this is business live from bbc news with sally bundock and susannah streeter. re—opening the ‘fast lanes‘ of the internet. american lawmakers prepare to rip—up obama's net neutrality laws later — giving broadband firms huge power over online traffic. live from london, that's our top story on thursday the 14th of december. as pioneers of the internet warn that losing net neutrality would be nothing short of a catastrophe, we discuss the impact on innovation, and free speech. also in the programme.... global interest rates in focus. after the us federal reserve raised rates on wednesday, and china's pboc hiked today, we find out what we can expect from the bank of england and the european central bank. and that really is concentrating

minds on the financial markets in europe. opening down so far. and today is the busiest day of the year for the royal mail, with ten million parcels and millions of letters out for delivery. we're going live to a sorting office to see how the company is coping. today we want to know: on the day we expect a deal to be announced between disney and 21st century fox, are you concerned about getting less choice in movies? let us know. just use the hashtag bbcbizlive. hello and welcome to business live. we start in the us — where regulators could be about to scrap rules guaranteeing equal access to the internet — a principle known as ‘net neutrality‘. it was enshrined in law under president obama in 2015 — but under the trump administration it looks doomed following a huge battle in the business world. here‘s why.

think of your internet service provider as a motorway. net neutrality means it‘s not allowed to set up ‘fast lanes‘ — giving faster access to some sites because they pay more. or deliberately slowing or blocking other sites that don‘t. us telecoms giants like comcast, verizon and at&t have lobbied hard against it. but content firms like amazon and google say ditching the rules will give too much power to the telecoms — and will make it harder for new start—ups to compete. injuly they led more than 170 organisations in slowing down their services to protest the proposed change. the debate is going on all over the world. the countries in blue already have ‘net neutrality‘ — they make sure all traffic is treated equally. those in red are considering it. those in yellow have no rules at the moment. matthew howett is a communications industry analyst at assembly research.

good morning. it looks like these rules may get ripped up today in the united states. talk us through the winners and losers. the winners, as we heard in that piece, are the big telcos. arguably, the diggers losers, are the communications companies. i think we should think about how the consumer bits into this. the rules are there to protect so this. the rules are there to protect so that you and i can get the content so that you and i can get the co nte nt we so that you and i can get the content we want on our devices. the lobbyists would argue that they will be fine, they will be protected. there are rules that can be used to police this. ultimately consumers could lose out if they cannot get access to the content they want. we

showed you the map where different areas of neutrality exist but does it really exist? other things these companies can already do to try to promote some services over others? the way the works mean we do have to prioritise some traffic. —— the internet works. providers like netflix are paying isps to get the content is closer to us so we do not sleep buffering when we use our devices. these things are commonplace. —— we do not see. devices. these things are commonplace. -- we do not see. in the us we have mentioned a strong lobby group, the likes of horizon, at and t and others. is there a similargroup in europe, at and t and others. is there a similar group in europe, who are trying to pull away the net neutrality rules? we have seen less of the debate in europe and the uk. we have more competition between the

different broadband providers but thatis different broadband providers but that is less the case in the us. there are fewer of them are more concerned about what they might do. in europe there is a lot of competition. if people do not like something they can switch to another provider. it will come down to the philosophical argument about whether we should all have a right to access the internet and good access to the internet, no matter who we are, how big or small we are. it is a crucial debate. we are talking about big amounts of money. that could be used to invest in rolling out the infrastructure and improving broadband speeds. there is a relationship between both sides on this debate. it is one which probably will not go away quickly even after this vote. we will talk to you on the subject and probably other subjects. thank you for coming let‘s take a look at some of the other stories making the news. the world trade organisation has closed its biennial summit without any agreements being reached.

there had been some hope of deals on e—commerce, as well as farming and fishing subsidies. it raises questions about the group‘s ability to govern global trade disputes. the head of the wto said the organisation now needed to conduct some real soul—searching. in the uk, an influential group of mps has urged britain and the european union to agree a status quo brexit transition period. the treasury select committee wants it agreed as soon as possible to ease business concerns over a no—deal brexit. the committee‘s report said it strongly supported the prime minister‘s push for a comprehensive free—trade deal which would keep borders as frictionless as possible. the carmaker nissan says it‘s recalling more than 300,000 vehicles injapan because of a defective coating which could, in the worst case scenario, lead to a fire. six models, including minivans made for suzuki and mitsubishi, are affected. no vehicles sold outside japan are being recalled. do not forget our business live page

is constantly updating with the news. bp and the fact that australian and additional parties have blocked the oil giant‘s vision is to buy network of local networks stations from the supermarket chain in australia, or worse. stations from the supermarket chain in australia, orworse. it stations from the supermarket chain in australia, or worse. it was worth $1.3 billion. so, interestingly, how bp has been stymied by australian competition authorities. one of those stories is also on there. take a look when you want. also lots about the federal reserve decision. in the wake of the us federal reserve‘s decision to hike interest rates on wednesday, china‘s central bank surprised the markets by making a rate rise of their own. monica miller is in singapore. what did they do? china has made a

