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UK's Shadow Chancellor, John McDonnell Jan 25, 2019

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In little more than two months from now, Britain is scheduled to leave the European Union. That beguilingly simple statement is at the heart of a political crisis which deepens by the day. The ruling Conservative party is riven with splits; so too is the Labour opposition. If Parliament’s Brexit paralysis persists, then Britain will leave with no deal in place, no orderly transition, and the prospect of economic disruption. What will Labour do in this moment of political truth? HARDtalk's Stephen Sackur talks to the UK's Shadow Chancellor, Labour's John McDonnell.

Image: John McDonnell (Credit: AFP/Getty Images)

Malaysia's Minister for Youth and Sport - Syed Saddiq Jan 23, 2019

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Until last year, Malaysia hadn't experienced a real change of government in the sixty years since independence. Prime Minister Mahatir, sailing back into power in opposition colours, can remember when Malaysia threw off the British colonial yoke. He was in his thirties then. Now in his 90s, he says next year he'll hand over to a former rival in his 70s. Malaysia’s Minister of Youth and Sport, Syed Saddiq, is the youngest cabinet minister in Asia at 26. Is it time to skip a generation?

Tanzanian Opposition MP - Tundu Lissu Jan 21, 2019

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Tanzania is one of Africa’s fastest growing nations economically and demographically. It’s also governed by one of the continent’s most controversial leaders, President John Magufuli. Tundu Lissu is one of his most prominent domestic opponents; at least, he was, until gunmen pumped more than a dozen bullets into his body in 2017. Lissu survived and, after recovering in hospital in Europe, he is determined now to rejoin the fight against a ruler he describes as a petty dictator.

Image: Tundu Lissu (Credit: Tony Karumba/AFP/Getty Images)

Economy and Finance Minister, France - Bruno Le Maire Jan 18, 2019

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HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur is in Paris for an exclusive interview with the country’s Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire. The political and economic mood in France has shifted dramatically in a few short months. Last summer President Macron was pushing ahead with his reform agenda claiming that France was back. Now he is besieged by critics, forced into retreat by the Yellow Vest movement and grappling with problems inside and outside the EU. Has the Macron moment already passed?

(Photo: Bruno Le Maire leaves after the weekly cabinet meeting at the Elysee palace in Paris. (Credit: Francois Guillot/AFP)

Adviser to President Trump's 2020 campaign - Mica Mosbacher Jan 16, 2019

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If the normal political rules applied to Donald Trump he would be holed up in the white house in a state of deep despair. He’s at war with Democrats in Congress, the federal government machine is partially shutdown, his relationship with Putin's Russia is under fierce scrutiny, and his standing at home and abroad continues to take heavy hits. And yet, every day he come out punching; raising the stakes, not retreating. HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to Mica Mosbacher, Republican strategist and member of the National Advisory Board of Trump 2020. Is the Trump Presidency making America great, or greatly diminished?

Jonathan Coe - Writer Jan 14, 2019

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Britain is in the grip of Brexit. To leave, or to remain in the European Union: that question has divided families, generations, and communities. Everyone seems to be shouting, no-one seems to be listening.

Well, that’s not quite true. Jonathan Coe has been listening to and writing compelling fiction about contemporary Britain for decades. Can this novelist, whose latest novel looks at the impact of Brexit, help us understand Brexit better than a parliament full of politicians?

(Photo: Jonathan Coe. Credit: Getty Images)

President, Conference of European Rabbis - Pinchas Goldschmidt Jan 11, 2019

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There is plenty of disturbing data pointing to a significant rise in overt anti-Semitism in Europe and the United States. What are the reasons and how should the Jewish community respond? How much reassurance and protection is being offered to Jews whose past has so often been written in blood? HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to Pinchas Goldschmidt, Chief Rabbi of Moscow and president of the Conference of European Rabbis. Is rising anti-Semitism a symptom of a liberal democratic order that is starting to crumble?

Image: Pinchas Goldschmidt (Credit: Mikhail Tereshchenko/TASS via Getty Images)

General Secretary, Unite Union, UK - Len McCluskey Jan 09, 2019

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HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to Len McCluskey, leader of Britain’s biggest trade union and biggest donor to the Labour party. Brexit is tearing at the fabric of British politics. Theresa May’s proposed deal is hated by many in her Conservative party. It may well be rejected in a parliamentary vote next week. But the opposition Labour party is riven by division too. A clear majority of Labour members seem to want a second referendum as a pathway to reversing Brexit. But party leader Jeremy Corbyn says Brexit can’t be stopped. Could Brexit break the left apart?

Image: Len McCluskey (Credit: Jeff Overs/BBC)

Dr William Frankland, Allergist and WW2 Prisoner of War Jan 07, 2019

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Dr William Frankland is a world renowned expert on allergies and one of the last remaining British survivors of the Japanese prisoner of war camps in World War Two. His is a death-defying, life-affirming story. But at the age of 106, what keeps him going?

(Photo: William Frankland. Credit: John Stillwell/AFP/Getty Images)

Jack Reacher author Lee Child Dec 19, 2018

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Stephen Sackur speaks to the author Lee Child. Storytelling is one of the most basic human impulses. But few are the storytellers who can draw in millions of readers all over the world, fewer still those who can do it repeatedly. Lee Child’s first thriller featuring former military policeman Jack Reacher was published 21 years ago. His latest is his twenty third and his book sales have topped a hundred million. Fans speculate endlessly about what drives Jack Reacher, but what drives Lee Child?

Image: Lee Child (Credit: WireImage/Getty Images)

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