let's speak to our political correspondent henry zeffman. between the labour party and the tramp campaign? it labour party and the tramp campaign?— campaign? it is clearly not aood. i campaign? it is clearly not good. i don't _ campaign? it is clearly not good. i don't think - campaign? it is clearly not good. i don't think there i campaign? it is clearly notj good. i don't think there is precedent, certainly not that i'm aware of, for a presidential campaign to be making a legal complaint about a political party that is in government in one of their closest allies. this is a very big deal. it is very unusual. perhaps it is yet another symptom of what an unusual politician and what an unusual campaigner donald trump is but then again the labour party and labour government may find themselves within just a couple of weeks having to deal with a very unusual formal president—elect who might be returning to the white house. i think the big question here is there is no denying this is seriously awkward and embarrassing for the labour party. the q

i have been talking to our chief political correspondent henry zeffman and asked him to explain moreignificance of what rachel reeves has been saying. the government will retain rules about essentially reducing debt and not using borrowing to fund day—to—day spending. but what exactly they mean by debt will change. now, i'm not sure this actually is going to mean translating it into basic english, but what they are going to do is incorporate more financial assets into that measure of debt. so they're going to include the student loan book, they're going to include share stakes in companies, and ultimately what this all tells you, what this measure — public sector net financial liabilities, which is the full wordy phrase for it — tells you, is that in the run up to this budget, money is tight. and rachel reeves, the relatively new chancellor, is eager to give herself more room to invest in public services. people reckon that this ostensibly subtle tweak will free up about £50 billion more for the government to spend. i don't think they're going to spend it all at once in this budget,

our chief political correspondent henry zeffman is in westminster. henry, morning to you.nts could be affected? morning. all of them to some degree. we spoke yesterday about how that very big number, the so—called black hole, £22 billion, had now become £a0 billion. that's the amount of money that rachel reeves has told her colleagues she needs to find before the budget in less than two weeks' time. most of that gap will be filled by tax rises, and we have talked before about how the government appears to be quite suggestive about a rise in capital gains tax and a rise in national insurance for employers, but some of that will have to come from spending cuts. there are some departments which are protected, areas like health, which means they are less likely to be cut as hard as others. there are other departments where there might be quite severe cuts, at least relative to the rate of inflation. so some of the ministers who have named as being uneasy in use —— newspaper report on the justice secretary, angela rayner the deputy prime minister who is also responsible for loc

have benefits for the economy. ease demands on the nhs and have our chief political correspondent henry zeffmans in westminster. morning, henry. what does the health secretary say? this morning, henry. what does the health secretary say?— secretary say? this is all about the investment — secretary say? this is all about the investment summit _ secretary say? this is all about the investment summit that _ secretary say? this is all about the investment summit that we - secretary say? this is all about the investment summit that we talked | investment summit that we talked about yesterday, ben, when the government had some of the biggest investors in the world here in the uk talking about ways they could put money into the uk economy. one of the investments they unveiled yesterday was a £280 million investment from lilly, the world's largest pharmaceutical company, into new medicines. that research will include the first real—world trial of weight loss drugs and its effect on worklessness, productivity and the reliance on the nhs. so notjust the reliance on the nhs. so notjust the effect on waist

our chief politcal correspondent henry zeffman is in westminster. good morning, henry.departments could be affected? goad departments could be affected? good morninu. departments could be affected? good morning- it's — departments could be affected? good morning. it's normal— departments could be affected? good morning. it's normal for _ departments could be affected? (13mm morning. it's normal for there to be morning. it's normalfor there to be quite a lot of back—and—forth between cabinet ministers in downing street, be that number 10, the prime minister, or number 11, street, be that number 10, the prime minister, or number11, the chancellor, in the run—up to a budget to be settled. it is abnormal for the government to be seeking that scale of savings. £40 billion is the amount of money rachel reeves has told cabinet ministers she needs to find to improve public services in the way, fund public services in the adequate way in their way the government would like to. the vast majority of that is going to come from tax rises, we have seen in recent days the government b

