Best of 2024: Our top 5 debates of the year

City AM’s weekly debate feature takes the fiercest water-cooler debates and pits two candidates head to head before delivering The Judge’s ultimate verdict. From workplace policies to inheritance tax, here are five of our most thought-provoking from 2024.

1. What to do with inheritance tax?

Inheritance tax has sometimes been dubbed ‘Britain’s most hated tax’, and it’s rarely left headlines this year. In this debate, Elliot Keck from the Taxpayers’ Alliance went up against the Resolution Foundations’s Adam Corlett to weigh up the pros and cons.

The Conservatives had 14 years to reform this horrible levy; yet only tinkered around the edges

2. Should B Corps cut ties with fossil fuel companies?

The stripping of Havas London’s B Corp status over its work with Shell brought B Labs (the company that awards the ethical accreditation) under the spotlight. Good Agency founder Chris Norman and Topham Guerin founder Ben Guerin gave their verdicts on whether B Corps should cut ties with fossil fuel companies here.

Havas losing their B-corp status after winning the Shell account is the latest instance of fairytale virtue-signalling

3. Are there too many podcasts?

We’ve all thought it. Now let’s ask it. Are there too many podcasts? City AM’s Jack Mendel went head to head with podcast-producer Stuart Thomson to thrash it out.

The sheer number of podcasts, particularly on the news (please no more Amol Rajan, I beg you) is enough to make anyone want to feel like they’ve been hit by a tidal wave when they never even wanted to get anywhere near a beach

4. Wetherspoons – is it magical or miserable?

An institution or a national disgrace? The allure of Spoons does not engage all – and especially not City AM’s Steve Dinneen. Here he went into combat with Lucy Kenningham to come to an ultimate conclusion.

A few are housed in lovely buildings – but you could set up a hot dog stand in St Pauls and it would still be a hot dog stand

5. Should workers have the right to a four-day week?

Loathed by employers but loved by employees, the dream of the four-day week has been one of the biggest talking points of working life post-pandemic. In our debate, 4 Day Week campaigner Saskia Wootton-Cane faced HR expert Scott Walker to answer whether the three-day weekend really makes us more productive.

It’s been 100 years since we moved from a six-day week to a five-day week