In the last five years in the UK, more than 100 children have died from knife wounds. But violence isn't inevitable and evidence shows that we need more mentoring, therapy, family support and police in the areas where violence is high. So why don't we do what works? Jon Yates from the Youth Endowment Fund looks at the schemes that have successfully reduced knife crime. He investigates why the lessons they've taught us haven’t been scaled up. And why we’re spending money on other things like...

In May 2020 a group of experts came together, at speed, to form the UK’s Vaccine Task Force. Born in the teeth of a crisis, its efforts were responsible for allowing Britain to be among the first countries in the world to roll out vaccines against Covid-19. But as memories of the pandemic fade, the urgency it brought to its work has subsided as well. In this edition of Analysis, Sandra Kanthal asks what lessons have been learned from the success of the Vaccine Task Force and if we...

How difficult is it for a police force to change? A review of the Metropolitan police by Baroness Louise Casey says racism, misogyny, and homophobia are at the heart of the force. The Met's commissioner Sir Mark Rowley admits 'we have let Londoners down'. Everyone agrees change must happen – but where to start? Margaret Heffernan meets experts on police reform and former senior officers to explore the organisational challenge that faces any force which wants to transform itself and...

Is Britain Exceptional? Historian, author and Sunday Telegraph columnist Zoe Strimpel believes so, and sifts through the layers of Britain’s culture, politics and religious history to find the roots for the nation’s scientific, intellectual and cultural dynamism and the germ for today’s culture wars. With the help of leading historians, political activists and scientists, Zoe examines whether Britain's obsession with the glories of 'our finest hour': WWII determined a version of history that...

The Queen’s funeral appeared a resounding reassertion of our enduring commitment to monarchy, but was it a tribute to her rather than the institution? As the coronation approaches, polls suggest support is at its lowest ever, and the King faces difficult questions on several fronts. As supreme Governor of the Church of England, congregation numbers are falling and divisions are deepening over its stance on gay marriage. The union is under threat – what would the monarchy mean if Scotland...

Classic theories of representative democracy argue that it’s the representation of ideas not our personal characteristics - such as age, gender, race or class - that should matter. But current debates about the diversity of our politicians suggest many of us are interested in who our MPs are and that they represent us. We have more women and more ethnic minority MPs than ever before, we have had three women Prime Ministers and our first Prime Minister with an Asian heritage and yet attention...

Professor Ian Goldin explores globalisation, and asks how far the world is fragmenting politically and economically, and what the consequences of that could be. Since around 1990, with the end of the Cold War, the opening of China, global agreements to reduce trade barriers and the development of the internet, there has been a dramatic acceleration of globalisation. But its shortcomings are under the spotlight. Governments are making policy choices that protect their industries, and...

It’s a year since Russia launched its war in Ukraine; a year that has brought failure, humiliation, defeat and heavy losses on the battlefield, and international isolation. The conflict has impacted the entire Russian population, with unprecedented sanctions and an unpopular and poorly executed nationwide mobilization. Ukraine was always considered Russia’s closest and most loved neighbour, and yet the Kremlin’s so-called ‘special military operation’ still apparently enjoys considerable...

The UK has pledged to reach net-zero by 2050. But has a pandemic, the fallout from the war in Ukraine and now an economic crisis derailed our plans to decarbonise? Or have they provided an inflexion point, accelerating necessary change? With the energy crisis has come a renewed emphasis on security of supply. Does that bind us more firmly to fossil fuels - or spur the transition to cleaner fuels and new technology? And has a cost of living crisis been a catalyst for change in consumer and...

In the search for stability and growth, policy and debate often focuses on looking for multi-million pound inward investment, or industries with big ideas such as technology and manufacturing. But these businesses, which often rely on sophisticated technology to produce tradeable and exportable products, only make up a small proportion of the UK economy. Instead the “Foundational Economy” - things like food production and processing, retail, health, education, housing and welfare, contribute...

Last week, the government unveiled around £30bn worth of cuts to public services as it attempts to plug a fiscal hole. Governments have attempted to rein in spending in the past and struggled to do so. Philip Coggan takes a look at why public spending tends to rise in the long run and the continuing political battle to contain it. Guests: David Gauke, former Conservative MP and Treasury minister from 2010 to 2017 Carys Roberts, Executive Director of the Institute for Public Policy...

In spite of progress on men's involvement in childcare the statistics show that women are still doing far more caring of young children. That is extended throughout life to the caring of ill and elderly relatives. And 82 per cent of people working in social care jobs are women. Professor of Sociology at Oxford Brookes University Tina Miller asks to what extent women are still trapped by society and its structures, such as who gets paid parental leave, into caring roles and whether we simply...

