Show Notes
As the far-right Alternative for Germany wins another regional election, wiping out the ruling Christian Democratic Union in former Chancellor Angela Merkel's own backyard, will Friedrich Merz face the same fate as Keir Starmer and lose his job? New polling shows that just 15% of people in rural communities think Labour cares about them, so how does the party deliver "growth in every postcode" to the countryside? With 70 seats in Parliament and the Tories in electoral trouble, why haven't the Liberal Democrats gained more traction in the week of their party conference?
Join Rory and Alastair as they answer all these questions and more.
__________
Enjoy Rory and Alastair’s interview with Gordon Brown by searching ‘Leading’ on Spotify, Apple, or YouTube.
Go deeper into the world of The Rest Is Politics by signing up for our free newsletter HERE, featuring exclusive interviews, analysis and weekend reads from Alastair and Rory.
Join The Rest Is Politics Plus. Start your free trial at therestispolitics.com to unlock exclusive bonus content – including Rory and Alastair’s miniseries – plus ad-free listening, early access to episodes and live show tickets, exclusive newsletters, discounted book prices, and a private chatroom on Discord.
The Rest Is Politics is powered by Fuse Energy. Stop overpaying for energy. Switch at fuseenergy.com/politics and get a free TRIP+ subscription.
🌏 Upgrade your online protection with an all-in-one security app! Get an exclusive NordVPN deal + 4 months extra here ➼ nordvpn.com/restispolitics It’s risk free with NordVPN’s 30-day money-back guarantee!
__________
Instagram: @restispolitics
Twitter: @restispolitics
Email: [email protected]
__________
Social Producer: Celine Charles
Lead Video Editor: Josh Smith
Video Editors: James Clayden, Louis Mealing
Assistant Producer: Daisy Alston-Horne
Producer: Evan Green
Exec Producer: Bella Soames Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
More from The Rest Is Politics
This week, we bring you one of Alastair’s favourite interviews.
What is at stake for Israelis and Palestinians in the upcoming parliamentary elections and, if Netanyahu loses, will anything actually change given the major parties reject a two state solution? Why does the IDF’s ‘bureaucracy of mass murder’ and its ‘NAZA’ collateral damage policy in Gaza feature so little in Israel’s domestic political debates? From Trump’s new press secretary’s disastrous five-day tenure, to the fallout from the Reform UK documentary, are we all now living in parallel political universes where scandals have less impact than they used to?
After another devastating week for Ukraine, is Trump now firmly on Putin’s side, and how much leverage does Elon Musk have over Zelensky’s war effort through his ownership of Starlink? With more civil unrest in France, what does this mean for a protest movement increasingly overshadowed by rioting, and could it play into Marine Le Pen’s hands ahead of next year's presidential election? What do we know about the attack on Australian MP Helen Haines, after she was hit by a car twice in what the Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has described as a “deliberate” act?
How has Alastair managed to come back from some of the darkest places in his life, overcoming a breakdown while in the public eye? Is his obsession with work unhealthy, or necessary to achieving great things and what does it cost his family and those around him? And, beyond the personal, could the word he invented, “Persevilience”, be the antidote to populism, polarisation and post-truth?
In Britain, we spend £25 on benefits for every £1 we spend helping young people find work. So why have successive governments failed to fix this – and what does Alan Milburn’s review, due this autumn, say needs to change? How have countries with the lowest youth unemployment rates tackled the issue, and what is the one intervention Andy Burnham’s government should put its money behind? How can we convince employers to take a chance on young people?