The Rest Is Politics

What is at stake for Israelis and Palestinians in the upcoming parliamentary elections and, if Netanyahu loses, will anything actually change given the major parties reject a two state solution? Why does the IDF’s ‘bureaucracy of mass murder’ and its ‘NAZA’ collateral damage policy in Gaza feature so little in Israel’s domestic political debates? From Trump’s new press secretary’s disastrous five-day tenure, to the fallout from the Reform UK documentary, are we all now living in parallel political universes where scandals have less impact than they used to? Join Rory and Alastair as they answer all these questions and more in this week's edition of Question Time. __________ Enjoy Rory and Alastair’s interview with Mary Trump by searching ‘Leading’ on Spotify, Apple, or YouTube. Join The Rest Is Politics Plus. Start your free trial at therestispolitics.com to unlock exclusive bonus content – including Rory and Alastair’s miniseries – plus ad-free listening, early access to episodes and live show tickets, exclusive newsletters, discounted book prices, and a private chatroom on Discord. Go deeper into the world of The Rest Is Politics by signing up for our free newsletter HERE, featuring exclusive interviews, analysis and weekend reads from Alastair and Rory. The Rest Is Politics is powered by Fuse Energy. Stop overpaying for energy. Switch at fuseenergy.com/politics and get a free TRIP+ subscription. Sponsored by Lloyds. The Lloyds £5k house deposit. If you have a deposit of £5k you could get on the ladder sooner than you think. Search £5k first time buyer. Subject to status. You could lose your home if you don't keep up your mortgage repayments. Conditions apply. 🌏 Upgrade your online protection with an all-in-one security app! Get an exclusive NordVPN deal + 4 months extra here ➼ nordvpn.com/restispolitics It’s risk free with NordVPN’s 30-day money-back guarantee! __________ Instagram: @restispolitics Twitter: @restispolitics Email: [email protected]__________ Social Producer: Celine Charles Video Editor: James Clayden, Josh Smith Assistant Producer: Evie Townend, Daisy Alston-Horne, Jake Preston Producer: Evan Green Exec Producer: Bella Soames Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How has Alastair managed to come back from some of the darkest places in his life, overcoming a breakdown while in the public eye? Is his obsession with work unhealthy, or necessary to achieving great things and what does it cost his family and those around him? And, beyond the personal, could the word he invented, “Persevilience”, be the antidote to populism, polarisation and post-truth? Listen to Rory Stewart interviewing Alastair Campbell for part one of Persevilience where they discuss all of this and more. Producer: India Dunkley Video Editor: Louis Mealing Social Producer: Emma Jackson Executive Producer: Bella Soames Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How does Marco Rubio’s Parthenon speech fit the Trump administration’s ideas on European “civilisational erasure” – and how does it depart from traditional Republican rhetoric? With Pete Hegseth’s announcement of America’s first public execution since 1936 sparking outrage, are Trump’s likely successors, Vance and Rubio, staying loyal to their boss or quietly breaking from him? As Iran-backed Houthi attacks hit Saudi Arabia, can anyone predict Trump’s next move in the Middle East? Join Rory and Alastair as they answer all these questions and more. __________ Enjoy Rory and Alastair’s interview with Andy Burnham by searching ‘Leading’ on Spotify, Apple, or YouTube. Go deeper into the world of The Rest Is Politics by signing up for our free newsletter HERE, featuring exclusive interviews, analysis and weekend reads from Alastair and Rory. Join The Rest Is Politics Plus. Start your free trial at therestispolitics.com to unlock exclusive bonus content – including Rory and Alastair’s miniseries – plus ad-free listening, early access to episodes and live show tickets, exclusive newsletters, discounted book prices, and a private chatroom on Discord. The Rest Is Politics is powered by Fuse Energy. Stop overpaying for energy. Switch at fuseenergy.com/politics and get a free TRIP+ subscription. 🌏 Upgrade your online protection with an all-in-one security app! Get an exclusive NordVPN deal + 4 months extra here ➼ nordvpn.com/restispolitics It’s risk free with NordVPN’s 30-day money-back guarantee! __________ Instagram: @restispolitics Twitter: @restispolitics Email: [email protected] __________ Social Producer: Emma Jackson, Bex Tyrrell Video Editor: Caroline Kaye, Adam Thornton Assistant Producer: Daisy Alston-Horne, Evie Townend Producer: Evan Green Exec Producer: Bella Soames Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

