As basic income trials take place around the world, the idea can no longer be dismissed as purely utopian. But can it truly reshape economies and societies?

In this episode, Richard Kemp talks with Howard Reed and Elliott Johnson, two of the co-authors of Basic Income: The Policy That Changes Everything, about the reality of basic income.

They explore various models of implementation, how such a system could be funded, how it differs from the current welfare framework, and the potential for basic income to create transformative change across society.

Howard Reed is Senior Research Fellow in Public Policy at Northumbria University and Director of Landman Economics. Elliott Johnson is Vice-Chancellor’s Fellow in Public Policy at Northumbria University.

Find out more about the book at: https://policy.bristoluniversitypress.co.uk/trade/basic-income

The transcript is available here:

Timestamps:

01:34 - What is basic income and how is it different from our current welfare offer?

04:19 - Can you talk more about the conditionality of our current welfare and the behaviour it causes?

05:55 - Has the welfare situation always been this bad?

08:05 - What are the three schemes for basic income?

12:26 - Can you explain why people from wealthy families can afford to fail?

14:54 - How fiscally different would basic income be for people on the ground?

16:53 - What are the wider societal benefits of basic income?

22:27 - Why do you call it basic income instead of universal basic income?

24:39 - Wouldn't prices just go up if everyone had this extra money?

30:26 - How would basic income do better to help child poverty than child benefit?

35:26 - What do we need to do, and what's already being done, to help basic income become a reality?

Intro music:

Cold by yoitrax | @yoitrax

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What does a humanist feel when they gaze up at the stars? In this episode, George Miller speaks to philosopher Richard Norman, author of What Is Humanism For?, about wonder, meaning and morality in a world without God.

Their conversation traces Norman’s intellectual journey, from religious upbringing to secular commitment, and explores how humanism answers some of life’s deepest questions — not through divine revelation, but through shared human experience.

Along the way, they consider humanist funerals, climate change, artificial intelligence and how a humanist might still feel awe in a godless universe:

‘The awe comes from our sense of both our insignificance when confronted with the vastness of the universe — and our connection with it. A sense that we are part of this magnificent universe.’

Richard Norman, BA (Cantab), PhD (London), is a British academic, philosopher and humanist. He is Emeritus Professor of Moral Philosophy at the University of Kent, where he spent most of his career, and a patron of Humanists UK.

Find out more about the book at: https://bristoluniversitypress.co.uk/trade/what-is-humanism-for

The transcript is available here: https://www.transformingsociety.co.uk/2025/05/30/podcast-a-humanist-looks-at-the-night-sky/

Timestamps:

00:58 - What feelings and thoughts does it provoke in a humanist when they look up on a starry night?

08:22 - Did you have a religious upbringing?

17:13 - When does it become possible to begin to put forward ideas which seriously question Christianity?

22:55 - What provides the ethical foundations for humanism?

26:48 - How does that basic foundation then begin to help us with the purpose?

32:15 - How does a humanist funeral work?

34:59 - Does putting the human at the centre lead to things like climate change?

41:05 - What do humanists think about this possible brave new world where we're no longer the most rational creature on the planet?

44:14 - What should you do next if you're still curious?

Intro music:

Cold by yoitrax | @yoitrax

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Within the next 30 years the European workforce will be down by a quarter, upsetting the systems we have had in place for decades.

In this episode, Richard Kemp speaks with Giles Merritt, author of 'Timebomb: When Ageing Explodes', about this impending ageing crisis.

They discuss the multiple factors that have led us here, as well as what needs to be done to defuse this bomb before it goes off and explodes the European economy.

Since his 1978 arrival in the 'Capital of Europe' as a correspondent of the Financial Times, Giles Merritt has specialised in Europe's policy challenges as a journalist and think-tanker. He's often hailed as a 'Brussels institution' by readers of his incisive and often critical commentaries on European politics and economics.

Find out more about the book at: https://policy.bristoluniversitypress.co.uk/trade/timebomb

The transcript is available here: https://www.transformingsociety.co.uk/2025/05/19/podcast-the-ageing-crisis-that-no-ones-talking-about/

Timestamps:

1:20 - What is the timebomb and when is it going to go off?

6:27 - What happened to our growth and should we be concerned?

12:31 - Shouldn't Brexiters be celebrating the lower number of migrants?

25:15 - What happened to create this chasm between just two generations?

35:31 - What is the truth behind the workforce crisis?

42:11 - Has there been any change to fix the upcoming pension crisis?

46:40 - Why do billionaires get away with profit diversion? Why can't we tax them properly?

52:49 - Do parties like Trump, AFD and Reform actually intend to fix the problem?

54:01 - Where should we start to take action against this timebomb?

Intro music:

Cold by yoitrax | @yoitrax

Music promoted by www.free-stock-music.com

Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License

creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en_US

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.