from climate change. hello, i'm sally bundock. we start in the uk and the chancellor, rachel reeves, will deliver her widely trailed budget today, pledging to put "more pounds in people's pockets" and to grow the economy. ms reeves is also expected to say there are no short—cuts to improving living standards and to cutting hospital waiting lists in england. it will be the first labour budget in m years and the first to be delivered by a woman. yesterday, the government revealed it will raise the national living wage from april — meaning that three million low—paid workers will get a pay rise of more than 6%. here's our business

editor, simonjack. a pay rise for millions is on the way, and it went down well in cardiff today. it makes finding a job that can pay the bills a lot easier, because many people my age have been struggling for years with this minimum wage. especially what it is at the moment, it's not enough. i don't feel like... yeah, i think it should be raised, for sure. there's young adults out| there who are starting to build up for their own future, to go move into their own- houses and have a life - by themselves, so raising it up would make it easier for everyone. - the government announced today the minimum wage for workers 21 years old and over will rise from £11.44 an hour to £12.21, a 6.7% rise, while workers aged 18—20 will see minimum pay rise from £8.60 to £10 an hour, a rise of over 16%. but for employers in sectors like hospitality, which employ a lot of young workers, it's another item on the rising expenses bill.

it will cost me between £3,000—£3,500 a week, so crudely, 150—180 grand a year. i think it will result in more closures, and i believe it will result in fewer openings, and that's going to be bad for the economy, bad for the treasury and i would argue bad for society. businesses of all kind warmed to the messages coming from the government about being pro—business, pro—growth, but since then, that feeling has slightly cooled with a big increase in wage costs, a massive increase in national insurance contributions and a plethora of new employment rights. some businesses are feeling that they've been handed a very big bill to achieve the government's objectives. but the government insists that a happier, higher paid more secure workforce is good for business and the economy. pro—worker, pro—business approach to the economy is the right approach, and investing in your workforce is a great way to improve your productivity, not least because you will have

more people across the country with more money in their pocket being able to spend it in the economy. as the chancellor tries to get the sums to add up in her first budget tomorrow, businesses are preparing to adjust their budgets. simon jack, bbc news. what will today's budget mean for public services? will it end austerity? here's ben chu from bbc verify. we have been hearing in the run—up to the budget about complaints from cabinet ministers about being forced to accept more spending cuts in their day—to—day budgets. we've been hearing in the run—up to the budget about complaints from cabinet ministers about being forced to accept more spending cuts in their day—to—day budgets. yet rachel reeves also says she will end austerity, which is taken to mean no more cuts in departments' budgets. so how do we reconcile these things, which seem to be somewhat contradictory? well, let's start with

the context, first of all. this shows the department's day—to—day budgets, adjusted for inflation since 2010. so health is 38% higher. health has been a protected department. but look at transport — no higher today than it was 1a years ago. and justice, well, that's 14% lower. and communities and housing still almost 60% lower. these are so—called unprotected departments. we will have to wait to see the detail of their new spending settlements to understand what has been going on. it might be that they have cuts in the short term, but the promise of bigger day—to—day budgets later in the parliament. but it might be that the chancellor has, as her predecessors did, prioritised health spending. health spending is so large as a share of the overall day—to—day spending total, not far off half of it, in fact, that when it gets an increase, it simply squeezes out those other smaller departments. only when we see the final numbers from rachel reeves in the budget will we be able tojudge how credible it is for her to claim she's ended austerity for unprotected departments?

and if you're watching in the uk, we'll have full coverage of the budget starting at nine o'clock with matthew amroliwala. i'll bejoined by a top economist later and we will hear from other business leaders about what their fears and hopes are. if you are watching in the uk, we will begin ourfull coverage watching in the uk, we will begin our full coverage of budget day starting at nine o'clock this morning with my colleague matthew amroliwala. all of that is still to come. let's bring you some breaking news now. two people are in hospital after what's been described as a significant fire at the uk's nuclear submarine shipyard in cumbria. the fire is believed to have broken out at the bae systems' barrow—in—furness shipyard in the early hours of this morning. police say there's no nuclear risk but people living nearby have been advised to keep all windows and doors closed. we'll bring you more