With Reform bogged down in scandal, and Kemi Badenoch setting out her political vision at Conservative Party conference, have the Tories finally wrestled momentum on the right of British politics away from Farage? As French schools burn, how are Le Pen and the French far right exploiting the unrest? And why has Spain's left-wing leader Sánchez called a snap election over the country's rental crisis – and can he defy the odds and win a majority? Join Alastair and former Conservative Cabinet Minister and arch Brexiteer Michael Gove as they answer all these questions and more. __________ Enjoy Rory and Alastair’s interview with Shabana Mahmood by searching ‘Leading’ on Spotify, Apple, or YouTube. Go deeper into the world of The Rest Is Politics by signing up for our free newsletter HERE, featuring exclusive interviews, analysis and weekend reads from Alastair and Rory. Join The Rest Is Politics Plus. Start your free trial at therestispolitics.com to unlock exclusive bonus content – including Rory and Alastair’s miniseries – plus ad-free listening, early access to episodes and live show tickets, exclusive newsletters, discounted book prices, and a private chatroom on Discord. The Rest Is Politics is powered by Fuse Energy. Stop overpaying for energy. Switch at fuseenergy.com/politics and get a free TRIP+ subscription. Sponsored by Lloyds. Move faster with daily global market analysis, the download on tokenisation and how to manage your company's energy transition all from Lloyds Corporate & Institutional Banking. Search Lloyds Corporate. 🌏 Upgrade your online protection with an all-in-one security app! Get an exclusive NordVPN deal + 4 months extra here ➼ nordvpn.com/restispolitics It’s risk free with NordVPN’s 30-day money-back guarantee! __________ Instagram: @restispolitics Twitter: @restispolitics Email: [email protected] __________ Social Producer: Celine Charles Video Editor: James Clayden, Oli Ortega, Caroline Kaye Assistant Producer: Daisy Alston-Horne Producer: Evan Green Exec Producer: Bella Soames Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Will scrapping the triple lock be electorally perilous for Burnham, or can his vision of a national care service convince the public and his party that it’s time for pension reform? Did being Mayor of Greater Manchester make him a better orator? And what is Rory’s explanation for his viral Newsnight stare? Join Rory and Alastair as they answer all these questions and more. __________ Enjoy Rory and Alastair’s interview with Mustafa Suleyman by searching ‘Leading’ on Spotify, Apple, or YouTube. Go deeper into the world of The Rest Is Politics by signing up for our free newsletter HERE, featuring exclusive interviews, analysis and weekend reads from Alastair and Rory. Join The Rest Is Politics Plus. Start your free trial at therestispolitics.com to unlock exclusive bonus content – including Rory and Alastair’s miniseries – plus ad-free listening, early access to episodes and live show tickets, exclusive newsletters, discounted book prices, and a private chatroom on Discord. The Rest Is Politics is powered by Fuse Energy. Stop overpaying for energy. Switch at fuseenergy.com/politics and get a free TRIP+ subscription. Sponsored by Lloyds. Move faster with daily global market analysis, the download on tokenisation and how to manage your company's energy transition all from Lloyds Corporate & Institutional Banking. Search Lloyds Corporate. Get our exclusive NordVPN deal here ➼ nordvpn.com/restispolitics It's risk-free with Nord's 30-day money-back guarantee ✅ __________ Instagram: @restispolitics Twitter: @restispolitics Email: [email protected] __________ Research: Evie Townend Social Producer: Celine Charles Video Editor: James Clayden, Louis Mealing Assistant Producer: Daisy Alston-Horne Producer: Evan Green Exec Producer: Bella Soames Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As the far-right Alternative for Germany wins another regional election, wiping out the ruling Christian Democratic Union in former Chancellor Angela Merkel's own backyard, will Friedrich Merz face the same fate as Keir