The Capitalist

Despatch: Get Britain off the benefits treadmill

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 14:19:22 GMT

Labour's benefits reforms are now law. Ministers say they will cut poverty. Critics say they will simply transfer money from people who work to people who don't. Both sides are missing the point – because Britain's welfare state isn't just poorly calibrated. It is built on a fundamental misunderstanding of what poverty actually is.

John Penrose, Chair of the Conservative Policy Forum, makes a quietly radical argument: that the official definition of poverty is itself the problem. By measuring poverty as anything below 60% of median earnings, the system embeds a permanent wealth-redistribution ratchet into the heart of the welfare state – one that treats the symptom, not the cause, and ensures that reported poverty barely shifts regardless of how many billions are spent.

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Adrian Wooldridge: How centrists fight back

Wed, 08 Apr 2026 13:21:35 GMT

Liberalism is under its greatest threat since the 1930s. The question is whether its defenders have the nerve to admit why – and the ideas to fight back.

Adrian Wooldridge, Bloomberg columnist and author of "Centrists of the World Unite!", joins CapX editor Marc Sidwell for an unsentimental diagnosis of liberalism's crisis — and an unexpectedly combative case for its recovery. The liberal tradition that defeated totalitarianism and built the modern world is not, he argues, exhausted. It has been betrayed: hollowed out by a self-satisfied establishment on one side and captured by identitarian collectivism on the other, while the intellectual energy of the age flows freely to the post-liberal right.

But the book's argument is ultimately one of recovery. Liberalism has reinvented itself before — in the 1890s, a dying Gladstonian creed gave way to a new liberalism that produced Keynes, Beveridge and a generation that rebuilt the post-war world. The genius is latent. The question, as Wooldridge puts it, is whether today's liberals can sound something other than a faltering trumpet.

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Steve Davies: The Great Realignment

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 12:00:00 GMT

The political map we grew up with is obsolete. What comes next could be far more turbulent than anything we've seen so far. Historian Stephen Davies, author of The Great Realignment, joins CapX editor Marc Sidwell to make the case that the upheavals of recent years – Brexit, Trump, the rise of Reform – are not aberrations to be waited out, but symptoms of something far more structural: a once-in-a-century shift in the organising principle of politics itself. For a hundred years, the central divide was economic.

Now, he argues, it is existential – a clash between rooted national identity and open cosmopolitanism that is scrambling every alliance, every assumption, and every party's electoral map.

The term "populism", Davies contends, is not merely inaccurate but dangerous – a label that allows established institutions to patronise and persistently underestimate the movements they most need to understand. And to those who believe economic recovery will drain the energy from nationalist politics: he is unsparing. The voters driving the realignment are not, at root, angry about stagnation. They are angry about identity. Those are not the same thing, and no growth strategy will make them so.

The show looks at where free marketeers fit in a world reorganised around culture rather than capitalism – and Davies' answer is bracing. The nationalist right's actual agenda, he argues, is functionally incompatible with limited government. Mass deportations, reindustrialisation, reshored supply chains: none of it can be delivered without a very large state indeed.

And then comes the prediction that may prove most provocative of all: that the Brexit divide in British politics will flip – with the nationalist right eventually embracing a Europeanist identity defined in civilisational terms, and the cosmopolitan left recoiling from what that Europe would actually become.

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Despatch: Driven to blackouts

Mon, 30 Mar 2026 16:14:02 GMT

In the winter of 1973, Britain ran on three days a week. Candles lit homes, shops shut early, and a Prime Minister insisted everything was under control — right up until it wasn't. Half a century later, the warnings are sounding again.

Dr Lawrence Newport, Director of Looking for Growth, draws a stark and unsettling parallel between the energy crisis that brought Edward Heath's government to its knees and the fragility of Britain's power supply today. The numbers are not reassuring: North Sea output at historic lows, gas storage a fraction of what it once was, and an import dependency that leaves the country acutely exposed to the kind of international shocks that, history suggests, are a matter of when rather than if.

The failure, Newport argues, is not one government's alone. Successive governments chose dependency over resilience — allowing a labyrinth of reviews, consultations, and legal challenges to strangle domestic energy production while quietly decommissioning the reserves that might have offered protection. Hinkley Point C, the most expensive nuclear plant ever built, stands as the monument to decades of political drift.

The Government insists Britain has one of the most reliable energy systems in the world. Newport is less sure. And the cost of being wrong, he warns, will not be felt in Westminster.

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Tyler Goodspeed: You're wrong about recessions

Wed, 25 Mar 2026 14:00:00 GMT

We have been telling ourselves the wrong story about recessions for four centuries. And the consequences of that error are bigger than you might think.

Dr. Tyler Goodspeed, former chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers and author of the new book Recession, joins CapX editor Marc Sidwell to dismantle one of the most seductive myths in economics: that booms cause busts. Drawing on 132 recessions spanning four centuries of British and American history, Goodspeed makes a forensic and devastating case that economic expansions don't die of natural causes — they are murdered by shocks that nobody saw coming and nobody could have hedged against.

Yield curve inversions, inventory cycles, towering skylines, the ghost of Kondratiev — none of it actually predicts the next downturn. We are, Goodspeed argues, pattern-seeking mammals in a world that doesn't always offer patterns, and our hunger for moral narratives — the roaring twenties, the reckless bankers, the inevitable correction — tells us more about human psychology than it does about economic reality.

Despite our current gloom, recessions are actually getting rarer. But the greatest threat to long-run prosperity may not be the downturns themselves, but the paralysing stories we tell about them.

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Despatch: Same mistakes, same results

Mon, 23 Mar 2026 10:40:36 GMT

Rachel Reeves delivers her Mais lecture. Zack Polanski addresses the New Economics Foundation. Both correctly identify the wounds – and then reach for policies that will make them worse.

Britain's productivity slowdown is the worst in 250 years. GDP per head is nearly £11,000 lower than it would have been had pre-2008 trends continued. Youth unemployment is the highest in Europe. And yet we keep returning to the same remedies: more state, more intervention, more taxation – more of exactly what hasn't worked.

Reem Ibrahim of Reason Magazine offers a clear-eyed audit of where Britain's economic debate currently stands, and finds it wanting. Reeves's housing reforms are modest at best – the OBR estimates Labour's planning changes will account for just 13% of homes built this decade. Polanski's rent controls would, as the near-universal consensus among economists confirms, devastate the very renters they claim to protect. His wealth taxes have been tried across the developed world and quietly abandoned almost everywhere. The question remains: who will stand up for British prosperity?

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How the Tories win again

Wed, 18 Mar 2026 13:11:33 GMT

The Conservative Party has a plan to rebuild. But is it radical enough — and does it have the courage to see it through?

James Cowling, founder of Next Gen Tories, joins CapX editor Marc Sidwell to make the case that the Conservative Party's problems run deeper than a bad election result — and that the solutions require more than a new leader and a policy or two. Timid politics, he argues, has been the real enemy: governments that knew what needed fixing and chose not to fix it.

Cowling draws a sharp distinction between the Conservatives and Reform — not merely on policy, but on intellectual coherence. Reform, he contends, is a coalition of contradictions, held together by attitude rather than ideas. The Conservatives, by contrast, have a chance to build something more durable: a politics of wealth creation, aspiration and community that speaks to the aspirational thirty- and forty-somethings who feel the system is no longer working in their favour.

There are lessons here from Thatcher — and from Pierre Poilievre, whose Canadian coalition of young, housing-hungry voters came tantalisingly close to power before Donald Trump complicated the arithmetic. There's also an unexpected opportunity in London, where a pro-housing, pro-nightlife conservative candidacy for the 2028 mayoral race might, Cowling suggests, do more to signal the party's renewal than any Westminster speech.

The triple lock, the civil service, urban density, candidate selection — Cowling doesn't duck the hard questions. But his central argument is disarmingly simple: stop polling your way to policy, find the golden thread, and trust the voters with the truth.

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Despatch: Economic nationalism is a myth

Mon, 16 Mar 2026 16:47:24 GMT

A Labour backbencher posts a forty-second video blaming Thatcher for Britain's economic woes — and the internet applauds. It's a familiar routine. But what if almost every claim in it is demonstrably, provably wrong?

Maxwell Marlow of the Adam Smith Institute takes a scalpel to the mythology of economic nationalism — the idea that privatisation sold off Britain's birthright, that state ownership would have shielded us from the energy crisis, and that what this country needs now is to rebuild its industry behind tariff walls. One by one, the arguments collapse under scrutiny.

Britain's real economic weaknesses — the housing crisis, the collapsing North Sea, the strangled planning system — are not the product of too much market liberalism. They are the product of far too little. The solutions are not romantic, and they are not new. But they work.

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Tim Leunig: Let's tap the North Sea for energy

Wed, 11 Mar 2026 13:16:48 GMT

When war in Iran doubled gas prices overnight, Britain's energy vulnerabilities were suddenly impossible to ignore. But what's the real fix — and who's actually right?

Tim Leunig, former economic adviser to Rishi Sunak and chief economist at Nesta, joins CapX editor Marc Sidwell for a clear-eyed tour through Britain's energy predicament. Leunig makes the case for extracting more from the North Sea — not out of climate scepticism, but precisely because of it. Every barrel left in British waters is one that doesn't have to be bought from Qatar, piped from a capricious Washington or, worst of all, sourced from Moscow. Fracking, by contrast, is simply unscientific in a densely populated country of Victorian terraced houses. The real hedge, he argues, is a combination of more renewables, smarter efficiency and a North Sea used to its full extent — with a contracts-for-difference model keeping both industry and the public on the right side of a price spike.

There's also an uncomfortable truth for British industrialists: in a world where solar energy in Texas and Western Australia is now the cheapest power on earth, energy-intensive manufacturing is going to follow the sun regardless of whether the right or the left is in charge. Britain simply isn't sunny enough to win that race.

The energy trilemma, it turns out, may be less of a trilemma than politicians on both sides would have you believe.

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Despatch: How to beat Zack Polanski

Mon, 09 Mar 2026 14:28:57 GMT

Under Zack Polanski, the Greens have quietly abandoned environmentalism in favour of something far more combustible: a coalition of economic grievance, communal tension, and calculated identity politics. And it's working.

Young Britons — priced out of homes, squeezed by taxes, shut out of stable careers — are turning to a party whose solutions would make every one of their problems dramatically worse. Wealth taxes that don't raise money. Rent controls that push up rents. A Gaza foreign policy built on sentiment rather than sense.

But there is a counter-example. Across the Atlantic, a conservative politician managed the seemingly impossible: he made the Right cool to young voters again. His name is Pierre Poilievre, and Britain's political class would do well to pay attention.

Joseph Dinnage, Deputy Editor of CapX, makes the case for why — and how — the British Right must go Canadian before it's too late.

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Pierre Poilievre: Why free markets work

Thu, 05 Mar 2026 09:00:32 GMT

Why does it feel harder than ever for young people to buy a home? According to Pierre Poilievre, the answer lies not just in planning laws or slow construction — but in the silent erosion of money itself.

In this special episode of The Capitalist, recorded at the Margaret Thatcher Lecture hosted by the Centre for Policy Studies, Canada's Opposition Leader argues that decades of money printing across the Western world have inflated asset prices and widened the gap between rich and poor. If measured in gold, he suggests, housing is actually cheaper than it was half a century ago — but measured in pounds and dollars, it has skyrocketed as currencies lose purchasing power. The result is a generation locked out of ownership while asset holders benefit from inflation.

Drawing on the ideas of Adam Smith and Margaret Thatcher, Poilievre lays out a broader conservative argument for the modern age: restore sound money, dismantle barriers to home building, expand free trade between allied democracies, and rebuild an economy that rewards work and enterprise rather than political connections.

It’s a sweeping defence of free markets — and a call for a new alliance of free nations determined to restore opportunity for the next generation.

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Despatch: Farage v. Polanski?

Mon, 02 Mar 2026 09:40:55 GMT

A Green by-election victory in Greater Manchester may once have seemed unthinkable. Now it looks like a warning shot. In this essay, William Atkinson, Assistant Content Editor at The Spectator, argues that the result signals something far deeper than a protest vote: the fragmentation of Britain’s traditional party system and the rise of sectarian, identity-driven politics. With Labour rattled, the Conservatives in retreat and insurgent forces circling, Gorton and Denton could prove a harbinger of a far more volatile political era.

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Build, baby, build

Wed, 25 Feb 2026 14:00:00 GMT

Britain is in the grip of a housing crisis. And despite the promises of successive governments, we just can’t seem to build enough new homes. But this isn’t a uniquely British problem. In his book, “Build Baby Build”, Bryan Caplan examines the forces shaping housing markets in a way that applies almost everywhere.

Bryan’s core argument is disarmingly simple: cut regulation and more homes will follow. But as an economist at George Mason University, he is also acutely aware of the political and economic trade-offs – including the tension between high housing costs and the interests of those already invested in the market.

He joins Marc Sidwell to discuss not only what less regulation could achieve, but how such an approach might even become politically popular.

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Despatch: Generation Unemployed

Mon, 23 Feb 2026 11:10:44 GMT

As unemployment climbs and youth joblessness surges past 16%, ministers insist the labour market is merely adjusting. But in this essay, Andrew Griffith, Shadow Secretary of State for Business and Trade, argues the truth is far starker: Labour’s higher payroll taxes, expanded union powers and sweeping employment regulations have made hiring more expensive, riskier and less attractive. The result, he says, is a steady erosion of Britain’s once-flexible jobs market — with young people paying the highest price.

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If we don't own AI's future, China will

Wed, 18 Feb 2026 14:00:00 GMT

America has long liked to see itself as the world’s dream factory – from the birth of Hollywood to the moon landings, a belief in thinking bigger has been central to the national story. But attitudes towards artificial intelligence reveal a worrying shift. Surveys show that more people are anxious about AI than excited by its spread, with around six in ten saying the technology is moving too fast.

James Pethokoukis is the author of The Conservative Futurist and writes the Substack newsletter Faster, Please. He’s also a senior fellow and the DeWitt Wallace Chair at the American Enterprise Institute, where he analyses US economic policy. He joins Marc Sidwell to discuss the transformative possibilities of AI, how its risks can be managed, and why a more optimistic outlook may be warranted.

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Despatch: Thatcher's ownership revolution isn't over

Mon, 16 Feb 2026 05:00:00 GMT

As younger voters grow disillusioned with a housing system that denies them real control over their homes, the battle over leasehold has become a test of whether capitalism still delivers on its promises. In this essay, Harry Scoffin, founder of Free Leaseholders, argues that reforming — and ultimately replacing — leasehold with commonhold is not a left-wing cause, but the logical continuation of Thatcher’s popular capitalism. From Randolph Churchill to Margaret Thatcher, Conservatives once championed mass ownership as a bulwark against socialism. Scoffin makes the case that finishing that project could restore faith in markets, revive homeownership and prevent a new generation from turning away from the system altogether.

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Is small-state conservatism ready for a comeback?

Wed, 11 Feb 2026 14:54:27 GMT

When the Conservative Party last entered government, in coalition with the Liberal Democrats, the UK was still finding its feet after the global financial crisis. What followed was a succession of events that quickly came to dominate political life: Brexit, the pandemic, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Each of these moments demanded large, costly interventions from the state. But Britain now faces a new set of challenges: an ageing population, a fresh industrial revolution driven by AI, growing global security risks, and the pressures of a changing climate.

John Penrose is the founder of the Centre for Small Conservatives. A former Conservative MP, he joins Marc Sidwell to discuss why he’s arguing for moving beyond rhetoric and towards serious, practical policy ideas — ones he believes can deliver tangible results in the real world.

Guest: John Penrose, former MP and founder of the Centre for Small State Conservatives

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Could Keir Starmer be replaced?

Wed, 04 Feb 2026 13:04:11 GMT

Can a Prime Minister really be on borrowed time less than two years after a landslide election victory? Benjamin Wilson speaks to ConservativeHome's Henry Hill about the mounting speculation around Sir Keir Starmer — and why Labour’s internal unrest may be less surprising than it looks.

Henry argues that Starmer’s problems were baked in from the start: a low-turnout election, a deliberately cautious manifesto, and a parliamentary party that never felt bound to deliver painful choices on welfare, spending, or reform. But now the problems run even deeper: Labour’s rebellions, the structural difficulty of governing with a huge and undisciplined majority, the changing expectations placed on leaders in the age of social media, and the stagnant fiscal reality that now threatens any party in power. From Reform’s rise to the fragmentation of the electorate, Henry thinks Britain may be entering a brutal cycle in which voters punish every governing party for problems no leader can easily fix.

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Despatch: Build up, not out

Mon, 02 Feb 2026 16:19:59 GMT

After decades of chronic undersupply, even modest housing reforms can feel like cause for celebration. But in this essay, John Penrose, Chair of the Conservative Policy Forum and founder and director of the Centre for Small-State Conservatives, argues that the Government’s latest plans don’t go nearly far enough. His solution is simple and radical in equal measure: give homeowners the right to build up, not out. By gently increasing density in towns and cities, Penrose says Britain could unlock millions of new homes, restore urban beauty, and finally make housing affordable for a new generation.

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Special: Lessons from the Lawson boom

Thu, 29 Jan 2026 14:57:53 GMT

In this special live discussion, Mervyn King, Lord King of Lothbury, and Terry Burns, Lord Burns, reflect on the economics and politics of the Lawson boom, chaired by Daniel Mahoney. Drawing on their first-hand experience working with Nigel Lawson, they revisit one of the most consequential periods in modern British economic history.

Presented in front of a live audience, the discussion touches on the inheritance of 1970s inflation and the controversial 1981 Budget, tax reform, monetary targeting, exchange-rate policy, and the late-1980s boom and bust. King and Burns challenge the myth that the 1988 Budget alone caused the Lawson boom, arguing instead that prolonged low interest rates, financial deregulation, data misreads, and global conditions played a decisive role.

Looking forward, they connect these lessons to today’s debates on inflation after Covid, the role of money and fiscal discipline, supply-side reform, and the growing strain on central bank independence. A timely, candid exchange between two architects and critics of Britain’s modern macroeconomic framework – and a crucial reminder of how hard-won credibility must be renewed.

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Despatch: Should we ban rich people?

Tue, 27 Jan 2026 10:57:21 GMT

As calls grow louder to cap personal fortunes, a new philosophy – “limitarianism” – argues that no one should be allowed to be rich beyond a fixed limit. In this essay, Tim Worstall, Senior Fellow at the Adam Smith Institute, takes aim at the idea, arguing that it rests on a fundamental misunderstanding of how wealth, value and incentives actually work. From Mark Zuckerberg to global inequality, he makes the case that extreme riches are not a social failure, but often the by-product of innovations that benefit billions – and that banning wealth would leave society poorer, not fairer.

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Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg: It's time for a Tory-Reform pact

Wed, 21 Jan 2026 14:30:00 GMT

As Robert Jenrick defects to Reform UK, pressure is mounting on the Conservative Party to chart a new course. In this episode of The Capitalist, Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg joins Marc Sidwell to dissect the fallout — and to make the case for a pre-election pact between Reform and the Tories.

One of the party’s most recognisable figures, Rees-Mogg argues that Kemi Badenoch has emerged strengthened, but warns that division on the Right could lead to catastrophe. Drawing on the historical precedents of 1918 and 1931, he outlines how a pact might work in practice — and why, in his view, the future of the Right depends on swift, strategic unity.

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Despatch: More Tory turmoil?

Mon, 19 Jan 2026 14:30:00 GMT

Robert Jenrick’s dramatic defection to Reform UK has blown open long-simmering tensions on the British Right — and handed Kemi Badenoch a serious test as Conservative leader. In this essay, Joseph Dinnage, deputy editor of CapX, dissects the intrigue behind Jenrick’s dismissal, the risks Badenoch took in cutting him loose, and the uncertain gains for Nigel Farage’s insurgent party. It’s a story of ambition, loyalty and timing — and one that may yet reshape the balance of power on the Right.

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Will Trump strike Iran?

Wed, 14 Jan 2026 14:48:13 GMT

What happens when a regime shuts off the internet — and then turns its guns on its own people? For the IEA's Mani Basharzad, the question is deeply personal: he hasn't heard from his mother or friends in Iran for days. As the country plunges into its most violent crackdown in decades, reports of mass killings, information blackouts and nationwide protests raise a stark question: is the Islamic Republic finally losing control?

In this urgent episode of The Capitalist, Joseph Dinnage speaks to Mani about what an internet shutdown really means on the ground, why this wave of protests feels fundamentally different from those that came before, and how a broad coalition of Iranians — rich and poor, secular and religious — are rallying around the prospect of regime change. Mani explains the role of Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi, the economic collapse hollowing out the state, and why this movement is less a revolution than a fight to reclaim basic normality.

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Despatch: Is Britain sacrificing a generation to unemployment?

Mon, 12 Jan 2026 14:30:00 GMT

As ministers insist the labour market is merely “normalising”, the numbers tell a more troubling story — especially for the young. In this essay, Damian Pudner, an independent economist specialising in monetary policy, argues that Britain is sliding into a slow-burn recession under Rachel Reeves, with youth unemployment surging and entry-level jobs disappearing. Higher payroll taxes, tighter regulation and rising business costs, he warns, are scarring a generation before their working lives have properly begun — with consequences that could haunt the economy for decades.

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The Rage of Party with George Owers

Wed, 07 Jan 2026 14:00:00 GMT

Are today’s culture wars, party fractures and populist backlashes really something new — or are we simply reliving an old British story? In this episode of The Capitalist, Marc Sidwell looks three centuries into the past to understand the political turmoil of the present. From riots over immigration to furious pamphlet wars, from elite anxiety about misinformation to bitter arguments over Britain’s role in Europe, the foundations of modern politics were laid in the age of Whigs and Tories.

Marc is joined by historian and author George Owers, whose book "The Rage of Party" (one of CapX's favourites of 2025) brings the birth of British party politics vividly to life. Together they explore the explosive origins of left and right, the rise of finance and global ambition, the dangers of suppressing demagogues, and why moderation — however unfashionable — has always been the hardest political art to master.

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Special: Sir Malcolm Rifkind on Margaret Thatcher

Tue, 06 Jan 2026 05:30:00 GMT

Margaret Thatcher remains one of the most consequential leaders in modern British history. Rising to power after the "Winter of Discontent," she steered the country through economic turmoil, high inflation, and widespread industrial unrest. Her bold embrace of free-market principles reshaped Britain — and left a legacy still fiercely debated today.

Now, as political uncertainty returns to Westminster, Thatcher’s conviction-led leadership feels more relevant than ever.

In this short interview, former Foreign Secretary Sir Malcolm Rifkind — one of only five ministers to serve throughout both the Thatcher and Major governments — reflects on his time at the heart of power. With insight and candour, he reveals what set Mrs Thatcher apart, and why her leadership style made such a lasting impact, even in the face of fierce opposition.

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Forecast 2026: Has Nigel Farage peaked?

Thu, 01 Jan 2026 06:00:00 GMT

With local elections looming in May, Labour collapsing in the polls, and Westminster rumbling with leadership intrigue, Marc Sidwell asks whether Sir Keir Starmer is heading for a reckoning — and whether figures like Ed Miliband could seize the moment. Meanwhile, Reform UK continues to hover around the 30% mark, the Conservatives search for a bounce under Kemi Badenoch, and Britain’s politics looks increasingly like a multi-party fight.

In this new year forecast, Marc is joined by Joseph Dinnage, Deputy Editor of CapX, to map the fault-lines of the next 12 months — from the battle for the right, to the economic hard choices that no party can dodge, to America’s 250th birthday under Donald Trump and the possibility of a post-Trump succession fight led by JD Vance. If 2025 was the year the centre cracked, 2026 may be the year it fully gives way.

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Is the political centre breaking?

Wed, 17 Dec 2025 15:19:35 GMT

Is Britain entering an age of permanent political fragmentation? As Labour falters despite its landslide victory, Reform UK surges, the Greens flirt with wealth taxes, and the Conservatives search for renewed purpose under Kemi Badenoch, the old certainties of British politics are unravelling. Across the Atlantic, Donald Trump’s second term has proved no less turbulent — from the collapse of his Department of Government Efficiency to a tariff regime that’s shaken the global trading order.

In this end-of-year review, Marc Sidwell is joined by Joseph Dinnage, Deputy Editor of CapX, to take stock of a chaotic political year. Together they explore why reform has proved so elusive, how populism is reshaping both left and right, and what Trump’s unpredictability means for Britain, Europe and the global economy.

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Despatch: Education needs more scrutiny

Mon, 15 Dec 2025 15:20:36 GMT

With nearly a million under-24s out of work, education or training, good intentions are no longer enough. In this essay, John Penrose, Chair of the Conservative Policy Forum, argues that Britain’s education and careers system is quietly wasting talent — steering young people into the wrong courses, offering patchy guidance, and making it far too hard to change direction later in life. His solution is strikingly pragmatic: better information on outcomes, stronger careers advice in schools, and a smarter system to recognise real-world skills — reforms that could transform life chances without costing the taxpayer a fortune.

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Is the Online Safety Act doomed?

Wed, 10 Dec 2025 14:40:27 GMT

What happens when foreign governments try to police American speech? For years, UK and EU regulators have slapped massive fines on U.S. tech firms — but Washington may finally be ready to hit back. Free speech lawyer Preston Byrne joins The Capitalist to unveil the GRANITE Act, a bold new proposal that would strip foreign regulators of immunity in U.S. courts and allow American companies to sue for millions in damages.

In a wide-ranging conversation, Byrne explains how a growing clash over online regulation could redefine the internet itself — and why the next front in the global free speech war may be fought not in Silicon Valley or Brussels, but in Washington.

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Despatch: All parties should be subjected to the OBR

Mon, 08 Dec 2025 08:30:51 GMT

What if every political party had to face real economic scrutiny? As Britain’s political landscape fragments and fiscal debate grows ever more chaotic, Joseph Dinnage, deputy editor of CapX, asks a provocative question: should the Office for Budget Responsibility judge all parties, not just the one in power? In this essay, he charts Rachel Reeves’s faltering economic credibility, the radicalism of the Greens and Your Party, and the inconsistencies on the Right — arguing that an upgraded OBR, modelled on the Dutch system, could bring much-needed discipline and transparency to a system swamped by unserious ideas. It wouldn’t make forecasting perfect, he says, but it would help voters see which plans add up — and which are pure fantasy.

