Keir Starmer, poster boy. The Labour leader’s new pledge card is here, with six key policies and a black and white photoshoot to woo the public. Is it all a bit retro? Well that depends who you ask: George Osborne would prefer a new approach, whereas Ed Balls reckons some solid Labour '97 nostalgia might just be what the party needs.

Meanwhile, Labour’s shadow foreign secretary David Lammy is working hard to get himself out there on the world stage - and back in the good books of a certain former (and possibly future) US President, of whom he’s rarely been complimentary before. If he’s after an invitation to Mar-a-Lago, the good news is that George has the inside scoop from the current Foreign Secretary on how an evening at Donald Trump’s dinner table plays out.

And, with George on the ground at Stanford University, what are the challenges of the campus protests sweeping the world - and what does it mean for politics in a globally important election year?

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Producer: Rosie Stopher

Production support: Miriam Hall

Technical Producer: Will Gibson Smith

Executive Producers: Dino Sofos and Ellie Clifford

Political Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ed Balls and George Osborne are pleased to have been asked for book recommendations. Is this the start of a book club to compete with the likes of Richard and Judy? If so, George is bagsying his role in the duo now - and no, it’s not Richard.

MP Greg Clark asks about the future of local mayoralties, and Sunday Times interviewer Decca Aitkenhead wants to know whether George is doing anything about his, ahem, selective memory. Plus, what on earth did the Cameron government see in Liz Truss all those years ago, and what’s changed?

You could have been listening to this episode of EMQs early and ad-free! Become a member of POLITICAL CURRENCY GOLD 🏅 to support the podcast, enjoy ad-free listening to all our episodes, receive early access to EMQs and Inside The Room, and to live show tickets.

Try for free: patreon.com/politicalcurrency or on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/politicalcurrency

Remember to send us your questions to questions@politicalcurrency.co.uk

Producer: Rosie Stopher and Ned Miles

Production support: Miriam Hall

Technical Producer: Will Gibson Smith and Oliver Geraghty

Executive Producers: Dino Sofos and Ellie Clifford

Political Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rishi Sunak lives to fight another day after some terrible local election results. But as he loses yet another MP to Labour, Ed Balls and George Osborne ask whether it might be time to play a new strategy and try acting the underdog.

Meanwhile, whilst Labour had a markedly better weekend, it didn’t quite indicate the 1997-style landslide they might be hoping for in the next general election. Is Keir Starmer on track for a small majority? And if so, how should he manage it?

And in foreign affairs, the UK is notably absent from President Xi Jinping’s European itinerary this week. How did Sino-UK relations end up here, and how would a prime minister - current or future - get back on track?

Become a member of POLITICAL CURRENCY GOLD 🏅 to support the podcast, enjoy ad-free listening to all our episodes, receive early access to EMQs and Inside The Room, and to live show tickets. Try for free: patreon.com/politicalcurrency or on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/politicalcurrency

Remember to send us your questions to questions@politicalcurrency.co.uk

Producers: Rosie Stopher and Ned Miles

Production support: Miriam Hall

Technical Producer: Will Gibson Smith

Executive Producers: Dino Sofos and Ellie Clifford

Political Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.