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David Aaronovitch and a panel of experts and insiders present in-depth explainers on big issues in the news

From The Briefing Room at 2024-12-12 16:00:00

Will new weight loss drugs save or bankrupt the NHS? (p0kbkw4w.mp3)

New weight loss drugs known commercially as Wegovy and Mounjaro have been demonstrated to have a big effect in helping people to lose weight, and have recently been approved for use in obesity treatment in the NHS in England. In total, 4.1 million people would meet the criteria to be eligible to take one of these drugs. That seems fantastic - an end to obesity in our time. The problem is can we afford these drugs without bankrupting the NHS? How badly do we need them? But will this work? Should we be more ambitious? Can this help the NHS? Or bankrupt it? Guests: John Wilding, Professor of Medicine at The University of Liverpool. Alfie Slade is Government Affairs Lead at the Obesity Health Alliance Naveed Sattar, Professor of Metabolic Medicine at the University of Glasgow. Daniel Susskind, Research Professor in Economics at King's College, London. Dr Ellen Fallows, GP and Vice-President of The British Society of Lifestyle Medicine.

Presenter: David Aaronovitch Producers: Charlotte McDonald, Kirsteen Knight and Beth Ashmead Latham Sound engineers: Rod Farquhar, Neva Missirian Editor: Richard Vadon Production Co-ordinator: Gemma Ashman

From The Briefing Room at 2024-12-05 16:00:00

What’s going on in Syria? (p0k9586r.mp3)

Syrian rebels launched an offensive taking most of a major city - Aleppo - from the forces of the government. Suddenly there has been talk about the possible collapse of the regime that rules most of a country that borders Israel, Lebanon, Turkey and Iraq, and in which Iran and Russia take the most active of interests.

So who now are the rebels, might they topple the government of President Assad, and if they did, what then?

Charles Lister, Senior Fellow and the Director of the Syria and Countering Terrorism & Extremism programs at the Middle East Institute in Washington DC. Lina Khatib, Director of the SOAS Middle East Institute. Chris Phillips, professor of international relations at queen Mary’s university, an associate at Chatham House and author of The Battle for Syria.

Presenter: David Aaronovitch Producers: Charlotte McDonald, Kirsteen Knight and Beth Ashmead Latham Sound engineers: Rod Farquhar, Neva Missirian Editor: Richard Vadon Production Co-ordinator: Gemma Ashman

From The Briefing Room at 2024-11-28 14:30:00

Ukraine - what’s next? (p0k7kmxx.mp3)

North Korean troops are fighting Ukrainians in Russia, while Ukraine has finally been permitted to use US missiles deep into Russian territory.

It’s over 1000 days since Vladimir Putin’s full scale invasion of his neighbour and the circle of those involved in the conflict seems to widen. But though the situation changes the central question doesn’t. That question being which side can best stay the bloody course of this war? Ukraine and the West or Russia and its allies? Where do things stand now?

Michael Clarke, Visiting Professor in the Department of War Studies, King’s College, London and former Director of the Royal United Services Institute Elina Ribakova, Senior Fellow at Peterson Institute of International Economics in Washington DC Defence Editor of the Economist, Shashank Joshi

Presenter: David Aaronovitch Producers: Charlotte McDonald, Kirsteen Knight and Beth Ashmead Latham Sound engineers: Rod Farquhar, Neva Missirian Editor: Richard Vadon Production Co-ordinator: Gemma Ashman

From The Briefing Room at 2024-11-21 16:36:00

Why do we have such overcrowded prisons? (p0k63kv3.mp3)

Our prisons are overcrowded, the Government recently released a group of prisoners early to ease the pressure. Britain seems to incarcerate more people per head of population compared to any other Western European country. Now the Government has announced there is going to be a Review of Sentencing to see what we can do to reduce the number of people in prison.

Recently an eight week consultation period began, during which members of the public can send in their thoughts on how to tackle these issues.

Why have prisons have become so over-crowded, and what we can do about it?

John Podmore, former prison governor and prison inspector and author of Out of Sight Out of Mind: Why Britain's Prisons Are Failing Nicola Padfield, Emeritus Professor of Criminal and Penal Justice, at the University of Cambridge Catherine Heard, Director of the World Prison Research Programme

Presenter: David Aaronovitch Producers: Charlotte McDonald, Kirsteen Knight and Beth Ashmead Latham Sound engineers: Rod Farquhar, Neva Missirian Editor: Richard Vadon Production Co-ordinator: Gemma Ashman

From The Briefing Room at 2024-11-14 15:00:00

14/11/2024 (p0k4jknv.mp3)

David Aaronovitch and a panel of experts and insiders present in-depth explainers on big issues in the news.

From The Briefing Room at 2024-11-07 16:18:00

07/11/2024 (p0k31nrb.mp3)

David Aaronovitch and a panel of experts and insiders present in-depth explainers on big issues in the news.

From The Briefing Room at 2024-09-23 15:26:00

How do the Lebanon attacks alter the equation in the Middle East? (p0js9mty.mp3)

David Aaronovitch and guests discuss the recent events in Lebanon. Israel has been widely blamed for a series of pager and walkie-talkie attacks targeting members of Hezbollah. Does this mark the invention of a new kind of warfare and what might the wider consequences be for the region?