on that as we get it. in the us, a tale of rival rallies marks the final week of us presidential election campaigning. in washington, vice president kamala harris wrapped up her closing argument of the election in front of a crowd of more than 75,000, according to her campaign. her message — the us has been consumed by chaos for too long and it's time for the country to turn the page on division. donald trump intends to use the united states military against american citizens who simply disagree with him, people he calls, quote, the enemy from within. america, this is not a candidate for president who is thinking about how to make your life better, this is someone who is unstable, obsessed with revenge,

consumed with grievance, and out for unchecked power. meawhile, almost at the same time, donald trump spoke to voters at a rally in pennsylvania — one of those seven key battlegroud states that could decide this election. he told supporters a vote for him is a vote to move on from the past four years of the biden administration. are you better off now than you were four years ago? i didn't think so. i'm here today with a message of hope for all americans. with your vote, we will end inflation, we will stop the invasion of criminals into our country, and we will bring back the american dream, we are doing it together, pennsylvania. our country will be bigger, better, bolder, richer, safer, and stronger than ever before.

on that, let's speak now to our correspondent, samira hussain. she is in washington, dc at the moment. if we start with kamala harris, talk us through what she had to say and significance of where she was.— she had to say and significance of where she was. look, it was reall a of where she was. look, it was really a deliberate _ of where she was. look, it was really a deliberate thing - of where she was. look, it was really a deliberate thing to - of where she was. look, it was really a deliberate thing to do | really a deliberate thing to do by her campaign, to pick this exact spot. if you look at those pictures, you see she's got american flags on both sides of her, the white house is literally glowing behind her, it really offers her a very presidential look. but it is also significant because this is where four years ago donald trump offered his speech to his supporters, urging them to his supporters, urging them to march to the capitol and not to march to the capitol and not to concede the 2020 presidential election. so, they were trying to, at harris

campaign was really trying to turn a page but also say to the american people, look, if you are still undecided, this is what you will get if you vote for donald trump, and you heard some of her comments about what he's going to do, that he is all about revenge, that this is not somebody who cares about democracy. but on the other side, you can vote for kamala harris, and with her, she will be the president for all americans, and she would do what she can to make the middle class do better in america right now. class do better in america right nova— class do better in america riaht now. ., , , right now. so, in a sense, it is interesting _ right now. so, in a sense, it is interesting because - right now. so, in a sense, it is interesting because you l right now. so, in a sense, it| is interesting because you do wonder with both camps what the strategy is in this critical week, and her message was very much first and foremost, you think about her criticism of her opponent, really, as opposed to policies if you vote for harris. opposed to policies if you vote for harrie— for harris. that is certainly something _ for harris. that is certainly something that _ for harris. that is certainly something that the - for harris. that is certainly something that the trump | something that the trump campaign would say about kamala harris, that she is spending a

lot of time criticising donald trump. whereas the campaign will say, well, look, we have actually offered real policy solutions here, and when you look at our competitor, if you look at our competitor, if you look at our competitor, if you look at the other candidate, donald trump, he will say things while i have a semblance of a plan. that is where the harris camp is sitting, in terms of what they have been able to offer, and this speech was very much that final kind of push on this great american stage to say, i should be your next president. figs stage to say, i should be your next president.— next president. as far as donald trump _ next president. as far as donald trump is - next president. as far as i donald trump is concerned, next president. as far as - donald trump is concerned, he very much focused on pennsylvania, and it is all about those critical states that could decide the outcome, isn't it? ~ ,,., , ., that could decide the outcome, isn't it? ~ , , ., , isn't it? absolutely, that is why there _ isn't it? absolutely, that is why there are _ isn't it? absolutely, that is why there are six - isn't it? absolutely, that is why there are six days - isn't it? absolutely, that is why there are six days left| why there are six days left before election day and you will see that both candidates will see that both candidates will now spend all of their time in these critical battleground states. he saw that former president trump was

campaigning in allentown, pennsylvania. you will also see vice president, harris also crisscrossing all seven battleground states, which is where you are going to find form of president trump as well. and it isjust form of president trump as well. and it is just really indicative of how important these battleground states are that really decide the election and who ends up occupying the white house really depends on these battleground states. thank you. around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news.

