Olly Mann and The Week delve behind the headlines and debate what really matters from the past seven days. With Julia Macfarlane, Jamie Timson and Julia O’Driscoll.
In this week’s episode, we discuss:
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Russian spying
Claims emerged this week that an alleged Russian intelligence agent took advantage of the Homes for Ukraine refugee scheme to bring his family to the UK. The report sparked fears that other spies might also have come to Britain under the scheme. At the time, some ministers suggested that security checks on applicants from Ukraine were inadequate. Could more have been done to weed out Russian agents?
Climate lawsuit
A court trial is currently underway in the US state of Montana, with 16 young plaintiffs alleging that the state has failed to protect their constitutional rights to a “clean and healthful environment”. As one of the country’s biggest coal exporters, the local economy depends on fossil fuels – but extreme weather events are threatening the state’s prosperous outdoor recreation industry too. This is the first climate case of its kind to reach the courtroom in America, but how significant will its outcome be?
Literary warfare
The novelist Elizabeth Gilbert, who wrote “Eat, Pray, Love”, has decided to cancel the release of her latest book, set in Siberia in the 1980s, after a Ukrainian campaign against its Russian setting. What are their objections, and should Gibert have agreed to their requests? Or are we in danger of a counterproductive cancellation of all things Russian?
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5 ballsy cartoons about the new White House ballroomCartoons Artists take on the White House Disneyland, a menu for the elites, and more
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‘Congratulations on your house, but maybe try a greyhound instead’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
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How climate change poses a national security threatThe explainer A global problem causing more global problems
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The Week Unwrapped: Will Grace Wales Bonner change Hermès for the better?Podcast Plus will nuclear fusion deliver us from climate change? Is humour the best way to take on Trump?
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The Week Unwrapped: Can bullfighting win over young SpaniardsPodcast Plus, is online fandom inherently unhealthy? And is Putin’s economy running out of gas?
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The Week Unwrapped: Who had the last laugh in Riyadh?Podcast Plus are imported eggs undermining animal welfare? And what can we do about AI deepfakes?
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The Week Unwrapped: Was life sent to Earth by aliens?Podcast Plus why did Nepali voters use a gaming app to pick their next PM? And will a new national park boost the case for Welsh independence?
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The Week Unwrapped: Why is horse-racing going on strike?Podcast Plus, will the South Korean women who worked in state-run brothels set up for US soldiers succeed? And what’s behind a surge in leg-lengthening surgery?
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The Week Unwrapped: What does Bake Off say about Channel 4?Podcast Plus, why are Scottish drug deaths so stubbornly high? And are women in their 30s too anxious about their eggs?
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The Week Unwrapped: Could robotic dogs help clear landmines?Podcast Plus, what can we learn from a new approach to urban renewal? And how much power rests with political spouses?
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The Week Unwrapped: Is it time for a new world map?Podcast Plus, why is the pope getting flatmates? And why are seagull 'muggings' on the rise?
