Can the Chancellor really win back business?

If there were a podcast that began, uh, this morning, Sam, without you saying, "I've got a bit of intel on the budget," I would be sorely disappointed-

[laughs]

... [laughs] with the listeners.

Um, it's interesting how at the end of conference season, Reform, the Greens, the Lib Dems, all have got these internal challenges, and they tend to come back, don't they? It's a bit like the, the, the rush of colds and flu that you get when [laughs] when the adrenaline of the conferences fades.

And this is arguably, you could say, Andy Burnham's effect being what was intended to be.

So the Greens didn't win last Thursday's by-election.

That was in Holborn and St Pancras, of course, after the departure of Keir Starmer, and the Greens not making practically any inroad really into the Labor share of the vote there, even though it's in effect a midterm, uh, election.

So you have Zac Polanski, his party now, uh, wondering how they should reset.

Uh, also after that, a huge, uh, argument internally about the Zionism is racism, uh, equation, uh, drawn by some of, of its grassroots in a motion that made the news.

And then you look at, uh, Davey's party, the Lib Dems.

Now, they have a crunch meeting of MPs this evening.

Uh, two have quit, uh, over the direction o- of the party, but do we really know what it is that is animating in a party that's been pretty loyal, uh, to Ed Davey? Even had something of a personality cult.

What, what do you think's really going on there, Sam?

Well, I think it is quite existential, and I know that there are a lot of people in the Lib Dems trying to hose down this row.

It's interesting, only 21 of the 71 Lib Dem MPs that I can see have publicly come out to, to back Ed Davey.

Uh, but the deputy leader, Daisy Cooper, really going on the offensive against, uh, people who are criticizing, uh, him.

Leadership sources saying it's a tiny minority.

But the reason I say it's existential is because Andy Burnham, a- again, for it is he, is squeezing the political space for the Lib Dems.

You know, he's kicked off these debates on Europe and social care.

These are prime Lib Dem issues that they like having the field open for them to, and, and have rather left the feeling, the party feeling on the back foot after a conference where they pretty much were acknowledging, uh, out loud that they're just not punching, uh, their, uh, their weight.

Just right now, I think of the three parties that you mentioned, the three smaller parties, uh, they're enjoying Andy Burnham, uh, the least.

Um, we'll get into the, the, the sort of meat of Europe in a moment, but, um, but what, what I'm told is that it's the impact of that debate that Andy Burnham's kicked off about the future of Britain's relationship with U- with Europe.

That's one of those things which had been Ed Davey's signature move as he took us closer to the single market and the customs union, that, that now they feel is they're losing ground and, and, and, and they're, and, and it's, you know, their clothes are being completely stolen by the new PM.

One party not disappointed to have all this focus on Andy Burnham's attempted European reconnection is Reform because it allows them to foreground their USP, Sam, which is that we, we are the first and, and original, uh, Euroskeptic party.

Reform trying to reset more broadly yesterday with an announcement that it would suspend the asylum system.

If there were a podcast that began, uh, this morning, Sam, without you saying, "I've got a bit of intel on the budget," I would be sorely disappointed-

[laughs]

... [laughs] with the listeners.

Um, it's interesting how at the end of conference season, Reform, the Greens, the Lib Dems, all have got these internal challenges, and they tend to come back, don't they? It's a bit like the, the, the rush of colds and flu that you get when [laughs] when the adrenaline of the conferences fades.

And this is arguably, you could say, Andy Burnham's effect being what was intended to be.

So the Greens didn't win last Thursday's by-election.

That was in Holborn and St Pancras, of course, after the departure of Keir Starmer, and the Greens not making practically any inroad really into the Labor share of the vote there, even though it's in effect a midterm, uh, election.

So you have Zac Polanski, his party now, uh, wondering how they should reset.

Uh, also after that, a huge, uh, argument internally about the Zionism is racism, uh, equation, uh, drawn by some of, of its grassroots in a motion that made the news.

And then you look at, uh, Davey's party, the Lib Dems.

Now, they have a crunch meeting of MPs this evening.

Uh, two have quit, uh, over the direction o- of the party, but do we really know what it is that is animating in a party that's been pretty loyal, uh, to Ed Davey? Even had something of a personality cult.

What, what do you think's really going on there, Sam?

Well, I think it is quite existential, and I know that there are a lot of people in the Lib Dems trying to hose down this row.

It's interesting, only 21 of the 71 Lib Dem MPs that I can see have publicly come out to, to back Ed Davey.

Uh, but the deputy leader, Daisy Cooper, really going on the offensive against, uh, people who are criticizing, uh, him.

Leadership sources saying it's a tiny minority.

But the reason I say it's existential is because Andy Burnham, a- again, for it is he, is squeezing the political space for the Lib Dems.

You know, he's kicked off these debates on Europe and social care.

These are prime Lib Dem issues that they like having the field open for them to, and, and have rather left the feeling, the party feeling on the back foot after a conference where they pretty much were acknowledging, uh, out loud that they're just not punching, uh, their, uh, their weight.

Just right now, I think of the three parties that you mentioned, the three smaller parties, uh, they're enjoying Andy Burnham, uh, the least.

Um, we'll get into the, the, the sort of meat of Europe in a moment, but, um, but what, what I'm told is that it's the impact of that debate that Andy Burnham's kicked off about the future of Britain's relationship with U- with Europe.

That's one of those things which had been Ed Davey's signature move as he took us closer to the single market and the customs union, that, that now they feel is they're losing ground and, and, and, and they're, and, and it's, you know, their clothes are being completely stolen by the new PM.

One party not disappointed to have all this focus on Andy Burnham's attempted European reconnection is Reform because it allows them to foreground their USP, Sam, which is that we, we are the first and, and original, uh, Euroskeptic party.

Reform trying to reset more broadly yesterday with an announcement that it would suspend the asylum system.