Evening Briefing Wednesday 14th October

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1:26The Prime Minister's vowed Britain will forever stand by Ukraine as he welcomed Vlodomir Zelensky to Downing Street. Andy Burnham said the country was experiencing dark and difficult days, while the Ukrainian president said Kiev is ready for any kind of ceasefire. The Prime Minister told the Ukrainian leader the UK would be stepping up its support. Britain will continue to provide you with whatever support that we can. And today I'm announcing that we are accelerating the delivery of British-made air defences for you. The visit comes as officials in Ukraine say Elon Musk's SpaceX has limited some of its Starlink satellite internet services, disrupting several missions.

2:10Igor Novikov is a former advisor to President Zelensky. He told Times Radio whoever made the decision has blood on their hands. That not only affects our ability to carry out middle and deep strikes into Russian territory and into occupied territory, but also renders certain types of anti-drone interceptors useless, thus exposing our civilian population to Russian drone strikes in Kiev and other places. Now, that is not a coincidence. That looks like a pressure campaign. The prosecution's opened its case in Russell Brand's rape and sexual assault trial, labelling him a ruthless, calculated and manipulative sexual predator.

2:52They say the 51-year-old comedian and actor's offending was as varied as his career. The Times' newsroom reporter Olly Cole is following the trial. The jury heard the opening statements from the prosecution, the allegations against Russell Brand from six women, from rape to sexual assault and indecent assault. They then heard from a former friend of Russell Brand, a man named Mark Pinero, as the trial focused in on the first of those allegations, taking place around Labour Party conference in Bournemouth. Weeks later, it's claimed Brand told Mr Pinero words to the effect of the night having gone a little bit too far.

3:26Russell Brand denies all of the allegations against him. The King sending his well wishes to Pope Leo following his cancer diagnosis. Charles, who's still undergoing his own treatment for the disease, is believed to be routing privately to the pontiff. The Pope's had part of his right lung removed. The Vatican says he's now walking and eating regularly. Gavin Ashenden is associate editor of the Catholic Herald. Pope Leo is a father to us. He's a father in God. He is il papa. That's what it means. So the first impact is one of sorrow, because if a member of the family becomes ill, one you treasure, love and look up to, then it's a painful and difficult thing.

4:06There will be many, of course, who say that actually there are lots of people with cancer and for a Pope to have cancer is an existential solidarity. The government is launching a review into so-called rip-off drop-off charges at airports after a U-turn. The Aviation Minister, Kim Aver, has committed to a 12-month review that will examine affordability and how the fees affect passenger behaviour. The average charge has climbed to£7, bringing in£300 million a year for British airports. Remember, you can follow the Times Radio News Briefing on Spotify, and you can listen live to Times Radio Online.