a very warm welcome to you. we have a packed programme. the united states vowed to hold the houthi militia group accountable for the deaths of three civilians after a missile strike hit a commercial ship in the gulf of aden on wednesday. at least four people have also been injured. this is the first time such an attack has resulted in fatalities. the greek—owned — but barbados flagged — ship was hit off the southern coast of yemen. the us central command, which oversees operations in the middle east, released this image of the vessel. aru na iyengar reports. houthi attacks in the red sea have now thrown deadly, yesterday, a missile strike by the group on a librarian or an cargo ship resulted in three crew members being killed. there are courses of action like this, join us and uk airstrikes on targets in yemen

last month. but so far, the houthi haven't been deterred. these are pictures of the forces actually seizing a ship in november, the iranians back group which controls most of northern yemen had been targeting ships in the area for months, and protest at offensive in the gaza strip. this latest action is a major escalation, the ship hit by houthi yesterday was the envy true confidence that the ballcarrier was selling with the crew of 20 who are mainly filipino nationals. the attack happened about 15 nautical miles from the yemen port. the ship was travelling from china to saudi arabia. the us condemned the attack saying it went way beyond disruption to navigation and international seas. ., , ., seas. not 'ust endangered seafarers_ seas. notjust endangered seafarers but _ seas. notjust endangered seafarers but now, - seas. notjust endangered l seafarers but now, tragically killed a number of them so we will continue to hold them accountable and we call on government to run the will to do the same.—

government to run the will to do the same. the houthi say the shi was do the same. the houthi say the ship was american _ do the same. the houthi say the ship was american and - do the same. the houthi say the ship was american and the - do the same. the houthi say the ship was american and the crew| ship was american and the crew had ignored warnings from the houthi navalforces. the us and uk campaign of airstrikes has been targeting houthi lorn sites, ammunition depots and control post, these were strike in the yemeni capital last month. following the attack on the, lord secretary said the uk will continue to stannifer freedom of navigation and back its word with action. but the houthi have few supplies of drawings and missiles, this cargo ship, it was hit by a missile last month, it finally sank in the weekend and now poses an environmental risk. let's speak to hisham al—0meisy, senior yemen advisor with the european institute of peace. good to speak to you again. it has been quite an eventful week

has been quite an eventful week has in it, this is the first time as we've mentioned that they been fatality is now, as a consequence of houthi attacks on commercial vessels? the houthi have _ on commercial vessels? tue houthi have promised on commercial vessels? tte houthi have promised that on commercial vessels? ttj: houthi have promised that they will escalade but the world is not taken them seriously, they do mean business and they are testing a lot of the new weaponry that's been supplied by iran and i expect a lot of people in the region do expect that the houthis will increase the intensities of these attacks on ships, they hijacked one ship, they sunk another and now, there are increasing their attacks in the gulf of aden and the red sea and close as well. the uk and us coalition working together to try and stop these houthi rebels from attacking vessels, is not having any impact, is it? unfortunately, it isn't. one _ impact, is it? unfortunately, it isn't. one of— impact, is it? unfortunately, it isn't. one of the _ impact, is it? unfortunately, it isn't. one of the things, i it isn't. one of the things, the misconception is that they

managed to put a dent operation or some time, the houthis will rock the stockpile by that and understand that the houthi over the past nine years, they develop the capacity to build muscles locally. in addition to receiving shipments that are being smuggled from iran to various routs to the houthi are so they will not run out of missiles or drones, if anything, they are increasing the stock pile and increasing sophisticated weaponry that is arriving to them. and so, you see additional weaponry coming into yemen more sophisticated once but also, the attacks are going to be more deadly, more fatal as time passes by. find going to be more deadly, more fatal as time passes by. and do ou think fatal as time passes by. and do you think the — fatal as time passes by. and do you think the only _ fatal as time passes by. and do you think the only thing - fatal as time passes by. and do you think the only thing that i you think the only thing that would stop this is a permanency ceasefire in gaza? is at the thought process as far as the plan and strategy of the houthi rebels? to

