The EU President Ursula Von der Leyen has offered Canada ‘associate membership of the EU’, a move which Donald Trump called ‘laughable’ - but still threatened ‘serious sanctions’ as punishment.  

In this episode of the Fourcast, we ask what Canada’s closer ties with the EU could mean - from tighter trade and defence to what Mark Carney calls 'a beacon for other democracies.' But with the far right rising in Europe, is the Canadian Prime Minister trying to join a club that could soon fall apart?  

Leslie Vinjamuri, the President and CEO of the Chicago Council on Global Affairs says Carney is playing a long-game when it comes to the US, picking up support on both sides of the border by standing up to Trump, and that his decision to move closer to the EU is a ‘declaration of independence from King Trump’.  While Dr. Linn Selle, head of the Europe division of the German Council on Foreign Relations, argues that the EU is chasing Carney’s star power to help revive its appeal.  

Ed Sheeran has found himself embroiled in a huge row after the rapper Macklemore was dropped as a support act from his tour, after he made comments in support of Palestine. 

The Suffolk singer has said he is "not complicit" and that the decision to drop Macklemore was not his. Since then, all the other support acts have pulled out of the tour in support of the rapper. 

On this episode of The Fourcast, Krishnan Guru-Murthy speaks with singer Paloma Faith who has publicly supported Macklemore, calling him ‘my hero’ on social media. 

They discuss the pressure put on if musicians by business interests, whether music can ever stay out of politics and if musicians can ever truly sit on the fence when it comes to the Israel-Palestine conflict.

Is British politics becoming more like America, dominated by billionaires, huge donations and increasingly polarised media? 

Krishnan Guru-Murthy is joined by journalist and broadcaster Mehdi Hasan, who has returned to the UK to launch Zeteo UK. 

They discuss Reform UK’s £72 million in donations from two crypto billionaires, what wealthy political donors might expect in return, Britain’s changing relationship with Israel, Donald Trump and the threat to journalism in America - and whether independent media can rebuild the trust lost by traditional news organisations. 

Hasan also discusses the war in Gaza, which he describes as a 'genocide' - Israel strongly rejects allegations of genocide and denies committing war crimes, saying its military operations are conducted in accordance with international law. 

Twenty-five years after 9/11, its consequences are still shaping the world. From Tony Blair and George W Bush to Trump, MAGA and the rise of populism in Europe, how much of today’s politics can be traced back to September 11th?

In today’s episode of The Fourcast Indicators, Matt Frei and Mark Urban look back at the attack that transformed American foreign policy, ushered in the war on terror and dramatically expanded the power of intelligence agencies and surveillance.

They are joined by Ambassador Nicholas Burns, the US ambassador to NATO on 9/11, who reveals how America’s allies responded in the hours after the attack, why he now regrets supporting the invasion of Iraq, and what the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan did to America’s willingness to intervene overseas.

The UK has signalled a major change in its approach to Israel, after its Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband announced what he called a “reset” of relations, as well banning exports from illegal Israeli settlements.

And while the move has been praised by many, it has attracted condemnation from Washington and Israel, who in response announced they would close the British consulate in Jerusalem.

So is the move mainly a symbolic gesture from the British government? Or could it signify a major policy shift when it comes to its once close ally?

On this episode of the Fourcast, Matt Frei is joined by the Palestinian Ambassador to the UK, Husam Zomlot, the Labour Chair of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee Dame Emily Thornberry MP, as well as former Conservative Foreign Secretary Sir Malcolm Rifkind.

Germany’s far-right party has won a major victory in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt, although it remains to be seen whether the AfD will be able to form a government there.

Nevertheless, the result has sent shockwaves not only through Germany, but across Europe too. For the first time since the end of the Second World War, a far-right party could gain power in a German state.

Why is the AfD surging? How much is its success being driven by immigration, economic frustration and anger at the political establishment? And what could its rise mean for Germany’s relationship with Russia, NATO and the EU?

