The New Statesman

Hello, I'm Tom McTake and I'm joined by Andrew Ma for his final podcast appearance as the New Statesman's political editor,

before he moves on to his new role as editor at large, where he will focus less on the day-to-day political coverage and more on the big trends shaping the world today. Hello.

Hello, yes, it's a slightly absurd title. I think we probably both agree, Tom. I'm going to have

to buy waistcoats and bow ties and start to smoke cigarettes and look vacantly into the middle

distance over my goblet of brandy. I think that'll suit you. Andrew. Well, with that, image in mind, I think

let's pretend you are already with your brandy in front of you. And let's reflect on your

time as political editor at The New Stapleon, which began in early 2022, with Boris Johnson still

just about in power. And the beginning of what was really

a kind of the most chaotic period in, was it, is it the most chaotic period in post-war

British politics? I think it must be. I think it's certainly that. I mean, I can vividly

remember actually sitting in a church service for somebody shortly after my own dad had died and we had had the burial service, a lovely service,

but nonetheless a very small group of us, half a dozen or so, standing outside the church

that he'd been an elder in for more than half a century, unable to go into the church

because of the lockdown restrictions.

Now that happened to be Scotland, but nonetheless, a sense that we had all been chivied and

harried around and told what to do.

And at this point, the details of those appalling lockdown parties in number 10 are starting

to seep out into the public domain.

And I can remember just being consumed with anger, really, really angry about it.

And I still am. But that was the beginning point of this story, as it were. And then we run from

that into that extraordinary day when we were having cabinet resignations almost every two minutes.

...