Daily Briefing Saturday 15th 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 Daily Briefing for Saturday, the 15th of November, with me, James Kitchen. Donald Trump has confirmed he'll sue the BBC for up to$5 billion over the misleading edit of a speech on Panorama.

0:46Speaking aboard Air Force One, the US president insisted the broadcaster had cheated by changing the words coming out of his mouth. Earlier this week, the BBC apologised for the clip but refused to pay financial compensation. Adam Klusfeld is a lawyer and editor-in-chief at All Rise News. This falls amid a habit of Trump threatening major news organizations and suing major news organizations, often on grounds that are seen widely throughout the legal community as entirely specious. We'll see if he actually follows through on the lawsuit, because sometimes trying to send a threat and publicize a threat sends that message of intimidation that could be the ultimate purpose.

1:32President Trump also told reporters he'd discussed the matter with Sir Keir Starmer this weekend, adding the people of the UK are very angry over the episode. Meanwhile, the US Attorney General has ordered a federal prosecutor to investigate Jeffrey Epstein's links to Mr Trump's political opponents after the president publicly demanded action. It follows the release of thousands of pages of Epstein-related documents in Congress this week. Critics warn the move marks another break from the Justice Department's traditional independence. None of the Democrats named have been accused of misconduct by the late paedophiles' victims.

2:11The Chancellor is to impose a stealth tax on workers and pensioners after dropping a manifesto-breaking plan to increase income tax. Rachel Reeves was accused of presiding over a shambles this week after ditching plans to increase the basic rate following stronger economic forecasts. The reversal unnerved the markets and increased the cost of government borrowing. Instead, the Chancellor will extend the freeze on income tax thresholds for two years until 2030, leaving 10 million people as higher rate taxpayers. The editor of Labour List, Emma Burnell, told Times Radio the government's tied itself up in knots.

2:49Where Labour have got themselves in trouble with this is not fiscally, but politically by coming in with such strictures, self-imposed strictures around themselves. We won't do X, we won't do Y, we'll stand up and say this on day one and then we'll stand up and say something else on day three. That's where the problem is. They put themselves into a straitjacket and they're trying to sort of fight their way through but as we know in a straitjacket you sort of have your hands tied behind your back. Ireland's Deputy Prime Minister has called the Anglo-Irish Agreement a landmark moment that helped pave the way for the peace process.

3:24It's 40 years since the UK formally acknowledged an advisory role for the Irish government in Northern Ireland affairs. Simon Harris says the partnership laid the groundwork for what would eventually become the Good Friday Agreement. And fire crews in South Wales have declared a major incident after widespread flooding caused by Storm Claudia. There are now four severe flood warnings in place, three in Monmouth and one in U.S. Harrell, meaning a significant risk to life. And remember, you can follow The Times News Briefing on Spotify and you can listen live to Times Radio Online.

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