The Briefing Room

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The Briefing Room

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

  1. 6 DAYS AGO

    Are India and Pakistan on the brink of war over Kashmir?

    Tension is high in Indian administered Kashmir following the killing on 22nd April of 26 civilians almost all of whom were Hindu tourists. They were visiting Pahalgam - an area often described as the “Switzerland of India”. Militants opened fire on them and in the days since relations between India and Pakistan, which both claim Kashmir in full but only administer it in part, have deteriorated. India accuses Pakistan of supporting the militants and Islamabad rejects the allegations. This is the latest attack in a decades-long dispute over the region. David Aaronovitch and guests ask what happens next and what sort of a response we are likely to see from India and also Pakistan? Guests: Andrew Whitehead: Former BBC India correspondent and expert on Kashmir and its history, author of ‘A Mission in Kashmir’ Anbarasan Ethirajan: BBC South Asia Regional Editor Husain Haqqani : Senior Fellow at the Hudson Institute in Washington DC and former Pakistan ambassador to Sri Lanka and the US Michael Kugelman - South Asia analyst based in Washington DC and author of Foreign Policy magazine’s South Asia Brief newsletter Sumantra Bose: Professor of International and Comparative Politics at Krea University in India and author of Kashmir at the Crossroads: Inside a 21st-Century Conflict Presenter: David Aaronovitch Producers: Caroline Bayley, Nathan Gower, Kirsteen Knight Production co-ordinator: Gemma Ashman Sound engineers: Sarah Hockley and James Beard Editor: Richard Vadon

    29 min

  2. 24 APR

    Can the UK become an AI superpower?

    The Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer wants the UK to become “one of the great AI superpowers”. Earlier this year the government published a plan to use artificial intelligence in the private and public sectors to boost growth and deliver services more efficiently. Once mainly the preserve of the tech community, AI really entered public awareness with the release of ChatGPT, a so-called “chatbot” founded by the US company OpenAI at the end of 2022. It can write essays, scripts, poems and even write computer code …and millions of people are using it. David Aaronovitch and guests discuss whether the UK could become a successful AI hub, as the government hopes and asks if we'll be able to compete globally with the US and China, the home of huge tech companies? Guests: Dame Wendy Hall, Regius Professor of Computer Science and Director of the Web Science Institute at the University of Southampton. Eden Zoller, Chief Analyst in Applied AI, Omdia. Professor Neil Lawrence, the DeepMind Professor of Machine Learning at University of Cambridge and author of The Atomic Human Jeremy Kahn, AI Editor at Fortune magazine and author of Mastering AI: A survival guide to our superpowered future. Presenter: David Aaronovitch Producers: Caroline Bayley, Kirsteen Knight, Nathan Gower Production coordinator: Gemma Ashman Sound Engineer: James Beard Editor: Richard Vadon

    29 min

  3. 17 APR

    What cards does China hold?

    President Trump’s fury with China shows no sign of abating. High tariffs - first imposed by the US but now on both sides - are giving way to a very real trade war between the world’s two biggest economies. China’s President Xi Jinping is refusing to blink - so far - and in the past week he's been on the road in South East Asia, visiting Vietnam, Cambodia and Malaysia. Where this goes now depends in large part on China's calculations about the capacity and determination of both sides to endure a trade war. So what cards does China hold ? And what are the implications for China's own economy and for the rest of us? Guests: Damien Ma, Economist, Kellogg School of Management, Chicago Rana Mitter, ST Lee Chair in US-Asia Relations at the Harvard Kennedy School Isabel Hilton, visiting Professor at the Lau China Institute, King's College, London David Henig, Director of the UK Trade Policy Project Presenter: David Aaronovitch Producers: Caroline Bayley, Kirsteen Knight, Lucy Pawle Production co-ordinator: Gemma Ashman Sound Engineer: James Beard Editor: Max Deveson

    29 min

  4. 10 APR

    What's Trump's tariff hokey cokey all about?

    Rarely has it been so difficult to see the wood for the trees. The trees being Donald Trump’s new tariffs announced on what he called Liberation Day and which took effect this week, plus the immediate responses to them. And the wood being the economic strategy that lies behind it all. ​​ ​​That strategy seems to evolve on a daily basis. Having vowed to ‘stay the course’ on tariffs earlier this week, yesterday saw Trump issue a change that ‘came from the heart’ - that change being a 90 day pause for everyone except China. It’s hard to keep up with the plot changes and in this programme we’re not going to try. Instead we’re going to step back and explore the origin’s of Trump’s love of tariffs, find out what history tells us about their effectiveness and we’ll ask whether Trump does actually have a grand plan. ​​ ​​If he does, what is it and can it succeed? Guests: Douglas Irwin, professor of economics at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire Meredith Crowley, Professor of Economics the University of Cambridge Duncan Weldon, economist and author of "Two Hundred Years of Muddling Through" Mehreen Khan, economics editor of The Times Presenter: David Aaronovitch Producers: Ben Carter, Kirsteen Knight and Beth Ashmead Latham Sound engineers: James Beard Production Coordinator: Katie Morrison Editor: Richard Vadon

    29 min

  5. 3 APR

    What's happening in Turkey?

