Evening briefing on Wednesday 27th 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

0:35This is your Times evening briefing on Wednesday the 27th of August. I'm Laura Cook. US officials say two people have been killed in a primary school shooting in Minneapolis. The shooter is also believed to have died from self-inflicted wounds. The shooting took place only one day after pupils returned from their summer break. President Trump has been briefed and said the White House would monitor this terrible situation. Dina Winter is Minneapolis City Hall reporter for the Star Tribune and describes what's been happening. There have been parents, as you can imagine, coming to the school all morning to get their children, see if their children are OK, holding their hands very tightly.

1:13And just a terrible situation. The school just started this Monday. Most people are going back to school right now in America. And so this is just your worst nightmare. It's so hard to let your kid go to school. Around 20 others are thought to have been injured. Nigel Farage appears to have softened reform's stance on immigration, saying his deportation plans won't include women and children at this stage. He did say, though, that if a single woman comes to Britain, they will be detained and deported. Political opponents have accused him of a U-turn after yesterday announcing that everyone arriving on small boats would be deported under a government led by him.

1:51Meanwhile, Conservative MSP Graham Simpson has defected to reform, though admits it was a wrench to do so. Households are being urged to consider switching to fixed deals after a bigger-than-expected hike in energy bills ahead of the winter. Ofgems announced its price cap will rise by 2 % in October, costing the typical home an extra£35 a year. Times Business News editor John Rees explains why this is happening. And two of the main drivers for that is an increase in electricity balancing costs, which is when the national energy system operator works to keep Britain's lights on by balancing supply and demand in real time.

2:26The other is from the increase in the warm home discount. And that is, we'll see 2.7 million more people join that scheme, slightly more than 6 million people on it at the moment. And that is to lop about£150 off the annual energy bills for those people who are less able to afford it. The Kremlin has reiterated a long-standing view that Russia will not accept NATO troops in Ukraine as part of European security guarantees. While saying US efforts to find peace in Ukraine are very important, Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov added that Moscow took a negative view on European proposals for security guarantees for Ukraine.

3:03US Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley has named his 12-player team but hasn't selected himself in his captain's picks. Ahead of next month's tournament, he's gone for Justin Thomas, Colin Morikawa, tournament debutant Ben Griffin, fellow rookie Cameron Young, Patrick Cantlay and Sam Burns. They'll join the six automatic qualifiers for the event against Team Europe at Bethpage Black in New York. Keegan spoke of his difficult decision. I grew up wanting to play Ryder Cups. I grew up wanting to fight alongside these guys and it broke my heart not to play, really did, because you work forever to make these teams.

3:39But ultimately, I was chosen to do a job. I was chosen to be the captain of this team. And you can follow the Times News Briefing on Spotify and listen live to Times Radio online. That's your Times Evening Briefing on Wednesday, 27th August.

3:58This 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. Hi, I'm Katie Prescott from the Times Tech Podcast, which is currently sponsored by IBM.

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