Afternoon Briefing Thursday 9th July

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. Welcome to the Times Radio afternoon briefing on Thursday the 9th of July. Process was not followed and the usual checks and balances were not made in the appointment of Peter Mandelson as the UK's ambassador to Washington.

0:47That's according to the Foreign Affairs Committee, which also says it's difficult to understand how he was appointed given there was a possible risk to national security. Dame Emily Thornberry, who chairs the committee, has been speaking to Times Radio. I think it's quite clear from the evidence that Number 10 pushed this really, really fast and was pushing all opposition out of the way and did it in the wrong order so that they ended up doing the security vetting right at the end. Once everybody knew that Mandelson had got the job, once he was on the payroll, once the president had agreed to it and the king had agreed to it and, you know, and everything else.

1:21And then it was like almost the afterthought was the security vetting. Pakistan is expected to refuse to take back the leader of the Rochdale grooming gang despite plans to change the law so that Shabir Ahmed can be deported. Times Radio's Olly Cole has been looking at the story. Ahmed was released from prison last week after serving 14 years of a 22-year sentence for 30 child rape offences. But an old loophole in the Immigration Act means he can't be returned to Pakistan despite the fact he's been stripped of his citizenship. The Home Secretary, Shabana Mahmood, is expected to announce changes to that act to unblock his removal, but Whitehall sources say they still don't expect Pakistan to accept him.

1:59They're said to be demanding the extradition of two political dissidents from the UK in exchange for accepting the return of Ahmed. Iran says it has targeted US air defences, satellite systems and fuel storage containers across the Middle East after another night of American airstrikes. It's the second day the two countries have traded attacks, violating the Memorandum of Understanding signed last month. Donald Trump has suggested the ceasefire is over. Ali Vyas, an Iran specialist with the International Crisis Group, was asked on Times Radio if the war is back on. No, I don't think so. I think the ceasefire is definitely in a dire strait, but it is not yet at a point that we can say it has fully collapsed.

2:41and the reason is that I think both sides understand that the alternative is not really that much more attractive for them. They have experienced an all-out conflict and they know that at high risk and at very high cost they will probably end up more or less where they are right now after another round of serious conflict. Official figures show drug driving has overtaken drink driving on Britain's roads for the first time. There were almost 31 ,000 offences last year, up by 7 ,000 in three years. The number of drink-driving offences was 1 ,000 fewer. Steve Gooding is the director of the RAC Foundation.

3:18This is something of great concern to us, great concern to the police. And it's a concern because I think in many ways people don't necessarily realise quite how long drugs are staying in their system or quite how much they're affecting their ability to drive. Whereas I suspect we all know, even people who do it, that having a drink before you drive, well, that's definitely bad. This is one that we've really got to get to grips with. You can follow the Times Radio News Briefing on Spotify and listen live to Times Radio online. This episode of the Times Radio News Briefing is sponsored by PwC. AI is everywhere.

3:53In 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. This week on The Business Podcast, George Arison, Chief Executive of the dating app Grindr. Our belief is that age verification should be done at the app store.

4:38UK politicians have gone the other way. Do you think that's a mistake? It's a tremendous mistake and I think it's a massive disservice to citizens of this country. Join me, Hannah Previtt. And me, Dominic O 'Connell, for weekly conversations from the world of business and entrepreneurship. Follow us wherever you get your podcasts or find our channel on YouTube by searching Times Business.