<p><em>Out early for Patreon people…</em></p><p>When a government fails to deliver the basics – like <strong>getting petrol to the pumps</strong> – can it ever win back the confidence it has lost? Is Keir Starmer pulling off the relaunch he needed at the <strong>Labour conference</strong>? We ask special guest <strong>Stephanie Lloyd</strong>, former deputy director of Blairite think tank Progress, if the Party’s centrists have enough to offer beyond “Not Corbyn Any More.” And can <strong>James Bond</strong> still be a fantasy of omnicompetent Britishness in an age when Britain is falling apart?</p><ul><li><em>“The Army and the public quite like it when crises like this happen. The military enjoy being the people who clean up the mess.”</em><strong><em> – Arthur Snell</em></strong></li><li><em>“We are eighteen months into the pandemic, and five years into Brexit. Where was the planning?”</em><strong><em> –&nbsp;Stephanie Lloyd</em></strong></li><li><em>“James Bond allows Britain to see itself as bigger than it really is.” </em><strong><em>–&nbsp;Arthur Snell</em></strong></li></ul><p><em>Presented by Andrew Harrison with Yasmeen Serhan and Arthur Snell. Produced by Andrew Harrison. Assistant producers: Jacob Archbold and Jelena Sofronijevic . Music by Kenny Dickinson. Audio production by Alex Rees. </em><strong><em>The Bunker is a Podmasters Production</em></strong></p><br /><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for privacy and opt-out information.</p>

<p>They cancel Christmas earlier every year, don’t they? As petrol queues swamp Britain, will the EU lorry drivers we told to get out come back now we need them? (Spoiler: non, nein, όχι). Plus the German election results, Keir Starmer’s big moment at the Labour Conference, and phone hacking is back back back! <strong>Alex Andreou</strong> starts your week. &nbsp;</p><p><br></p><ul><li><em>“HGV drivers are not short of work in Europe. Offering them a visa is far too little, far too late.”</em></li><li><em>“We’re now being told that Brexit means we can solve the problems created by Brexit…”</em></li><li><em>“As Labour voters, we've come too good at punching ourselves in the face.”</em></li><li><em>“So it’s OK in politics to be a lying scumbag, but it’s not OK for people to say it?”&nbsp;</em></li></ul><p><br></p><p><em>Presented and produced by Andrew Harrison. Assistant producers Jelena Sofronijevic and Jacob Archbold. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Audio production by Alex Rees. </em><strong><em>THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production</em></strong></p><br /><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for privacy and opt-out information.</p>

Inside the HGV Driver Shortage, plus Gavin Williamson’s unwieldy rise to Education Secretary, and Texans’ battle over abortion

PLUS: Ros Taylor eats crickets on air!

<p>Schools are back. Will the decision not to vaccinate 12-15 year olds turn classes into superspreader factories – or do we actually want school-age kids to catch COVID and build up immunity? Plus, why the Government won’t provide the catch-up funds that education needs. What the Pen Farthing episode tells us about sentimental Britain. And the shame of Afghanistan is just beginning. <strong>Ros Taylor</strong> starts your week. &nbsp;</p><p><br></p><ul><li><em>“It’s simple – the Government is pursuing </em><strong><em>de facto herd immunity</em></strong><em> by not vaccinating children.”</em></li><li><em>“The problem with education goes beyond our woeful Education Secretary… We have a </em><strong><em>perfect storm</em></strong><em> of public spending”</em></li><li><em>“It’s hard not conclude that some of the British public </em><strong><em>care more about a dog</em></strong><em> than they care about a brown person.”</em></li></ul><p><br></p><p><em>Presented and produced by Andrew Harrison. Assistant producers Jelena Sofronijevic and Jacob Archbold. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Audio production by Alex Rees. </em><strong><em>THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production</em></strong></p><br /><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for privacy and opt-out information.</p>

For many he’s the great leader that Labour should have had. Now that he’s left frontline politics, Alan Johnson is trying his hand at writing fiction with his debut thriller The Late Train to Gipsy Hill out now.