This bank holiday Q&A edition of Electoral Dysfunction sees Ruth Davidson, Harriet Harman and Beth Rigby answering listener questions rather than covering breaking news. The main discussion tackles whether media coverage of Keir Starmer's resignation was disproportionately harsh, with Rigby defending journalists' role in reflecting political crises rather than creating them, while Harman reflects on past examples of press "bloodlust" including Estelle Morris's resignation and her own experiences as a minister. The conversation ranges over press regulation history, including the Leveson Inquiry, the McCann case, and Scotland's devolved handling of press regulation, before touching on Andy Burnham's potential approach to Lords reform and press regulation as a prospective future prime minister.
Lighter segments cover logistics of prime ministerial trips abroad, including how many journalists travel on government planes and how costs are shared, plus a diversion into Starmer's and Burnham's favourite crisp flavours. The final segment turns to party politics, with Davidson advising that Kemi Badenoch should focus on economic policy to rebuild a broad Conservative coalition amid Reform's plateauing polls, while Harman and Rigby debate whether the next election will be fought as Labour versus Reform or Labour versus the Conservatives.