plan and strategy of the houthi rebels? ., , ., , rebels? to be honest, we will ull the rebels? to be honest, we will pull the rug — rebels? to be honest, we will pull the rug to _ rebels? to be honest, we will pull the rug to ceasefire - pull the rug to ceasefire because that's the whole excuse, that's how they are writing this wave, this content with reaction with gaza and that's their premise, the responses, our seizing us fire is that but honestly, the houthi will continue to harass ships in the red sea, they will fly another excuse but now, that's our only plate unfortunately, even the coalition had options with how to deal with the 0k, hisham al—0meisy, good to speak to you again and will have more on what's going on in gaza a little later in this programme but now, back to the us. the armourer on the set of the alec baldwin movie, rust, in which a cinematographer was shot dead in 2021, has been convicted of involuntary manslaughter. a new mexico jury found hannah gutierrez—reed guilty of the death of halyna hutchins, the film's cinematographer. 0ur west coast correspondent emma vardy reports from los

angeles. this was the scene on new mexico after a rehearsal for the western movie rust went terribly wrong.— the western movie rust went terribly wrong. alec baldwin? where is he _ terribly wrong. alec baldwin? where is he at? _ terribly wrong. alec baldwin? where is he at? a _ terribly wrong. alec baldwin? where is he at? a talented i where is he at? a talented s mbol where is he at? a talented symbol mythographer - where is he at? a talented i symbol mythographer halyna hutchins had been shot dead after the gun alec baldwin was rehearsing with fired a live round. —— cinematographer. the prosecution said the armour on said hannah gutierrez reed had mixed up dummy rounds meant to look like the real thing with live rounds that belong to her personally. and that other live bullets have been found dotted around the set. they argued that hannah gutierrez reed didn't carry out the rate safety checks that were detected the fact alive bullet had been mistakenly loaded in the gun. afterjust a few hours of deliberation, a jewry found her guilty of involuntary manslaughter. we

her guilty of involuntary manslaughter. her guilty of involuntary manslau~hter. ~ ., manslaughter. we found her uuil . manslaughter. we found her guilty- what _ manslaughter. we found her guilty. what happened - manslaughter. we found her guilty. what happened here| manslaughter. we found her i guilty. what happened here at the binance _ guilty. what happened here at the binance creek— guilty. what happened here at the binance creek ranch - guilty. what happened here at the binance creek ranch is - guilty. what happened here at| the binance creek ranch is now change the approach to gun safety in the movie industry to try to make sure that such a tragedy never happens again. while real guns are still used, increasingly, directors are opting for digital effects in postproduction to simulate gunfire. postproduction to simulate aunfire. ~ , ., postproduction to simulate aunfire. ~ ,, ., ., gunfire. when you in the room with a lady...? _ gunfire. when you in the room with a lady...? alec— gunfire. when you in the room with a lady. . . ? alec baldwin i gunfire. when you in the room with a lady. . . ? alec baldwin isj with a lady. . . ? alec baldwin is due to stand _ with a lady. . . ? alec baldwin is due to stand trial _ with a lady. . . ? alec baldwin is due to stand trial in _ with a lady. . . ? alec baldwin is due to stand trial in july - with a lady. . . ? alec baldwin is due to stand trial in july also l due to stand trial injuly also accused of involuntary manslaughter. he claims he never pulled the trigger, prosecutors will argue that he too did not follow basic safety rules when handling the weapon. i promise you more detail in gaza so let's bring that now. the fighting goes on, with israeli forces still bombarding the enclave. these images from last night show explosions in gaza — viewed from southern israel. ceasefire talks are still under way and the united states maintains that an agreement

is still possible between hamas and israel before the start of ramadan. yesterday — a delegation of palestinian—americans, whose families have died in gaza during the ongoing conflict with israel, met the secretary—general and security council at the united nations. they voiced their concerns about "catastrophic" living conditions in gaza, and demanded a ceasefire. since the seventh of october, my family members over 150 of them had been murdered by israel's brutal assault. either by israeli bombardments, snipers or the call and with this denial of humanitarian aid. with no access to clean water, with food, equitable healthcare services, thousands more have tormented with horrific injuries, forced to starvation, trauma and displacement evacuation caps and catastrophic living conditions. with me is mohamed taha

from bbc arabic. good morning to you, one of those family members at those meetings yesterday is lost over 100 family in gaza?— 100 family in gaza? indeed, three days _ 100 family in gaza? indeed, three days to _ 100 family in gaza? indeed, three days to the _ 100 family in gaza? indeed, three days to the month - 100 family in gaza? indeed, three days to the month of. three days to the month of ramadan now and people in gaza are dying from hunger more than dying from shelling, the palestinian health authorities said that 20 people died only yesterday from hunger and malnutrition. the international food programme said that israel prevented aid from reaching northern gaza, yesterday, and also there is an intensity of systematic attacks on queues of people who are gathering to get aid, this happened last night, around about, it happened last week in a roundabout in the street when more than 100