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Sir Malcolm Rifkind on the future of the Conservatives

Wed, 03 Dec 2025 14:06:49 GMT

Can Britain’s oldest political party reinvent itself for a new age? Former Foreign Secretary Sir Malcolm Rifkind joins Marc Sidwell to discuss the future of the Conservative Party, the legacy of Margaret Thatcher, and the dangers of Britain’s political drift. From the crisis over the European Convention on Human Rights to the challenge of illegal migration and the war in Ukraine, Rifkind offers a veteran’s view of how Britain can regain both control and confidence.

One of only five ministers to serve for 18 years, throughout the whole Prime Ministerships of both Margaret Thatcher and John Major, he also reflects on what made Thatcher so effective — a rare blend of conviction and pragmatism — and what her example means for Kemi Badenoch as she seeks to rebuild the party after its worst defeat in a generation.

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Despatch: Labour need a new strategy

Mon, 01 Dec 2025 05:30:00 GMT

Faced with weak growth, mounting debt and global instability, Britain needed a bold, pro-enterprise Budget. Instead, says James Price, Senior Fellow at the Adam Smith Institute, Rachel Reeves delivered one designed for party management rather than national renewal. In this essay, Price argues that Labour has no credible growth strategy — no serious tax reform, no supply-side agenda, and no appetite to shrink the state. The result, he warns, is an economy trapped in stagnation and a government running out of time to act.

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Budget Day with Jeremy Hunt

Wed, 26 Nov 2025 05:45:00 GMT

Are higher taxes really inevitable — or just a political choice? Former Chancellor Jeremy Hunt joins Marc Sidwell on The Capitalist to share a rare insider’s view of what it’s like to build a Budget under pressure. From last-minute policy decisions to the fine balance between fiscal responsibility and economic growth, Hunt explains why Britain’s current course risks stifling productivity and shrinking the private sector.

In a candid conversation, Hunt argues that welfare reform — not ever-higher taxes — is the real key to restoring growth. With insight from his time at the Treasury and the Department of Health, he lays out a vision for an economy that rewards work, innovation, and enterprise rather than punishing them.

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Despatch: Can Britain escape its economic doom loop?

Mon, 24 Nov 2025 08:12:18 GMT

After years of stagnation, high taxes and spiralling public spending, Britain risks locking itself into permanent decline. As Rachel Reeves prepares her second Budget, Ewen Stewart, City economist and member of the Growth Commission, sets out a bold plan to reverse course — cutting £105 billion in spending, simplifying taxes, and unleashing private enterprise. He argues that only by shrinking the state, freeing up markets and restoring sound money can Britain return to real growth and prosperity.

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Is Britain at war with wealth?

Wed, 19 Nov 2025 15:45:00 GMT

Next week, former Chancellor Jeremy Hunt will join Marc Sidwell for a special interview as Rachel Reeves delivers her much-anticipated Budget. Ahead of that, Henry Hill, deputy editor of Conservative Home, assesses the political allure—and economic illusion—of a wealth tax. From the risks of capital flight to the moral tension between fairness and prosperity, the conversation explores whether any government can afford to punish success without hurting growth.

Are we witnessing the rise of a new class war in British politics? As Labour eyes higher taxes on those with the “broadest shoulders” and the Greens embrace what they call “eco-populism,” the rhetoric around wealth and fairness is sharpening. But would taxing the rich really fix Britain’s economic woes—or simply drive away the people who keep the system afloat?

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Despatch: Could trillionaires actually save the world?

Mon, 17 Nov 2025 07:34:45 GMT

As Elon Musk edges toward an eye-watering new milestone, the idea of a trillionaire sparks more fear than fascination on the left. But what if extreme wealth could accelerate progress rather than hoard it? In this essay, James Price, Senior Fellow at the Adam Smith Institute, argues that visionaries like Musk and other billionaire entrepreneurs reinvest their fortunes in projects that governments could never deliver—from AI-driven education to medical breakthroughs and space exploration. The result, he suggests, is a private sector more capable of solving humanity’s biggest problems than any public institution.

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Can the BBC survive its biggest crisis yet?

Wed, 12 Nov 2025 14:30:00 GMT

How does Britain’s most famous broadcaster recover from a crisis that’s reached the very top? In the space of a week, the BBC has lost two of its most senior executives and now faces an extraordinary legal threat from the President of the United States. What began as an editing error in a Panorama documentary has spiralled into a full-blown test of the corporation’s credibility — and its future.

In this episode of The Capitalist, Marc Sidwell is joined by veteran journalist Robin Lustig, former BBC World Service and Radio 4 presenter, to explore what this storm reveals about the state of public service broadcasting, political polarisation, and the shifting media landscape. Together, they ask whether the BBC can still command trust in a divided Britain — and what must change to restore its authority.

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Despatch: Tax treachery will cost us

Mon, 10 Nov 2025 07:20:04 GMT

Is Britain heading for another 1976 moment? With a £30 billion fiscal hole and few promises left unbroken, Rachel Reeves looks set to raise income tax — a move that could mark a grim turning point for Britain’s economy. In this essay, Reem Ibrahim, Head of Media at the Institute of Economic Affairs, warns that higher taxes on work will punish aspiration, stifle growth, and echo the policy mistakes that once sent Britain to the IMF, cap in hand. Her message is clear: without spending restraint, Reeves risks repeating history’s harshest lesson.

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Special: Decoding the Chancellor’s pre-Budget signals

Tue, 04 Nov 2025 17:12:43 GMT

Rachel Reeves' speech on Tuesday gave every indication that tax rises are on the way — though she was careful not to name names.

The challenge is clear: raising serious revenue usually means turning to the big three — income tax, National Insurance, or VAT. But Labour’s manifesto ruled those out, leaving the Chancellor with a fiscal puzzle and limited room to manoeuvre.

Joining CapX deputy editor Joseph Dinnage to make sense of it all are Reem Ibrahim from the Institute of Economic Affairs and Henry Hill from Conservative Home.

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Despatch: Why the Right should back the Oxford Cambridge Arc

Mon, 03 Nov 2025 08:59:08 GMT

Should the Right back Britain’s most ambitious science corridor? The Oxford–Cambridge Arc has long been dismissed as another government slogan in search of substance. Yet beneath the jargon lies a bold vision: a world-class corridor linking Britain’s greatest minds, laboratories, and industries—from quantum computing to Formula One. In this essay, James Price, Senior Fellow at the Adam Smith Institute, argues that the Arc could be the key to Britain’s renewal—if only conservatives have the courage to back it. With smarter planning, faster connections, and freer markets, he says, the region could transform from a bureaucratic idea into a global powerhouse.

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How Britain could build enough homes

Wed, 29 Oct 2025 14:30:00 GMT

Labour’s New Towns Taskforce promised a bold vision for housing. But with only three modest sites selected, is this really the step-change the country needs — or just more planning fatigue?

Plus: with welfare spending rising and tax burdens at record highs, is it time for serious reform? As the Treasury looks for ways to plug a £22 billion shortfall, we ask whether the current system still delivers value for money.

And can London win back its missing millionaires? After years of sluggish growth and rising levies, business leaders are calling for a rethink of the capital’s tax regime. Benjamin Wilson is joined by City AM’s Alys Denby and Lawrence Newport from Looking for Growth to explore what’s needed to put London back on the global map.

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Despatch: Labour is scaring the wealth away

Mon, 27 Oct 2025 05:30:00 GMT

Welcome to the new Despatch — your Monday briefing for a sharper, more optimistic week. London’s super-prime property market has long been the world’s barometer of confidence. When Britain welcomes success, investment flows freely; when it punishes ambition, the money quietly leaves. Now, even before the Chancellor unveils his Budget, the warning lights are flashing. Economist Damian Pudner explains why London’s property slowdown is a symptom of fading confidence — and sets out practical steps to bring capital, and optimism, back.

Despatch comes from the team behind The Capitalist. Don’t miss our full podcast every Wednesday.

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Brexit means... more taxes?

Wed, 22 Oct 2025 12:30:00 GMT

As Labour prepares its first Budget, can the party really blame Brexit for Britain’s sluggish productivity – and will voters be convinced? We also ask why Britain still isn’t building enough homes, and whether a new environmental levy risks making the crisis worse.

Plus: in an age of short-form video and fractured attention, where have all the great communicators gone? With Thatcher’s centenary in mind, the panel explores what it takes to cut through in modern politics – and who, if anyone, is getting it right.

Marc Sidwell is joined by writer and strategist John Oxley and former Downing Street communications adviser Robert Midgley for a sharp look at the week’s big political questions.

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Despatch: 21st century Thatcherism

Fri, 17 Oct 2025 04:00:00 GMT

Fifty years since Margaret Thatcher became leader of the Conservative Party, her face, and even some of her iconic outfits, were all over this year’s party conference. Not everyone was happy about that. Hot takes and tweets grumbled about it being time to move on, to pack away the old clothes and put out something a bit more 2025.

At CapX, however, we’re proud to still fly the Thatcherite flag. Not just because, as part of the Centre for Policy Studies, the think tank she co-founded, Thatcher’s ideas are in our DNA. But, as Marc Sidwell argues, because Mrs Thatcher remains the woman for this moment, with the ideas that Britain still needs to get back on the right track.

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Ofcom faces legal action over online safety

Wed, 15 Oct 2025 15:38:44 GMT

Can a British regulator really fine an overseas website under the banner of the Online Safety Act? In today’s edition of The Capitalist, host Marc Sidwell is joined by free speech lawyer Preston Byrne and journalist Harry Phibbs to discuss Ofcom’s £20,000 penalty against 4chan — and what it means for free expression in the digital age.

The conversation then turns to calls for a one-off wealth raid to patch Britain’s public finances, and to Marc’s own argument that Margaret Thatcher’s unfinished revolution still offers Britain a blueprint for national renewal.

From digital censorship to tax grabs and the battle for Britain’s economic soul, this is a sharp, timely look at what freedom really means in 2025.

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Special: Does Britain need a chainsaw revolution?

Fri, 10 Oct 2025 04:00:00 GMT

Javier Milei’s Argentina has drawn the admiration of many British conservatives. But what would a “British Milei” really look like — and would the civil service, Parliament, or the public ever let one govern? That question animated a lively CapX panel at the Conservative Party Conference in Manchester, chaired by Joseph Dinnage, with Jack Rankin MP, Annunziata Rees-Mogg of Popular Conservatives, Tom Clougherty of the Institute of Economic Affairs, and Tom Harwood of GB News. The discussion drew heavily on Argentina’s libertarian experiment under President Javier Milei — his slash-and-burn of ministries, his rapid deficit elimination, and his flair for political theatre. Could such radicalism take root in Westminster’s rule-bound soil?

The panel’s admiration was tempered by realism. Clougherty praised Milei’s fiscal discipline — cutting Argentina’s deficit from 5% of GDP to zero in a month — but warned that “chainsaws don’t travel well.” Rees-Mogg highlighted Milei’s “depth of conviction,” arguing Britain’s leaders have lost the courage to act decisively. Rankin cautioned that “the Overton window hasn’t yet moved on the economy,” though he expects a coming fiscal reckoning to force honesty about debt, welfare, and spending. Harwood, meanwhile, drew parallels with Liz Truss’s ill-fated mini-budget: “Markets thought we’d gone loopy,” he said, underscoring that radicalism without credibility is ruinous.

Where Argentina acted from crisis, Britain’s crisis is one of confidence. The conversation returned again and again to communication — how to marry tough economics with moral clarity. “We need to explain the why,” Rees-Mogg insisted. The lesson from Buenos Aires, it seems, isn’t to imitate Milei’s chainsaw, but his conviction: to tell the truth early, show belief in reform, and build consent before crisis forces the issue.

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Special: Live at the Conservative Party Conference

Wed, 08 Oct 2025 13:00:00 GMT

“The Tory Party isn’t dead... yet.”

Live from the Conservative Party Conference 2025 in Manchester, The Capitalist tests that claim with a frank post-mortem and a blueprint for revival. Host Marc Sidwell grills Tom Harwood (Deputy Political Editor, GB News) and Lord Graham Brady (former MP and long-time chair of the 1922 Committee) on whether this bruised party can regain credibility — and how fast. From the mood on the conference floor to the hard maths of the public finances, they weigh the big gambles: leaving the ECHR to make border policy bite, putting spending cuts ahead of tax hikes, and shifting the national conversation back to growth, competitiveness and a simpler, flatter tax system.

Expect sharp takes on the Reform Party squeeze, why messaging matters as much as manifestos, and what Thatcher-era discipline can still teach a fractious Right. With the autumn Budget looming and trust at a premium, our guests debate whether a “strong borders, strong economy” pivot can move votes — or if this is just the first step in a long road back.

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Despatch: Is Ed Miliband a threat to climate action?

Fri, 03 Oct 2025 04:00:00 GMT

Is Ed Miliband the greatest threat to climate action in Britain today? In this edition of Despatch, Sam Hall — Director of the Conservative Environment Network — delivers a clear critique of Labour’s energy agenda. While the left rails against climate sceptics like Nigel Farage, Hall argues it’s actually Ed Miliband’s heavy-handed, ideologically driven policies that risk turning the public against the green transition.

From sky-high subsidies and rushed decarbonisation targets to politicised rhetoric tying climate change to broader progressive causes, Labour is making clean energy more expensive, less competitive, and dangerously partisan. The result? Higher bills, slower adoption of electric vehicles and heating, and growing resistance from voters who should be onside.

With the Conservative Party Conference approaching, Hall makes the case for a pragmatic, pro-market approach to climate policy — and calls on the right to reclaim its environmental legacy from both denialists and dogmatists.

Despatch is the sharp weekly briefing from the team behind The Capitalist, unpacking the political ideas shaping Britain's future.

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Labour's immigration challenge

Wed, 01 Oct 2025 15:32:16 GMT

Labour is playing a dangerous game on immigration – edging closer to Reform’s hardline rhetoric but risking alienation from their own base, while never going far enough to satisfy Reform’s supporters. Against this backdrop, Rachel Reeves prepares the ground for potential tax rises. Can Labour raise revenue without choking off long-term growth? Marc Sidwell is joined by City AM’s Alys Denby and Dr Lawrence Newport of the Looking for Growth campaign. Also on the agenda: what the government’s new residency rules mean for Britain’s workforce, and whether cutting obscure planning red tape will really deliver the economic momentum Labour has promised.

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Despatch: Is Starmer on shaky ground?

Fri, 26 Sep 2025 04:00:00 GMT

With party conference season underway and Andy Burnham circling with a bolder agenda, former special adviser Callum Price asks the hard questions: Why is Labour so wary of defining its purpose? Why does Starmer still seem like a fox pretending to be a hedgehog — chasing contradictory goals without a guiding principle? And what happens when a party with power has no story to tell?

Drawing on lessons from Isaiah Berlin and even Margaret Thatcher’s ideological clarity, this edition explores what happens when governments try to govern without vision — and why the vacuum is already being filled.

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Is anyone being serious?

Wed, 24 Sep 2025 13:30:00 GMT

Nigel Farage and Sir Ed Davey may sit on opposite ends of the political spectrum, yet both share a flair for spectacle — deft at seizing headlines, even when the substance is thinner than the show.

Reform UK’s proposal to scrap the route to permanent residency for migrants marks a striking departure from the policies of Britain’s main parties. But beyond all the talk, what would such a move really mean for the economy? CapX’s Marc Sidwell speaks with Daniel Freeman of the Institute of Economic Affairs and Maxwell Marlow of the Adam Smith Institute to separate fact from fiction.

Elsewhere, the Liberal Democrats are often cast as too staid to capture attention – yet their strong election performance suggests that there may, in fact, be an appetite for more measured politics. And across the Atlantic, freedom of speech is often celebrated as a cornerstone of American life. The recent controversy surrounding Jimmy Kimmel, however, underlines how contested the principle has become – in the US as much as in Europe. As the digital age reshapes debate, are our assumptions about liberty shifting too?

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Despatch: Steve Baker thinks a crash is coming

Fri, 19 Sep 2025 04:00:00 GMT

What if the real revolution isn’t coming from the Left — but from the forgotten champions of free markets and personal freedom?

In this special edition of Despatch, former Conservative MP Steve Baker lays out a bold and urgent case for a political reawakening. With the UK economy stumbling under the weight of high taxes, ballooning debt, and bureaucratic drift, Steve argues that the real danger isn’t populism — it’s the slow death of freedom under a stifling managerial consensus.

Launching his new movement Fighting for a Free Future, Steve says we're facing a huge crisis and we need a paradigm shift: a return to the principles that once lifted billions out of poverty and could do so again — if only we had the courage to unleash them.

Drawing inspiration from Leonard Read’s classic essay "I, Pencil" and Argentina’s dramatic turnaround under President Javier Milei, this episode is a passionate reminder that voluntary cooperation, not state coercion, lies at the heart of human progress.

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Who speaks for Britain’s centre-right?

Wed, 17 Sep 2025 13:30:00 GMT

Is the centre-right cracking? From Westminster defections to French fiscal chaos, this week has delivered a sharp shock to Europe’s conservative mainstream. In London, Tory MP Danny Kruger crossed the floor to join Reform UK, denouncing his former party as “over.” In Paris, a fresh downgrade to France’s credit rating has cast a long shadow over President Macron’s government as strikes loom and talk of wealth taxes rattles business leaders.

In this timely edition of The Capitalist, host Marc Sidwell is joined by policy analyst François Valentin and Conservative Home deputy editor Henry Hill to explore what these moments reveal about the state of centre-right politics across the continent. Are voters turning away from moderation? Can mainstream parties adapt — or are they being outflanked on both sides?

Sharp analysis, calm insight — and the questions every serious observer of European politics should be asking.

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Despatch: Britain is becoming France

Fri, 12 Sep 2025 04:00:00 GMT

Is Britain sleepwalking into a very French crisis? In this Despatch, Joseph Dinnage argues that Westminster is starting to look uncomfortably like Paris: a revolving door at the top, a debt “swamp” that spooks markets, and electorates hooked on ever-costlier entitlements. After François Bayrou’s fall and Sébastien Lecornu’s rise, France’s soaring debt and pension politics serve as a cautionary tale—one Britain may be replaying with the triple lock, winter fuel U-turns and a ballooning interest bill. As Marine Le Pen and Nigel Farage reshape the conversation, Dinnage makes a brisk, unsentimental case for fiscal grit from Labour and a credible growth plan from the Tories—before voters decide the duopoly has had its day.

Despatch features the best writing from CapX's daily newsletter, brought to you by the team behind The Capitalist. Don't miss our full show every Wednesday.

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Special: Steve Baker on Britain's Milei moment

Tue, 09 Sep 2025 04:00:00 GMT

Argentina's Javier Milei has defied critics by bringing sweeping economic reform to an economy many had written off. Former MP Steve Baker — the “hard man of Brexit” — says a similarly radical free-market reform can save Britain, too. In this special edition of The Capitalist, Steve joins Marc Sidwell to launch his new project, Fighting for a Free Future.

From soaring house prices to the looming pensions crisis, Steve pulls no punches: the managerial state is broken, the emperor has no clothes, and unless Britain slashes spending, abandons failed orthodoxies, and embraces liberty, we face managed decline — or worse.

Britain is running out of time. Debt is spiralling, taxes are at breaking point, and politicians refuse to face the truth. This is a conversation about courage, crisis, and the bold choices we must make before it’s too late.

Discover more about Steve's new project: https://www.fightingforafreefuture.com/

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Despatch: Is Angela Rayner on the ropes?

Fri, 05 Sep 2025 04:00:00 GMT

This week on Despatch, we ask whether Labour’s deputy leader is about to fall victim to her own class war. Once the scourge of Conservative ministers accused of impropriety, Rayner now faces her own reckoning over unpaid stamp duty. Yet her life story – from single mother at 16 to the country’s second-in-command – makes her both Labour’s populist powerhouse and a figure of fascination for some Tories.

William Atkinson of The Spectator explores the political theatre, the stakes for Keir Starmer, and why Rayner’s survival could reshape Labour – and perhaps Britain’s future leadership.

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Does migration hurt our economy?

Wed, 03 Sep 2025 13:30:00 GMT

Britain’s migration debate has reached boiling point. With migrant hotels sparking legal battles, border policies under fire, and trust in government eroding, the question is no longer just about numbers – it’s about whether Britain can regain control of its borders and its future.

In this edition of The Capitalist, Marc Sidwell is joined by City AM’s Alys Denby and economist Julian Jessop to unpack the UK’s immigration crisis, its decade of economic stagnation, and the explosive rise of Reform UK. From the economics of mass migration to the politics of the ECHR, the panel offers clear-eyed analysis on a nation at a crossroads.

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Despatch: The Online Safety Act is humiliating Britain

Fri, 29 Aug 2025 04:00:00 GMT

Britain’s new Online Safety Act was meant to protect children — but it’s becoming an international embarrassment. Not only is it pushing young people towards darker corners of the web, it’s also turning the UK into a would-be global censor.

This week on Despatch, legal scholar Andrew Tettenborn reveals how Ofcom is sending heavy-handed legal threats to US websites like 4chan, Gab, and KiwiFarms, demanding they obey UK law — only to be laughed off. The result? Britain now looks like a bully abroad, a censor at home, and a country at odds with its proud tradition of free speech.

From VPN loopholes to threats of a “Great British Firewall”, this is a searing look at a law that’s doing far more harm than good — and why it’s time for a rethink.

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Fix this tax mess

Wed, 27 Aug 2025 13:30:00 GMT

Britain’s tax system is overly complex and destroys our growth prospects. Should Labour follow Australia’s lead and convene a roundtable of business leaders and experts to really overhaul the system? CapX’s deputy editor Joseph Dinnage is joined by Dr Lawrence Newport from Looking for Growth and the political strategist John Oxley for a clear-eyed look at how to cut the fat and get Britain moving again. Plus: the Tories say they’ll introduce fines for noisy phones on the tube. But who’s going to enforce the rule? And why is the Notting Hill Carnival still so dangerous?

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Despatch: Just start building

Fri, 22 Aug 2025 04:00:00 GMT

Sir Keir Starmer is reportedly becoming more and more frustrated at the sluggish reality of government within the current system. Who can blame him? Government is beset by a sclerotic Civil Service and continuous legal battles. But, as Looking for Growth's Lawrence Newport explains, a renewed sense of urgency might be just what Labour needs.

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Trump, Putin and the price of peace

Wed, 20 Aug 2025 13:30:00 GMT

Donald Trump’s encounter with Vladimir Putin has raised fresh doubts over the prospects for peace in Ukraine. Meanwhile, Argentina’s dramatic economic turnaround offers lessons that Britain’s Conservatives may find hard to ignore. And with whispers of sweeping reform to the UK’s property taxes, what might this mean for growth and political credibility? CapX editor Marc Sidwell is joined by economist Cornelia Meyer and National Review columnist Dominic Pino to unpack the forces now reshaping markets and strategy across the West.

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Despatch: How Labour took your job

Fri, 15 Aug 2025 04:00:00 GMT

Labour’s economic policies are hitting Britain’s job market hard — from higher National Insurance and rising minimum wages to new employment regulations that make hiring riskier and more expensive. Joseph Dinnage, deputy editor of CapX, examines the latest data on job losses, recruitment slumps, and the growing costs facing small businesses, and warns of the impact on graduates, hospitality, and the wider economy.

Despatch highlights the best writing from CapX, read by an automated voice, and is produced by the team behind The Capitalist.

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Online Safety Row: Wikipedia Vs. the Government

Wed, 13 Aug 2025 13:30:00 GMT

Wikipedia’s bruising encounter with the UK’s Online Safety Act has exposed why rules aimed at Big Tech are already having unintended consequences. Now, Silicon Valley heavyweight Marc Andreessen is taking his objections straight to Downing Street, joining a global chorus of free-speech advocates warning the law is muzzling expression online.

Also on the show: the tangled web of Britain’s tax code. With frozen thresholds, stealth tax rises and shrinking reliefs, is it any wonder high earners are looking to Dubai and Riyadh?

Henry Hill of Conservative Home and Maxwell Marlow from the Adam Smith Institute join CapX’s Marc Sidwell for a tour through three flashpoints in Britain’s policy landscape.

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Despatch: The Conservative comeback begins

Fri, 08 Aug 2025 04:00:00 GMT

Is the Conservative comeback already underway? In this week’s Despatch, James Cowling from Next Gen Tories argues the vibe shift is real — and it’s arriving faster than expected. With Labour stumbling and Reform flailing, the opportunity is ripe for a bold, pro-growth Tory revival.

Cowling outlines the two major pivots required: redefining the party against both Labour and Reform, and proving the Conservatives have learned hard lessons that others haven’t. From fiscal responsibility and planning reform to energy abundance and urban relevance, this episode makes the case for Conservatives 2.0 — a leaner, smarter, and more serious force for Britain’s future.

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Will the UK be sued over the Online Safety Act?

Wed, 06 Aug 2025 13:30:00 GMT

Virtual private networks are often associated with dodging censorship in far-flung authoritarian states. But now, VPN downloads are surging in Britain — a response to new age-verification rules designed to make the internet safer.

Are the measures simply too blunt to be effective? And could the public backlash undermine Labour’s ambition to position the UK as a global tech leader? Tom Ough, author of The Anti-Catastrophe League, is joined by technology lawyer Preston Byrne and CapX editor Marc Sidwell to explore the implications.

Plus: Lord Kinnock’s call to extend VAT to private healthcare. A revenue-raising move for the NHS — or a policy that risks deepening the pressure on a system already struggling to cope?

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Despatch: The Online Safety Act stands against Britain’s liberal tradition

Fri, 01 Aug 2025 04:00:00 GMT

Economic journalist Mani Basharzad reflects on Britain’s Online Safety Act — and what it reveals about the rise of managerialism in public life.

What begins as a discussion of misinformation soon unfolds into something broader: a quiet shift away from the liberal tradition of debate and dissent, toward a more technocratic instinct to manage, correct, and control.

With nods to James Burnham, James Buchanan, and John Stuart Mill, this is a calm but pointed meditation on the value of open inquiry — and a reminder that freedom isn’t always lost through loud confrontation, but through quiet consensus.

Despatch features the best writing from CapX's daily newsletter – narrated by an automated voice.

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EU's tariff 'humiliation' & doctors' dodgy pay metrics

Wed, 30 Jul 2025 13:30:00 GMT

Are Britain’s doctors striking based on a broken metric? Economist Andrew Lilico says RPI—the measure unions love—is complete NONSENSE compared to CPI. Policy analyst Francois Valentin agrees, claiming you’d be hard-pressed to find ANY profession with real wage growth since 2008 using that number.

