Isabel Hardman's Sunday Roundup - 14/09/2025

The big news in Westminster today is that there has been another defection to Reform. But this time it feels slightly different: a front bench Tory with a CV that spans multiple Tory leaders and a number of books on Conservative thought is now batting for Reform.Danny Kruger, Nigel Farage’s latest defector, served as David Cameron’s speechwriter, Boris Johnson’s political secretary and Robert Jenrick’s campaign manager just last summer. His defection will therefore come as a serious blow to those who argue that the Conservative party stands a better chance than Reform of winning the next election.Kruger told the room that he believes Reform now stands the best chance of saving the country at the time of the next election and that his former Tory party was ‘finished as the main opposition to the left’. His argument is that Reform is the ‘new home’ of conservatism. Where does this leave Kemi Badenoch? And will his defection open up the floodgates for more to follow?Oscar Edmondson speaks to James Heale and Lucy Dunn.Produced by Oscar Edmondson.Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more.For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.Contact us: [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Isabel Hardman presents highlights from Sunday morning's political shows.It feels like an unnervingly normal week for this Labour government, with another sacking set against the backdrop of an anti-government march led by Tommy Robinson.Produced by Joe Bedell-Brill.Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more.For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.Contact us: [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump touches down in Britain next week for his state visit and political editor Tim Shipman has the inside scoop on how No. 10 is preparing. Keir Starmer’s aides are braced for turbulence; ‘the one thing about Trump which is entirely predictable is his unpredictability,’ one ventures. Government figures fear he may go off message on broadcast – he is scheduled to be interviewed by GB News.A second state visit, especially during a second term, is unprecedented. But, as Tim says, ‘Britishness is fashionable in Washington’ and no-one likes ‘royal treatment’ more than Trump. So, can Starmer take advantage of the President’s ‘love of the deal’?Tim joins Will Moore and Lara Prendergast, the Spectator's features and executive editors respectively, in a conversation recorded originally for the Edition podcast. For more from the Spectator, search 'The Edition' wherever you subscribe to your podcasts.Produced by Patrick Gibbons.Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more.For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.Contact us: [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The fallout from Lord Mandelson's sacking continues. All eyes are now on Keir Starmer's chief of staff Morgan McSweeney – could he take the fall for Mandelson's appointment? As Whitehall editor of the Sunday Times Gabriel Pogrund tells James Heale and Lucy Dunn, Mandelson and McSweeney's relationship stretches back to New Labour. But, Pogrund warns, as McSweeney lay the foundations for Labour's victory in 2024, losing him would mark a 'revolution in the Starmer project'.Plus: after a slew of bad news for the government, there was one Labour victory this week – at the annual Westminster dog of the year competition. Megan McElroy interviews some of the MPs who took part; we hope their dogs are more loyal than their colleagues...Produced by Patrick Gibbons.Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more.For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.Contact us: [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Another week, another departure. Conservative MP Neil O'Brien – who serves in the shadow cabinet as minister for policy renewal and development – was granted an urgent question in Parliament this morning, to question the government about Peter Mandelson. Then the news broke that Lord Mandelson had been sacked by Keir Starmer following further disclosures about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. Neil joins Tim Shipman and James Heale to discuss the latest developments and also the questions that still remain: what did they know about Mandelson's relationship with Epstein; if they didn't know, why didn't they know; and will the government be forced to release their vetting files on Mandelson's apppointment? Plus: Tim pushes Neil for his reflections on the last Conservative government – given he supported colleagues who broke the ministerial code, whether the Tories will support Labour's attempts at welfare reform and whether we can expect the same excitement at Tory conference as we saw at Reform.Produced by Patrick Gibbons.Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more.For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.Contact us: [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kemi Badenoch has just skewered Keir Starmer at Prime Minister’s Questions on the topic of Peter Mandelson’s association with the convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. Badenoch learned from her mistakes last week and devoted all six of her questions to trying to get Mandelson fired as British Ambassador to Washington. She pointed out that the victims of Epstein had ‘called for Lord Mandelson to be sacked’, and then asked whether Starmer had been aware ‘of this intimate relationship when he appointed Lord Mandelson to be our ambassador in Washington’.It was potentially her most convincing performance yet and she managed to pull together diffuse threads of world and domestic affairs into a focussed attack on the Prime Minister and his US ambassador’s credibility. Will Starmer be forced to act?Oscar Edmondson speaks to James Heale and Isabel Hardman.Produced by Oscar Edmondson.Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more.For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.Contact us: [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Michael Gove and Madeline Grant return with another episode of Quite right!, The Spectator’s new podcast promising sanity and common sense in an increasingly unhinged world. This week, they talk about Labour’s deputy drama, discuss whether Britain is sliding into a revolutionary mood a la France and investigate the claim in a new book that Margaret Thatcher was autistic.To hear the full episode, search Quite right! wherever you get your podcasts, or go to www.spectator.co.uk/quiterightQuite right! is also on our YouTube channel SpectatorTV.Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more.For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.Contact us: [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With the announcement yesterday that the government would be prepared to suspend visas for countries that don’t cooperate with the UK over deportations, has Shabana Mahmood shown she has what it takes to tackle immigration? Tim Shipman and James Heale join Patrick Gibbons to discuss whether the new home secretary can ‘stop the boats’.But, as the government ‘reset’ continues, all eyes are on Labour’s deputy leadership race. The most high-profile MPs to throw their hats in the ring are education secretary Bridget Phillipson, former shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry – and Lucy Powell, fresh from her sacking as Leader of the House of Commons. Is the race shaping up to be a one-on-one between a government loyalist and an outsider?Plus: as Kemi Badenoch is trying to talk about the economy we discuss whether she is more William Hague or Iain Duncan-Smith, and the Epstein scandal has pulled in our man–dy in Washington.Produced by Patrick Gibbons.Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more.For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.Contact us: [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Reform UK’s annual conference wrapped up this weekend – and it was anything but dull. From Andrea Jenkyns belting out her original song ‘I’m an Insomniac’ on stage to Nigel Farage trying to keep a sometimes chaotic movement united, the mood was more rally than conference. Despite the optimism in the room, there were obvious cracks under the surface: mainly, do Reform have enough experience in their ranks for the business of serious government?On Coffee House Shots, Oscar Edmondson is joined by Tim Shipman and James Heale fresh from the conference floor. They discuss Farage’s role as ringmaster of a broad – and sometimes unruly – coalition, Reform’s hopes of fielding thousands of councillors, and the dangers of drifting too close to the conspiratorial edges of politics.Also on the podcast, there has been a steady drip of reshuffle news over the weekend. Starmer’s snap reshuffle saw Shabana Mahmood promoted to the Home Office in what many see as the most significant move of the week. With boats and hotels dominating the immigration debate, can she succeed where so many of her predecessors have failed? And what does Angela Rayner’s departure mean for the deputy leadership – and Labour’s uneasy relationship with the unions?Produced by Oscar Edmondson.Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more.For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.Contact us: [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Isabel Hardman presents highlights from Sunday morning's political shows.Reform are having fun at their conference, while Labour struggle with crises inside and outside the party. Meanwhile, Kemi Badenoch just wants to do opposition 'the right way'. Produced by Joe Bedell-Brill.Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more.For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.Contact us: [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.