Iain Dale - The Whole Show

Protests have erupted across Iran following the regime's stark economic crisis in what has become the biggest outbreak of civil unrest since Mahsa Amini's death in police custody in 2022.We speak to Iranians living in the UK to hear about what it's like to live there, and we'll ask: should the West avoid getting involved in any prospective regime change?We go to Sydney to hear about how Australians are welcoming in the new year and ask whether our relationship with this celebration has changed. Plus we're joined by LBC's Simon Marks, Nick Abbot and Shelagh Fogarty to hear their predictions about what's to come in 2026.

Actor Idris Elba and Lionesses manager Serena Weigman lead the New Year Honours - but where did this tradition come from, and do you think the people in receipt of these gongs generally deserve them?The head of the Unite union - Labour's biggest donor - says the Prime Minister is toast and has warned his would-be successor not to make the same mistakes he has. Is she right? But what about party leaders Kemi Badenoch and Sir Ed Davey? Will they still be in their jobs at the end of 2026?A third of us say you have to be born in Britain to be truly British. What is "Britishness"?

Opposition parties are calling for a British-Egyptian dissident to be stripped of his citizenship following the emergence of tweets against British people where he also called for the killing of zionists. We're joined by Emily Thornberry who says citizenship cannot be taken away "willy-nilly". President Trump says "Russia wants to see Ukraine succeed". Does this statement encapsulate the anxiety that Ukraine will not be able to secure a "just peace"? Erin Doherty, the actress who plays a young Princess Anne in The Crown says she gets served quicker when she puts on a posh accent. In what way have you been judged for your accent?

Ukraine claims full control of Kupyansk on Christmas Day, dealing a symbolic blow to Vladimir Putin, with investigative journalist John Sweeney analysing what it means for the war. We also bring the latest on US strikes against IS targets in Nigeria and wider global defence implications with expert insight from Helen Hoddinott and Robert Fox. Plus, Dr Ellie Cannon joins us to talk weird phobias, why we get them, and how to overcome them.

A Christmas Day special exploring what the season really means, from faith and the nativity to commercialisation, family pressures, and changing traditions. Featuring emotional and thoughtful calls from listeners of different backgrounds, live performances, childhood memories, and festive reflections that capture Christmas.

What does your traditional Christmas diet look like? Do you go heavy on chocolates, or is turkey the highlight of your holiday season? Are there any wacky meals you bring out in December that would raise a few eyebrows?

Are you working through Christmas?

Should we all learn another language?

Call Kemi: Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch takes your callsJoining Iain Dale on Cross Question are Conservative Shadow Foreign Affairs Minister Andrew Rosindell, Liberal Democrat Shadow Attorney General Ben Maguire, historian and broadcaster Dr Tessa Dunlop and the social entrepreneur Samuel Kasumu.

Why would anyone in this country possibly want Trump to win his legal case against the BBC?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are MPs Charlotte Nichols from Labour and Sarah Bool from the Conservatives, Baroness Jenny Jones from the Green Party and the former adviser to Boris Johnson, Guto Harri.

How can Jewish people around the world be made to feel safer, when atrocities keep occurring?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are the Conservatives' Shadow Transport Secretary Richard Holden, Labour MP Tony Vaughan, political commentator Salma Shah and The Guardian columnist Polly Toynbee.

Are resident doctors being irresponsible to still be considering striking next week, given the scale of the flu outbreak?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are Labour's Cabinet Office Minister Josh Simons, former Conservative Cabinet Minister Sir John Redwood, the tech entrepreneur Judith McMinn and the political commentator Benedict Spence.

Do you recognise Trump's portrayal of London as a city which has been significantly harmed by immigration?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are Labour Muslim Network chair Ali Milani, MPs Harriet Cross from the Conservatives and Will Stone from Labour, and the think-tanker Phoebe Arslanagić-Little.

How can more young people be got into work?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are the former Conservative Education Secretary Justine Greening, Labour MP Dame Chi Onwurah, Anna Sabine from the Liberal Democrats & The Spectator's James Heale.

Does excluding countries from sport and culture really achieve anything?Author and podcaster Rory Stewart joins Iain in the studio to take LBC listeners' calls.

How should the war in Ukraine best be brought to an end?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are Labour MP Chris Curtis, former Conservative Cabinet minister Theresa Villiers, Democratic Unionist Party MP Jim Shannon and the homelessness campaigner Matthew Torbitt.

Do you support the planned reforms to the justice system?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are Channel 4's former Head of News Dorothy Byrne, Labour MP Andrew Pakes, the Centre for Policy Studies' Emma Revell and the former Conservative adviser Tom Skinner.

Are you concerned by the claims that Rachel Reeves misled the public about the country's finances?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are Labour MP Polly Billington, the Liberal Democrats' group leader in Liverpool Carl Cashman, Conservative peer Lord Robert Hayward and ConservativeHome's Henry Hill.

Kemi Badenoch takes your calls.Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are the Exchequer secretary to the Treasury Dan Tomlinson, Shadow business minister Dame Harriett Baldwin, General secretary of the Trades Union Congress Paul Nowak and Columnist for The Times Fraser Nelson.

