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John Harris and Anne McElvoy host a new series of debates on institutions under pressure. The series begins with the current state of the trade unions. What are they for ? How do they work ? Could we make them better ?

Union membership has fallen sharply in recent years, so John Harris of the Guardian and Anne McElvoy of the Economist gather key insiders and members of the public to rethink the state of the unions. With Frances O'Grady, General Secretary of the TUC; Alan Johnson MP, Britain's most famous former postman and one time General Secretary of the Unions of Communication Workers; David Skelton of Renewal, which aims to broaden the appeal of the Conservative Party; and Guy Standing, author of A Precariat's Charter.

"I would introduce a power that would allow a worker in a backstreet fish processing factory in Hull who wanted to join a union to ring up just one number ... at the moment it is very difficult for a worker in that situation to know how to begin to join up." Alan Johnson MP

Recorded in front of an audience at the London Review Bookshop.

The producer is Miles Warde.