Evening briefing Friday 12th September

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 Evening Briefing on Friday the 12th of September. The governor of Utah says a 22-year-old man suspected of shooting right-wing influencer Charlie Kirk is in custody.

0:44We got him. On the evening of September 11th, a family member of Tyler Robinson reached out to a family friend who contacted the Washington County Sheriff's Office with information that Robinson had confessed to them or implied that he had committed the incident. This information was relayed to the Utah County Sheriff's Office and scene investigators at Utah Valley University. Spencer Cox also said a family member described how Robinson became more political in recent years and had told a relative he disliked Charlie Kirk. Donald Trump says he will attend to Charlie Kirk's funeral and hopes the suspect gets the death penalty.

1:21Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch says the Prime Minister has questions to answer and should never have appointed Peter Mandelson as Britain's U.S. ambassador. Sir Keir Starmer sacked him yesterday. Emails showed a deeper friendship than previously thought between the peer and the late paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. Ms Bezienok wants a parliamentary vote to force the release of related documents. What this issue is showing is that the Prime Minister has very bad judgement. It looks like he went against advice, security advice, and made this appointment according to reports that we're seeing in the newspapers.

1:52And what we're asking for is transparency. Downing Street says it wasn't involved in the security vetting. NATO has announced plans to beef up the defence of Europe's eastern flank. Operation Eastern Sentry has emerged two days after Poland shot down Russian drones which violated its airspace. Warsaw has portrayed those incursions as an attempt by Russia to test the ability of Poland and NATO to respond. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutter. NATO is launching Eastern Sentry to bolster our posture even further along our eastern flank. This military activity will commence in the coming days and will involve a range of assets from allies, including Denmark, France, the United Kingdom, Germany and others.

2:35In addition to more traditional military capabilities, this effort will also feature elements designed to address the particular challenges associated with the use of drones. And the economy has flatlined, with no growth recorded by the ONS in July. It makes Chancellor Rachel Reeves' task in her autumn budget due on November the 26th, even more difficult. Conservative peer Stuart Rose, who ran both Marks & Spencer and Asda, has told Times Radio some tough choices will have to be made. I think the number that the Chancellor's got as wriggle room is about£9 billion. Well,£9 billion in the total extent of our economy is nothing.

3:12It's a rounding error. So she has to, or they have to, or the government has to, or the Prime Minister has to sit down and say, we can't do everything for everybody. Some things are necessary we must do. Some things are nice to do. and some things we'd like to do tomorrow. Don't do the things we'd like to do tomorrow. Don't do the things that are nice to do. Do the things we need to do, and that does mean some unpleasant cuts. And you can follow The Times News Briefing on Spotify and listen live to Times Radio online.

3:41This 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. Do you keep hearing podcast ads like this one, for example, but always wonder how you actually get involved with them for your own brand or organization?

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