Then we turn to the EU’s silent acceptance of Trump’s tariffs. Lilico calls it a political HUMILIATION. Valentin says it shatters the Brexit-era myth that being part of a big bloc makes you stronger.

Finally, we dive into a bold new idea: could Britain bring back global wealth with laser-focused tax breaks? It’s controversial, it’s strategic — and it might just work.

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Despatch: Private equity didn’t ruin Britain – it’s helping rebuild it

Tue, 29 Jul 2025 04:00:00 GMT

Michael Moore, chief executive of the British Private Equity and Venture Capital Association, takes aim at the lazy caricatures and media misfires that still dominate public perceptions of private equity. Far from asset-stripping villains, today’s private capital investors are quietly powering British enterprise — backing thousands of SMEs, creating jobs, driving productivity, and helping build a more resilient, innovative economy.

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The return of James Cleverly, broke retirees, and bans on air conditioning

Mon, 28 Jul 2025 07:40:37 GMT

As Sir James Cleverly returns to the front bench, Marc Sidwell is joined by City AM’s Alys Denby and writer and academic Andrew Tettenborn to assess what the move signals for the opposition—and whether it can sharpen its message ahead of the next election.

Also on the agenda: why the government is reviving the pensions commission, and what it means for the millions quietly undersaving for retirement. And why did green groups turn on the Planning and Infrastructure Bill?

Plus: as the mercury rises, we ask whether Britain’s aversion to air conditioning is a principled stand—or simply a failure of political imagination. From the machinery of Westminster to the cool comforts of modern living, tune in for a clear-eyed look at how policy impacts the real world.

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Despatch: The fiscal fantasy is over

Fri, 18 Jul 2025 04:00:00 GMT

Independent economist Damian Pudner offers a crisp, clear-eyed warning from the heart of Britain’s fiscal landscape. As Chancellor Rachel Reeves sets out her vision for a re-energised economy, the real question remains: how will we pay for the modern British state?

Pudner traces the quiet stirrings of market unease—from rising gilt yields to the spectre of fiscal dominance—and explains why Britain’s debt trajectory is sounding alarms. With the tax burden at a 70-year high and productivity stagnating, he makes a practical case for sharper, leaner government over ever-higher spending.

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Is America breaking the world’s economy?

Wed, 16 Jul 2025 13:30:00 GMT

With Donald Trump threatening sweeping new tariffs on the EU, the European Commission warns that transatlantic trade could become “almost impossible” — a shock that would rattle supply chains and plunge business leaders into uncertainty. As economic forecasters grapple with volatility in Washington, we ask: is America heading for Reagan-style renewal or Carter-era stagflation?

Back in Britain, Kemi Badenoch has sounded the alarm over spiralling welfare costs, warning that the UK is turning into a “welfare state with an economy attached.” Can the system be reformed to encourage work and protect the public finances?

CapX editor Marc Sidwell is joined by Dominic Pino of the National Review Institute and CapX contributor Harry Phibbs for a deep dive into the mounting risks facing the global economy.

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Despatch: The greatest prime minister we never had

Fri, 11 Jul 2025 04:00:00 GMT

Karl Williams reflects on the life and legacy of Norman Tebbit — the Conservative bruiser, RAF veteran, and Thatcherite stalwart who helped reshape Britain in the 1980s. Often caricatured as the hardman of the Tory right, Tebbit was also a principled, articulate statesman with a surprising hinterland. From his famed “on yer bike” quip to his decision to give up power for love, this is a personal and political tribute to one of the greatest prime ministers Britain never had.

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Is socialism on the rise in Britain?

Tue, 08 Jul 2025 14:00:00 GMT

A new poll finds voters see Sir Keir Starmer’s government as every bit as chaotic as the last. Can Labour regain its footing? Meanwhile, Jeremy Corbyn eyes a comeback—does his latest venture hint at a socialist revival? And as the NHS unveils a new ten-year plan, we ask: why does it all sound so familiar? Albie Amankona and Julian Jessop join host Marc Sidwell to unpack the week’s economic headlines.

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Despatch: The Chancellor won't survive this

Fri, 04 Jul 2025 04:00:00 GMT

The markets have made their judgment—and it’s far from flattering. As gilt yields climb and confidence wanes, Chancellor Rachel Reeves is facing a fiscal storm of her own making. Economist Damian Pudner weighs in on Labour’s deepening credibility crisis, arguing that the era of cost-free politics is drawing to a close. With pressure mounting on both the Treasury and No. 10, the question is no longer whether taxes will rise, but how swiftly and by how much. The Chancellor is running out of road, the Prime Minister is newly vulnerable—and the world is watching.

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Taxing the rich is not a quick fix

Tue, 01 Jul 2025 13:43:08 GMT

Does Zohran Mamdani’s shock rise in New York politics suggest that wealth taxes are back on the agenda? Plus: what does Labour’s welfare cuts u-turn say about the government’s economic credibility? And why economic arguments keep falling flat with voters—and how we can change the conversation. Marc Sidwell is joined by Reem Ibrahim from the Institute of Economic Affairs and Henry Hill of Conservative Home for a fast-paced look at the shifting political landscape.

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Despatch: How to sell difficult economic truths

Fri, 27 Jun 2025 04:00:00 GMT

Marc Sidwell dissects the Reform's shaky new tax proposal, the backlash against expert critique, and what it all says about the state of political debate. From Britain’s fragile finances to America’s protectionist turn, CapX's editor makes the case for returning to a more grounded, common-sense approach to economics — one that recognises trade-offs, not magical solutions.

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How to reduce energy prices

Wed, 25 Jun 2025 10:03:49 GMT

Oil prices are on the rise following US strikes on Iranian nuclear sites — with fears mounting over how Tehran might retaliate. Marc Sidwell is joined by Daniel Freeman of the Institute of Economic Affairs to assess the economic fallout. Plus: the government makes lower energy costs the centrepiece of its new industrial strategy, but will it be enough to spark real growth? And with inflation easing and confidence wavering, is it finally time to cut interest rates?

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Despatch: On Track in Coventry

Fri, 20 Jun 2025 04:00:00 GMT

Coventry’s sleek new very-light-rail system is now in test mode, with 2,000 residents invited aboard. In this special Despatch, policy thinker Samuel Hughes explores how the project could offer a smarter, faster — and much cheaper — way to deliver public transport in Britain. Could this be the blueprint for the future of urban mobility?

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How tax really affects growth

Tue, 17 Jun 2025 14:00:00 GMT

CapX editor Marc Sidwell is joined by economist Andrew Lilico and political strategist John Oxley to unpack a volatile moment in the global economy. From the fallout of Israel’s escalating conflict with Iran to the knock-on effects of surging oil prices, we take stock of the risks facing markets—and what they could mean for Britain. Closer to home, Chancellor Rachel Reeves presses ahead with a £113bn infrastructure plan, even as welfare cuts spark unease within Labour ranks. Plus: Britain’s productivity problem is back in the spotlight. Are we too squeamish about automation—and is now the moment for a bold leap into the robot age?

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Despatch: Is Rachel Reeves ready for the coming crisis?

Fri, 13 Jun 2025 04:00:00 GMT

Economist Andrew Lilico casts a sharp eye over the Chancellor’s first Spending Review — and finds it lacking. Beyond the rhetoric, the message is sobering: health spending is set to surge while almost every other department faces quiet, compounding cuts. The NHS will grow to dominate Britain’s public finances — even as Rachel Reeves eyes new tax rises to make the numbers add up. So, what happens when the backlash begins? Tune in for a clear-eyed take on the week’s most important speech.

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Spending Review: Health, Policing, and Reform’s Rise

Tue, 10 Jun 2025 13:30:00 GMT

With the Chancellor’s spending review looming, ministers are jostling for funds. But with public services under pressure and growth still sluggish, is the government backing the right bets? Plus: what’s really behind Reform UK’s rise in the polls? As support swells in areas hit hardest by poverty, our guests unpack the party’s shifting economic message — and what it reveals about voter discontent in Labour heartlands. CapX’s Marc Sidwell is joined by Maxwell Marlow of the Adam Smith Institute and Alys Denby from City AM for a brisk tour through the week’s economic flashpoints — and what they mean for Britain’s political future.

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Despatch: Jeremy Hunt on Free Trade

Fri, 06 Jun 2025 04:00:00 GMT

Former Chancellor Jeremy Hunt offers a spirited defence of Britain’s open-market tradition — and a sharp rebuke of Trump’s tariff tactics. As the world shrugs off ‘Liberation Day’, Hunt argues it’s not America but open economies like Britain that are poised to thrive. With historical perspective and policy punch, he lays out why trade still matters, how globalisation lifted billions out of poverty, and why the UK can lead again — if it chooses to stay open. Despatch is our weekly highlight of the best writing from CapX's daily briefings, brought to you by the team behind The Capitalist.

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UK-US Trade: The Real Story

Tue, 03 Jun 2025 13:30:00 GMT

President Trump’s tariff blitz hits a legal snag — but he's showing no signs of backing down. Marc Sidwell is joined by National Review Institute’s Dominic Pino and the journalist Harry Phibbs to assess what comes next for transatlantic trade. Plus: can Britain turn Washington’s assault on academia into an opportunity? And as China races ahead in the humanoid AI stakes, could Britain still take a seat at the table?

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Despatch: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Cheese

Fri, 30 May 2025 03:00:00 GMT

What does chasing a wheel of cheese down a dangerously steep hill say about Britain — and the state? In this Despatch, James Price of the Adam Smith Institute finds wisdom in one of our most eccentric traditions: Gloucestershire’s infamous cheese rolling. What begins as a bruising ritual becomes a spirited case for liberty, localism, and limited government. A celebration of chaos, cheese, and the virtues of keeping Westminster well out of it.

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Special Edition: Reviving the High Street with Samuel Hughes

Tue, 27 May 2025 01:00:00 GMT

A special edition on the future of Britain’s high streets. As department stores disappear and civic spaces fall silent, we ask: what’s next for the beating heart of our towns?

Samuel Hughes, an editor at Works in Progress and fellow at the Centre for Policy Studies, joins us to explore practical ways to revive our high streets. From imaginative public services to smarter regeneration strategies, we consider whether it’s time to think beyond retail — and reimagine what town centres can truly be.

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Despatch: Copying Reform Is a Trap

Fri, 23 May 2025 04:00:00 GMT

This week's Despatch offers a sharp warning to the Conservative Party from inside the tent. Former Tory candidate William Wellesley argues that the answer to Reform UK’s rise isn’t mimicry — it’s honesty. In a measured but damning critique, Wellesley calls out decades of spin, soundbites and shallow promises from across the political spectrum — and urges the Tories to break the cycle. Only by confronting hard truths, he argues, can the party survive and serve.

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Border Lines: Can Labour’s Migration Gamble Pay Off?

Tue, 20 May 2025 14:55:48 GMT

Karl Williams of the Centre for Policy Studies and economist Julian Jessop take a clear-eyed look at the politics and economics of migration. Two decades ago, the UK opened its doors to eastern Europe. A modest prediction of 13,000 arrivals became 1.5 million — a shift that continues to shape British politics. Now, with Reform UK on the rise, Labour is gambling that stricter immigration controls will steady the ship. But is it a calculated correction — or a political trap? Meanwhile, as Keir Starmer welcomes EU leaders to London, Downing Street promises a deal for growth, jobs and border security. But beyond the soundbites, what does a post-Brexit success story really look like?

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Despatch: Bordering on Failure – Is Labour Serious About Reform?

Fri, 16 May 2025 04:00:00 GMT

In this week’s Despatch, Karl Williams of the Centre for Policy Studies unpacks Labour’s long-awaited immigration white paper — and asks whether anything’s really changed. From sky-high net migration targets to fudged visa reforms and a rebrand of the widely abused ‘shortage occupation’ list, Labour’s plans are long on rhetoric but risk being short on action. Worse still, the numbers show that even now, the UK’s immigration model remains historically unprecedented, economically unsustainable, and politically combustible. Will Labour’s technocratic tinkering bring about genuine reform — or is it just more of the same? This is a clear-eyed look at the promises, the policy and the political price of failure.

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In Conversation: Fraser Nelson, Richard Reeves and Nicholas Eberstadt

Tue, 13 May 2025 14:00:00 GMT

For the first time in modern British history, young men are now more likely than young women to be out of education, employment or training. It’s a trend mirrored across the Atlantic — and it raises a stark question: are boys and men being left behind? In this special edition, we bring you a timely conversation exploring the data, the causes, and the political consequences of male economic decline.

Richard Reeves, President of the American Institute for Boys and Men and author of ‘Of Boys and Men’, joins leading demographer Nicholas Eberstadt, author of ‘Men Without Work’, in a conversation chaired by The Times columnist Fraser Nelson — recorded live with the Centre for Policy Studies in London.

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Despatch: Ignore the doubters, more trade with India is win-win

Fri, 09 May 2025 04:00:00 GMT

Harry Phibbs takes a scalpel to Britain’s new free trade deal with India. Is it a triumph for post-Brexit Britain — slashing tariffs, boosting growth, and bringing down prices? Or does the small print on visas and taxes muddy the waters? From trade triumphs to immigration tensions, Phibbs unpacks the political spin and the economic reality — and explains why, despite the noise, this deal matters. Despatch brings you the best writing from CapX, the unmissable daily briefing on politics and economics from the heart of Westminster. Don't miss the next edition of our podcast, The Capitalist, this Tuesday.

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Special Edition: From Gridlock to Growth

Tue, 06 May 2025 14:00:00 GMT

In this special Bank Holiday edition, Marc Sidwell is joined by Dr Lawrence Newport from the Looking for Growth campaign for a sharp and solutions-focused conversation on how to reignite Britain’s economic engine. From planning delays to regulatory sprawl, we examine the blockages stalling national progress — and lay out a bold vision to get Britain building again.

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Despatch: Wake up Tories, Reform are on the march

Sat, 03 May 2025 07:17:53 GMT

The by-election in Runcorn & Helsby has sent shockwaves through Westminster — not because Reform UK squeaked to victory, but because what once looked like a protest vote now smells like a political realignment. In this special weekend Despatch, Conservative Home's Henry Hill unpacks why Reform’s close win changes the narrative, and why the Tories are running out of excuses. Is Nigel Farage building a right-wing version of the Lib Dems? Could Reform become an entrenched force in post-industrial Britain? And does Robert Jenrick have what it takes to hold the Conservative Party together? Brace yourself — the electoral map is shifting. And this might just be the beginning.

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From Beijing to Bangalore: A New Economic Order?

Tue, 29 Apr 2025 14:00:00 GMT

As Chancellor Rachel Reeves treads a delicate path in Washington, Britain finds itself caught between diplomacy and hard economics — will tariff relief be enough to steady the ship? Meanwhile, Apple’s dramatic pivot to India signals just how deeply Trump’s sweeping trade war is reshaping global business. Could a world less reliant on Beijing ultimately emerge stronger — or simply more fragmented? And with the IMF slashing global growth forecasts, are we witnessing the first signs of a smaller, slower, more isolated future? CapX’s deputy editor Joseph Dinnage is joined by James Boys from UCL and commentator Matthew Stadlen to map the risks, the opportunities, and the new world order taking shape.

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Despatch: From Stronghold to Shaky Ground

Fri, 25 Apr 2025 04:00:00 GMT

Runcorn and Helsby has been Labour’s turf for decades — but the ground is shifting, and Reform UK can smell blood. In this week’s edition of Despatch, Gawain Towler — former director of communications for Reform UK — takes us inside the Cheshire constituency where poverty is entrenched, campaigning is curiously absent, and Keir Starmer’s team seems strangely quiet. Why is Labour pulling its punches in its 16th safest seat? What is Morgan McSweeney really playing at? And could Nigel Farage’s insurgents turn a protest vote into a political earthquake? Despatch unpacks how this by-election could be the first domino in a collapse of Labour’s red wall.

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Global Growth Is Faltering — Can Britain Sprint Ahead?

Tue, 22 Apr 2025 14:00:00 GMT

Is Britain ready to outpace a stalling global economy? As fresh figures show growth grinding to a halt, The Capitalist asks whether the UK can still carve a bold new path forward. With Chancellor Rachel Reeves heading to Washington, is a transatlantic trade deal within reach — or is Britain about to be caught in a clash of superpowers? Plus: nationalisation is back on the table, but can state control really rescue British steel? Economist Cornelia Meyer and Conservative Home’s Harry Phibbs unpack the pressures, posturing, and political gambits shaping the world economy.

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Despatch: Steel Trap — Why Nationalisation Won't Work

Fri, 18 Apr 2025 04:00:00 GMT

Harry Phibbs asks a pointed question in this week's Despatch: if nationalisation has failed before, why are we doing it again? With Parliament recalled for an emergency Saturday sitting to save British Steel, the political consensus was deafening — and expensive. But is this really a matter of national security, or just another costly round of state interference dressed in patriotic clothing? From HS2 to Net Zero, Phibbs argues that consensus is the real danger — and nationalised steel is the latest case in point. Tune in for a sharp-eyed look at Britain’s industrial nostalgia, and why we should all be watching our wallets.

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Economic Nostalgia vs. the Hard Work of Growth

Tue, 15 Apr 2025 14:00:00 GMT

A dramatic Saturday recall of Parliament delivers a last-minute reprieve for British Steel — but is it a genuine industrial strategy, or just another short-term fix? Meanwhile in Washington, President Trump promised to revive American manufacturing. But can you really rebuild the past — or is this economic cosplay doomed to fail? Broadcaster Albie Amankona and the IEA’s Daniel Freeman join CapX’s Marc Sidwell to ask a vital question — can Britain resist the noise and rediscover the quiet power of centre-right pragmatism?

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Despatch: No Growth, No Progress

Fri, 11 Apr 2025 04:00:00 GMT

Britain isn’t broken — but it is stuck. In this urgent Despatch, Julia Willemyns, co-founder of the Centre for British Progress, makes the case for boldness over drift. Why has growth stalled? Why does everything feel harder, slower, smaller than it should? And why have both Left and Right abandoned the ambition to build? With sharp insight and a rallying cry for change, Willemyns lays out a compelling vision: one that trades bureaucracy for dynamism, timidity for courage, and economic stagnation for social progress. If Britain wants to lead again, it has to learn how to build again.

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Backlash Economics: When Policy Meets Pocketbooks

Tue, 08 Apr 2025 14:00:00 GMT

What happens when the world’s biggest economy slams the brakes on global trade? In just weeks, Donald Trump’s tariff blitz has shattered decades of US-led liberalisation — and the fallout is only just beginning. As prices creep higher and wallets tighten, will the political backlash bite harder than the economic one? And in the UK, could fiscal fear turn into fiscal flair? CapX editor Marc Sidwell is joined by the IEA’s Reem Ibrahim and Dominic Pino of the National Review Institute to explore whether this era of upheaval might just offer the chance to rewrite the economic rulebook.

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Despatch: Mel Stride, Robert Colvile, David Miles and Alys Denby

Fri, 04 Apr 2025 04:00:00 GMT

Rachel Reeves entered her first Budget with a familiar refrain—blaming the Conservatives for the difficult choices ahead. But now, the focus has shifted to her own decisions, particularly the impact of tax rises on business confidence, jobs, and growth. Can her latest fiscal measures break Britain free from economic stagnation, or have they only deepened the challenge? CapX Editor-in-Chief Robert Colvile leads a live discussion with Shadow Chancellor Mel Stride, David Miles from the OBR Budget Responsibility Committee, and Alys Denby, Opinion and Features Editor at City AM.

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Regulation Nation: Why Britain is Losing Its Best and Brightest

Tue, 01 Apr 2025 14:00:00 GMT

Rachel Reeves envisions Britain as a “defence industrial superpower” — but does the industry exist to match the ambition? Meanwhile, London eyes Brussels for a reset, with hopes that closer ties could unlock growth. And amid high taxes and tight regulation, is Britain’s economic model locked in for good? Marc Sidwell is joined by Julian Jessop and Maxwell Marlow to dissect the latest political currents and market shifts.

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Despatch: Our Growth Problem is a Productivity Crisis

Fri, 28 Mar 2025 05:00:00 GMT

Britain is spending more than ever—but getting less. Public debt is soaring, growth is non-existent, and dissatisfaction with public services has never been higher. The government talks tough on cuts, but the real crisis is deeper: a bloated state that punishes efficiency and rewards failure. The one word no politician dares to take seriously? Productivity. If public sector performance matched the private sector, we’d unlock £100bn a year—no tax hikes, no cuts, just better government. So why isn’t it happening? And who, if anyone, has the courage to fix it? Listen now to Tim Knox's diagnosis of Britain's great stagnation—and what we can do about it.

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Special Edition: Spring Statement Slashes Growth

Wed, 26 Mar 2025 16:57:12 GMT

A reality check for Britain’s economy? Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ Spring Statement reveals growth forecasts have been slashed in half. Can Labour still deliver on its economic pledges? City AM’s Alys Denby weighs in. Plus: a bold call for reform from Andrew Griffith, Shadow Secretary for Business and Trade, as he sets out his vision following the latest Looking for Growth policy summit.

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Despatch: A Message from Kemi Badenoch

Fri, 21 Mar 2025 05:00:00 GMT

Kemi Badenoch’s political journey was shaped by first-hand experience of government overreach and the stifling effects of socialism. In this special Despatch, the Conservative leader delivers a powerful speech on the values that brought her into politics—and the lessons she’s drawn from Margaret Thatcher. Her message? Real change demands courage, conviction, and an unwavering commitment to doing what is right.

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George Osborne, Robert Colvile, and Professor Sir Niall Ferguson

Tue, 18 Mar 2025 15:14:36 GMT

As Britain reflects on 50 years since Margaret Thatcher took the helm of the Conservative Party, the outlook for free-market thinking—and a dynamic economy—has rarely seemed so uncertain. In this special edition, CapX Editor-in-Chief Robert Colvile is joined by former Chancellor George Osborne and Professor Sir Niall Ferguson of the Hoover Institution to chart a course for the party’s future. Recorded live at the Margaret Thatcher Conference, this episode is presented in partnership with the Centre for Policy Studies.

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Despatch: CANZUK vs. the World — The Case for a Fourth Global Power

Fri, 14 Mar 2025 05:00:00 GMT

As the world shifts and alliances evolve, could a partnership between Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the UK form a Fourth Global Power? While CANZUK wouldn’t rival the US militarily, its collective strength would command the kind of respect that Washington—especially under leaders like Trump—reserves for serious players. With global instability on the rise, the economist Andrew Lilico asks whether it's time to make this alliance official. Despatch is a fresh addition to The Capitalist, bringing you the sharpest insights from CapX’s daily bulletins.

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Tough Talk, Weak Results: How Tariffs and Moscow Hurt the US

Tue, 11 Mar 2025 15:58:35 GMT

With US support for Ukraine waning, can Europe step up before the situation spirals? Plus, are Trump’s tariffs making Washington a volatile trading partner? And what lessons could the UK take from Texas on prison reform? CapX's editor Marc Sidwell is joined by Frances Lasok from the Conservative Policy Forum and Conservative Home’s Harry Phibbs to unpack the latest political currents and market movements.

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Despatch: The Age of Unknowns

Fri, 07 Mar 2025 05:00:00 GMT

As Trump humiliates Zelensky, has Washington quietly decided to switch sides? In this Despatch, Bruce Anderson dissects a moment of historic uncertainty—one that rivals the upheaval of the post-Pearl Harbor years. With Europe forced to rethink its reliance on US protection and negotiations with Moscow looming, what comes next for Ukraine, NATO, and the global balance of power? Despatch is a fresh addition to The Capitalist, bringing you the best writing from CapX's unmissable daily email briefings.

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Washington’s New Best Friend? Trump, Putin, and the Future of Ukraine

Tue, 04 Mar 2025 15:30:00 GMT

After last week's stunning scenes in the White House, murmurs of President Zelensky’s downfall are growing louder. Could he be sidelined in favour of a Kremlin-friendly puppet? Meanwhile, Washington hints that Britain could dodge tariffs with the right deal—but can London really bank on special treatment? And as BP shifts back to oil, is this a pragmatic market reset or the moment Big Energy turns its back on net zero? Marc Sidwell is joined by economist Cornelia Meyer and the IEA’s Daniel Freeman to unpack the deals reshaping global markets.

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Despatch: Politics Needs More Outsiders

Fri, 28 Feb 2025 05:00:00 GMT

Britain is at a crossroads. As high costs, stagnation, and failing public services push talented young people abroad, a new wave of problem-solvers is choosing to stay and rebuild. Jack Hutchison from Civic Future dives into the forces driving this "fight or flight" moment—examining why Britain is losing skilled workers, who’s stepping up to fix it, and how a new generation of technologists, entrepreneurs, and policymakers is reshaping the country from within. Sharp, urgent, and essential listening—Despatch is your weekly briefing on Britain’s future, brought to you by The Capitalist. New episodes every Tuesday.

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AI Hype, Trump’s Economic Woes & The Decline of Debate

Tue, 25 Feb 2025 15:30:00 GMT

Microsoft’s Satya Nadella says it’s time to separate AI’s real impact from the noise: true success isn’t measured in viral demos but in global GDP growth. So, is AI delivering—or are we buying into a bubble? Meanwhile, Donald Trump’s approval ratings are slipping as household costs rise. And as MPs swap rigorous debate for social media grandstanding, is Britain’s parliamentary discourse losing its edge? CapX editor Marc Sidwell is joined by Matthew Stadlen and Dominic Pino to dissect the week’s biggest stories.

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Despatch: There’s no point in democracy without debate

Fri, 21 Feb 2025 05:00:00 GMT

In an age of soundbites and social media grandstanding, has real Parliamentary debate become obsolete? Barrister Harry Gillow cuts through the noise to examine why scrutiny still matters—and what happens when lawmakers fail to do their job. From botched bills to rushed legislation, we expose the cracks in the system and the consequences for Britain’s future. Fast, sharp, and unfiltered—Despatch brings you the best writing from CapX, your essential daily breakdown of the political decisions shaping the country. Brought to you by The Capitalist, new episodes drop every Tuesday.

