Evening briefing Friday 28th 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. This is the Times Evening Briefing on Friday the 28th of November. Official advice has recommended the NHS should not introduce a national screening programme for prostate cancer.

0:45The UK's National Screening Committee says the current tests are too unreliable and would lead to men receiving harmful treatment unnecessarily. Eleanor Hayward is The Times' health editor. They basically found that it would do, in their words, more harm than good. They said that on a mass population level, for every 1 ,000 men offered routine blood tests, it would save two lives. but it would also cause harm to 12 men. And at the moment they say that balance is not far enough in favour of saving lives. The former Prime Minister David Cameron is among those urging the Health Secretary to overrule the advice.

1:19Downing Street has denied Conservative accusations. Rachel Reeves misled the public with her warnings in the build-up to the budget. In an unprecedented speech earlier this month, the Chancellor warned of tax rises because of poor productivity forecasts. But the Office for Budget Responsibility has revealed it told Miss Reeves just days before, inflation would offset the impact of productivity on tax revenue and would leave her with a surplus. The former Lib Dem chief secretary to the Treasury, David Laws, says the chancellor's warnings did have an economic effect. There's little doubt that this has been one of the worst communicated budgets that I and many people can remember.

1:54I mean, the amount of speculation about different tax changes, the gloom and uncertainty that's cast over the economy for a prolonged period of time, The real oddity about Rachel Reeves talking up increases in the basic rate and then reversing it, it's been a mess. The chancellor insists higher taxes will help her tackle national debt. Volodymyr Zelensky says his chief of staff has resigned after his home was raided by anti-corruption investigators. Andrei Yermak has been one of Kiev's main peace negotiators. The Ukrainian president says it's part of a wider shake-up of his whole office.

2:30Russia really wants Ukraine to make mistakes. There will be no mistakes on our work. Our work continues. Our struggle continues. We have no right not to see this through till the end. We have no right to retreat or to quarrel. If we lose unity, we risk losing everything. Ourselves, Ukraine, our future. Our own Ukraine, our future. Mr. Yermak says he'll cooperate with the investigation into alleged embezzlement from Ukraine's state nuclear energy company. Sikir Starmer has told the French president Emmanuel Macron there's no effective deterrent to small boat crossings in the English Channel. French media is reporting officers will get the power to intervene at sea, but only if there are no migrants on board.

3:146 ,000 military lorries have been removed from service over safety issues because of concerns about the bolts holding them together. The man support vehicles have been withdrawn after health problems were found in another vehicle, the new Ajax tanks. And a woman from Kent faces up to 50 years in jail in the US state of Virginia over an alleged luxury wine heist. Natalie Kent and an accomplice are accused of stealing£18 ,000 worth of wine from a restaurant. Prosecutors say they used wigs to disguise themselves as connoisseurs. They distracted the sommelier, took eight bottles and then made a high-speed getaway.

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3:56This 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 While every other channel is fighting for your customers' attention, podcasts are where they've already given it.

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