Morning Briefing Friday 1st 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 Good morning. After weeks of negotiations and some last-minute deals, Donald Trump's higher-rate global tariffs deadline is up.

0:40From today, most UK goods at the American border will be hit with a 10 % tax because of a trade agreement. It's 15 % for the EU. He's also signed an executive order increasing tariffs on Canadian goods to 35%, up from 25 % on all products not covered by the US-Mexico-Canada trade agreement, while the US president paused higher levies on Mexico, allowing for a 90-day negotiation period. Donald Trump's appeared to dodge a question about whether a genocide's taking place in Gaza. He's told a news conference it's terrible what's occurring there and that people are very hungry. US Envoy Steve Wyckoff will enter Gaza today to inspect food distribution sites and secure a plan to bring in more food.

1:28Meanwhile, Sakhi Astama has pledged to push ahead with the recognition of a Palestinian state unless there is a material change on the ground in Gaza. That's despite criticism from victims of the October 7 attack. The Prime Minister said he's listened to those who were held hostage, but Britain needed to respond to the humanitarian catastrophe. Jonathan Shansa is from the Foundation for Defence of Democracies, which is a think tank in Washington. He told Times Radio recognising a Palestinian state is not the right move. The idea of recognising a Palestinian state right now in response to Gaza is quite silly.

2:10I mean, first of all, the West Bank is run by the Palestinian Authority and the Gaza Strip is run by Hamas. Recognizing a Palestinian state would be recognizing essentially just the government in the West Bank. And the Palestinian Authority is unbelievably corrupt. They have they have wasted hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars, billions of dollars in aid that has come in. Meanwhile, the House of Lords have seen a wave of members warn that Keir Starmer's pledged to recognise a Palestinian state risks breaking international law. The number of foreigners in prison for violent sexual and theft offences has surged over the past year.

2:49More than 1 ,700 foreign criminals are in prison in England and Wales for sexual offences. This number has risen by nearly 10 % in the past 12 months. Former Conservative MP Julie Kirkbride told Times Radio there's an obvious solution. I still think that people who come here who are not British citizens, who then commit a crime, should be deported. We should not tolerate people coming to our country where we offer them sanctuary and a good life, committing a crime against the domestic population who live here. It should be very simple what should happen. Foreign-born prisoners account for one in eight of the total prison population and cost an estimated£580 million a year.

3:32Don't forget, you can set the Times News Briefing as your news service on Alexa. This 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.

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