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NEF: ‘Middletown, America’ with Gary Younge

New Economics Foundation
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New Economics Foundation

NEF: ‘Middletown, America’ with Gary Younge
As the Guardian’s US correspondent, Gary Younge documented America’s social and economic challenges, the role of race in the country’s politics, and the deadly consequences of US gun laws. Now the Guardian’s editor-at-large, Gary took an unusual approach to covering the 2016 presidential election, reporting from one small town in Indiana, called Muncie, nicknamed ‘Middletown, America’. In this week’s podcast, Ayeisha Thomas-Smith asks Gary about Middletown today. Can it help explain a US election result that few people predicted? And do we have ‘Middletowns’ in the UK that can help us understand our own political upheaval?
Guests:

Ayeisha Thomas-Smith, Gary Younge


Published:
New Economics Foundation

NEF: Brexit, what next

New Economics Foundation
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New Economics Foundation

NEF: Brexit, what next
In between the resignations and the reshuffles, what have we learned about where Brexit will go next? Much of the focus has been on the response to the deal the prime minister reached with her cabinet at Chequers, but what was in the deal itself? How practical is the government’s position on Brexit? And what are the alternatives? Ayeisha Thomas-Smith is joined by Marley Morris, senior research fellow at the Institute for Public Policy Research, and Andrew Pendleton, NEF’s director of policy and advocacy.
Guests:

Ayeisha Thomas-Smith, Marley Morris, Andrew Pendleton


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New Economics Foundation

NEF: Can we bring down house prices without crashing the economy?

New Economics Foundation
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New Economics Foundation

NEF: Can we bring down house prices without crashing the economy?
It’s one of the biggest contradictions in British politics. Across the country, baby boomers who own a house cheer as the value of their property rises. Meanwhile their millennial children watch on in horror, as owning their own home increasingly falls out of their reach. Politicians talk about building more homes but very few of them talk about directly reducing house prices. If house prices are too high for people to be able to buy houses, how can we bring them down? And can we do it without upsetting homeowners and crashing the economy? Ayeisha Thomas-Smith is joined by Joe Beswick, who leads on housing for the New Economics Foundation, and housing campaigner Beth Stratford, a PhD researcher at the University of Leeds.
Guests:

Ayeisha Thomas-Smith, Joe Beswick, Beth Stratford


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New Economics Foundation

NEF: Can We Tax Our Way to a Cleaner Planet?

New Economics Foundation
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New Economics Foundation

NEF: Can We Tax Our Way to a Cleaner Planet?
New Economics Foundation weekly podcast is back with a hot topic: Environment. In this week podcast Ayeisha Thomas-Smith is joined by Dave Powell, head of environment at the New Economics Foundation, and Alice Bell, director at climate charity 10:10 to discuss one of the most fashionable economic ideas of the past decade: The idea that a little prod from government can encourage us to change our behaviour and be better citizens, maybe without even realising it. Meanwhile, good old-fashioned regulation seems to have been decidedly out of favour with recent governments – and leaving the market to just do its thing isn’t all that popular with campaigners. When it comes to the environment, do all of these approaches have their place? What works best? And are there better or worse ways to make sure our economy doesn’t wreck the planet?
Guests:

Ayeisha Thomas-Smith, Dave Powell, Alice Bell


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New Economics Foundation

NEF: Happy birthday NHS?

New Economics Foundation
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New Economics Foundation

NEF: Happy birthday NHS?
Happy birthday, NHS! That was the message from the prime minister, as she announced an extra £20bn of funding for the NHS in England by 2023. But is that enough? And where will the money come from? There’s been talk of a ‘Brexit dividend’ – does that mean the infamous battle bus promise has come true? Or will some of us have to pay more tax to keep our NHS on life support? And whatever happened to fixing our broken social care system? This week, Ayeisha Thomas-Smith is joined by Sarah Bedford, head of social policy at the New Economics Foundation, and Andy Cowper, comment editor of the Health Service Journal.
Guests:

Ayeisha Thomas-Smith, Sarah Bedford, Andy Cowper


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New Economics Foundation

NEF: Is the Bitcoin boom over?