    Hundreds of thousands of people have taken to the streets in Turkey in the past two weeks in protest at the arrest and jailing of the mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu. He’s seen as one of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's strongest political rivals and since his arrest he’s been voted as the opposition party’s presidential candidate in the next elections. He’s been accused of corruption, which he strongly denies and his supporters see his detainment as a political move by the Government. David Aaronovitch and guests discuss whether we’re witnessing the end of democracy in Turkey. Guests: Mark Lowen, BBC Correspondent and former BBC Istanbul Correspondent Dr Ziya Meral, Lecturer in International Studies and Diplomacy, SOAS Firdevs Robinson, Turkish journalist and broadcaster Monica Marks, Assistant Professor Middle East Politics , NYU in Abu Dhabi Presenter: David Aaronovitch Producers: Caroline Bayley, Kirsteen Knight and Beth Ashmead Latham Sound engineers: Dave O’Neill and James Beard Production Coordinator: Gemma Ashman Editor: Richard Vadon (Image: Demonstration organised by the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) against the detention of Istanbul’s mayor, in Istanbul, Turkey - 29 March 2025. Credit: Tolga Bozoglu/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

    29 min

  6. 27 MAR

    What is Putin's bottom line?

    Securing peace in Ukraine is proving harder than President Trump first thought. Separate talks between US officials and Ukrainian and Russian representatives were held in Saudi Arabia a few days ago. But the tentative ceasefire they reached just for shipping in the Black Sea has already hit problems with Moscow demanding certain sanctions are lifted if it’s to comply. And achieving a full ceasefire that Russia will accept still seems as elusive as ever. David Aaronovitch and guests ask what Putin’s bottom line on Ukraine really is? Have his long term aims changed and what might he accept? Guests: Vitaly Shevchenko, Russia Editor for BBC Monitoring Sir Laurie Bristow, President of Hughes Hall at Cambridge University and the former U.K. ambassador to Russia from 2016 to 2020. Angela Stent, Senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and a former US National Intelligence Officer for Russia. Mark Galeotti, writer on Russian security affairs and director of the consultancy Mayak Intelligence. Presenter: David Aaronovitch Producers: Caroline Bayley, Kirsteen Knight and Bethan Ashmead Latham Sound Engineer: Rod Farquhar Production Coordinator: Gemma Ashman Editor: Richard Vadon

    29 min

  7. 20 MAR

    What's the government trying to do to the NHS?

    The Government is reorganising the way the NHS is run in England by scrapping the body that’s been in charge and giving direct control to the Department of Health and Social Care. Jobs will go and the country’s biggest quango will be dismantled. But what is the government actually trying to do to the NHS? What are its aims and how does the restructure fit into the government’s big picture for the health service in the UK? Guests: Hugh Pym, BBC Health Editor Siva Anandaciva, Director of Policy, King’s Fund Dame Jennifer Dixon, Chief Executive of the Health Foundation Dame Carol Propper, Professor of Economics Imperial College in the Department of Economics and Public Policy Presenter: David Aaronovitch Producers: Beth Ashmead Latham, Kirsteen Knight, Caroline Bayley Sound Engineer: James Beard Production Coordinator: Gemma Ashman Editor: Richard Vadon

    29 min

  8. 13 MAR

    Why is there a crisis in special educational needs?

    There’s huge pressure on special educational needs and disabilities, known as SEND. The number of children and young people who need extra support has rocketed as more and more are diagnosed with autism, adhd and other mental health conditions. It’s led to a funding crisis which is putting a strain on council budgets which pay for the extra help. But it isn't just a financial issue - parents say they are struggling to access the right support for their children. So what’s gone wrong and what can be done about it? Guests: Branwen Jeffreys, BBC Education Editor Will Farr, Cambridge University Faculty of Education Tony Travers, Associate Dean LSE School of Public Policy Luke Sibieta, Institute for Fiscal Studies David Thomas, Former Head Teacher and CEO Axiom Maths Presenter: David Aaronovitch Producers: Beth Ashmead Latham, Kirsteen Knight and Caroline Bayley Sound Engineer: Rod Farquhar Production Coordinator: Gemma Ashman Editor: Richard Vadon

    29 min
See All (344)

Hosts & Guests

About

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

Information

  • Creator
    BBC Radio 4
  • Years Active
    2016 - 2025
  • Episodes
    344
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © (C) BBC 2025
  • Show Website
    The Briefing Room

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