pod Save the UK

While the results from elections across England & Wales are still rolling in - the signs so far are pointing to a disastrous outcome for the Conservative party. So Nish & Coco have jumped on for this special bonus episode to pop the champagne - asking exactly what it means ahead of the General Election - whenever that will eventually be called!  Liz Bates from Sky News joins Nish and Coco to explain why the historic result of the byelection in Blackpool is so seismic. They also discuss whether results for Reform UK will scare the Tories into more extreme right-wing rhetoric, whether Boris Johnson forgetting his ID was a publicity stunt and whether Keir Starmer is not a good leader, but a lucky one. We also throw ahead to the general election - if there was a dreaded hung parliament - would that work at all? And how might the Tories be trying to claw their way back into favour before they finally allow the UK to have a general election?   Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media.   Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk WhatsApp: 07494 933 444 (UK) or + 44 7494 933 444 (internationally) Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk [https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk] Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk [https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk] TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk [https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk] Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk [https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/podsavetheworld [https://www.youtube.com/podsavetheworld]   Guests: Liz Bates, Sky News   Audio credits: BBC Newcast BBC News Sky News

The Westminster rumour mill went into overdrive last weekend peddling an ultimately incorrect rumour that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was due to call a summer election. With suggestions that this rumour was started by the Labour Party, Nish and Coco ask whether progressives might be starting to control the narrative. And might that change in power balance towards the Left also be coming to the fore in Scotland? Following the shock resignation of First Minister and SNP Leader Humza Yousaf, Politico’s reporter Andrew McDonald unpacks how the Green Party may have greater influence in Scottish politics moving forward. And what are the radical solutions we need to address the crisis in Britain’s care system for children? The collaborators of the new book Free Loaves on Friday poet Lemn Sissay and journalist Rebekah Pierre explain why hearing directly from care leavers is vital for addressing problems across the system. This week - we present the PSUK hero no one asked for and the villain you never saw coming. Move aside Idris Elba - Nish Kumar is coming for your spotlight… Finally - make sure to look out for a bonus edition of Pod Save the UK this week where we bring you analysis from the results of the elections across England and Wales with Liz Bates. Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media.   Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk WhatsApp: 07494 933 444 (UK) or + 44 7494 933 444 (internationally) Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk [https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk] Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk [https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk] TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk [https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk] Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk [https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/podsavetheworld [https://www.youtube.com/podsavetheworld]   Guests: Andrew McDonald, Politico Rebekah Pierre, Journalist and Social Worker Lemn Sissay, Poet and Activist   Audio credit: Sky News   Useful links: https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/voting-and-elections/voter-id [https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/voting-and-elections/voter-id] https://unbound.com/books/free-loaves-on-fridays [https://unbound.com/books/free-loaves-on-fridays]

Rishi Sunak finally ‘got Rwanda done’ after a long and dramatic night as his Safety of Rwanda Bill ping-ponged between the Common and the Lords. Our guest, the Green MP Caroline Lucas, tells Coco what it was like to be in Westminster that night and criticises Rishi Sunak for holding a drinks party while the Bill - which she describes as “a piece of performative cruelty” - was still being debated in the Lords. She also discusses her new book about why the left needs to speak up for ‘Englishness’, and explains why she’s training to become a death doula. Nish and Coco provide an indispensable guide to next week’s local elections, talking about why they’re important and analysing what they might mean for Tory and Labour prospects at a general election. They also discuss whether the new rules on voter ID are an attempt by the Conservative Party to suppress the vote. For our hero and villain of the week, Nish is appalled by Rishi Sunak’s attack on the sick and disabled, while Coco has been enjoying The Menstrual Cramps! Plus what would happen if Nish and Rishi Sunak met at notorious Berlin club Berghain? Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media.   Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk WhatsApp: 07494 933 444 (UK) or + 44 7494 933 444 (internationally) Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk [https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk] Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk [https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk] TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk [https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk] Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk [https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/podsavetheworld [https://www.youtube.com/podsavetheworld] Guest: Caroline Lucas, Green MP for Brighton Pavillion Audio credits: parliamentlive.tv Sky News   Useful links: https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/voting-and-elections/voter-id [https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/voting-and-elections/voter-id] https://www.bethknight.com/ [https://www.bethknight.com/] https://crooked.com/podcast-series/pod-save-america/ [https://crooked.com/podcast-series/pod-save-america/]

On a busy week of news as MPs return to Parliament, Nish and Coco are joined by the Labour MP Jess Phillips. She gives her take on the investigation into Angela Rayner’s tax affairs, and reveals the toll it’s taking on her party’s deputy leader.  A discussion on Iran’s unprecedented attack on Israel leads Jess to reveal her family links to Iran, and there’s some rare praise for Rishi Sunak for his anti-smoking legislation. Jess also says Diane Abbott should get the whip back, despite the two Labour colleagues having a somewhat frosty relationship.  Villain of the week is Liz Truss for her shameless book tour, although Jess makes a play for her to be hero, saying she’s “a gift” for Labour and “should be on the tele more”. There’s also praise for Ted Lasso star Hannah Waddingham, for putting a sexist photographer in his place. Plus Nish and Coco have some songwriting tips for Megan Thee Stallion. Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media.   Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk WhatsApp: 07494 933 444 (UK) or + 44 7494 933 444 (internationally) Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk [https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk] Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk [https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk] TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk [https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk] Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk [https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/podsavetheworld [https://www.youtube.com/podsavetheworld]   Guest: Jess Phillips, Labour MP for Birmingham Yardley   Audio credits: parliamentlive.tv BBC News Fox News LBC odeiotedlasso/X

Coco is back from holiday and the first order of business is for Nish to explain the Westminster “honeypot” scandal, which has seen the vice-chairman of the 1922 committee resign. But beyond a salacious story about MPs texting, what are the broader security issues this raises? Nish and Coco also take issue with Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting attacking “middle-class lefties” in a tabloid newspaper. Special guest Shami Chakrabarti joins Nish and Coco to discuss human rights - what they are, why we need them, and how we need to define them in a future that’s powered by technology and AI. The Labour peer also gives her verdict on Keir Starmer’s leadership, Diane Abbott’s suspension, and responds to listener comments about the importance of voting. Plus she takes an unexpected detour into film criticism. Nish laments the fall of a heroic shoe, and Coco aims a government department for the way it treats carers in her villain of the week. Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media.   Contact us via email: PSUK@reducedlistening.co.uk  Insta: https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk [https://instagram.com/podsavetheuk] Twitter: https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk [https://twitter.com/podsavetheuk] TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk [https://www.tiktok.com/@podsavetheuk] Facebook: https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk [https://facebook.com/podsavetheuk] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/podsavetheworld [https://www.youtube.com/podsavetheworld]   Guests: Baroness Shami Charkrabarti, human rights lawyer and author of Human Rights: The Case for the Defence’.    Audio credits: Dr Luke Evans MP Sky News Elent Finance/Instagram LBC   Useful links: https://www.libertyhumanrights.org.uk/ [https://www.libertyhumanrights.org.uk/]