Reform UK has claimed its biggest scalp so far with Sir Jake Berry, close friend and ally of Boris Johnson and former Conservative Cabinet minister, joining its ranks. Can Reform break the mould of British politics and vie for power at the next election? In this week's episode of Westminster Insider: Summer Interviews, Anne McElvoy talks to MP Richard Tice, deputy leader of Reform. He led the party before Nigel Farage decided to return to frontline politics at last year's general election. Despite rising in the polls, gaining Tory defectors and emerging victorious in the local elections, Reform has had to contend with several high-profile resignations and personnel disputes. Now in power in 10 councils across England, can it prove that it can be a party of power as well as disrupting the status quo?  They discuss French President Emmanuel Macron's state visit to the U.K., the small boats crisis and Reform's policies on the economy, education and social issues. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Keir Starmer's authority is under question following a humiliating series of U-turns and a restless parliamentary Labour Party. In this Westminster Insider interview, host Anne McElvoy talks to Maurice Glasman, the Labour peer, who’s seen as the godfather of "Blue Labour" and an influential voice within the Labour movement — with connections to the Trump administration in the U.S. Glasman argues that Starmer has six months to make "significant changes" to his government following the debacle over the government's welfare bill. They discuss the broader challenges confronting Labour after one year in office, the position of Chancellor Rachel Reeves and whether the prime minister can regain the confidence of his rebellious parliamentary party. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Even as Keir Starmer faces the threat of all-out rebellion over his welfare bill, Westminster can feel the summer recess approaching. So six months into the year and with the anniversary of Labour's electoral victory approaching, host Sascha O'Sullivan enrols a host of experts to give their view on the government's progress on the 'milestones' set out by the Prime Minister last year. Harry Quilter-Pinner, director of the IPPR and Charlotte Pickles, director of Re:State think tank (formerly called Reform) talk Sascha through each of the milestones – from the economy to energy security – and gives Keir Starmer and his cabinet a grade for each. The pollster Scarlett Maguire, founder of Merlin strategies, provides key insights into how voters view the government's record to date. Rachel Cunliffe, associate political editor at the New Statesman, and James Heale, deputy political editor of The Spectator, gives Sascha an assessment of the trials and tribulations on the opposition benches – from the Conservatives battles with Reform to the Greens' leadership election. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on Westminster Insider, host Patrick Baker takes a pint-fueled tour through some of Westminster's best-known watering holes in his bid to find out what makes the best political boozer. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage explains why the Westminster Arms is his favorite pub and why his longtime friend, Gerry Dolan, its former landlord, is behind the pub's popularity. Dolan himself recounts how lager-loving politicians would race over the road to vote at the sound of the division bell, before haring back to finish their drinks, and remembers how each of the different parties under his roof would occupy various corners of his pub like tribes.  Celia McSwaine, a former special adviser to ex-Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng, illuminates the role of the Two Chairmen as the Treasury's designated post-Budget pub and recounts how the drinks were flowing in the immediate hours after the fateful mini-budget, before any economic meltdown had struck. Pub enthusiast James Potts, a Labour councillor in Islington and author of "What's in a London pub name?" regales Patrick with the exotic history of the Two Chairmen from the secrecy of its top room, the site of much political plotting over the years.  Andy McSmith, former Chief Political Correspondent at The Observer, joins Patrick at the Red Lion in the heart of Westminster, recounting his pivotal role in breaking the infamous story that Gordon Brown's former spin doctor Charlie Whelan had told Tony Blair that the U.K. would not be joining the Euro, from just outside the pub. Former Education and Culture Secretary Nicky Morgan returns to The Blue Boar, a discreet pub she says she hasn't been back inside since she found out there that the UK was to leave the European Union. Labour insider Sienna Rodgers, Deputy Editor of parliamentary magazine The House, meets Patrick in The Clarence, and offers her top tips on where to find Labour MPs and special advisers nowadays.  And finally Patrick visits the famous Marquis of Granby pub, where journalist and Reform supporter Tim Montgomerie and Nigel Farage's former press secretary Gawain Towler describe how the 'MOG', as it's known, is Westminster's consummate rebel pub, ideal for plotting a political insurgency during the long days of opposition. