The Interview

The decisive victory by Gabriel Boric, the left-wing candidate, in Chile’s recent elections has reset the button on the country’s political path. He defeated the right-wing presidential contender in a result which observers believe may be replicated when other Latin American countries go to the polls this year. Zeinab Badawi speaks to Isabel Allende, the acclaimed Chilean writer whose uncle was Salvador Allende, the left-wing Chilean leader removed in a coup in 1973. Isabel Allende has lived in four Latin American countries and knows the continent well. How does she view current trends in South America?

What is the galvanising force behind transformational economic change? Capitalism encourages us to look to the raw power of markets as the driver of innovation. But is that really true? Stephen Sackur speaks to the economist Mariana Mazzucato. Her faith in the transformational power of the proactive state has made her the go-to adviser to a host of governments. Does her "moonshot" economics ignore some earthly realities?

Stephen Sackur speaks to Hong Kong Legislative Councillor Dominic Lee Tsz-king, a high profile defender of Beijing’s increasingly tight grip on the territory. With China’s increasing crackdown in the city and pro-democracy activists arrested, exiled or cowed into silence, has "one country, two systems" become "one country, one system"?

HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to the adviser to Iran’s negotiators in Vienna, Mohammad Marandi. Time is running out for negotiators trying to break the impasse between the United States and Iran and revive the deal curbing Tehran’s nuclear ambitions. Iran is still enriching uranium; the Biden administration is talking of giving up on the current diplomatic track. If a nuclear deal can’t be done, how real is the danger of a catastrophic war in the Middle East?

Stephen Sackur interviews British Conservative MP Damian Collins, who has been working on online regulation. After the stream of revelations about lockdown socialising in Downing Street, he and his party colleagues must decide whether they want Boris Johnson to continue as party leader. Is the Prime Minister damaged beyond repair?

Stephen Sackur speaks to Ukraine’s Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov. With more than 100,000 Russian troops massed on Ukraine’s border, a Russian military offensive may be imminent. If war comes, what will it mean for Ukraine and the security of Europe?

Stephen Sackur speaks to philosopher and author Kathleen Stock whose views on the immutability of biological sex and the limitations of gender self-identity have made her a hate figure for some transgender activists and supporters. Why has debate about sex, gender and identity become a culture war battleground?

(Photo: Kathleen Stock in the Hardtalk studio)

Women are still fighting for equality all over the world. Even in long established democracies like the UK plenty of evidence suggests that from the workplace to the law courts there is a long way to go. Stephen Sackur speaks to Baroness Helena Kennedy who has been trying to loosen the grip of the patriarchy in the British legal system for five decades.

Stephen Sackur speaks to author and journalist Sathnam Sanghera, whose bestselling book Empireland takes a critical look at Britain’s imperial past. Confronting truth means challenging cultural norms. Can it be done without opening another front in the culture wars?

Black and white Americans have always had vastly different experiences within their country’s justice system. You see it in so many different data sets, from police violence to incarceration and sentencing. It's impossible to understand without reference to America’s history of institutionalised racism. But understanding is one thing; the real challenge is how to change it. Stephen Sackur speaks to Bryan Stevenson, civil rights lawyer and founder of the Equal Justice Initiative. Will equality ever be more than a dream?