The Boris Johnson WhatsApp psychodrama
Political Fix
Financial Times
4.2 • 1.2K Ratings
🗓️ 2 June 2023
⏱️ 33 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Rishi Sunak’s government is heading to court to challenge the Covid inquiry’s right to demand ministers’ unredacted messages, following a row over Boris Johnson’s WhatsApp messages. The FT’s Whitehall editor Lucy Fisher is joined by columnist Miranda Green and UK chief political commentator Robert Shrimsley to discuss the saga. Plus, the FT’s global health editor Sarah Neville tells Lucy why more staff alone won’t solve the NHS’s problems. And the panel members reveal their musical tastes - with cultural recommendations for your own downtime.
Follow Lucy on Twitter @LOS_Fisher
Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
Want more?
UK government takes legal action over Boris Johnson’s Covid messages
NHS productivity lags as recruitment fails to keep pace with demand
How the Thatcherites lost their Brexit dream and their party
The great ‘Brexit’ and ‘coalition’ taboos are holding the Lib Dems back
Clips from Sky News, BBC.
”Subterranean Homesick Blues” by Bob Dylan. Written by Bob Dylan.
SME, TuneCore (on behalf of Columbia); UMPG Publishing, CMRRA, LatinAutorPerf, LatinAutor - SonyATV, UNIAO BRASILEIRA DE EDITORAS DE MUSICA - UBEM, SOLAR Music Rights Management
Sign up for 90 free days of Stephen Bush's Inside Politics newsletter, winner of the World Association of News Publishers 2023 ‘Best Newsletter’ award: https://www.ft.com/newsletter-signup/inside-politics
Presented by Lucy Fisher. Produced by Anna Dedhar and Audrey Tinline. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Audio mix and original music by Breen Turner. The FT’s head of audio is Cheryl Brumley.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | As Nigel opened his Amazon parcel, it was in love at first sight. |
| 0:04.5 | Sleek design and effortless cornering. |
| 0:07.1 | This vacuum cleaner screamed quality and for a price lower than he ever dreamed. |
| 0:11.7 | Five stars from Nigel. |
| 0:13.8 | With star reviews from you and star prices from us, |
| 0:18.2 | start your search on Amazon today. |
| 0:24.3 | Some of the stuff about how to fix the NHS is a question of extra expenditure |
| 0:29.1 | and that is why you hear neither party talking about it. |
| 0:32.3 | To catch up with other OEC countries where we're right down the bottom |
| 0:36.9 | is going to cost a lot of money. |
| 0:41.4 | Hi and welcome to Political Fix, |
| 0:43.6 | your essential insider guide to Westminster from the Financial Times. |
| 0:47.2 | With me, Lucy Fisher, the FTSE Whitehall Editor. |
| 0:50.6 | You heard there my colleague Miranda Greene talking about the NHS |
| 0:54.4 | because this week we'll be discussing public services |
| 0:57.2 | and what the health service needs to thrive or even just survive. |
| 1:01.6 | We'll also look at the latest battleground in the Boris Johnson-Rishie-Soonak |
| 1:05.0 | Psycho-Drama, the Covid-Inquiry. |
| 1:07.6 | Plus, we'll talk about where Soonak's jumping on his jet to next. |
| 1:11.3 | In the studio with me today, our FT columnist and political fix regular |
| 1:14.8 | Miranda Greene, I'm Randa Halo and Lucy. |
| 1:18.0 | And of course, Robert Trinsley, the FTSE UK Chief Political Commentator. |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Financial Times, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of Financial Times and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.