Fuel poverty is on the rise with millions of households in England having to choose whether to “heat or eat”.

Last year, the Government estimated almost 9 million households could be classed as “fuel poor”. This means that, after housing costs, more than 10 per cent of their household income would be spent on heating.

Covid supply disruptions and the war in Ukraine have contributed to the problem alongside the UK’s economic crisis.

In this episode host Zoë Grünewald is joined by British Gas Energy Trust Chief Executive Jessica Taplin, Chief Executive of Citizens Advice Rhondda Cynon Taff, Ashley Comley and Chief Executive Officer of Bromley by Bow Centre, Ellen De Decker. They explore reasons for the sharp rise in fuel poverty, what’s being done to support those in need and what needs to change to ensure Government funding gets through to those who need it most.

This New Statesman podcast episode is sponsored by The British Gas Energy Trust, an independent charitable trust funded solely by British Gas. The Trust offers financial support for vulnerable households and is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year.

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The UK is on course for a huge rise in preventable illness. The Health Foundation charity predicts that by 2040, one in five adults will be living with a serious condition, such as cancer, dementia or heart disease. Meanwhile, economic activity is stagnating, with roughly 2.8 million people currently out of work due to ill health, according to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics.

Our world-leading life sciences sector has the capacity to help reverse this trend. In 2021 alone, it contributed £43.3bn to the UK economy, and supported 646,000 jobs. With the right investment, it could add an additional £68bn to GDP over the next 30 years, create 85,000 more jobs and result in a 40 per cent decrease in disease burden across the UK.

This episode, in partnership with professional services firm PwC, explores how greater investment into vital disease areas such as cancer, obesity and immunology could make British society physically and financially healthier.

Emma Haslett is joined by Chi Onwurah, the shadow minister for science, research and innovation; Dr Dan Mahoney, chair of the UK BioIndustry Association (BIA) and the government’s life sciences investment envoy; and Stephen Aherne, pharmaceutical and life sciences leader at PwC UK.

If you enjoyed this podcast you can find more of Spotlight's policy reporting in our standalone Spotlight podcast feed, or at newstatesman.com/spotlight

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MPs have voted to back Rishi Sunak's progressive smoking ban. Can it work?

The Tobacco & Vapes Bill includes new legislation to increase the smoking age by one year, every year, banning the sale of cigarettes to anyone born after 1st January 2009. MPs have voted the bill through its second reading and it is now in the committee stage.

The tobacco firm Philip Morris International have pledged to move away from selling cigarettes, and instead focus on heated tobacco products. In this episode, Becky Slack is joined by Dr. Moira Gilchrist of Philip Morris International, to discuss the company's plans for a "smoke-free future" and whether Britain - and tobacco firms - really can kick cigarettes for good.

This episode was paid for by Philip Morris International. The New Statesman retains full editorial control.

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