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Hello and welcome to the edition, the Spectator's weekly podcast,

discussing some of the most important and intriguing issues within our pages each week, with the writers behind them.

I'm Isabel Hardman.

As Christmas approaches, we take a look at the year that's just gone by.

Over the next few episodes, we will discuss some of the most significant events around the world this year, from Brexit to Trump to

Hong Kong. To begin with, I take a look at the year in British politics. So at the start of this

year, Theresa May had just survived a no confidence motion from her own party, but she was barely

clinging on. Cross-party MPs, aided by John Burko, who was Speaker, defeated the government in vote after vote.

There was a real chance that Brexit might have been reversed.

But things are pretty different now.

So what are the main events of 2019 and could things have happened differently?

I'm joined by James Forsyth, Katie Balls and Jackie Smith, former Home Secretary under Gordon Brown, to discuss.

So James, at the start of this year, Parliament was reigning supreme, and it looked like nothing was ever going to change.

Yes, I mean, it is not to sound like a football manager. It has been a year of, not two halves, I suppose,

it's been a year of four quarters, really. I suppose

you had the beginning of the year where Theresa May was trying and failing to get things

through Parliament. And if you had the first attempt, obviously failed. Then you had the

reaching out to Labour. That failed. Then you had the Tory shalacking in the European elections.

...