Political Currency

What if the great 'what if' moments of recent British history had turned out differently? Ed Balls and George Osborne dive into the political sliding doors that could have rewritten the last three decades. They debate whether Margaret Thatcher would have won the 1992 election if she hadn't been ousted, and how her legacy would have been transformed.Ed gives a behind-the-scenes account of the Blair-Brown transition and the so-called 'Curry House Plot', considering how Labour would have handled the 2008 financial crisis with Tony Blair still in No. 10. Then, the pair explore the huge question of whether Britain joining the Euro would have prevented Brexit, or simply led to a catastrophic economic crash.Plus, George reveals why he jumped for joy when Ed Miliband beat his brother David for the Labour leadership, and they discuss whether the result of that contest sealed Labour's fate in 2015.To get episodes early and ad-free, join Political Currency Gold or the Kitchen Cabinet:👉 patreon.com/politicalcurrency👉 Apple PodcastsPlease note: Kitchen Cabinet is only available via Patreon.Credits:Producer: Miriam HallSenior Producer: Silvia MarescaVideo Editor: Maha Albadrawi Executive Producer: Ellie CliffordPolitical Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Political Currency’s summer specials continue! This week, while Ed Balls is away, George Osborne is joined by one of Labour's longest-serving and most compelling figures, Dame Emily Thornberry.Thornberry takes George inside the Corbyn-era shadow cabinet and explores the tantalising 'what if' of 2017: what would a Prime Minister Corbyn really have been like, and how would the British state have coped?From her unique vantage point as a senior backbencher, Thornberry offers a frank assessment of the new government's first year. She argues for more confidence and a clearer plan to tackle the problems Starmer’s cabinet inherited, warning against being "buffeted about” by criticism. Throughout, she reflects on two decades in Parliament and why, despite rebellions and disappointments, she remains “Labour through and through”.Plus, Ed and George reunite to explain the brutal art of a government’s first reshuffle. As Westminster braces for Sir Keir Starmer's first major shake-up, they reveal what it's really like to be hired, fired, and moved sideways by a Prime Minister.To get episodes early and ad-free, join Political Currency Gold or the Kitchen Cabinet:👉 patreon.com/politicalcurrency👉 Apple PodcastsPlease note: Kitchen Cabinet is only available via Patreon.Credits:Producer: Miriam HallSenior Producer: Silvia MarescaVideo Editor: Maha Albadrawi Executive Producer: Ellie CliffordPolitical Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What are the essential skills for a life in politics? In an age of TikTok soundbites, can a single speech in Parliament still change minds and topple a government? Ed Balls and George Osborne dive into the art of political craft, taking questions on the real-world impact of parliamentary debates, the secrets to managing a ministerial diary, and the constant balancing act between cabinet duties and constituency work.They discuss historic interventions that shaped the nation, from Edward Heath’s decisive speech on capital punishment to the Cromwellian phrase, “In the name of God, go,” which was famously used against Neville Chamberlain and Boris Johnson. They also share personal anecdotes about their first days as MPs, the importance of punctuality in a crisis, and the surprising truth about the bottled water in the Chancellor’s office.Plus, find out which cabinet job is surprisingly one of the "easier ones" to manage and what really happens in the MPs' exclusive tea room.To get episodes early and ad-free, join Political Currency Gold or the Kitchen Cabinet:👉 patreon.com/politicalcurrency👉 Apple PodcastsPlease note: Kitchen Cabinet is only available via Patreon.Credits:Producer: Miriam HallSenior Producer: Silvia MarescaVideo Editor: Maha AlbadrawiExecutive Producer: Ellie CliffordPolitical Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What is it really like to go from nine years in the political wilderness to running one of the most challenging departments in government? For Wes Streeting, Labour's Secretary of State for Health, it's a challenge he has been visibly relishing this past year, after a long, frustrating period fighting from the opposition benches.With Ed Balls away interrailing, Streeting joins George Osborne to give him a candid inside look at Labour's first year in power, revealing what Keir Starmer is really like as a leader, the secret orders he gives his cabinet, and his ambitious plan to reform the NHS by shifting power to patients and focusing on prevention. Plus, he explains why he believes Nigel Farage and Reform UK are now the "real opposition" to the government.Plus, Ed and George reunite to pull back the curtain on a subject of endless obsession for politicians and the press: ministerial cars. The pair explain why a minister's driver knows more about them than their own family, how drivers' gossip can make or break a career, and share hilarious and shocking stories involving