EMQs: Is Makerfield the UK’s presidential election?
Political Currency
Persephonica
4.1 • 1.5K Ratings
🗓️ 1 June 2026
⏱️ 45 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Was George Osborne about to abandon David Cameron in the 2005 Tory leadership race? That’s the first question on this week’s EMQs, where George recounts the mistakes made by the David Davis campaign that allowed Cameron to ascend. Ed Balls shares similar mistakes of David Miliband’s 2010 campaign, and the pair offer their own advice to all backbench MPs assessing the current Labour leadership contest.
Then they turn to the man who may win said contest: Andy Burnham. They ponder if Makerfield is the closest thing the UK has seen to a presidential election, with the voters knowing they may well elect our next PM.
From one political giant to another they then debate why the £5M donation to Nigel Farage hasn’t blown up, and how he could end up on the path of Boris Johnson should this go poorly for him.
Finally, George unveils an underdiscussed power of the chancellor that could see the government expel any of their political rivals. They also get into religion and culture…
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Credits:
Research: Sam Burton
Production: Caillin McDaid & Nasreen Arain
Video Editor: Avi Asher
Executive Producer: Ellie Clifford & Henrietta Harrison
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | The Chancellor of the Exchequer. |
| 0:02.0 | Getting a lesson from the Shadow Chancellor and how to balance the books, |
| 0:05.0 | it's like getting a lesson from Dracula and how to look after a blood pack. |
| 0:08.0 | Ed Balls. |
| 0:10.0 | As steady as she goes, budget. |
| 0:13.0 | What kind of ship does he think he's on, the Titanic? |
| 0:16.0 | Themary Celeste. |
| 0:17.0 | Welcome to EMQs from Political Currency |
| 0:20.0 | with Ed Balls and George Osborne. |
| 0:27.6 | So hello and welcome to EMQ's ex-minister's questions. Now, on our main podcast, George |
| 0:35.4 | kind of went on about being at the White House with Donald Trump and Kevin |
| 0:39.7 | Walsh. |
| 0:40.4 | And I felt as though Helvillin didn't quite compete in terms of fancy environs. |
| 0:46.4 | That's the hillock in the Lake District, the York. |
| 0:48.9 | It's not about to scale or half scale or a mountain. |
| 0:52.0 | But I was at a film premiere last night. |
| 0:55.9 | Ooh. |
| 0:56.8 | I was. |
| 0:57.6 | At, |
| 0:58.0 | in Just Above Piccadilly in a hotel. |
| 1:01.3 | It's a new film. |
| 1:03.0 | It's the directorial debut of Kristen Scott Thomas, |
... |
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