Evening briefing Tuesday 21st July

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. Good evening. The former Minister for Prisons, Anne Widdecombe, was hit 21 times with a hammer as she was eating lunch.

0:39Westminster magistrates heard the suspect allegedly parked outside her house in Devon before going in through the front door. The court was told the suspect walked into her kitchen and allegedly tipped the Reform UK spokeswoman from her chair, took a wallet from her handbag before driving off. A provisional cause of death was given as a blunt force injury to the head. 28-year-old suspect Joshua Kerry has been remanded in custody after appearing at the Old Bailey. Andy Burnham has told his new cabinet the government must show how it'll pay for policies. The Prime Minister says he'll remove the 5 % VAT currently added to electricity bills, saying he'll find the money by scrapping Starmer's digital ID scheme.

1:20But former Minister Darren Jones says that money was never identified. Miata Fan Bulla is Secretary of State for Energy security and net zero. She told Times Radio the policy is costed. It is thought through. We know the mechanism by which we do it. It is funded. And it was important that we did this on day one to show people that we get we get that people are under pressure. We get that life feels tough at the moment. And we know that we need to provide people some breathing room. And this is why it was a very important intervention. But being no doubt is a properly worked through intervention.

1:55It's properly costed and it will come into force in October. Andy Burnham told the leaders of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland he's not focused on further referendums but on what he calls practical measures. Chris Bryant will take on the role of Secretary of State of Northern Ireland. Mary Lou Macdonald is President of Sinn Féin and Leader of the Irish Opposition. She told Times Radio the new government should be focused on achieving the Good Friday agreement. And I would really hope that the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State would really grasp that reach for that legacy and reach for the opportunity to get things right in Ireland.

2:34And by getting things right, I mean accepting that history now, the next chapter of Ireland's history and the relationships between Britain and Ireland are now being written. We are going to have referendums on the question of the border on our island, which we've endured for more than a century. The new Defence Secretary has vowed the government will stand up to Russian aggression. West Streeting was responding to news a Russian warship fired live weapons just outside UK waters yesterday on the day Andy Burnham was entering Downing Street. The Tate brothers choked women to the point of unconsciousness before raping them.

3:11Prosecutors in Britain allege in newly released court documents. The brothers deny all allegations and prepare to contest their extradition to the UK. And 23 million households will be affected by hosepipe bans this summer as seven water companies ask customers to limit water usage. Thames Water is the latest to announce the ban to its 10 million customers starting Thursday. It's to protect the environment and reduce the strain on their treatment works and storage during peak demand. Farmers have had to begin their harvests early with warnings that cereal yields will be lower than expected. You can follow The Times Radio News Briefing on Spotify and listen live to Times Radio online.

3:55This 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.