<p>Ian Collins examines the political and cultural fallout from a rapidly escalating Westminster scandal.</p><br><p>Mark Stephens, lawyer, and Baroness Catherine MacLeod of Camusdarach, Labour peer, join the programme to assess what the latest revelations linking Peter Mandelson to Jeffrey Epstein mean for the Labour Party - and whether the allegations, police reviews and questions over conduct threaten Labour’s credibility on ethics, transparency and power.</p><br><p>We then turn to Britain’s classrooms. Hilary Strong, lead of the <em>Suds in Schools</em> initiative, discusses growing concern over declining hygiene standards in schools, asking whether this is a symptom of neglect, squeezed budgets, or the wider cost-of-living crisis now hitting families and local authorities.</p><br><p>Finally, Samara Gill, Talk reporter, brings us coverage from the Reform press conference on saving Britain’s pubs, joined by Jamey McIvor, as campaigners warn that taxation, regulation and political indifference are pushing community pubs to the brink.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>