startling declaration of moderate losses after raising short—term and mid term interest rates for debate came after hours the decision the fed made by raising rates by a quarter of a percent. the world‘s second—biggest economy has started to cool as the government cut down on high risk lending. they do not wa nt to on high risk lending. they do not want to slow down economic growth. hong kong was another one. their monetary authority was out today and they have upped their base rate 25 basis points. hong kong tracks the us rate because their currencies are pinned to one another. both currencies are in lockstep with other asian currencies, which have already raised their rates. south korea raised its rate. it was the first asian country to do so since 2014 foot at many economists say malaysia could be no first one in the u —— new yearfollowed by

philippines and taiwan. we may see another interest rate rise in south korea in 2018. thank you for that update. the financial market focus is over central bank activity after the much anticipated interest rate hike. the dollar fell despite an upbeat assessment of the us economy. despite another record close on wall street, the stronger yen pushed down stocks in tokyo. closing down by .2%. let‘s have a look at europe as well. the markets mainly open. down across—the—board well. the markets mainly open. down across—the—boa rd ahead of well. the markets mainly open. down across—the—board ahead of the key central bank decisions in frankfurt. the acp and the bank of england are not expecting a big change but we may get an indication of future policy. yogita was in washington for that fed decision and has the details about what‘s ahead on wall street today. stock market investors would like to

have a big deal to analyse and trade on foot of it looks like they will get onejust in on foot of it looks like they will get one just in time for christmas. it is widely expected that disney and 21st—century fox will announce a major transaction in which disney will buy most of fox‘s media assets. many us tv channels, its movie studio, and a stake in sky tv, which owns sky news wall street expects the deal could be worth something like $60 billion and that it could be announced as early as thursday. investors will also get a bunch of economic data to pore over, most notably retail sales figures from n. they are expected to show a rise of .3% as the us consumer remains happy to spend. and there is corporate earnings are farfrom to spend. and there is corporate earnings are far from software giant oracle. joining us is sue noffke is uk equities fund managerfrom schroders. nice to see you. talking about what

is going on this week. lots going on. it is kind of wrapping up what has been really a goldilocks year 4 economic growth, financial markets. would you describe that for the uk? the uk in a global context is quite small. it is not as bad as many feared. i just small. it is not as bad as many feared. ijust wanted small. it is not as bad as many feared. i just wanted to small. it is not as bad as many feared. ijust wanted to clarify what you thought goldilocks was. feared. ijust wanted to clarify what you thought goldilocks waslj am what you thought goldilocks was.” am talking about the global economy, particularly the us, which sets the scene. gross has been good. what drives central bank action is expected inflation. —— growth. that has been modest. we had core inflation numbers which were a bit wea ker inflation numbers which were a bit weaker than people had gone for. the headline came in line with people‘s

expectations. that keeps the fed quite down. talking about that scenario, not necessarily that if you are betting on a stronger dollar, which really has not materialised. again, weakening after that central bank decision at the fed. why is that? janet had quite an upbeat assessment of the us economy for the going forward, she is questioning the impact of trump‘s plan. and just how sustainable that boosters. that is true. she has put through some stronger growth forecast but not sustained it in our two years. it comes back to the inflation forecast. there is no inflation forecast. there is no inflation pressure building up in the system despite unemployment being at low levels. it allows central banks to keep monetary policy quite loose and comes back to the goldilocks scenario. i think they will follow through next year with three but the markets are only

pricing in two. and that is where inflation is so key. thank you for 110w. inflation is so key. thank you for now. she will be back. some interesting stories to get our teeth into later. that is on the cards in a few minutes. still to come... on the busiest day of the year for the royal mail, we‘ll be live in a sorting office to see just how the company is dealing with the millions of parcels and christmas cards that need to be processed at this time of year. you‘re with business live from bbc news. it is busy for the likes of royal mail but also extremely busy for online grocery chains. online grocery chain ocado said a driver shortage impacted sales growth in its fourth quarter. the retailer, which recently secured its biggest overseas deal with a partnership with french supermarket groupe casino, said its retail sales rose 11.6% last quarter, having increased 13.1% in the previous quarter.

