Afghanistan is starving

Suffering is relative and so on, but today I had a bad morning and so all rationality went out of the window. I texted my friends: “Is Mercury in retrograde or something??”, which is gen Z speak for “is anyone else having a bad day?” The answer was no but appropriate sympathy was given.

I might be becoming a Londoner, though, because on hearing that my connecting tube line was closed due to a casualty, my first response was frustration (should’ve just e-biked—see yesterday’s edition). Am I evil or do our daily routines just make us lack perspective from time to time?

With this question buzzing in my mind, I arrived at my desk and was immediately served a slice of humble pie in the form of today’s top story, in which, the UN’s World Food Programme (WFP) Afghanistan country director for, John Aylieff, sheds light on the diabolical situation in Afghanistan as the Taliban mark five years in control. From parents selling their 12-year-old daughter into an early marriage with a 40-year-old in order to feed their other children, to flash floods wiping out entire villages, what Aylieff has witnessed in Afghanistan is tragedy after tragedy.

WFP funding has experienced huge cuts lately, including a 39 per cent reduction in support from the United Kingdom. “We are now having to stop life-saving initiatives... There is no doubt about it: children in Afghanistan are already dying as a result of aid cuts”, writes Aylieff. The UK cut its aid budget primarily to fund greater spending on defence. Tom Clark wrote about the defence debate back in June, raising the point that, even beyond humanitarian issues, foreign aid spending actually helps “nurture stability and alliances through development assistance as opposed to military hardware”.

Instead of discussions around foreign aid and defence, the early weeks of Andy Burnham’s premiership have predominantly focused on domestic issues, like the economy, cost-of-living, and greater devolution. If he succeeds in these domains, he will be more electable when the time comes. But while some are hoping for Burnham to call an early election, Andrew Adonis argues that Reform UK’s unpredictability would make this a risky move.

However, if Burnham would like a national mood-check of the country, perhaps he should start by taking a taxi. My colleague Sarah Collins interviewed cabbies around England to hear how everyday people feel about the state of the country. Her reporting was in partnership with an immersive documentary created by Dante or Die. Today’s Prospect Podcast is recorded from inside a cab, alongside the documentary makers, to discuss what the interviews can tell us about life in the UK.

Let me know if you’ve had a bad morning too, or how you tend to gain a bit of perspective at kathryn.schoon@prospectmagazine.co.uk.