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Economic Missteps: How Reform UK Is Squandering Its Credibility

Tue, 18 Feb 2025 15:30:00 GMT

Has Reform UK's energy plan exposed the party's economic failings? And will Kemi Badenoch capitalize on this misstep? Marc Sidwell is joined by Dr Lawrence Newport and Albie Amankona to break down a week of political turbulence. Plus: Emmanuel Macron warns of the “electroshock” of a Trump return. But will his call for looser fiscal rules get traction? And with £60 billion in council tax hikes on the line, are UK councils poised for another financial disaster? Tune in for sharp analysis, insider insights, and political twists you won’t hear anywhere else.

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Despatch: Will the Tories Bow to Farage?

Fri, 14 Feb 2025 05:00:00 GMT

Dominic Cummings has spoken, and—no surprise—he’s not impressed. The Tories are “intellectually dead,” Kemi Badenoch is a “bad joke,” and Nigel Farage is more famous than the entire shadow cabinet combined. But while Badenoch’s allies insist she just needs time, time is precisely what she doesn’t have. The Conservatives are slipping, Reform is rising, and Farage is relishing the fight. With MPs getting nervous and rumours swirling of a Tory-Reform pact, could the unthinkable be on the cards? In this edition of Despatch, William Atkinson explores whether the Tories’ only way forward is a deal with their greatest rival—or if Badenoch can outmanoeuvre Farage before it’s too late.

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Political Meltdown: Labour Stumbles, Tories Collapse

Tue, 11 Feb 2025 15:30:00 GMT

Sir Keir Starmer just hit the reset button on his struggling government, but will voters buy it? We break down his six-hour crisis meeting, the economic warning signs, and whether Labour can regain control of the narrative. Plus: The Conservatives are staring into the political abyss—can they claw their way back? And with tech giants eyeing greener pastures abroad, how can Britain stay in the game? Sharp analysis from Conservative Home’s William Atkinson and City AM’s Alys Denby. No spin, just the hard questions.

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Despatch: Imagine a Britain where you can just do things

Fri, 07 Feb 2025 05:00:00 GMT

Is Britain losing its edge? While US entrepreneurs are launching rockets, breaking the sound barrier, and rewriting the rules of innovation, the UK is stuck in a cycle of red tape and hesitation. Ross Kempsell, member of the House of Lords, delivers sharp, no-nonsense analysis on why Britain must embrace a bold, founder-first mindset—or risk falling further behind.

Despatch is a fresh addition to The Capitalist, bringing you standout writing. This article was read by Benjamin Wilson. Follow Ross Kempsell and CapX on X for more sharp insights. And for unmissable analysis straight from Westminster, subscribe to CapX’s daily briefings.

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The Cost of Defiance: Can the UK Survive the Trump Effect?

Tue, 04 Feb 2025 15:30:00 GMT

Is Britain’s post-Brexit plan coming undone? As the US torpedoes the OECD’s global tax deal, the UK’s fiscal strategy is left in limbo—was it too quick to play by the rules? Meanwhile, Nigel Farage’s Reform UK is shaking up the political landscape, but with public regret over Brexit at an all-time high, where does that leave the country? And on defence, while Lithuania and Estonia ramp up spending under Trump’s “constructive pressure,” Britain dithers—will Labour’s caution leave the UK exposed? Host Marc Sidwell is joined by defence expert Robert Fox and US politics specialist James Boys to break it all down.

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Despatch: Can Rachel Reeves get growth back on track?

Fri, 31 Jan 2025 05:00:00 GMT

The new Government faces a tall order: it must deliver on the same growth promises others have made, but do it better. A tough task, especially with tensions brewing between Rachel Reeves and colleagues pushing their own agendas.

Despatch is a fresh addition to The Capitalist, delivering standout writing from the team behind CapX's unmissable daily newsletters. This article was written by independent economist Julian Jessop and narrated by Benjamin Wilson. For more sharp analysis like this, subscribe to CapX’s daily briefings straight from the heart of Westminster.

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Britain’s Bottleneck: Why Bold Reforms Are Stuck in Neutral

Tue, 28 Jan 2025 15:30:00 GMT

With a healthy majority in Parliament, what’s stopping Britain’s Government from enacting the kind of sweeping policy changes we’re seeing in the United States? Michael Binyon from The Times and the National Review Institute’s Dominic Pino share their insights, plus: will tariffs force Putin’s hand in Ukraine? And how can we restore consumer optimism in Britain?

Follow Dominic Pino and CapX on X, and make sure you're subscribed to CapX's unmissable daily briefings from the heart of Westminster.

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Despatch: Heathrow airport, an allegory of our decline

Fri, 24 Jan 2025 05:00:00 GMT

Extending an existing runway at Heathrow is a solution more economical and environmentally astute than constructing an entirely new third runway. It would result in lower carbon emissions, reduced noise pollution, and its implementation would be phased – a blueprint of pragmatic innovation. So why has the proposal been ensnared in a years-long labyrinth of bureaucratic complexity?

Despatch is a fresh addition to The Capitalist, delivering standout writing from the team behind CapX’s indispensable daily briefings. This article was written by George Trefgarne, CEO and Founder at Boscobel & Partners, and read by Benjamin Wilson. For more sharp insights and thoughtful commentary, subscribe to CapX’s daily briefings. And don't miss the new episodes of The Capitalist every Tuesday.

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Trump, Tariffs, and Tech Titans

Tue, 21 Jan 2025 05:00:00 GMT

Can Britain strike a deal with President Trump and avoid the looming tariff trap? Why are leaders in the UK and the US falling short of the so-called "Reagan test"? And, could the UK be on the cusp of creating its own billion-pound tech titan? Join Douglas Carswell from the Mississippi Centre for Public Policy and author of The Conservative Futurist, James Pethokoukis, as we delve into crucial questions and explore how free market principles can pave the way for future prosperity.

Follow Douglas and James on X, and make sure you're subscribed to CapX's unmissable daily briefings from the heart of Westminster.

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Despatch: Think renting is bad? Just wait

Fri, 17 Jan 2025 05:00:00 GMT

As rents climb ever higher, you’d think the Government would aim to make renting easier. Yet the new Renters' Rights Bill threatens to do just the opposite. Instead of delivering on its promises, the legislation risks making the rental market less accessible and less equitable.

Despatch is a fresh addition to The Capitalist, delivering standout writing from the team behind CapX’s indispensable daily briefings. This article was written by Reem Ibrahim and read by Benjamin Wilson. For more sharp insights and thoughtful commentary, subscribe to CapX’s daily briefings. And don't miss the new episodes of The Capitalist every Tuesday.

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How to get Britain building

Wed, 15 Jan 2025 05:00:00 GMT

In this debut edition of The Capitalist: a bold new political movement takes aim at red tape to get Britain building, the Chancellor faces criticism over an economy teetering on the edge, and the Conservatives grapple with the path to reinvention. Insightful, sharp, and always forward-looking.

Find out more about Looking for Growth by visiting their website. And make sure you're subscribed to CapX's unmissable daily briefings from the heart of Westminster.

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Despatch: It's time to remake the case for conservatism

Wed, 08 Jan 2025 08:58:07 GMT

Despatch is a fresh addition to The Capitalist, delivering standout writing from the team behind CapX’s indispensable daily briefings. In this debut edition, Emma Revell, External Affairs Director at the Centre for Policy Studies, explores why the case for conservatism must be reimagined and communicated in a language that resonates with modern audiences.

And don’t miss the premiere of The Capitalist, our new weekly podcast, launching next week.

This article was written by Emma Revell and read by Benjamin Wilson. For more sharp insights and thoughtful commentary, subscribe to CapX’s daily briefings.

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Introducing: The Capitalist

Fri, 20 Dec 2024 17:25:58 GMT

A preview of The Capitalist, a new podcast from the team behind CapX's unmissable daily briefings from the heart of Westminster. Join sharp minds from business, politics, and beyond for intelligent debate and optimistic conversations about building a brighter, market-driven future for Britain. Subscribe now so you don't miss the series premiere in January, 2025.

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CapX's Christmas podcast: Heroes and villains of 2023

Fri, 15 Dec 2023 13:39:16 GMT

CapX Editor Alys Denby runs through the people and policies that made 2023 another peculiar year in politics, with Poppy Coburn, Assistant US Opinion Editor at the Telegraph, William Atkinson, Assistant Editor at Conservative Home and Joseph Dinnage, Deputy Editor of CapX.

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Analysing the Autumn Statement with Richard Hughes and Vicky Pryce

Fri, 01 Dec 2023 14:41:39 GMT

Aside from a windfall from higher inflation which the Chancellor used to make tax cuts, the underlying picture for the economy is essentially flat. That being said, some welcome pro-growth measures were announced, most notably the decision to make full expensing permanent. But is it too little too late? To analyse what this means for the future of the public finances, Robert Colvile was joined by Chair of the OBR Richard Hughes and economist Vicky Pryce.

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Israelophobia with Jake Wallis Simons

Fri, 13 Oct 2023 08:55:23 GMT

The world has just witnessed the worst attack on Jewish people since the Holocaust. Yet amid the international condemnation of Hamas terrorists, there has also been equivocation – and even celebration in some quarters. No other conflict stirs emotions like that between Israel and Palestine - so why is it that the world’s only Jewish state appears to be held to completely different standards to other countries?

Jake Wallis Simons, Editor of the Jewish Chronicle, has a word for it:: Israelophobia. His new book explains how the world's oldest hatred has evolved, co-opting identity politics and anti-colonialism to to turn British values against themselves. He joined me at our offices for a conversation that couldn’t have been more timely.

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Making sense of Conference with Robert Colvile

Fri, 29 Sep 2023 09:39:58 GMT

It’s Party Conference season, and while the Lib Dems were kayaking and playing crazy golf in Bournemouth last week, this weekend it’s the Tories’ turn to troop up to Manchester. Attendees are anticipating drama, gossip and exciting policy announcements – the Prime Minister is promising 'long-term decisions for a brighter future'.

But while Rishi Sunak will be rolling the pitch for an election manifesto, on the fringes other grandees will be fighting for the soul of the Conservative Party.

CapX welcomed our Editor-in-Chief and Director of our parent organisation the Centre for Policy Studies to give is a run-down of what to expect.

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Cambridge, too far?

Tue, 01 Aug 2023 14:06:54 GMT

CapX talks about housing a lot – most often to scream 'build more houses!' into a void – yet politicians appear stuck in a doom loop when it comes to this urgent topic.

Conservative MPs talk a good game about the need for housing, as long as it's anywhere but in their constituency, while Labour talk up discredited socialist ideas like rent controls.

But last week, drama returned to the housing discourse, as Secretary of State Michael Gove announced plans for dramatic expansion in Cambridge, Leeds and London. So is the housing shortage, which is the source of so many of this country’s problems, from low productivity to population decline, about to be solved? And how credible is the idea of a brand new neighbourhood on the outskirts of a centuries-old university town, albeit one that's at the cutting edge of the UK's tech sector?

Few people are better placed to answer these questions than Samuel Hughes, Head of Housing at the Centre for Policy Studies, who the CapX Podcast was delighted to welcome this week.

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The War On Your Mind

Fri, 21 Jul 2023 15:30:45 GMT

In a world saturated with information, we have more choices than ever – but how freely do we make them?

In their new book Free Your Mind – The new World of Manipulation and how to Avoid it, journalist Laura Dodsworth and behavioural scientist Patrick Fagan argue that there is a war on our minds as the media, advertisers, politicians and big tech vie to influence our decisions.

They investigate the psychological techniques – from fear to flattery - that are used every day to manipulate us, and offer advice on how to recognise and resist them.

We sat down for a fascinating conversation that ranged from the excesses of Covid lockdowns to the joy of rediscovering your masculinity by getting naked in a forest. Listeners are encouraged to enjoy this episode in the spirit of the book – sceptically…

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Isabel Hardman on the NHS' Fight for Life

Fri, 14 Jul 2023 07:36:45 GMT

The NHS recently marked its 75th birthday with the kind of love-in most countries reserve for a passing monarch or truly iconic celebrity. So what is about our health service that has created such a fervent attachment amongst so many Brits, even when it underperforms compared to some of our continental peers?

To find out, we invited the journalist, author and broadcaster Isabel Hardman on to this week's episode of the CapX Podcast to discuss her brilliant new history of the NHS, Fighting for Life.

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Where does all your rubbish go?

Fri, 30 Jun 2023 08:00:46 GMT

Trash, garbage, litter or rubbish – whatever you call it the world is producing ever more of the stuff. But where does it all go once it's left our colour-coded bins? And what about all those clothes you leave at the charity shop thining you've done a good turn?

The fascinating tapestry of grime that is the modern waste industry is documented in painstaking, illuminating detail in the new book Wasteland, written by our guest this week, Oliver Franklin-Wallis.

He takes us on a journey from hulking mountains of waste on the outskirts of New Delhi to abandoned mining towns in Oklahoma and back-street repair shops in Ghana, where engineers give new life to millions of the West's discarded gadgets.

A truly enlightening, somewhat shocking episode this week – and I'd heartily recommend Oli's book to all our listeners.

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Frank Luntz on the language of freedom

Fri, 23 Jun 2023 06:09:06 GMT

He’s best known for coming up with the terms death tax and climate change, so it’s fair to say Frank Luntz knows a thing or two about political communication – making him an ideal guest for the CapX Podcast.

We sat down to discuss his latest project for the Centre for Policy Studies delving into how the British public really feel about that most American of values: Freedom.

Few will be surprised to learn that it’s not an idea that animates our democracy in the same way it does for our gun-toting cousin across the Atlantic – but for those of us who care about choice and liberty, the detail of his findings are deeply worrying.

Perhaps most concerning, from a CapX perspective, is that almost half of British either can’t tell or see no difference between capitalism and socialism.

So as well getting his characteristically lively takes on all the latest political gossip on both sides of the pond, I asked Frank how those of us who value freedom make the case to a populus who seem to care more about fairness than prosperity?

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This is Europe with Ben Judah

Fri, 16 Jun 2023 06:00:07 GMT

How do we really live now? From a Romanian truck driver to an Amazon deliveryman and a factory production line worker, Ben Judah tried to answer that question by speaking to the people whose labour makes the freedom and prosperity the rest of us enjoy possible – for his latest book This is Europe.

The author and Atlantic Council fellow crossed the continent conducting hours of painstaking interviews with people whose vivid stories reveal the powerful forces reshaping our world: migration, technology, war and climate change.

He joined the CapX podcast to discuss a book, by turns harrowing and uplifting, about a promise of unity, peace and the good life that’s realised for some in Europe – but painfully illusive for others. And our conversation was almost as wide ranging as the land it covers…

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The big AI debate

Fri, 09 Jun 2023 11:32:23 GMT

As with so much modern political theatre, the debate on artificial intelligence has become polarised to a point that is often profoundly unhelpful, with a false dichotomy between 'doomers' and utopians who see AI as a solution to the world's many problems, both technical and social.

Between those positions is a world of nuance and wildly varying predictions on what this expanding new technology could mean. All the while commentators and politicians talk about 'AI policy' as if it were a single thing, rather than a whole suite of overlapping issues: they range from the banal – discriminatory algorithms and deepfake of politicians, say – to the unnerving prospect of AI reaching a human-like level of intelligence. As one of our guests in this week's episode puts it, at this stage talking about 'AI policy' is about as useful as talking about 'electricity policy'.

To hammer out some of those questions we brought together Connor Axiotes, the Lead on Risk Policy at the Adam Smith Institute, and our own Head of Tech from the Centre for Policy Studies, Matthew Feeney.

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A fork in the road

Fri, 26 May 2023 07:56:52 GMT

There are few political questions as vexed as how to tax hard-pressed motorists. For many years, the Treasury has treated British drivers as a cash cow, levying high taxes while investing relatively little in the road network.

Now, however, things are changing rapidly. The take-up of electric vehicles and the upcoming ban on new petrol and diesel cars presents a big fiscal headache for the Government. How will they replace all that fuel duty revenue in a world where far fewer people are driving gas-guzzling vehicles?

Thankfully, we at the Centre for Policy Studies have the answer, as this week's guest - our Energy and Environment Researcher, Dillon Smith - sets out in a new report this week.

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What's the point of National Conservatism?

Fri, 19 May 2023 09:19:21 GMT

What is National Conservatism?

That's the question we're grappling with this week following the big National Conservatism Conference in London. While it certainly generated lots of media heat, it's still not particularly clear what this US-imported idea actually stands for. Indeed, the answer seemed to vary depending on which of the eclectic cast of speakers was on stage.

CapX's deputy editor Alys Denby and our CPS colleague Karl Williams both dropped into the conference to take the pulse of this burgeoning movement and assess if it's got much of a future on this side of the pond.

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Lord Frost on the state of Brexit Britain

Fri, 12 May 2023 07:46:48 GMT

Our guest this week played an instrumental role in the UK's departure from the European Union. As Boris Johnson's Europe adviser and then chief negotiator in the exit talks with the EU, Lord Frost drew on a lifetime of experience as a civil servant and foreign office diplomat to help get the Trade and Cooperation Agreement over the line.

Since leaving government at the end of 2021, he has continued to be a vocal advocate for a smaller state, lower taxes and a version of Brexit that takes full advantage of potential divergence from the Brussels way of doing things.

We sat down for a wide-ranging discussion, including the Tories' electoral plight, the shape of Brexit seven years after the referendum and whether the Government should go for a full-throttle war on Woke.

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In defence of the rich – with Emily Carver, Luke Johnson, Merryn Somerset Webb & Martin Vander Weyer

Fri, 05 May 2023 09:28:31 GMT

Here at CapX we love an unfashionable cause – and in a cost of living crisis, few demographics are less popular than those who seem to be struggling less.

But we're also fans of basic economic concepts, and with the tax burden the highest it’s been since the era of state socialism under Attlee, the Laffer Curve inevitably comes to mind. Because while calls to ‘tax the rich’ may be popular, if it means less money for public services, they will ultimately prove counterproductive.

And it’s not just about Treasury revenues. The only way we’ll get out of the hole we’re in is by growing the economy and that means enabling businesses to thrive, to generate profits and – in the end – to make some people wealthy.

To discuss whether the Government and society at large are doing enough to incentivise wealth creation, we were delighted to welcome broadcaster and commentator Emily Carver, Martin Vander Weyer, Business Editor at The Spectator, Merryn Somerset Webb, Senior Columnist at Bloomberg and entrepreneur Luke Johnson –founder and partner at Risk Capital Partners and chairman of Gail’s bakeries among other businesses.

This fascinating conversation ranged from the deep cultural roots of Britain's distaste for the dirty business of making money, the moral obligations of the wealthy, to working out who really counts as 'rich'.

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Fuelling the future

Fri, 28 Apr 2023 06:29:04 GMT

Did you know that every time you fill up your car, you are paying for the UK’s biofuels mandate, the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO)? In fact, some 6% of the price Brits pay at the pump goes on biofuel being blended into petrol and diesel.

More concerning still at a time of soaring food prices, crops such as wheat and corn are still a central part of the industry. That's why a new report from the Centre for Policy Studies calls on the Government to phase out food crops, both to bolster food security and help the environment.

For this weeks' episode of the CapX Podcast I invited the author of that report, our Energy and Environment researcher Dillon Smith, to explain just what's going on here, and what kind of reform we need to see.

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Reasons to be fearful, with Ed West

Fri, 21 Apr 2023 06:57:40 GMT

Things can seem a bit gloomy at the moment, and no one is better suited to explaining why than our guest this week, the Tory writer and self-proclaimed doom-monger Ed West.

In an eclectic career that has spanned lad mags, religious publications and a very popular personal Substack, Ed has become one of the most entertaining, thought-provoking writers on the British right, and it was a pleasure to sit down and shoot the breeze with him for this week's episode.

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AI-pocalypse now?

Fri, 14 Apr 2023 12:41:29 GMT

Breathless predictions of AI-induced doom are all around, with some experts in the field saying the technology has already advanced beyond the point of no return. The recent open letter signed by the likes of Elon Musk, Steve Wozniak and Andrew Yang was just the latest example of the unease that programmes such as Chat GPT-4 have provoked.

So how well-founded are the fears that a super-intelligent AI might render humanity obsolete? And what of the more prosaic and immediate concern that chatbots will turf millions of people out of work, spread disinformation and generally make our already topsy-turvy world even more unstable?

To find out, we invited out colleague Matthew Feeney, Head of Tech at the Centre for Policy Studies, for an illuminating discussion on the history of artificial intelligence, where the tech is now and where it could take us in the future.

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Stephen D King on why we need to talk about inflation

Thu, 06 Apr 2023 13:52:52 GMT

After years where prices barely seemed to rise and interest rates remained stubbornly low, the last two years have seen inflation come roaring back - combined with union strife and an energy crisis it has felt like we've been living through the 1970s all over again.

What better time then, for an economist to publish a handy explainer on just what inflation is, where it comes from and why central banks have so often failed to deal with it.

Stephen D King is an economist and writer who is a senior adviser at HSBC and the author of four books, including his latest We Need To Talk About Inflation - 14 urgent lessons from the last 2,000 years.

We sat down at CapX Towers to talk through the history of inflation and what the UK might have in store in the years to come...

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Ben Ansell on Why Politics Fails

Fri, 31 Mar 2023 10:46:10 GMT

Would we all be better off if only we had better politicians?

It's a comforting illusion, but really the problem isn't those who sweep in and out of power, but you and me, the public - that's the basic argument put forward by political scientist Ben Ansell in his new book Why Politics Fails.

Drawing on examples from Ancient Greece to Brexit and Covid lockdowns, Ben argues compellingly that the problem with politics is that self interest and collective goals rub up against each other to create five inescapable 'traps'. The 'democracy trap' for instance, is that we want a say in how we're governed, but all have rather different ideas of what that entails – the idea of a 'will of the people' is the stuff of utopian fantasy, not political reality.

So how do we resolve those tensions and paradoxes while keeping in place the democratic processes we all take for granted? Our editor John Ashmore sat down with Ben to find out...

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Hannah Barnes on the rise and fall of the Tavistock gender clinic

Fri, 24 Mar 2023 09:28:54 GMT

How did an NHS clinic end up prescribing young people potential dangerous medical treatment with next to no data on the long-term effects? And why did that same clinic fail to respond to the concerns not just of outsiders, but its own staff?

These are just some of the many questions posed by BBC journalist Hannah Barnes in her new book 'Time To Think', which details the rise and fall of the Tavistock and Portman Trust's Gender Identity Development Service, commonly known as GIDS.

The clinic will shut its doors later this year after a series of damning reports and reviews, and an 'inadequate' rating from the Care Quality Commissions. The story of how what was once considered a ground-breaking medical service became mired in infamy is a fascinating tale of managerial failure, groupthink and a failure to observe basic clinical practice - a story Hannah sets out in painstaking and at times very moving detail in her book.

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Breaking down the Budget

Fri, 17 Mar 2023 13:30:10 GMT

It's that special time of year again when the Chancellor delivers a Budget, before commentators, policy wonks and political opponents rush to tear it apart in the ensuing days.

In that noblest of British traditions, we invited our editor-in-chief, Robert Colvile and the Centre for Policy Studies tax and policy guru, Tom Clougherty, for a special Budget edition podcast.

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Colonialism and the culture wars with Nigel Biggar

Fri, 10 Mar 2023 12:07:34 GMT

How bad was the British Empire? That's the question Nigel Biggar, Emeritus Regius Professor of Moral and Pastoral Theology at the University of Oxford, has attempted to answer in his book Colonialism a Moral Reckoning. But in doing so, he has confronted those who don’t just want to tell a one-sided story of an imperial project motivated solely by racism and exploitation, but who want to silence alternative narratives – and who almost succeeded in preventing his book being published.

I was delighted to have the chance to talk to him, not just about his own personal battle with the culture warriors, but about the deeper philosophical issues at play. How do you make a moral assessment of a vast sweep of history, with multiple actors each with their own motivations – one which includes both enthusiastic participation in the slave trade and being instrumental in its abolition? And what happens if we allow shame about the past dictate how we do things today?

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Ross Clark on 'Not Zero'

Fri, 03 Mar 2023 11:58:36 GMT

The Government's Net Zero target is nothing if not ambitious - to decarbonise the British economy - energy, manufacturing, transport and agriculture included - all in the space of just a few decades.

But while there is a glut of potentially exciting new low-carbon technologies, and some encouraging signs that renewables are getting a lot cheaper, there's still a huge question mark over how feasible the 2050 target is.

In his new book 'Not Zero', journalist Ross Clark suggests the Government has bitten off far more than it can chew, with a policy agenda that threatens to make Brits a lot worse off, with almost no benefit to the environment.

I sat down with Ross to talk about just what Net Zero entails, how far the Government is from its target and if we aren't going to make it to Net Zero, what we should do instead.

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Gavin Jackson on how money makes the world go round

Fri, 24 Feb 2023 12:24:44 GMT

This week we're talking about moola, lolly, dough or dosh - the thing that makes the world go round...Money.

In his recent book Money in One Lesson the economic journalist Gavin Jackson tries to answer a seemingly basic but very tricky question: what is money and how does it work? It's a grand tour of the monetary world, from pigs in Papua New Guina to sea shells in West Africa, the foundation of the world's first central bank and the links between currency and nationhood – all of which gave us plenty to talk about on this week's episode.

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Alex Massie on the Sturgeon succession

Fri, 17 Feb 2023 12:14:47 GMT

Nicola Sturgeon's resignation on Wednesday morning was a slightly puzzling political event – 'shocking', in the sense that it heralds the departure of a politician who has occupied the highest perch in Scottish politics for so long, but also not all that surprising, given both the First Minister's recent political travails and the fact she had started to openly discuss how long she'd be in the top job.

So what comes next? Who will succeed Sturgeon and how will her exit affect the cause of independence?

To run the rule over Sturgeon's record and the shape of the succession, we were delighted to welcome one of Scottish journalism's leading lights to this week's CapX Podcast.

Alex Massie is the Scotland Editor of The Spectator, a Times and Sunday Times columnist and, of course, has been a regular contributor to CapX down the years. He joined our editors John Ashmore and Alys Denby down the line from his home in Scotland to discuss the 'surface finery' of Sturgeon's politics, the SNP's dire domestic record and who the runners and riders are to success her as First Minister.

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Remaking Britain

Fri, 10 Feb 2023 13:01:40 GMT

Britain isn’t working well for many of us right now. The cost of energy, housing, and food are too high, while decent jobs with real prospects are hard to come by.

That is the clarion call of a new campaign group that aims to get Britain building again - Britain Remade starts from the conviction that Britain has been a great hub of industry and science in the past, and there's no reason we shouldn't be in the future, provided we have the right policies in place .

