Afternoon Briefing Friday 28th November

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. Hello, this is your Times Afternoon Briefing for Friday the 28th of November with me, James Kitchen. The Education Secretary has told Times Radio she doesn't accept the government has u-turned on its pledge to give workers the right to claim unfair dismissal from day one.

0:48Sir Keir Starmer is facing a backlash from Labour MPs after scrapping the manifesto commitment. The move to reduce the qualifying period from 24 months was abandoned in a bid to get the Employment Rights Bill through the House of Lords. Workers will now have to have served in their role for at least six months to qualify. Speaking to Times Radio, Bridget Philipson insisted the compromise was necessary to prevent delays. Yes, we did set out a number of areas where we wanted to make improvements to workers' rights, but we were also very clear in the manifesto that that would have to involve discussion with businesses, with trade unions, with civil society.

1:22That's what we've done. Those discussions have happened, and it means that now the Employment Rights Bill can go forward. And as I say, it is the biggest upgrade to workers' rights in a generation, and from April next year, millions of working people will have better protections at work because of the changes we're making. The office and home of Vladimir Zelensky's chief of staff, Andrew Yermak, have been searched as part of an anti-corruption investigation. Ukrainian authorities are looking into high-ranking officials who are accused of siphoning off funds from the state's energy sector. Dominic Houschild is the Sunday Times' reporter in Kyiv.

1:57Yomak is this Svengali-like figure behind the throne of Zelensky. He's one of Zelensky's closest advisers. And this is part of a wide-ranging corruption case that broke earlier this month that involved around$100 million of embezzlement from Ukraine's energy sector. It led to the resignation of two of Zelensky's leading ministers. And one of his close business associates has fled the country. Meanwhile, the Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has been visiting the Kremlin, where he's meeting the Russian President Vladimir Putin for talks on energy. Donald Trump has vowed to permanently pause migration from what he calls third world countries after two National Guard members were shot near the White House.

2:4220-year-old Sarah Beckstrom died from her injuries while Andrew Wolff is fighting for his life. The suspect's been identified as an Afghan national. Firefighters in Hong Kong say they've ended the search for survivors after a devastating fire at a residential complex. 128 people are known to have died, with at least 79 others injured. It affected seven of eight apartment towers in the Taipo district on Wednesday. Authorities say fire alarms in the buildings were not working properly. And an NHS screening programme for prostate cancer could come one step closer this afternoon if it's backed by a committee that advises the government.

3:21Experts are deciding whether the benefits outweigh any risks and whether testing could be carried out at a reasonable cost to the health service. The disease affects around one in eight men. And remember, you can follow The Times News Briefing on Spotify and you can listen live to Times Radio Online.

3:44This episode of The Times Radio News Briefing is sponsored by PwC. AI is everywhere. In the news, in our hands, but return on investment, not so much. So how do you get beyond the hype and deliver AI that powers reinvention and growth across your business? Strong foundations unlock AI's potential. That's why PwC takes you further with tech, strengthening the data quality, processes and workflows that shape how well AI performs. PwC turns innovation into implementation so you can accelerate from experiment to scale. Discover more at pwc.co.uk