Is Robert Jenrick’s defection a threat to Nigel Farage’s leadership?
Political Currency
Persephonica
4.1 • 1.5K Ratings
🗓️ 15 January 2026
⏱️ 62 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
The dramatic news of Robert Jenrick’s sacking and rumoured plot to defect to Reform broke mid-record this week, meaning Ed Balls and George Osborne give a live reaction to the news. Has Kemi Badenoch secured her leadership or is this the next Tory psychodrama? And, could Nigel Farage be inviting the biggest threat to his leadership by accepting Jenrick?
The pair look at the ongoing protests in Iran, and Donald Trump’s changing stance on whether American forces will be deployed in the region. They also look at how Labour should respond, and question the silence from certain political voices on the left.
After a roundup of U-turns last week the Labour government has delivered yet another rollback with their mandatory Digital ID cards. Why can’t the government, in Wes Streeting’s words, get it right the first time?
And finally, the ongoing feud between Fed Chair Jerome Powell and Trump turned from a cold war to a hot one last weekend, with a criminal investigation into Powell being launched and the Fed releasing a response. Ed and George examine the possible repercussions of this, and the threats Trump’s demands of the Fed pose.
We love hearing from you, so please don’t forget to send all your EMQs to questions@politicalcurrency and make sure to include a voice note of your question.
Thanks for listening. To get episodes early and ad- free join Political Currency Gold or our Kitchen Cabinet. If you want even more perks including our exclusive newsletter, join our Kitchen Cabinet today:
👉 patreon.com/politicalcurrency
Please note: Kitchen Cabinet is only available via Patreon.
Credits:
Research: Sam Burton
Production: Caillin McDaid, Caitlin Hanrahan & Sam Psyk.
Video Editor: Avi Asher
Executive Producer: Ellie Clifford
Political Currency is a Persephonica Production and is part of the Acast Creator Network.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | At the top of this podcast, full disclosure. |
| 0:02.6 | While we were recording it, just as we're getting to the very end, news came in that Robert |
| 0:06.9 | Jenrick had been fired from the shadow cabinet by Kemi Badnock because she says he was plotting |
| 0:13.3 | to defect a reform. |
| 0:15.1 | We don't cover it at the beginning of the show, but we do at the end. |
| 0:18.7 | So stay and listen. |
| 0:19.8 | Full disclosure. |
| 0:21.3 | George Osborne is just the person you want to get the first reaction to this sacking from. |
| 0:26.1 | And a fascinating conversation. |
| 0:27.9 | But first, let's go on with the podcast. This is political currency with Ed Balls and George Osborne. |
| 0:48.4 | Thank you. So after the Christmas break and remote last week, we are back in the ACAR studio. And I have to say, |
| 1:03.7 | it is dry January here in Hoxton. In all the records we did in December, there were chocolates |
| 1:10.7 | and biscuits and sweets. |
| 1:13.0 | It was so Christmassy. I've just been into the kitchen here. Nothing. The table is bare. |
| 1:18.2 | This is dry January austerity in Hoxton. |
| 1:22.5 | Yeah, there is actually a little card from Amazon Music saying, we absolutely love what you do, Ed and George, |
| 1:29.8 | and here are some cupcakes. Where are the cupcakes? Polaro cupcakes. Where are they? They've been |
| 1:34.4 | nicked. I think that arrived over Christmas and I think they were eaten by Ellie and the production team. |
| 1:39.3 | But here in austerity January, where are the cupcakes? I also, by the way, have you noticed what else has been |
| 1:45.7 | nicked? No. Our mugs. That is true. We haven't got. Our special political currency red bucks have gone. |
| 1:51.7 | It must have been a Christmas run on kitchen cabinet descriptions. The other thing just to share |
| 1:56.1 | with our listeners who weren't going to see this, George Osborne, you know, suited George Osborne, you know, |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Persephonica, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of Persephonica and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.