Their agenda is very much the same one that animates both CapX and our parent organisation the Centre for Policy Studies, so we were very happy to have one of Britain Remade's founders, Sam Richards, on the podcast this week. Sam is a former director of the Conservative Environment Network and before launching Britain Remade worked as a special advisor in 10 Downing St, focusing on energy and environment.

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Why is tax so taxing?

Fri, 03 Feb 2023 11:09:04 GMT

Few political questions are as basic, or as pressing, as how a government raises the money it spends – and the last year in British politics has provided ample examples of the political pitfalls of tax reform.

In principle a good tax system should be a winning combination of fairness, efficiency, smooth revenue raising and growth-enhancing incentives. The UK does reasonably well on some of these fronts, but overall our system is a burdensome, convoluted mess that is ripe for reform.

So if Jeremy Hunt really wants us to have the 'most competitive tax system of any major country', what does he need to do? And what, in the short time between now and the next election, are the most politically feasible reforms he could come up with?

To run a critical eye over the iniquities of the British tax system, we called on the expertise of the Centre for Policy Studies' Head of Tax, Tom Clougherty.

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Christopher Snowdon on why Nanny doesn't know best

Fri, 27 Jan 2023 09:54:43 GMT

From sin taxes to plain packaging, smoking bans to warnings about the perils of office cake, the reach of Britain's nanny state has never felt more pervasive or pedantic.

Only this week the public health panjandrums came up with a new wheeze - proposing reducing the calorie content of certain naughty foods by 10% in a bid to shrink the nation's waistlines.

Few know the intricacies of the public health bureaucracy – and the redundancy of many of their arguments – like our guest this week, the scourge of the scolds, Christopher Snowdon.

As Head of Lifestyle Economics at the Institute of Economic Affairs, Chris is one of the most passionate and articulate defenders of individual liberty against misguided, over-zealous paternalism. He joined our editors John Ashmore and Alys Denby for a fun-filled chat about booze, fags and how to deal with the Covid 'Smileys'.

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John Longworth on how to make Brexit work for Britain

Fri, 20 Jan 2023 08:46:04 GMT

Our guest this week. John Longworth, is a real titan of UK PLC. As a scientist, business, entrepreneur and advocate for the interests of British business, there aren't many who have John's breadth or depth of experience - something he's bringing to bear now as chairman of the Independent Business Network, which represents our often ignored small and family businesses.

We sat down for a fascinating chat about how the Government can make a success of Brexit, the longstanding problems with the British economy and what British healthcare will look like in the decades to come.

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Samuel Hughes on solving the housing puzzle

Fri, 13 Jan 2023 13:00:41 GMT

CapX regulars know all too well the parlous state of British housing. We don't build enough, what we do build is often shoddy and angrily opposed by local people, and both rents and mortgages are increasingly out of the reach of even those on middling income. There is no single silver bullet, no snapping of the fingers that will suddenly deliver a properly functioning, prosperity-enhancing British housing sector.

But that doesn't mean we can't do anything - far from it. To get into the weeds of just where we can improve housing policy, what can be done in the short and long term and, crucially, how to make beautiful design central to development, we were delighted to welcome to the CapX Podcast the Centre for Policy Studies' own Head of Housing, Samuel Hughes.

Samuel is one of the leading lights of British housing policy, who combines his work at the CPS with a role as a Research Fellow at the University of Oxford's Faculty of Theology and Religion.

There's a great deal for experts and laymen, Nimbys and Yimbys alike to get stuck into here, and there's no doubt you'll come away from the conversation better informed about the state of one of the UK economy's most important sectors.

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The CapX Podcast: The heroes and villains of 2022

Fri, 16 Dec 2022 12:57:49 GMT

Trying to boil down this eventful, hectic and often tragic year into a single podcast was always going to be a hell of a challenge - but here on the CapX Podcast we like to shoot for the moon and cram in as much content for our loyal listeners as possible.

To that end, our editors John and Alys brought together some of Westminster's sharpest commentators to run the rule over their heroes and villains of 2022. We also found room for separate Politician and Policy of the Year awards and, to lighten the mood of a gloomy 2022, a Reasons to be Cheerful heading into the New Year.

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Educating England

Fri, 09 Dec 2022 12:39:42 GMT

Wherever you look workers are going on strike and our schools are no exception - even though Jeremy Hunt managed to find an extra few billion behind the Treasury couch for education at his recent Autumn Statement.

So what's going on here, why are union leaders still balloting, and what's the state of English schools after 12 years of Tory-led governments?

To get the lowdown on all things educational I caught up with my Centre for Policy Studies colleague Mark Lehain, our Head of Education.

Mark's no ordinary policy wonk. he's worked as a teacher, including as a headteacher and set up his own free school, as wel as working in the heart of government as a special adviser - what he doesn't know about English education over the last few years really isn't worth knowing.

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Census sensibilities

Fri, 02 Dec 2022 12:33:23 GMT

What kind of country is Britain today?

That might be a rather broad question, but thanks to the recently published census, we can have a stab at answering it – at least for England and Wales. For this week's topical podcast we kick off with deep dive into those findings, what they say about Britain's demography and, in particular, the rapidly declining status of Christianity.

And if it's British institutions you're worried about, you might be interested in hearing about this week's hoo-ha at the Wellcome Trust, where the museum's own board appear uncomfortable with the very concept of a museum.

We'll also trawl through the iniquities of the Online Safety Bill with our colleague Matthew Feeney, the Head of Tech and Innovation at the Centre for Policy Studies.

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Baroness Dambisa Moyo on the global growth challenge

Fri, 25 Nov 2022 10:26:31 GMT

Baroness Dambisa Moyo is a seriously impressive woman. She’s worked at the World Bank and Goldman Sachs analysing global economic trends, and sat on the boards of numerous FTSE100 companies including Barclays and Chevron. She’s also the author of five books including best-sellers Dead Aid – a critique of development policy in Africa – and How the West was Lost, about a series of mistakes and failures of postwar economic policy that have seen the balance of power tip towards China.

On top of all that she’s a sought-after speaker and writer, and advises the Government on racial and ethnic disparities.

I caught up with her backstage at the Centre for Policy Studies’ Margaret Thatcher Conference to discuss the macro-economic challenges facing the world, what Britain can do about them, and why international finance is no longer a man’s world.

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Tyler Cowen on talent, economic optimism – and where to find a decent curry

Fri, 18 Nov 2022 13:45:50 GMT

Our guest this week is one of a kind. A truly polymathic personality, there's not much Tyler Cowen doesn't have a well informed view on, from the merits of Bradford curry houses to the future of cryptocurrencies and the fate of Trussonomics.

That breadth of interest is evident from his prolific writing on his Marginal Revolution blog, in the pages of various newspapers and in the 20-odd books he's written in the last three decades or so. Tyler is also an avowed friend of the free market ,as Professor of Economics at George Mason University where he is chair and faculty director of the Mercatus Center.

His latest book, co-authored with Daniel Gross, is Talent: How to Identify Energizers, Creatives, and Winners Around the World. As Tyler explains on the podcast, it's essentially a one-stop shop for companies and organisations looking to zero in on the best possible employees.

As you would imagine with Tyler, our discussion was as wide-ranging and entertaining as the man himself.

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Oliver Wiseman on America's 'red ripple'

Fri, 11 Nov 2022 08:55:19 GMT

We're turning our gaze Stateside this week where the mid-term elections promised a red wave and delivered ,well, something more like a ripple. A bad night for Donald Trump, a pretty good one for Joe Biden and a fascinating tee-up for the presidential race in a couple of years' time.

To chew over the results we welcomed back to the podcast my predecessor as editor, Oliver Wiseman, who since leaving CapX has written for a number of outlets with breadth and eloquence about the US political scene.

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Ian Acheson on police, prisons and protecting the border

Fri, 04 Nov 2022 12:50:28 GMT

Law and order has shot up the political agenda in the last year or so, with the chaos in the Channel, damning reports into the culture of the Met Police and chaos in the prison system. Just this week we've seen the firebombing of a migrant centre in Dover and uproar over the treatment of asylum seekers at an asylum centre in the Kent village of Manston.

Few commentators are better equipped to address this range of security issues than CapX regular Ian Acheson - a former prison governor, home office civil servant and community police officer, and now a senior adviser to the counter-extremism project. Ian brings a huge wealth of experience to bare in his regular pieces for CapX. In a media landscape where 'essential reading' has become a cliche, Ian's pieces genuinely fit the description – and his contribution to the CapX Podcast didn't disappoint either.

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Third time lucky?

Fri, 28 Oct 2022 14:52:39 GMT

Typical isn’t it – you wait ages for a new Prime Minister and then three come along in six months. Rishi Sunak has taken command of a party that’s been through a bruising ideological battle and taken a battering in the polls as a result.

He inherits an economy that’s in even worse shape than it was when Liz Truss took charge, which, to be clear, was already very bad.

So where does he go from here? Will we see a return to the economic orthodoxy Liz Truss was reacting against, or will the third PM this parliament find a third way to get us out of the crisis and on a path to growth.

To discuss this, the CapX Podcast is joined by two of our Centre for Policy Studies colleagues: our Research Director and Head of Tax, Tom Clougherty, and our Senior Researcher, Karl Williams.

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Iuliia Mendel on working for Zelensky and Ukraine's fight for survival

Fri, 21 Oct 2022 12:36:58 GMT

Volodymyr Zelensky became a a global icon almost overnight following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February of this year. The force of his leadership and defiance in the face of overwhelming Russian force offered hope in his country's darkest hour.

For our guest this week, Zelensky's heroic defiance came as no great surprise. Iuliia Mendel worked as the president's press secretary from his election in 2019 until 2021, and her new book 'The Fight of Our Lives' is both a close personal account of working for Zelensky, and a moving tribute to a country whose very existence has been imperilled by the Putin regime.

Iuliia joined us down the line from Kyiv, a city still living under the daily threat of Russian bombardment.

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The CapX Podcast: Bonds, Bailey and Bonking for Britain

Fri, 14 Oct 2022 12:32:43 GMT

We aren't in the habit of quoting Lenin on CapX, but his observation that there are 'decades when nothing happens and weeks when decades happen' has felt pretty apposite recently.

So there's plenty to discuss in our latest topical podcast: from chaos in the gilt markets to the Government's growing list of u-turns. We also take on the broader question on the UK's miserable growth path and long-term demographic prospects – and whether it's the proper role of the state to try and get the birth rate up.

Joining our editors John and Alys on this week's episode is Gerard B Lyons, Business Researcher at our parent organisation, the Centre for Policy Studies.

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The CapX Podcast: Richard Reeves on why modern men are struggling

Fri, 07 Oct 2022 11:43:43 GMT

When we think of the fight for gender equality, more often than not it's framed in terms of the unequal, often violent, treatment suffered by women and girls.

In many, many places, that is very much still the case - but in the West the 'battle of the sexes' is not as clear cut as it once was. Though there are certainly a host of challenges facing women and girls, it's also the case that – in the US in particular – the social and economic life of men has been turned upside down. Men are losing ground in the labour market, falling behind in education and increasingly missing out on family life – for Black men in particular, these problems are even more acute.

In his new book Of Boys and Men, the writer and policy expert Richard Reeves takes on these issues head-on and suggests some perhaps surprising solutions.

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The CapX Podcast: Julian Jessop on a tough week for 'Trussonomics'

Fri, 30 Sep 2022 12:53:50 GMT

There's no doubt it's been tough week for proponents of so-called 'Trussonomics', with the Government's Growth Plan taking pelters from all sides and the Bank of England stepping in to calm down the gilt markets. But does that mean the game is up for supply-side reformers?

Our guest this week, Julian Jessop, has been in the vanguard of the pro-liberalisation reforms set out by Kwasi Kwarteng and, despite this week's ructions, remains confident that the supply-siders have the right recipe to put Britain back on the path to economic growth.

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Edward Chancellor on The Price of Time

Fri, 23 Sep 2022 07:01:54 GMT

From ancient Mesopatamia to the Monetary Policy Committee, the story of trade, commerce and capitalism is also the story of interest rates.

Few people are as intimately acquainted with that topsy-turvy narrative as our guest this week, the financial journalist and historian Edward Chancellor.

In his recent book The Price of Time, Edward offers not only a sprawling, fascinating history of interest and credit, but a compelling argument about how years of long, low rates have led us to the verge of economic crisis.

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Brad DeLong on Slouching Towards Utopia

Fri, 16 Sep 2022 10:59:41 GMT

In a world of relentless, high-velocity news, sometimes it pays to take a step back and look at the big picture.

Our guest this week, the US economist Brad DeLong, does that with some aplomb in his new book 'Slouching Towards Utopia', a sweeping survey of economic development from the late 19th century to the present day, and an attempt to work out how we've ended up in this period of roiling economic crises.

As well as making a big argument about the nature of economic life in the long 20th century that started in 1870, Brad's book is full of winning vignettes and works just as well as a piece of narrative history as an argument about economics.

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Exam questions with Dr David James

Fri, 26 Aug 2022 07:40:42 GMT

It’s results season, so as well as an opportunity to offer congratulations or commiserations to all our many teenage listeners getting their GCSEs and A Levels this week, it’s a chance to talk about education policy. This is the first year since the pandemic that anyone has sat public examinations, which means an inevitable readjustment and many children disappointed with their grades.

But does that mean the system is unfair? To discuss this Deputy Editor Ays Denby is joined by Dr David James, Deputy Head of Lady Eleanor Holles school in London and a regular contributor to CapX, for a conversation that ranged from the iniquity of course work to ideological assaults on the curriculum to the importance of independent schools.

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Robert Colvile and Henry Hill on the way water works

Fri, 19 Aug 2022 09:56:55 GMT

Water, water everywhere...this week's news has been dominated by rows over the privatised utilities. From polluting water companies to 'greedy' energy bosses, it's open season on anyone who dares turn a (highly regulated) profit while providing an essential public service.

Recent water and high energy prices have also turned a spotlight on a chronic failure to build new infrastructure, with the UK failing to approve a new reservoir for more than three decades.

Joining us for this topical edition of the podcast are two leading lights of the centre-right policy world: CapX's editor-in-chief and Director of the Centre for Policy Studies, Robert Colvile, and the Deputy Editor of ConservativeHome, Henry Hill.

(If you haven't had the chance, do read Robert's canonical piece on how the water industry actually works, complete with an array of informative and perhaps surprising charts on pre and post-privatisation investment.)

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Are you a Booster or a Doomster?

Fri, 12 Aug 2022 10:47:57 GMT

Are you a booster or a doomster? A recent article by the economist and CapX regular Sam Bowman suggests this is the divide in UK economic policy.

For the Boosters, not only is growth paramount, but there's plenty we can do through better domestic policy to improve things, both right now and for future generations. Doomsters, unsurprisingly, take a more pessimistic view, and see a country trapped in low growth, with huge demographic pressures and big public spending commitments coming down the line.

For this week's episode we decided to test both sides of that debate and see if we could find some common ground. To that end I welcomed the original Booster, Sam Bowman, and one of the people he name-checked in his piece as a 'Doomster', Tim Pitt – a former Treasury adviser and partner at consultancy Flint Global.

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Madeline Grant on the age of 'vibes politics'

Fri, 05 Aug 2022 11:41:21 GMT

This week we were delighted to welcome one of the stars of the centre-right media landscape, Madeline Grant. After starting out in thinktank world at the Institute of Economic Affairs, Madeline has since forged a path in journalism as a comment editor, columnist and latterly sketch-writer at the Daily Telegraph.

There was plenty for us to chew over, from Rishi's green belt proposals to Liz's regional pay U-turn. We also dived into a potted Scottish history lesson, SNP-style. Finally, we turn our attention to the Mother of Parliaments itself – and the dire state of the Palace of Westminster, which seems like a rather fitting metaphor for some of the pathologies of British politics.

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Tomiwa Owolade on culture, cancellation and 'decolonising the curriculum'

Fri, 29 Jul 2022 11:02:03 GMT

In the last few years our guest this week, Tomiwa Owolade, has emerged as one of the most thoughtful, persuasive and eloquent young writers in Britain today, covering everything from Don Henley to Philip Larkin, from football to the wayward attempts to 'decolonise' the school curriculum.

As well as writing a slew of articles in various online and print outlets, next year Tom publishes his debut book, This is Not America, in which he examines the many pitfalls of examining Black British identity through the lens of a completely different Black American experience.

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And then there were two...

Fri, 22 Jul 2022 11:32:57 GMT

This week saw the hottest day in recorded history here in the UK – and things were equally fiery down in the Commons corridors as we whittled the Tory field down to a final two of Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss. So what can we take from the frenetic last two weeks of campaigning, and what can we expect in the month ahead as both candidates make their pitch to the Conservative membership?

To chew the fat and read the runes, John and Alys were joined by two colleagues from CapX's parent organisation, the Centre for Policy Studies – our business researcher Gerard B Lyons and Head of Communications, Callum Price.

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Dr Jade McGlynn on Putin’s memory-makers

Fri, 15 Jul 2022 12:25:00 GMT

While most of us in the West are pretty unequivocal about Vladimir Putin’s brutal campaign against Ukraine, in Russia itself a sophisticated infrastructure of deceit conditions the public to see and believe in a very different conflict.

Few people are better placed to understand how this war came about than our guest this week, Dr Jade McGlynn. Unlike many of the armchair pundits who have emerged in recent months, Jade spent many years living in Vladimir Putin's Russia, as well as conducting groundbreaking research on how the Kremlin twists and exploits Russian history to its own nefarious ends.

Jade is currently a Senior Researcher at the Monterey Initiative in Russian Studies in California, and alongside a glittering academic CV writes regularly for publications such as the Telegraph, the Spectator and, most importantly, CapX. She also has two books slated for publication next year - Russia’s War and the Kremlin’s Memory Makers

She joined our editor John Ashmore down the line from Monterey to discuss why so many Russians still support the war, how secure the Putin regime still is and how best to rally support in the battle for Ukraine's survival.

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Boris got done

Fri, 08 Jul 2022 06:00:00 GMT

Just last week Boris Johnson was bestriding the world stage, joking about showing his pecs to Putin at the G7 and Nato summit. Today he is Prime Minister in name only, having reluctantly agreed to leave office after more than 50 of his ministers resigned.

It's an ignominious ending to a dramatic premiership, In just over 1000 days, Boris Johnson secured a historic election victory, persuading many to vote Conservative for the first time and defeated a dangerous Labour leader. He took Britain out of the EU, he presided over the pandemic, almost dying himself in the process, and lead the world in support for Ukraine. But he leaves the country facing a devastating cost of living crisis, unresolved problems with the Northern Ireland Protocol, an unfinished legislative agenda and no clear successor to sort it out.

CapX Deputy Editor Alys Denby is joined by her Centre for Policy Studies colleagues Callum Price, Head of Communications, and Tom Clougherty, head of tax, to discuss where all this leaves us,

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Owen Polley on Protocol politics

Fri, 01 Jul 2022 14:05:02 GMT

Too often neglected and misunderstood by both politicians and commentators on this side of the Irish Sea, Northern Ireland has in recent years been thrust into the spotlight by the intense wrangling over post-Brexit trade arrangements,. Just this week, the Government's bill to change that arrangement passed its second reading in the House of Commons - much to the chagrin of those who accuse Boris Johnson of trampling over international law.

For this week's episode of The CapX Podcast we decided to get the inside track from one of the province's most astute Unionist commentators, Owen Polley. Owen is a weekly columnist with the Belfast Newsletter and a regular contributor to CapX on all things Northern Irish. He's also the author of a pamphlet titled An Agenda for Northern Ireland after Brexit.

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Off the rails?

Fri, 24 Jun 2022 12:31:21 GMT

As if the British economy didn't have enough problems with soaring inflation, swathes of the country literally ground to a half this week thanks to massive industrial action from 40,000 rail workers. Like most of us, RMT members are feeling the pinch as prices outstrip their wages and passenger numbers have still yet to recover from their pre-Covid levels. But does that really justify a strike? And is this a sign that the UK is going 'back to the 1970s'?

To discuss all that, John and Alys welcomed Tom Clougherty the Head of Tax at our parent organisation, the Centre for Policy Studies. Tom is one of Westminster's most authoritative commentators on all things tax-related, and just this week has co-authored a paper on why the idea of an Online Sales Tax is so thoroughly misguided.

To cap off this week's episode, we head across the Channel to France, where a surge in support for Marine Le Pen's National Rally helped deprive Emmanuel Macron of a parliamentary majority and thrust his presidency into huge trouble. We talk to Paris-based journalist and CapX contributor Gavin Mortimer about what this electoral hammer-blow means for Macron's second term.

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Tom Harris on the SNP's 'neverendum'

Fri, 17 Jun 2022 09:29:08 GMT

You never have too long to wait before the SNP and its leader Nicola Sturgeon are beating the drum for another independence referendum. The dream of separation is the glue that holds an otherwise fractious coalition together, and this week Sturgeon has once again upped the ante by promising a fresh vote next year, come what may.

Our guest this week, Tom Harris, is well placed to judge whether those dreams have the slightest chance of becoming a reality. Tom was a Labour MP from 2001 to 2015, before leaving the party in despair at its leftward turn under Jeremy Corbyn.

Since leaving Parliament, he's established himself as a witty, authoritative commentator on all things Scottish and beyond, including as a regular contributor to CapX. I caught up with him from hs home in Scotland to discuss the fate of the nationalist cause, the travails of the Unionsts and how much better Labour could be doing if their leader was someone other than Keir Starmer.

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A matter of confidence

Fri, 10 Jun 2022 12:57:04 GMT

It's been a truly tumultuous week, even by the elevated standards of farce we've come to expect in British politics. Monday saw a vote of confidence called in and ultimately defeated by Boris Johnson, but it was - to use the kind of classical allusion he's so fond of - a Pyrrhic victory. Over 40% of the PM's own MPs voted against him in what can only be described as a huge blow to his authority.

To discuss the fallout from that vote and the ensuing Tory policy blitz we welcomed Will Atkinson to this week's episode of the CapX Podcast. Will has been a contributor to the site for some time and was recently appointed assistant editor at ConservativeHome – the closest thing the Tory party has to a house magazine.

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What Britain really thinks with James Johnson

Fri, 27 May 2022 08:20:10 GMT

So it’s finally here, the long awaited Sue Gray report was published this week and it was great stuff for journalists – with lurid details of excessive drinking, wine splattered up walls and Downing Street staff partying until the early hours during lockdown. But the question Westminster insiders will be asking is what the public make of all this, and how will it effect their party’s prospects in a future election?

To discuss this, I’m joined by pollster extraordinaire James Johnson. As Senior Opinion Research and Strategy Adviser he ran polling for Theresa May, before pivoting to the private sector as a founder of JL partners. He spends his time travelling up and down the country talking to ordinary voters and digging into what they really think about the state of our politics.

We ran the rule over public perceptions of 'partygate', the war in Ukraine and the cost of living crisis in a conversation that may make difficult listening for supporters of the Prime Minister.

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How to solve a problem like inflation

Fri, 20 May 2022 11:33:58 GMT

There’s only one story in town this week when it comes to British politics and that’s the soaring cost of…well, just about everything.

Consumer price inflation jumped to 9% in the 12 months to April, up from 7% in March and the highest level it has reached since 1982.

After spending two years stepping in to save whole sectors of the economy, support millions of people’s wages and borrow hundreds of billions of pounds into the bargain, there's now a sense of helplessness on the Government's part as it faces severe global pressures on areas like energy and food prices. Indeed, on Wednesday night Rishi Sunak said: 'There is no measure any government could take, no law we could pass, that can make these global forces disappear overnight.'

Do not despair though, here at CapX and our parent organisation, the Centre for Policy Studies we’re here to help. This week the CPS has produced a briefing paper setting out all the things the Government could do to take the strain off household finances.

For this week's episode we're joined by one of that report’s authors, CPS Senior Researcher Karl Williams, and James Heywood, the CPS' Head of Welfare and Opportunity.

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Vladimir Ashurkov on standing up to Putin

Fri, 13 May 2022 10:36:10 GMT

As well as visiting untold horrors on the Ukrainian people, Vladimir Putin’s regime has launched a new wave of unprecedented repression in Russia itself, instantly jailing anyone who dares raise their voice in opposition to his despotic rule.

One man who knows all too well the reality of standing up to Putin is our guest this week, Vladimir Ashurkov. Vladimir is a former financier, political activist and a leading light of Alexei Navalny’s anti-corruption foundation. He was forced to flee Russia in 2014, when he was granted political asylum here in the UK.

Our editor John Ashmore spoke to Vladimir about the war in Ukraine, the malign influence of Russian money in the UK and his hopes for a democratic future for his homeland.

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The cost-of-government crisis

Fri, 06 May 2022 11:55:30 GMT

It's been a bumper few weeks for political news. We've had endless 'Beergate' stories rattling the Labour leadership, soaring prices in the shops, dreadful economic forecasts from the Bank of England, Elon Musk's mooted takeover of Twitter and thehugely controversial leaked Supreme Court ruling on Roe vs Wade.

To discuss those pressing issues, our editors John Ashmore and Alys Denby welcomed two of the stars of the Westminster wonk-world: Kristian Niemietz of the Institute of Economic Affairs, and the Adam Smith Institute's Morgan Schondelmeier.

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John Penrose on escaping the poverty trap

Fri, 29 Apr 2022 12:36:34 GMT

Should poverty be defined by how much you earn, how much less money you have than the average household, or something altogether more holistic - the myriad of interlocking factors, from health to social capital to transport links, that define someone's quality of life?

That's the question that Conservative MP John Penrose grappled with in his landmark report, Poverty Trapped, released at the end of last year. As well as an acute diagnosis of the problems of measuring poverty purely in terms of income, it's full of workable policy solutions to help spread opportunity and raise people's quality of life without simply spraying money about from Whitehall and hoping for the best.

Our editor John Ashmore caught up with John earlier this week to discuss some of his ideas, including one housing policy which he says could be the biggest 'single moment of wealth creation' since the Second World War.

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Sam Ashworth-Hayes on party politics, Rwanda and the 'Granny State'

Fri, 22 Apr 2022 11:12:34 GMT

It's been quite a few weeks in British politics. After a brief Easter respite, the PartyGate saga reared its head again for Boris Johnson, who now faces a parliamentary probe on whether he misled the House of Commons. Equally controversial was his government's announcement last week of a deal to ship asylum seekers 5,000 miles away to Rwanda.

