Evening briefing Monday 23rd February

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 evening briefing on Monday, the 23rd of February. Peter Mandelson has been arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office.

0:42The former cabinet minister and UK ambassador to Washington has been pictured being led from his London home by plainclothes detectives. Scotland Yard says he's been taken to a London police station for interview. Properties have been searched in Camden and in Wiltshire. The legal commentator Joshua Rosenberg says this inquiry, like the one into Andrew Mountbatten, Windsor, could take some time. The police are obviously going to look through documents, computer files, anything they can find at the homes of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and Peter Mandelson. But it's unlikely that these by themselves will be sufficient to build a case.

1:20They will want to look, in both cases I suppose, at government papers, at government documents. But Peter Mandelson and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor deny any wrongdoing. Meanwhile, the first tranche of files related to Peter Mandelson's appointment as the UK's ambassador to Washington will be published early next month. Darren Jones, Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister, has been updating MPs. The government intends to publish documents in tranches instead of one publication at the end of the process, given that we are unable to confirm how long that process will take. On that basis, the government expects to be able to publish the first tranche of documents very shortly in early March.

1:57I should, however, inform the House that it remains the case that a subset of this first tranche of documents is currently subject to the ongoing Metropolitan Police investigation. MPs voted earlier this month to force the government to release all relevant documents. Sir Keir Starmer has asked his standards advisor to investigate a minister accused of paying a PR firm to look into the personal and religious backgrounds of Sunday Times journalists. The Times understands he'll look at whether Josh Simons has broken the ministerial code. More details from Times Radio's Olly Cole. The Prime Minister has passed the matter on to Laurie Magnus.

2:31Now he's the man who, you'll recall, ended the cabinet and ministerial careers of Tulip Sadiq, of Angela Rayner, by looking into these matters without fear or favour, interviewing the people at the centre of them, and recommended to the Prime Minister what he's found and what course of action he should take. And Reform UK says it would restore Britain's Christian heritage by, among other things, stopping churches being converted into mosques. Home Affairs spokesman Zia Youssef says renewing Britain's Christian faith is vital in tackling what he calls the crisis of meaning culturally. Church of England priest Sally Hitchener has told Times Radio she has reservations about this.

3:09Historically it's been characterised by a Christian country but that hasn't always meant we've had Christian values. If you think about some of our history, we've treated other people in other countries in the world. I don't think we would necessarily want to replicate that if you're wanting to be following the teachings of Jesus. I think actually Christianity works best in a pluralistic society where there's freedom to choose. And 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. AI is everywhere.

3:42In 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