Lots to discuss today, between Diane Abbott being suspended (again) and Labour handing the vote to 16-year-olds just before we head into recess.

Abbott’s suspension comes after she was accused of ‘doubling down’ on previous claims that Jewish people experience racism differently from black people. She is the latest Labour troublemaker to be left out in the cold, with seven MPs punished this week for voting against the government – four of them suspended from the party. Is Starmer confusing toughness with strength? And will Abbott’s suspension stick this time?

Elsewhere, 16-year-olds have been given the vote. Those in favour point to the political maturity of young people in the country and welcome this as a move towards fairness and encouraging responsibility, while detractors are crying gerrymandering and a raw attempt to swing the political arithmetic in the governing party’s favour. But will it actually matter? Polling suggests that very few 16–17-year-olds will actually vote – and that many of them prefer the insurgent parties. So who stands to win, and who stands to lose from the very modest youth-vote bump?

Lucy Dunn speaks to Tim Shipman and the pollster Luke Tryl.

Produced by Oscar Edmondson.

We are hosting a Coffee House Shots live tomorrow (15th July) at The Emmanuel Centre in Westminster. Join Tim Shipman, Michael Gove and Isabel Hardman to debate: Are the Tories toast? Click here for tickets.

For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.

Contact us: podcast@spectator.co.uk

Keir Starmer has struck again. Compounding his reputation as a ruthless operator – like Michael Corleone – he is settling all family business by removing the whip from a number of troublemaking MPs, including Neil Duncan Jordan, Chris Hinchcliff, Brian Leishman and Rachel Maskell. This comes after each led respective revolts on winter fuel, planning reform, Grangemouth and the welfare changes. Rosena Allin-Khan, Bell Ribeiro-Addy and Mohammed Yasin have all lost their trade envoy roles too.

Many of the MPs who have been cast adrift are from the new intake, and so today we are joined on the podcast by Mike Tapp, MP for Dover and Deal, to give his reflections on a year in office. On the podcast: he offers James Heale his advice on stopping the boats; details how Labour can start to deliver tangible change for people in constituencies much like his own; explains why Keir was right to suspend his fellow MPs; and gives us an insight into the future Labour stars from the new intake.

Produced by Oscar Edmondson.

We are hosting a Coffee House Shots live tomorrow (15th July) at The Emmanuel Centre in Westminster. Join Tim Shipman, Michael Gove and Isabel Hardman to debate: Are the Tories toast? Click here for tickets.

For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.

Contact us: podcast@spectator.co.uk

Last night, Rachel Reeves was the headline act at the Mansion House dinner. In her speech, she made the case that ‘Britain is open for business’ and that we must ‘stay competitive in the global economy’. Critics would say it is hard to claim to be open for business while having also overseen a £25 billion national insurance tax raid that is now known to be costing thousands of jobs.

She began by stressing that, despite what recent reporting might suggest, she is ‘okay’ – the economic indicators, however, suggest that the economy is far from okay. Just this morning, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported that inflation hit 3.6 per cent in the year to June – well above the 2 per cent target.

On this special edition of Coffee House Shots, James Heale and Michael Simmons are joined by shadow chancellor Mel Stride, who offers his prescription for Britain’s ailing economy. He outlines how he would have conducted the speech at Mansion House, how he will spend the recess with business leaders of all descriptions in 'listening mode', and why – when it comes to the big institutions such as the OBR, the Treasury and the Bank of England – he ‘isn’t ruling anything out’.

Produced by Oscar Edmondson.

We are hosting a Coffee House Shots live tomorrow (15th July) at The Emmanuel Centre in Westminster. Join Tim Shipman, Michael Gove and Isabel Hardman to debate: Are the Tories toast? Click here for tickets.

For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.

Contact us: podcast@spectator.co.uk