Birkbeck Politics

Westminster Watch is a podcast in which members of the Department of Politics at Birkbeck College discuss current issues in British politics. It is aimed at those with an interest in British politics in general and students on Birkbeck's British politics modules. Episode 21 looks at Nicola Sturgeon’s plans for a second Scottish independence referendum and Tony Blair’s possible return to British politics.

Westminster Watch is a podcast in which members of the Department of Politics at Birkbeck College discuss current issues in British politics. It is aimed at those with an interest in British politics in general and students on Birkbeck's British politics modules. In episode 20, Dr Dermot Hodson and Dr Ben Worthy consider Phillip Hammond’s conference speech and the government’s controversial new policy on grammar schools.

Westminster Watch is a podcast in which members of the Department of Politics at Birkbeck College discuss current issues in British politics. It is aimed at those with an interest in British politics in general and students on Birkbeck's BA Politics module, Contemporary British Politics, in particular. In episode 19, Dr Dermot Hodson and Dr Ben Worthy ask what, if anything, we have learned over the summer about the government’s plans for Brexit.

Professor Rob Singh looks at the state of the US election and the prospects for a Trump victory in November.

The 2016 US presidential election has already proven one of the most unpredictable and volatile in decades. The Republican Party nomination has been captured by a populist, nativist and authoritarian property developer and TV star, Donald J. Trump. After a powerful insurgent campaign by the self-proclaimed democratic socialist, Bernie Sanders, the Democratic Party has nominated the first woman ever to head a major party ticket, Hillary Clinton. Although conventional wisdom and prevailing models of American elections suggest the White House is Clinton’s to lose, the two nominees represent the most unpopular since polling records began. Moreover, polls are tightening in key battleground states, suggesting that a Trump presidency is a real possibility. The potential consequences for America, and the wider world, of the outcome of the 2016 vote promise to be momentous.

In this lecture and Q & A, Professor Rob Singh examines the prospects for a Trump victory in November, the key factors determining the election, and the six paths by which Trump could reach the White House. This is an evening to answer everything you wanted to know about current American politics but were too afraid to ask.

Rob Singh is Professor of Politics at Birkbeck. His new book, ‘After Obama: Renewing American Leadership, Restoring Global Order‘ was published by Cambridge University Press in May.

Event Description

On 23 June Britain voted to leave the EU. The vote has triggered a series of political crises, from a leadership vacuum in the Conservative party and challenges in the Labour party to a possible second referendum in Scotland. The result has also exposed deep dividing lines between parts of the United Kingdom and across British society. So what next for the UK and EU?

Staff from the Birkbeck Department of Politics will debate the consequences of Brexit:

- Is this the end of a ‘United’ Kingdom?

- Has British politics changed forever?

- When and how will article 50 be triggered?

- What is the future of the EU without the UK?

Learn more about this topic by reading the Department of Politics Brexit Briefing: http://www.bbk.ac.uk/politics/news/brexit-briefing-from-the-department-of-politics

Image credit: threesleepingfish (Flickr)

Facebook: www.facebook.com/BirkbeckPolitics/

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/birkbeck-dept-of-politics

Twitter: www.twitter.com/bbkpolitics

Centre website: www.csbppl.com

Department website: www.bbk.ac.uk/politics/

Westminster Watch is a podcast in which members of the Department of Politics at Birkbeck College discuss current issues in British politics. It is aimed at those with an interest in British politics in general and students on Birkbeck's BA Politics module, Contemporary British Politics, in particular. In episode 18, the second of two podcasts on the EU referendum, Dr Dermot Hodson and Dr Ben Worthy reflect on an extraordinary week of instability for the UK.

A roundtable discussion and reception launching the MSc in Global Environmental Politics and Policy, organised by the Birkbeck Population, Environment and Resources Group and presented by the Birkbeck Institute for Social Research.

As we approach the 25th anniversary of the Rio Earth Summit in 2017, climate change continues to pose a formidable global socio-economic, political and environmental challenge. The latest Conference of Participants in Paris culminated with a multilateral commitment to keep global temperature rise this century below 2 degrees Celsius, promising an agreement with a ‘long-term vision’ that was also to act as an ‘engine of safe growth’.

