We can be a bit insular around these parts at times: banging on endlessly about transport in London or mayoral elections elsewhere in the UK.

So, this week, we’re crossing the channel. Marie Le Conte is a London-based political journalist, originally from Nantes. Pauline Bock is the social media editor here at the New Statesman, and grew up somewhere in the vicinity of Strasbourg.

I got them to tell me about French cities: how they’re run, what they do, and what they’re known for and, most importantly, why they all hate Paris. While we’re on the subject, we also speculate about why it is the French capital manages to so often smell quite so bad.

That said, as I write, it’s Budget Day here in the UK. So before we get to France, I offer a quick run-down of what chancellor Philip Hammond offered to Britain’s cities – and exactly why his housing policies remain bloody terrible.

Skylines is the podcast from the New Statesman's cities site, CityMetric. It's hosted by Jonn Elledge.

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