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Episode details

Radio 4,09 Sep 2026,28 mins

Why are so many ex-prisoners being sent back to prison?

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Tim Harford investigates some of the numbers in the news. This week: (00:38) The number of people being recalled to prison after early release in England and Wales is rising sharply. Why? (07:37) Is the UK millionaire an endangered species? We ask Duncan Weldon - he’s like David Attenborough, but for economics. (14:21) A viral graph seems to show that Europe is having a record low year for wildfires. How can we reconcile this with this summer’s shocking coverage of fires in France and Spain? (21:36) We all know seagulls are low-life thieves - but can they really be responsible for £171m worth of robbery? Prepare for five minutes of public service journalism at its finest. Guests: Cassia Rowland, Senior Researcher at the Institute for Government Hannah Ritchie, Deputy Editor at Our World in Data Duncan Weldon, economist and author of Blood and Treasure Presenter: Tim Harford Series Producer: Tom Colls Reporter: Lizzy McNeill Producers: Nathan Gower, Phoebe Keane, Josh McMinn Editor: Richard Vadon Programme Coordinator: Brenda Brown Sound Engineer: James Beard

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