heavy petting, a disastrous escape from a prime ministerial motorcade, and fish and chips with Gordon Brown. They also offer some crucial advice for any aspiring minister on how not to behave in the back of a Jag…To get episodes early and ad-free, join Political Currency Gold or the Kitchen Cabinet:👉 patreon.com/politicalcurrency👉 Apple PodcastsPlease note: Kitchen Cabinet is only available via Patreon.Credits:Producer: Miriam HallSenior Producer: Silvia MarescaVideo Editor: Maha AlbadrawiExecutive Producer: Ellie CliffordPolitical Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why do the concerns of young people barely register in political debate? Ed Balls and George Osborne take questions on the widening gap between the careers young people dream of and the jobs actually available, and why debt, unaffordable housing and the loss of defined benefit pensions leave the next generation feeling shortchanged.They discuss whether the government should take more responsibility for opening up opportunities and how early aspirations are shaped by who you know and what you see.Plus, they debate if Britain should rejoin Erasmus+, which politicians will still be remembered in 100 years, and what the future holds for our rivers and seas in the face of sewage pollution and hosepipe bans.To get episodes early and ad-free, join Political Currency Gold or the Kitchen Cabinet:👉 patreon.com/politicalcurrency👉 Apple PodcastsPlease note: Kitchen Cabinet is only available via Patreon.Credits:Producer: Miriam HallSenior Producer: Silvia MarescaVideo Editors: Maha AlbadrawiExecutive Producer: Ellie CliffordPolitical Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

While George Osborne is away “stirring the pot” (this time with JD Vance),Ed Balls is joined by author and columnist Sarah Vine for a powerfully candid conversation about her explosive memoir, How Not to Be a Political Wife.Sarah gives the unfiltered story of her marriage and divorce from Michael Gove, revealing how the "toxic culture" of Westminster shattered friendships with the Camerons, took a toll on her mental health, and why she considered Dominic Cummings the true "third person" in her marriage.Plus, Ed and George pull back the curtain on one of Westminster’s most mysterious institutions: the Whips' Office. Forget the myths of blackmailers and dark arts; the pair explain what whips really do, what the "usual channels" are, and share the incredible theory of how one fateful appointment in 2014 may have inadvertently changed the course of British history and led to Brexit.To get episodes early and ad-free, join Political Currency Gold or the Kitchen Cabinet:👉 patreon.com/politicalcurrency👉 Apple PodcastsPlease note: Kitchen Cabinet is only available via Patreon.Credits:Producer: Miriam HallSenior Producer: Silvia MarescaVideo Editor: Maha Albadrawi Executive Producer: Ellie CliffordPolitical Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why haven’t Ed Balls or George Osborne written political memoirs? Broadcaster Iain Dale puts the question to them, asking what’s stopping them, what they’d reveal if they did, and whether political history is incomplete without their accounts.And another listener digs into a moment of political tension between Ed and Tony Blair over the Euro. Did Steve Richards’s book Turning Points get it right, and what was really said in that meeting?Plus - the political fiction and non-fiction worth reading this summer, and whether George or Ed would ever dare to write a political thriller of their own.To get episodes early and ad-free, join Political Currency Gold or the Kitchen Cabinet:👉 patreon.com/politicalcurrency👉 Apple PodcastsPlease note: Kitchen Cabinet is only available via Patreon.Credits:Producer: Miriam HallSenior Producer: Silvia MarescaVideo Editors: Maha AlbadrawiExecutive Producer: Ellie CliffordPolitical Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kwasi Kwarteng reflects on what went wrong.The former Chancellor joins Ed Balls to talk through the decisions behind the Truss mini-budget - from bypassing the OBR to what he now calls its “real intellectual failing.” He explains why the Bank of England’s intervention “killed the government,” and why he believes his sacking was no coincidence.Kwarteng also looks ahead, urging the Conservative Party and Kemi Badenoch to focus on unity, and warning Rachel Reeves about the political cost of trying to rein in spending.Plus, Ed and George turn to political speechwriting. Who writes the big speeches? What makes them stick? And how do you find the right words for someone else? From Trump rallies to Gordon Brown’s “no time for a novice,” the pair give us a peek inside the craft of effective political communication.To get episodes early and ad-free, join Political Currency Gold or the Kitchen Cabinet:👉 patreon.com/politicalcurrency👉 Apple PodcastsPlease note: Kitchen Cabinet is only available via Patreon.Credits:Producer: Miriam HallSenior Producer: Silvia MarescaVideo Editors: Maha AlbadrawiExecutive Producer: Ellie CliffordPolitical Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The future of a two-state solution between Israel and Palestine comes into