EMQs Political Craft Special: Speeches, diaries and the art of politics
Political Currency
Persephonica
4.1 • 1.5K Ratings
🗓️ 25 August 2025
⏱️ 53 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
What are the essential skills for a life in politics? In an age of TikTok soundbites, can a single speech in Parliament still change minds and topple a government? Ed Balls and George Osborne dive into the art of political craft, taking questions on the real-world impact of parliamentary debates, the secrets to managing a ministerial diary, and the constant balancing act between cabinet duties and constituency work.
They discuss historic interventions that shaped the nation, from Edward Heath’s decisive speech on capital punishment to the Cromwellian phrase, “In the name of God, go,” which was famously used against Neville Chamberlain and Boris Johnson. They also share personal anecdotes about their first days as MPs, the importance of punctuality in a crisis, and the surprising truth about the bottled water in the Chancellor’s office.
Plus, find out which cabinet job is surprisingly one of the "easier ones" to manage and what really happens in the MPs' exclusive tea room.
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Credits:
Producer: Miriam Hall
Senior Producer: Silvia Maresca
Video Editor: Maha Albadrawi
Executive Producer: Ellie Clifford
Political Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | This episode is sponsored by Speck Savers. |
| 0:02.5 | Over our political careers, we've mastered the art of selective hearing, but we do know it's important to make sure our ears and hearing are working well. Now, many people might not realize that Speck Savers aren't just about eyesight. They're also trusted hearing experts as well. And we know how important hearing is, don't we? I mean, in the House of Commons, I think what people don't realize, even if you watch it on television or listen to it on the radio, it's just how noisy |
| 0:25.0 | it is, and how if you're standing there giving a speech, standing at that dispatch box, you've got |
| 0:30.4 | to be able to hear the individual interventions, the sledging, ed balls on the other side |
| 0:35.4 | the chamber being incredibly annoying. You've got to have your razor-sharp hearing on as well as your eyesight. |
| 0:41.3 | That's true. And you do need to make sure that your hearing is clear, so it's important to get a |
| 0:45.2 | hearing check. Spec savers have been helping people with their ears for the last two decades. |
| 0:49.4 | So when you're thinking about your regular eye checks for yourselves and your loved ones, |
| 0:52.9 | don't forget about your ears too. |
| 0:55.1 | Book a free hearing check with Specsavers today. |
| 0:58.5 | This episode of Political Currency is sponsored by EDF, Britain's biggest generator of zero carbon electricity. |
| 1:04.7 | EDF say that they are helping customers save both cash and carbon. |
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| 1:24.3 | driving electric vehicles in the last year or so. |
| 1:32.1 | I mean, they are so quiet and have such power, really impressive. |
| 1:36.2 | If you do drive a EV vehicle, with EDF, you can charge it overnight for under £10. |
| 1:41.9 | To find out how EDF are helping their customers save cash and carbon, visit edfenergy.com. |
| 1:47.0 | As EDF say, change is in our power. This episode is sponsored by Sage and their AI productivity assistant, Sage co-pilot. Running a business takes constant evolution |
| 1:53.7 | and Sage has been helping British businesses do that for over 40 years. Yes, and according to Sage, |
| 1:59.5 | their AI is designed to cut through the noise. No |
... |
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