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Tom Fletcher concludes his series looking at what future historians may well regard as the most fundamental issue of the 2020s: the complex, multi-faceted and far-reaching international contest between liberal democracy and its enemies. In this final episode, Tom looks at which system better delivers justice for its people. Is the world split according to values, as President Biden has asserted, and if so how should we think about countries which are democratic but not liberal? How should we balance security, opportunity and justice?

Tom, a former diplomat and adviser to three British prime ministers, will draw on his own experiences and, in conversation with people he encountered along the way – people who rose to the very top – he will examine the state of liberal democracy, ask where it succeeds and where it fails, and make the case for its urgent renewal. With extraordinary stories from around the world, he’ll look at how the world’s democracies can confront autocratic regimes, how they make liberal democracy more ‘magnetic’ to democratic backsliders, and how they can put their own houses in order.

Producer: Giles Edwards.