Every year we choose a country of the year for our Christmas issue, and every time it generates endless debate among the staff. This year’s choice was unusually hard, as we considered countries that improved in incommensurate ways. The winner did not become paradise—far from it—but we felt it made up more ground than any other country.

Tonight’s Insider show will focus on the year in politics and economics, covering our winner as well as other runners and riders. You can watch it from 6pm London time on the Insider hub.