Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe has been reunited with her family in Britain, having been imprisoned for years in Iran on charges of seeking to overthrow the country’s government, which she has always denied. Her release along with another dual citizen, Anoosheh Ashoori, came after the payment of a long withheld £450m debt owed by the British government to Iran.   Ailbhe Rea and Anoosh Chakelian discuss Richard Ratcliffe’s tireless campaign to free his wife, how a deal was finally achieved and why it took so long.   Then in You Ask Us a listener asks whether the post-austerity rise in UK borrowing to the highest level since the Second World War is down to the pandemic alone, or other factors.
If you have a question for You Ask Us, email podcasts@newstatesman.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe's long fight for freedom

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Thursdays: host Anoosh Chakelian is joined by the New Statesman politics team to help you understand the week in politics, in Westminster and beyond. Featuring Andrew Marr, Rachel Cunliffe, Freddie Hayward and more.
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News & Politics

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Politics

This week Liz Truss has embarked on the press tour of a lifetime with her new book, Ten Years to Save the West: Lessons from the only conservative in the room. She's been casting blame from the UN to the Bank of England for the failure of her time in office, but does she really believe what she's saying? And how might this affect her standing in the next general election?
Anoosh and Rachel also ask Freddie about his recent trip to the National Conservatism conference in Brussels with the likes of Nigel Farage, Suella Braverman, Éric Zemmour, Viktor Orbán, and the Belgian police. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Does Liz Truss believe what she's saying?

People up and down the country have been struggling to get NHS dental appointments for the past few years, forcing some to pay inflated prices for private treatment, or ignore their oral health until it’s reached an unbearable point. This crisis is also greatly impacting children across the nation, and today the number one reason children are admitted to hospital is due to severe dental issues.
So how did we get here? Why is the UK faced with Dickensian rot in 2024?
Anoosh Chakelian, Britain editor, is joined by policy correspondent Harry Clarke-Ezzidio, and senior associate editor, Sarah Dawood. 
 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Decaying Britain: how severe is the NHS dental crisis?

Angela Rayner, the Labour deputy leader, is being accused of being a ‘tax avoider’. While these attacks are coming predominantly from the right, they’ve been mounting in recent weeks and now Labour is having to confront the allegations.
So what could this mean for the deputy leader? Is Labour in trouble? Or is this a Tory smear campaign?
Anoosh Chakelian, Britain editor at the New Statesman, is joined in the studio by political correspondent Freddie Hayward; this episode was recorded on Thursday 11th April.
Read the pieces mentioned in this podcast: Is Angela Rayner in danger?; What Dominic Raab missed about Angela Rayner at Glyndebourne; I looked into Angela Rayner’s tax affairs – here’s what I found Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Angela Rayner investigation: scandal or smear campaign?

We’ve been digging around in our virtual mailbag and have brought a couple of your questions  to discuss. 
One listener asks: What are the political implications of the Cass report and will it affect how British politicians approach the transgender conversation?
And another listener writes in to ask: Could a Starmer win in the UK and a Trump win in the US spell the end for the ‘special relationship’?
Ask a question for a future podcast: www.newstatesman.com/podcasts/2022/10/you-ask-us
Read Andrew Marr's piece: Inside Labour’s foreign policy factory

 
 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How will the gender care report affect politics?

The British royal family was in crisis even before Queen Elizabeth II died, and the new King and princess of wales both became ill with cancer.
In this modern age where access increasingly equates to relevance, and truth and conspiracy so often intertwine, how is Britain’s relationship with monarchy changing? 
Chris Stone is joined on the New Statesman podcast by author Tanya Gold who has written this week's cover story: The Fragile Crown. 
 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe's long fight for freedom

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