question this week, as Ed Balls and George Osborne respond to a listener asking whether Israeli public opinion has shifted irreversibly after the October 7th attacks. Is peace still possible, or has that hope died with the victims?Another listener shares a devastating story about her mother’s death during the junior doctors' strikes, raising serious questions about end-of-life care and what, if anything, Wes Streeting can do to bring doctors back to work. Is palliative care in this country just a postcode lottery?Plus - a challenge from Emily Thornberry on who kept ministers in check when Ed and George were in power, why successive governments might have gambled away billions in debt costs, and political flights that changed careers and reshaped governments.To get episodes early and ad-free, join Political Currency Gold or the Kitchen Cabinet:👉 patreon.com/politicalcurrency👉 Apple PodcastsPlease note: Kitchen Cabinet is only available via Patreon.Credits:Producer: Miriam HallSenior Producer: Silvia MarescaVideo Editor: Oliver Geraghty Executive Producer: Ellie CliffordPolitical Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The IMF has upgraded its global growth forecast - so things aren’t quite as bleak as we feared. Still bleak, though.Ed Balls and George Osborne dig into what the numbers mean for Chancellor Rachel Reeves. With spending cuts ruled out and the Autumn Budget on the horizon, the question looms: can the government afford all it has promised? George thinks Reeves is avoiding the tough calls. Ed believes tax rises may be inevitable, unless Labour is willing to flirt with more debt and borrowing.Meanwhile, Keir Starmer has carefully negotiated an extraordinary weekend with the US President Donald Trump in Scotland, and has gone straight into a pledge to recognise the Palestinian state. What will this mean for the UK-US relationship?And with former Sun editor David Dinsmore appointed to shake up Downing Street comms, Ed and George reflect on what his appointment signals - and the risks when the people managing the message start making headlines themselves.To get episodes early and ad-free, join Political Currency Gold or the Kitchen Cabinet:👉 patreon.com/politicalcurrency👉 Apple PodcastsPlease note: Kitchen Cabinet is only available via Patreon.Credits:Producer: Miriam HallSenior Producer: Silvia MarescaVideo Editor: Oliver Geraghty Executive Producer: Ellie CliffordPolitical Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The UK’s high speed railway has been plagued with cost blowouts, delays and scale-backs - so Ed Balls and George Osborne consider: has it all just been a big waste of money? Couldn’t those funds have been put to better use? Perhaps for the NHS, for example?The pair also consider the concept of age limits on voting. We’ve got a minimum age - recently lowered by Labour to 16 years old - so why not a maximum too? A listener asks: was it fair for those over 70 to have a say in the Brexit referendum, for example, while many people who were set to inherit a departure from Europe were at the time too young to make their voice heard?Plus - heckling moments of brutality and brilliance. A listener recalls a well-timed response to Jeremy Corbyn in the House of Commons - and asks Ed and George to reflect on memorable moments of perfect comedic timing at their own, or other politicians’ expense.To get episodes early and ad-free, join Political Currency Gold or the Kitchen Cabinet:👉 patreon.com/politicalcurrency👉 Apple PodcastsPlease note: Kitchen Cabinet is only available via Patreon.Credits:Producer: Miriam HallSenior Producer: Silvia MarescaVideo Editors: Danny Pape & Maha AlbadrawiPolitical Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Parliament has broken up for summer, but politics shows no sign of cooling down. Ed Balls and George Osborne run through the latest from every party - the Tories’ frontbench reshuffle, Labour’s mounting tensions over Gaza, Reform’s approach to protests worries -  all while the Greens and Lib Democrats make their moves. What’s really going on as MPs head off for the break?Meanwhile, the crisis in Gaza is becoming impossible to ignore across the country. With heartbreaking images and rising calls from Labour MPs to recognise Palestine, Ed and George ask how long Starmer can hold his ground - and whether the pressure will become so intense it will force a change.Meanwhile, Donald Trump is heading to Scotland to open a new golf course - but this visit isn’t just about sport. Scheduled private talks with Keir Starmer and John Swinney could have serious implications for trade and Middle East diplomacy. How should Starmer handle this high-stakes meeting?To get episodes early and ad-free, join Political Currency Gold or the Kitchen Cabinet:👉 patreon.com/politicalcurrency👉 Apple PodcastsPlease note: Kitchen Cabinet is only available via Patreon.Credits:Producer: Miriam HallSenior Producer: Silvia MarescaVideo Editors: Danny Pape & Maha AlbadrawiPolitical Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What should the NHS pay for, and what should it not? In this week’s episode, Ed Balls and George Osborne tackle one of the toughest political questions: how do you decide what’s “reasonable” for the state to fund when it comes to healthcare? As medical advances multiply and the public expects more from the NHS, is a national conversation about rationing unavoidable?Then, what happens when politicians leave office? A listener asks how Ed and George’s lives outside Westminster - from Wall Street and museums to breakfast TV and Strictly Come Dancing - have changed how they see politics. Would they govern differently if they ever returned?Also this week: do the markets now have more power than elected governments? What should we expect from ministers on annual leave? And is there ever a good reason to read self-help books such as The 48 Laws of Power?Plus, what really happened in that lift in China with George Osborne and Boris Johnson?To get episodes early and ad-free, join Political Currency Gold or the Kitchen Cabinet:👉 patreon.com/politicalcurrency👉 Apple PodcastsPlease note: Kitchen Cabinet is only available via Patreon.Producer: Miriam HallSenior Producer: Silvia MarescaVideo Editor: Danny PapeExecutive Producer: Ellie CliffordPolitical Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump wants to know why everyone won’t just forget about the Epstein files already. As he keeps pointing out, the disgraced financier has been dead for years. But Trump himself stirred up fresh interest in a trove of documents that many hoped would reveal explosive new details. Now it looks like they won’t be released after all - and the MAGA world isn’t happy. Ed Balls and George Osborne ask: could this be the thing that finally turns Trump’s base against him? And Andrew Bailey has sounded the alarm on banks issuing their own stablecoins. Is the UK risking being left behind on innovation in the financial services world? George doesn’t want the UK to risk falling behind, but Ed thinks George as Chancellor would have sounded a very different note on crypto.And The UK and France have just signed the Northwood declaration, a new nuclear pact. So what does it signal about the state of French-British relations?To get episodes early and ad-free, join Political Currency Gold or the Kitchen Cabinet:👉 patreon.com/politicalcurrency👉 Apple PodcastsPlease note: Kitchen Cabinet is only available via Patreon.Producer: Miriam HallSenior Producer: Silvia MarescaVideo Editor: Danny PapeExecutive Producer: Ellie CliffordPolitical Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Which side of politics loves the monarchy more? Conventional wisdom says Conservatives are the monarchy’s biggest fans. But are Ed Balls and George Osborne the exceptions to that rule? The pair explore how royalist sentiment plays out across the political spectrum, how long this current reign might last, and whether we’ll ever see a King George.Then, it’s onto a different question of longevity: what will it take for the Conservative Party to survive? Is the future in rebuilding the 2015 voter coalition of social liberals and economic conservatives? Or has that alignment passed its sell-by date? Ed and George debate whether One Nation Conservatism still has legs, or if the party is heading in a Reform-lite direction. Plus, what should Labour do next to avoid complacency after its 2024 landslide?And finally, parties of a different kind. A listener asks about the best parties they’ve ever been to. George plays it coy, but Ed eventually gets the details out of him - including a story or two from Madonna’s legendary Oscars after party…To get episodes early and ad-free, join Political Currency Gold or the Kitchen Cabinet:👉 patreon.com/politicalcurrency👉 Apple PodcastsPlease note: Kitchen Cabinet is only available via Patreon.Producer: Miriam HallSenior Producer: Silvia MarescaVideo Editor: Danny PapeExecutive Producer: Ellie CliffordPolitical Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There was a lot of ceremony and back-patting this week as Emmanuel Macron visited the UK. But behind the smiles, thorny issues like migration and post-Brexit power dynamics are back on the table. George and Ed ask what this renewed Franco-British ‘friendship’ really means, and whether it signals a serious reset or just more political theatre.Also this week, the pressure is piling on Rachel Reeves. With the UK’s finances looking shakier and the OBR sounding the alarm, the debate over a wealth tax refuses to go away. Can Labour stick to its fiscal rules without making tough choices?And finally, another new political movement enters the fray. Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana are launching a new left-wing party, while Elon Musk teases his own ‘America Party’ across the Atlantic. Ed and George ask, are we entering an era of DIY politics, driven by personality more than policy?To get episodes early and ad-free, join Political Currency Gold or the Kitchen Cabinet:👉 patreon.com/politicalcurrency👉 Apple PodcastsPlease note: Kitchen Cabinet is only available via Patreon.Producer: Miriam HallSenior Producer: Silvia MarescaVideo Editor: Danny PapeExecutive Producer: Ellie CliffordPolitical Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What is a fair way to govern? In response to a long time listener who feels a victim of his own success – disproportionately hit by taxes and ineligible for certain benefits – Ed Balls explains three different philosophical concepts of ‘fairness’. George Osborne meanwhile dismisses wealth tax as a catch all solution, underlining how the Labour government must look to the broader population. Listeners are reflecting on Keir Starmer a year into his premiership, with some wondering about his core set of beliefs (or lack thereof) and others questioning their decision to lend him their vote. What can the PM do to inspire these wavering voters?Ed and George also note institutional differences in the role academics play in government. Why is an economic academic more likely to find a role in the US government or the Bank of England then in the UK cabinet? And who are the UK’s Machiavelli-like politicians of recent times? Boris Johnson is dismissed as a candidate but Ed Balls nominates someone closer to home, suggesting that George Osborne may have pulled more strings in the Cameron government than we appreciated. To get episodes early and ad-free, join Political Currency Gold or the Kitchen Cabinet:👉 patreon.com/politicalcurrency👉 Apple PodcastsPlease note: Kitchen Cabinet is only available via Patreon.Producers: Miriam Hall and Jarek ZabaVideo Editor: Danny PapeExecutive Producer: Ellie Clifford Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Some incredible scenes in PMQs this week - in which Chancellor Rachel Reeves was openly crying - has Ed Balls and George Osborne considering just how bad things have got for the Labour government. Mere days after a dramatic climbdown over welfare reform, when the watered-down bill inched over the finish line amid threats of MP rebellion, the bond market slumped over speculation Reeves was facing the sack. Ed thinks it’s been the worst week for Labour governments for a long time, and George thinks that, domestically at least, the government is now adrift. But the show must go on! French President Emmanuel Macron is due for a state visit next week, the first since President Nicholas Sarkozy’s over a decade ago. Put aside the pressing political questions for more important matters - what is Ed going to wear to the big dinner at Windsor Castle? And, believe it or not, this week marks a whole year since the Starmer government took office. No doubt the PM is facing a slew of acute policy challenges, but has his personal approach and his leadership style shifted the course of the 12 months? Producer: Miriam Hall and Jarek ZabaVideo Editor: Danny PapeExecutive Producer: Ellie CliffordPolitical Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is the G20 still a force for peace and diplomacy, or just a stage for political performance? Ed Balls and George Osborne kick off this week’s EMQs with a question about nuclear non-proliferation and whether South Africa should push it up the agenda this year.The pair then turns to a question from regular listener Douglas Alexander, Minister of State for Trade Policy and Economic Security. Fresh off publishing the new trade strategy, he asks for George and Ed’s take on what it gets right and whether the Conservatives ever had anything similar.And is there a way to make people see the value in their taxes? Maybe just a little? Ed and George weigh in on one of life’s certainties, thanks to a question from a gold subscriber who received world class care at Great Ormond Street Hospital.To get episodes early and ad-free, join Political Currency Gold or the Kitchen Cabinet:👉 patreon.com/politicalcurrency👉 Apple PodcastsPlease note: Kitchen Cabinet is only available via Patreon.Producer: Miriam HallSenior Producer: Silvia MarescaVideo Editor: Oliver Geraghty Executive Producer: Ellie CliffordPolitical Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Daddy’s back in the (White) House! Ed Balls and George Osborne go over the major event of the week - starting with the NATO meeting in The Hague. Allies have agreed to up defence spending to 5 percent, but that’s not what’s grabbing the headlines. More attention has been on new Secretary General Mark Rutte referring to Donald Trump as “Daddy.” The pair consider what’s really at play here, and what Trump’s return to the world stage could mean for the UK.Back home, the government is refusing to say whether the US bombing of Iran violated international law. What’s the strategy in dodging the question? And how long can they keep it up?But it’s not the only issue on their plate. Labour’s big majority is looking a bit shakier as over 120 MPs line up to rebel over welfare reform. Is this Starmer’s first real test? And what does it tell us about who’s really in charge?Plus, Glastonbury gets dragged into the headlines again - this time over Irish rap group Kneecap. Are we in for another culture war summer?To get episodes early and ad-free, join Political Currency Gold or the Kitchen Cabinet:👉 patreon.com/politicalcurrency👉 Apple PodcastsPlease note: Kitchen Cabinet is only available via Patreon.Producer: Miriam HallSenior Producer: Silvia MarescaVideo Editor: Oliver Geraghty Executive Producer: Ellie CliffordPolitical Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.