the us state department has warned of consequences if israel implements a ban on the main un aid agency for palestinians, as a humanitarian crisis in northern gaza intensifies. it says the legislation could have an effect on us policy. it comes as local health officials reported more than 90 people killed in an israeli airstrike on tuesday on a residential building

in the town of beit lahia in northern gaza. israel doesn't allow internationaljounalists — including the bbc — into gaza. our special correspondent fergal keane sent this report from jerusalem. and i should warn you, it contains distressing images of the aftermath of the strike. bearing the dead in beit lahia. at any time, expelling the main aid agency for palestinians would have been controversial but in the middle of this, it's provoked widespread international criticism. dozens killed in an israeli air strike, many of them children, according to health officials. in gaza city, where many from beit lahia have fled, another strike. the dead laying among market stalls. these boys wondering how to help.

facing famine, the un says, and depending on unwra there are nearly two million displaced in gaza — facing famine, the un says, and depending on unwra for the basics of survival. within three months, the agency is to be shut down. i mean, it's absolutely outrageous. we said that the prospect of this vote was outrageous. the fact that the vote has happened is equally outrageous. it creates an incredibly dangerous precedent — notjust for this region, but potentially with international implications in other places. israel has accused unwra staff of being involved in the october 7th attacks. allegations were made against 19 staff out of 13,000. nine were subsequently fired. today, i met one of the government mps sponsoring the legislation. the determination of fighting terrorism is a consensus and this is part of it.

unwra has decided on the 7th to go on the wrong side of history. so no matter what pressure comes from the americans or from anybody else, this bill will not be withdrawn? you will go ahead with expelling unwra? so first of all, i have to understand... it's a really straightforward question — yes or no. yes, i will give you... yes. yes, definitely. you will not back down. of course not. ok. of course not, because we believe in our bill and because it's a just and right bill. the reality is that gaza needs vastly increased amounts of aid. today we managed to contact, on a poor phone line, one of only two doctors left dealing with hundreds of patients at kamal adwan hospital. phone line goes dead. then we lost contact. there's the debate about what might or might not

happen with unwra. and there's this — the certainty of relentless suffering. fergal keane, bbc news, jerusalem. with me now is mohamed taha from bbc arabic. tell us first of all what has been happening over night. another big number of deaths? 143 palestinian died in northern gaza in beit lahia. and there was another strike in the middle of gaza where three people died. actually, the people died. actually, the people in gaza, whenever they reach a point that they feel this is the worst point of the war, another wave of strikes or another wave of restrictions that makes their lives worse and worse. that makes their lives worse and worse-— that makes their lives worse and worse. �* , ., and worse. and in terms of the reaction to _

and worse. and in terms of the reaction to the _ and worse. and in terms of the reaction to the israeli - reaction to the israeli parliamentary ban on the operations of unwra, what have you been hearing? the operations of unwra, what have you been hearing?— you been hearing? the biggest reaction is _ you been hearing? the biggest reaction is from _ you been hearing? the biggest reaction is from the _ you been hearing? the biggest reaction is from the us, - you been hearing? the biggest reaction is from the us, they l reaction is from the us, they have said if this decision comes into effect, it would be a disaster for the palestinians. it's the hospitals, the schools, the refugee tents, it is the food, the water, it is providing the people in gaza with everything, and in the light of israel saying that it is fighting the government that hamas is or was running in gaza, the unwra is practically the government in gaza said the united states is wondering what is the alternative if israel is fighting hamas militants, so who is going to provide to 2 million civilian people who are living in gaza if the unwra will be banned?—

living in gaza if the unwra will be banned? thank you for brinuain will be banned? thank you for bringing us — will be banned? thank you for bringing us up-to-date - will be banned? thank you for bringing us up-to-date on - will be banned? thank you for. bringing us up-to-date on what bringing us up—to—date on what has been going on over night and it is developers. —— developments. researchers say almost half of the earth's land surface suffered from at least one month of extreme drought last year. the study suggests the amount of land affected by drought has tripled since the 1980s. for the life at 50 degrees series, the bbc world service visited parts of the world where access to clean water is under threat from climate change, drought, and flooding. the bbc�*s population correspondent stephanie hegarty has more. last year was the hottest year on record, one of the driest, and the wettest. data released by the lancet countdown today shows a 61% increase in extreme rain last year, compared to a baseline from the 19605 to the 905. and the rate of extreme drought is accelerating rapidly. in the 1980s, 15% of the world