russ mould, investment director at aj bell, is in the newsroom to talk us through the numbers. what is going on? they are not growing the share of the business currently but they are hoping to build the business overall by the tie—up with casino. that is about the tech behind the delivery system, isn‘t it? the tech behind the delivery system, isn't it? if you look at the stock market valuation it is over £2 million, which seems pretty exotic for a company that is making less than 10 million in profit this year. it is not just than 10 million in profit this year. it is notjust down to the grocery delivery service. the real secret is the intellectual property, the ocado smart platform. it has licensed it to two or three different grocers. the company is working on more deals, a licensing fee, and in the

case of capital casino will be a fee for using the warehouse. that is the real secret to the stop. —— restock. they have been effectively subsidising my dinner, which is fantastic. in terms of the long potential of the company it is all down to the software. what are a nalysts down to the software. what are analysts saying? in terms of the numbers today, there was a slight slowdown in growth. the driver problem seems to be sorted. there is a fourth warehouse in eris next year. that will take many thousands of orders a week. it is incredibly competitive, we are waiting to see what amazon will do, another challenge for them. can they get more big licensing deals? thank

you. talking us through ocado‘s results. get the delivery orders in! especially at this time of year. see you ina especially at this time of year. see you in a minute. you‘re watching business live. american lawmakers are preparing to rip—up obama‘s net neutrality laws later, reopening the fast lanes of the internet and giving broadband firms huge power over online traffic. when we get news, we will update you on the bbc. quick look at how markets are faring. in europe, we have been trading for nearly 50 minutes. nothing too dramatic. trading down a little. european central bank meeting today, lots of traders watching out for the central banks. there are just 11 days until christmas, which means millions of parcels and letters are out for delivery. don‘t say that! there are tens of

millions of cards and presents being sent. in many companies, it means extra staff. in the uk, the royal mail has 20,000 extra pairs of hands to call upon and today they have got ben thomson with them as well! are you help or hindrance in manchester? how dare you! i am a help, of course. they have been putting me to work this morning. this is going to northern ireland, let me put that there. they have taken on thousands of extra staff to make sure they get through all of this stuff, parcels going all around the world, and they are expecting to deal with more of them, today is the busiest day for them, today is the busiest day for the royal mail. they normally deal with 2 million parcels and letters. they will deal with 3.5 million over the next 24 hours, a huge logistical challenge. one of the bosses here.

good morning. how do you deal with this? a big upswing in business, extra staff, big challenge? huge planning effort, we start planning immediately after christmas. we recruit in the uk, 20,000 extra people this christmas. an extra 6000 vehicles on the road delivering parcels and also extra trucks and flights, huge effort to gear up for christmas. talked me through what goes on. it is all sorting, i thought there may be more automation. you still need people? we still need a lot of people. we automate letter traffic and increasingly parcels. today you're seeing people sorting parcels posted yesterday and they are ongoing to worldwide and uk destinations. they will be on the road at 2pm. you have been facing challenges in restructuring the business because like anywhere in the world, we are sending fewer letters, maybe more

parcels, online shopping really big thing, how have you managed that change? the business has changed over the years. that is are still hugely important to us, 60% of uk revenue , hugely important to us, 60% of uk revenue, but parcels are continuing to grow. 6% increase in parcels in the last annual report. parcels are our business now increasingly. thank you. let me introduce you to a marketing expert, really nice to see you. retailers, really busy time of year, all of this sort of stuff going through the system, how do they plan for things like this? the busiest time of year. increasingly, we want to be able to buy products for all sorts of retailers. the planning takes forever, as soon as christmas has finished, the plan for the year after, it is about making supply chains are as efficient as

possible. the business has changed, online shopping, more of us ordering online, so it is a lot more complicated, not just thin online, so it is a lot more complicated, notjust thin letters, big boxes and parcels. things that are delicate, big boxes, you do not wa nt are delicate, big boxes, you do not want it dropped on your doorstep. the retailers work hard to make sure they pick the right carriers to deliver things. the last five yards per retailers is critical because you can buy a product but you want it to be delivered in the right time at the right place. they are investing more and more into those la st investing more and more into those last five yards with businesses like royal mail and other delivery businesses across europe and globally. we talked about it being very seasonable, a lot of extra staff, big upswing in demand, how easyis staff, big upswing in demand, how easy is it for them to gear up for things like this? they plan for it but increasingly, because online shopping has grown at an exponential rate, there is pressure in the workforce to find people who can

drive vans and work in the warehouse and there is a premium for that. shoppers do not want to have to pay for things to be delivered. there are real challenges from retailers about how they pass on the customers. thank you. there you have it. a busy time for everyone here. a lot of seasonal workers have been taken on to cope with the extra demand. it gives you a sense ofjust how busy it is. everyone trying to get stuff posted before christmas. 2 million parcels and letters is what they normally deal with, they are dealing with about 3—3.5 over the next 24 hours. help or hindrance? i am hoping! next 24 hours. help or hindrance? i am hoping i have been a help. it is possible i might have been a bit of a hindrance. they have been very understanding. they all look like they could do with a cup of tea and you make a good cup of tea, go on. about 20, 30 people behind you.” could make myself useful, you are right. they will love you forever.