government is expected to unveil investment deals worth billions. 0ur chief political correspondent henry zeffmannry cabot this is about politics, but it's also about a lot of money. that's right, billions in investment, perhaps up to 50 brilliance will be unveiled today at -- £50 brilliance will be unveiled today at —— £50 billion will be unveiled today. there is a reception at staples cathedral with the king as well today. they are pulling out all the stops. —— st paul's cathedral. politically, they have spent years in opposition saying that the labour party was a true party of business. and now 180 to —— 100 days into their government tenure, they want to prove they are a government of business. economically, more importantly, the government is desperate to boost growth. that is what we keep hearing about, that is what keir starmer will talk about at a speech at this summit, talking about forcing regulators to prioritise growth, that's quite interesting, some unions might be uneasy about that. that will be the theme of the summit today. that will be the theme of the summit today and in the nex

our chief political correspondent henry zeffman is in westminster. ll it affect the budget in two weeks? good morning. a notably cautious response to the inflation statistics from the government. darrenjones said it was welcome news but then said it was welcome news but then said however there was more to do to protect working people. i think that looks to the budget a fortnight today. we are familiar with a big number, £22 billion, the black hole the government say it inherited from the government say it inherited from the conservatives. let me give you a bigger number, £40 billion, which is what the chancellor told cabinet colleagues in a meeting yesterday she had to find, that is the gap that needs to be plugged in the budget. what does that mean for viewers? tax rises. we are familiar with some of the government's ducking and weaving over what they will do when it comes to capital gains tax, to national insurance falling on employers. i think it is clear there will be tax increases most likely there. there might be a change to the government borro

rises, and spending cuts, worth tens of billions of pounds. 0ur chief political correspondent henry zeffmanupdate on what we can expect to hear from the prime minister sir keir starmer later today... what's really interesting about what the prime minister is doing today is he's framing the budget before we actually know what exactly is in it. he's going to talk about embracing the harsh light of fiscal reality that is not language of a prime minister who is about to give everyone a tax cut. quite the contrary. it's pretty clear that taxes are going to rise, that spending is going to come down. and the prime minister, i think, wants to give people a flavour of the why today before they find out the what on wednesday from rachel reeves, the chancellor. now, keir starmer isn't the only member of the cabinet who's been talking about the budget today. we heard earlier today from pat mcfadden, a senior cabinet minister. let's have a listen to what he was saying about what we can expect in the budget. i think people should look for three things in the budget. will it stabilise the country's public

our chief politcal correspondent henry zeffman is in westminster. morning, henry.i guess the question at this stage is, do we know where the axe may fall? it is at this stage is, do we know where the axe may fall?— the axe may fall? it is normal for cabinet ministers _ the axe may fall? it is normal for cabinet ministers to _ the axe may fall? it is normal for cabinet ministers to protest - the axe may fall? it is normal for cabinet ministers to protest and | cabinet ministers to protest and discuss what is going to be in the budget in the run—up to the budget which will have been finalised behind closed doors yesterday. it is unusual to protest to the prime minister rather than the chancellor. what is definitely abnormal is the amount of money that this government is trying to find, £40 billion. that will mostly come in the form of tax rises, it could be the biggest tax—raising budget in 30 years. but some of it will come in spending cuts. it is not being denied, reports that ageing —— angela rayner, the deputy prime minister, louise haigh, the transport secretary

our chief political correspondent henry zeffman is at downing street. morning, henry.has the health secretary said about these jabs? morning, ben. this is all related to the investments are we were talking about yesterday, specifically in this case a £280 million investment which lilly, the largest pharmaceutical company in the world, has said it will make in the uk and as part of the investment it will undertake the first real—world trial of the effective weight loss drugs on things like worklessness, productivity and reliance on the nhs. wes streeting the health secretary has been writing in the daily telegraph newspaper, and he said, on obesity, the costs to the individual are clear, a less healthy and a shorter life. how widely ways that are also placing a significant burden on our health service, costing the nhs11 billion a year, even more than smoking and it is holding back our economy. he goes on to say that is things like heart disease and diabetes, obesity —related diseases, even cancer, means that people take more sick days and that it damages businesses. the