experienced extreme drought for at least one month per year, but the average for the last ten years was 44%. for the series life at 50, the bbc world service visited some of the hottest parts of the world, where climate change is cutting off access to clean water, like here in north—eastern syria. drought has been so severe in the town of hasakah in recent years that the natural water supply has completely dried up. in south sudan, 77% of the country had at least one month of drought last year, and half of south sudan was in extreme drought

for at least six months. we are seeing a lot of parts of the world that are suffering from extensive droughts and then all of a sudden they get a large amount of rainfall falling, we see that the land when it is dry, it absorbs less water, so that increases the risk of flooding. but also we are seeing that crops try to adjust to drought and all of a sudden they get these extreme rainfall that changes their environment and as a result agricultural activities are suffering quite a lot. sunday lost all of his cattle after drought and then flooding. his family now relies on food aid and what they can forage. unless we can reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases and stop the global temperature from rising much further, these cycles of extreme drought and flooding will only continue. stephanie hegarty, bbc news, for the life at 50 series. let's speak now to henna

hundal, three—time delegate to the un climate change conferences. she's in california. i assume it is a busy time for you, with cup 29 not far away. yes, thank you for having me, it is great to be back again and thank you for covering this topic. i think with semi topics going on around the world, climate change has unfortunately ta ken climate change has unfortunately taken a back seat, and it wasjust unfortunately taken a back seat, and it was just recently that two big united nation reports came out reminding us that we are way off track with the targets so we have a lot of work to do with cop 29 upcoming. work to do with cop 29 upcoming-— work to do with cop 29 upcoming. work to do with cop 29 ucominu. ., , ., .,, upcoming. that is what i was auoin to upcoming. that is what i was going to ask. _ upcoming. that is what i was going to ask, because - upcoming. that is what i was going to ask, because we - upcoming. that is what i was - going to ask, because we expect in the media industry for those ripples to come out in the run—up to the next cup summit to sharpen our thinking and get us in the mode of looking at climate once again, it feels

like it is an annual event, the question is what will be achieved this time.- question is what will be achieved this time. so, this has been — achieved this time. so, this has been billed _ achieved this time. so, this has been billed as - achieved this time. so, this has been billed as the - achieved this time. so, this i has been billed as the finance cop. we are going to see if we are making a faithful and effort effort to the communities... these communities... these communities have done little to affect climate change but are now bearing the brunt. we are headed for 3.1 celsius of warming above preindustrial levels, that is way off base from the paris agreement goal of limiting that to 1.5 celsius, so we certainly have a lot of work to do. according to the intergovernmental panel on climate change, what we want to do is reduce climate —— greenhouse gas levels and we are far away from the target. it all about the historical big

emitters, and who are they? are we talking about countries like the us, united kingdom, europe, developed nations, are we talking about big is niss, the big energy giants?— big energy giants? your thoughts? _ big energy giants? your thoughts? certainly - big energy giants? your thoughts? certainly the | big energy giants? your - thoughts? certainly the united states, western europe, china, india, they are going to be part of the conversation in terms of pulling back emissions because they are driving a lot of the effects we are seeing. unfortunately with so many fought tensions around the world right now, ifear, diplomacy might be taken a back—seat even though this is when we need more people gathering at the table to figure out where we go from here. ., ., figure out where we go from here. ., ._ ., here. today in the uk we are talkin: here. today in the uk we are talking about _ here. today in the uk we are talking about money, - here. today in the uk we are - talking about money, committees budget day, and you are saying that this is the finance cop, where it is about the money, thatis where it is about the money, that is where it gets difficult because many are happy to pledge and agree to promises but when it comes to providing the money to make it happen, isn't that where it is very hard to come to agreement? certainly that is where it is very difficult. last year at

