StratCast

In the first 2021 edition of his monthly economic update, Dr Andrew Hilton, director and joint founder of the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation, delivers his regular tour of the world's major economic developments and outlook. This month, Dr Hilton takes a look at early 2021 forecasts and how the year could unfold, including what to expect from China and President-elect Joe Biden, before taking a closer look at the absence of provisions for financial services in the UK-EU FTA. 

In the December edition of his monthly economic update, Dr Andrew Hilton, director and joint founder of the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation, delivers his regular tour of the world's major economic developments and outlook. This month, Dr Hilton review the US Presidential Election and discusses the significance of Georgia's imminent senate election. He then takes a look as the composition of President-elect Biden's team and what this can tell us about the likely policies of the new administration, before stepping back and reviewing the global markets and the contents of UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak's spending review. 

In the November edition of his monthly economic update, Dr Andrew Hilton, director and joint founder of the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation, delivers his regular tour of the world's major economic developments and outlook. This month, Dr Hilton looks ahead to the impending US Presidential Election, the most polarised of its kind in recent history. We explore the significance of Vice-Presidential Candidate Kamala Harris, the likely actions of a Democrat-controlled Senate and House of Representatives, and what a Biden win could mean for a UK-US Trade Deal. We then go across the Atlantic for a view of the economic impact of the latest wave of lockdowns across Western Europe, and why this could mean an extension to Brexit negotiations. 

In the October edition of his monthly economic update, Dr Andrew Hilton, director and joint founder of the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation, delivers his regular tour of the world's major economic developments and outlook. This month, Dr Hilton takes a look at some the geopolitical vicissitudes causing instability across global markets, from sabre-rattling in Beijing to President Trump's COVID-19 diagnosis and explosive tax return leaks. In the UK, with business investment and consumer spending falling, and unemployment rising, plainly a second wave of lockdowns would be crippling for the economy.  

In the September edition of his monthly economic update, Dr Andrew Hilton, director and joint founder of the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation, delivers his regular tour of the world's major economic developments and outlook. This month, we take a look at the progress of the global economic recovery as what had been accelerated improvement gives way to a more cautious and possibly stalling rate, as well as a look ahead at what could be 'the nastiest election since Humphrey-Nixon', with Donald Trump appearing to assume a platform of law and order. 

In the August edition of his monthly economic update, Dr Andrew Hilton, director and joint founder of the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation, delivers his regular tour of the UK and the world's major economic developments and outlook. This month he questions the logic of a second lockdown before looking at the faltering global economic recovery and the prospect of a Biden Presidency for the US, the Democratic Presidential Candidate being more committed to protectionism, and more beholden to Trade Unions.   

Welcome to the twentieth episode of StratCast, and the last before a break for August, with Peter O'Kane, Seumas Kerr CBE, Sophia Gaston and Tom Cargill. Two key highlights. The interview with Sir Ciarán Devane, CEO of the British Council, at 10:17 on the role of soft power within ‘Global Britain', and a summary, at 35:00, of the really important, hot-off-the-press, joint BFPG/Oxford University paper on resetting UK/China relations. For direct access to the full 70 page report use this link. 

Welcome to the nineteenth episode of StratCast. In this, the penultimate StratCast before an August break, Peter O'Kane interviews Guardian Universities Editor Rachel Hall about the current strong headwinds facing higher education in the UK, either side of which Sophia Gaston, Tom Cargill and Seumas Kerr CBE look at important developments and some briefings over the last seven days. These include multiple UK ambassadors generously joining British Expertise members to update them on key markets around the globe, reflections from BFPG on the report on Russian influence in the UK and D Group's continuing focus on key requirements as to how the UK's infrastructure is designed and procured; plus Tata UK's chief, Tim Jones, addressing the prospects for digital currencies.

Welcome to the eighteenth episode of StratCast. This week, with Sophia Gaston away finalising an important BFPG paper on China, Tom Cargill,  Seumas Kerr CBE and Peter O'Kane follow the normal format. They review some of the week's developments that stood out, ranging from heatwaves in Siberia to machinations in Westminster. There is then an interview with Philippa Foster-Back, who led the Institute of Business Ethics for 20 years around the always important but recently dramatically more dynamic subject of businesses being held to account for their practises, current and historical. They finish up by looking at what's been going on in the briefing programmes of the last week, with a particular focus on BEI's  extensive ongoing series of webinars featuring on-the-spot market briefings from over thirty UK ambassadors and their representatives around the World, bringing to life key themes and opportunities for UK business.

Welcome to the seventeenth episode of StratCast. In what is a hugely important week for the UK economy, Sophia Gaston, Seumas Kerr CBE and Tom Cargill begin by discussing the Chancellor's Summer budget, with a particular focus on the importance and feasibility of the retrofitting programme, before taking a look at the candidates for WTO Director-General, in what is a somewhat febrile atmosphere for the organisation. Sophia Gaston then interviews Joseph Sternberg of the Wall Street Journal on US foreign policy, particularly its relations with China, and the potential ramifications of a Biden presidency, before they wrap up with a look ahead at the programmes of The D Group, The British Foreign Policy Group, and British Expertise International. 

