Quite right!

To submit your urgent questions to Michael and Maddie, visit spectator.com/quiteright.
In this week’s Q&A, Michael and Maddie ask whether Britain should abolish the monarchy. In the wake of fresh controversy surrounding members of the royal family, they debate whether scrapping the institution would be a long-overdue democratic correction – or a profound strategic mistake. Is the Crown an outdated relic, or one of Britain’s greatest diplomatic assets?
Also this week: with Labour MP Dan Norris facing charges, could North East Somerset be heading for a by-election – and might Jacob Rees-Mogg stage a dramatic return to parliament? Would Reform stand aside, or is the right now locked in a battle for survival?
And finally, they explore whether people really do move right as they get older. Is it psychology, property ownership, parenthood – or simply ‘grim reality’ that shifts political instincts over time?
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
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This week: Michael and Maddie examine the crisis engulfing the Labour party and ask whether Keir Starmer is facing a Boris-style collapse of authority.
They explore what could be to come in the continued fallout from the Peter Mandelson affair, the rebellion over the release of government files, and what Starmer’s pattern of scapegoating aides reveals about his grip on power. Is this a corruption scandal – or something more damaging: a failure of judgment?
Finally, they look ahead to what comes next. If Starmer’s authority is ebbing, who could replace him? From Angela Rayner to Wes Streeting – and the outsiders hovering on the edge – will internal revolt mark the beginning of a wider realignment in British politics?
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
To submit your urgent questions to Michael and Maddie, visit spectator.com/quiteright
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For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.

Contact us: [email protected]

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To submit your urgent questions to Michael and Maddie, visit spectator.com/quiteright.
In this week’s Q&A, Michael and Maddie unpack the controversy over whether Rishi Sunak is English or British – and why a debate about national identity has become so politically charged. Is Englishness a civic identity, an ethnic one, or something more elusive? And why has the Labour party increasingly reached for accusations of racism when the question is raised at all?
Also this week: are claims that Britain is drifting towards civil unrest alarmist scaremongering – or a warning we should take seriously?
And finally, they reflect on the earliest political moments that shaped them – from Margaret Thatcher and the Falklands to Tony Blair, Princess Diana, and the politics of the countryside.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson
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This week: Michael and Maddie examine the fallout from the Epstein files and ask how a story of questionable judgment became a far more serious test of trust at the top of British politics. As new revelations emerge about Peter Mandelson’s links to Jeffrey Epstein, has a tawdry association escalated into a question of the national interest? And what does the affair reveal about Keir Starmer’s judgment – and the risks of relying on political experience over proper scrutiny?
Then: the growing generational backlash over student loans. With graduate repayment thresholds frozen and interest rates soaring, are younger voters being systematically squeezed to prop up an unsustainable system?
Finally: the countryside culture war. From Defra’s diversity targets to mounting regulation of rural life, Michael and Maddie ask whether policymakers fundamentally misunderstand the countryside – and whether independence, not prejudice, is what really makes it a target.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
To submit your urgent questions to Michael and Maddie, visit spectator.co.uk/quiteright.
Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more.

For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.

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To submit your urgent questions to Michael and Maddie, visit spectator.com/quiteright.
In this week’s Q&A: Michael and Maddie tackle Labour’s uneasy majority and ask why a government with a 174-seat majority already looks so skittish. Are backbench rebellions a sign of weakness – or a rational response from MPs who expect to be out in one term? Does Keir Starmer lack the political instincts needed to hold such a sprawling parliamentary party together?
Also this week: could the Rwanda scheme ever have saved the Conservatives? Michael lifts the lid on why the plan stalled – from internal resistance within the state to the limits of last-minute delivery – and explains why even a symbolic flight would not have reversed Tory defeat.
And as faith in multilateral institutions frays, they ask whether the UN still serves a meaningful purpose, or whether international law has acquired an undeserved air of moral infallibility.
Produced by Oscar Edmondson
Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more.

For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.

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