cop 28, we noticed many countries pledging to offer millions of dollars to a loss and damage fund that was set up and damage fund that was set up and that fund will enable this money to flow from the big emitters to the communities and countries that really needed, that are on the of climate change, and at this cop, i think we are going to have an opportunity to look those pledges in the eye and look —— make sure we are faithfully executing on what was promised. what have come on harris and donald trump said about this? it has been quite interesting, climate change has not made the headlines in this campaign season. it has been a back burner issue which is truly stunning because we have the hottest day on record this year, the united states suffered devastation from two hurricane in the south—eastern region of the country, more than 53 billion dollars of damages, it is front and centre of people's lives but not any selection. i think a bright spot is you have a lot of

advocacy groups trying to mobilise the youth vote around climate change, and i am optimistic about that because there is actually quite a bit of consensus among use on different sides of the aisle, so republican youth as well tend to more likely to go for candidates that are pledging to work on climate change. it candidates that are pledging to work on climate change.- work on climate change. it has been good _ work on climate change. it has been good to _ work on climate change. it has been good to talk— work on climate change. it has been good to talk to _ work on climate change. it has been good to talk to you - work on climate change. it has| been good to talk to you again, thank you for your time. i'll be back with more on the budget next. hello there. there's not much weather to talk about for the foreseeable future. high pressure will be dominating the scene, bringing a lot of dry conditions to the uk. it will be mild both by day and by night. a few chilly spots where skies clear at night. a little bit of sunshine around, but it will generally be mostly cloudy. so, our area of high pressure dominates the scene as we head into the middle part of the week. it's a dry start to the day.

some early mist and fog which could lift into low clouds, so some areas staying grey, particularly central, southern and western areas but the best chance of seeing sunshine again will be across parts of eastern scotland, northeast england, maybe northern ireland joining in during the afternoon period. temperature wise, reaching the mid—teens for many. we could make 16 or 17 in the warmest spot, so mild for the time of year. wednesday night promises to be a largely dry one. variable cloud. some clear spells again, some mist and fog developing. winds light for most. single figures, i think across large parts of england, wales, certainly out of town where we hold on to the cloud, though, just about double figures. now as we head into thursday, we've still got high pressure across the uk. stronger winds affecting the far north of scotland, the northern isles, with outbreaks of rain here, but that really is about it. elsewhere it's going to be dry. lighter winds further south, but a better chance of seeing some sunshine develop on thursday afternoon for england and wales. maybe a bit more cloud across northern western scotland with outbreaks of rain here. so as we head into the halloween evening, i think there'll be plenty of dry weather for

england and wales for the trick—or—treaters. but more cloud with outbreaks of rain across argyll and the highlands for the geysers there. as we head into friday, the 1st of november, we could just tap into some cold air across the far north of scotland. there'll be a weather front here, outbreaks of rain, strong cold northerly winds and it'll be noticeably chilly, i think, across the northern isles and the north highlands. further south for england and wales, northern ireland again, variable cloud, a little bit of sunshine, mild in the south. we'll see something a bit colder across northern scotland, but it is short lived — as we move out of friday into the weekend, high pressure rolls back in from the west and pushes the cold air towards scandinavia and the near continent. we're back into the mild colours, as you can see there for saturday and sunday. so the outlook then — further dry, settled weather, fairly mild by day and by night. that settled theme continues into the new week. take care.

finally, we are here — budget day. we'll have the latest on what's in, what's out, and who's going to pay for it. china says it does not "agree with or accept" hefty new eu tariffs on its electric vehicles that come into effect today. ai accelerator — google parent alphabet sees its profits jump

as cloud computing soars. live from london, this is business today. i'm sally bundock. we start here in the uk, where the big day has finally come around, with the new government set to unveil its first budget. a huge day for the uk's first female chancellor rachel reeves, who is due to deliver the details to parliament at around 12.30pm this aftenoon. and as budgets go, this is a big one for the new labour government, with its much touted pro—growth, pro—workeragenda that will set the agenda for years to come. thanks to some official briefings and unauthorised leaks, we already know quite a bit about what's to come. for example, an increase in the national minimum wage from april, with three million low—paid workers getting a pay rise of more than 6%.

but what more can we expect? here's our economics editor faisal islam.