PMQs watch-along with Elliot Steel | PoliticsJOE Podcast

Join Ava, Laura, and comedian Elliot Steel live as they react to Prime Minister’s Questions live. After a busy conference season, Keir Starmer faces off against Leader of the Opposition Kemi Badenoch once again, and the stakes are high.

This week’s session comes off the back of Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ confirmation that tax rises and spending cuts could both be on the table. After seeing the first draft of the OBR’s report revealing a £30 billion “fiscal black hole,” Reeves blamed the crisis on “Austerity, Brexit, and Liz Truss’s mini-budget.” She’s promising to end the so-called “doom loop” of annual tax hikes, but can Labour do that while plugging the gap? Meanwhile, the IMF has offered a tiny glimmer of optimism — a 0.1% upgrade in UK growth to 1.3% this year.

And then there’s the China spy scandal — a collapsed prosecution, furious denials, and a diplomatic balancing act that’s testing Labour’s new foreign policy. The CPS says the case fell apart because it couldn’t get key evidence from the government. Badenoch says Starmer’s “sucking up to Beijing.” Labour insists it’s just cleaning up Tory messes.

Plus, what’s happening with China’s mega embassy near the Tower of London, and what does it say about Britain’s relationship with Beijing?