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In this episode of Policy Matters, hosts Franz Buscha and Matt Dickson talk to ... Matt Dickson and Franz Buscha! It’s been a while since we talked about the policy-relevant research that we are currently pursuing both together and individually, so we take some time to find out what is floating our research boats. Matt talks about a couple of research projects looking at the impact of education on labour market and health outcomes – using different “natural experiments” to try to identify how much education actually affects these things. Franz then tells us about his recent research project on the geography of social mobility in the UK, exploring the nuanced story of social mobility differences between, and within, regions. The discussion concludes with consideration of recent developments in data availability and how that can benefit researchers and policymakers going forward.

Professor Tim Evans of Middlesex University discusses ONS figures showing that non-EU exports are growing five times faster than those heading to the EU. He also turns his attention to the Middle East, wondering what might be the result of recent events involving Iran and looks at Oman, broker to the Iran nuclear deal, where the modernising Sultan has just died after ruling for 50 years. Lastly, he assesses the importance of the recently-deceased philosopher Sir Roger Scruton.

The childcare system in England is broken. Our nurseries are among the most expensive in the world, but our childcare professionals are some of the lowest paid workers in society. For a long time, government policy on childcare has been badly thought out and severely underfunded. More recently, big international chains have moved into the sector. So, what should be done? How would we fix the childcare system? And what would it mean for families, and for the country, if we finally got it right? This week Ayeisha Thomas-Smith is joined by Helen Penn, Visiting Professor at the UCL Institute of Education, Amy Martin, Creative Director of Impact Hub Birmingham, and Lucie Stephens, Head of Co-production at NEF.

James Cameron-Wilson examines the UK box office where the new #1 film is the awards-laden 1917 from Sir Sam Mendes. Little Women climbs to #2 while James also highlights Kristen Stewart's new film Seberg at a lowly #19 in the chart. He also reviews Adam Sandler in Uncut Gems although, being a Netflix movie, it has no chart ranking. For home release, he discusses Pedro Almodovar's Pain and Glory starring Antonio Banderas before touching on the staidness of the Oscar nominations.

Saving, spending, planning — you've got money questions and we've got answers. Every week host Alison Southwick and personal finance expert Robert Brokamp challenge the conventional wisdom on life's biggest financial issues to reveal what you really need to know to make smart money moves. In this week's show: The Motley Fool's VP of People Insights, Kara Chambers, joins the team to talk about what makes us feel fulfilled at work and shares hacks to improve your job situation in 2020.

Ian Forrest of The Share Centre looks at the recent GDP and inflation figures. He also examines company news from Associated British Foods, Whitbread, Boohoo and Persimmon. He then looks ahead to what we might expect from Easyjet, Burberry and Marston's.

Steve Caplin looks at some of the weirdest ideas at the CES, including Segway's 24 mph armchair, augmented reality windscreens, a robotic chef that can't open the fridge and a loo-roll-fetching bear. He also covers a lung kit for snorkelers powered by the swimmer's legs; the Fingerbot for pressing buttons on dumb devices; the headphones that turn into loudspeakers; and how to get a VR theatre experience without leaving home.

Want to keep up with the latest earnings updates from the States? Well join Chris Hill and the Motley Fool Radio Show team here on Share Radio, direct from Washington DC, for news, views and analysis of the US stocks that matter. In this week's show: Costco reports some holiday cheer thanks to the strong trifecta of toys, candy, and alcohol; Bed Bath & Beyond sinks; Lennar raises the roof; And Grubhub delivers a denial. Motley Fool analysts Andy Cross, Emily Flippen, and Ron Gross discuss those stories and weigh in on the latest from Constellation Brands, Luckin Coffee, Pier 1 Imports, Macy’s, Kohl’s, and Taco Bell. Our analysts share three stocks on their radar: Accenture, Livongo, and Meituan Dianping. Plus, The Motley Fool’s Rex Moore shares some insights from CES 2020 and talks 5G, driverless cars, and 3D printing.

Savers had a resoundingly duff deal over the decade that just ended, as they paid the price for the borrowing binge that proceeded it. Understandably, many feel somewhat aggrieved – like a moderate drinker who got the hangover that should have gone to the party animal. But it’s not just ‘emergency’ low interest rates that turned permanent that delivered the pain, banks and building societies paying little respect to loyal customers and undermining them with rock bottom rates on legacy accounts has also played a major part. Now, the financial watchdog has a plan to deal with the so-called loyalty penalty. A standard savings rate across all easy access accounts and Isas, with the ability to offer better rates over limited periods, for example, 12 months. When bonus time was up, that standard rate would act a floor to protect savers against the 0.01 per cent-paying accounts of this world. Is this a solution to the problem, or just some tinkering that all but mandates bonus accounts and does nothing to tackle saver inertia? Simon Lambert, Sarah Davidson and Georgie Frost tackle the plan to improve the savings market on this week’s podcast – and discuss whether this is a wise idea for a new decade or a recipe for more of the same. Also, on this week’s podcast, as a decade ends and one begins, we look at the property market: what happened to house prices in the 2010s and how did it compare to the 2000s, 1990s and 1980s, and also what will happen this year and in years to come?

The last four decades have been a roller-coaster ride for economic liberalism. Riding high from the early 1990s, falling trade barriers boosted international trade, integrated countries such as China into the global economy and significantly reduced the number of people in absolute poverty. Developments in technology ‘supercharged’ these impacts, radically altering our lives as workers and consumers. In this interview, Peter Urwin speaks to economist Vicky Pryce about where it all went wrong – is the rise of populism simply a reaction to the 2007-08 financial crisis, or is it a wider backlash against liberalism? Not everybody welcomes the changes brought about by globalisation, and change always implies disruption – is there a case for government compensation, targeted at those who bear the brunt of disruption and are less able to take advantage of the gains from liberalisation?