Afternoon Briefing Friday 8th August

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 8th of August with me, James Kitchen. Zakhir Starmer says Israel's decision to escalate its offensive in Gaza is wrong.

0:43The Prime Minister's urging Benjamin Netanyahu to reconsider and warns a planned military operation in Gaza City will only bring more bloodshed. A late-night meeting of Israeli ministers coincided with disturbances in Tel Aviv, where police clash with demonstrators calling for an end to the war. They say the plan jeopardizes the lives of the remaining Israeli hostages held in Gaza, while the UN is warning there could be catastrophic consequences for Palestinians. But Israeli government special envoy and the former deputy mayor of Jerusalem, Fleur Hassan Nahum, told Times Radio this is the last resort.

1:16Hamas walked away from the last ceasefire attempt. This is why the Americans have also raised their hands and given up with them. There was a deal on the table two weeks ago. They refuse to talk about any hostage releases. So what is Israel supposed to do? Forget that the hostages are there, 50 hostages. Are we supposed to let a terrorist regime that is saying they're going to do October 7 again remain in our southern border? What are we supposed to do? Donald Trump's deadline for the Russian president Vladimir Putin to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine expires later, with Moscow still facing fresh U.S.

1:53sanctions. But the ultimatum appears not to have halted progress towards face-to-face discussions between the two leaders next week. Mr Trump said the talks are not conditional on the Russian leader meeting with Ukraine's President Vladimir Zelensky. Catherine Philp is the Times' World Affairs editor in Kiev. She says Mr Trump appears to be going over the heads of both President Zelensky and European leaders. And that's particularly egregious when you think of the fact that Trump is so determined that this is Europe's problem and they must sort it out and pay for it. So there is a sort of disconnect in the fact that Trump is asking not only Ukraine to step up but also the rest of Europe and yet appears to be willing to negotiate something with Putin over the heads of the people that he expects to enforce it.

2:39The homelessness minister has become the 11th departure from Sakhir Starmer's government in 13 months. Rishunara Ali has been accused by the Conservatives of staggering hypocrisy after she increased the monthly rent on a property she owns by£700, just weeks after she had given her previous tenant's notice. Such a practice will soon be made illegal by her own department. Speaking to Times Radio, the energy consumers minister, Miata Fanbule, refused to say whether she approved of her colleague's behaviour. All I can do is refer you to the letter. And the letter was really clear that she has broken no rules and broken no laws.

3:15What we care about as a government is that we're getting on the job of protecting renters. We know this is a massive issue. I hear stories all the time from my constituency and across the country of people feeling that they don't have security in their homes when they rent and that they want protection. And that is what we are cracking on and doing through our renters' rights bill. The government's considering giving households living near new pylons a discount on their energy bills. It's believed twice as many new transmission cables and pylons are needed by 2030 than have been built in the last decade.

3:46The government hopes offering a£125 discount off bills every six months will reduce opposition and planning delays. And a yellow heat health alert has been issued for most of England from midday on Monday. The UK Health Security Agency says it'll last until 6pm on Wednesday in all areas except the northeast and the northwest. It means health and social care services could come under extra pressure. And remember, you can follow The Times News Briefing on Spotify and you can listen live to Times Radio Online.

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