How To Win An Election

The prime minister has been increasingly critical of Brexit this week, and says he wants a closer relationship with the EU - without rejoining key parts of the club.But will Labour inevitably have to go further, and if they do will they be falling into a Reform UK trap?We also discuss the role of the Downing Street 'maverick genius' - and what that's got to do with My Little Pony.Send your questions, comments and voicenotes to howtowin@thetimes.co.uk

Was the Budget aimed at short-term political survival, or did it form part of a coherent electoral strategy?Sally, Polly, Danny (and Hugo) discuss Rachel Reeves' statement - does it make it more likely that she and the prime minister will stay in their jobs, but more likely to lose the next election? What could she have learned from Gordon Brown's budgets? And does Kemi Badenoch's success in the Commons chamber mean anything in the world outside?Send your questions, comment, voicenotes and weird food suggestions for Polly to howtowin@thetimes.co.uk

Can Keir Starmer persuade his backbenchers to back his tough new migration reforms - and stop them openly plotting his downfall?We discuss how prime ministers have tried to keep their MPs on side, Alex Ferguson's advice for Tony Blair, and whether Andy Burnham could be heading back to Westminster (via Norfolk).Send your comments, questions and voicenotes to howtowin@thetimes.co.uk

Keir Starmer has vowed to fight any plot to oust him - but has Downing Street's briefing operation against the plotters actually made his downfall more likely?Sally, Pollly, Danny and Hugo discuss the prime minister's survival, and look at past plots that have succeeded - and those that haven't. From the curry house conspiracy against Tony Blair to doomed attempts to bring down David Cameron and Nick Clegg, how do they compare with the civil war in the Labour Party?Send your comments, questions and voicenotes to howtowin@thetimes.co.uk

We're joined by William Hague for the latest in our series looking at how the biggest elections in recent political history were won - and how they were lost.We go inside the Tory campaign, in which Hague's Conservative Party tried to convince the nation it was time for a common sense revolution - and ended up resembling the protester punched in the head by John Prescott.From foot and mouth to Sharon Storer, from Thatcher announcing 'The mummy returns' to Oliver Letwin going into hiding, the team get under the skin of the campaign and ask why it couldn't make a dent in Tony Blair's popularity.

Rachel Reeves is thinking about increasing taxes - perhaps even breaking Labour's manifesto commitment not to raise income tax.The political masterminds discuss what that would mean for the government's electoral fortunes, and whether they could end up like George HW Bush - who famously said 'Read my lips: no new taxes', only to do exactly that.We also look at the pressure on Labour from Zack Polanski's Green Party, whether the government 'grid' of daily announcements has had its day, and which prime minister played the most musical instruments?Send your questions, comments and views on marmite to howtowin@thetimes.co.uk

As well as knowing how to win an election, the team have plenty of experience of losing them too. For this episode, recorded in front of an audience at the Times and Sunday Times Cheltenham Literature Festival, we look at some campaigns that went really, really badly.Sally chooses Neil Kinnock's defeat in 1987, Danny chooses John Major's drubbing in 1997, and Polly chooses Jo Swinson's ill-feted run at becoming prime minister in 2019.Send your questions, comments and stories of defeat to howtowin@thetimes.co.uk

Has Kemi Badenoch done enough to see off her Tory critics, for now? Does her promise to abolish stamp duty remind the team of George Osborne's inheritance tax pledge in 2007?Danny explains why the public have forgotten about Liz Truss sooner than expected, and Polly realises she shares a dress with Liz Truss AND Kemi Badenoch.The political masterminds - or 'golden trio', plus Hugo - will be live at the Times and Sunday Times Cheltenham Literature Festival on Tuesday 14th October. Tickets are available at: https://www.cheltenhamfestivals.org/