Does it matter when a Government breaks a keystone promise? Former Blair advisor John McTernan joins us to look at Boris Johnson’s punitive National Insurance hike and ask whether even a serial liar can get away with a whopper like this. What sort of devil is in the detail of the Government’s social care plans? Plus, on the 20th anniversary of 9/11 we ask whether the baleful effects of the terrorist attacks on Western politics could ever have played out differently. 

• “Breaking a promise is a profoundly important moment for any government… Promises go to leadership, and that matters.” – John McTernan
• “The likelihood that we’ll fall into a conspiracy theory is so much greater that at the time of 9/11 simply because of the way we access information now.” – Minnie Rahman
• “There are people within Labour who want to seek out new ideas and energy with the aim of crushing them.’” – John McTernan
• “It’s not the rate that matters, it’s the complexity. This is a new layer of complexity, and that always benefits the rich.” – Alex Andreou
• “Johnson was elected on levelling up and now he’s going to level down, to the tune of £1,000 a year for some people.” – John McTernan

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Presented by Dorian Lynskey with Minnie Rahman and Alex Andreou. Produced by Andrew Harrison. Assistant producers: Jacob Archbold and Jelena Sofronijevic. Audio production by Alex Rees. OH GOD, WHAT NOW? is a Podmasters production.

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