The Briefing Room

BBC Radio 4

David Aaronovitch and a panel of experts and insiders present in-depth explainers on big issues in the news

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393 episodes
Updated July 27

Episodes393

Newest first

Mar 2, 2017 · 28 min
Britain's Broken Housing Market
Is building more homes the only answer to fixing the housing market?
Feb 23, 2017 · 28 min
Does IS Need a State?
What will happen if the Islamic State loses its state? David Aaronovitch investigates.
Feb 16, 2017 · 28 min
Is It Time to Renationalise the Railways?
Public ownership is a popular idea with voters, but would it improve Britain's railways?
Feb 9, 2017 · 36 min
Trump and Trade
Can President Trump deliver on his promise to bring back outsourced manufacturing jobs?
Feb 2, 2017 · 27 min
Trump and the Economy
Will President Trump's plan to put 'America first' make the USA richer?
Jan 26, 2017 · 28 min
India's Bonfire of the Bank Notes
Why did India's prime minister ban the country's most widely-used bank notes?
Jan 19, 2017 · 28 min
Drugs in West Yorkshire
How did British-Pakistani gangs come to dominate the drugs trade in Yorkshire?
Jan 12, 2017 · 28 min
Aleppo: After the Evacuation
What happened after the buses left eastern Aleppo? David Aaronovitch finds out.
Dec 22, 2016 · 28 min
Liberalism's Horrible Year
What is Liberalism? And did it die in 2016 as both left and right wing media claim?
Dec 15, 2016 · 27 min
Yemen: A Global Conflict
What are the causes of Yemen's civil war and who is fighting?
Dec 8, 2016 · 27 min
The Prison Problem
What are the policies and political decisions which led to the current crisis in prisons?
Dec 1, 2016 · 28 min
The Investigatory Powers Act a.k.a The Snoopers' Charter
What powers does the so-called 'Snoopers' Charter' give to the intelligence services?
Nov 24, 2016 · 28 min
VIP Sex Abuse Allegations
How did police investigations into VIP sex abuse go astray?
Oct 20, 2016 · 27 min
Infrastructure: The Roads to Recovery?
Is building roads and bridges the best way to solve our economic woes?
Oct 13, 2016 · 28 min
Black Lives Matter UK
What does Black Lives Matter stand for in the UK? David Aaronovitch finds out.
Oct 6, 2016 · 28 min
Europe's Illiberal Democracies
Right-wing ideas once found on the political fringes are becoming increasingly mainstream
Sep 29, 2016 · 27 min
Quantitative Easing
Why has the Bank of England started creating new money to buy government debt again?
Sep 22, 2016 · 27 min
A Ceasefire in Syria?
Why is it so difficult to find peace in Syria, and what is getting in the way of a deal?
Sep 15, 2016 · 29 min
Trump and Putin
Why is Donald Trump accused of being Vladimir Putin's man?
Sep 8, 2016 · 27 min
Trotsky, Trotskyism and Trotskyites
Are revolutionary socialists trying to take control of the Labour Party?