palestinian died in this accident and now, the situation is really dark, the problem is with the month of ramadan that muslims and people in gaza should fast from dawn to dust and they should have two good meals before dawn and my son and that's the management of nutrition and food in this month, really important to be able to carry on fasting for one month and all international organisations now, international forces including the us and in the uk also saying that the only way to reach, to produce food and aid to gaza is pose in fighting. just briefly, what are you hearing about the talks? the talks are ongoing that no breakthrough yet by any means? indeed, talks that was happening in egypt is in deadlock, israel is not

attending these talks, they are demanding that hamas will provide a list of the living hostages, hamas saying that this is impossible, hamas on the contrary, demanding that in the contrary, demanding that in the six weeks, opposing fighting there should be talks about permanency spiral, withdrawal of the israeli forces from gaza and return of the refugees to the home, israel says that these demands cannot happen and after the pose of fighting, they are willing to continue that fighting again. — permanent ceasefire. fighting again. - permanent ceasefire.— fighting again. - permanent ceasefire. thank you for the latest on — ceasefire. thank you for the latest on that. _ figures show this february was the hottest on record. it is the nineth successive month that global temperatures have broken record highs for the time of year. justin rowlatt reports. spring begins when the magnolia trees bloom according to cornish traditions and spring came early in cornwall and the rest of europe this year,

temperatures across the continent this february were almost three degrees above average. the exceptional warm weather the world experience last month did not surprise climate scientists. it coincides with a near—record increase in co2 concentrations increase in co2 concentrations in the atmosphere. the link between c02 and rising temperatures is well established and this year, global temperatures got an extra boost thanks to el nino which brings warmer water to the surface of parts of the tropical pacific. that explains why february was 1.77 degrees warmer than pre— industrial temperatures and why global average temperatures hit a record 1.55 degrees above preindustrial levels over the last 12 months. it means we have temporarily at least reached the 1.5 degrees threshold the world agreed to try and limit temperature rise to avoid the worst impacts of climate change.—

to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. february 2024 was the warmest _ climate change. february 2024 was the warmest february - climate change. february 2024 was the warmest february in l was the warmest february in record, we had temperatures of 13.54 degrees above the 1991 — 2020 picture. and why it is remarkable, because attentive a degree warmer than the warmest previous february which was 2016 is not really surprising because it has been the el nino year where temperatures tend to be warmer and more importantly, we have seen over the last few decades, piling up between the gut and the atmosphere would bring up the temperature of the entire planet. we bring up the temperature of the entire planet-— entire planet. we all en'oy warm weather, i entire planet. we all enjoy warm weather, especiallyl entire planet. we all enjoy - warm weather, especially after the downpours this winter but we should worry when the seasons get out of whack. some plants and animals can struggle to survive, though scientists say urgent action to cut emissions can still slow warming. justin rowlatt, bbc news. around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news.

let's look at some other stories making news. a fire at a police station in east london has been brought under control after it broke out yesterday afternoon. around 175 firefighters attended the blaze at forest gate police station in romford road which the fire brigade said had completely destroyed the roof. no injuries have been reported, while police say the incident was not initially being treated as suspicious. and a fire near southampton's football stadium caused their game against preston north end to be postponed last night. the fire broke out in an industrial unit near the club's st mary's stadium. no—one was hurt in the blaze. a group of mps will publish a report this morning setting out how "fast, full and fair" compensation should be paid by the government to post office branch managers who were affected by the horizon it scandal. more than 4,000 people have been told they are eligible for compensation, but the process has been criticised by campaigners

for being too slow. from london, you are with bbc news. here, the chancellor, jeremy hunt, has cut national insurance contributions and raised the threshold for claiming child benefit in his last spring budget before the general election. it is likely to be the last. he says the measures have been paid for by by putting up taxes on business class flights, vaping and smoking, but the office for budget responsibility waens the government could find it hard to balance the books. here's our business correspondent, emma simpson. did you catch any ofjeremy�*s budget? tt did you catch any of jeremy's bud . et? ., , did you catch any of jeremy's budaet? ., , ., did you catch any of jeremy's budaet? ., . ., . ., budget? it was a chance to turn round the _ budget? it was a chance to turn round the fortunes _ budget? it was a chance to turn round the fortunes of _ budget? it was a chance to turn round the fortunes of the - round the fortunes of the conservative party, was enough? i think it is good that the workers _ i think it is good that the workers are going to get money back— workers are going to get money back their— workers are going to get money back their pockets, but then if you think— back their pockets, but then if you think about the cost of living — you think about the cost of