Just what Brexit means for Britain's immigration system also became clearer this week with the publication of some fascinating Home Office figures on who has arrived in the UK since we fully severed ties with the EU in 2021.

Joining us to make some sense of the political tumult on this week's topical podcast is CapX regular Sam Ashworth-Hayes. Sam is an economist, writer and policy analyst who has previously worked as Director of Studies at the Henry Jackson Society. He writes regularly here on CapX, as well as in outlets such as The Daily Telegraph and The Spectator.

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Setting Cuba free with Rosa Maria Paya

Thu, 14 Apr 2022 12:33:07 GMT

Few countries on earth are as politically and economically repressed as Cuba. For all its brutality and illiberalism of six decades of one-party rule, the communist regime has somehow managed to sell an image of itself as a brave holdout against Western imperialists, rather than a despotic economic basket case, allied to the world's very worst regimes, including Putin's Russia.

Our guest this week, Rosa Maria Paya is the scion of what she describes as a 'family of dissidents' on the Caribbean island. Her late father Oswaldo was a prominent human rights activist who won the Sakharov Prize and was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. Rosa Maria has continued his work by founding Cuba Decide, a grassroots initiative campaigning for democracy and rule of law on the island.

Our editor John Ashmore caught up with Rosa Maria on her recent trip to the UK, where she came to Parliament to speak about the plight of Cuban political prisoners and to urge the British government to introduce further sanctions against the communist regime.

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Nicole Lampert on 'Beardsplaining' and 'Holocaust denial'

Fri, 08 Apr 2022 10:43:35 GMT

It's another topical podcast this week as our editors sat down with freelance journalist, CapX regular and 'Queen of the Internet' Nicole Lampert.

In a very wide-ranging chat, we discuss the horrendous attacks on Ukrainian civilians, the latest trans rights row, the novel concept of 'Beardsplaining' and what it's like for a Jewish woman to be called a 'Holocaust denier'.

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Helen Dale on Ukraine's tortured history

Fri, 01 Apr 2022 07:49:43 GMT

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A Spring in his step?

Thu, 24 Mar 2022 15:14:48 GMT

It's a very topical podcast this week as we run the rule over Rishi Sunak's much-anticipated Spring Statement.

With war in Ukraine and a Covid crisis in China, combined with already soaring inflation here in the UK, the Chancellor had a hugely unenviable task on Wednesday afternoon - so how did he do? Was the statement up to the mark of dealing with a generational cost of living crisis, and is Sunak really the Nigel Lawson tax-cutter he would have Tory MPs believe?

To chew over those question the CapX team welcomed James Heywood, the Head of Welfare and Opportunity at our parent organisation, the Centre for Policy Studies.

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Merryn Somerset Webb on Share Power

Fri, 18 Mar 2022 12:58:58 GMT

Although many of us might not know it, thanks to pensions auto-enrollment the average Brit is more invested in the stock market than at any point in our history. But how many of us are taking advantage of our ownership of stocks and shares to influence the way our corporations behave? And how can we get the seemingly all-powerful fund managers to invest our money in a way that aligns with our values?

That's the challenge that Moneyweek's editor-in-chief Merryn Somerset Webb sets out to answer in her excellent new book 'Share Power' - how ordinary people can change the way capitalism works, and make money too'. It's not only a colourful, vividly written guide to the workings of corporate finance, but a manifesto about where capitalism has gone wrong, and how we the people can put it back on track.

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Throwing oil on the fire?

Fri, 11 Mar 2022 13:37:06 GMT

We had plenty to get stuck into for this week's topical episode of the CapX Podcast: from the halting progress of Russia's offensive in Ukraine, to the equally halting processing of Ukrainain visas to come to the UK and just what a Russian oil embargo will mean for the world economy.

We were very pleased to be joined this week by Karl Williams, a senior researcher at the Centre for Policy Studies and, helpfully for us, a bit of an expert on the oil and gas industry.

As well as all things Ukraine, we also discussed the release of an utterly damning report into the conduct of former House of Commons Speaker John Bercow – a subject on which our panel had near total agreement...

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The Status Game with Will Storr

Fri, 04 Mar 2022 07:05:33 GMT

From the lowest prison cell to the grandest palaces, human beings are engaged in age-old battles for status and recognition.

In his latest book The Status Game, acclaimed science writer WIll Storr brilliantly unpacks just how human societies are steeped in the search for status, how it leads to conformity, hysteria and violence – but also to enormous, life-enhancing achievements.

I always enjoy recording our podcasts, but I must say this interview was a particular pleasure, with a writer and thinker who conveys great knowledge and enthusiasm about his subject.

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War in Ukraine – victory over Covid

Fri, 25 Feb 2022 10:00:36 GMT

This week's topical podcast is understandably dominated by Vladimir Putin's all-out assault on Ukraine, which has shocked and appalled most of us in equal measure, not only for the brutality of Russia's aggression, but the impotence of the Western response.

To discuss what the UK and its allies should do next, we were very glad to welcome Conservative Home's Deputy Editor Henry Hill. Henry is a prolific contributor to CapX and other sites, writing on a variety of topics, but with a particular focus on constitutional affairs and the Union.

As well as the awful scenes in eastern Europe, Henry and our deputy editor Alys Denby and editor John Ashmore ran the rule over the end of Covid restrictions and the future of the BBC.

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John McWhorter on Woke Racism

Fri, 18 Feb 2022 12:11:03 GMT

Our guest this week, John McWhorter, is a man of many talents: a Columbia University professor, prolific author, music historian, New York Times columnist and one of America’s leading authorities on linguistics.

Beyond his academic career, McWhorter has also found a following as a prominent critic of the language-policing, statue-toppling, academic-cancelling brand of anti-racism that has taken hold in the United States and beyond.

In his new book Woke Racism, McWhorter argues that this is not just a noxious ideology, but a religion, complete with the original sin of ‘white privilege’, a completely illogical catechism and a set of priests to spread the bad news – that all of the obstacles facing black Americans are due to structural or systemic racism. This creed, he argues, is not just wrong but actively harmful to the very people it purports to help. It has more to do with self-congratulation among the faithful, whom McWhorter labels ‘The Elect’, than any real attempt at social justice.

As well as skewering the sloppy thinking and bullying behaviour of The Elect, McWhorter also offers a road map for how to deal with their style of thinking, and some concrete suggestions for how to improve the lot of Black Americans.

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Kate Andrews on Levelling Up, inflation and NHS waiting lists

Fri, 11 Feb 2022 10:39:50 GMT

From the soaring cost of living to ever-lengthening NHS waiting lists, the Government certainly has its hands full at the moment – even without the rumbling discontent about PartyGate in the background. And on top of the day-to-day issues, Boris Johnson has set himself the daunting task of reconfiguring Britain's political economy with the recently released Levelling Up White Paper.

To talk us through all these issues and some of our favourite stories of the last week, we welcomed one of the stars of the centre-right policy firmament, The Spectator's Economics Editor, Kate Andrews.

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The Good the Bad and the Greedy with Martin Vander Weyer

Fri, 04 Feb 2022 07:00:10 GMT

Martin Wander Weyer has had a front row seat for some of the biggest economic developments of the last 50 years - both as a banker and as business correspondent for the Spectator- including under the editorship of Boris Johnson.

His book the Good the Bad and the Greedy argues that scandals like the misselling of PPI and the fixing of Libor have eroded trust in enterprise, and that only a return to a kinder, more public spirited corporate culture can fix it.

It’s both a defence of entrepreneurship as an engine of human progress and a criticism of a capitalist system that incentivises personal gain above all else.

He joined the CapX Podcast for a lively conversation that ranged from what Margaret Thatcher got wrong to what it's like to work for Boris Johnson.

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Eastern Menace

Fri, 28 Jan 2022 14:07:06 GMT

As part of our new year revamp of the CapX Podcast we're bringing you another topical, multi-topic episode this week.

To kick off we head east and speak to former Ukrainian MP Alyona Hlivco about the perilous situation on her country's borders. Is this just more brinkmanship from Vladimir Putin, or is there a real risk of conflict? Her answer is an interesting rejoinder to some of the more impassioned commentary we've heard on this topic

We'll also be talking all things domestic, including PartyGate, Sue Gray's report, accusations of Tory Islamophobia, dodgy Covid stats and, of course, artificial wombs. Our special guest this week is Aria Babu, researcher at The Enterpreneurs Network and rising star of the policy wonk world.

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Pacific Vim: The case for CPTPP

Thu, 20 Jan 2022 18:16:12 GMT

Why is a rainy island in north-west Europe trying to join a trade bloc centred on the Pacific?

At first sight, the UK's application to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement on Trans-Pacific Partnership seems highly counter-intuitive – but it actually makes a lot of sense, as a report this week from our parent organisation, the Centre for Policy Studies, makes clear.

To help us explain why this is such a good idea, we welcomed one of the contributors to that report, Anthony Mangnall, the Conservative MP for Totnes and a member of Parliament's International Trade Committee.

Joining Anthony is economist-turned-journalist Soumaya Keynes, the Britain Economics editor at the Economist and former co-host of Trade Talks, a podcast about the economics of trade. Who better to talk us through the ins and outs of the CPTPP, and what it might mean for Britain?

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Can the party go on?

Fri, 14 Jan 2022 07:33:31 GMT

The CapX Podcast returns with a rundown of the big stories of 2022 so far - and the only place to start is Downing Street itself, where stories of lockdown gatherings have caused massive political ructions and left the Prime Minister fending off critics on all sides. So what's next for Boris - and can he hang on in the face of the most sustained criticism of his leadership so far?

As well as the rumbling Partygate stories, we'll also be discussing the Novak Djokovic visa saga, the Molly Mae Hague pile-on and, of course, tantalising rumours of a new Jeremy Corbyn Party

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Heroes, villains, highs and lows – CapX looks back on 2021

Mon, 20 Dec 2021 22:17:38 GMT

From the Washington riots to European Championship football fever, the Taliban sweeping through Afghanistan and the brutal murder of MP David Amess, it's been mostly a year to forget – and that's before we begin to talk about the concertina-ing nightmare of Covid false dawns.

Here on the CapX Podcast, however, we ended 2021 in style with three of Westminster's brightest and best brains to pore over this year's events. Competition guru Sam Bowman, freelance political journalist Marie Le Conte and the Telegraph's sketchwriter Madeline Grant joined CapX's own Alys Denby and John Ashmore for a five-way Zoom-cast to try to get through as much of the year's endless news as possible.

It only remains for me to thank you, our loyal listeners. We've had a great time making the podcast this year, with some wonderful guests - and we've got big plans for more great episodes in 2022.

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Lord Mandelson on Labour, Levelling Up and the danger of the hard left

Fri, 26 Nov 2021 07:00:17 GMT

It's not often we get bona fide political royalty on the CapX Podcast, and whatever your political outlook, few people have bestrode British politics over the last few decades like Peter Mandelson.

Mandelson is often credited as being the original 'spin doctor' in the 1980s, but that rather glib epithet undersells his influence on the New Labour project, where he was integral to both Tony Blair's ascent to the leadership and the party's subsequent electoral success. He went on to serve in a number of Cabinet roles and as a European Commissioner, before returning to government under Gordon Brown as Business Secretary and President of the Board of Trade.

Given the breadth of his experience in government, we were very pleased to welcome Lord Mandelson to appear earlier this week at the Margaret Thatcher Conference on Trade, hosted by CapX's parent organisation the Centre for Policy Studies. Our editor John Ashmore caught up with him afterwards to talk trade, Brexit and how he sees his party's prospects under Keir Starmer.

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Good COP? Bad COP?

Fri, 12 Nov 2021 09:52:16 GMT

For the last two weeks the great and the good have descended on Glasgow to try to thrash out a climate deal at what's been billed everywhere as a make or break 'COP26'.

For those of you who aren't familiar, COP stands for 'Conference of the Parties', which since 1995 has been the UN's annual get-together to discuss all things climate change. The Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement were both signed at previous COPs.

It's also a pretty big deal for Boris Johnson, so much so that he appointed a dedicated minister, Alok Sharma, to oversee the conference. And, of course, this being a climate change conference, the usual crusties and superglue enthusiasts wondered the streets of Glasgow shouting about how we're all going to hell in a handcart.

So what's the result of all this summitry and politicking? To find out, CapX editor John Ashmore and deputy editor Alys Denby talked to one of the stars of the market environmentalist movement, Eamonn Ives, the head of Energy and Environment at our parent organisation, the Centre for Policy Studies.

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Diane Coyle on Cogs and Monsters

Thu, 04 Nov 2021 09:45:29 GMT

Is economics fit for the modern world?

That’s the basic question posed in Cogs and Monsters, the new book from Diane Coyle, one of Britain’s most eminent economists and our guest this week.

Part critique of her own profession, part manifesto for a better, more up-to-date economics, Diane’s book goes beyond the standard criticisms of economics and gets into the the really big issues - not least, what should the role of an economist actually be? Should economics describe the world as it is, or as it should be? How can economists deal with a world of AI, big tech and big data?

Diane is as well qualified as anyone to answer those questions, having worked a Treasury economist, economics editor of the Independent, professor of economics at the University of Manchester and, since 2018 as the head of the interdisciplinary Bennett Institute for Public Policy at the University of Cambridge. She is also the author of no fewer than nine books, including the Weightless World, The Economics of Enough and ‘GDP - a Brief but affectionate history’.

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The economics of ancient Rome with George Maher

Fri, 15 Oct 2021 09:54:56 GMT

Rome was the greatest city of the ancient world, commanding an empire that spread from Damascus to York and encompassed a quarter of the world’s population. It’s a civilisation whose splendour and eventual decline has inspired generations of painters and poets for more than a thousand years. But as businessman and historian George Maher argues in his book Pugnare: Economic Success and Failure, the ascent of Rome wasn’t just a military or cultural achievement – it was an economic one.

CapX sat down for a fascinating conversation with George – whose classical research combined with his professional experience as an actuary gives him a rare insight into the comparative workings of the ancient and modern worlds – to discuss the Romans' innovations in free trade, currency and banking, and why the lessons from the empire’s downfall are still relevant today.

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CapX Live with Jacob Rees-Mogg

Fri, 08 Oct 2021 12:37:16 GMT

It's a very special edition of the podcast this week as we take you inside Tory conference in Manchester for a fascinating, fun-packed conversation with the one and only Jacob Rees-Mogg and our editor-in-chief, Robert Colvile.

It's a bit of a cliche to call these chats 'wide-ranging', but they really did cover a lot of ground, from the Labour politicians he most admires, to the state of the British economy and the thrill of taking on the world's fastest zipline dressed entirely in tweed.

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Alex Deane on Lessons from History

Thu, 30 Sep 2021 19:00:40 GMT

Most us know about Henry VIII, Napoleon and Churchill, but what about history's unheralded heroes?

In his new book Lessons from History, political commentator and self-declared amateur historian Alex Deane shines a light on the less-known characters who have helped shape our world, from sharp-shooting barons to self-medicating surgeons, to the Lion of Africa and a bear who nearly caused a nuclear war, this is history in all its technicolour glory with an unforgettable cast of characters.

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Vivek Ramaswamy on the woke-industrial complex

Wed, 15 Sep 2021 11:13:17 GMT

There's a new, invisible force at work in the highest ranks of corporate America and it's behind what may be the defining scam of our era. By co-opting social causes and embracing 'wokery' America's biggest companies have pulled the wool over people's eyes, subverting both democracy and the free market capitalism that made the country great.

But don't take my word for it. Our guest this week, Vivek Ramaswamy, has seen this phenomenon first hand, from Wall Street internships to Ivy League classrooms and then as the CEO of a successful pharmaceutical company, he's witnessed the emergence of the woke-industrial complex.

His recently released book Woke, Inc. takes us behind the scenes, revealing the inner workings of the scam but also offering a better way forward.

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Duncan Weldon on 200 years of muddling through

Fri, 27 Aug 2021 04:10:43 GMT

Why is the British economy the way it is today?

That's the rather daunting exam question The Economist's Duncan Weldon sets himself in his newly released book 200 Years of Muddling Through - The surprising story of Britain's economy from boom to bust and back again.

It's fair to say that Weldon succeeds in answering it with his pacy, vivid canter through the Industrial Revolution, two World Wars, post-war decline and resurgence in the 1980s, right up to the current crisis.

We were delighted to get Duncan on to the podcast for a chat about the book and his reflections on the where the British economy may be heading as we recover from the Covid cataclysm.

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David Skelton on the New Snobbery

Fri, 16 Jul 2021 06:23:24 GMT

Long before the Red Wall became a part of our everyday political lexicon, David Skelton was talking and writing about the disconnection between post-industrial Britain and the country's political class.

Skelton's latest book 'The New Snobbery' is partly a polemic about the disdain and condescension voters in these communities have faced from so-called progressives, particularly since the Brexit referendum. But it's also a call to arms to offer a new settlement for communities that have for too long been kept on the margins of Britain's political, economic and cultural life.

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Frank Luntz on the New Language of Politics

Wed, 07 Jul 2021 11:25:16 GMT

Few people know more about the language of politics and how to effectively communicate with the public than Frank Luntz.

As an award winning political and communications consultant, pollster and pundit, Dr. Luntz has served as an election consultant and commentator in national elections across the globe. He has worked for more than 50 Fortune 500 companies and CEOs, and he is the author of three New York Times bestsellers. He also has friends in high places, having conducted his very first political polling for the Oxford Union campaign of one Boris Johnson.

For the last six weeks Frank has been a Visiting Fellow at our parent organisation, the Centre for Policy Studies. During that time he's been conducting a mega-survey of British public opinion, delving in huge detail into our attitudes to moral values, capitalism, technology and the culture wars. We sat down to discuss the new centre of gravity of British politics, and why Frank sees himself as a 'reverse Paul Revere', journeying across the Atlantic to warn us 'the Americans are coming'.

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Niall Ferguson on the Politics of Catastrophe

Fri, 02 Jul 2021 08:55:56 GMT

From the eruption of Vesuvius to the Chernobyl meltdown, human history has always been punctuated by catastrophes - some natural, others very much man-made.

In his new book Doom: The Politics of Catastrophe, world-renowned historian Professor Niall Ferguson argues that far from being "unprecedented", the response to Covid-19 exhibits the same political and social pathologies that have shaped so many previous crises. Moreover, we can't hope to understand the pandemic without a keen appreciation of the history of economics, society, culture and politics.

The latest episode of the CapX Podcast is a recording of our CapX Live event with Professor Ferguson – a typically lively, entertaining and thought-provoking discussion with our editor-in-chief, Robert Colvile.

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The Aristocracy of Talent

Tue, 15 Jun 2021 14:00:52 GMT

Meritocracy is the creed of our age. An idea that has great success in crossing traditional boundaries: not just Thatcher, Reagan and Boris Johnson, but Clinton, Blair and Xi Jinping have sung the praises of a society where anyone can rise based on their own talent and effort.

But just as meritocracy has risen to be the dominant idea of our age, it's faced an onslaught of criticism, from the traditional left who saw it as a betrayal of principles of equality and solidarity, contemporary social justice activists who regard it as just another instrument of white power, and conservatives who fear it undermines the bonds of community and tradition.

Most interesting though are the trenchant critiques from some of those at the heart of the meritocratic system, like the Yale Law professor who calls it a "sham"- an excuse for the wealthy to game the system and pass on their privilege to the younger generation.

These are some of the questions that preoccupy Adrian Wooldridge, the political editor of The Economist, in his latest book, the Aristocracy of Talent. This episode of the CapX Podcast is a recording of a CapX Live interview with Adrian last week where we discussed the history of the meritocratic idea from Plato to the present day, how supposedly meritocratic societies have been corrupted and laid low by old-fashioned cronyism, and how we can go about correcting that.

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Is Britain racist?

Wed, 21 Apr 2021 09:47:39 GMT

Is Britain a racist society?

After a year where prejudice, privilege and protest have never been far from the headlines, it's a question that continues to provoke the fiercest debates – not least after the recent publication of the Government's recent Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities.

For the latest instalment of The CapX Podcast, editor John Ashmore spoke to Dr Rakib Ehsan, an independent researcher and author who covers ethnicity and cultural issues in the UK. Rakib is a regular contributor to the site and one of his pieces, on social outcomes for white working class children, is quoted at length in the Commission's report.

In a wide-ranging interview, we discussed the nature of discrimination in Britain, whether we are importing a US-style culture war, the importance of family structure for people's life chances and the acute difficulties now faced by Keir Starmer's Labour Party in negotiating between its metropolitan base and its socially conservative former heartlands.

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The Future of Capitalism with Sir Paul Collier

Tue, 16 Mar 2021 09:23:23 GMT

Deep rifts are tearing societies apart and shredding old political allegiances: across the Western world, regions are rebelling against cities, the working class against the elites and the young against the old. For far too many, contemporary capitalism simply isn't delivering the goods.

For Sir Paul Collier, one of the world's leading development economists, the response to this profound crisis is as much ethical as technical. His proposals for a capitalism based on both prosperity and morality have appeal beyond the traditional left-right divide – and he has a pragmatic plan to put them into action. He joined CapX and an online audience for a fascinating conversation that ranged from 19th century Bradford, to his own experiences growing up in post-war Sheffield to the morality of modern media influencers.

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Meet the '109ers'

Mon, 01 Feb 2021 07:00:00 GMT

Right now All the Government’s efforts are focussed on coronavirus, but what about the fundamental mandate it was elected on?

As the vaccine roll-out continues apace, backbench MPs could be forgiven for raising their eyes to the horizon and starting to think about their prospects for re-election in 2024. By far the biggest Conservative cohort in parliament is the so-called 109 group of MPs newly elected in 2019.

These guys are the cavalry, who stormed the red wall with promises of delivering Brexit and levelling up those parts of the country that had been overlooked by Labour for generations. They’re fiercely loyal to Boris Johnson while recognising that their jobs depend on sticking up for their voters – many of whom aren’t traditional Tories.

CapX spoke to four of them – Dehenna Davison, MP for Bishop Auckland, James Sunderland, MP for Bracknell, Virginia Crosbie, MP for Ynys Môn and Alexander Stafford, MP for Rother valley – to find out how they feel about the future now that Britain has left the EU with a trade deal and the pandemic has derailed the economy.

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The heroes and villains of 2020

Fri, 18 Dec 2020 16:12:21 GMT

For our final CapX Pocast of the year, it’s time to take a look back at this absolute car-crash of a year.

Rather than the usual tête-à-tête, we decided to make this a bit more of a panel show format, with each of our guests choosing their hero, villain, moment, policy and idea of the year, before rounding off with some reflections on what’s ahead in 2021.

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Extreme economies with Richard Davies

Fri, 04 Dec 2020 07:00:00 GMT

Not many economists have trekked through lawless jungles, visited shops and restaurants world’s most entrepreneurial refugee camp or hung out with inmates in a Louisiana mega jail.

For his book, Extreme Economies, Richard Davies went to some of the most desperate places on the planet, but found incredible stories of human resilience. People with nothing had created businesses and currencies from scratch - proving that even in dire circumstances, the free market finds a way.

In this episode of the podcast we discuss what a world ravaged by the global pandemic can learn from disaster zones, displaced societies and failed states.

Visit www.extremeeconomies.com/signed and enter the code CapX to get a signed copy of Richard's book for the special price of £7.

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Free Exchange: Lockdown vs liberty with Jonathan Sumption

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 07:00:00 GMT

Few have opposed the Government’s handling of the pandemic with as much eloquence and authority as Lord Sumption. The former supreme court judge, medieval historian and Reith lecturer doesn’t just dispute the scientific evidence, he questions the legal and constitutional justification for these restrictions on our liberty.

He’s claimed that the Government has a habit of deliberately avoiding parliamentary scrutiny and is using fear as an instrument of coercion. That, he says, is how democracy dies.

As England was put back under stay-at-home-orders he spoke to CapX about the ethics and efficacy of lockdown.

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Free Exchange: Matt Forde's impressions of politics

Fri, 06 Nov 2020 00:39:17 GMT

Our guest this week is Matt Forde - one of Britain's foremost stand-ups, satirists and impressionists. He's a highly successful stage comedian, the voice of Boris Johnson, Keir Starmer and Donald Trump on the revamped version of Spitting Image and, as of a few weeks ago the author of a new memoir, Politically Homeless,. It covers his youth in a working class area of Nottingham, teen years of hard left activism and a long, often thankless stint working for the Labour Party - including dressing up as a fluffy chicken to harangue a prominent Lib Dem on the campaign trail.

As you'd expect from a comedian, this was great fun to record, but Matt can certainly do the serious stuff too, and his insights on working in a party machine are well worth tuning in for, even if you really tuned in to hear his eerily accurate impressions of Boris and Donald Trump.

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Free Exchange: Fleeing North Korea

Fri, 30 Oct 2020 13:53:36 GMT

Not many podcast guests start by telling you they are in pain. Even fewer that the source of their discomfort is the scars inflicted by North Korean prison camp guards. Then again, not many podcast guests have seen what Timothy has.

This remarkable man has escaped the Kim regime, not once but twice and lived o tell his extraordinary tale. His is a story of tireless courage, resilience and, in his account, a great deal of luck. Timothy now has a new life here in the UK, working for a charity called Open Doors that helps Christians facing persecution all over the world, including the 300,000 toiling under the vengeful eye of the Kim regime.

He joined us down the line for what was one of the most moving, humbling episodes of Free Exchange we've ever recorded.

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Free Exchange: Tim Harford on How To Make The World Add Up

Thu, 22 Oct 2020 16:34:01 GMT

Stats! What we need is stats!

If Dickens' hard-nosed utilitarian Thomas Gradgrind was around today he'd probably be knee-deep in SAGE briefings and ONS data bulletins, trying to work out what the heck is going on with this virus.

In the absence of a fictional Victorian schoolmaster, who better to lead us through the numerical mire than Tim Harford - the economist, author, broadcaster and TED-talker - whose new book 'How To Make The World Add Up' is an invaluable guide to seeing through the statistical fog.

It's much more than just a handy Spark Notes for numeracy though, as Tim delves into the deeply held psychological biases that lead us down the wrong path.

This was a great discussion about a book packed with insights and wonderful nuggets, such as: what do the inner workings of a toilet tell us about political polarisation?

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Free Exchange: Johan Norberg on the importance of being open

Fri, 09 Oct 2020 09:29:32 GMT

What do Ancient Rome, Muslim Spain and Song era China have in common?

