Eight weeks in, James Butler asks what kind of judgements can we make about the crisis – and what it reveals about Britain. Does the sudden global stoppage let us see what real political change might look like?
Ash Sarkar on class and coronavirus risk. Plus, is lockdown unfair on the young?
Sunak softens his economic instincts: so what does that say about what’s coming? Is organised labour really in a position of strength? Plus – what does the pandemic mean for the future of technocracy?
Boris Johnson changes the lockdown rules – but is he also trying to shift the blame?
Nadia, Jeremy and Keir search for the feeling of freedom, moving from Nina Simone to Buddhist House via Jeremy Clarkson.
Ash Sarkar asks whether the long shadow of Corbyn stops us seeing Keir Starmer clearly. Plus, the government fears we’ve become “addicted” to income support. James Meadway breaks it down.
Papers are awash with stories of the ‘bonking boffin’: but with the highest death toll in Europe, is that what matters? Plus, what does the pandemic reveal about the nature of the state and what might it really mean to be free?
As the left wonders how to make a better world out of the crisis, Aaron Bastani asks: are there lessons we can learn from how the right does politics? Plus, James Butler on the politics of freedom.
How will the lockdown end? James Butler asks: why is the US so intent on blaming China? Do states need ‘official enemies’?
James Butler delves into the strike wave prompted by the coronavirus: might the pandemic mean a stronger position for workers? Plus, we hear from a participant in Oxford’s vaccine trial. And James wishes a happy birthday to Resonance FM.
Ash Sarkar ponders whether the media’s elevation of Boris Johnson to symbol of the nation’s health is a sign of something rotten in the state of politics. Plus, Matt Hancock’s testing pledge comes a cropper as South Korea’s test, trace and isolate strategy bears fruit.
‘Stare long enough at a bean, or a grain, or an ear of corn, and you’ll begin to see everything – the whole world – inside it.’ James Butler dives into pandemic food shocks and the deep links between capitalist farming and viral outbreaks.
Aaron Bastani asks: where on earth is Labour going on economic policy? Can it avoid fighting the last war? Plus, James Butler asks: are we facing a food crisis? Why?
Why are Tory politicians speaking about the pandemic as if it’s just a natural disaster? Will the borders close for good – and what happens where they’re already locked shut? Plus, Dominic Cummings in the room: does it matter?
From 5G to bioweapons to “globalism”, the pandemic provides ample material for conspiracy theorists. James Butler asks: why? And does it tell us anything about the nature of politics?
Keir Starmer took on his first PMQs yesterday: Ash Sarkar asks what we learned about his strategy. What’s changed since Corbyn? Plus, experts and NHS workers ask you to #ChantforPPE
Aaron Bastani asks: what does the pandemic reveal about Britain’s real position in the world? Plus, James Butler takes a look at the European tussle over how to pay for the recovery.
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