Matt Frei is joined by author and commentator John Kampfner and Dr Sarah Wagner, a researcher in political science at Queen’s University Belfast, to examine whether this is a political blip or a watershed moment for Germany and Europe.

Senior Reform officials have been caught on camera discussing ways to get thousands of pounds of foreign money into the party, potentially breaking electoral law.[Subscribe to our Substack newsletter: https://channel4news.substack.com/subscribe]A Channel 4 News and Verbatim Investigations investigation found that James Orr, Reform’s Head of Policy, and Dan Jukes, a close aide to Nigel Farage, arranged for a US company to secretly fund three influential polls commissioned by the party. Since we aired the story, the two officials involved have stepped down from their positions but deny wrongdoing, and rival parties have reported Reform to the police. The Reform party has denied wrongdoing and launched an internal investigation. Nigel Farage has insisted that the party has broken no laws.To discuss all of this, Krishnan Guru-Murthy is joined by political commentator and former Reform member Tim Montgomerie, Labour MP Dame Emily Thornberry, as well as the barrister and election law expert Tom Gillie.

A potentially “supersized” El Niño is forecast for this winter - and scientists warn it could bring more extreme weather, from droughts and heatwaves to devastating floods.

But what happens when El Niño collides with a world already being reshaped by climate change?

On this episode of The Fourcast, Krishnan Guru-Murthy asks whether governments, businesses and the global financial system are prepared for the shocks ahead.

He speaks to Liz Stephens, Professor of Climate Risks and Resilience at the University of Reading and an anticipatory action expert at the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre, who explains how early warning systems can help communities prepare before disaster strikes, and economist Dr Matthew Winning, from UCL’s Institute for Sustainable Resources, looks at the wider economic consequences - from food prices and supply chains to insurance, investment and our pensions.

As extreme weather becomes harder to predict, should we rethink the way we plan for disasters? And is it already too late to rely on the old idea of a “one-in-100-year” event?

Hopes for a diplomatic breakthrough have faded as retaliatory strikes flare up once again across the Middle East. And with Donald Trump warning of further military escalation, is the world at risk of yet another economic shock?

So what’s behind the new wave of strikes in the Middle East? And could Iran be at risk of losing control of its ultimate bargaining chip - the Strait of Hormuz.

In this episode of The Fourcast Indicators, Krishnan Guru-Murthy and Mark Urban break down the geopolitical signals shaping this war. Joined by the economist Neil Shearing from Capital Economics, they discuss global markets, inflation, and whether an exit strategy exists for either side.

Pakistan is the latest country to hit back after the White House threatened countries who trade with Iran. China has already said it won’t be taking orders from America. So is this another failed bid by Donald Trump to bend Iran and its backers to his will? 

Or could this actually work? Several senior Iranian leaders have recently acknowledged the economic pain that the country and its people are feeling. 

On this episode of The Fourcast, Krishnan Guru-Murthy speaks to Mohammed Marandi, a professor at Tehran University and a former adviser to Iran’s nuclear negotiating team to get a view from inside Iran.

Meta has agreed to a landmark settlement over allegations that its platforms harmed children and teenagers - raising a much bigger question about how social media is designed and regulated.

On this episode of The Fourcast, we look at what the settlement actually means for Instagram and Facebook users, whether other social media companies could be forced to follow suit, and whether this could fundamentally change the way we use social media.

Krishnan Guru-Murthy was joined by visiting professor at Stony Brook University School of Journalism and author of ‘Hot Type’ Jeff Jarvis and Associate Professor in Digital Humanities at University College London, Kaitlyn Regehr.

In a statement released after the settlement, Meta said the agreement is not an admission of wrongdoing, but a new framework designed to give parents more control and teenagers stronger protections. It says the measures will only work if TikTok and YouTube adopt the same rules, because teenagers move between multiple platforms.