The Week Unwrapped: Greens, investments and space privateers

Olly Mann and The Week delve behind the headlines and debate what really matters from the past seven days.

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In this week’s episode, we discuss:

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Green power

Germany looks set to join a growing list of European countries governed by ecologically minded parties, with the German Greens’ leader Annalena Baerbock tipped to become the next Angela Merkel when the chancellor steps down after the upcoming federal elections. So why is so much of the continent’s political landscape changing colour and why isn't the UK following the trend?

Cheap advice

Independent financial advice can be very expensive, making it all but inaccessible to anyone without a sizable pot of money to invest. As a result, an increasing number of smaller investors have opted for passive funds that track market performance. Now the financial giant Vanguard is seeking to bridge the gap by offering straightforward advice to people with modest pensions. Is this what the market needs?

Space privateers

Nasa has chosen Elon Musk’s company SpaceX to build the next generation of spacecraft that will return humans on the moon for the first time since 1972. The company has won a $2.9bn contract to build the human lunar lander; what does the involvement of private companies mean for the future of space exploration, and how much closer is Musk to realising his ambition of colonising Mars?

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