New Economics Foundation
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New Economics Foundation

NEF: Is the Bitcoin boom over?
Technology is transforming the world of money. Or at least that’s what the Bitcoin junkies would have you believe. They say digital currencies have arrived and are about to revolutionise the way we buy things. But recent downturns in their prices have led some to wonder whether digital currencies have fuelled a dangerous speculative bubble that needs to be curbed by regulators. Is the Bitcoin boom over? Or was it just the start for digital currencies? This week, Ayeisha Thomas-Smith is joined by Carl Miller from Demos, Fran Boait from Positive Money, and Duncan McCann from NEF.
Guests:

Ayeisha Thomas-Smith, Carl Miller, Fran Boait, Duncan McCann


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New Economics Foundation

NEF: Universal Basic Income or Universal Basic Services?

New Economics Foundation
Original Broadcast:

New Economics Foundation

NEF: Universal Basic Income or Universal Basic Services?
Universal basic income is now one of the most fashionable concepts in progressive politics. With automation increasing and wages stagnating, the theory is that giving everyone a set amount of money each year will liberate them to do what they want with their lives – and keep them out of poverty. But some people think universal basic income is an utopian impossibility. Others think it’s dangerous. So there’s a proposal for another solution: universal basic services. Instead of giving people money, why not guarantee all of the public services they need to live a full life? Ayeisha Thomas-Smith explores the two ideas with Barb Jacobson, Co-ordinator of Basic Income UK, and Anna Coote, New Economics Foundation Principal Fellow.
Guests:

Ayeisha Thomas-Smith, Barb Jacobson, Anna Coote


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New Economics Foundation

NEF: What happened to the stock markets? (And does it matter?)

New Economics Foundation
Original Broadcast:

New Economics Foundation

NEF: What happened to the stock markets? (And does it matter?)
There’s been a panic in the stock markets in recent weeks after the Dow Jones plunged more than 1000 points on a single Monday in the first week of February. When the stock market plunges should we all be worried? Or does it only affect those wealthy enough to be trading? This week, Ayeisha Thomas-Smith is joined by Frank van Lerven, NEF economist, and Anna Isaac, economics correspondent at The Telegraph.
Guests:

Ayeisha Thomas-Smith, Frank van Lerven, Anna Isaac


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New Economics Foundation

NEF: What if Russia cuts off our gas?

New Economics Foundation
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New Economics Foundation

NEF: What if Russia cuts off our gas?
A nerve agent attack on an ex-Russian spy and his daughter in Salisbury has led to a retaliation by the UK government – expelling diplomats and ramping up a war of words. With Putin winning another huge election victory last week, some people are worried that we’re entering a new Cold War. Meanwhile, UK gas supplies have run low thanks to the recent winter freeze. What if Russia were to switch off our gas? Has it done it to other countries? And how would we get by? Ayeisha Thomas-Smith is joined by Dave Powell, who leads on the environment for NEF, and Dustin Benton, policy director for the environmental think tank Green Alliance.
Guests:

Ayeisha Thomas-Smith, Dave Powell, Dustin Benton


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New Economics Foundation

NEF: Why are university lecturers on strike?

New Economics Foundation
Original Broadcast:

New Economics Foundation

NEF: Why are university lecturers on strike?
Universities up and down the country have been shutting down as lecturers have walked out, arguing that the changes to their pension schemes could leave them thousands of pounds a year worse off in retirement. So this week we’re breaking down what the university strikes are all about, and what they tell us about everyone else’s pensions too. Ayeisha Thomas-Smith speaks to two striking lecturers: Nadine El-Enany, co-director of the Centre for Research on Race and Law at Birkbeck, and SOAS Senate chair Meera Sabaratnam. They are joined by writer and researcher Christine Berry, who is also a postgraduate student at Sheffield University.
Guests:

Ayeisha Thomas-Smith, Nadine El-Enany, Meera Sabaratnam, Christine Berry


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