living and how everything is going — living and how everything is going up, then maybe they could have _ going up, then maybe they could have given a little bit more hack — have given a little bit more back. �* , ., . , have given a little bit more back. , ._ ,., , back. anything that cuts taxes, i wish back. anything that cuts taxes, i wish she _ back. anything that cuts taxes, i wish she would _ back. anything that cuts taxes, i wish she would have - back. anything that cuts taxes, i wish she would have done - i wish she would have done something _ i wish she would have done something a _ iwish she would have done something a bit— i wish she would have done something a bit more - i wish she would have done something a bit more for. something a bit more for savers, _ something a bit more for savers, we _ something a bit more for savers, we are _ something a bit more for savers, we are living - something a bit more for savers, we are living offl savers, we are living off savings _ savers, we are living off savings i— savers, we are living off savings-— savers, we are living off savinas. ~ j ., savings. i think they're doing it in line of _ savings. i think they're doing it in line of a _ savings. i think they're doing it in line of a general - it in line of a general election, ratherthan it in line of a general election, rather than thinking what the benefits of the country is. what the benefits of the country is— what the benefits of the count is. . , . ., country is. the centrepiece of this budget — country is. the centrepiece of this budget was _ country is. the centrepiece of this budget was a _ country is. the centrepiece of this budget was a 2p - country is. the centrepiece of this budget was a 2p in - country is. the centrepiece of this budget was a 2p in the i this budget was a 2p in the pound cut to national insurance, tax paid by workers, so who are the winners and losers if you include all the changes to threshold so far? here are some examples. if you are a lone owner on £50,000, you will bejust are a lone owner on £50,000, you will be just over £400 worse off a year. —— low owner. you will also be a little worse off if you are on £75,000, but if you are a middle earner, you will be better off. for instance, if you are on 35 k, you will be up by £352. there are changes to child benefit too. currently if you earn over £50,000 you have to pay some of it back, but now the starting salary will be 60 grand,

helping parents like tim and maddie. , , . ., maddie. yes, if they change the threshold that _ maddie. yes, if they change the threshold that would _ maddie. yes, if they change the threshold that would be - maddie. yes, if they change the threshold that would be a - maddie. yes, if they change the threshold that would be a good| threshold that would be a good thing for us, because our biggest outgoing really is child care, that's the most expensive thing for us. but other taxes _ expensive thing for us. but other taxes are _ expensive thing for us. but other taxes are being raised to help pay for it all, including a new one on vapes. cigarettes are going up and so will business and premium flights. the windfall tax on oil and gas firms will be extended and the government has stolen labour's idea of abolishing tax breaks for so—called non—dom is. wealthy foreigners who only pay uk tax on money made here. the chancellor says things are heading in the right direction. 0ur heading in the right direction. our plan to get the economy back on its feet after the invasion of ukraine is working. inflation is falling, growth is coming back. if we stick to that plan we can see growth rates returning to the kind of levels we were used to before. but the backdrop is

challenging, with public services under pressure. the risk for the _ services under pressure. the risk for the future _ services under pressure. the risk for the future is - services under pressure. ttj: risk for the future is that these tax cuts come along side promises a very, very tight spending control over the next parliament, so if you are going to keep these tax cuts, we are going to get tax cuts in spending. if we are not, then taxes i'm afraid will rise later on. taxes i'm afraid will rise later on-_ taxes i'm afraid will rise later on. taxes i'm afraid will rise lateron. ., later on. difficult choices lie ahead for — later on. difficult choices lie ahead for whoever - later on. difficult choices lie ahead for whoever wins - later on. difficult choices lie ahead for whoever wins the | later on. difficult choices lie - ahead for whoever wins the next election. emma simpson, bbc news. 0ne one of the choices, as you heard, is the measure to increase the cost of vaping, tax on vaping is going up. there'll be a new tax on vaping products, to take effect from october 2026. the measure is intended to make the habit more expensive and discourage non—smokers from taking it up. the chancellorjeremy hunt said the government would introduce a one—off increase in tobacco tax at the same time to maintain the financial incentive to choose vaping over smoking.

