War - what is it good for? Absolutely nothing. But this week we found out that defending the UK from it is going to cost us a lot of money. And the losers will be the world's poorest people - the money for Britain's boosted defence budget will come from foreign aid. 

Sir Ed Davey - leader of the Lib Dems - tells Coco he has an alternative: bigger taxes on big tech (and some other ideas). And Coco goes a bit Yoko Ono, wondering how we give peace a chance. 

Zoe Grunewald steps in for Nish as the pod asks what Macron can teach Starmer about Trump wrangling. And we send out a search for Kemi Badenoch… Has anyone seen her? As Ed Davey presents a credible opposition voice to the Government - the Tory leader is missing in action: last seen in a right wing podcast vortex.

While Kemi Badenoch struggles to cut through, the Climate Change Commission has thought of an ingenious way to get us to act on net zero. The humble kebab.

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Guests
Ed Davey 
Zoë Grünewald

Audio Credits
UK Gov
PBS News 
ABC News

Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media.

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As Europe looks on in disbelief, Donald Trump has been throwing his geopolitical weight around. A monumental meeting with Russia to discuss ending the war in Ukraine was held without Ukraine or Europe.Trump then branded Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy a “dictator” and accused Ukraine of starting the conflict. 

Keir Starmer has said he is “ready and willing” to put UK troops on the ground in Ukraine. But is this the answer? And as shares in major arms manufacturers soar, who’s profiting? Nish and Coco chew it over. 

And from war to love - loneliness is on the rise but according to journalist and author Shon Faye, the problem isn’t us, it’s capitalism. Phew! She joins Nish and Coco to discuss the highly politicised terrain of modern romance - and why it eludes us.

Later, Tortoise tech reporter Patricia Clarke calls in to discuss what the government can do about our unhealthy social media habits and if the Online Safety Bill holds up.

And Starmer has been ambushed by tractor-driving farmers blasting out… “Sandstorm” by Darude. Yes, Darude.

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Useful Links
Love in Exile by Shon Faye https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/453476/love-in-exile-by-faye-shon/9780241605981

Guests
Shon Faye
Patricia Clarke

Audio Credits
The Guardian 
The White House
UK Government 

Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media.

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The government has spent the week trying to out-Reform Reform by stirring up yet another moral panic about immigration. The Home Office has been boasting about its crackdown on “foreign criminals and illegal immigrants” and filming immigration raids and deportations. At the same time, it has toughened up rules to make it almost impossible for refugees who arrive in the UK via illegal routes to become British citizens.

Contributing editor of Novara Media Ash Sarkar joins Nish and Coco to discuss her new book ‘Minority Rule: Adventures in the Culture War’ - highlighting how a minority elite are profiting from the chaos they create and how the “i” in identity politics can distract and divide progressive movements.

And Health Minister Andrew Gwynne and Burnley MP Oliver Ryan - along with 11 Labour councillors - have been suspended from the Labour Party after it was alleged that they’d sent offensive messages to a whatsapp group chat lovingly entitled, “trigger me timbers”.

Correction: A previous version of this episode included a statement that Sheffield's recycling bins were not collected from the roadside whilst discussing an ongoing workers strike. Recycling bins continue to be collected amidst the strike. We regret the error.  

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Useful Links

Write to your MP about the new Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill

www.fighttheantirefugeelaw/org 

https://www.parliament.uk/get-involved/contact-an-mp-or-lord/contact-your-mp/
 

Guests

Ash Sarkar

Nathan Phillips
 

Audio Credits

Sky

Channel 5

GB News

ITV

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Donald Trump has left the world reeling with a plan to turn Gaza into *checks notes* “the Riviera of the Middle East”. He vowed that the US will “take over” and “own” the Gaza strip, effectively endorsing the ethnic cleansing of 1.8 million Palestinians who would have “no alternative” but to leave. 

With rumours circling that his inner-circle are calling him an “HR manager” rather than a leader, in classic style, Keir Starmer has pushed back but avoided directly criticising Trump.

News Agents co-host Lewis Goodall joins Nish and Coco to discuss this latest tidal wave of horror and whether Starmer has it in him to stand for something.

On a more hopeful note, the decision to greenlight the giant new Rosebank oilfield off Shetland has been ruled unlawful by the courts. At the forefront of the fight has been Uplift Director Tessa Khan, who calls in to celebrate this major win for climate action and let us know how we can stop this oilfield for good.

Later, Coco sinks her teeth into our household waste, after Green-led Bristol Council unleashes the wrath of local residents. 

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Useful Links

Get involved with the Stop Rosebank Campaign

https://www.stopcambo.org.uk/

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Guests

Lewis Goodall

Tessa Khan

Audio Credits

The Guardian

Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media.

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Warning: this episode contains strong language and a term of racist abuse.

Nish and Coco dig into some scary data about Gen Z. A poll of 13-27 year olds this week suggested nearly half of them favour authoritarian government. And nearly half of young men think women have been given too many rights. Youtuber JimmyTheGiant joins the pod to tell us about this mindset and how he disappeared into the right wing wormhole, and came out the other side.

And newts v planes:  Nish and Coco check out Rachel Reeves plans for growth. Is she pinning her hopes on the tech bros and Heathrow while sticking two fingers up to net Zero?

Useful Links

https://www.youtube.com/@JimmyTheGiant/videos

Guests

JimmytheGiant

Clare Farrell

Audio Credits

Today Programme, BBC Radio 4

Clare Farrell

Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media.

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A trigger warning for progressives: this episode contains explicit Trump content.

Nish and Coco’s nightmare begins with inauguration Trump meme coins, grinning tech bros and disputed Nazi salutes. Then comes the blizzard of executive orders targeting migrants and freeing rioters.  But this is not just a bad dream for our liberal hosts. This is the reality of Trump world. The groundwork of MAGA 2.0 has been laid.

