Evening briefing Thursday 23rd October

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 evening briefing for Thursday the 23rd of October. A former paratrooper accused of murdering two people on Bloody Sunday has been found not guilty. Soldier F, who can't be identified for legal reasons, was cleared of the killings at a 1972 civil rights march in Londonderry. The veteran, now in his 70s, was also acquitted of five attempted murders. Kiva Quinn is a journalist in Belfast for U105 Radio. There was never an argument that the soldiers did not fire upon the unarmed civilians during that civil rights march in Derry. The judge said that very much happened and they should in fact hang their heads in shame.

1:10The issue was that there wasn't enough evidence to say that it was Sol Dreyf who had murdered or attempted to murder those seven people. Three men have been arrested on suspicion of assisting Russia's intelligence service. Counter-terrorism police in London say the men, all in their 40s, were arrested this morning. They warn of an increasing number of proxies being recruited by foreign spy agencies. Resident doctors in England are to go on strike for five days in mid-November. The British Medical Association says it's over pay restoration and employment prospects. But the health secretary, Wes Streeting, says the move is reckless posturing that will harm patients.

1:44Dr Jack Fletcher is chair of the BMA's Resident Doctors Committee. More doctors than ever in the last decade have left the NHS. We're trying to come up with credible proposals to be able to take to the health secretary to retain these doctors, to help get these waiting lists down, to help stop the corridor care in Ernie. And that's what we said to the government. A pound an hour over the next few years, we're willing to negotiate on it, and the government said no. A group of survivors working with the grooming gang's inquiry have written to the Prime Minister, backing Jess Phillips to stay in post.

2:19It follows earlier pressure from four women who quit, saying they would only rejoin the inquiry if the safeguarding minister stepped down. Anna Mihailova is Times Radio's political editor. Those victims that say they would like Jess Phillips to stay in post, they also add that they would like the inquiry to focus on other types of exploitation, not just grooming, it seems. So that, again, I think is an indication of just how naughty this is all getting. A head teacher of the Southport attacker's former school says she had a visceral sense of dread that he would do something. Joanne Hudson told the public inquiry into the attacks that Axel Rudakubana brought knives to school before being excluded.

2:59And an autistic man who was axed from his volunteer role at Waitrose has been offered a job at Asda. 28-year-old Tom Boyd was stopped from working at the store in Manchester after his family asked for him to be paid. Now Asda has offered him two paid five-hour shifts a week. You can follow The Times News Briefing on Spotify and listen live to Times Radio online.

3:23This 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. Quick question. When was the last time a display ad changed your mind?

4:09Now think about the last time a friend told you about something they loved. Different feeling, right? That's how podcast advertising works. A host who's built real trust with their audience talks about your brand in their own words, in their own voice. It doesn't interrupt the experience. It's part of it. With Acast, you can access the world's largest podcast marketplace. Choose the right shows, the right audiences, the right format. Then watch the data tell you it worked. You're not buying impressions. You're buying influence. Learn more by visiting acast.com slash advertise. you