Sadiq Khan | Peter Kyle | Mel Stride
Walk into a bar .... with a studio attached.
We might be one of the few British businesses benefitting from the Trump effect - if you judge it by the number of politicians suddenly keen to come on the podcast. Next up this week are Peter Kyle and Mel Stride - hit reply or leave a comment with questions, substack readers shape my view and questions more than any other.
Which member of the Cabinet would you most like to cook you dinner? Answer at the end of this email.
In some ways, sitting down with Sadiq Khan was perhaps going to be my toughest interview. He is a consummate politician - he came of age during Labour’s command-and-control era, where discipline was the message and the message was discipline. But the job he’s held since 2016 – Mayor of London – has changed just as much as politics has in that time.
When the history books are written, 2016 will go down as the year everything shifted: authenticity started to beat polish; imperfection became a kind of currency. So I was intrigued to see how Khan, now the longest-serving mayor in the office’s history, would show up.
And to my surprise, he showed up reflectively. Relaxed, funny at times, and unusually generous in his praise. Of billionaires. Of business. Of David Cameron and George Osborne, no less.
I’ve known Sadiq for over a decade. Not well – and we’ve certainly found ourselves on opposite sides plenty of times. But this conversation felt more like a man taking stock of his time in office, of London’s future, and of what it’s cost him personally.
Perhaps the standout moment was when he admitted he’s not sure he would do it all again. I found that sad, from a man who came from such humble beginnings to rise to one of the highest offices in the land. It speaks to something deeper and more worrying: I fear persuading talented people into politics is one of the most underrated challenges facing the West.
💬 Some standout moments:
On devolved power:
“We’re one of the most centralised democracies in the Western world,” he said. He wants more control over skills, housing, transport, even the Royal Parks. It’s hard to disagree, the comparison with mayors in Paris or New York is stark.
On business:
He was effusive about entrepreneurs – name-checking Brompton, Percival, and even throwing support behind South London’s fast-changing high streets. But he was just as candid about why London doesn’t yet have its own $10bn breakout like Spotify: “The big VC money still isn’t here. We train the talent – then lose it to the Valley.”
On politics past and present:
He spoke warmly of David Cameron and George Osborne, noting how constructive the early days were. It was only later, under Johnson, that things turned more tribal. He was clearly semi relieved to be working with a Labour government again – but also aware getting things from friends can be more challenging than enemies . “I can’t get everything I want,” he said, “even now.”
On billionaires leaving London:
Not the populist take you might expect. “We don’t create jobs as politicians. What we can do is create the environment where people want to stay, to build, to employ others.” He urged his “tribe” to show that success and wealth aren’t dirty words.
On fatherhood and threats:
This was perhaps the most personal I’ve heard him. He talked about the toll the job has taken on his family. His daughters dealing with online hate. Sniffer dogs outside their home. “If I’d known in 2015 what it would mean for them… I’m not sure I would’ve said yes.”
I left the interview thinking about just how dramatically the job of Mayor – and the city itself – has evolved. London is no longer simply about buses and bikes. It’s about AI, climate tech, unicorns, and cultural cohesion and collusion in a global age of division.
Whether you agree with his politics or not, Khan’s tenure offers a window into that transformation.
🎧 The full episode is live now. It’s thoughtful, wide-ranging, and occasionally unexpectedly funny. Like me, he does actually have a 10 min comedy set :)
Peter Kyle: The Best Job in Government?
There’s something about Peter Kyle that stands out in the Westminster jungle, and not just his policy brief. As Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, he holds what I genuinely think might be the best job in government. If the 2010s were all about fintech and startups, this next chapter will be defined by quantum, AI, and whatever comes after TikTok. And Kyle’s the one holding the pen.
By the time of the next election in 2029, i think the world is going to be looking dramatically different.
But it’s not just the brief – it’s him. He’s one of the most well-rounded politicians I’ve come across. He talks about policy like someone who’s lived in the real world. He is open about his dyslexia (more so than I have in the past frankly). He’s worked in social enterprise. He doesn’t shrink from the personal – and that makes for a much better conversation, when politicians are serving in government office, they can be quite hard to chat too because they are focused on message discipline and getting key points across, but I am rather looking forward to my chat.
I'm excited to have him on the podcast because the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology isn’t just about rebrand, it is about changing the nature of our economy by giving growing sectors a seat at the biggest table. It was an idea first suggested by William Hague in the leadership race of 2022, which was eventually implemented by Sunak when he won, but still we have very few people of technical or scientific expertise in British politics.
Yes, I spent too long playing around with AI images yesterday to create the above, how many ‘easter eggs’ can you spot!?
As always, would love to know your questions.
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PPS. Khan picked Yvette Cooper to go for dinner with, because Ed Balls would be the one to do the cooking and he is a great cook apparently.
New here? First Subscribe, but also some of our archive is below:
Tremors in the Jobs Market (May 2025)
Big News and New Beginnings (September 2024)
Soft Power, the Queen and Apple HQ
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