Afternoon briefing Friday 27th February

0:00This episode of the Times Radio News Briefing is sponsored by PwCWC. Staying competitive means getting ahead, not just keeping up. So how do business leaders cut through the noise and focus on what really matters? PwC takes you further with tech, from optimising the systems that put your data to work, to scaling AI from proof of concept to competitive edge. PwC helps you meet tomorrow's tech demands, so you can compete at a speed that rewrites the rules. Discover more at pwc.co.uk This is Times Radio's afternoon briefing on Friday the 27th of February. The Labour MP John Shrickett says the Prime Minister needs to reflect on his position after the party lost the seat of Gorton and Denton in a by-election.

0:48Its candidates, Angeliki Stoyer, was third in an area of Greater Manchester where Labour hadn't lost a Westminster election since 1931. Labour also suffered a 27 % swing as the Green Party candidate, as Hannah Spencer secured a majority of more than 4 ,000 ahead of Reform UK's Matt Goodwin. Speaking to Times Radio, Mr Trickett suggested that voters are losing faith in Sir Keir Starmer. This signals a bigger change in the way that people see the country, its politics and its leaders. And that does mean, I'm afraid, that the Prime Minister needs to reflect on his own position because quite a lot of time his name does come up when you're speaking to voters.

1:31For the Green Party, it was a first ever victory in a Westminster by-election. The Greens leader, Zach Polanski, says it was a phenomenal success that will have far-reaching implications. He says there'll no longer be any no-go zones for the Greens in England and Wales. This is important for the entire country. This is a historic breakthrough that will transform the face of British politics. And the reason why I say that is we took a local plumber and she was really clear that she wants to lower people's bills, protect the National Health Service and rebuild our public services. That was voted on in what used to be a safe Labour seat with a 4 ,000 vote majority.

2:06He also said it was a victory for unity over division. The Electoral Commission said it was aware of concerns raised over family voting and urged anyone who wants to report a potential offence to go to the police. Family voting is an illegal practice and can sometimes involve men instructing their wives how to vote or undue influence over someone who does not speak English. Reform UK's leader Nigel Farage has described the election as a victory for sectarian voting and cheating. Reform's candidate Matt Goodwin is predicting a significant wave of success for his party in the local elections in May.

2:41What you're seeing today, I think, is the rise of the new politics. On one side is the Greens. They want to legalise crack cocaine, heroin and have open borders. On the other side is reform. We want to control the borders. We want to invest in our own people. We want to prioritise the British hard-working majority. This is the future of British politics. Court of Appeal judges have rejected claims that the introduction of VAT to private school fees is incompatible with human rights law. Several schools and the parents of children who attend them had previously brought legal action against the Treasury.

3:16Three judges had dismissed the High Court challenge in June of last year. Pakistan has carried out a series of overnight airstrikes on the Afghan cities of Kabul and Kandahar. It's the latest in a series of clashes between the two neighbouring nations, despite both agreeing to a ceasefire last October. And the UK's oldest male gorilla has died just days after being moved to a new enclosure at Bristol Zoo. Jock, who was 42, had to be put to sleep when his health declined. There's more on all of these stories throughout the day on Times Radio.

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