URN

The latest edition of the Big Picture podcast is now available to listen to and download - just follow the link: http://urn1350.net/node/6415

This time, Matt takes the chair for the last time ever, putting questions to the panel about:

- The exchange of five Taliban detainees at Guantanamo Bay for US Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl, and what it means for peace in the Middle East;

- The controversy over the appointment of the President of the European Commission in the wake of David Cameron's threat to move his proposed British membership referendum forward to 2016 if current front-runner Jean-Claude Juncker is appointed; and

- The privatisation of public services, with a particular focus on Michael Gove's plans to take certain child protection functions out of State hands.

Thoughts? Comments? Post them below, or tune in next week to join the discussion live! The next (and second-last) Big Picture will be broadcast on Weds. 11th June at 6pm, live on URN. Tune in!

In the third-to-last show of the 2013/14 academic year, Matt chairs the Big Picture for the last time. In this show, originally broadcast on June 4th, 2014, we cover: the exchange between the Taliban and US government of five Guantanamo detainees for a US Sergeant; the row over the Presidency of the European Commission; and the wave of privatisation over the course of the Coalition government.

This week's Big Picture was chaired by Seb with David, Zoe and Matt on the panel. They discussed Nigel Farage's interview with LBC about immigration, particularly his comments about how people would feel if a group of Romanian men moved in next door, as well as UKIP's wider policies and chances in the EU and local council elections. They also discussed the bid by US company Pfizer to take over the British firm Astrazeneca and Ed Miliband's pledge to raise Britain's minimum wage if Labour win the next general election.