Is Britain too reliant on benefits? This week the government's budget outlined welfare cuts of £12 billion, which some commentators think will hit the poor hardest. Tax credits for low paid families, sickness benefit and housing benefit are all being cut. According to the Office for National Statistics, more than half of households in Britain receive more in benefits than they pay in taxes. So are we too dependent on welfare or will the cuts increase poverty?
Panel:
Author of Chavs: The Demonization of the Working Class, Owen Jones
British-based American talk show host and commentator Charlie Wolf
Family law barrister Paula Rhone-Adrien
Historian, author and documentary maker David Olusoga
Alison Inglis-Jones of the Trussell Trust
Is it wrong to collect Nazi memorabilia?
Malcolm Fisher runs a family business trading in military memorabilia including real and reproduction Nazi artefacts and concentration camp paperwork. He says the items are all important parts of our history. Buying and selling Nazi memorabilia is banned in many European countries, should it be banned here? Or is it any different to collecting other militaria? Is our enduring fascination with the war and Nazi regime simply an attempt to understand evil?
The widow of the Bangladeshi humanist blogger Avijit Roy, killed on the streets of Dhaka for his views on secularism and science, speaks to Sunday Morning Live. Bonya Ahmed, who was also injured in the attack by religious fundamentalists, tells Asad Ahmad that she'll continue to campaign for free speech and humanism despite the attack that has changed her life forever.
Do religions diminish free speech?
Blasphemy laws were scrapped in Britain in 2008, but remain in Northern Ireland. Iceland has become the latest country to repeal their blasphemy laws this month. Has Britain got the balance right? Is blasphemy an outdated concept? Does following a religion supress your freedoms? Or can religion and free speech co-exist? The panel are joined by chief executive of the British Humanist Association Andrew Copson.
How should we regard the actions of our ancestors?
Next week, a two-part documentary series begins, looking at Britain's forgotten slave owners. In 1833 Britain abolished slavery, a defining and celebrated moment - but what's largely forgotten is that abolition came at a huge price. Tens of thousands of slave owners received huge amounts of compensation for their losses, whilst the slaves got nothing. Presenter David Olusoga shares the story. Show less