{"podcast":{"title":"Political Currency","slug":"political-currency-6989276","podcast_index_feed_id":6989276,"rss_url":"https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/politicalcurrency-1","website_url":"https://shows.acast.com/politicalcurrency","image_url":"https://assets.pippa.io/shows/64fb2b0f977e5a001226cb16/1735495247634-23a6477e-89d6-4ff4-b529-bbb565f05da4.jpeg","author":"Persephonica","episode_count":292,"summary":"Ed Balls and George Osborne take us behind closed doors into the rooms where decisions are made. Having battled it out across the despatch box, the former Chancellor and shadow chancellor now meet in the studio to discuss the decisions that affect the nation’s pockets. Our frenemies have the knowledge and experience to explain how good politics follows the economics - and expose how the powerful become powerless when faced with market forces and political currents they can’t control. Join us every Thursday. Send your messages or voice notes to questions@politicalcurrency.co.uk Find us on social media @polcurrency Political Currency is a Persephonica production. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.","last_synced_at":"2026-06-26T06:17:12.365480+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/political-currency-6989276"},"episode":{"title":"What on earth happened to Morgan McSweeney’s phone?","slug":"what-on-earth-happened-to-morgan-mcsweeney-s-phone","published_at":"2026-03-26T19:02:52+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/political-currency-6989276/what-on-earth-happened-to-morgan-mcsweeney-s-phone","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/political-currency-6989276","url":"https://shows.acast.com/politicalcurrency-1/episodes/what-on-earth-happened-to-morgan-mcsweeneys-phone","audio_url":"https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/64fb2b0f977e5a001226cb16/e/69c57cc888f1e891321004e2/media.mp3","summary":"Nearly a month into the war in Iran, and the White House’s objectives are no clearer. Donald Trump is sending conflicting signals - peace overtures in one moment, threats of further escalation in the next. The consequences of this instability is rippling far beyond the Middle East. Ed Balls and  George Osborne examine what Trump actually wants, and what his mixed messages might mean for allies like Britain, struggling to keep track.   At home, Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves are on the backfoot. With the local elections just weeks away, and both Reform and the Greens on the rise, is the Prime Minister facing down an electoral battering at the polls? Is this the moment Labour's difficulties harden into something more lasting - could the May elections be a dress rehearsal for the next general election? Oh, and what on earth happened to Morgan McSweeney’s phone? Finally, from political vulnerability, to political victory. Ed and George reflect on the one year anniversary of Mark Carney’s premiership. How has he managed to turn around the fortunes of the Liberal Party in remarkably difficult circumstances - and what lessons Starmer and other leaders facing similar headwinds might take from his playbook.  We love hearing from you, so please don’t forget to send all your EMQs to questions@politicalcurrency and make sure to include a voice note of your question. This podcast is sponsored by Chip. Join 400,000 customers building long term wealth. Also Chip have agreed that just for our listeners, for your first £10,000 deposited into Chip before midnight 20 March 2026, they’ll give you a Fortnum & Mason hamper after holding it for 90 days - just head to getchip.uk/politicalcurrency. T&Cs apply, you must be a new Chip customer, over 18, a UK tax resid…","meta_description":"Nearly a month into the war in Iran, and the White House’s objectives are no clearer. Donald Trump is sending conflicting signals - peace overtures in one…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":3138,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/political-currency-6989276/episodes/what-on-earth-happened-to-morgan-mcsweeney-s-phone/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/political-currency-6989276/what-on-earth-happened-to-morgan-mcsweeney-s-phone.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}