In the July edition of his monthly economic update, Dr Andrew Hilton, director and joint founder of the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation,  delivers his regular tour of the UK and the world's major economic developments and outlook. This month there is a deep dive into the dramatic change in US political dynamics as the pandemic heightens awareness of the precariousness of financial situations across the globe.  Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.

Welcome to the sixteenth episode of StratCast, this week led by the youth wing of Strategy International in the form of Laurie Woodiwiss of The D Group, Matt Gillow and Matthew Gibbons of British Expertise International, and Katarina Kosmala-Dahlbeck and Evie Aspinall of The British Foreign Policy Group, the idea being that they might – in a small way - help our listeners, as leaders and captains of industry, to see issues from the perspective of their younger colleagues, in what is a very challenging environment. They follow the normal StratCast format of a quick chat amongst themselves about some of the more recent developments affecting young people, before moving on to an in-depth interview from Matt Gillow with the very well-informed James Price, ex Special Adviser to the House of Lords and until recently one of the only sub-30 year olds operating at the heart of government, first through the soap opera of Brexit's legislative journey through Parliament and more recently the drafting of the measures to confront the Covid-19 pandemic. They then conclude with some reflections on the themes drawn out in that conversation and a look at the week ahead for The D Group, BEI and BFPG. Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.

Welcome to the fifteenth episode of StratCast with Seumas Kerr CBE, Tom Cargill and Sophia Gaston. This week covers a characteristically wide range of global and domestic issues, including renewed conflict between India & China, President Trump's recent apparent criticism of Covid testing, Tanzania's increasingly dictatorial government, and the future of free trade. It also feature a fascinating interview with BBC Today Programme presenter, journalist Justin Webb, reflecting on coverage of the pandemic to date and posing the question of whether it may lead to journalists trying to understand and address scientific issues in a more informed manner.  Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.

Welcome to the fourteenth episode of StratCast with Peter O'Kane, Seumas Kerr CBE, Tom Cargill and Sophia Gaston. A longer than usual podcast but a week full of relevant developments for Strategy International's membership, notably around the accelerated merger of DfID and the FCO, which they mull over at some length. That discussion is preceded by Sophia, Tom and Seumas's thoughts on newsworthy items over the last seven days and also by the main interview at 09:05. This is with William Wright, the Founder and MD of New Financial, the UK's leading think tank on capital markets. It focuses on the critical importance of the role The City is playing during the pandemic to keep the wheels of commerce turning and, looking forward, which it will have to play to help the nation pull itself out of what is bound to be a period of intense financial stress. Some fascinating stats, plus a couple of minutes of some very relevant observations on the progress the financial sector is making around embracing diversity. Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.

Welcome to the thirteenth episode of StratCast with Peter O'Kane, Seumas Kerr CBE, Tom Cargill and Sophia Gaston, where they continue their tour around the World to gauge the impact of the last few months. This week it's the Rubik's Cube of the Middle-East and in Jane Corbin, one of the leading broadcast media experts on the region, they have an outstanding guide. They are reminded of major challenges to regional stability and global security that have not gone away. They also dwell on some key highlights and news stories of the last week before Tom and Seumas discuss the huge opportunities and challenges for the UK and international markets in mobilising that classic, post-recession pump-primer, major spend on infrastructure. Sophia then reflects on the movements in the UK against racial injustice, and how the Global Britain project could serve as the basis of a cathartic national reckoning about our history. Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.

Welcome to the twelfth episode of StratCast with Peter O'Kane, Seumas Kerr CBE, Tom Cargill and Sophia Gaston. This week they hear from the London correspondent of Die Welt about the view from Germany about the UK and Covid, the Germany/China picture and the ‘B' word. Before that they briefly discuss a range of noteworthy developments in the week. The mass protests in the US and those held in sympathy in the UK. The still-developing debate about HMG's proposed international visitor quarantine rules. The discouraging to'ings and fro'ings around the next G7. They then conclude by taking a longer look at the issue of the apparent inability of Western liberal democracies to maintain the authority of the post WW2 engagement channels established precisely to address global security issues and, looking for silver linings to the last 12 weeks, reflect on the potential benefits of the lockdown to greater gender diversity in the workplace. Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.

In this, the June edition of his monthly economic update, Dr Andrew Hilton, director and joint founder of the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation, reviews some of the awesome statistics to have emerged in the past week before taking a look at the long road to recovery and where that will actually take the global economy, including the prospect of a new 'Cold War'.  Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.

Welcome to the eleventh episode of StratCast. In a week where the airwaves were clogged up by the Cummings ‘saga', Peter O'Kane, Tom Cargill, Sophia Gaston and Seumas Kerr CBE step outside the UK and get the view from Africa, dwell on the developments in Hong Kong, chew over how pre-existing inter-generational issues will be exacerbated by C-19 and focus on the importance to a UK export push of a rapid, international solution to allowing experts to travel. They then have the usual reflection on the past week and a look forward the forthcoming events calendar across BEI, BFPG and D. Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.