In this panel, we consider whether these aspirations to reconcile economic growth with control over global warming are realistic, feasible or even desirable. What are the prospects of enforcing these objectives? What kind of policies and political mobilisations might help to secure them? Can and does technology help in addressing climate change? And what are the implications of all this for an increasingly ‘crowded, complex and coastal’ planet? Four specialists on these subjects will discuss these and other related questions in an accessible and conversational format.

Panelists:

Aideen Foley, Lecturer in Physical and Environmental Geography Birkbeck College

Diane Horn, Reader in Coastal Geomorphology Birkbeck College

Eric Kaufmann, Professor of Politics, Birkbeck College

Nick Srnicek, co-author of Inventing the Future

Chair: Alex Colás, Reader in International Relations, Birkbeck College

Image credit: UN Photo/Mark Garten

Facebook: www.facebook.com/BirkbeckPolitics/

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/birkbeck-dept-of-politics

Twitter: www.twitter.com/bbkpolitics

Centre website: www.csbppl.com

Department website: www.bbk.ac.uk/politics/

Former Chief Secretary to the Treasury Liam Byrne and a panel of Birkbeck academics discuss his newest book on British entrepreneurs and the history and future direction of British capitalism in general.

Liam Byrne has held a wide variety of roles in government, serving in the Home Office, 10 Downing Street and finally the Treasury, where he was Chief Secretary in the aftermath of the global financial crisis. He is the author of over 20 books and pamphlets, including Turning to Face the East, published in 2013, where he argues that greater ties with China will be key to Britain’s future prosperity.

Liam appears in this talk with a panel of academics from Birkbeck’s Department of Politics: Dr Jason Edwards and Professor Deborah Mabbett, as well as Dr Alex Colas, who chairs the discussion.

Jason Edwards is a lecturer in politics in the Department of Politics, Birkbeck. Jason is a political theorist with interests in political sociology and the history of political thought. Jason is an expert in radical politics. His book The Radical Attitude and Modern Political Theory (London: Palgrave Macmillan) was published in 2007 and he continues to return to the theme throughout his writing.

Deborah Mabbett is Professor of Public Policy in the Department of Politics, Birkbeck. Deborah writes and researches on a wide range of issues related to welfare and inequality. She has wide experience of public policy in practice, particularly in the field of social security, having worked at various times for the New Zealand Treasury and the World Bank, as well as undertaking consultancy and research for public bodies in the UK and the European Union.

Facebook: www.facebook.com/BirkbeckPolitics/

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/birkbeck-dept-of-politics

Twitter: www.twitter.com/bbkpolitics

Centre website: www.csbppl.com

Department website: www.bbk.ac.uk/politics/

Westminster Watch is a podcast in which members of the Department of Politics at Birkbeck College discuss current issues in British politics. It is aimed at those with an interest in British politics in general and students on Birkbeck's BA Politics module, Contemporary British Politics, in particular. In episode 17, Dr Dermot Hodson and Dr Ben Worthy reflect on the UK’s EU referendum campaign with one day to go before the country goes to the polls.

On Thursday 23 June 2016 the UK will vote on whether to stay in the European Union or leave in one of the most important political events of modern times.

As the polls get closer and the debate heats up, staff from Birkbeck Politics will hold a Q&A panel event to discuss how the two campaigns have gone so far, what the polls are telling us and whether they can answer the big question: Will it be Remain or Leave on June 23rd?

The panel includes Professor Rosie Campbell; Dr Dermot Hodson; Dr Jason Edwards; Dr Dionyssis G. Dimitrakopoulos and Professor Deborah Mabbett. The event is chaired by Dr Ben Worthy.

Find out more about the Birkbeck Politics faculty: http://www.bbk.ac.uk/politics/our-staff/our-staff#

Image credit: European Parliament (Flickr)

Facebook: www.facebook.com/BirkbeckPolitics/

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/birkbeck-dept-of-politics

Twitter: www.twitter.com/bbkpolitics

Centre website: www.csbppl.com

Department website: www.bbk.ac.uk/politics/