Guests:

Shashank Joshi, The Economist's defence editor Professor Lina Khatib, Director of the Middle East Institute at SOAS University of London Ronen Bergman, Israeli investigative journalist for The New York Times

Presenter: David Aaronovitch Producers: Natasha Fernandes and Ben Carter Sound engineers: Neil Churchill Editor: Richard Vadon

From The Briefing Room at 2024-09-12 13:48:00

Is Germany in trouble? (p0jq42qz.mp3)

David Aaronovitch and guests discuss the challenges facing Germany. Worries over the economy and immigration have seen the far right AfD party gain support in the former east Germany.

Guests:

Guy Chazan, Berlin bureau chief at the Financial Times Dr Constanze Stelzenmuller, Director of the Center on the United States and Europe at Brookings Institution Marcel Fratzscher, President DIW Berlin - German Institute for Economic Research and Professor at Humboldt University Berlin Thiemo Fetzer, Professor of Economics at Warwick and Bonn Universities

Presenter: David Aaronovitch Producers: Caroline Bayley, Kirsteen Knight and Ben Carter Sound engineer: James Beard Editor: Richard Vadon Production Co-ordinator: Gemma Ashman

From The Briefing Room at 2024-09-05 13:43:00

How much trouble is the UK economy in? (p0jnqln4.mp3)

Last month the Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, warned that "things would get worse before they got better". The Chancellor Rachel Reeves has already said that there's a £22 billion black hole in the government's finances left by the Conservatives. The budget at the end of October, we're told, will be "painful". But just how bad a state is the UK economy really in? And how constrained is the new government by manifesto promises it made not to raise the main taxes on working people?

Guests:

Paul Johnson, Director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies Mehreen Khan, Economics editor at The TImes Chris Giles, Economics Commentator at The Financial TImes

Presenter: David Aaronovitch Producers: Ben Carter, Caroline Bayley and Kirsteen Knight Sound engineers: Sarah Hockley and Gareth Jones Editor: Richard Vadon Production Co-ordinator: Gemma Ashman

From The Briefing Room at 2024-08-29 14:29:00

What we know (and don't know) about the new Mpox outbreak (p0jmbv3n.mp3)

The first human cases of MPox were detected in 1970. But a new strain detected in Congo in 2023 has got scientists confused. How worried should we be and are we prepared for it?

Dr Jonas Albarnaz, a Research Fellow specialising in pox viruses at The Pirbright Institute Dr Lilith Whittles, lecturer and Sir Henry Wellcome Postdoctoral Fellow in the MRC Centre for Global Infectious Disease Analysis Dr Josie Golding, head of epidemiology at The Wellcome Trust Trudie Lang, Professor of Global Health Research at the University of Oxford

Presenter: David Aaronovitch Producers: Ben Carter, Kirsteen Knight and Drew Hyndman Sound engineers: Jonathan Glover and James Beard Editor: Richard Vadon Production Co-ordinator: Gemma Ashman

From The Briefing Room at 2024-08-21 16:49:00

Global Tensions 3: Russia and the West (p0jkryys.mp3)

David Aaronovitch and guests discuss the risk of escalation on Russian borders and further afield and explore what form that might take if it were to happen.

Guests:

Natia Seskuria, founder and executive director of the Regional Institute for Security Studies (RISS), a Tbilisi-based think tank Dr Jack Watling, Senior Research Fellow for Land Warfare at the Royal United Services Institute, Michael Clarke, Professor of Defence studies and Specialist Advisor to the Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy Mark Galeotti, writer on Russian security affairs and director of the consultancy Mayak Intelligence

Presenter: David Aaronovitch Producers: Ben Carter, Kirsteen Knight and Drew Hyndman Sound engineers: James Beard and Nigel Appleton Editor: Richard Vadon

From The Briefing Room at 2024-08-14 13:15:00

Global Tensions 2: China, Taiwan and the South China Sea (p0jjcd9v.mp3)

David Aaronovitch and guests discuss China's desire for 'peaceful reunification' with Taiwan. Can it really be done peacefully and what happens if it can't?

Guests:

Rupert Wingfield-Hayes, BBC Asia correspondent based in Taipei Amanda Hsiao, Crisis Group's Senior Analyst for China Dr Lauren Dickey, Taiwan analyst at the China Power Project at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies Shashank Joshi, defence editor at The Economist

Presenter: David Aaronovitch Producers: Ben Carter, Kirsteen Knight and Drew Hyndman Sound engineers: Rod Farquhar Editor: Richard Vadon

From The Briefing Room at 2024-08-08 10:55:00

Global Tensions 1: The Middle East (p0jh62gm.mp3)

In the first of three programmes, David Aaronovitch explores the risk of escalation and wider conflict in the Middle East. What would all out war look like and how likely is it?

Guests:

Shashank Joshi, The Economist's defence editor Professor Lina Khatib, Director of the Middle East Institute at SOAS University of London Dr Burcu Ozcelik, Senior Research Fellow for Middle East Security within the International Security department at RUSI.

Presenter: David Aaronovitch Producers: Ben Carter, Kirsteen Knight and Drew Hyndman Sound engineers: Neil Churchill Editor: Richard Vadon