HOW DID WE GET HERE? Explaining The News

Can Rishi Sunak lead the Conservatives to victory at the next elections?

The Tories have been the main governing party in the UK since 2010, but recent polls show the tide might be turning in favour of Labour and its leader Sir Keir Starmer come 2025.

Host Andy Bell talks to Lord Robert Hayward, polling analyst and lifelong observer of the Conservative party, to find out whether the Prime Minister can not only be confident of staying party leader, but even start mapping a path to winning the next election.

How Did We Get Here? Explaining the News is a podcast from Channel 5 News. Join Andy Bell as he explains the world's biggest news stories through interviews with politicians, experts, and analysts. Produced by Silvia Maresca.

OpenAI has released GPT-4, the latest version of its hugely popular artificial intelligence chatbot ChatGPT that it claims is its "most advanced system yet". The new model can answer all sorts of requests and questions using human-like language, pass academic exams, and now even give you recipe suggestions based on a photo of the content of your fridge.

All this sounds exciting - or scary?

Host Andy Bell is joined by author and AI expert Nina Schick to find out what artificial intelligence is, how it is being used and the ways it could change how we live our lives in both good and dangerous ways.

How Did We Get Here? Explaining the News is a podcast from Channel 5 News. Join Andy Bell as he explains the world's biggest news stories through interviews with politicians, experts, and analysts. Produced by Silvia Maresca.

Guest producer: Jodiane Milton.

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak seems to have done what his three predecessors could not - pull off an ambitious deal with the EU to refine post-Brexit arrangements for Northern Ireland.

So, how does the Windsor Framework change Northern Ireland trading arrangements?

Host Andy Bell is joined by Raoul Ruparel, former special adviser to Theresa May on all things Brexit and now director at the Boston Consulting Group, to look at the new protocol deal, its hidden problems and whether it will stick.

How Did We Get Here? Explaining the News is a podcast from Channel 5 News. Join Andy Bell as he explains the world's biggest news stories through interviews with politicians, experts, and analysts. Produced by Silvia Maresca.

 

Even by the standards of British Parliament, which is used to its fair share of scandal, the recent few months have been a grim time - whether it's tax rows, allegations of bullying or just MPs playing fast and loose with the rules.

So, has this become the norm in Westminster? Host Andy Bell is joined by Dr Hannah White, Director of the Institute for Government, to look at whether the current system to keep politicians in line is actually working.

How Did We Get Here? Explaining the News is a podcast from Channel 5 News. Join host Andy Bell as he explains the world's biggest news stories through interviews with politicians, experts, and analysts. Produced by Silvia Maresca.

By now, you'll be familiar with headlines warning that Britain's National Health Service, the NHS, is at "breaking point" - still feeling the lingering impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, together with chronic staff shortages, long waiting times and the recent wave of strike action.

So how do we fix it?

Is it just a question of more money, beyond the £160 billion a year the government spends already - or is the system as it is no longer fit for purpose?

To answer these questions we're joined by Alan Milburn, a former UK Health Secretary under the Tony Blair government, who has spent decades working in health policy.

 

How Did We Get Here? Explaining the News is a podcast from Channel 5 News. Join host Andy Bell as he explains the world's biggest news stories through interviews with politicians, experts, and analysts. Produced by Silvia Maresca.

The race to become the next UK Prime Minister goes through the leadership of the Conservative party. But what do the Tories want their party to be?

As Conservative MPs and members prepare to chose who will replace Boris Johnson, Andy Bell talks to Will Tanner, former Number 10 insider and director of the Think Tank Onward, to find out what sort of leader the party is looking for.

How Did We Get Here? Explaining the News is a podcast from 5 News. Join Andy Bell as he explains the world's biggest news stories through interviews with politicians, experts, and analysts. Produced by Silvia Maresca.

 

Is the UK heading for the biggest bust-up with the EU since Brexit? As Boris Johnson finalises his plan for Britain to tear up parts of the Northern Ireland Protocol, Andy Bell talks to Queen's University Belfast Professor Katy Hayward to find out if this row could destabilise the fragile peace in Northern Ireland. How Did We Get Here? Explaining the News is a podcast from 5 News. Join Andy Bell as he explains the world's biggest news stories through interviews with politicians, experts, and analysts. Produced by Silvia Maresca.

When it comes to political leadership, what qualities are needed to be successful? And how do the current UK Prime Minister and US President compare to those that came before them? Andy Bell talks to LBC radio host Iain Dale and conservative MP and chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee Tom Tugendhat about the state of leadership in Britain and America today and what’s needed for the future. The episode was recorded at the Chiddingstone Literary Festival on 2 May 2022. How Did We Get Here? Explaining the News is a podcast from 5 News. Join Andy Bell as he explains the world's biggest news stories through interviews with politicians, experts, and analysts. Produced by Silvia Maresca.

From Prince Andrew's scandalous court case to the continued rift with Prince Harry, and now a less than triumphant Caribbean tour by William and Kate… It’s not been a great start to the Queen's Platinum Jubilee year. But is there more to worry about? Is real damage being done to the institution of the Monarchy? Veteran Royal watcher Robert Hardman gives Andy Bell his verdict. How Did We Get Here? Explaining the News is a podcast from 5 News. Join Andy Bell as he explains the world's biggest news stories through interviews with politicians, experts, and analysts. Produced by Silvia Maresca.

What did Putin think he would achieve with his invasion of Ukraine? And as Russian troops’ deaths climb, could he decide to cut his losses and get out? Sir Tony Brenton, a former ambassador to Moscow, met Putin - and watched the emergence of a Russia in the President's image. He gives Andy Bell his analysis of the conflict and the possible motivations behind it. How Did We Get Here? Explaining the News is a podcast from 5 News. Join Andy Bell as he explains the world's biggest news stories through interviews with politicians, experts, and analysts. Produced by Silvia Maresca.

