The Bunker – Your daily news Deep Dive

British politics is a shambles, from the economy to the cost of living to the NHS and public standards. But is this age of disorder worse than the endgames of past governments? Steve Richards, former BBC political correspondent and host of the Rock & Roll Politics podcast, tells Andrew Harrison how this dying government ranks among key moments of fin de siècle political acrimony from recent decades. From epic scandals to strikes, corruption and shameful resignations, are we really living through the worst days ever?  

• “The divisions within the Tory party are much more visible… Sunak has completely failed to contain them.” – Steve Richards  

• “We think of politics as showbiz for ugly people but politics is also football for people who can’t play sport.” – Andrew Harrison  

We’re now on TikTok as well as Instagram and Twitter. Follow us to keep up with news about our latest episodes and more: www.tiktok.com/@bunkerpod  

Get Rock & Roll Politics with Steve Richards every Tuesday. 

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Written and presented by Andrew Harrison. Audio editor: Jade Bailey. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. 

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Scandal after scandal has eroded public trust in Westminster politics in recent years. Fresh research from the Institute For Government suggests that 65 percent of the public doesn’t think the current government behaves to high ethical standards. What does that mean for the next Government? And can MPs ever win back public trust? Or is it lost forever? Tim Durrant is programme director for the IFG and joins Ros Taylor to discuss this research and these issues. 

IFG’s research: https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/publication/rebuilding-trust-public-life 

• “It’s not straightforward – but I think the need for change is widely recognised.” – Tim Durrant

• “If you have a PM who’s very clear that they expect their colleagues to behave in a certain way, and if they don’t there will be sanctions, that will shift the dial a bit.” – Tim Durrant

• “Starmer has set himself a high bar and Labour recognises that.” – Tim Durrant

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Written and presented by Ros Taylor. Producer: Chris Jones. Audio production: Simon Williams. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.

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With the NHS in constant crisis, we constantly hear it’s at risk of being privatised. How close to the truth is that? To find out, Alex Andreou speaks to Health Service Journal editor Alastair McLellan. They discuss the state of the health service, what reforms are happening, and what change is needed.  

• “Everywhere you look, the NHS is really struggling. It’s not that care now is worse than it was in 1970 - it’s that care now compared to what it could be is the greatest gap we’ve seen since the formation of the NHS.” – Alastair McLellan 

• "It’s hard to find a Tory voter working for the NHS.” – Alastair McLellan 

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Written and presented by Alex Andreou. Producer: Eliza Davis Beard. Audio editor: Jade Bailey. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson and artwork by James Parrett. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. 

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Jeremy Hunt has promised “sensible tax cuts” in his Budget – but will they be enough to satisfy backbenchers? Across the pond – will Super Tuesday solidify Trump as the Republican Presidential nominee? And what will Biden say in his State of the Union address? And finally, we have the latest on the Israel/Hamas conflict, as Israel lists its conditions for a ceasefire. 

• “Jeremy Hunt needs to give his backbenchers just enough to keep them quiet.” – Ros Taylor

• "There is an argument for rebalancing the Tax burden in favour of younger people." – Ros Taylor 

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Written and presented by Alex Andreou with Ros Taylor. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio editor: Robin Leeburn. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.

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Liz Truss is looking to spread her particular brand of chaos to the United States after trashing her reputation in the UK. She popped up at the latest CPAC, to give a speech to a crowd of baffled right-wingers who simply didn’t know who she was. What is CPAC, who is Truss hanging out with and what is she trying to achieve? Ben Jacobs is an American political journalist and joins Jacob Jarvis in The Bunker to answer those questions.

• “CPAC is a Trump show...this is full Trump fandom” – Ben Jacobs

• “The folks who knew who Truss was were sceptical.” – Ben Jacobs.

• “For hundreds of years people have been coming to the US to start afresh – she’s just following in their footsteps.” – Ben Jacobs

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Written and presented by Jacob Jarvis. Producer: Chris Jones. Audio production: Robin Leeburn. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.

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Most people know who Keir Starmer is – but don’t know much about his character. Who is the Labour leader really? Tom Baldwin is a journalist, political adviser and author of the newly published Keir Starmer: The Biography. He’s spent time figuring out who the man who’s likely to become the next Prime Minister really is – and joins Ros Taylor in The Bunker to discuss what he’s learned.

Buy Keir Starmer: The Biography through our affiliate bookshop and you’ll help fund The Bunker by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org’s fees help support independent bookshops too.

• “He’s complicated like Britain is… and I think the media have largely got him wrong.” – Tom Baldwin

• “A lot of politicians like to pretend they like football to make them look normal… Starmer uses football as an anchor to pull him back to normalcy.” – Tom Baldwin

• “In politics everyone wants to place you on an ideological spectrum and he doesn’t like that.” – Tom Baldwin

Support us on Patreon:

www.patreon.com/bunkercast 

Written and presented by Ros Taylor. Producer: Chris Jones. Audio production: Jade Bailey. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.

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Abbas Gallyamov wrote scripts for Vladimir Putin for 3 years from 2008. He describes Vladimir Putin in that time as ‘logical’ and ‘in control of his emotions’. Now, after Russia’s full scale invasion of Ukraine he says Putin is ‘erratic’ and unrecognisable. His opposition to Putin has reportedly landed him on the Kremlin’s wanted list. He joins Chris Jones from exile away from his motherland, to discuss how Putin has changed, his popularity and the upcoming March election.

•”Back then he was totally different, he was absolutely logical and in full control of his emotions.” – Abbas Gallyamov.

•”These polls are about the number of brave people that dare, in the current situation, to say they don’t trust Putin.” – Abbas Gallyamov.

•”Who on Earth in Russia would answer ‘do you or do you not trust Putin?’ - it’s like opening the gates to hell.” – Abbas Gallyamov.

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Written, presented and produced by Chris Jones. Audio production: Robin Leeburn. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.

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The death of Alexei Navalny sent shockwaves across the world. Has Russia’s hope of a brighter future, beyond the reign of Putin, died alongside him? And will we ever know the full truth around his demise – or why it has happened now? To answer these questions and more, Dr. Jan Dollbaum, head of research group ‘Mobilisation and Representation in post-Soviet Eastern Europe’ at LMU Munich and co-author of Navalny: Putin’s Nemesis, Russia’s Future? speaks to Chris Jones in The Bunker. 

Buy Navalny: Putin's Nemesis, Russia's Future? through our affiliate bookshop and you’ll help fund The Bunker by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org’s fees help support independent bookshops too.

• “The emotions that the Kremlin wants to create are hopelessness and despair. When people are angry with something, that anger can make them overcome their fear. But hopelessness keeps people individualised, and stops collective action.” – Dr. Jan Dollbaum

• “Naming any sanctions against Russia as ’Navalny Sanctions’ sends the message that Navalny is an agent of the West, and Russian propaganda would rejoice in using that opportunity to make that clear to its population.”  – Dr. Jan Dollbaum

www.patreon.com/bunkercast 

Written and Presented by Chris Jones. Produced by: Eliza Davis Beard. Audio production: Simon Williams. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.

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Lee Anderson has lost the whip – will any other horrid MPs follow this week? And there’s the by-election in Rochdale coming up, which will likely mean more bad news for Sunak. Plus, we discuss the latest from the  US presidential race, conflict in the Middle East and concerns over Putin’s actions. Alex Andreou joins Jacob Jarvis to tee up the stories to look out for in the coming days,

• “A dog whistle is only meant to be heard by people really tuned in, this is turning into a foghorn.” – Alex Andreou 

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Written and presented by Jacob Jarvis. Audio editor: Robin Leeburn. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.

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Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began two years ago. Hundreds of thousands have died and more will follow. What is the state of the conflict right now? How has Russia altered global stability, and is Western support for Ukraine wavering? Gavin Esler is joined by Michael Kimmage formerly of the US State Department, now a professor of history at the Catholic University of America and author of Collisions - The Origins of the War in Ukraine and the New Global Instability.

Buy Collisions - The Origins of the War in Ukraine and the New Global Instability through our affiliate bookshop and you’ll help fund The Bunker by earning us a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org’s fees help support independent bookshops too.

• “Putin overestimated the capability of the Russian military.” – Michael Kimmage.

• “I think NATO, while interesting and important, is a bit of a red herring.” – Michael Kimmage

• “There's really no structure or set of powers that can iron this out.” – Michael Kimmage.

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Written and presented by Gavin Esler. Producer: Chris Jones. Audio production: Robin Leeburn. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.

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