our chief political correspondent henry zeffman is in westminster. morning, henry.hat else is it that the health secretary has said today? morning, ben. we spoke a lot yesterday about the investment summit the government was holding securing billions of pounds of investment in all sorts of different aspects of british life. one of the investments the government is touting is £280 million by a company called lily, the largest pharmaceutical company in the world, looking at weight loss drugs. it is going to have the first real—world trial of how effectively weight loss drugs could help worklessness, productivity and the britain's reliant on the nhs, something the government is keen to reduce. wes streeting has said this morning the cost to the individual of obesity are clear, are less healthy and shorter life. then he adds, our wide waistband are placing a significant burden on our health service, costing the nhs11 billion a year and holding back the economy. obesity —related illnesses taking days off sick and not working and that has an economic impact. nhs england w

government is expected to unveil investment deals worth billions. 0ur chief political correspondent henry zeffmanstarmer has been accused of being a bit too gloomy about the economy over the last few weeks, is this an opportunity for him to change the tone a bit? he certainly ho es so, change the tone a bit? he certainly hepes so. jon- _ change the tone a bit? he certainly hopes so, jon. he _ change the tone a bit? he certainly hopes so, jon. he hopes _ change the tone a bit? he certainly hopes so, jon. he hopes it's - change the tone a bit? he certainly hopes so, jon. he hopes it's an - hopes so, jon. he hopes it's an opportunity for him to change the tone politically, because the build—up to the summit has been pretty fraught, but also economically, because this government really wants this investment. foryears government really wants this investment. for years in opposition, the labour party claimed that they were the true party of business. i just over 100 days into their tenure in government, this is their way they hope of demonstrating that they are now the government of business. they have

here's our chief political correspondent henry zeffman.s response to those inflation statistics from the government today. darrenjones, who's the chief secretary to the treasury, said it was welcome news but then said however, there is still more to do to protect working people. well, i think that is looking ahead to the budget, which is a fortnight today. we're very familiar now, aren't we, with a very big number — £22 billion. that's the black hole that the government says they inherited from the conservatives. let me give you an even bigger number, almost double the size — £40 billion. that is what rachel reeves, the chancellor, told her cabinet colleagues in a meeting yesterday she had to find — that's the gap that needs to be plugged in the budget. what does that mean for viewers? well, it means tax rises. and we're pretty familiar now, aren't we, with some of the government's, uh, sort of ducking and weaving over what they're going to do when it comes to capital gains tax, when it comes to national insurance falling on employers. i t

here's our health editor, hugh pym. 0ur chief political correspondent henry zeffman has more on whatr the nhs. we will find out the specifics of what money is going to be spent on and how lit with raised, that is tax rises but they are using the run up to that by talking to where the money will be spent and today, the government is out there talking about how it is going to invest more in the health service, and that is because they know that for many voters, they know that for many voters, the reason they won so big in july was because lots of voters in england were not happy with the state of the nhs, which the uk government is responsible for. wes streeting, the health secretary has been insisting things can't change that quickly but as a result of this investment he believes the government can stick to a key pledge which 40,000 more appointments in the nhs per week, he explaining that to our colleagues earlier. indie week, he explaining that to our colleagues earlier.— week, he explaining that to our colleagues earlier. we have got crack teams _ colleagues earlier. we have got cr

it's hoped this will reduce the number of young vapers. 0ur chief political correspondent henry zeffman announced this injanuary and the labour opposition, as they then were, were supportive but it wasn't in their general election manifesto so we didn't actually know for sure until late last night that this new government would be pressing ahead with the ban. actually the process from here on is fairly simple, the government doesn't require a new piece of legislation or a vote in the house of commons, they can do this under existing powers. so this will come into force in england from june 2025. i stress england because the other devolved governments, scotland, wales and northern ireland will have to make their own decisions, although, as it happens, all of them are pressing ahead with fairly similar policies which will probably end up coming into force at around the same time. this is separate to a bigger piece of legislation and again initiated by the previous conservative government but being picked up by this new labour government. that's the tobacco and vapes bill. the headline act

