Podcasts

Simon is joined by travel journalist and author Sarah Tucker. This week, they look at why 2017 is set to be another record year for inbound tourism to the UK and there's an insider's guide to Washington DC. TV holiday expert John Carter, formerly of Wish You Were Here and the BBC's "Holiday" series joins them in studio to discuss how the holiday scene has changed over the last half-century.

Tim Evans, professor of Business and Political Economy at Middlesex University, joined Simon live in the studio to discuss: Why Economic forecasts continue to be so inaccurate; Why 2017 heralds the coming age of curative, predictive and preventative medicine; Lord Mervyn King on reasons to be cheerful.

Are British economists too gloomy about the country's prospects? Is it time for them to perk up a little? One person who thinks so is John Redwood, Chief Global Strategist at Charles Stanley and the MP for Wokingham.

Simon Rose was joined by Ed Bowsher to look at what’s been happening in the bourses and businesses of Britain and the world – including Sports Direct’s chairman facing a revolt and results from house builders Persimmon.

Looking for love online in January? Need advice? Dating guru Charly Lester from 30dates talked to Georgie Frost on how to find love in the New Year

We may not particularly happy in our careers as a nation. A recent study has found more than a quarter were bored with their current job whilst 40% rated their happiness below 5 out of 10. Despite the widespread dissatisfaction though very few people are actually making any steps to change their jobs. To find out what options are available Georgie was joined on the line by Director of Online Learning at the University of Derby, Julie Stone.

A study carried out by Oxfam has shown that volunteering can boost your chances of getting a job. The charity surveyed 500 employers -75 percent said they would select candidates with volunteering experience over those that didn't. And today Oxfam has launched its Give a Shift campaign to recruit more volunteers. Our reporter Sara Macham spoke to Andrew Horton, trading director at Oxfam about why volunteering is so important.

The Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas unveils the future of technology and gives the first glimpse of all the tech that will be buzzing about in the near future. The show this year is dominated by voice-controlled smart hubs, which control things like lights and heating in your home. This year is the 50th anniversary exhibition- and for a preview of some of the advances in technology that are about to be unveiled, Georgie spoke on the line to technology journalist David McClelland.

Earlier this week we reported on the Government's pledge to build thousands of discounted 'starter homes' for young first time buyers. But already there has been controversy, arguments the prices are 'nonsense' and the number of planned builds 'unrealistic'. Yet the Federation of Master Builders believe the introduction of these starter homes offer a good foundation. To find out more about the pledge and the implications, Andrew Dixon, head of policy at the FMB, joined Georgie on the line.

Many of us use this time of year to make changes in our lives – sorting out your finances is a good place to start. Firstly, checking your credit score - Equifax credit expert Lisa Hardstaff and senior analyst Ed Bowsher joined Georgie Frost in the studio to find out just where you are and figure out what you can do to improve it.