As the twin storms of economic turmoil and worsening climate change grip the UK and many other countries around the world, Analysis examines the future of economic growth. Does it offer a route out of economic malaise, or have its benefits reached a ceiling for developed countries? And can further growth be environmentally justified, or do we urgently need to halt - or even reverse - growth to limit the effects of climate change? Can so-called “degrowth” ever be possible? Edward Stourton...

Over the decades, a string of umbrella terms and acronyms have been used in the UK to describe people who aren’t white. “Politically Black”, Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic (BAME), ethnic minorities, or people of colour. Virtually all of them have been rejected by the people they describe, but is there still value in a collective term for Britain’s ethnic minorities? Mobeen Azhar hears stories of solidarity and schism between different groups in modern Britain to find out whether any...

If you want to do good in the world, should you be a doctor, or an aid worker? Or should you make a billion or two any way you can, and give it to good causes? Billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried argues this is the best use of his vast wealth. But philosophers argue charitable giving is often driven not by logic, but by a sense of personal attachment. David Edmonds traces the latest developments in the effective altruism movement, examining the questions they pose, and looking at the successes and...

Just over a decade ago, President Xi Jinping was a virtual unknown. Few would say that now. In ten years, he’s reworked the Chinese Communist party, the military and the government so that he’s firmly in control. He’s also vanquished all of his obvious rivals. And now, he’s about to extend his time in office. Some say Xi might stay in the top job indefinitely. So how did Xi Jinping do it? Celia Hatton, the BBC’s Asia Pacific Editor, speaks to fellow China watchers to find out. Producer: Rob...

Does becoming a surrogate mother exploit or empower a woman? UK surrogacy law is under review, and there's a renewed debate around how it should be regulated. The war in Ukraine highlighted this, as the spotlight shone on the surrogate mothers, the babies they'd given birth to, and the overseas parents struggling to collect the newborns. In the UK the numbers of children born through surrogacy are still relatively small but they're expected to rise, not just because of medical infertility...

Is a protest march worth your effort? About a million people attended the Stop the War street protest in 2003. About half a million had marched to protest against the fox hunting ban a year earlier. More recently, hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets to demonstrate against the decision to leave the EU. Nonetheless, the Iraq war happened, the hunting ban remains and Britain did leave the EU. James Tilley, a professor of politics at Oxford, finds out if street protests achieve...

Are we past the point of no return when it comes to our obsession with online technology? Elaine Moore considers her own tech use and explores our future in the metaverse. According to a YouGov poll, the majority of Brits can’t get through dinner without checking their phone. Children and young adults can now be treated on the NHS for ‘gaming and internet addiction’. So, with the arrival of the metaverse, which promises to seamlessly blend our real and virtual worlds, are we facing a future...

Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, the United Kingdom was sometimes characterised as the 'sickman of Europe' due to industrial strife and poor economic performance compared to other European countries. Today, inflation is once again rising and growth is forecast to slow considerably and economists predict that the UK could suffer a greater hit to living standards next year than any other major European country. BBC economics correspondent Dharshini David asks just how hard the times ahead...

Is formal childcare for pre-school children there to provide an early years education? Or to allow parents to go out to work? Politicians would say both, but many argue the UK’s system is failing to do either. Charlotte McDonald explores what improvements could be made and ask – do we want a big overhaul of our current system?

The Bank of England says inflation might reach 11 per cent this year. There are warnings that some people will have to choose between heating and eating. But what does it mean for the whole economy when prices just keep rising? In the 1970s inflation in the UK led to prices and wages spiralling as workers fought for wages that would keep up with prices. Those years were dominated by waves of strikes and social unrest as inflation became embedded in the economic system. The current...

Some countries have legalised cannabis, often with the hope of kick-starting a lucrative new source of tax revenue - but just how profitable has it been? Aside from a few fact-finding trips, the prospect of legalising cannabis is not on the political agenda here in the UK - but could it be missing out? Advocates say it's a bad call to let criminals continue to profit when legal businesses and the government could reap the financial rewards instead. Opponents counter that no amount of money...

In late February, three days after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the German Chancellor Olaf Scholz made a landmark speech in the German parliament, the Bundestag. The invasion, he declared, represented a 'Zeitenwende' - a turning point. The speech has been much discussed since - was Mr Scholz referring simply to the fact of the invasion, or to the way Germany needed to respond to it? The speech contained a number of policy statements, the boldest of which was the commitment to set up a...

Digital advertising fuels the digital economy, but is it all based on smoke and mirrors? Ed Butler investigates what some claim is a massive collective deception - a trillion dollar marketing pitch that simply does not deliver value to any of those paying for it. He asks, do online ads actually work, or could it be that some of the biggest names in global tech are founded on a false prospectus?