our chief political correspondent henry zeffman has been speaking with the prime minister about what from lilly, which is the world�*s biggest pharmaceutical company, which will include as part of that package of money, a trial, notjust of how weight loss drugs impact people�*s waistbands, but also how it impacts the economy, what it means for worklessness, and so on. obesity—related diseases can affect the economy. and i was just speaking actually to the prime minister, keir starmer, for bbc breakfast in downing street, about this and other issues relating to the budget. let�*s listen to what he had to say. i think these drugs could be very important for our economy and for health. again, the story behind this is really interesting. here's one of the biggest pharmaceutical businesses, pharma companies, that's decided now's the time to put the investment into our country. this is consistent with our pitch, which is, you know, now's the time to invest in britain doing their research here. this drug will be very helpful to people who want to lose weight, need to lose weight, very impor

government is expected to unveil investment deals worth billions. 0ur chief political correspondent henry zeffmannt is making a big fuss of this, they say it is a big deal. it is a big moment for the government. fouryears it is a big moment for the government. four years in opposition under keir starmer the labour party claimed that they were the true party of business. and nowjust over 100 days into their tenure into government, they are trying to show that they are a government of business. there are going to be some of the top business executives from banks, private equity firms, companies, in the city of london, at the guildhall, all day today, culminating in a reception hosted by the king at st paul's cathedral. 0ne the king at st paul's cathedral. one of the wealthiest men in the world, however, will not be there, elon musk. a little earlier we asked peter kyle the site secretary where he will not be attending. like peter kyle the site secretary where he will not be attending.— he will not be attending. like your viewers, i he will not be attending. like your viewers. i was _ he will not be

let's speak to our chief political correspondent, henry zeffman. always good to talk to you.hear from keir starmer later?- from keir starmer later? what is very interesting _ from keir starmer later? what is very interesting about - from keir starmer later? what is very interesting about what | is very interesting about what the prime minister is doing today, he is framing the budget before we actually know what exactly is in it. he is going to talk about embracing the harsh light of physical reality. that is not language of a prime minister who is about to give everyone a tax cut, on the contrary, it is pretty clear the taxes are going to rise, spending is going to rise, spending is going to rise, spending is going to come down. the prime minister i think wants to give people a flavour of the y today before they find out the wet on wednesday from rachel reeves, the chancellor. keir starmer is not the only member of the cabin and who has been talking about the budget today, we heard earlier today from pat mcfadden, a senior cabinet minister. let's have a listen to what he was

our chief political correspondent henry zeffman is at downing street.

our correspondent henry zeffman is in birmingham for us. s event was not what did the candidates say, but who changed the weather? let me give you some unscientific reflections from sitting in the hall. robertjenrick went into it as the frontrunner. they liked his pledges on immigration and other issues. i not sure he quite rock their world. kemi badenoch, they enjoyed her denunciations of woke culture. tom tugendhat had the most ground to make up. they liked his record of service. we talked about his military record. but i am not sure he transformed his race. the person who did was james laverty, the former foreign secretary and home secretary, who got the biggest standing ovation of any candidate. it felt like the crowd of activists was with him. let's be more normal, was with him. let's be more normal, was his call, and that was probably the standout line. this has been a long leadership contest and it still is. what clarity is coming. mps will choose a final pair next week. and we will know the winner in november the 2nd. the trial of a

our chief political correspondent henry zeffman is monitoring the government's response to the situationvering the conservative party conference in birmingham. he is also across what the uk government is doing. what are you hearing this morning? the government is focusin: hearing this morning? the government is focusing on — hearing this morning? the government is focusing on two _ hearing this morning? the government is focusing on two things, _ hearing this morning? the government is focusing on two things, one - hearing this morning? the government is focusing on two things, one a - is focusing on two things, one a potential evacuation of british citizens remaining in lebanon and the other is diplomacy. on the evacuation, the government announced last night it was chartering a flight to get british citizens out of lebanon. that will leave tomorrow. british citizen and their spouses and children under 18 will be eligible to get on that flight. the government estimates between 4000 and 6000 brits were still in lebanon last week. the government has been telling british citizens to leave

our chief political correspondent henry zeffman has been monitoring the government's response, whilstean for the uk? the prime minister was 15 minutes into a - will that mean for the uk? the prime minister was 15 minutes into a phone| minister was 15 minutes into a phone call with his israeli counterpart benjamin netanyahu when that iranian barrage of missiles to what israel began yesterday evening so of course the call was abandoned near instantly and a couple of hours later you heard keir starmer make that statement to the nation. a little while after that, we heard from john healey, the defence secretary who said that as in april when iran last fired missiles at israel the uk was involved in helping to repel them. we have almost no details publicly on that yet. there may be more later today but i can tell you it is our understanding at the bbc that uk jets were involved. i can also tell you thatjohn healey this morning is now at and raf airbase in cyprus where he will be meeting british armed forces personnel, including those who may be involved in a potential evacuation of british

