FT Investigations

The UK's private finance initiative was designed as an alternative way to fund the building of hospitals, schools and other infrastructure. But was it a costly mistake? Matthew Vincent is joined by the FT’s Jonathan Ford and Gill Plimmer, Alex Jan of the global engineering company Arup and Labour MP Stella Creasy to discuss the question. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There are two ways of looking at Britain’s rail privatisation story. If you focus on usage, it looks like a success. But look at the cost and level of passenger satisfaction and the picture is not quite so rosy. Matthew Vincent discusses what's gone wrong and what can be done to fix Britain's railways with the FT's Jonathan Ford, Gill Plimmer and Robert Wright and John Stittle of Essex Business School. Music clip courtesy of ACTORvist Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Years of austerity and rising bills in the UK have eroded the consensus that private companies could run utilities more cheaply and efficiently than the state and opposition politicians are calling for renationalisation. Matthew Vincent discusses what has gone wrong with Britain's privatisation model with the FT's Jonathan Ford and Gill Plimmer, and they are joined by Stephen Littlechild, the man who devised the model, and infrastructure expert Martin Blaiklock. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Afghanistan has made great strides in areas of womens' education and employment, in spite of the insecurity and violence that dominate the headlines. Freelance producer Catriona Oliphant visited the country for the FT and produced this feature on Afghan women who are blazing a trail. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

China has a controversial history in Cambodia, where it was the main foreign supporter of the genocidal Khmer Rouge in the 1970s. These days China is pouring money into the country at an unprecedented rate but, as the FT's James Kynge reports, not everyone is benefiting from the billion dollar investment deals. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Was Omar Mateen persuaded by Islamist propaganda to carry out his attack on the Orlando nightclub? How can western security agencies fight back against jihadi websites or predict those most likely to be influenced by them? Tom Burgis puts these questions to Kara Scannell, FT investigations correspondent, and Erika Solomon, Middle East correspondent. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

McKinsey, one of the world’s most influential consulting firms, has built up a secretive $5bn internal investment arm that manages the fortunes of its past and present partners, raising questions over possible conflicts of interest. Andrew Hill talks to the FT journalists who investigated the fund about how it operates and why it may be a cause for concern. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Through his investigation into the London operations of Swiss bank BSI, Tom Burgis has looked into the nuts and bolts of how some banks help clients hide their money from tax authorities. He talks to Christine Spolar and Ralph Atkins about what he found. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

South Dakota's role as a prairie tax haven has gained unwanted attention since the release of the Panama Papers, an investigation by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, which has drawn attention to the anonymity that is available in the US. The FT's Kara Scannell travelled to South Dakota to investigate. She talks to Christine Spolar and Vanessa Houlder about what she found. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The leaked “Panama Papers” show how a Panamanian law firm, Mossack Fonseca, secretly shepherded a web of offshore accounts that resulted in billions of dollars in transactions passing through its doors. Its client list includes some of the world’s wealthiest people, from members of Russian president Vladimir Putin’s inner circle to the prime minister of Iceland. Tom Burgis talks to Vanessa Houlder, FT tax correspondent and Alex Cobham, head of research at the Tax Justice Network, about the significance of the revelations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.