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Phil Dobbie
The Why? CurveEpisodes
Phil Dobbie
The Why? Curve
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A dictator set to succeed in grabbing another sovereign nation, and challenging, with tanks and missiles, the political landscape of Europe - is this, as the Polish prime minister says, our 1939? Should the West be ready for the collapse of an
Populist parties are gaining ground - Reform in Britain looks likely to be a major challenge for the Tories. And Donald Trump's MAGA movement looks set to propel him into the White House in November. Across Europe, too, and in Brazil, the Phili
What’s happened to electric cars? Weren’t we all supposed to be driving one by now? Is it the cost, the range or the lack of charging points? Is the government still on track to phase out new petrol cars, and reach net zero on emissions? Tom St
Our prisons are at breaking point - too many inmates and not enough cells. How did we get to the point of having more a higher proportion of the population behind bars than any other country in Western Europe? Why do politicians promise “tough
What happens when the bins aren't collected, the roads are full of holes and the libraries are shut - because the council's gone bankrupt? That's the dilemma facing local government. Europe's largest local authority, Birmingham, has just issued
Gaza casts a long shadow. In the midst of an economic crisis, in an election year, with transport, education and the NHS all limping along, what is the dominant subject, splitting parties and deciding by-elections? A war 2,000 miles away, over
It’s a question taxing Jeremy Hunt - cut back on what we all pay to the government, or use his small surplus to prop up schools, hospitals and other neglected public services? Is his budget intended to rescue the UK economy, or to try to lessen
Why are the prospects for young people so much worse than for their parents’ generation? They can’t buy a house, their rents are extortionate, they have a massive student debt and there’s no job security, plus they’re inheriting a climate-damag
Should we have the right to end our lives in the way we choose - with others allowed to help us? Euthanasia is back on the agenda after a number of celebrities pushing for a change in the law. But what about the risks - the sick and elderly fee
Donald Trump could be back in the White House this time next year. Politicians from London to Berlin to Canberra are scratching their heads about how to deal with another season of Trump World - he’s promised to end the Ukraine war in one day,
Many thousands of people are in prison for crimes they didn’t do, and their chances of getting their cases reopened are minimal at best. The Post Office scandal showed how hard it is to reverse a miscarriage of justice, even when the truth is o
Unheated classrooms, cancelled trains, delayed operations, potholed roads - it’s hard to avoid the impression that the UK isn’t working properly, that our systems are failing, that something has gone badly wrong. Is this because we have failed
The UK and US launched air strikes on Houthi rebels in Yemen after their missile-attacks on international shipping - could this all turn into a regional conflict? London and Washington tell Iran to stay out, but its backing for Hamas in Gaza, H
It's the biggest year in the history of democracy - more than half of the people on earth have the chance to choose, through the ballot box, who governs them. So why is democracy - the system that gives the ultimate power to the people - in su
It's going to be a momentous year in British politics, with a Tory administration staggering towards what almost everyone thinks will be an electoral wipeout, and a Labour leadership desperate to avoid any mistakes on their path back to power.
A look back at the highlights of 2023 on WhyCurve.com . Phil and Roger covered everything from tax-cuts to racism, from AI to Rwanda, with experts and researchers. So here's a New Year gift - their pick of the best and most insightful discussio
The last-minute dash to the shops, the frantic hunt for something just right for your cousin…. The giving season can be tough, but has buying online changed the way we think about gifts? Is it now intangibles - experiences, subscriptions, game
Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda bill has passed its first hurdle - it says, as a matter of law, the East African state is “safe”. But is it? Is it a place we could confidently send those who have arrived on our shores seeking asylum, and be sure they woul
The COP28 was big on promises, but can they be taken seriously when the location the president and so many of the participants are signed up to big oil? Is the secret to getting serious on mitigating climate change, getting capitalism on board?
All eyes have been on Gaza since October, but what has been happening in the confrontation between Ukraine and Russia - the biggest European land war since 1945? Has the West lost hope of defeating Vladimir Putin here, and is President Zelensky
Jeremy Hunt delivered his Autumn statement this week, with 110 policy measures. The most significant of those was a 2% cut in National Insurance contributions. Roger and Phil ask Simon French, Chief Economist and Head of Research at UK investme
Drill, baby, drill - but does it make sense to hand out, every year, new North Sea extraction licences for oil and gas as the UK government has promised? Aren’t we supposed to be ending our reliance on fossil fuels? Or is it essential for energ
Should animals have rights? Should dogs and cats be able to sue you for not feeding them on time? Should farm animals be able to get an injunction to stop us eating them? There’s a growing movement to recognise that many of our fellow creatures
Artificial intelligence is everywhere - and politicians and business leaders are rushing to get on top of what could be an advance bigger than the Industrial Revolution. But could it also be a risk to human life on the scale of an asteroid coll
Accusations of attempted genocide from one side of the current Middle East crisis, and furious claims of anti-semitism from the other, show how deeply perceptions of racism still inform global conflicts. But what causes racism? What is the basi
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