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the midst of spending reviews, rows of migration and fights about water bosses' bonuses, everyone could do with a laugh. So this week on Westminster Insider, host Sascha O'Sullivan speaks to a coterie of comedians and satirists in SW1 to find out: what's the point of political satire? Legendary co-creator of Yes, Minister Jonathan Lynn explains how a show designed to make people have a laugh at the expense of some pompous civil servants defined how we now see "the blob". Sketch-writers Madeline Grant and John Crace give us a peek into their lives of following every twist and turn of parliament. And former Tory MP Michael Fabricant explains what it's like to be the subject of these sharp penned journalists. Sascha also speaks to Rosie Holt, who shot to comedic fame for mimicking cabinet ministers on the broadcast round in the pandemic. And Andrew Hunter Murray, author, BBC podcaster and Private Eye writer, explains when satire is it's most dangerous for politicians – and powerful for comedians. And Lib Dem leader Ed Davey explains why he tried to use humour and comedy to make people pay attention. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As Reform UK sends its Elon Musk-style Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) team into its new councils to assess "wasteful spending", host Patrick Baker takes a trip to Durham to speak to the county council’s new deputy leader, the former Brexit activist and GB News broadcaster, Darren Grimes, about what Reform's DOGE plans might mean for the local area. And in Westminster a whole host of copycat DOGEs have started popping up too.  Max Young, news editor of the right-wing political website Guido Fawkes, runs the project 'UK DOGE', highlighting perceived government waste including Foreign Office cooking courses and research into how to feel like a bee. Matthew Simmonds, economics editor of the Spectator Magazine, explains his own project SPAFF (the Spectator Campaign Against Frivolous Funding), and says tax-payer money is being wasted on items such as expensive e-bikes for welfare claimants and research projects with titles like "The Europe that Gay Porn Built". With claims on the right of so-called "woke waste" in universities and research institutes, Clare McNeil, chief executive of Timewise, a non-profit research organisation, argues the independence of the UK's research sector is vital for our economy and democracy. In Durham, Darren Grimes sets out where he believes Reform will find savings and says the budget for diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives is in the crosshairs of the party's incoming DOGE unit. Mel Metcalf, chair of Durham Pride, explains his concerns over what any cuts to diversity, equity and inclusion would mean for his festival.  Amanda Hopgood, the former Lib Dem leader of Durham council, defends her record in local government and argues Reform have wildly overstated any savings the incoming DOGE unit will be able to make. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Host Sascha O'Sullivan goes for lunch with Jo Coburn as she leaves her position as presenter of Politics Live, the BBC's lunchtime political programme. Over a carafe of Picpoul de Pinet, Coburn tells Sascha about keeping calm amid the din of politicians rowing with one another live on air. She discusses the most poignant episodes – and the rowdiest. And Coburn reflects on 28 years at the BBC and how it's political programming has changed to reflect a more "visceral" environment in Westminster post-Brexit. Jo hints at how she might approach her life after the BBC, explaining that "old habits die hard" when it comes to keeping her distance from her own views. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With tensions simmering in Keir Starmer’s top team over Labour’s approach to the economy, this week host Patrick Baker looks at what the PM might be able to learn about managing your ministers from past Cabinets and examines Starmer's own leadership style. David Owen, former foreign secretary under Jim Callaghan, recounts the IMF crisis in 1976 as an example of Cabinet government at its most effective. Michael Cockerell, the legendary political documentary-maker, describes how Margaret Thatcher and John Major approached their Cabinets and how, despite their contrasting styles, both were undone by their Cabinet ministers in the end. Clare Short, who resigned as Tony Blair’s international development secretary over the war in Iraq, argues Blair sidelined the Cabinet as a decision-making body from the beginning of his premiership, preferring instead to rely on a small coterie of advisers or what became known as ‘sofa government’. Cleo Watson, Boris Johnson’s former deputy chief of staff, takes us through the Cabinet dynamics of the Johnson era and how Chief Adviser Dominic Cummings saw Cabinet as a rubber-stamping exercise, rather than where the real decisions of government would be taken. Sonia Khan, former adviser to ex-Chancellor Sajid Javid, says ministers often had to linger by the toilet or attend social gatherings to have any chance of influencing Boris Johnson. Luke Sullivan, Keir Starmer’s political director while in opposition, says the prime minister likes to let his cabinet ministers get on with their jobs and to solve problems before they reach his desk. And Patrick Maguire, political columnist at The Times and author of ‘Get In: The Inside Story of Labour Under Starmer’ delves into the curious dynamics of this current Labour Cabinet and explains how Keir Starmer’s leadership style might create a vacuum for others to fill. