Has Priti Patel lost control of the Home Office?
9 min listen
Cindy Yu
Cindy Yu is an assistant editor of The Spectator and presenter of our Chinese Whispers podcast. She was brought up in Nanjing. She tweets at @CindyXiaodanYu
Monday
Sunday
Beware the super-spreaders of coronavirus conspiracy theories
When a new virus is discovered, conspiracy theories often spread faster than the disease. I’ve been following the debate in China and the latest theory doing the rounds on social media is: what if the coronavirus didn’t come from China, but originated in the US instead? It would be classic CIA, wouldn’t it? The outbreak
Saturday
How damaging is Philip Rutnam’s resignation?
15 min listen
Thursday
The Edition: can the UK and EU bridge their Brexit gap?
41 min listen
Next week, the trade negotiations between the EU and the UK begin in earnest. But in the days ahead, the positions set out by both sides are so far apart that the negotiations can only be heading towards an almighty row. James Forsyth writes in this week’s issue that it’s better if they get this
Wednesday
Sajid Javid’s parting shot
15 min listen
Monday
Is No 10 going to war against the civil service?
14 min listen
Thursday
Here comes Bloomberg
39 min listen
This week, has Mike Bloomberg blown his presidential hopes with a disastrous TV debate (00:50)? Plus, has the BBC really gone downhill (12:05)? And last, Toby Young reveals all about his first stand up comedy gig (26:30).
Wednesday
Tuesday
Has Boris quelled an HS2 rebellion?
12 min listen
Thursday
Have our prisons become finishing schools for extremists?
33 min listen
In the aftermath of the Streatham attack, we take a look at how our prisons became finishing schools for extremists (00:40). Plus, what on earth happened in the Iowa caucus (11:25)? And last, is there anything true in the stories about Calamity Jane (22:50)?
Wednesday
How the Streatham terrorist exploited a loophole in our knife laws
When I worked at Lidl, there were a few products that we took extra care with. Some of these were high-value goods at risk of being stolen (like the £100 laptop we once sold, causing biblical scenes of chaos in the middle aisle). Others were to comply with laws on selling dangerous goods. Knives were
Saturday
China’s response to coronavirus shows a one-party state in action
My hometown of Nanjing is more than 300 miles away from Wuhan but my family there, like Chinese families everywhere, have been gripped by the coronavirus story. We use WeChat (a Chinese version of WhatsApp) to share medical tips, the latest intel and even a spattering of dry jokes. A snippet of information from an
Friday
The Edition podcast: has the great Brexit divide mended?
31 min listen
First, as the news agenda is dominated by things like Huawei, HS2, and public spending, could politics be – whisper it – returning to normal? In his cover piece this week, Rod Liddle writes how, for the most part, the election result has put a lid on the civil war between Remainers and Brexiteers. One
Friday
The Edition podcast: what has Trump really achieved?
Ever since he entered the White House, Donald Trump has been trying to isolate Iran diplomatically. But in the week since the killing of Qassem Soleimani, it seems that the opposite has happened. John R Bradley argues in this week’s cover piece that Trump’s move has united the Sunni Arab states, from Saudi Arabia to
Friday
Is there a smarter way to use energy?
In the last few years, climate change has risen to the top of the agenda for consumers, voters, politicians, and journalists alike. But as well as cutting down emissions and using less plastic, could we also be rethinking the way we use energy at home? Here’s where smart meters come in – a smart meter
Saturday
The Edition podcast: what to expect from a new Conservative era
This week, politics becomes a little less volatile as Boris Johnson achieves the biggest Tory majority since Margaret Thatcher. So what happened in this election, and what next (00:50)? Katy Balls talks to Fraser Nelson and writer and broadcaster Steve Richards. Plus, China has interned over a million Uyghur Muslims in so-called ‘re-education’ camps –
Friday
The leaders debate was revealing, but hasn’t turned the tide
In Friday night’s final TV debate between Jeremy Corbyn and Boris Johnson, neither leader landed a sucker punch on the other. Your verdict, as James Forsyth says in our Coffee House Shots podcast, will depend on what you believe the polls to be saying. If you already believe that the polls suggest a Tory majority,
The Edition podcast: what would the Corbyn nightmare look like?
Though the Tories are consistently and comfortably leading in the polls, nothing can be taken for granted in politics, if recent years are anything to go by. So what would happen if Corbyn really does get into No. 10? In this week’s cover piece, economist and Telegraph columnist Liam Halligan breaks down the consequences of
Friday
The Edition podcast: can Boris make it?
When James Forsyth and Katy Balls interviewed the Prime Minister for the magazine this week, the Boris they found was optimistic, humorous, and above all, on message. So can anything still trip him up in the final fortnight of this election campaign? Katy speaks to James and Paul Goodman, editor of the Conservative Home website.
Tuesday
Podcast special: can factories be decarbonised?
Sponsored by Vattenfall Britain looks set on its 2050 Net Zero target (or if Labour gets in, 2030), but to achieve that, it’ll take more than just a beef ban and paper straws. The Climate Change Committee writes that British heavy industry – for example the cement-makers and the steel-makers – will have to ‘largely
