Share Sounds. from The Weeks Update

Michael Zweig, Professor of Economics at State University of New York joins Share Radio's regular economics commentator, Professor John Weeks to talk about the US elections. Why do older white disenfranchised disillusioned voters go for trump while the younger white disillusioned go for Sanders? Plus Can Hilary Clinton hold off the challenge from Donald Trump?

Its been almost four months since Spain's general election resulted in the radical left wing "Podemos" party holding the balance of power in the country's traditional two party system. Europe's governing elites could only look on as Spaniards - tired of corruption scandals, relentless austerity and high unemployment - defied convention to embrace a party that had only been around for less than two years. However election euphoria soon gave way to political stalemate and this week Podemos members are expected to vote on whether the party should support or oppose a deal to form a coalition government. Failure to cut an agreement could see Spain heading back to the polls in June. Joining Juliette Foster of Investment Perspectives in the studio is Doctor Carlos Oya of the University of London, and Professor John Weeks Share Radio's regular economics commentator.

This week experts from Greenwich University's Political Economy Research Centre will publish a report which include proposals to strengthen trade unions and increase the statutory minimum wage in Britain and Europe. Similar themes will be addressed in May when a conference hosted by the University, will argue the case for raising public and private investment to stop Europe lagging behind the US and Japanese economies. The reports are published as the debate over the UK's position in Europe gathers more heat in the run up to June's referrendum, and as questions are raised about the future of think tanks like the "Political Economy Research Centre", which get some or all of their funding from Europe. What future do they have if Britain leaves the EU and what could happen to their research? In the studio are Professor Ozlem Onaran and Doctor Giovanni Cozzi, from the Political Economy Research Centre, and Professor John Weeks, Share Radio's regular economics commentator.

For those who've yet to decide which way they're going to vote in the EU referendum, the claims and counter claims from the rival camps are probably about as helpful as driving through fog without lights or a Sat Nav. So have George Osborne's Treasury backed findings made the road ahead any clearer....or worse? Juliette Foster is joined in the studio by Professor John Weeks, Share Radio's regular economics commentator.

The Greek financial crisis may have gone quiet for the time being but an economic drama on an equally large scale is being played out in Ghana and Mozambique. Both countries are languishing under the weight of multi - billion Dollar debt mountains, currency depreciations and the drying up of foreign investment. As major creditors struggle to find a way of making both economies sustainable, its ordinary people who are left to cope with the fallout of rising food and living costs...a consequence of high borrowing and economic mismanagement. Tim Jones of the Jubilee Debt Campaign joins Juliette Foster in the studio along with Professor John Weeks, Share Radio's regular economics commentator.

On the day that Chancellor George Osborne made his budget speech to the House of Commons, the government's controversial Trade Union Bill was dealt a major blow by peers in the House of Lords. By a majority of 320 votes to 172, they defeated a proposal to change the way that union members pay their dues. It was a strong show of support to a recommendation from a cross-party committee which had said that any changes to party funding should be restricted to new members only. The Lords then ended what had been a bruising session for the government, by giving its overwhelming support to two other bill ammendments. So what happens now? Is the Trade Union Bill dead in the water? Will the government now have to rip it up and start again? Silkie Cragg is the "Policy & Campaigns Support Officer" for the TUC, and Professor John Weeks is Share Radio's regular economics commentator.

With the local elections just two days away the Labour party could be on track to suffer one of its worst results in opposition for 34 years....according to one of the country's leading polling experts. Professor John Curtice of Strathclyde University believes Labour could lose 170 councillors and control of key local authorities like Redditch and Crawley. It's the latest run of bad news for a party still reeling from claims of anti-Semitism in its ranks. Labour's candidate for Mayor of London, Saddiq Khan, has even warned party leader Jeremy Corbyn that accusations of anti-Semitism will make it more difficult for him to beat his Conservative rival Zac Goldsmith. Could Mr Corbyn's days as leader be numbered, and what last minute actions can the party take to avoid a massacre at the polls? Councillor Angela Mason, Cabinet Member for Children at Camden Council, is in the studio along with Professor John Weeks, Share Radio's regular economics commentator.

Professor John Weeks - Share Radio's regular economics commentator and Dr Graham Gudgin part-time Senior Economic Advisor with Oxford Economics & Research Associate, Centre For Business Research, University of Cambridge discuss the nature of the EU debate as it appeared especially in terms of the economic arguments & the future under Theresa May.

Turkish warplanes killed thirteen suspected militants of the Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, in the southeast province of Diyarbakir. Government planes also struck PKK targets in the nearby provinces of Siirt and Hakkari and in areas of neighbouring northern Iraq where the PKK has bases. South east Turkey, home to most of the country's 15 million Kurds, has been wracked by violence since the collapse of a ceasefire in 2014 which led to the PKK resuming its armed campaign for greater autonomy. Meanwhile Kurdish militants from a PKK splinter group have claimed responsibility for a car bomb attack in Istanbul in which eleven people died. Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan has used the violence as a reason for tightening his grip on power - evidence, according to his critics, of authoritarianism. So what does the future now hold for a country once regarded by western powers as a crucial ally? For more analysis Juliette is joined by Professor Mehmet Ugur of Greenwich University, and by Professor John Weeks, Share Radio's regular economics commentator.

We begin with a clip of Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders speaking after his victory in Indiana over rival Hillary Clinton, as they slug it out for the Democratic nomination in the US presidential elections. Although Mrs Clinton as good as has the top prize in her pocket, Mr Sanders has refused to make life easy for her. Despite trailing by an average of seven points in opinion polls and losing bigger states on the east coast, his latest victory shows that he still appeals to disaffected mid-west voters. So...does Bernie Sanders have any further rabbits to pull from a hat...or could Hilary Clinton yet outfox him by inviting him onto her ticket as her running mate? In the studio is Jeff Faux, author of The Servant Economy and founder of the "Economic Policy Institute in Washington", and Professor John Weeks, Share Radio's regular economics commentator.