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With Nigel Farage's Reform UK muscling in to key parts of the country, Westminster Insider Host Sascha O'Sullivan speaks to politicians through the North of England, where Labour has an uphill battle to convince their heartlands they can be trusted. Sascha speaks to Labour MP Josh Simons, whose seat of Makerfield had one of the highest proportion of votes for Reform without actually voting in one of the party’s MP. Simons tells Sascha about his plans to convince his voters that Westminster – and the Labour Party – speak for them, and how finally building one road, first earmarked as necessary in 1949, could be a symbol for this. And Sascha heads to Darlington, in the North East of the country, where Labour MP Lola McEvoy has competition from Reform, who took over the council in County Durham just 5 miles south, and the Tory stronghold of Tees `Valley, led by Mayor Ben Houchen. Labour MP and member of the Blue Labour group Jonathan Hinder explains why Labour has become disconnected from it's working class roots in the North and how practical initiatives and investment will only go so far. Zoe Billingham, director of the IPPR North, tells Sascha why Boris Johnson's "levelling up" agenda spoke to these voters and how the failure to deliver on many of these promises made Labour's challenge harder. Former Tory MP for Boston and Skegness Matt Warman explains how Reform UK managed to win his constituency – and what it will take for some of these Labour MPs to fend them off. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Politicians of all stripes will tell you that the slog of breakfast time interviews constitutes the morning ritual from hell. So this week on Westminster Insider, host Patrick Baker speaks to those who’ve spent more time than anyone trying to master the art form that is the “morning round” — and is given an exclusive broadcasting lesson from Scarlett MccGwire, a media trainer currently working with ministers in the Labour government to help them hone their messaging. Former Tory Cabinet minister Grant Shapps explains the late night prep with his team, who were told to be as rude to him as possible in anticipation of tough interviews with Kay Burley et al. The inimitable Richard Madeley, presenter of Good Morning Britain, voices his hatred of the so-called “pivot”, a tactic used by politicians to evade questions they don’t want to answer, and recalls throwing a defence secretary off the airwaves after one pivot too many. Former Labour shadow minister Jonathan Ashworth describes how to overcome questions like “how much is the price of a pint of milk?” and the fear induced by sudden breaking news while on the round. And Jack Sellers, former No. 10 deputy press secretary under Rishi Sunak, remembers the cabinet ministers who slept in, forgot the geography of the Middle East and how, when it all went wrong on air, it was left to him to try to clean it all up. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With Ukraine and Russia in the throes of attempting to negotiate a ceasefire, Westminster Insider Host Sascha O’Sullivan talks to some of the leading figures on the frontline of the war with Russia. She speaks to Finnish Minister for Nordic Co-Operation Anders Adlercreutz, who told her Finland has never stopped buying tanks and building bomb shelters, for fear of a Russian invasion, and builds resilience at every level through initiatives like media literacy to protect from ‘hybrid threats’ such as misinformation. Lithuania Defense Minister Dovilė Šakalienė told Sascha Russia could be ready for a full scale invasion into her country – and NATO territory – in less than a decade. And she said Lithuanian’s were prepared for what this means: “prison, torture and deportation”. Former NATO director of Planning and Policy Fabrice Pothier explains the risk of NATO losing it’s relevance without the U.S. as a reliable ally, and warns it could undermine any security guarantees put in place in the event of a ceasefire. Ukrainian journalist at the Spectator Svitlana Morenets reflects on what it’s like covering a war in her own homeland – and where Ukraine’s redlines would be. Back home in the U.K., Sascha speaks to Denzil Davidson, a former Foreign Office and No10 advisor, about Britain’s willingness to warm up it’s relationship with the E.U. and how the lack of support from U.S. President Donald Trump could open up “a serious opportunity” for British politicians to step up in Europe. And Arminka Helic, another former Foreign Office advisor, tells Sascha that everyone in the country should stock up on enough basic supplies to last them 72 hours without electricity or water. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With the stench of rebellion hanging around the tearooms of SW1 after ministers announced fresh welfare cuts, this week host Patrick Baker explores the backbench revolts of years past, asking how disobedient MPs really plan and plot against their own parties. Veteran Tory MP David Davis describes how he and other rebels defeated David Cameron's plans to bomb Syria almost by accident — and offers tips on shutting down confrontational government enforcers, or chief whips. Christopher Howarth, a secretive member of the European Research Group of Eurosceptic Tory MPs, was instrumental in defeating Theresa May's EU deal during the Brexit wars. He describes countering the cunning tactics of a Downing Street operation desperately trying to quell rebellions, and how he spotted a loophole in Tory rules that led to May's resignation.  POLITICO senior political correspondent Annabelle Dickson has been gauging the mood among angry would-be Labour rebels — and hearing why some are feeling disillusioned with the direction of their party.  One of those certain to rebel in a Commons vote on welfare is the Labour MP for Alloa and Grangemouth in Scotland, Brian Leishman, who explains why he's appalled at the cuts to benefits.  But rebels beware: Tony Blair's former no-nonsense chief whip Hilary Armstrong recalls threatening badly behaved MPs with being sent to work on obscure infrastructure committees unless they toed the line. But she insists the best way to deal with rebels — who Blair called his "little darlings" — is a "softly, softly" approach. And Blair's former political secretary John McTernan, sets out why he believes the huge new intake of Labour MPs might be more prone to rebellion and says the current rancor poses a bigger question for the party. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As Mike Amesbury bows out of his career as a Labour MP after being caught on tape assaulting a constituent, this week’s episode of Westminster Insider goes inside politicians’ wrangles with the law. Host Sascha O’Sullivan finds out if winding up in front of a judge can ever be survivable for a politician — high-profile or not. She talks to former Lib Dem advisor Sean Kemp about how the case of Chris Huhne, climate secretary during the coalition years, triggered a by-election which almost threatened the leadership of Nick Clegg. Fergus Mutch, former director of communications to the Scottish National Party, recalls being a witness in the trial of his former boss, Alex Salmond, who was eventually acquitted of charges of sexual assault in 2020. Mutch says the Salmond trial and the internal warfare it triggered did huge amounts of damage to the SNP. And Sascha turns to the sensational hush money trial of Donald Trump in the midst of the 2024 presidential election campaign. She talks to Michael Martins, a former senior advisor to the US embassy in the U.K., and Sarah Elliot, the spokesperson for Republicans overseas about how Trump eventually used the trial to his advantage. Sascha looks at how Marine Le Pen is using a similar playbook to Trump, with a trial against her helping galvanise her support base. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Have you ever wondered about COBRA? Not the snake or the yoga pose — but Cabinet Office Briefing Room A, the place at the heart of Whitehall where a highly sensitive, critical government committee meets when a crisis hits the U.K. This week, host Patrick Baker takes you inside these mysterious meetings to find out how those in charge take crucial decisions — often on matters of life and death. One of the original architects of COBRA, David Omand, who went on to become director of spy agency GCHQ, explains how the Munich Olympics hostage crisis triggered alarm in the U.K. and highlighted the need to build COBRA. Lucy Fisher from the Financial Times explains how to access the secret bunker under the Ministry of Defense that would be home to its duplicate in case of nuclear attack. Tony Blair's former Cabinet Secretary Richard Wilson describes how he convened what was a very busy COBRA on 9/11, a day that exposed the U.K.’s own vulnerabilities and led to rapid changes to the UK's guidebook for handling terror attacks. In an age of heightened tensions, Susan Scholefield, a former COBRA director, recalls how drills and exercises became more common and how it was her job to make sure the Pope was safe, monitoring his state visit from the U.K.’s version of the Situation Room. Former Defence Secretary Michael Fallon describes being in COBRA in response to multiple atrocities on U.K. soil in 2017, and recalls how ministers scrambled to work out whether more attacks were on the way. Fallon also reveals the person he wouldn't trust to chair a COBRA meeting (or anything, really). Katie Perrior, ex-No 10 comms chief under Theresa May, remembers rushing into COBRA after the Westminster Bridge attack amid fears that offices in Parliament might be unsafe.   