Coffee House Shots

Boris Johnson is travelling to the Middle East tonight, where he'll be meeting Gulf leaders and trying to convince them to pump more oil. With Britain's energy price cap likely to rise to £3,000 in October, how important is it for the Prime Minister to get what he wants? And will more supply alone fix the problem? Max Jeffery speaks to James Forsyth and Katy Balls. 

Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine has caused the prices of oil and gas to skyrocket. One of the Prime Minster's strategies to combat this appears to be a visit Saudi Arabia this week, where he'll ask Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman to release more oil. But what's the chance of this working?Katy Balls is joined by James Forsyth and Isabel Hardman.

Isabel Hardman rounds up the highlights from Sunday's interview shows, with Michael Gove, Sir Keir Starmer and Polish president Andrzej Duda. 

Kate Andrews and Fraser Nelson discuss the government's feet-dragging response to allowing Ukrainians easier entry to the UK.

While the world is hearing mummers that Vladimir Putin is considering using chemical weapons in Ukraine, the UK government has imposed sanctions on hundreds of Russian Parliamentarians. But will this latest move make the Kremlin pause or is it a largely symbolic gesture? Katy Balls talks with Fraser Nelson and James Forsyth.

After seemingly dragging its heels for weeks, the government is ramping up its individual sanction measures against those close to the Kremlin. When Roman Abramovich bought Chelsea football club it was seen as a symbol of closer Russian and British ties, we will now see what signal him losing it creates. Kate Andrews hosts Fraser Nelson and James Forsyth to talk through sanctions, peace talks and Eurovision. 

While Europe opens its arms up to the Ukrainians fleeing war, the UK is taking a much slower approach. While people are allowed to come in relatively quickly if they have family here, that definition of family is extremely limited. Our response is causing confusion with the public but seemingly also within the Conservative party.Katy Balls and James Forsyth are joined by Kate Andrews from Calais who has been spending the last two days talking to refugees on the ground looking to seek refuge in Britain.

Former Speaker of the House, John Bercow has been banned from the Commons after the publishing of a review that reveals the extent of his bullying behaviour towards members of his staff. How will Labour react to this after welcoming him in with open arms? Also, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky will today address a number of UK MPs and is expected to ask for more aid on all fronts: sanctions, humanitarian and military. But just how much more can the UK offer without causing an escalation in Putin's brutality?And finally, one look at the Spectator's Data Hub will show a shocking rise in the price of gas in the UK in reaction to the war in Ukraine, but has Boris Johnson prepared the public enough for this shocking rise in cost?Sam Holmes talks with James Forsyth and Katy Balls.Book tickets for Coffee House Shots Live: The Spring Statement

As the Russian invasion enters its twelfth day, fuel prices hit new records in the UK. Global leaders are preparing for the worst, is the UK braced for this too? Also on the podcast, what's behind Boris Johnson's six-point plan? 'I would far rather Boris Johnson wasn't turning away Ukrainian refugees at the border in Calais than coming up with the six-point plan' - Fraser Nelson.All to be discussed as Kay Balls speaks to Fraser Nelson and James Forsyth.  For more information on the Russian nation, The Spectator is covering the economic impacts of the Ukraine-Russia war on our Datahub.

Isabel Hardman rounds up the highlights from Sunday's political shows, which today featured Dominic Raab, Sir Keir Starmer, Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, Ruth Smeeth and Tony Blair.

Kate Andrews talks to James Forsyth and the historian Orlando Figes about whether Europe's united response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine will hold, and the effect of sanctions on Russia's economy and its oligarchs.

It's been just over a week since Vladimir Putin began his invasion of  Ukraine and in that time we have seen some truly unprecedented events: A former comedian leading an extremely effective homeland resistance against one of the world's largest armies, an estimated million people fleeing over the borders and a more unified Western response than we have seen in decades. Kate Andrews talks with The Spectator's Editor Fraser Nelson and its Deputy Editor Freddy Gray to assess the shocking events we have seen this week. 

Though Britain has been sending weapons to Ukraine, and led Europe's push to get Russia taken out of the Swift banking system, the government has been criticised for being slow in sanctioning Russian oligarchs. What more should we be doing?Max Jeffery talks to James Forsyth and Katy Balls.

PMQs began with a rather unorthodox but touching round of applause to welcome the Ukrainian ambassador to the chamber. While the Commons was united in its support of Ukraine and condemnation of Putin's actions, Labour leader Keir Starmer confronted Boris Johnson about certain Russian individuals who have been sanctioned by our allies but not by the UK. But why is Boris Johnson holding back? Though many talk about the close relationship between the Tories and Russian money, the bitter truth of the matter may be that we are running out of non-military options for opposing Putin.Katy Balls breaks down the session with James Forsyth and Isabel Hardman from the roof of Parliament.

During a press conference in Poland today, Prime Minister Boris Johnson was confronted by Ukrainian journalist and campaigner Daria Kaleniuk, who took issue with the excuse for not imposing a no-fly zone because it may start World War Three, saying it had already begun. While it is completely understandable that on the streets of Ukrainian cities that is how it must feel, the UK and the West are committed to not involving themselves with direct military action against Russia. Though the sanctions that have been imposed on Putin's regime are unprecedented, can they work quickly enough to pause the conflict before things get even bloodier?Katy Balls talks to Isabel Hardman and James Forsyth about how the Prime Minister has been handling this situation so far.

Over the weekend, the West unveiled further measures to punish Russia for invading Ukraine. The European Union said it would put limits on the Russian central bank's ability to access its reserve of foreign currency, Finland blocked Russia from its airspace, and Germany pledged that it would increase its defence spending to 2 per cent. Has Putin underestimated western resolve? Katy Balls speaks to Fraser Nelson, James Forsyth and Isabel Hardman.

Isabel Hardman rounds up the highlights from today's political shows, featuring Liz Truss, David Lammy and Sir Chris Deverell. 

Katy Balls speaks to Kate Andrews and Tony Danker, the director general of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), about the Chancellor's Mais lecture on Thursday, where he reaffirmed his belief in 'sustainably' cutting taxes.

Russian forces are attempting to take Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. Ben Wallace, the defence secretary, said he would be spending the day trying to convince European allies like Germany and Italy, who are reluctant to put too harsh sanctions on Russia, to ban them from the Swift payments system. How else can the West put Putin under pressure?Max Jeffery speaks to James Forsyth and Katy Balls.

Vladimir Putin has launched an attack on multiple fronts across Ukraine. In a televised speech, the Russian leader announced a 'military operation' in Ukraine's Donbas region. Today, Boris Johnson has vowed to hit Russia with a 'massive' package of sanctions. But who will really suffer from these sanctions? And will it be enough to deter stop Putin in his tracks?All to be discussed as Katy Balls speaks to James Forsyth and Owen Matthews, The Spectator's Russia correspondent.