<p>Keir Starmer is (currently!) vowing to lead Britain through its current crisis — but are his supporters falling away?&nbsp;</p><br><p>James Lyons, Starmer's former Director of Communications at Number 10, joins Julia to dissect the Prime Minister's extraordinary resilience — or delusion, depending on who you ask.&nbsp;</p><br><p>With U-turns piling up, MPs briefing against him, and a leadership circus consuming Westminster, Lyons gives an insider's view of the man at the centre of it all.</p><br><p>Then it's the by-election that has been branded the ‘most significant in 50 years’.&nbsp;</p><br><p>Andy Burnham is heading to Makerfield — a seat that voted 65% for Brexit, where Reform swept the recent local elections.&nbsp;</p><br><p>Is this a bold political gamble to prove he can beat Reform UK… or a catastrophic miscalculation? And did Wes Streeting's comments about wanting to rejoin the EU deliberately torpedo Burnham's chances before he's even on the ballot?</p><br><p>Richard Tice, Deputy Leader of Reform UK, makes the case that his party are throwing everything at Makerfield — and explains why he thinks the Tories are simply irrelevant.&nbsp;</p><br><p>He also faces tough questions on Nigel Farage's undisclosed £5 million gift from crypto billionaire Christopher Harbour, the Standards Commissioner investigation, and whether Reform can actually govern if civil servants go on strike.</p><br><p>Plus: TikTok censors a Reform immigration video using the Online Safety Act — and Julia asks whether Nadine Dorries has repented for helping create it.</p><br><p>Julia Hartley-Brewer broadcasts on Talk from Monday to Thursday, 10AM to 1PM.</p><br><p>Available on YouTube and streaming platforms, along with DAB+ radio and your smart speaker.</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>