The Crossbench with Conor Wilson

Patrick Hurley was elected to represent Southport in 2024 - The first Labour candidate to win in the coastal town.His eleation quickly turned to tragedy as just weeks into his new role, he received a phone call to tell him about an attack at a Taylor Swift Dance Class that left three girls murdered and many more injured.Patrick discusses the attack, the wave of misinformation that followed it and the national unrest seen in towns across the country. He talks, through his socialist lense, about the need to address poverty in town's such as Southport and others that feel victim to disorder in the wake of the attack, factors he feels laid the foundations for the riots we saw.He also discusses how seaside towns such as his adjust to a change in tourism habits and declining shopping trends to ensure that investment continues to flow through and provide jobs and quality of life to those who live there.

Dame Caroline Dineage is an entrepreneur and the Conservative MP for Gosport.Dame Caroline has served in a a variety of departments since being elected in 2010 including the DWP, Department of Justice, Department of Health and Social Care and Deptarment of Education.She currently is the chair of the Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee and last year, found herself at the centre of the row between US President Donald Trump and the BBC over an edited clip of Trump from 2021.As chair, Dame Caroline was tasked with scrutinising the actions of the BBC and delivering the committee's findings in which she recognised the need for the BBC to change after a series of high-profile scandals cost the Director General his job.In this episode, Dame Caroline reflects on the pressure of finding yourself at the centre of a global story, her fears for online safety and the use of AI to produce sexually explicit images of women and children as well as the importance of business experience in government.

Calvin Bailey MBE is the Labour Member of Parliament for Leyton and Wanstead, first elected in July 2024. Born in Zambia and raised in London, he served 24 years in the Royal Air Force, reaching the rank of Wing Commander and received an MBE for distinguished service.His mixed heritage meant that racism was prevalent in his formative years and he discusses the effect of seeing his Mum confront far-right thugs and the impact of the death of Steven Lawrence.Despite the racism of his early year, Bailey stands as the embodiment of what hard work and dedication to serving others can achieve, representing his constituency as its first black MP.Like his Mother, Bailey is unafraid to call out the racism that has become increasingly common in modern day politics.Bailey sits on the Defence Select Committee and chairs the All-Party Parliamentary Group for the Armed Forces community. He is forthright in his belief that the public need to grasp the enormity of the security challenges faced by the country and the requirement for politicians to properly communicate the threat, which in his mind, includes Russia committing acts of “grey zone” warfare on the streets of Britain today.

"Persistent knobheadery" is a term few people had heard of until Labour's welfare rebellion led to an embarrassing climbdown. Today's guest, Brian Leishman, was one of four MPs suspended for so-called "persistent knobheadery" over his role in fighting against his government's planned reforms.Inspired into politics by Jeremy Corbyn's leadership of the Labour Party, Conor discusses the Chancellor's budget, the removal of the two-child benefit cap, how a wealth tax would work in reality and why he chose to challenge the government's attempts to reform the welfare system earlier this year.

Tonia Antoniazzi is the Labour MP for Gower, first elected in 2017 and the constituency’s first female representative. A former teacher and international rugby player for Wales, she has served as the Shadow Minister for Northern Ireland and currently chairs the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee.Tonia discusses her sporting career and pride at the growth of the women's game and her views on controversial legislation being proposed by Labour in regards to the legacy of the Troubles in Northern Ireland.She also speaks candidly on Labour press briefings and potential leadership coups as well as her fears for her safety when out in her constituency.

Gideon Amos OBE is the Liberal Democrat MP for Taunton and Wellington and the party’s spokesperson for Housing and Planning. A chartered architect and former chief executive of the Town and Country Planning Association, he has long championed sustainable development and local decision-making.His background makes him well placed to critique the government's performance in house building and planning reform and he shares his views on what is required to ensure that large infrastructure projects are completed an benefit local communities.He is proud of accusations by Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch that Liberal Democrats are good for fixing church roofs and discusses his connection to the Armed Forces and attempts to engage younger voters through new social media platforms.

Connor James Naismith is a British Labour Party politician who has served as MP for Crewe and Nantwich since July 2024.Before entering Parliament, he was a Cheshire East councillor and worked in police complaints and oversight.Naismith gives his views on how much influence an MP really has, why he believes that the Renter's Rights Bill is an important piece of legislation and why he believes that Blue Labour could play an important role in the party's future.