let's speak to our chief political correspondent henry zeffman on downing street. correspondent henry zeffman good correspondent henry zeffman morning. good corresondent hen zeffman morninu. am good morning. morning, sally. yes, i am in downing _ good morning. morning, sally. yes, i am in downing street _ good morning. morning, sally. yes, i am in downing street and _ good morning. morning, sally. yes, i am in downing street and who - good morning. morning, sally. yes, i am in downing street and who better| am in downing street and who better to be joined am in downing street and who better to bejoined by in downing street than the prime minister, sir keir starmer question might thank you for joining us. you're clearly very happy with how the investments it worked, went yesterday. how will the lives of breakfast viewers in as a result of those?— result of those? what happened esterda result of those? what happened yesterday as _ result of those? what happened yesterday as we _ result of those? what happened yesterday as we had _ result of those? what happened yesterday as we had and -

our chief political correspondent henry zeffman was putting the questions to the pm and can tell us moreirst live interview at breakfast since he took office and quite a lot has happened in that time, hasn't it, in terms of policy, politics and personnel. for his first few weeks in office, the prime minister was warning of tough times ahead, that things would get worse before they got better. more recently, he has tried to change the tone a bit and we saw that yesterday at the investment summit which he hosted in the city of london. but the budget is still coming in a couple of weeks and the government still says that it has a £22 billion black hole that it has a £22 billion black hole that it has a £22 billion black hole that it has to feel so when i spoke to the prime minister in downing street this morning, i asked him for more details on how he intends to fill it. forget the weeks of doom and gloom, this is a prime minister now full of optimism. now is the time to invest in britain, and yesterday we were able to announce £63 billion of inward investment into britain. and for viewers,

party and says he reported himself to police over the weekend. 0ur chief political correspondent henry zeffman know? this is all about an incident which took place about 2:15am on saturday morning. that vintage says mike amesbury striking a man to the ground with one punch and then landing a five further blows on him while he is on the grant is up at his speech today keir starmer was asked about that footage and says he had seen it and said it was shocking and then he said we made very swiftly to suspend him and that is true in two ways. mike amesbury is suspended at the labour party member but also if he turns up to parliament this week he will be an independent mp while they are, rather than a labour mp. more generally keir starmer said this is a matterfor the police now and generally keir starmer said this is a matter for the police now and that gives you a sense of the seriousness of this. mike amesbury has been interviewed we are told voluntarily under caution by cheshire police. lots of people will be watching to see what they have to say. probably worth noting in the context that in jul

our chief political correspondent henry zeffman is in westminsterfor us. ent hoping to achieve with this sentencing review? this sentencing review was actually something that the labour party had in their general election manifesto. but clearly it is made much more urgent, much more acute by what this government openly describes as a crisis in our prison system. the sentencing review will be led by david gauke. some people will remember him, he did shabana mahmood'sjob. he was remember him, he did shabana mahmood's job. he was a justice secretary under theresa may. nonetheless, he has expressed some views on this which may align with where the government is headed. he has talked about questioning whether some of the prison sentences of six months or less are ever really worth it. that might tally with some of the ideas that you are hearing better, more home detention. so kind of a modern form of house arrest. the government is also looking at something that happened in texas, where people get credit for good behaviour, rehabilitation programmes and so on. b

our political correspondent henry zeffman joins us from westminster. ur saying about this? well, brits have been over to take part in american elections practically since the war of independence. everyone here in westminster pretty much is obsessed with american politics. it is not just labour activists, we have seen nigel farage on stage with donald trump with conservative politicians, in fact i bumped into them in snowy new hampshire, campaigning for democrats and republicans. but the allegation here is that people were doing so in a party capacity. absolutely strenuously denied by the labour party, which insists they have no role whatsoever in any activists going over there in what they say was a private capacity. but what is so supercharged about this is the fact that in less than two weeks' time sir keir starmer could, depending what happens in the presidential election in the us, be considering how best to deal with president elect donald trump. he and his team have been at pains both in opposition and subsequently in government to forge good rela