Military might, sophisticated legal systems or, perhaps, intellectual brilliance?

All of these things played their part in creating the great empire of the past, but the answer is something a little more abstract.

In his latest book the Swedish historian Johan Norberg argues that that every truly successful civilisation is defined by one key ingredient – openness. To new ideas, new people and new technology.

At a time when much of that life-enhancing, economy-expanding openness seems under threat from pandemic panic and populist demagoguery, his optimistic message feels particularly urgent.

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Free Exchange: Arts and Minds

Fri, 02 Oct 2020 06:03:51 GMT

Not many organisations can claim to have had Adam Smith, Edmund Burke and Karl Marx as members. Then again, not many organisations are anything like the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce – better known today as the RSA. For over 260 years Its mission has been nothing short of improving an entire nation – funding inventions, encouraging trade, planting millions of trees, putting on the Great Exhibition and creating Britain’s first exam board. And int hat time it has been a hotbed of utilitarianism, a home to conservatives, radicals and even the founding father of communism.

Who better to discuss this fascinating, intensely colourful history than Anton Howes, the RSA’s house historian, whose history of the Society, Arts and Minds, was released in May.

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Free Exchange: Jamila Mammadova on the Caucasian conundrum

Fri, 28 Feb 2020 11:46:21 GMT

For the final instalment of our Illiberalism in Europe series we’re going to the furthest boundary of the continent, beyond the Black Sea to Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan. Our guest is Jamila Mammadova, a native of Baku and now a researcher at the foreign policy thinktank the Henry Jackson Society. She sat down with CapX editor John Ashmore to discuss Caucasian foreign policy, Putin's territorial ambitions and the possibility of a new state in eastern Europe.

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Free Exchange: Brendan Simms on a tale of two Unions

Fri, 24 Jan 2020 16:22:28 GMT

Brendan Simms is one of Britain’s leading historians. Professor of the History of International Relations at Peterhouse College, Cambridge, Brendan has published extensively on Britain’s role in the world, European grand strategy, and the rise of fascism in the C20th. His books are widely acclaimed and include Europe: The Battle for Supremacy, Britain’s Europe: A Thousand Years of Conflict and Cooperation, and his latest, Hitler: Only the World was Enough.

Our Deputy Editor, Frank Lawton, sat down with Brendan for discussion that ranged from the Holy Roman Empire to the future of Europe (with the odd trip down a Brexit byway for good measure).

But first, Frank began by asking if there was such a thing as ‘historical thinking’ and whether it was of any use to policy makers.

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Free Exchange: Should we legalise drugs?

Thu, 16 Jan 2020 07:30:00 GMT

This week is the latest instalment in our Illiberalism in Europe series, exploring the many different challenges to freedom on the continent – our topic is the way the UK approaches drugs: should we legalise them, decriminalise them or keep the status quo? If we do, which substances would be allowed, and which would remain prohibited? What have countries that have changed their drug laws experienced, and what might the UK learn?

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Free Exchange: Asa Bennett on Ancient Roman politics

Fri, 10 Jan 2020 13:15:19 GMT

This week we’re stepping back into antiquity for a look at political life in Ancient Rome. Our guest is the Daily Telegraph’s political journalist and Classics enthusiast Asa Bennett, who has just written a book entitled Romanifesto looking at how our current crop of politicians could learn from the travails of their ancient forebears.

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Free Exchange: Vera Kichanova on standing up to Putin

Wed, 08 Jan 2020 12:21:09 GMT

Whether it’s interfering in Syria, Venezuela or Iran, Vladimir Putin is rarely out of the headlines. But what’s life like for the opposition activists trying to take the fight to the Russian president on his home turf? To find out, we spoke to Vera Kichanova, the first ever Libertarian Party candidate elected to public office in Russia.

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Free Exchange: David Willetts on how the baby boomers took their children's future

Wed, 11 Dec 2019 16:06:17 GMT

Lord David Willetts has been an intellectual titan on the centre right for the past 30 years. Having worked in Margaret Thatcher’s policy unit, Willetts was an MP between 1992 and 2015, and served as a Cabinet Minister in the coalition government. He is President of the independent think-tank the Resolution Foundation, and the author of a number of books, including The Pinch: How Baby Boomers took their children’s future – and why they should give it back.

The book caused quite a stir on publication in 2010, and its thesis has proved remarkably prescient in the years since. So to mark the release of the second edition, our Deputy Editor Frank Lawton sat down with him to discuss the broken social contract and how to fix it.

Frank began by asking him when – as a Baby Boomer himself – he first realised he was to blame for everything.

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Free Exchange: Raoul Ruparel on how to negotiate a Brexit deal

Tue, 03 Dec 2019 14:32:27 GMT

It’s the Brexit Election – at least according to some broadcasters – yet we’ve had relatively little scrutiny of what ‘getting Brexit done’ actually means if Boris Johnson does win his cherished majority.

To shine a light on the next phase of negotiations, I caught up with one of the key players involved in putting together the Withdrawal Agreement. Raoul Ruparel spent two years as Special Adviser to then Brexit Secretary David Davis, followed by a year in 10 Downing St as Theresa May’s Special Adviser on Europe.

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Free Exchange: Tales from the campaign trail

Fri, 29 Nov 2019 00:00:00 GMT

With the general election just two weeks away we wanted to get the inside track from three party political experts on how their side’s campaign has gone so far, and what they expect to happen on December 12. From the Lib Dems we welcomed Mark Pack, the Editor of Liberal Democrat Newswire. From Labour, Sienna Rodgers, the Editor LaboutList, and completing the line-up was the regular CapX contributor and Assistant Editor of ConservativeHome, Henry Hill.

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Free Exchange: The new dividing line in British politics

Tue, 19 Nov 2019 10:54:34 GMT

Throughout 2019, CapX has been working with the anti-poverty charity the Joseph Rowntree Foundation on a project about rebalancing Britain - looking at how to tackle the longstanding issues in the British economy such as the gap between towns and cities, rural and urban areas and the different regions of the UK.

A big focus of that project has been how to improve the lot of low-income voters. So to discuss that this week, we brought together JRF’s Executive Director Claire Ainsley; pollster extraordinaire James Kanagasooriam; and CapX's Deputy Editor Frank Lawton. I began by asking Claire about just how important low-income voters will be in the coming election.

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Free Exchange: Tim Bale on the life and times of political parties

Tue, 12 Nov 2019 12:15:00 GMT

In confusing times, Tim Bale is a rare voice of clarity. Professor of Politics at Queen Mary University of London, Tim is a regular presence on radio and tv, providing insightful commentary on the latest political crises. The author of many incisive books, including The Conservative Party: from Thatcher to Cameron, and Five Year Mission: Labour under Ed Miliband, Tim spoke to our Deputy Editor, Frank Lawton, about elections, Brexit and his latest co-authored book, Footsoldiers: Political Party Membership in the C21st. Frank began by asking why we need political parties in the first place.

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Free Exchange: Peter Pomerantsev on the war against reality

Fri, 08 Nov 2019 05:00:00 GMT

This week we were delighted to welcome Peter Pomerantsev to CapX Towers. Peter is one of the world’s leading writers on propaganda and fake news, and has even given evidence to the US Congress on Russian disinformation. He also boasts a fascinating and varied CV, including many years working as a TV producer in Putin’s Russia – an experience he documented in gripping style in his first book ‘Nothing Is Real and Everything is Possible’.

Peter sat down with CapX Editor John Ashmore to discuss his latest book ‘This Is Not Propaganda: Adventures in the War Against Reality”, in which Peter travels the world finding out how despots and demagogues are twisting the truth – and how we can start to fight back.

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Free Exchange: Tim Kane on the decline of great powers

Tue, 05 Nov 2019 10:34:42 GMT

Our guest this week is entrepreneur, economist, air force veteran and latterly candidate for the US Congress, Tim Kane.

Tim is also the co-author with Glenn Hubbard of the acclaimed book ‘Balance: the Economics of Great powers from ancient Rome to modern America’ – I started by asking him about the thesis behind the book and why it is that great powers end up falling on hard times.

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Free Exchange: Konstantin Kisin on free speech in comedy

Wed, 23 Oct 2019 23:00:00 GMT

CapX editor John Ashmore speaks to comedian Konstantin Kisin about growing up in the Soviet Union, the perils of policing free speech and the worrying role of big tech companies in censoring debate.

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Free Exchange: The future of capitalism

Tue, 15 Oct 2019 13:14:40 GMT

What is the future of capitalism? This week's Free Exchange exchange, recorded live at the Conservative Party Conference in Manchester, debates just that.

Our Editor John Ashmore chaired an expert panel including the RSA's Alan Lockey, digital policy expert Casey Calista and fellow of the Adam Smith Institute and self-declared inventor of neoliberalism, Sam Bowman, as they discussed the rise of platform capitalism, solving Britain's productivity crisis and whether we should be scared of big tech.

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Doomed by demographics?

Tue, 08 Oct 2019 10:30:44 GMT

Are the Conservatives doomed by demographics? With younger and BME voters rejecting the party, what can the Tories do to turn things around and put together an election-winning coalition, not just for the upcoming poll, but for the many to come in the future?

That was the question facing the panel for our CapX live debate at the Tory conference in Manchester last week.

I invited Conservative activists Elena Bunbury and Resham Kotecha along with polling supremo Joe Twyman to chat about the challenge ahead, the perils of tokenism, and how the party can truly offer something for everyone.

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The Case for Conservatism

Fri, 04 Oct 2019 11:36:12 GMT

This week is a special episode of Free Exchange, recorded live at the Conservative Party Conference in Manchester. The director of the Centre for Policy Studies, Robert Colvile, was joined by some of the leading lights on the right to discuss why free markets, competition and conservatism really are the route to prosperity.

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Gisela Stuart on Britain's absent foreign policy

Fri, 27 Sep 2019 09:55:19 GMT

Gisela Stuart is a rare figure in British politics - a Labour politician who campaigned wholeheartedly for Brexit.

As an MP from 1997-2017, Gisela is perhaps best known for her role in the 2016 referendum, where she chaired the Vote Leave campaign and appeared in the TV debates.

But her deep interest in constitutional and foreign affairs long-predates that referendum. Gisela sat on the Foreign Affairs Select Committee for nearly a decade, was a founding signatory to the foreign policy think tank The Henry Jackson Society, and is now Chair of Wilton Park, an executive agency of the Foreign Office dedicated to mediation and resolving international conflict.

Our Assistant Editor, Frank Lawton, sat down with her to chat all things foreign affairs.

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Marie Le Conte on how the Westminster bubble really works

Thu, 19 Sep 2019 23:01:00 GMT

This week it was our great pleasure to be joined by journalist Marie Le Conte, whose new book on Westminster gossip lifts the lift on how things really work in the corridors of power.

We sat down to chat about the power of WhatsApp, clashing political cultures, and the fine art of coffee hopping.

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Free Exchange: The criminal cartels running Cuba and Venezuela

Fri, 13 Sep 2019 11:40:00 GMT

This week we're going international and talking about two connected regimes that have been brought to their knees by brutal authoritarian governments: Cuba and Venezuela.

Boris Arenas Gonzalez was blocked from leaving Cuba by the Communist regime, so joins us down the line from Havana to talk about the political situation, the centrality of the black market, and his life as a pro-democracy activist.

Diego Moya Ocampos grew up in Venezuela and now works as a political risk analyst at IHS Market in London. Rather than seeing the situation in Venezuela as evidence of the failure of central planning, Ocampos argues that the governing class operates in practice as a criminal cartel.

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Peter Riddell on good government and the uncertain life of a British Minister

Fri, 23 Aug 2019 13:56:37 GMT

Peter Riddell is one of the country’s most respected analysts of the workings of government, parliament and Whitehall.

Prior to his current role as Commissioner for Public Appointments, Peter was the Director of the Institute for Government, and a journalist with over 40 years experience during which he has held editorial positions at The FT and The Times.

He is also the author of 8 books, including 15 Minutes of Power: The Uncertain Life of British Ministers and In Defence of Politicians (In Spite of Themselves). Our Assistant Editor Frank Lawton began by asking why politicians needed defending in the first place.

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Sir Malcolm Rifkind

Fri, 16 Aug 2019 11:30:27 GMT

Our guest this week is a true heavyweight of the British political scene.

Sir Malcolm Rifkind spent more than a decade in Cabinet from 1986 to 1997, beginning as Scotland Secretary under Margaret Thatcher before going on to serve as Transport Secretary, Defence Secretary and finally Foreign Secretary under John Major.

In 2010 David Cameron appointed Sir Malcolm to chair Parliament’s Joint Intelligence Committee, with oversight of MI5, MI6 and GCHQ.

I sat down with Sir Malcolm to discuss the changing role of the Foreign Secretary, how Britain should deal with a rising China and what the future holds after Brexit.

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Robert D. Kaplan on the future of a bipolar world

Tue, 30 Jul 2019 23:00:00 GMT

Robert D. Kaplan is the author of some 18 books and is widely-regarded as one of the world’s leading thinkers on foreign policy, defence and geopolitics. He’s been named in Foreign Policy’s ‘Top 100 Global Thinkers’, and he’s advised Kings, Prime Ministers and Defence Secretaries all over the world. He’s reported from over 100 countries, giving him a grounding in the reality of foreign affairs that most pundits could only dream of.

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Owen Bennett on Michael Gove

Mon, 22 Jul 2019 15:41:41 GMT

Our guest this week is the journalist and author Owen Bennett. Owen has been a member of the parliamentary lobby since 2014, writing for publications such as the Daily Express, HP and City AM, and he was recently appointed Whitehall Editor at the Daily Telegraph.

In between reporting on the highs and lows of British politics he’s managed to write three books – Following Farage, The Brexit Club and his soon-to-be-released biography Michael Gove, A Man In A Hurry. We sat down to talk about Gove’s upbringing, his time in the Oxford Union and those infamous cocaine revelations.

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Free Exchange: Anne Applebaum

Fri, 12 Jul 2019 06:00:00 GMT

Our guest this week is the world-renowned historian and journalist Anne Applebaum. Anne is a regular columnist in the Washington Post, a visiting professor at the London School of Economics and the author of a number of critically acclaimed books on the Soviet era, including Gulag – A History, which won a Pulitzer Prize in 2004.

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Niall Ferguson on Europe, Brexit and Boris

Fri, 05 Jul 2019 10:10:00 GMT

For the latest episode of Free Exchange, CapX’s acting editor John Ashmore sat down with one of the world’s most renowned historians, Niall Ferguson.

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Steven Pinker's inconvenient truths

Wed, 03 Jul 2019 13:08:00 GMT

In his final episode as host of free exchange and editor of CapX, Oliver Wiseman talks to Steven Pinker

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Rory Stewart wants to be Britain's next prime minister

Tue, 04 Jun 2019 06:20:31 GMT

Is Rory Stewart 2019’s answer to Nick Clegg? Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson thinks so. Like Nick Clegg, she said of the unlikely star of the early phases of the Tory leadership contest, he is 'changing political communication'. But, she added, 'like Nick, I fear the electorate will appreciate him yet vote for someone else.'

Whether or not you think this week’s guest is the best candidate to be the next Conservative leader, Rory Stewart has been a breath of fresh air in the last week or so, escaping Westminster to tour the country and talk politics with whoever will listen. With his social media videos he has cut out the middle man and inserted himself into the conversation about the future of his party and the country.

Now most of his colleagues expect these walking tours to be an entertaining distraction before they settle down to the serious task of selecting Britain’s next Prime Minister. But Stewart isn’t running to be a inoffensive amuse bouche. He means business.

For this week's episode of Free Exchange, I met up with him in St James’s Park to talk about everything from the social care and Brexit to opium pipes and why he is the 'Trumpian anti-Trump'.

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David Brooks climbs the second mountain

Fri, 24 May 2019 07:11:09 GMT

My guest for the first in a new run of Free Exchange episodes is the New York Times columnist and bestselling author David Brooks. His previous books include The Road to Character, The Social Animal and Bobos in Paradise. Most recently, he is the author of The Second Mountain.

In his latest work, he deals with a bigger issue than the stuff we usually worry about here at CapX: what does it mean to live a good life?

That is a personal question, and The Second Mountain is a very personal book. But it is not without political implications. Mr Brooks is critical of meritocracy. He cites the grim statistics about deaths of despair and loneliness in America. He thinks something needs to change if people are to live more fulfilling lives, and his book is an attempt to put his finger on what that thing might be.

Mr Brooks was in London earlier this week and came to CapX's offices to talk about The Second Mountain. I started by asking him about the personal crisis that serves as the book's starting point.

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Will Tanner on the generation gap

Fri, 12 Apr 2019 14:57:54 GMT

We spend an awful lot of time worrying about the political weather. But behind the day-to-day drama, the political climate is changing too - and in fundamental ways.

One of the biggest shifts in recent years is the widening generational gap. There have always been differences between younger and older voters, but they are getting harder and harder to ignore. In fact, age – not class or income – is now the best predictor of how someone will vote.

The younger you are, the less likely you are to vote Tory. And that problem for the right appears to be getting worse. So if you want to understand the challenges the Conservative Party face, tackling the generational aspect of modern politics is unavoidable.

On Monday, Onward, a centre-right think tank, published the latest set of polling on the Conservatives’ generational woes. For this week’s episode of Free Exchange I spoke to Will Tanner, director of Onward and former adviser to Theresa May, about what is driving Britain’s widening age gap, and what the Conservative Party should do about it.

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Matt Forde on the funny side of politics

Fri, 05 Apr 2019 09:44:08 GMT

Just when you think it can’t get any worse, it does. Westminster’s Brexit crisis continues to deepen and the mood on all sides in SW1 continues to darken. Which is why this week on Free Exchange my colleague John Ashmore and I decided to cheer ourselves up by talking to Matt Forde.

Matt is one of Britain’s leading political comedians. He hosts 'Unspun' on Dave and his podcast ‘The Political Party’ features interviews with some of the most interesting people in politics.

We spoke to Matt about his time as a political adviser, whether it’s getting harder to make jokes about politics as the debate gets nastier and why he’s fallen out of love with the Labour party.

Tickets are available now for his new show, 'Brexit Through the Gift Shop' at the Bloomsbury Theatre on May 25.

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Brexit: Where next?

Wed, 20 Mar 2019 17:34:10 GMT

Ever since Theresa May wrote to Donald Tusk to trigger Article 50 two years ago, March 29th, 2019, has been a Brexit lodestar. The UK’s planned departure date has been a point of comparative clarity in what has been an exceptionally turbulent period.

This week, the Prime Minister officially abandoned her plan for Britain to leave the EU on time, writing to Donald Tusk to ask for a short extension to Article 50.

There is no guarantee that the EU will accept the request. More generally, with just nine days to go until what was supposed to be Brexit day, what will happen next remains staggeringly unclear.

In an emergency episode of Free Exchange, CapX's Editor Oliver Wiseman spoke to three astute Brexitologists to try to make sense of the great riddle of British politics that only gets more complicated.

Helping me get my head around the latest developments was the Institute for Government’s Tim Durrant, Open Europe’s Dominic Walsh and CapX’s very own John Ashmore.

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John Rentoul on Tony Blair

Thu, 14 Mar 2019 06:15:26 GMT

Tony Blair was arguably the most electorally successful Prime Minister in recent British history. And yet, if you ask British voters today what they think of the man behind New Labour the answer is not exactly an enthusiastic thumbs up. Just 22 per cent think Blair did a good job, while 49 per cent think he did a bad job.

Nowhere is the repudiation of Blair clearer than at the top of the Labour Party. For those with their hands on the reins today, ‘Blairite’ is about the worst insult going. And it is impossible to understand the rise of Corbyn without appreciating Blair’s legacy.

My guest this week is someone who takes a very different view of Blair. John Rentoul is the Independent’s chief political commentator who, unusually for a Westminster journalist, also teaches a course on Tony Blair with Jon Davis at King’s College, London.

Davis and Rentoul have just published a book on the Blair government aptly titled Heroes or Villains? The Blair Government Reconsidered. They make generous use of fascinating first-hand testimony to paint a more flattering portrait of New Labour than many on both the left or the right would agree with.

For this week’s episode of Free Exchange, I spoke to John Rentoul about things Blair: what were his biggest achievements? How much of the blame does he deserve for contemporary political problems? Why was his relationship with Gordon Brown quite so dysfunctional? And how, ultimately, will history judge him?

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Sam Bowman on neoliberalism

Thu, 07 Mar 2019 07:31:02 GMT

If someone utters the word ‘neoliberal’ in a political debate, chances are they’re using it as a term of abuse. However, in recent years, a small but growing group have tried to reclaim the word, transforming an insult left-wingers hurl at free marketeers to something more meaningful. My guest on the podcast this week is a member of that group.

As well as being one of the most compelling advocates of neoliberalism, Sam Bowman is a font of interesting and thought-provoking opinions on a wide range of policy questions. Until a few years ago, Sam worked at the Adam Smith Institute. Now he works at the consultancy Fingleton Associates. He is also an occasional CapX contributor.

He recently came into our offices to talk all things neoliberalism. I hope you enjoy the conversation.

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Gisela Stuart on Brexit and the Labour Party

Wed, 27 Feb 2019 06:14:18 GMT

My guest this week is Gisela Stuart. Gisela was elected as the Labour MP for Birmingham Edgbaston in the 1997 landside that brought New Labour to power. Her seat had returned a Conservative MP for the previous 99 years but she won as the Labour candidate in five successive elections before stepping down in 2017.

Gisela became a household name late on in her political career, when, during the 2016 referendum, she chaired the Leave campaign, taking part in the televised Wembley debate watched by millions and touring the country with Boris Johnson and Michael Gove in the now infamous Vote Leave battle bus.

As a German-born ally of Europhile Tony Blair, she was, on paper at least, an unlikely person to head up the campaign to take Britain out of the EU. But meeting Gisela, it soon becomes clear you are dealing with an original thinker reluctant to follow anyone’s lead on a question as important as Europe.

I spoke to Gisela about the reason for Euroscepticism, the state of the Brexit debate, whether she supports the Prime Minister’s deal, the legacy of the referendum and the health of her party – including whether or not she would continue to take the Labour whip were she still an MP.

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Fredrik Erixon on the Innovation Illusion

Thu, 21 Feb 2019 06:00:41 GMT

We are said to be living in an age of rapid technological transformation, with another game-changing new gadget just around the corner and innovations overhauling everything from how we communicate to what jobs we do.

But is our economic system really as innovative as we think? Not according to this week’s guest on Free Exchange.

Fredrik Erixon argues that far from being dominated by swashbuckling entrepreneurs, the version of Western capitalism in place today is defined by a dreary managerialism and a stultifying aversion to risk. The result is slow growth, stagnating living standards -- and unhappy voters.

Fredrik set out this argument in a book called The Innovation Illusion: How So Little Is Created By So Many Working So Hard, which he wrote with co-author Bjorn Weigel a few years ago. Fredrik is also the director of the European Centre for International Political Economy, a think tank based in Brussels.

I spoke to Fredrik about the ways in which we have lost our way economically, what that means politically, and we can rediscover the recipe for success.

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Rory Sutherland on what economists get wrong

Fri, 08 Feb 2019 06:36:22 GMT

My guest on the podcast this week is Rory Sutherland. Rory is the Vice Chairman of the advertising agency Ogilvy, a job title which the company’s website describes as ‘attractively vague’.

Rory is not your average ad man. After more than 20 years as a copywriter and creative director for the firm, he set up an in-house behavioural economics practice. And outside the day job, he writes the Wiki Man column for the Spectator.

In his journalism, speeches and in conversation Rory is a fount of counterintuitive, insightful and entertaining arguments that mean he is never knowingly dull.

I met him earlier this week at Ogilvy’s London offices, where we discussed, among many other things, the relationship between innovation and marketing, why McDonalds is a safer bet than the Fat Duck, and what economists get wrong about human nature. I started by asking him what advice he had for those of us keen to persuade more people of the merits of the market.

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Cass Sunstein on nudges and freedom

Fri, 01 Feb 2019 12:20:50 GMT

This week's guest on Free Exchange is the co-author of one of the most consequential books written in recent years. Cass Sunstein is a professor at Harvard Law School and one of America's most prolific and prominent academics. Nudge, which he wrote with the economist Richard Thaler just over a decade ago, applied the insights of behavioural economics to policymaking. Its publication was the start of a quiet revolution in government, with the creation of so-called 'nudge units' that have found ways of boosting pension saving, reducing energy consumption and catching cancer earlier with small changes that make it as easy as possible for people to make the right choices.

I spoke to Cass about nudges, his time putting theory into practice in the Obama administration, and his new book, On Freedom, in which he argues that we need to rethink freedom of choice.

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Paul Collier on the future of capitalism

Fri, 25 Jan 2019 16:35:47 GMT

This week's guest on Free Exchange, the CapX podcast, is Sir Paul Collier, Professor of Economics at the Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford.

As a development economist, Paul has spent his life tackling some of the thorniest and most important questions around: what is holding the world’s poorest back? And what can be done to give them a route out of that poverty? His bestselling book The Bottom Billion, published a decade ago, quickly became a must-read for anyone remotely interested in the area.

More recently, however, Paul's focus has changed. His latest book, The Future of Capitalism, deals with what he thinks has gone wrong not in a failed African state, but here in the West. And he thinks our political and economic system isn’t living up to the promises we make about it.

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Henry Newman on where Brexit Britain goes next

Thu, 17 Jan 2019 15:16:40 GMT

CapX Editor Oliver Wiseman speaks to Henry Newman, Director of Open Europe and one of the most eagle-eyed Brexit watchers in SW1, to try and make sense of the latest developments.

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The CapX Awards: 2018

Fri, 21 Dec 2018 12:58:19 GMT

For the final episode of the year, Oliver Wiseman and a group of CapX contributors hand out the gongs in the CapX Awards

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Jonathan Tepper on the Myth of Capitalism

Fri, 14 Dec 2018 11:54:20 GMT

You might think the United States is a dynamic, free market economy - but you'd be wrong.

In their new book The Myth of Capitalism, Jonathan Tepper and Denise Hearn show convincingly that modern America is actually characterised by "ersatz capitalism", with a few big players dominating swathes of the economy, capturing regulators and screwing over consumers into the bargain.

CapX Deputy Editor John Ashmore sat down with Jonathan to discuss the way out of America's malaise, the impact of oligopoly capitalism on Western society and whether there's cause to be optimistic about the future.

