Daily briefing Sunday 30th 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. Welcome to the Times Radio Daily Briefing on Sunday 30th August. The Prime Minister has announced that prisoners convicted of all types of unlawful killing will be excluded from the early release scheme in England and Wales.

0:46The killers of PC Andrew Harper will be among them. PC Harper's mother, Debbie Adlam, says she welcomes the initiative, but it could go further. For us, it's good news that our offenders will serve at least the time that they were supposed to within the prison service. We've gained nothing. We've not asked for anything further. that we just wanted what they were supposed to be served with. And I just ask really that just carry on looking, don't stop here. And, you know, there has to be more that can be done to protect other people. Andy Burnham says death by dangerous driving will also be included.

1:21Meanwhile, the PM has given train drivers an above inflation pay rise to avoid strikes on the London to Manchester line. Drivers who work for Avanti and who start on£70 ,000 a year will get a 3.6 % increase. The most recent inflation figure was 2.9%. Andrew Gilligan was transport advisor to Boris Johnson. I do think it's Keir Starmer Mark II, if you remember, that almost the first thing that the Starmer government did was strike a very generous deal with the train drivers, I think a 5 % deal one year, and then backdated pay rises above inflation for previous years. And surprise, surprise, it didn't really work.

1:57They carried on striking for more money. The former Home and Foreign Secretary, James Cleverley, says he will run to be the next mayor of London. The Conservative MP for Braintree in Essex is stepping down as shadow housing secretary. It was put to him on Times Radio that London is a left-leaning city, but he rejects that characterisation. London is not doctrinal or idealistic. London recognises an opportunity. This is what has made it a global top-tier city for a thousand years. London is commercial, it's entrepreneurial, it is socially liberal, it is open, it is generous of spirit, but it's also got a hard-nosed streak and it knows a good deal when it sees it.

2:42And a former Labour Home Secretary has told Times Radio that Andy Burnham should call a general election by next summer. The Prime Minister recently ruled out going to the country, but Alan Johnson says he needs democratic legitimacy. And he's got to, and I've been saying this for some time, he can't really, I don't think, see out the whole Starmer term, if you like, until 2029. He's got to think about going to the country before that and getting his own mandate. 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.

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