chief political correspondent henry zeffman what are labour saying?but what you are hearing privately is what chris said, they are adamant those dozens of labour officials, past and present, who are planning to campaign for kamala harris have done so in a personal capacity and yes labour party networks have organically perhaps been used to organise who might go out and when and where. this has not been a labour party drive to campaign for the democrats although of course the labour party and democrats are sister parties, both centre—left parties. this is seriously awkward for the labour party and government, but the question is whether it is merely awkward or whether it will threaten the potential relationship between keir starmer and donald trump if donald trump wins the election. that is the question in westminster today. is the question in westminster toda . ~ , is the question in westminster toda. , ,, is the question in westminster toda . ~ , ,, ., today. we will be speaking to cabinet minister _ today. we will be speaking to cabinet minister ste

our chief political correspondent, henry zeffman, joins us. the start to the week that labour's been hoping for ahead of its first budget for 14 years? to say the least, john. this is the biggest week for the new labour government in its four or so months in government so far. on wednesday they will unveil lots of big decisions, plus we will learn how they hang together. but it is a week that begins with this bizarre spectacle of a labour mp, mike amesbury, suspended over punching what appears to potentially be a constituent. he will no longer sit for now as a labour mp in the building behind me. he will be an independent while the police in the first instance continue their inquiries. as you were hearing from harry there, mike amesbury has been interviewed under caution. it is something i'm sure sir keir starmer will be asked about later today when he gives a speech about the budget in the west midlands. and what is curious about the speech, you have the prime minister almost pre—empting some criticisms of the budget. he will be explaining wh

our chief political correspondent henry zeffman joins us now — henry, what more can you tell us?revious us through what happens next. the previous government said they would do this— previous government said they would do this but— previous government said they would do this but hadn't had time before the general election to do so and we haven't— the general election to do so and we haven't really heard from the new government on the issue before so it's quite _ government on the issue before so it's quite striking and important to know— it's quite striking and important to know that — it's quite striking and important to know that as a result of what the government will table in parliament formally— government will table in parliament formally today, the sale and supply of single—use disposable rates in england — of single—use disposable rates in england specifically will be banned from june next year and the government says there are two clusters _ government says there are two clusters of reasons. oppositely there _ clusters of reasons. oppositely there is— clusters of reasons

and i'm desperately worried. thoughts of other politicians. 0ur chief political correspondent henry zeffmant is sinking in and people at home will look at it carefully. businesses are looking at it carefully. what are your thoughts? i think we had heard so much in the run—up to the budget about its contents that it is easy to overlook this morning what a big deal rachel reeves' budget was. it was going to be a big moment automatically, the first labour budget in 14 years but it felt pivotal, a moment that puts the british economy on a different trajectory to the one it was on before. crudely, a higher tax, higher spend, before. crudely, a higher tax, higherspend, higher before. crudely, a higher tax, higher spend, higher borrowing, higher spend, higher borrowing, higher public investment trajectory. we knew there would be questions afterwards about honesty and most of those questions, as they were debated, focused on whether labour could increase national insurance for employers while holding true to the manifesto and the government is adamant they can do so and are doing so but i think the

hugh pym, bbc news. 0ur chief political correspondent henry zeffman joins us now.y week at westminster. this is undoubtedly a big injection of cash, but the problems in the nhs go way beyond money. certainly, and that is the government's view as well. striking words from wes streeting. 0ur nhs is beaten but not broken, he says, and what this budget will enable us to do is to rescue the decline and start to rebuild the foundations. but he can't promise there won't be people waiting on trolleys in corridors this winter. people i have spoken to right at the top of the government know that many people willjudge the when the next election rolls around on their experience of the nhs, but they don't want people to believe that they can fix it rapidly, because the government doesn't believe they can fix it rapidly. but i am struck very much by the language being used around this announcement, about this being an investment in the nhs, partly because lost of it —— lots of it is capital investment. that is similar to a lot of the language we heard in keir starmer�*s speech y