Turning Points
The Lesley Riddoch Podcast
Lesley Riddoch and Pat Joyce
4.8 • 259 Ratings
🗓️ 25 February 2025
⏱️ 62 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
This week's episode focuses mainly on the rapidly changing shape of international relations under the influence of the Trump administration.
Keir Starmer made a major speech at Westminster signalling an increase in defence spending from 2.3 to 2.6% from 2027 onwards. This at the expense of aid and development. We analyse the speech and how he sought to secure not only support in the Commons but across the nation.
Starmer flies out to meet Trump on Thursday in the wake of the USA siding with Russia at the United Nations over the war in Ukraine. How will he handle this? What does the UK's abstention in the UN Security Council vote tell us about this?
In Germany the CDU/CSU became the largest party after the recent elections. However the far right AfD surged into second place. Will Merz, the leader of the CDU be able to form a coalition with the Social Democrats? Do his outspoken statements on Trump, NATO and Russia mean a complete change in pan European defence and security policy?
Anas Sarwar claimed that the £200 million pound "investment" by the National Wealth Fund had secured the future of Grangemouth and showed the benefit of a Labour government. We subject both those statements to scrutiny.
Along the way we look at the threat of AI legislation to the creative industries, Michael Shanks on Eigg, and biscuits.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Will 2025 turn out to be one of these turning points from the world? |
| 0:04.6 | It's being suggested at the moment on a whole load of fronts. |
| 0:08.3 | Obviously, the situation with Donald Trump abandoning Ukraine has forced a lot of focus across the whole of Europe. |
| 0:16.4 | Kier Starmour has just announced that Britain's defence spending will rise. |
| 0:20.8 | It's going to, he's going to cut international aid funding to finance that. Starmour has just announced that Britain's defence spending will rise. |
| 0:25.1 | It's going to, he's going to cut international aid funding to finance that. |
| 0:29.2 | Will that mean more money for armaments firms in Britain? |
| 0:31.7 | Will we turn into a mini kind of Russian economy? |
| 0:32.9 | Who knows? |
| 0:34.1 | That all lies ahead. |
| 0:38.3 | The Germans have just had an election, which has seen a far right party come second for the first time since 1949. The new Conservative leader who's been elected has surprised |
| 0:45.4 | everyone by saying distancing himself from the Americans that he previously cheerleaded for and saying |
| 0:53.1 | that Europe really has to stand on its own two feet from here on in |
| 0:56.3 | because the Americans have gone. |
| 0:58.7 | The northern Europeans want to use the frozen assets of Russia |
| 1:02.4 | since they invaded Ukraine three years ago |
| 1:05.1 | to hand to Ukraine to arm itself. |
| 1:07.8 | Those are the headlines. now for the podcast. |
| 1:25.2 | Hi, Johns, and welcome, bienvenue. Welcome to the best of the podcast. And I think you can tell by the introduction. I assured the Alan coming impersonation and singing the intro from Cabaret there. |
| 1:32.3 | It's very much a going to be foreign affairs-led episode. |
| 1:37.1 | And, you know, who would have believed in Odof's statement as a week as a long time with politics? |
| 1:42.2 | My God, isn't it just? |
... |
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