busiest time, next 24 hours, for me, next ten days, i them nowhere close to writing my christmas cards!” next ten days, i them nowhere close to writing my christmas cards! i am at work, i block it out of my mind here is that we asked you at the beginning whether you are concerned about reduction of choice on the telly in the light of the news we are expecting today, the fact disney is to doa are expecting today, the fact disney is to do a deal with 21st century fox. if the $60 billion deal goes ahead, many argue there would be less choice on the television screens in terms of what we are watching and where we are watching it. which service would you have us your priority customer one says, i would have to choose amazon prime, it is the added bonuses such as two—day shipping, kindle books. it is the added bonuses such as two-day shipping, kindle books. that is interesting. that is how companies are trying to go, they

wa nt companies are trying to go, they want everything about you, the whole package. we promised sue would return. your thoughts? a huge deal and many are saying it will have a seismic impact. it has to get through regulatory hurdles. your thoughts in terms of the impact on people like us. news has consolidated quite a bit so possibly thatis consolidated quite a bit so possibly that is where consumers have less choice today than they did ten years ago, for example. on other content, there are so many proliferations of ways you can consume content when i was growing up, it was three channels, four was a great excitement. now you have internet delivery, different platforms, youtube, i think consumers have lots of choice. moving on. in australia, the country is gripped

by poker machine addiction, a warning that has come out from australia‘s institute, a think tank. they are saying there are 80% of the world‘s poker machines in dedicated gambling venues such as casinos but a lot of those in non—gambling venues are in australia‘s pubs and clu bs, venues are in australia‘s pubs and clubs, real issue. australia is quite different. in many other countries regulations about how you would use these machines, how much access individuals would have, in australia, they are very commonly located for people to have the ability to play while they are having a drink at the pub. it has caused problems. what we have got in australia is someone from the labour party in tasmania saying we want regulation here and there is only one other state in australia where they are regulating this. the

argument from the incumbent liberals as it could costjobs and ready for as it could costjobs and ready for a lot of pubs and hotels —— and revenue. apparently our wine glasses are getting bigger. they are. it is blamed for a rise in drinking. do you have large wine glasses at your house? no—brainer, isn‘t it? you are not meant to put very much in the glass, that is the problem. the red wine is supposed to breathe, white wine is supposed to breathe, white wine is supposed to breathe, white wine is not supposed to get warm, it is how much you put in the glass, but it is like plates. the bigger the plate, the more food you put on it. too much wine being pulled this christmas, i expect, that is the issue. that is if it is delivered on time! smaller wine glasses, that is on my christmas present list. have a good day. see you soon. bye—bye. good morning. pretty heavy showers

overnight and some of that felt as rain, sleet and for some, snow. you may have woken up this morning to a new covering of snow, 1—2 centimetres in the midlands, eastern england and northern parts of england. this morning the wintry showers continuing and across scotland, wintry showers, snow, which could come down to lower levels around the central belt of scotland. the south—west, this afternoon, quite showery, still a breeze coming in from the west, south—east england, staying largely dry and bright. dry weather for the east midlands, east anglia and the north—east of england. wales, showers, turning to snow on higher ground, showers in north—west england and across northern ireland. scotland, again, wintry showers, snow over higher ground. in heavy

showers, the snow could come down to lower levels, something to be aware of. ice a risk this morning. this afternoon and this evening, the lying snow, ice could once again be a problem. tonight, this weather front moving south bringing outbreaks of rain, misty and murky for many. north and west, clear spells, temperatures falling below freezing and wintry showers in the far north—east. the weather front bringing the rain across the south, as it moves south, truck isobars, all the way to the north, the arctic airwill be all the way to the north, the arctic air will be back on friday. on the northerly wind, snow showers into the north york moors, pennines, north—east scotland. foremost, after a great start, sunshine in the afternoon, feeling cold with the cold air. that sticks around for the first part of the weekend before milderair first part of the weekend before milder air comes in from the

south—west. the detail on saturday, many parts, dry with sunshine. more cloud in the north and west. a few showers. a little bit less cold in the south—west. the milder air coming in, with rain spreading across many parts, strengthening winds. temperatures up to ten, 12 in the south. still perhaps chilly towards east anglia. more details available elsewhere on the website. that is all from me. bye—bye. hello, it‘s thursday, it‘s 9am, i‘m victoria derbyshire. this morning, we‘re at st paul‘s cathedral where members of the royal family and the prime minister will join families of victims of the grenfell tower fire for a memorial service, six months after the devastating fire which killed 71 people. throughout the programme, we‘ll be joined by those who survived the fire and will be attending today‘s memorial as they prepare for their first christmas since the disaster. it‘s not going to be a happy time.

christmas is meant for a family to be together. we will hear tributes