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Adrian Wooldridge on Capitalism in America

Wed, 05 Dec 2018 14:49:29 GMT

This week's episode of Free Exchange is a recording of the most recent CapX Live event: a conversation with Adrian Wooldridge, the political editor of the Economist, where he also writes the Bagehot column on British politics.

Adrian came to CapX HQ to talk about his new book. He and former Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan have recently published Capitalism in America, a brilliant economic history of the United States.

In explaining America's unlikely rise -- one of the greatest success stories in human history -- Greenspan and Wooldridge make the case for popular capitalism. In doing so, they use the past to explain how America can rediscover its dynamism and make the most of the future.

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Eric Kaufmann on Whiteshift

Fri, 30 Nov 2018 14:14:45 GMT

Since the election of Donald Trump and, to a lesser extent, the Brexit referendum, there’s been a fierce debate about what caused these political earthquakes. Are the drivers of these votes primarily economic or cultural? The economic side of the argument is the more popular one. Consider, for example, the stereotypical Trump voter: someone probably in the Midwest who has been on the sharp end of globalisation. He has struggled to find work since deindustrialisation rendered his skills redundant. He is one of the losers of recent economic history.

Eric Kaufmann, Professor of Politics at Birkbeck College, London, thinks this caricature is badly wrong. His new book Whiteshift is attracting plenty of attention – and praise – for the more uncomfortable conclusion it draws: that recent ruptures like Trump and Brexit can be almost entirely explained by identity, not economics. According to Kaufmann, they are a consequence of demographic change. The white majority is declining and as it does so, it feels culturally threatened. That, he argues forcefully, is why the anti-immigrant message of candidates like Trump is so appealing.

For the podcast this week, I met Eric in his Bickbeck office to talk about the ideas in his monumental and thorough study of a difficult subject.

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Brexit: What next?

Wed, 21 Nov 2018 16:49:21 GMT

This week's episode of Free Exchange is on... you guessed it: Brexit. The Prime Minister may have dodged a confidence vote for the time being, but everyone seems to agree that she will struggle to get her deal through the House of Commons. What happens if she loses that vote? And can she go back to the renegotiating table in an effort to allay some of her colleague's concerns?

CapX Editor Oliver Wiseman was joined by Stephen Booth, Director of Policy and Research at Open Europe, Lee Rowley, Conservative MP for North East Derbyshire and one of the backbenchers who has submitted a letter of no confidence in the Prime Minister, and John Ashmore, Deputy Editor of CapX, to make sense of an uncertain time in Westminster.

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Jamie Susskind on Future Politics

Fri, 16 Nov 2018 16:09:55 GMT

This week we’re bringing you a recording of a CapX Live event held at our offices last week. I sat down with Jamie Susskind to talk about his new book, Future Politics.

Jamie’s book is an invaluable, and at times terrifying, guide to the ways in which we are hopelessly unprepared for the rapid technological change is going to transform politics.

Jamie and I spoke about what these transformative new technologies are, how worried we should be about big tech, why so many politicians get technology so badly wrong, and whether the core principles of political philosophy are still relevant in the digital age. I hope you enjoy the conversation as much as I did.

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Matthew Goodwin on National Populism

Wed, 07 Nov 2018 11:15:47 GMT

Arguably the most important political trend across the West in recent years has been the rise of national populism. It had a hand in the election of Donald Trump and the vote for Brexit. It has upended politics in numerous European countries.

It is tempting -- and reassuring -- to see this anti-establishment wave as a flash in the pan: a bump on the road towards ever more liberal democracies. Matthew Goodwin argues otherwise. In 'National Populism: The Revolt Against Liberal Democracy', he and his co-author Roger Eatwell explode a number of widespread myths about why populism is popular, who supports these movements, and how they will change politics in years to come.

Matthew is this week's guest on the podcast. He explained the 'four Ds' that are driving voters into the arms of populists, what the liberal establishment gets wrong and why the likes of Donald Trump, Marine le Pen and Matteo Salvini could be the new normal.

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Budget Special

Wed, 31 Oct 2018 11:35:49 GMT

CapX Editor Oliver Wiseman is joined by three eagle-eyed Westminster watches for a discussion of this week's budget. Is austerity over? Is that good news? Why are Britain's growth figures so underwhelming? Will Universal Credit work with more money? Just how much do we spend on the NHS? And will Philip Hammond survive long enough to deliver another budget?

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Stian Westlake on Capitalism Without Capital

Wed, 24 Oct 2018 05:26:00 GMT

When we think about the economy, we tend to think about stuff. Physical goods are manufactured and sold, factories are built and upgraded, innovation gives us shiny new gadgets we can hold in our hands.

But this is becoming a less and less accurate way of thinking about things. Increasingly, intangible assets are what matter.

According to Jonathan Haskel and Stian Westlake, the authors of the brilliant Capitalism Without Capital, these intangible assets don’t play by the basic laws of economics. And so the rise of assets you can’t touch, they argue, is having a big impact on how the economy works.

Haskel and Westlake start with a simple, even obvious, insight and end with an important and thoughtful book about the nature of the modern economy. Their work has received high praise from high places. Bill Gates calls Capitalism without Capital “required reading for policymakers”.

For this week’s episode of free exchange, I spoke to Stian about his book, which is out now in paperback, and the implications of the ideas contained within it.

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Jim O'Neill, Lucy Neville-Rolfe and Bob Seely on Global Britain

Wed, 17 Oct 2018 14:30:00 GMT

Free Exchange, the CapX podcast, is back with an exciting new series of interviews and conversations. In the coming months, we'll be welcoming a fascinating line up of politicians, policymakers, authors, economists and journalists on to the show to talk about some of the biggest questions we face today.

We’re kicking things off with a live recording of a CapX event at Conservative Party Conference on what the term “global Britain” really means.

It’s a phrase ministers and Brexit supporters are fond of using when laying out their vision for Britain after it leaves the European Union. But is it anything more than a soundbite? And if so, what should it mean for government policy?

Our three guests were all, in their own ways, well-placed to consider these issues. Jim O’Neill is the economist famous for coining the term Brics who went on to work with George Osborne on the Northern Powerhouse. He now sits as a crossbench peer in the house of lords and earlier this year was appointed Chair of Chatham House.

The second guest was Lucy Neville-Rolfe. Lucy is a former businesswomen who is now a Conservative member of the house of lords and who, like Jim has also been involved in economic policymaking, serving as commercial secretary to the treasury under Philip Hammond until last summer.

Last but not least was Bob Seely MP. Bob is the Conservative MP for the Isle of Wight and a member of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee. He’s also a CapX contributor.

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Henry Newman on breaking the Brexit deadlock

Thu, 07 Jun 2018 14:38:48 GMT

Brexit is at an impasse.

The row between Theresa May and David Davis over the wording of a customs backstop ended with a fudge of a fudge of a fudge. This has only underlined just how difficult this government has found it to pin its Brexit colours to the mast.

That is partly because of a disagreement within Cabinet. But it's also the product of a hung Parliament that means whatever the government agrees, a majority of MPs could take a different view and scupper the whole thing.

With the Brexit countdown clock ticking, a crucial series of votes on the EU withdrawal bill around the corner, and a council meeting at the end of the June, Theresa May is running out of time.

To help break the deadlock, Open Europe, home to some of the smartest thinking on UK-EU relations, this week published its blueprint for a deal that is a workable compromise in what is a fraught Brexit debate.

In a special Brexit edition of the Free Exchange podcast I spoke to Open Europe’s director Henry Newman about their proposal for a pragmatic deal with the EU as well as why Brexit has drifted so badly off course.

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Marx's poisonous legacy

Wed, 30 May 2018 09:43:48 GMT

This May marked the 200th anniversary of the birth of Karl Marx. For many, this was an occasion for celebration, not sombre reflection on a set of ideas that, when put into action, have claimed the lives of millions.

John McDonnell gave a speech on the enduring relevance of Marx. Jean Claude Juncker played his part in the fortification of the German thinker’s reputation by unveiling a Chinese funded statue of Marx in Trier. The headline of one New York Times piece simply said: "Happy Birthday Karl Marx. You were right!"

For this week's episode of Free Exchange, I spoke to the IEA's Kristian Niemietz. author of a forthcoming book on Marxist regimes and their fellow travellers, about why a man whose ideas have been found not just to be wrong, but dangerously so, is still so revered by so many.

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Rebooting Conservatism with George Freeman

Thu, 24 May 2018 09:14:08 GMT

Conservatives can't agree on much at the moment. But one view that the vast majority of them would struggle to disagree with is that there are fundamental problems with the party's pitch to the electorate. The fault lines have been there for some time, but the issue became impossible to ignore after last year's general election.

That is why there has been a flurry of activity on the centre-right of British politics lately. At the forefront of the wave of initiatives to reboot Conservatism is George Freeman, MP for Mid Norfolk and head of the Conservative Policy Forum, who last year launched his Big Tent Ideas Festival. The event, which journalists quickly dubbed "Tory Glastonbury", returns on larger scale this year.

For this week's episode of Free Exchange, I spoke to George about the challenges and opportunities of Conservative renewal.

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Is the internet destroying democracy?

Wed, 16 May 2018 14:43:48 GMT

We recently welcomed Jamie Bartlett to the CapX offices to talk about what happens where politics and technology intersect. Jamie is the author of The People Vs Tech: How the Internet is Killing Democracy, a book that touches on a number of the most pressing concerns surrounding the rapid pace of technological change and, as the title suggests, what that means for democracy. He spoke to CapX's Editor-in-Chief Robert Colvile about the ideas in his new book in front of a live audience. This week's episode of Free Exchange is an edited version of that conversation. We hope you enjoy it.

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Are we suffering from a growth delusion?

Fri, 16 Mar 2018 00:00:00 GMT

In this week’s Spring Statement, Philip Hammond described himself as positively tiggerish about the economic news he was bringing to the House of Commons. His upbeat mood was, in large part, thanks to a minuscule uptick in the Office for Budget Responsibility’s growth forecasts for the next five years.

It’s a reminder of just how central GDP is to the decisions politicians and policymakers make, as well as just how little thought most of us put into what is behind this all-important number. That makes this week the perfect time to talk to David Pilling, the Financial Times’s Africa Editor and the author of The Growth Delusion. David thinks there is a major problem with how we measure growth. In fact, he goes further. It’s not just we are getting the measurements wrong, it’s that we are too slavishly devoted to growth in the first place.

For this week’s episode of Free Exchange, CapX's Editor Oliver Wiseman spoke to David at the FT’s offices about what really goes into the most important number in economics, and how we could possibly be too focused on growth when it raises living standards and allows us to live longer happier lives.

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Britain's Brexit trade-offs

Sat, 24 Feb 2018 00:00:00 GMT

From an intricate knowledge of regulatory alignment versus regulatory equivalence to the difference between the customs union and a customs union, everyone interested in British politics suddenly has very strong views on the technical details of trade policy.

But while most of us have been hurriedly scrubbing up on all things trade, for others this is their bread and butter. Allie Renison is head of trade policy at the Institute of Directors and is someone who actually knows what she is talking about on this all-important but often technical subject.

When it comes to Britain's future trading relationship with the EU, Allie is an advocate for a partial customs union, which would minimise the impact of our departure on manufacturing firms embedded in European supply chains while giving the UK the freedom to forget its own trade policies and seek free trade deals with other countries in areas not covered by its deal with Europe.

On the latest episode of Free Exchange, I spoke to Allie about Britain's options in its negotiations with Europe, the pros and cons of her proposal, what Trump really thinks about trade and, more generally, the health of free trade around the world.

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Is education a waste of time?

Wed, 14 Feb 2018 16:28:00 GMT

Is education a waste of time? Surely no one, let alone a professor of economics, would defend such an outlandish claim. Well that is the exact argument made by Professor Bryan Caplan in his new book, The Case Against Education: Why the Education System is a Waste of Time and Money. On this week's episode of Free Exchange, CapX Editor Oliver Wiseman spoke to Bryan about how he reached his provocative conclusion, why so many people still go to university if it really is so pointless and what he would change about education policy.

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Is Universal Basic Income the answer?

Wed, 07 Feb 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Universal Basic Income may just be the trendiest idea in politics. It's also one of the most radical. Its advocates include Mark Zuckerberg, Richard Branson and John McDonnell. From the joblessness that could arise from automation and machine learning to growing concern over income inequality, UBI's cheerleaders claim the policy could solve some of the biggest political challenges we face.

Put simply, a basic income is a lump sum from the government to which everyone is entitled. These days this generous sounding proposal is associated with the Left. But it has its roots on the libertarian Right. Friedrich Hayek and Milton Friedman were both supporters of a version of UBI. And one of the few real-world trials of the policy was carried out by Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld.

But does this rare point of agreement between Left and Right mean UBI is a good idea? On the latest episode of Free Exchange, I brought together Sam Dumitriu, who recently made the free-market case for basic income on CapX, and Robert Colvile, who thinks UBI is a particularly bad idea, to debate whether such a simple idea could really be the answer to so many difficult questions.

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On the front line of the Cold War

Wed, 31 Jan 2018 16:07:00 GMT

This week’s guest on Free Exchange is Sir Christopher Mallaby, a retired British diplomat whose career was defined by the Cold War.

Sir Christopher recently published his memoirs, Living the Cold War. As well as an account of some of the most important events in the 20th Century, the book is collection of fascinating details of everyday life for someone involved in that all-consuming clash between East and West.

His first posting was Moscow, where he arrived in 1961. Not only did he and embassy colleagues have to contend with the hardship and drudgery of Soviet life, but they also faced constant surveillance, harassment and attempts at subornation by the KGB. Of these irritations he now says: “So what? It was the Cold War and to be involved at the very front line was a thrill.”

Almost 30 years later, as Ambassador to West Germany, he flew in to Berlin by helicopter to see the Wall come down. “I still remember the sight of a small East German boy returning with his parents through Checkpoint Charlie from his first outing to a capitalist toy shop,” he writes. “That was the moment when I knew the Iron Curtain had begun to melt. The tensions of life in Khruschev’s Moscow suddenly belonged to history. For something who had spend most of three decades working in the Cold War, it was a giant relief and something of a vindication.”

I spoke to Sir Christopher about his career, life in the Soviet Union, his disagreement with Margaret Thatcher, and how to understand the Russian threat in 2018.

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2017 in Review

Sun, 31 Dec 2017 09:00:00 GMT

This year may not have been a year of political earthquakes on the scale of 2016, but the last 12 months have contained more than their fair share of tumult. In Westminster, the idea of Prime Minister Corbyn started the year as a joke and ended as a very real possibility. In the United States, Donald Trump - the most volatile President in living memory - barely escaped the headlines, generating plenty of heat and not much light. Emmanuel Macron transformed French politics. And Brexit still means Brexit.

For the latest episode of Free Exchange, the CapX team attempts to make sense of a year that has been compelling and discombobulating in equal doses. Who were the biggest winners and losers of 2017? What was the big idea of the year? And what story surprised us the most?

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Oliver Letwin

Mon, 04 Dec 2017 15:28:00 GMT

Oliver Letwin has been at the heart of Conservative politics for most of his adult life. From working in Margaret Thatcher’s downing street policy unit to serving as one of David Cameron’s most trusted ministers, he has played an important part in shaping the modern Conservative party.

Sir Oliver has just published Hearts and Minds, a memoir in which he does more than just rattle off a series of anecdotes from a life in politics. Instead, he uses the book to make the case for the liberal, pro-market variety of conservatism that he believes is both the recipe for electoral success and good government.

For this week’s episode of Free Exchange, Oliver Wiseman, CapX's Deputy Editor, met Sir Oliver in his Parliamentary office, where they discussed his book, his wide-ranging career, the roots of Tory modernisation, and why he is intensely relaxed about the Brexit negotiations.

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Budget preview special

Sat, 18 Nov 2017 08:00:00 GMT

This government has two big interconnected challenges. The first is, to quote the Prime Minister, to make a success of Brexit. The second is to see off the threat posed by Jeremy Corbyn, John McDonnell and a Labour Party now dominated by the far-left.

In both cases the government is in a bind. On the one hand, Corbyn and Brexit bring with them significant amounts of political and economic uncertainty. And so the government is acutely aware that it cannot afford to put a foot wrong. On the other hand, there is something to the argument that the Conservatives will never make a success of Brexit or defeat Corbyn if they go about government with a softly, softly safety-first attitude. According to this theory, boldness – and a collection of game-changing policies - are the order of the day.

What is true of the government’s predicament in general, is true of the Chancellor in particular as he prepares to unveil the budget in the House of Commons next Wednesday. Two recent budgets – Hammond’s own earlier this year and Osborne’s 2012 omnishambles budget – are reminders that a chancellor's first job is to avoid any unforced errors. Hammond doesn’t exactly have much money – or a big majority – to play with. But some argue that fundamental weaknesses in the economy require decisive action and radical solutions. To further raise the stakes, Hammond’s colleagues have pinned their hopes on the budget as a turnaround moment for the Conservatives after a torrid few months for the party.

Will the Chancellor deliver the bold and brilliant budget? Or will it blow up in his face?

For this week's episode of Free Exchange, CapX collected together four leading policy experts to discuss what the chancellor should - and shouldn't - do on Wednesday.

Daniel Mahoney is Deputy Director and Head of Research at the Centre for Policy Studies

Alan Lockey is Head of the Modern Economy Programme at Demos

Julian Jessop is Chief Economist at the Institute of Economic Affairs

Alex Wild is Research Director of the Taxpayers’ Alliance

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John Kay

Wed, 08 Nov 2017 08:12:00 GMT

John Kay was born a year before Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn. In the latest episode of Free Exchange, the CapX podcast, he tells Robert Colvile that "sometimes I look at Corbyn and I think, he thinks what I thought when I was 17. It's just that I've learnt a bit since then and he hasn't."

Whereas the Labour leader has spent his life ploughing the furrow of far-left activism, John Kay has had a diverse and fascinating career as an economist. In the 1970s, he worked at the Institute for Fiscal Studies under its Nobel prize-winning director James Meade and alongside Mervyn King, who would go on to become governor of the Bank of England. Kay became director of the IFS in 1979 and helped to build it into arguably the UK's most respected think tank.

Kay has written on business and economics for the Financial Times for several decades and is the author of numerous popular books on economics, business and finance, most recently Other People's Money: Masters of the Universe or Servants of the People.

In a world where economic debate has become less nuanced, Kay is someone who understands the genius of the market but is also alive to its shortcomings. He despairs at the caricatured greed-is-good view of the market that has become conventional wisdom. He calls this idea "both repellant to most thoughtful people and false as a description of how markets really operate". What has been lost, he says, is an appreciation of the extent to which "our economy does depend very heavily on morality and trust relationships. It is not a matter of leaving people to do whatever they like. Nor is it about glorifying greed."

In a wide-ranging interview, he explains why he fell in love with economics, what big banks and taxi drivers have in common, where modern finance has gone wrong, why economists should admit there are somethings you cannot predict and the new book he is working on with his old colleague Mervyn King.

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Lord Heseltine

Wed, 01 Nov 2017 15:16:00 GMT

Michael Heseltine finds himself in an unusual position. He is one of the most distinguished Conservatives in the country, but is completely at odds with the party’s stance on the biggest issue of the day. While most Remain-supporting Tories – not least the Prime Minister – have taken the referendum result and run with it, Lord Heseltine has remained steadfast to his view that Brexit is an unmitigated disaster.

In this week’s episode of Free Exchange, he tells Robert Colvile that he has become a controversial figure. But that it is “the Conservative Party that has changed. Not me.” Brexit, he says, is the most catastrophic domestic British political decision in his lifetime. So catastrophic, in fact, that it may never happen. Can anything good come from it? He doesn’t think so. And he thinks that the arguments for leaving the EU are built on either deception or a misunderstanding of how the modern world works.

It isn’t just Brexit that has Heseltine so gloomy. It has come as a surprise to him that the battles against the hard left that his generation thought they had won for good in the Seventies and Eighties are having to be refought in the 21st century. For Heseltine, Prime Minister Corbyn is “a chilling prospect. I never thought for an instant that it would be possible, but the last election changed my mind.”

Beyond Brexit and Corbyn, the Tory big beast also discusses why nothing in politics changes, how to get industrial policy right, why politicians should focus on investment not consumption, and what has motivated him throughout his successful careers in both business and politics.

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Daniel Hannan

Fri, 27 Oct 2017 16:00:19 GMT

Daniel Hannan MEP is known to most people as a leading Eurosceptic, or, in the Guardian's words, "the man who brought you Brexit". With Britain on its way out of the EU, Hannan has established the Institute for Free Trade, which makes the intellectual and moral case for free trade, and sees Brexit unique opportunity to revitalise global trade.

A few weeks ago, at the Conservative Party Conference, he sat down with Robert Colvile, CapX's Editor-in-Chief, to discuss what sort of deal he would like to see between Britain and the EU, the genius of comparative advantage, and exactly why Jeremy Corbyn is so dangerous.

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Matthew Elliott and James Kanagasooriam

Mon, 09 Oct 2017 16:00:00 GMT

Jeremy Corbyn has built a potent political movement on the back of his explicit anti-capitalism. But it is not just the crowds of Corbynistas who don’t think much of the market. New research by Matthew Elliott of the Legatum Institute and James Kanagasooriam of Populus finds that on the economy the attitudes of the public as a whole are much closer to the Labour leader than the Conservative Party’s position.Capitalism is overwhelmingly associated with negative concepts such as greed and selfishness. Even among Conservative voters, renationalisation of the railways is a popular policy. What explains the unpopularity of private ownership and the free market?After a summer hiatus, Free Exchange, returns with Robert Colvile, CapX’s Editor-In-Chief, speaking to Elliott and Kanagasooriam about their findings and discussing what can be done to reverse these troubling trends.

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Deepak Lal

Wed, 26 Jul 2017 13:30:00 GMT

Deepak Lal is one of the world's foremost development economists, who helped billions of people to prosper by arguing that prosperity is better delivered by markets rather than central planners. He talks to Robert Colvile about why the enemies of progress once again have the upper hand.

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Anne Applebaum

Wed, 19 Jul 2017 06:00:00 GMT

At the Margaret Thatcher Conference on Security, Robert Colvile talks to the Pulitzer Prize winner about Russia, Trump and the state of the West.

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CapX's Great Immigration Debate

Wed, 12 Jul 2017 15:00:00 GMT

In a special edition of the CapX podcast, recorded live in Parliament, Nicky Morgan, Sunder Katwala, Garvan Walshe and Eric Kaufmann debate whether immigration is a good or bad thing - with Robert Colvile in the chair.

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Philippa Stroud

Wed, 05 Jul 2017 06:00:00 GMT

Robert Colvile talks to Baroness Stroud, the new head of the Legatum Institute about fighting poverty on an individual, national and international level.From working with drug addicts in Hong Kong to working with IDS on welfare reform, Philippa Stroud has spent her life trying to help others. She talks us through her extraordinary personal story.

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Lord Sacks

Thu, 29 Jun 2017 13:30:00 GMT

Jonathan Sacks, the former chief rabbi, talks to Robert Colvile at the Margaret Thatcher Conference on Security about whether the West has lost its moral compass.

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David Willetts

Wed, 21 Jun 2017 17:00:00 GMT

Now executive chairman of the Resolution Foundation, Lord Willetts has long been one of the Tory party's intellectual heavyweights - the man so smart they nicknamed him "Two Brains". He talks to Robert Colvile - in a conversation recorded before the election - about what Britain's getting right.

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Election Special

Wed, 14 Jun 2017 14:15:00 GMT

CapX's deputy editor Oliver Wiseman spent the weeks before the election criss-crossing the country. He talks to Robert Colvile about the extraordinary results, and what happens next

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John Curtice

Wed, 07 Jun 2017 06:00:00 GMT

Professor John Curtice, the pollster's pollster, talks to Robert Colvile about election night and taking the pulse of the nation, in a special election edition of the CapX podcast.

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Andrew Cooper

Wed, 31 May 2017 11:00:00 GMT

As strategy director to David Cameron and pollster for the Remain and Better Together campaigns, Lord Cooper of Windrush has been at the heart of some of the biggest moments in British politics. Ahead of the UK election, he talks to Robert Colvile about what he's learned, why pollsters get it wrong, and why Margate holds the key to Britain's future.

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David Owen

Wed, 24 May 2017 10:20:00 GMT

Lord Owen was Britain's youngest ever Foreign Secretary - before jumping ship to start his own party. The former leader of the SDP talks to Robert Colvile, CapX's Editor, about making Brexit a cross-party cause and why today's Labour MPs shouldn't follow in his footsteps. (This interview was recorded before the election was called.)

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Sue Cameron

Wed, 17 May 2017 14:00:00 GMT

Sue Cameron has made it her life's work to understand the people who run Britain - not the politicians, but the civil servants who sit behind them. She talks to Robert Colvile, CapX's Editor, about how well Britain is governed, which Prime Ministers have got the best grip on the Whitehall machine, and how the Civil Service is going to cope with Brexit.

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Frank Field MP

Wed, 10 May 2017 07:00:00 GMT

Robert Colvile talks to Frank Field - the Labour MP who's spent his career thinking the unthinkable, and often been punished for it by his party.

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Nick Cohen

Wed, 03 May 2017 07:00:00 GMT

Robert Colvile, Editor of CapX, talks to the Observer columnist Nick Cohen about the decline of the Left, his fears over Brexit, and why Jeremy Corbyn isn't going anywhere.

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Daniel Hannan

Wed, 26 Apr 2017 07:00:00 GMT

Robert Colvile, Editor of CapX, talks to Daniel Hannan MEP about Brexit, free trade and the most surprising and important idea in economics.

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Peter Oborne

Wed, 19 Apr 2017 07:00:00 GMT

An award-winning columnist and polemicist, Peter Oborne is the premier chronicler of the decline and fall of Britain's political class. He talks to Robert Colvile about the rise of political lying, his hopes for Brexit, and why he thinks we don't understand the Muslim world.

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Nigel Lawson

Wed, 12 Apr 2017 07:00:00 GMT

Chancellor, Brexiteer, climate change sceptic, Spectator editor, prime ministerial speechwriter - Lord Lawson has had one of the most packed careers in politics. He talks to Robert Colvile about what he's learned over his career, and where the next crisis is coming from.

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Welcome to Free Exchange

Tue, 04 Apr 2017 06:00:00 GMT

Free Exchange is a new weekly podcast from CapX in which we talk to the great and good in politics and policy about why they do what they do, and think what they think. Please subscribe!

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