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Times Radio News Briefing

16 Jan 2026 · 3m · 6 chapters

Episode artwork

Evening briefing Friday 16th January

In short

A Times Radio evening news briefing (16 Jan) covering UK politics, policing, courts, counter-terrorism, social media outages, and advertising/tech sponsorship.

Guests

None mentioned; this is a news briefing with named interviewees/sources only.

Guest backgrounds (named people/sources)

  • Craig Gilford, former Chief Constable of West Midlands Police.
  • Simon Foster, West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner.
  • Kemi Badenoch, UK Conservative politician.
  • Bethany Hutchison, led a tribunal legal claim.
  • Andrew Williams, Detective Superintendent, counter-terrorism policing Wales.
  • Mackenzie Morgan, 18-year-old detainee.
  • Harrison Sullivan (“HS Tiki-Toki”), influencer facing driving offences.

Key claims & notable examples

  • Gilford retired after incorrect MP info on banning Maccabee Tel Aviv fans; blamed AI.
  • Badenoch said she’s “cleaning out the rubbish” after sacking Robert Jenrick over planned move to Reform UK.
  • Tribunal: eight nurses won over a trans colleague using women’s changing rooms; harassment after complaints.
  • Detained teen planned Oasis concert attack; inspired by Southport killer; had Al-Qaeda manual and researched knives.
  • Surrey Police defended using a private jet to extradite Sullivan from Spain; judge criticized £15,000 bill.
  • X/Twitter outages in multiple countries; second major outage this week.

Written by AI. May contain mistakes.

Chapters

0:40

Police Chief Retires Amid Controversy

The resignation of a police chief due to political pressure and misinformation.

“The police chief at the centre of a row over Israeli football fans has retired.”
1:26

Kemi Badenock's Party Reformation

Kemi Badenock discusses her efforts to strengthen her party after a key sacking.

“Kemi Badenock has told The Times she's cleaning out the rubbish from her party.”
1:54

Nurses' Tribunal Victory

Eight nurses claim victory in a tribunal regarding transgender policies.

“They are a party of problems, we are a party of solution.”
2:16

Teenager Detained for Terrorism Plan

An 18-year-old inspired by a past attack plans to harm an event.

“But compassion must never mean asking women to surrender their dignity, safety or boundaries.”
2:55

Police Jet Use Under Scrutiny

Surrey police defend the cost of bringing back an influencer from Spain.

“Police are defending their use of a private jet to bring a social media influencer back from Spain.”
3:21

Social Media Outage Reported

Elon Musk's social media platform faces significant access issues.

“Owned by Elon Musk, a site formerly known as Twitter, is experiencing problems in a number of countries.”
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Transcript

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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

0:36This is the Times Radio evening briefing for Friday the 16th of January. The police chief at the centre of a row over Israeli football fans has retired. Craig Gilford says it's because the political and media frenzy became detrimental to the force. He lost the confidence of the Home Secretary after giving incorrect information to MPs about the decision to ban Maccabee Tel Aviv supporters from a match in Birmingham. He apologised and blamed AI. Police and Crime Commissioner Simon Foster praised the now retired chief. He has acted with honour and in the best interests of West Midlands police and our region.

1:10I welcome his decision. It is important that I acknowledge the many positive achievements and contributions that Craig Guildford has made to policing within the West Midlands during the course of his three years tenure as Chief Constable. Kemi Badenock has told The Times she's cleaning out the rubbish from her party. That follows her sacking of Robert Jenrick yesterday after finding out he was planning a move to reform UK. Aidanock says she's 100 % confident no other members of the Shadow Cabinet will defect. We are a stronger and more united team because Robert Jenrick is not a team player. Nigel Farage is doing my spring cleaning, he's taking my problems away and we're all happier for it.

1:50The problems are leaving the Conservative Party and going to reform. They are a party of problems, we are a party of solution. Eight nurses say they've won a victory for common sense after a tribunal ruled in their favour over a trans colleague using women's changing rooms. The ruling says they were harassed after complaining. Bethany Hutchison led the legal claim. We have compassion for our colleague and for others who are suffering with gender confusion. But compassion must never mean asking women to surrender their dignity, safety or boundaries. A teenager who planned to attack an Oasis concert after being inspired by the Southport killer has been detained.

2:2818-year-old Mackenzie Morgan admitted to possessing an Al-Qaeda manual and researched buying large knives. Detective Superintendent Andrew Williams is from counter-terrorism policing Wales. The fact that he was heavily influenced by the perpetrator of one of the most horrific attacks this country has seen in recent times is a terrifying indictment of the abhorrent commentary, hateful opinion and violent images that too many of our young people are exposed to on a daily basis via the myriad of online sites. Police are defending their use of a private jet to bring a social media influencer back from Spain.

3:07Surrey police say there's no other viable option to extradite Harrison Sullivan, known as HS Tiki-Toki, from Spain to face driving offences. A judge criticised the£15 ,000 bill as not necessary or proportionate. Tens of thousands of ex-users say they're unable to access the social media network. Owned by Elon Musk, a site formerly known as Twitter, is experiencing problems in a number of countries. It's the platform's second major outage this week. And you can follow the Times Radio 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 You've got social dialed in. Search is doing its thing.

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From the publisher
The Times Radio briefing for the evening of Friday 16th January. For more on these stories throughout the day tune into Times Radio - on DAB, online, through your smart speaker or on the Times Radio app.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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