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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As Labour tanks in the polls, left and right-wing populists are on the rise. This week, Ellen and Alona and are joined by Prospect’s political columnist Ben Ansell, whose cover essay in this month’s magazine explored the government’s big challenge.

From Zohran Mamdani to Zack Polanski, left populists are attracting votes and attention. Should Keir Starmer follow their lead?

On the podcast, Ben explains what makes a politician “populist”, the policies that might work for Labour, and why populist communication styles are more effective than Labour’s current messaging. He also unpacks whether Starmer could pull off a left-populist turn—or who in the party might be a better fit.

Plus, Ellen and Alona discuss saunas: banger or dud?

You can read Ben’s essay ‘Labour’s populist dilemma’ here.

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Is Britain becoming a police state?

This week, Ellen and Imaan are joined by Conor Gearty, a barrister and professor of human rights law at LSE, who explains how his views on the future of protest have changed.

As hundreds have been arrested for supporting the recently proscribed group Palestine Action, Conor discusses his reaction to the ban. He criticises the Labour government’s stance on protest, which he says panders to a “middle covert authoritarianism”.

Conor also weighs in on what’s at stake if Britain leaves the ECHR, and how to fortify democracy. Are protests from the political left and right treated differently? And how should Labour respond to Reform’s rhetoric on human rights?

Plus, Ellen and Imaan discuss the genre of “cosy crime”: banger or dud?

To read Conor’s writing for Prospect (including the story of his shattered pelvis), click here: https://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/author/1473/conor-gearty

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From country walks to telephone box libraries, our Prospect Lives writers are enjoying the summer.

Sex Worker Tilly Lawless reflects on the fragmentation of the sex industry in the age of OnlyFans, and Alice Goodman explores memory, homeland, and the meaning of Passover.

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The government is considering introducing digital ID cards as a way to curb illegal immigration and improve the administration of public services. But is it a good idea?

In this week’s Prospect Podcast, former Labour Home Secretary David Blunkett debates Rebecca Vincent, from the civil liberties group Big Brother Watch.

Blunkett oversaw the introduction of identity cards under New Labour—before they were scrapped by the Tory-Lib Dem coalition—and thinks they could have a place. Rebecca Vincent is concerned about the risks of intolerable state surveillance —particularly if the cards were mandatory.

Listen in—and to let us know who you think is right, email webdesk@prospect-magazine.co.uk.

For this week’s “banger or dud”—the last before a short summer break—Ellen and Alona discuss the 99 Flake.

To read an edited version of this conversation, visit Prospect’s website.

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