The Prospect Interview

In a rare conversation about what happens once the fighting in Gaza is over—and how the Israeli-Palestinian conflict could end—Ehud Olmert, Israel’s prime minister from 2006-2009, and Dr. Nasser Alkidwa, who was Palestinian foreign affairs minister from 2005-2006 join Alona Ferber. 

Home Office housing contracts have turned Clearsprings founder Graham King into one of the UK’s richest men. Meanwhile, the asylum seekers living in his business empire of taxpayer-funded hotels have compared living in them to being in prison, with reports of physical assault, racist abuse and confiscated belongings. Mark Wilding from Liberty Investigates joins Ellen Halliday to discuss what the Asylum King story can tell us about how the state treats vulnerable people in its care.Read Wilding’s investigation here.

In the post-Brexit years, Britain has become increasingly irrelevant on the global stage. After Thursday's historic election, what can Keir Starmer and David Lammy do to put it back on the map? Senior Editor Alona Ferber is joined by international affairs expert, and Prospect contributing editor, Isabel Hilton to discuss.

This month, the lives writers feel compelled—in their own different ways—to take action in challenging circumstances. Tom Martin has to make the most difficult decision any farmer could face when one of his ewes experiences pain during labour. 

With the country heading to the polls this week, legendary pollster and former president of YouGov Peter Kellner gives his predictions for what the split of seats will look like, while contributing editor Tom Clark explains the six trip hazards he thinks Starmer might face in his first term. 

In this week’s episode of the Prospect podcast, Emily Lawford quizzes Tim Bale, professor of politics at Queen Mary, University of London, on the gambling scandal, election culture wars and who, out of all the candidates, has had the best campaign so far.  After the break—is Britain ready to for Putin? Ellen Halliday speaks with Malcolm Chalmers, deputy director general of the defence and security think tank Rusi about the nuclear threat, and what the next government might do to ensure a secure future.

Westminster editor at The Lead UK, Zoë Grünewald, joins the podcast to dissect the Reform party's new “contract with the people”, while Prospect’s editorial fellow Imaan Irfan takes us on a deep dive into The Muslim Vote campaign, a volunteer collective mobilising Muslim voters to elect pro-Palestine third-party and independent candidates.

Assistant editor Emily Lawford introduces Prospect’s election panel—the ultimate group chat of politics nerds from across the spectrum. One of the team, former Number 10 speechwriter Phil Collins, joins to give his take on the Tory manifesto and much more. After, Ellen unpacks the crisis in universities with professor of academic history Glen O’Hara, who explains why they are in such trouble and what it means for students.

As the election campaign whirrs on—media circus in tow—Prospect’s senior editor Alona Ferber is joined by Guardian columnist and author Rafael Behr to look beyond the Westminster bubble and ask: what does the Punch-and-Judy nature of our politics mean for the country, and our democracy?