With the arrival of the pandemic, a crisis of a wholly different order, emergency planner Lucy Easthope sets out some of COBRA's pitfalls. Easthope, who co-founded the After Disaster Network at Durham University, believes too much emphasis is put on state-of-the-art nerve centers rather than simple honesty, in the midst of crises for which ministers are generally not very well prepared. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With Keir Starmer recently forced to promise his Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, would stay on until the next election, Westminster Insider Host Sascha O'Sullivan talks to former Chancellors and advisors who have worked in No 10 and No 11 Downing Street over the last 30 years to find out how to survive one of the toughest gigs in politics. She talks to former Chancellor Norman Lamont about the aftermath of the Black Wednesday financial crisis in 1992 and what lead to John Major sacking him less than a year later. Former advisor to Blair and Brown Theo Bertram tells Sascha the Chancellor-turned-PM Gordon Brown struggled to relinquish control over the Treasury to his new neighbour in No11, Alistair Darling. Sam White, who worked for Darling during his time as Chancellor, explains how an ideological wedge pulled the two apart before and after the 2008 financial crash. George Osborne, former Chancellor and now host of the Political Currency podcast, explains his unusual closeness with David Cameron through their shared belief in the merits of austerity. But he tells Sascha how their closeness may have risked a form of 'groupthink' during their time in office. Osborne also sets out why he thinks Rachel Reeves current economic plans have more in common with his economic agenda in the 2010s that people might realise. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Turncoats, opportunists … or just idealists whose bosses lost their way?  Defecting to a new party is one of the momentous decisions an MP could ever make. Years of loyalties, backroom deals and deep friendships are lost in an instant. Patrick Baker speaks to MPs who have wrestled with the decision to switch party, to discover what it is really like.  Shaun Woodward, who left William Hague’s Conservative party to join Blair’s New Labour in 1999, recalls the dirty tricks used try to prevent his defection and how the move precipitated a huge media storm. Former Ipswich MP Dan Poulter, who defected from the Tories to Labour last April, explains how he lost faith in the Conservatives (just before an election) and solicited advice from those on the other side of the aisle, including veteran MP Jon Cruddas. Helen Pidd, host of The Guardian’s Today in Focus podcast, was given special access to defector Christian Wakeford in Parliament, and witnessed first-hand the reaction from Tory MPs furious at his perceived betrayal after the Bury South MP crossed the floor to join Labour. Brexit stalwart Douglas Carswell recounts his decision to join UKIP, which helped to pave the way for the EU referendum — while David Cameron’s former communications chief Craig Oliver sets out his strategy for spinning a subordination in the ranks. And Libby Wiener, who spent twenty years as a political correspondent for ITV News, looks back at the Westminster drama of multiple defections. She explains how these rare events are becoming more common, in an era where voters’ own party allegiances are less secure. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For years, Westminster has been addicted to Twitter (now called X). Host Sascha O'Sullivan looks at how the site – and SW1's reliance on it – has changed since tech billionaire Elon Musk took over. Sascha talks to Charlie Peters, journalist at GB News, whose story about grooming gangs was amplified by Musk before going on to dominate Britain's news cycle for a fortnight. She compares how the same story was covered originally by freelance journalist Julie Bindel, who exposed the extent of the grooming gangs in 2007, in a world before social media was so prevalent.  Labour MP Emily Thornberry and chair of the foreign affairs select committee reflects on going viral for the wrong reasons and subsequently resigning in 2014. She explains how politicians' use of social media has changed since then, subject to algorithms that favour right-wing content.  And Sascha takes a deep dive into how Nigel Farage has harnessed the power of going viral for decades – all the way back to his days as an MEP. She speaks to his former comms chief Gawain Towler and social media journalist Sophia Smith Galer – and asks whether the left needs to raise its game when it comes to mastering social media.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Peter Mandelson, the new British ambassador to the United States, has finally taken up the daunting challenge of being the U.K.’s Trump whisperer. And it’s clear the man dubbed the prince of darkness will need to use every trick in his book to ensure the U.K. emerges unscathed – or even, perhaps, benefits - from Trump’s America First agenda.  