{"version":"1.0","type":"rich","provider_name":"Acast","provider_url":"https://acast.com","height":250,"width":700,"html":"<iframe src=\"https://embed.acast.com/$/65c3f459afd19a0016246659/65c3f45f2f12a6001613d95a?\" frameBorder=\"0\" width=\"700\" height=\"250\"></iframe>","title":"Ep 23: Praying for Tory wipe-out in 2024 with author & historian James Hawes","description":"<p>Nick Cohen gets the end of the year Lowdown from author, historian and novelist James Hawes as both contemplate the prospects of a general election in 2024.<br/><br/>The last 13-14 years of Tory misrule has brought the successive disasters of austerity, Brexit, Boris Johnson, the Great Covid Bungle,  Lettuce Truss , the  so called Cost of Living Crisis, a crisis hugely exacerbated by Brexit. The list goes on and on - but Nick and James hope that won&apos;t apply to the Tories.<br/><br/>Nick is more hopeful of the electoral wipe-out the Tories richly deserve but James is more cautious,  believing that somehow the tribal English Tory vote will rally to the clarion lies of The Daily Mail  - despite the obvious weirdness of Rishi Sunak and the cataclysmic mis-governance .of the last 13 and a half years<br/><br/>Both agree the defeat of the Tories - now little more than an English nationalist party - isimperative  if the UK is to rescued from its dizzying descent to poverty and irrelevance or even saved in its current form.</p><a rel=\"payment\" href=\"https://www.buzzsprout.com/2181263/support\">Support the show</a><p><br/>Listen to The Lowdown from Nick Cohen for in-depth analysis of the issues and events that shape our lives and futures. From Ukraine to Brexit, from Trump to the Tories - we hope to keep you informed - and sane! @NickCohen4 </p>","author_name":"Nick Cohen"}