When 5 News Chief Correspondent Tessa Chapman arrived in Kyiv on the eve of the Russian invasion, the possibility of an immediate full-scale assault on the Ukrainian capital seemed distant. “People feared what was happening in the east,” she tells Andy Bell. “But they didn’t have a sense that anything so desperate was going to happen here so soon”. As the attacks on Ukraine’s main city escalated, she joined the hundreds of thousands of refugees trying to reach the Ukrainian border, and along her journey she heard their stories, their fears and their defiance. How Did We Get Here? Explaining the News is a podcast from 5 News. Join Andy Bell as he explains the world's biggest news stories through interviews with politicians, experts, and analysts. Produced by Silvia Maresca.

As NATO warns Russia is trying to stage a pretext for invading Ukraine, how big is the risk of a war? Tom Tugendhat, a Conservative MP and chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, gives Andy Bell a breakdown of the Ukraine-Russia crisis, the reasons behind it and what Boris Johnson must do to show he’s serious about facing down Putin. How Did We Get Here? Explaining the News is a podcast from 5 News. Join Andy Bell as he explains the world's biggest news stories through interviews with politicians, experts, and analysts. Produced by Silvia Maresca.

As the Prime Minister says he wants all Covid restrictions in England to go by the end of the month, what about those who can't put the pandemic behind them? Almost 1.3 million people are estimated to be living with long Covid in the UK, struggling with symptoms for more than a year after first becoming infected with the virus. Claire Hastie is a long Covid sufferer and founder of Britain’s biggest online support group, with over 47,000 members on Facebook. “Several times I thought I was going to die,” she tells Andy Bell, recalling her many trips to A&E since first catching Covid in March 2020, and how doctors had “no idea” of how to treat her. She sheds a light on the daily realities of living with this debilitating and little understood condition, and what the government and the NHS need to do to about this enormous health challenge that’s not going away anytime soon. How Did We Get Here? Explaining the News is a podcast from 5 News. Join Andy Bell as he explains the world's biggest news stories through interviews with politicians, experts, and analysts. Produced by Silvia Maresca.

From the EU referendum to record numbers of people risking their lives to cross the Channel in small boats, migration is a story that never goes away. But how many people are coming to Britain these days? Where are they coming from? And does government intervention ever make a difference? Andy Bell talks to the Migration Observatory Director Madeleine Sumption about the UK’s current migrant situation, what the end of the EU free movement meant for it, and how the pandemic has made things all the more complicated. How Did We Get Here? Explaining the News is a podcast from 5 News. Join Andy Bell as he explains the world's biggest news stories through interviews with politicians, experts, and analysts. Produced by Silvia Maresca.

The migrant tragedy in the Channel has become yet another element in the worsening relationship between Britain and France. But why do two countries with so many shared interests just can’t seem to get along? Lord Peter Ricketts, a former National Security Advisor and UK ambassador to France, can't remember a worse time for British-French relations. He tells Andy Bell he thinks London and Paris will continue to "bump along the bottom" for some time, and that Brexit has caused a "fundamental loss of confidence" between the two governments. How Did We Get Here? Explaining the News is a podcast from 5 News. Join Andy Bell as he explains the world's biggest news stories through interviews with politicians, experts, and analysts. Produced by Silvia Maresca.

Boris Johnson wants his time as Prime Minister to be defined by “levelling up” - making the poorest parts of the country as prosperous as the richest. But does he have a plan? And does he have an understanding of what is needed to do that? Lord Heseltine has devoted much of his career to the question of regeneration and regional growth. A Member of Parliament for 35 years, former Cabinet Minister and Deputy Prime Minister, back in the 1980s he pioneered what we would now call “levelling up” - famously devising 30 ideas for Liverpool’s regeneration after the 1981 Toxteth riots. He tells Andy Bell he has strong views on how it should happen, and reveals this Government thinks it’s worth getting his advice as well. How Did We Get Here? Explaining The News is a podcast from 5 News. Join Andy Bell as he explains the world’s biggest news stories through interviews with politicians, experts and analysts. Produced by Silvia Maresca.

As world leaders descend on Glasgow on Sunday for COP26, what do you need to know to make sense of the blizzard of information coming your way? Climate scientist Dr Tamsin Edwards gives Andy Bell the essential guide to everything you need to know about the UN summit, which Boris Johnson says must be a turning point for humanity. How Did We Get Here? Explaining the News is a podcast from 5 News. Join Andy Bell as he explains the world's biggest news stories through interviews with politicians, experts, and analysts. Produced by Silvia Maresca.

The Director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies has all you need to know to be ready for Rishi Sunak's Budget and Spending Review at the end of the month. Will taxes go up again? Is there any money left for anyone else after Sajid Javid has got the lion's share? And in what kind of state has Covid left the UK’s public finances? Andy Bell speaks to British economist, Paul Johnson CBE to find out. How Did We Get Here? Explaining the News is a podcast from 5 News. Join Andy Bell as he explains the world's biggest news stories through interviews with politicians, experts, and analysts. Produced by Silvia Maresca.

As the Conservatives gather for their annual conference, what does the Party stand for anymore? We "uncork the Gauke" to hear from the man who was a Treasury minister for six years. Little more than two years ago David Gauke was in the cabinet - but now he's no longer even a member of the Conservative Party. He tells Andy Bell that he believes Tony Blair's Labour government was more focused on wealth creation than this one, and that Boris Johnson is still putting up trade barriers that make life harder for businesses. How Did We Get Here? Explaining the News is a podcast from 5 News. Join Andy Bell as he explains the world's biggest news stories through interviews with politicians, experts, and analysts. Produced by Silvia Maresca.