Hello, I'm Alice Thompson.

And I'm Rachel Sylvester.

And this is what I wish I'd known, the podcast in which we talk to extraordinary people

who've lived astonishing lives and not only survived but thrived.

Loss and adversity are part of life, but an imperfect past isn't always an indicator of what's to come.

In this series we'll be speaking to inspiring individuals about how they achieve success in the face of adversity.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts. When Boris Johnson won the last election, it was clear how he wanted his government to be known.

We are going to unite and level up.

Unite and level up.

But rather than levelling up,

the pandemic has hit household incomes across the country.

With rising unemployment coupled with

record levels of national debt, the government faces some difficult choices.

Will it help everyone in need?

Or will it follow the path of previous Conservative governments

when it comes to welfare?

You have under Margaret Thatcher, someone prepared to make the argument that actually welfare benefits don't really help anybody and

certainly shouldn't be seen as any kind of permanent solution to people's

circumstances.

Despite spending record sums on the introduction of the furlow scheme

and an extension to universal credit,

Rouse over free school meals have exposed the government to a barrage of criticism for

...