Welcome to the tenth episode of StratCast, in which Peter O'Kane invites the heads of BFPG, BEI and The D Group to briefly reflect on some noteworthy events of the past week, and then interviews Boris's previous Chief Business Advisor and prior COO of Sky, Andrew Griffiths, about the evolving nature of HMG: UK business relations, followed by drilling down into important issues relevant to the work of Strategy International's three components. For BFPG it's looking at emerging UK social attitudes to free trade and their relevance to government to carry the population with it in forthcoming trade negotiations. For D it's the challenges to business leaders, beyond C-19, of the move towards carbon net zero. For BEI it's the huge global opportunities for the many centres of excellence in the UK infrastructure sector and the challenge of finding the vehicles and mechanisms through which they can compete. Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.

Welcome to the ninth episode of StratCast, a weekly addition to Strategy International's enhanced online communication with members, followers and friends during this challenging time. It brings together insights from all three of our component parts; The D Group, British Expertise International and The British Foreign Policy Group, and this week includes an interview with previous Home Secretary and Education Secretary, Charles Clarke. Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.

Welcome to the eighth episode of StratCast, a weekly addition to Strategy International's enhanced online communication with members, followers and friends during this challenging time. It brings together insights from all three of our component parts; The D Group, British Expertise International and The British Foreign Policy Group, this week including an interview with Elizabeth Ames, Executive Director of the Australia-United Kingdom Chamber of Commerce and a board member for the Menzies Australia Institute, about Australia's increasingly robust approach to China. Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.

May sees Dr Andrew Hilton, director and joint founder of the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation, return with his monthly podcast, this time re-assessing the question of whether the ‘cure' of economic shutdown is worse than the Covid-19 ‘disease', analysing myriad troubling economic forecasts, and examining the resurgence of the Chinese economy. 

Welcome to the seventh episode of StratCast, a weekly addition to Strategy International's enhanced online communication with members, followers and friends during this challenging time. It brings together insights from all three of our component parts; The D Group, British Expertise International and The British Foreign Policy Group, and this week includes interviews with IISS expert Robert Ward on Anglo-Japanese relations, and with founder of Compass for Life Foundation Floyd Woodrow.  Timestamps: 01:29 – The Team's Highlights of the Week 07:37 – Interview. Japan; geopolitically and the Japan/UK relationship 21:28 – Main discussion on Recent Briefings & What to Look Forward to Next Week  39:05 – Peter introduces Compass for Life chair,  Floyd Woodrow and the forthcoming video to help parents and children navigate challenging times.  With Peter O'Kane, Tom Cargill, Seumas Kerr and Sophia Gaston. And Robert Ward and Floyd Woodrow. Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.

Welcome to the sixth episode of StratCast, a weekly addition to Strategy International's enhanced online communication with members, followers and friends during this challenging time. It brings together insights from all three of our component parts; The D Group, British Expertise International and The British Foreign Policy Group, and this week includes an interview with Prof Jeremy Black on historical precedents of the Covid-19 crisis. With Peter O'Kane, Seumas Kerr, Tom Cargill and Sophia Gaston. And Professor Jeremy Black. Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.

Welcome to the fifth episode of StratCast, a weekly addition to Strategy International's enhanced online communication with members, followers and friends during this challenging time. It brings together insights from all three of our component parts; The D Group, British Expertise International and The British Foreign Policy Group, as well as  an interview this week with former chair of Vote Leave, and current chair of Wilton House, Gisela Stuart. Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.

Welcome to the fourth episode of StratCast, a weekly addition to Strategy International's enhanced online communication with members, followers and friends during this challenging time. It brings together insights from all three of our component parts; The D Group, British Expertise International and The British Foreign Policy Group, and this week also includes an interview on future Anglo-Indian relations with Dr David Landsman OBE, a former Director of Tata Limited.  Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.

April sees Dr Andrew Hilton, director and joint founder of the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation, return with his monthly podcast, this time addressing the ravaging impact of Covid-19 on the world economy as well as the prospective social and political implications of the crisis, including the question of whether the cure is indeed worse than the disease. Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.

Welcome to the third episode of StratCast, a weekly addition to Strategy International's enhanced online communication with members, followers and friends during this challenging time. It brings together insights from all three of our component parts; The D Group, British Expertise International and The British Foreign Policy Group.  Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.

This week's edition discusses adjusting to the new coronavrius realities, as well as the impact on international trade and development, and how British companies might weather the storm. With Peter O'Kane, Sophia Gaston, Tom Cargill and Seumas Kerr. Produced by Nick Hilton for Podot.

This week's edition sees the heads of each of those organisations give their take on, variously, the C-virus effect on the UK's relations with the EU, the impact on ‘Global Britain' and its ambitious trade agenda and, closer to home, the challenges and really exciting opportunities facing HMG as we emerge from the pandemic, and as to how the massive infrastructure spend can really level-up the UK. With Peter O'Kane, Sophia Gaston, Tom Cargill and Seumas Kerr. Produced by Nick Hilton for Podot.