Political Currency

Ed Balls and George Osborne hosting a podcast together still feels slightly surreal. One was Labour's shadow chancellor, the other was the Conservative chancellor who implemented austerity. They clashed publicly for years. And yet their podcast works brilliantly, precisely because they understand each other's world in a way that outside commentators simply cannot. Political Currency drops weekly on Thursdays, with episodes running 50-60 minutes for full discussions and shorter 35-40 minute segments for their "Ex-Ministers' Questions" format. The premise is that economics and politics are inseparable, and Balls and Osborne use their firsthand experience of Treasury decision-making to explain how fiscal policy, budgets, and economic crises actually play out behind closed doors. When they discuss what it is like to prepare a budget or negotiate with the Bank of England, they are speaking from direct experience. The show has 266 episodes and a 4.2-star rating from 45 reviews. There is a premium tier called Political Currency Gold with ad-free listening and bonus content, though the standard episodes are plenty substantive. What listeners appreciate most is the civility -- Balls and Osborne disagree frequently but argue in good faith, which makes for genuinely productive debate rather than performative point-scoring. If you care about the intersection of economics and British politics, and you want to hear from two people who actually pulled the levers of fiscal power from opposite sides, this is essential listening.