Starmer and lose his job? New polling shows that just 15% of people in rural communities think Labour cares about them, so how does the party deliver "growth in every postcode" to the countryside? With 70 seats in Parliament and the Tories in electoral trouble, why haven't the Liberal Democrats gained more traction in the week of their party conference? Join Rory and Alastair as they answer all these questions and more. __________ Enjoy Rory and Alastair’s interview with Gordon Brown by searching ‘Leading’ on Spotify, Apple, or YouTube. Go deeper into the world of The Rest Is Politics by signing up for our free newsletter ⁠HERE⁠, featuring exclusive interviews, analysis and weekend reads from Alastair and Rory. Join The Rest Is Politics Plus. Start your free trial at ⁠therestispolitics.com⁠ to unlock exclusive bonus content – including Rory and Alastair’s miniseries – plus ad-free listening, early access to episodes and live show tickets, exclusive newsletters, discounted book prices, and a private chatroom on Discord. The Rest Is Politics is powered by Fuse Energy. Stop overpaying for energy. Switch at ⁠fuseenergy.com/politics⁠ and get a free TRIP+ subscription. 🌏 Upgrade your online protection with an all-in-one security app! Get an exclusive NordVPN deal + 4 months extra here ➼ ⁠nordvpn.com/restispolitics⁠ It’s risk free with NordVPN’s 30-day money-back guarantee! __________ Instagram: ⁠@restispolitics⁠ Twitter: ⁠@restispolitics⁠ Email: ⁠[email protected]⁠ __________ Social Producer: Celine Charles Lead Video Editor: Josh Smith Video Editors: James Clayden, Louis Mealing Assistant Producer: Daisy Alston-Horne Producer: Evan Green Exec Producer: Bella Soames Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Episode 2 is available right now for TRIP Plus members. Sign up at therestispolitics.com What can the Aztec Empire's catastrophic failure to understand Cortés and the Spanish conquistadors teach us about the threat AI poses today? Why does Yuval Noah Harari believe our gut refuses to accept an "alien intelligence" our brains already understand to be a threat? And can Britain avoid becoming an "AI vassal state" - or has that moment already passed? Rory is joined by Professor Yuval Noah Harari for Part 1 of their conversation on existential threats. Part 2 is available now for TRIP Plus members. Producer: India Dunkley Researcher: Evie Townend Video Editor: Josh Smith Social Producer: Celine Charles Executive Producer: Isabella Soames Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Why has Ed Miliband gone further than any previous foreign secretary in announcing the occupation of the Palestinian territories as illegal and placing sanctions on Israeli settlements in the West Bank? Can these limited sanctions really achieve their stated aim of “salvaging” the two-state solution? Will Britain now follow Mark Carney in building a new alliance of middle powers independent of the US and China? Alastair and Rory are joined by Ed Miliband, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, to answer all these questions and more in this week's edition of Question Time. __________ Enjoy Rory and Alastair’s interview with Sanna Marin, Former Prime Minister of Finland, by searching ‘Leading’ on Spotify, Apple, or YouTube. Go deeper into the world of The Rest Is Politics by signing up for our free newsletter HERE, featuring exclusive interviews, analysis and weekend reads from Alastair and Rory. Join The Rest Is Politics Plus. Start your free trial at therestispolitics.com to unlock exclusive bonus content – including Rory and Alastair’s miniseries – plus ad-free listening, early access to episodes and live show tickets, exclusive newsletters, discounted book prices, and a private chatroom on Discord. The Rest Is Politics is powered by Fuse Energy. Stop overpaying for energy. Switch at fuseenergy.com/politics and get a free TRIP+ subscription. 🌏 Upgrade your online protection with an all-in-one security app! Get an exclusive NordVPN deal + 4 months extra here ➼ nordvpn.com/restispolitics It’s risk free with NordVPN’s 30-day money-back guarantee! __________ Instagram: @restispolitics Twitter: @restispolitics Email: [email protected] __________ Social Producer: Celine Charles Lead Video Editor: Josh Smith Video Editor: Bruno Di Castri Assistant Producer: Daisy Alston-Horne Producer: Evan Green Exec Producer: Bella Soames Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices