Morning briefing Wednesday 1st 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. This is the Times Morning Briefing for Wednesday 1st October. A senior cabinet minister has told Times Radio Labour will leave its party conference in Liverpool later with a clear sense of purpose and direction.

0:47The Prime Minister used his conference speech yesterday to mount a series of attacks on the Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, but Zakir Starmer acknowledged in his words that it doesn't get easier from here. His next challenge will be the autumn budget when the Chancellor is expected to impose tax increases. Douglas Alexander is the Secretary of State for Scotland. Speaking to Times Radio, he gave his backing to the Prime Minister's plan to renew the nation. We can renew the country if we pull together. And Nigel Farage practices a politics which is about difference and division. And actually, Kier, I thought, gave a very compelling case that Britain's at its best when we work together.

1:25So in that sense, I think the party will leave with a spring in its step. Zakir Starmer's plan to overhaul Labour's education targets has prompted criticism, however, from a leading think tank. In his speech, he announced the scrapping of Labour's long-standing commitment to getting 50 % of young people into university. Starmer said he would replace it with a new ambition, that two-thirds of children should go either to university or take on a gold standard apprenticeship. Dr Rebecca Montecute is a research director of the Social Market Foundation think tank. What exactly is a gold standard apprenticeship?

2:00Is there going to be anything specifically on quality there? We also have the challenge that apprenticeship starts have actually been falling. And I'm concerned that with the growth and skills levy, that pot of funding that used to be the apprenticeship levy is getting widened to much more different types of training. Are we getting enough funding going into these apprenticeships to have enough high quality options? President Trump has given Hamas three or four days to respond to his 20 point plan aimed at ending the war in Gaza. Under the terms of the proposal, Hamas would have to disarm and hand over all remaining Israeli hostages.

2:34James Zogby is the president of the Arab American Institute. He says Washington is failing to keep Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in check. There's not much more I can imagine Netanyahu doing other than what he is doing. More bombing of Gaza City, that's happening. More starvation, that's already happening. Bombing hospitals, that's already happening. I mean, this is a genocide, and in order for it to stop, it's not a question of Hamas agreeing. It's a question of stopping Israel from doing what it's doing. U.S. senators have failed to pass a last-minute bill to avert a federal shutdown, meaning government funding will be cut off today.

3:12It means some government services will be brought to a temporary halt, and President Trump is threatening mass irreversible firings. The most recent shutdown during Trump's first term was the longest in American history. And nine officers at the UK's busiest police station have been suspended. Allegations of excessive force on prisoners, misogyny and inappropriate behaviour are being investigated at Charing Cross Station. You can follow the Times News Briefing on Spotify and listen live to Times Radio online.

3:47This 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. Do you keep hearing podcast ads like this one, for example, but always wonder how you actually get involved with them for your own brand or organization?

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