Share Sounds from Share Radio Afternoon related to Politics - Europe

With less than two weeks remaining before the French Presidential Election, the race has become a four-way contest, with the far-left candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon overtaking the conservative Francois Fillon in the latest polls. Independent Emmanuel Macron and National Front Leader Marine Le Pen are still in the lead in the polls, both with 24%, but who will win in the end? For her thoughts, Ed Bowsher was joined by Aarti Shankar, Policy Analyst at Open Europe.

Cabinet Eurosceptics reportedly backed Theresa May's softer approach to Brexit, supporting the idea of a transition period after April 2019. And, Bank of England Governor Mark Carney said that the City must not be cut off from the rest of Europe, advising against protectionism in financial markets. Asa Bennet, Assistant Comment Editor at the Telegraph, joined us for the latest political news.

The House of Commons Brexit committee says that Theresa May's claim that 'no deal is better than a bad deal' is 'unsubstantiated'. However, the committee's verdict wasn't unanimous, only 11 of the 17 committee members supported the report. For this and more on the latest political news, Ed Bowsher was joined by John Rentoul, Chief Political Commentator at The Independent.

The Government has unveiled the white paper on the 'Great Repeal Bill', which will transpose 40 years of EU law back into the UK. To find out more, Share Radio's Ed Bowsher spoke to Adam Bienkov, UK Political Editor of Business Insider.

Personal campaigns have made a power-sharing government in Northern Ireland increasingly difficult. So what's next for the devolved administration at Stormont? Mick Fealty, editor of Slugger O'Toole, joined Share Radio's Ed Bowsher to discuss.

Northern Ireland's former deputy first minister Martin McGuinness has died at the age of 66. Once a commander in the IRA, he later took on a crucial role in negotiating the peace process as deputy leader of Sinn Féin - but what's his legacy? Plus Labour's underlying civil war takes a fresh turn. The Independent's chief political commentator John Rentoul joined Share Radio's Ed Bowsher for more on the day's big political stories.

There's an official date - Article 50 will be triggered on March 29. But how long until negotiators start hammering out the actual Brexit deal? And what major obstacles will Theresa May face? For insight on this and more, Mike Indian, senior political analyst at DeHavilland joined Share Radio's Ed Bowsher.

Brexit Secretary David Davis says the UK hasn't assessed the economic effect of leaving the EU without a deal. But the government's attitude isn't surprising. Dr Ben Margulies, from Warwick University's Department of Politics and International Studies, joined Share Radio's senior analyst Ed Bowsher to explain.

As the Dutch go to the polls tomorrow, can the right-wing populist Geert Wilders get his Eurosceptic party into government? Share Radio's Alexi Phillips spoke with the head of Open Europe's Brussels Office, Pieter Cleppe, asking him about the latest results in opinion polls.

The Vauxhall and Opel brands will be sold off by General Motors for £1.9 billion to French car giant PSA - the company behind Peugeot and Citroen. What does the deal mean? And why will a hard Brexit be 'very damaging' for UK car industry? Share Radio's Ed Bowsher spoke with David Bailey, Professor of Industry at Aston Business School.