The U.K. Is in Trouble: Economic Crises, Energy Shocks, and the Queen’s Death

Hours before the death of Queen Elizabeth II, Derek talked to Duncan Weldon, the Britain economics correspondent at The Economist, about the U.K.’s political and economic challenge. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has sent energy prices soaring across Europe, but few countries have it worse than the U.K., where inflation skyrocketed past 10 percent and the Bank of England projects a deep and lasting recession. This comes after a 15-year period of utter economic stagnation, Brexit, and the clown show of Boris Johnson. How did the U.K., the birthplace of modern capitalism and the industrial revolution, become such an economic and political disaster? And will the queen’s death affect the nation’s trajectory?

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Host: Derek Thompson
Guest: Duncan Weldon
Producer: Devon Manze