Would you support British troops being sent to defend Ukraine after this war ends?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are the British Chambers of Commerce's Director General Shevaun Haviland, former Scottish Labour Party leader Kezia Dugdale, Conservative MP Graham Stuart and the Sunday Telegraph's Political Editor Camilla Turner.

Should the Chancellor be bold on Wednesday and slash public spending?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are MPs Catherine Atkinson from Labour, Dr Luke Evans from the Conservatives and Edward Morello from the Liberal Democrats, plus the journalist and broadcaster Angela Epstein.

Is stopping legal migrants who aren't citizens from getting benefits the way to end public anger about legal migration?

What needs to happen for this country to take the threats being posed to us a lot more seriously?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are the former Conservative Cabinet ministers Lucy Frazer and former Labour Cabinet minister Jim Murphy, along with Re:Start think-tank director Charlotte Pickles and journalist and disability rights campaigner Liam O'Dell.

Why are so many Brits fleeing this country?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are the Labour MP Alex Sobel, Conservative MP Sir John Hayes, Alys Denby from the business newspaper City AM and the political commentator and Liberal Democrat activist Mathew Hulbert.

Would the government's new asylum reform plans be the deterrent it says it claims, or is it just totally inhumane?Joining Iain Dale for a business-themed special edition of Cross Question are the wealth manager Gina Miller, drinks producer boss and hotelier Steve Perez, fine jeweller Kiki McDonough and the inventor and entrepreneur Richard Browning.

Could removing incentives for buying electric vehicles stop you buying one?Journalists Jonathan Dimbleby and Peter Oborne take listeners' calls on the war in Gaza and on Palestine's future.

If Labour were to oust Keir Starmer, who would you want to replace him?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are the Labour Health Minister Stephen Kinnock, James Reed of the employment agency Reed, former Conservative Cabinet minister Sir Ranil Jayawardena and The Guardian columnist Zoe Williams.

Would you support the two-child benefit cap being scrapped?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are the Spiked Online editor Tom Slater, the New Statesman's associate political editor Rachel Cunliffe, Labour MP Natasha Irons and the Conservative MP Sir Alec Shelbrooke.

What should - and shouldn't - the BBC do in the future?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are the Green Party MP Siân Berry, Conservative peer Lord James Bethell, former Brexit Party and Conservative MEP Lucy Harris and the political commentator Matthew Stadlen.

Call Kemi: Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch takes calls from LBC listeners.The former Cabinet minister Sir Vince Cable also takes calls, on his new book about growing Chinese and Indian economic and political power.

If the Chancellor raises taxes in next month's Budget, is this just a coward's way out?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are MPs Chris Murray from Labour and Greg Smith from the Conservatives, writer and comedian Timandra Harkness and LBC's political correspondent Aggie Chambré.

What role should the UK play in helping Jamaica recover from the damage which Hurricane Melissa will cause?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are the Conservative Shadow Energy Security Secretary Claire Coutinho, Labour MP Peter Swallow, the Good Growth Foundation's Theresa Bischoff and the Free Speech Union's Connie Shaw.

Who do you blame for the prisons chaos over the weekend, which saw the Epping asylum seeker sex offender wrongly released?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are the Lib Dem deputy leader Daisy Cooper, Conservative Shadow Defence Minister Mark Francois, the LabourList website editor Emma Burnell and the entrepreneur and commentator Jamila Robertson.

Would you support seeing knife arches in all schools? How else should youth violence be tackled?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are the climate policy campaigner Scarlett Westbrook, the former Conservative minister Paul Scully, Labour MP Sarah Smith and the political commentator and strategist Matthew Lesh.

Would you support the state pension triple lock being scrapped?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are Conservative peer Baroness Rachel Maclean, Labour MP Calvin Bailey, the economist Liam Halligan and the podcaster Jemma Forte.

Should the government now change the law to force Prince Andrew out of the royal family entirely?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are the drag artist Colin Seymour (a.k.a. 'Crystal'), Conservative peer Lord Gavin Barwell, former UKIP deputy chairman Suzanne Evans and Liberal Democrat MP Joshua Reynolds.

If you were Chancellor, whose taxes would you want to put up?The chair and deputy chair of police officers' representative body, the Police Federation of England and Wales, take LBC listeners' calls.

Why is the Chancellor only now blaming Brexit for Britain's economic woes?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are Labour's Immigration Minister Mike Tapp, Conservative Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp, The Spectator's Lara Brown and the New Statesman's Oli Dugmore.

What should happen to the asylum seeker who threatened to kill Nigel Farage?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are 'The Black Farmer' Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones, Labour Tonia Antoniazzi, Green Party House of Commons leader Dr Ellie Chowns and the Conservative peer and political strategist Lord Matthew Elliott.

What needs to be done to make the peace in Gaza last into the long-term?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question are the Conservative Shadow Scotland Secretary Andrew Bowie, Labour MP Tom Hayes, journalist Rebecca Reid and LBC's own Political Editor Natasha Clark.

Are you optimistic about peace in the Middle East?

Do moves like wanting to abolish stamp duty make the Conservatives sound more appealing again?Joining Iain Dale on Cross Question is the former Home Secretary Amber Rudd, the Labour London Assembly member Leonie Cooper, the campaigner Jovan Owusu-Nepaul and the economist Dr Linda Yueh.