The world is becoming increasingly complex and volatile.

How can we make sense of it all?

I'm Richard Engel.

And I'm Yalda Hakim.

And we're the top international correspondents at NBC News and Sky News.

And we present Sky News's latest podcast, The World.

Each week we'll cut through the noise to guide you through the week's global events

and explain to you why, what happens out there

matters to you wherever you are. Listen now to the world with Richard Engel and me Yalda Hakim,

wherever you get your podcasts.

Hello, welcome to the All-Up Politics Podcast. I'm Adam Bolton.

Joining me this week, the visiting professor in the Department of Government at the London School of Economics, Tony Travis, the deputy director of UK in a changing Europe, Paulus Surridge, and Sky's Deputy Political Editor, Sam Cote.

This week we're going to talk about the cornucopia of elections which are taking

place here in five weeks' time on the 6th of May. We've got elections for the Welsh Assembly

for the Scottish Parliament for up to 6,000 councillors in various councils around England, 39 police and crime commissioners in England,

and also a parliamentary by-election in Hartlepool.

It's a lot to get your head round, and of course it's in the context that non-general elections,

local elections are often seen as giant opinion polls and certainly Britain's main party leaders

have been weighing in.

Across the country it is conservatives, conservative councils, conservative counselors that

deliver better value for money.

And let's take our great one nation message to the people of a strong and dynamic conservative

...