Update on Afghan women; Huma Abedin; UTIs; Elizabeth Denham; 'Buyer's Remorse' - a podcast by BBC Radio 4

from 2021-11-09T11:13

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It was reported over the weekend that a women's rights activist called Frozan Safi was murdered, after she thought she was being taken to safety. She had been contacted and promised safe passage to Germany, but that never happened. It was a trap. We also heard yesterday about the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan. When BBC correspondent John Simpson described what he'd seen and the people he'd met he was moved to tears, live on the radio. We hear from a woman now living in the UK - Shukria Barakzai, previously a government minister in Afghanistan and BBC World News correspondent, Yalda Hakim.

Huma Abedin worked as Hillary Clinton’s private top aide and long-time advisor for 25 years. She was also the wife of ex-congressman Anthony Weiner, when a sexting scandal sent him to prison, destroyed their marriage and derailed her boss’ bid to become President in 2016. Emerging from the wings of American political history to take command of her own story, she’s just released her memoir 'BOTH/AND'. Exploring themes of addiction, motherhood, the power of therapy, faith and shame, Huma explains why she chose to publicly stand by her husband.Is that must have pandemic purchase now gathering dust in your home? According a a new survey, one in 10 of us have regrets when it comes to items bought during the pandemic Gaming equipment, home gyms, bikes, musical instruments, kitchen appliances such as bread makers, garden furniture, pizza ovens and hot tubs all appeared on the regret list. A survey of 4,000 people found some had sold or given away the items they regretted buying. We hear from retail analyst Catherine Shuttleworth.

Our data – and how it is used – is at the heart of political decision making and debate today. It’s part of all our lives - from the digital cookies we sign up to every time we click on a website to the introduction of Covid passports on our mobile devices; and it’s valuable to the tech companies businesses and governments who use it. Elizabeth Denham, heads the Information Commissioner’s Office. In charge of how our data is used, she's responsible for everything from nuisance telephone calls to data breaches and has most recently overseen the deployment of England's contact tracing app and the Test and Trace programme. As she prepares to leave her role at the end of the month, Emma Barnett speaks to Elizabeth about the big issues facing the industry and in particular the impact they will have on women.

Last month, the winner of the Max Perutz science writing award was announced – an annual competition for Medical Research Council PhD students. This year’s winner is Vicky Bennett – for her article on treating Urinary Tract Infections. Vicky joins Emma to discuss her research, and why she thinks UTI’s – something most commonly experienced by women – need more attention within medicine.Presenter: Emma Barnett
Producer: Kirsty StarkeyInterviewed Guest: Huma Abedin
Interviewed Guest: Catherine ShuttleworthInterviewed Guest: Elizabeth Denham
Interviewed Guest: Shukria BarakzaiInterviewed Guest: Yalda Hakim
Interviewed Guest: Vicky Bennett

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