How should Britain react? The UK’s very own “basket of deplorables” including Farage, Truss and Braverman donned their MAGA caps and descended on the US. But they didn’t even scrape an invitation to the main event. Back home Keir Starmer and David Lammy opted for love-bombing the new President. But there is an alternative to a sucking up strategy. Pod Save the UK has spotted some green shoots of resistance.  

While Trump has thrown the Paris Climate Agreement out the window - again - the UK has an opportunity to lead the way on the environment. Green Party co-leader Carla Denyer joins the pod to explain how clever cross party collaboration and campaigning could push through the new Climate and Nature Bill.

And Jon Favreau, host of ‘Pod Save America’ and ‘Offline’, joins Nish and Coco from across the pond to find out what’s in store for the US, UK and the world.

Useful Links

Write to your MP about the Climate and Nature Bill

https://action.zerohour.uk/

https://www.parliament.uk/get-involved/contact-an-mp-or-lord/contact-your-mp/

Guests

Jon Favreau

Carla Denyer MP

Audio Credits

X / Lawrence Fox

Channel 4 News

Sky News

BBC

Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media.

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Artificial intelligence will be “mainlined into the veins” of the nation, Prime Minister Keir Starmer has declared, with a multibillion-pound investment and huge public rollout. Amid bond market chaos and a falling pound, the Government is pinning its hopes for growth on the AI revolution - what could possibly go wrong?

To unpick the technogobledigook with Nish and Coco is technology journalist Chris Stokel-Walker. They drill into the Government's AI action plan and the potential pitfalls of this silver bullet for society, jobs and the environment. 

With the far right surging across the world - it’s important to know when you can call a fascist a fascist. No one knows this better than Nafeez Ahmed, investigative journalist and author of “Alt Reich: The Network War to Destroy the West from Within”. He breaks down the scale of the threat we are facing and how we can fight it.

And with so much Billionaire BS flying about, we debut “Facts versus Fuckwits”, debunking some prime fuckwittery from a painfully out-of-touch Tony Blair.

Useful Links

“Alt-Reich: The Network War to Destroy the West from Within” by Nafeez Ahmed

https://www.waterstones.com/book/alt-reich/nafeez-ahmed//9781916754140

Mental Health Services:

https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/

https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/guides-to-support-and-services/seeking-help-for-a-mental-health-problem/where-to-start/

https://www.samaritans.org/

https://www.youngminds.org.uk/

https://www.rethink.org/advice-and-information/

Guests

Chris Stokel-Walker

Nafeez Ahmed

Audio Credits

Sky News

Jimmy’s Jobs for the Future Podcast

Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media.

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Happy New Year - is 2025 going to be the year of disinformation? Elon Musk started in attack mode with a flood of vitriolic and false tweets about UK grooming gangs. In Musk’s crosshairs: Keir Starmer and safeguarding minister Jess Phillips. He accused them both of cover ups. Can Nish and Coco survive a year of Musk madness - the man who already makes Nish want to “eat his own anus”?

We’re joined by political journalist Zoë Grünewald to discuss how to fight the disinformation invasion and what else might be in store in 2025 - from Reform eating the Tories to Labour delivering some much-needed change. And just when we thought we were done with billionaire BS - Mark Zuckerberg announced Meta is scrapping its fact-checking service and Andrew Tate launched a new political party. 

And poor Nish is under fire from GB News for “unnecessary political swipes”on the BBC. A word to GB News - unnecessary political swipes is what Nish does! Brace yourselves - it’s a wild first show back. 

Guests: 
Zoë Grünewald

Audio credits: 
The Guardian
BBC 
Sky News
Mark Zuckerberg

Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media.

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What a year! While Rishi Sunak held true to his January commitment to hold the election in the second half of the year - the spectacle that followed couldn't have been predicted as 2024 dawned. 

Nish and Coco are joined by Sky News’ political correspondent Liz Bates and comedian Desiree Burch to chew over the gristle of the year that was. 

From racist Tory donors, to milkshaked MPs, creative political stunts and Rishi Sunak’s D-Day disaster - the first half of the year had plenty to keep us entertained. 

But once Labour took power - optimism quickly turned to gloom. The seven week garm-drama saga took the sheen off Keir Starmer’s newly minted cabinet, while the endless don't-call-it-austerity chat has jaded people across the country.

As 2024 draws to a close - there’s still plenty to laugh about - including the best of the worst political pop songs of the year. Prepare to cringe. 

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Ed Davey and the Bath Philharmonic Carer’s Choir - Love is Enough https://linktr.ee/love.is.enough

Guests: 

Liz Bates

Desiree Burch 

Audio credits: 

Sky News

BBC

ITV

Channel 4 

Tiktok / Dawn Butler

Liberal Democrats

Talk TV

Fox News Via Channel 10 Australia 

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In the same week FIFA decided an appalling human rights record is no obstacle to Saudi Arabia hosting the 2034 World Cup, Keir Starmer was schmoozing the kingdom's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. What lengths will our former human rights lawyer PM go to in his pursuit of growth? Joey Shea from Human Rights Watch takes us through what went down during the visit.

Back home, the government is talking up its plans to build 1.5 million new homes. Housing journalist Vicky Spratt joins Nish and Coco to assess whether  Labour can pull off  the biggest home building initiative since the second world war.

And Pod Save The UK has found the perfect job for the royal family: Trump whisperers. Prince William was hastily wheeled out in Paris to charm the President and Nish and Coco explore why Trump has a weird soft spot for the Windsors.

Guests:

Vicky Spratt

Joey Shea

Audio Credits:

Sky News

UK Government

Pod Save the UK is a Reduced Listening production for Crooked Media.

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