let's speak to zack collins — the owner of a vape business. is this the news she didn't want? == you didn't want? is this the news she didn't want?. you didn't want? want? -- you didn't want? to be honest, it _ want? -- you didn't want? to be honest. it is _ want? -- you didn't want? to be honest, it is pushing _ want? -- you didn't want? to be honest, it is pushing out - want? -- you didn't want? to be honest, it is pushing out a - honest, it is pushing out a massive message to consumers that e—cigarettes are just as harmful as tobacco when they are categorically not. i think in this day and age putting up any tax heights to the general public is nothing but unfair due to the current climate. and what we have a 76,000 people a year die each yearfrom what we have a 76,000 people a year die each year from smoking generic cigarettes. 0bviously generic cigarettes. obviously there are many, many more people who suffer with debilitating illnesses, which again, there's billions spent on the nhs supporting that. 0bviously i'm sure you guys are aware that e—cigarettes have been clinically proven to be 95% better for the consumer.

better than traditional cigarettes, and what is in the traditional cigarettes. absolutely.— traditional cigarettes. absolutel. �* ., , ., traditional cigarettes. absolutel. ., ., absolutely. but to be fair to the chancellor _ absolutely. but to be fair to the chancellor he _ absolutely. but to be fair to the chancellor he increased | the chancellor he increased cigarette tax proportionally as well so it is much, much more expensive to be smoking cigarettes ban vaping still. much, much more expensive. from the figures i have found other research i have done you are looking at round about a year increase in vapours to smoke generic cigarettes this year, almost £60,000 a year. in comparison to vaping, which is £780 a year. it is a much cheaper alternative but i think what we need to do alongside increasing the tax on vaping, we need to make it crystal clear to consumers out there that vaping is not as harmful cigarettes. that vaping is not as harmful cigarettes-— cigarettes. but part of a concern _ cigarettes. but part of a concern with _ cigarettes. but part of a concern with the - cigarettes. but part of a concern with the vaping | cigarettes. but part of a l concern with the vaping is cigarettes. but part of a - concern with the vaping is how

young people are hugely getting into vaping you are not smoking at all, because the idea of e—cigarettes is to try to get smokers off tobacco. it is a means to getting them off a addiction, whereas the problem with vaping is many people were vaping who were not smoking at all and they have a new habit. raising the tax on vaping in such a minimal amount that the government have announced yesterday, there is no actual figures out there from what i've read. it is a tiny increase, which 0k, i've read. it is a tiny increase, which ok, that is not going to put off people who vapes off it won't put children. the way you will stop children. the way you will stop children is clamping down on the irresponsible retailers. you have high street corner shops, convenience stores, petrol stations, barbershops, you've got outlets out there which have zero experience in vaping, zero experience in giving the consumer correct advice on switching from cigarettes to e—cigarettes.

they are just out there to line their own pockets and that's where the problem is because i've been in the industry a long time and there are many people out there selling vapes to anybody that is willing to buy them. that's the problem. increasing the tax will not discourage youngsters to vape. thank you for your reaction. we appreciate it. the ceo of a vaping business zach collins joining us slide from york. we will have a lot more on the budget in around five minutes' time when we look at business. more on that to come, but we want to squeeze in a few other stories in ten days' time. in 10 days time, people across russia will be voting in elections and president putin is almost certain to be resoundingly re—elected. yesterday, the widow of the russian opposition leader, alexei navalny, called for an election day protest against mr putin. yulia navalnaya said she had drawn hope from the large crowds who had come out last week for her husband's funeral in moscow. bbc hardtalk�*s stephen sackur has been speaking to leonid volkov, long—time ally

and adviser to mr navalny — he described his reaction to the news of his friends death. i still can't believe it, frankly. there is a deep, bleeding hole in my heart. alexi was not only like a political leader, he was also a very close friend, and in the last years when he was in prison and we were exchanging mail, orvery prison and we were exchanging mail, or very often discussing the future, and how it will go there and here, discussing this and that and doing this and that. and it is hard for me just to get used to this new world where alexei isn't here any more, because he was a great personality. he was really able to fill him in any room where he was in and he is

