The Labour government is struggling and the party is divided. Meanwhile, Reform is on the rise, and the Tories are collapsing. What kind of change does Labour need, if it is to get back on track?

This week, Ellen and Alona dial in from the party conference in Liverpool, where they’re joined by Walthamstow MP Stella Creasy, and deputy leadership candidate Lucy Powell.

Powell explains why she’s running, and the importance of wrestling back the political narrative from Reform, while Creasy criticises the party’s current lack of internal dialogue and emphasises the need for cultural change.

How can the party reconnect with voters? And, despite all the deputy leadership candidates being women, why has Labour never had a female leader?

To read more of our coverage of the Labour party conference, click here.

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Are we all being manipulated? This week, Ellen and Alona are joined by Cass Sunstein–one of the scholars behind “nudge” theory–who explains how companies exploit our cognitive biases for their own profit.

Cass is the founder and director of the Program on Behavioral Economics and Public Policy at Harvard, and author of Manipulation: What It Is, Why It’s Bad, What to Do about It. He explores the place of manipulation in a capitalist system, and whether technology is making manipulation a bigger problem than ever before. But can we protect ourselves from it?

Plus, Ellen and Alona discuss the return of Bake Off: “banger” or “dud”?

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The question of what is antisemitic and what is legitimate criticism of the state of Israel has long been a difficult question—but it has become even more fraught since 7th October 2023 and the continuing atrocities in Gaza. On 31st July 2025, Prospect brought two experts together to debate and discuss which kinds of speech and criticism are acceptable.

Jo Glanville is the editor of Looking for an Enemy: Eight Essays on Antisemitism, while Dave Rich is head of policy at the Community Security Trust, whose stated mission is to work for the physical protection of British Jews. They both join Prospect’s Alan Rusbridger and Alona Ferber to discuss what people misunderstand about anti-Jewish prejudice, and how it relates to Israel.

To read an edited excerpt of this interview, click here.

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