{"podcast":{"title":"The State of It","slug":"the-state-of-it-5218105","podcast_index_feed_id":5218105,"rss_url":"https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/3b497baf-71cb-4c27-ae5a-f1e801822221","website_url":"https://www.thetimes.co.uk","image_url":"https://assets.pippa.io/shows/621f5d0f4892fde41624d4ac/1758518523558-c1d7432f-3f01-45e2-a3c5-4c0c8592e901.jpeg","author":"Dan Box","episode_count":51,"summary":"Real reporting from the coalface of British politics. Join The Times and The Sunday Times’s political heavyweights Steven Swinford, Patrick Maguire and Lara Spirit as they dig deep into the latest tea room tip offs, reveal insider conversations and bring analysis, authority and insight. No party loyalty. No spin. Not hosted by some old politicians. Taking you into the real business of politics, from those who live it daily. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.","last_synced_at":"2026-06-22T22:18:38.877022+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-state-of-it-5218105"},"episode":{"title":"Starmer picks a fight with the wrong guy","slug":"starmer-picks-a-fight-with-the-wrong-guy","published_at":"2026-04-21T14:58:16+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-state-of-it-5218105/starmer-picks-a-fight-with-the-wrong-guy","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-state-of-it-5218105","url":"https://shows.acast.com/times-daily-world-briefing/episodes/starmer-vs-robbins-bombshell-after-bombshell","audio_url":"https://sphinx.acast.com/p/acast/s/times-daily-world-briefing/e/69e768c56e5b90839a15eee7/media.mp3","summary":"Sir Olly Robbins dropped bombshell after bombshell when he spoke to MPs. Robbins, who was sacked as the Foreign Office’s chief civil servant, has accused Downing Street of placing the department under constant pressure to get Lord Mandelson through vetting. He also said the prime minister had tried to find an ambassadorial job for Matthew Doyle, another Labour peer who's been in trouble for a friendship with a paedophile. Where does it all leave Sir Keir Starmer? Plus, we reveal when the next tranche of Mandelson files will be published. Steven Swinford, political editor, The Times Gabriel Pogrund, Whitehall editor, The Sunday Times Lara Spirit, deputy political editor, The Sunday Times Producers: Euan Dawtrey, Harry Kitson Executive producer: Molly Guinness Picture credit: Parliament TV Audio credit: Parliament TV This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe  here . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.","meta_description":"Sir Olly Robbins dropped bombshell after bombshell when he spoke to MPs. Robbins, who was sacked as the Foreign Office’s chief civil servant, has accused…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":1903,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-state-of-it-5218105/episodes/starmer-picks-a-fight-with-the-wrong-guy/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-state-of-it-5218105/starmer-picks-a-fight-with-the-wrong-guy.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}