very much missed. t room where he was in and he is very much missed. i understand the deep grief- _ very much missed. i understand the deep grief. would _ very much missed. i understand the deep grief. would it - very much missed. i understand the deep grief. would it also i the deep grief. would it also be fair— the deep grief. would it also be fair to— the deep grief. would it also be fair to use the word despair about— be fair to use the word despair about your current feeling? no. that's not _ about your current feeling? no. that's not correct. _ about your current feeling? tic. that's not correct. alexei was a very inspirational leader, and his main slogan was like never give up. and if there is one thing we have learned from him in the many years that we work together, i work together with him for 13 years, was this thing, like never give up. being in despair would make a sacrifice in vain, it would be a betrayal of his legacy, his political legacy, and that is something that we will never do. more on the budget shortly, as promised. before we go, we want to share one of the most—read stories on our website, involving dogs and diets. scientists in the uk say that a genetic mutation makes some

labradors and flat—coated retrievers constantly hungry while burning fewer calories. the so—called "double—whammy" effect means dog owners must pay special attention to keeping their pets trim. read more on our website. hello, there. over the next few days, the winds going to be picking up from the east or southeast. it's going to be particularly windy on friday. we'll have more of the cloud affecting eastern parts of the country. i think some western areas will see most of the sunshine. that's because high pressure over scandinavia will be pushing westwards against this low—pressure system, so we'll start to see the isobars squeezing together. so for thursday, it's a bright start across northern and western areas.

quite a chilly start, mind you — early mist and fog will clear as the wind begins to pick up. eastern areas seeing thicker cloud at times. it will stay rather grey here, maybe some spots of drizzle. a few showers into the afternoon across the midlands, into east wales. 0therwise, many places should stay dry and we should see sunny spells. top temperatures, 11 degrees, but cooler along north sea coasts with that increasing onshore breeze. the winds continue to pick up through thursday night, pushing more cloud into the midlands, northern england, large parts of scotland. but there will still be some clearer skies, particularly through southern and central areas. so where the skies are clear, it's going to be cold. where we have the cloud, the breeze, then less cold — generally, i think, two to five degrees. now, more isobars on the charts for friday. a strong east, south—easterly wind picking up as this low—pressure system starts to push back against the area of high pressure, so a blustery day for all. there will be quite a bit of sunshine around, we think, for england and wales. more cloud for northern england, certainly central and eastern scotland, and some good spells of sunshine for western scotland, northern ireland, but the winds a feature for all areas, particularly so along north sea coasts, so that will peg the temperatures back, although we're looking at single digits on the north sea, it could feel even colder than that.

further west in the sunshine, ten or 11 celsius. into saturday, this area of low pressure sideswipes the south and southwest of the country. again, it stays quite blustery, quite a few isobars on the charts for saturday, and we'll see showers or longer spells of rain affecting parts of the west and the southwest. some sunshine around, too. it's not going to be a wash—out. a lot of cloud, though, for northern england and large parts of central and eastern scotland. a bit of drizzle on the hills there. feeling quite chilly in the north, but 11 to 13 in the south, some milder air being pulled into this area of low pressure, which will, by sunday into monday, pull out into the near continent. you'll see the isobars opening out, so we should start to see some drier weather, lighter winds as we head through sunday, certainly into monday and tuesday, but east—facing coasts will always see more in the way of cloud, perhaps still with a little bit of drizzle over the higher ground.

live from london, this is bbc news. playing it safe. uk chancellorjeremy hunt gives a small tax boost for working people, with hints of more to come, but avoids spooking financial markets. when it is responsible, when it can be achieved without increasing borrowing, when it can be delivered without compromising high other services, we will continue to cut national insurance as we have done today so we duly make work pay. there we have it, the last desperate act of a party that is failed _ desperate act of a party that is failed. road turn in recession, the national credit card _ recession, the national credit card maxed out, and despite the

notion— card maxed out, and despite the notion today, the highest tax burden— notion today, the highest tax burden for 70 years. also coming up — europe's wait for lower rates. as the economy struggles — pressure grows on the european central bank to bring down the cost of borrowng from its record high. plus — turning over a new leaf. fewer than half of uk kids say they enjoy reading. can world book day help them start a fresh chapter? hello and welcome. any parents watching, you haven't got an outfit ready, you have a few hours for world book day. we start here in the uk where business leaders — bankers — households are weighing up what is likely to be the chancellor of the exchequerjeremy hunt's last budget before a general election.