The UK Is in Trouble: Economic Crises, Energy Shocks, and the Queen’s Death

Plain English with Derek Thompson

The Ringer

News, News Commentary

4.7 • 2.1K Ratings

🗓️ 8 September 2022

⏱️ 48 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Hours before the death of Queen Elizabeth II, Derek talked to Duncan Weldon, the Britain economics correspondent at The Economist, about the UK's political and economic challenge. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has sent energy prices soaring across Europe, but few countries have it worse than the UK, where inflation skyrocketed past 10 percent and the Bank of England projects a deep and lasting recession. This comes after a 15-year period of utter economic stagnation, Brexit, and the clown show of Boris Johnson. How did the UK, the birthplace of modern capitalism and the industrial revolution, become such an economic and political disaster? And will the queen's death affect the nation's trajectory? If you have questions, observations, or ideas for future episodes, email us at PlainEnglish@Spotify.com. You can find us on TikTok at www.tiktok.com/@plainenglish_ Host: Derek Thompson Guest: Duncan Weldon Producer: Devon Manze Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	I'm Matt Bellini, founding partner of Puck News, and I'm covering the inside conversation
0:05.6	about money and power in Hollywood.
0:08.1	With my new show The Town, I'm going to take you inside Hollywood, with exclusive
0:11.9	insight on what people in show business are actually talking about.
0:15.4	Multiple times a week, I'll talk to some of the smartest people I know, journalists,
0:19.7	insiders, all of whom can break down the hottest topics and entertainment to tell you what's
0:24.0	really going on.
0:25.9	Listen now.
0:31.0	Today's episode is about the United Kingdom.
0:35.1	And we have to begin with the news, the breaking news that Queen Elizabeth II, the longest
0:40.2	reigning monarch in British history, died on Thursday at the age of 96.
0:46.1	Taking the throne on February 6th, 1952, she ruled for 70 years and 127 days.
0:55.6	70 years and 127 days is incredibly longer than the life expectancy of the average British
1:03.7	person in 1952.
1:08.4	Now this episode was always going to be about the United Kingdom and the British economic
1:12.9	and political scene.
1:14.1	We set it up and planned it just over a week ago, but mere minutes, literally minutes
1:19.8	after this interview ended, the news of the Queen broke.
1:23.4	I know this is strange timing and for those grieving the Queen's death, do forgive us please
1:28.6	for any sense of insensitivity or for devoting an episode to the UK without it being predominantly
1:35.1	about this once in a century news story.
1:39.6	The best way I think to set up today's episode is to begin with my own personal curiosity.
	...

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