This week on Westminster Insider, Patrick Baker speaks to some of Mandelson’s predecessors and those who know a thing or two about how to master Washington D.C., for their advice on how to make a success of the most prestigious diplomatic gig of all. Britain's former Ambassador to the U.S. under Obama, Peter Westmacott, is a man who knows how to throw a good party. He explains how to use the opulent British ambassador’s residence to bring in the great and the good of American politics and reflects on the personal nature of the relationships he formed.  Author Anthony Seldon evokes the historic power of the special relationship and details the British cultural assets diplomats have at their disposal for wooing the Washington elites.  Catherine Meyer — the wife of the late Christopher Meyer, who served as ambassador under Tony Blair — explains how she was often deployed to take advantage of the seating plan at glitzy downtown dinners in D.C., trying to coax a secret or two out of the notoriously tight-lipped Vice-President Dick Cheney.  Blair’s ambassador during the Iraq war, David Manning, recalls the intensity of being a wartime diplomat — and how he relied on close access to the Bush White House to make sure Britain’s voice was heard. Kim Darroch, who served during the first Trump term before an abrupt leak-induced exit, explains how best to deal with any unexpected, early morning social media outbursts — and says it is vital to ensure you keep in with the billionaires upon whom Trump relies for economic advice. John Bolton, Trump’s former national security adviser, tells Patrick who he thinks has fared best with the US President and why (hint: it has something to do with golf) and says a safer choice might have been a career diplomat.  And Jenny Wright — formerly the embassy press adviser to recently-departed ambassador Karen Pierce — reveals how she and her team used a cup of tea to devastating diplomatic effect. CORRECTION: This episode was updated to correct the date of the first UK ambassador to the US. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For the final episode of the year, new host Patrick Baker and a selection of expert guests take you through 2025 — a year that looks like it might well be even crazier than the last. The FT’s Stephen Bush sets out the prime minister's daunting in-tray in 2025, while the Spectator’s Katy Balls explains what’s in store for the Tory party under new leadership — as well as the threat to both parties from Nigel Farage and Reform UK.  Sarah Calkin – an expert on local government — discusses what May’s local elections could bring. Further afield, the Times’ Washington Correspondent Alistair Dawber talks us through what we can expect from the second Trump presidency and its implications for the wider world.   Professor Lina Khatib —from Chatham House — mulls the possible impact of Trump on conflicts in Middle East, and offers her take on what could lie ahead in Syria and Iran. POLITICO’s Berlin Playbook host Gordon Repinski discusses what could happen in the German elections in February and POLITICO’s Senior UK Energy Correspondent Charlie Cooper tells us what’s at stake at COP 30 in Brazil in November — ahead of what’s set to be a crucial year for the climate. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For centuries, Westminster has been dominated by politicians who attended some of the most prestigious schools in the country. This week on Westminster Insider, host Sascha O'Sullivan finds out whether public schools still dominate or if state educated Rachel Reeves and Bridget Phillipson's move to tax fees reflects the end of the era of Etonians. Sascha visits Eton College and takes a tour around the art school and the theater, hears from an old boy about the kind of education children receive there — and discovers why our prime ministers are far more likely to have been attended this school than any other. Former Labour adviser and old Etonian Patrick Hennessey tells Sascha the confidence a school such as his alma mater instills can easily slip into arrogance. FT journalist and author Simon Kuper explains why privately educated politicians have always tended to banded together in Westminster — and how that can leave those that attended less prestigious institutions out in the cold. Keir Starmer's former adviser Donjeta Miftari describes coming to work in SW1 as a former comprehensive pupil and immediately noticing the networks which the independent sector fosters beyond the school itself. Former David Blunkett adviser Conor Ryan recalls the fights with private school heads when the Blair government axed the state-funded assisted places scheme. Sam Freedman, education expert and former adviser to Michael Gove, explains how the former education's secretary's background informed his attitude to education reform. And Sascha travelled to Brentwood, a private school in Essex, where headteacher Michael Bond tells her Reeves' decision to put VAT on private schools was "punishing" them unfairly, as the private sector was making strides towards making fee-paying schools less exclusive. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices