Coffee House Shots

Boris is in Belfast today in an attempt to repair relations between the DUP and Sinn Fein. In a 2000 word article for Belfast Telegraph, the Prime Minister laid out his intentions not to scrap the Northern Ireland Protocol, but instead to fix it. Can these two polarised parties find a middle ground? Also on the podcast, Jeremy Hunt was on a media round over the weekend to publicise his new book on the NHS. Yet he was unable to avoid questions about his party. All to be discussed as Isabel Hardman speaks to Katy Balls and James Forsyth. 

Isabel Hardman rounds up the highlights from Sunday's political shows, with Kwasi Kwarteng and Ed Miliband. 

Finland this week has expressed its wish to join Nato and Sweden is expected to follow suit. But with an America more focused on China, an ever aggressive Russia and Turkey with a membership veto card what does the future of this organisation look like?Cindy Yu talks with Fraser Nelson and James Forsyth

Jacob Rees-Mogg has said that the government plans to axe 91,000 posts within three years from the civil service. The argument for it is that the reduced tax burden will help the public deal with the ever-growing cost of living crisis. But will this have the desired effect and will it be anywhere near enough?Kate Andrews talks to James Forsyth and Fraser Nelson about if the Prime Minister has the right temperament to weather this particular storm. 

Boris Johnson met Conservative MPs in Stoke-on-Trent for a Cabinet away day. The focus is on how new legislation would level up the UK and protect people from the cost of living crisis as it intensifies. Meanwhile, the GDP figures show the UK economy contracted in March as consumers cut back on spending. Can the government. Is the UK heading towards a recession?All to be discussed as Cindy Yu speaks to Katy Balls and James Forsyth.

Today Boris Johnson pledged his support to protect Sweden and Finland in a mutual defence pact. As non Nato members, the deal is intended to protect these two countries from unexpected attacks. Will Putin see this as provocative? And how might this deal clash with Macron's view of a European defence bloc? 'I think we can see the phrase Global Britain taking some meaningful form now' - Fraser Nelson.All to be discussed as Cindy Yu speaks to Fraser Nelson and James Forsyth.

Inside the Lord's Chamber, Prince Charles delivered the Queen's Speech in his mother's absence. The key themes of the Prime Minister's legislative agenda included easing the cost of living crisis, post-Brexit economic arrangements and a particular emphasis on crime. 'You can tell the Tory party is trying to shore itself up from being outflanked on crime and immigration come the next election' - James Forsyth.What was the reaction to the speech in the debate that followed?All to be discussed as James Forsyth speaks to Katy Balls. 

As pressures mount over claims that Keir Starmer broke lockdown rules, the Labour leader has just pulled out of a keynote speech he is due to give today. How much trouble is he really in? Katy Balls looks at Starmer's future in a blog on Coffee House today.Also on the podcast, what will be the fallout from the Sinn Fein victory in Northern Ireland? Brandon Lewis heads to Belfast today to press for the return of a fully functioning government. Katy Balls speaks to Isabel Hardman and James Forsyth.

Isabel Hardman hosts the highlights from Sunday's political shows, with Dominic Raab, Lisa Nandy, Sir Ed Davey and Jukka Siukosaari.

Katy Balls, James Forsyth and Isabel Hardman delve into the 2022 local election results and discuss how the Conservatives will adapt their strategy to remain in power. 

We've had more election results in and it looks like the Lib Dems will be celebrating tonight, encroaching on many Tory seats around the country. But is this Liberal passion from voters or disaffection with the two major parties? Katy Balls talks with James Forsyth and Isabel Hardman about all the latest results. 

The results are coming in! While the Tories seem to have done quite badly in the capital, Labour have not made the gains in the rest of the country that many predicted they would. The Lib Dems and the Greens have had a good showing so far but we won't know just how good until the full tally of results come in. Isabel Hardman talks with Katy Balls and James Forsyth.

The Monetary Policy Committee has just raised interest rates again. This is the fourth consecutive rise, the first time this has happened within a quarter of a century. Economically the future is looking pretty bleak and not just in the UK, this looks like it may be a global problem caused by several factors. China's no Covid policies, US inflation, the Eurozone trying to wean itself off Russia's oil and gas, etc.Katy Balls talks to James Forsyth and Kate Andrews about the state of the global economy. 

A new poll from ComRes has shown Scottish Labour taking second place in tomorrow's local elections, overtaking the Scottish Conservatives. On the podcast, James Forsyth explains the torrid flip-flop that Douglas Ross, leader of the Scottish Tories, has made over partygate, first calling for Boris Johnson to resign before rowing back ('He thought that the 54 letters triggering a vote of no confidence were on their way in').Katy Balls also talks to Isabel Hardman about the Environment Secretary George Eustice's suggestion that people might buy from cheaper supermarkets in order to deal with the cost-of-living crisis ('The phrase "teaching your grandma to suck eggs" was possibly invented for this piece of advice', Isabel says).

Campaigning in the local elections is entering its final few days. But what are the expectations for the Tories and Labour and can they be met? Both leaders Boris Johnson and Keir Starmer have already put their foot in it to some degree, with the Labour leader getting rather too defensive about his lockdown mid-work beer and Boris seeming out of touch over the cost of living crisis. Isabel Hardman talks to Katy Balls and James Forsyth about the state of the race. 

Isabel Hardman rounds up the best bits from Sunday's political shows, with Kwasi Kwarteng, Sir Keir Starmer, David Lammy, Adrian Bailey and Sir Ed Davey.

A big congratulations to Linda Nelson who has just become a British citizen. Fraser details the long and taxing journey it took for his wife to reach this point in his Telegraph column this week and asks why as an immigrant nation do we make becoming British so challenging for new arrivals? On the podcast, Fraser talks with Cindy Yu and James Forsyth about this question. And Cindy brings a few questions from the citizenship test, to see if her colleagues would pass. 

Labour has admitted that deputy leader Angela Rayner, was also at an event where Keir Starmer was pictured drinking a beer. Could the pair be fined? Cindy Yu speaks to James Forsyth and Kate Andrews 

This has been a bad week for the reputation of the House of Commons. From inappropriate comments toward female MPs, three cabinet ministers facing sexual misconduct claims and one MP accused of watching pornography in the chamber. Can anything be done to change this grotesque culture? And is it Westminster specific or an issue with society at large?Isabel Hardman talks to James Forsyth and Katy Balls.

The chief whip Chris Heaton-Harris has started an investigation after a female Tory MP reported that she had seen a male colleague watching pornography in the House of Commons. This comes in the wake of the Mail On Sunday's Angela Rayner/Basic Instinct story, and of the Sunday Times's investigation that three current cabinet ministers are under investigation for #MeToo claims. Will more allegations come out of the woodwork in the coming days? Cindy Yu talks to Katy Balls and James Forsyth.