sarah corker, bbc news, in liverpool. our business editor simonjack is here. of budget, what do business make of that? there is a lot for business _ what do business make of that? there is a lot for business in _ what do business make of that? there is a lot for business in that. _ what do business make of that? there is a lot for business in that. the - is a lot for business in that. the first half was well received, the extension of furlough, business rate discounts, all very good and well received. then came the moment where one business boss said he spat out his tea, we had the biggest single tax rise on business for nearly 50 years when it comes from 19 to 26%. there was some quid pro quo, businesses that invest will get tax relief. but i think in a stroke what's happened is that ten years of conservative thinking about having to have a simple, a low tax rate, that seems to have been put in the bin. when you add the taxes, the tax burden on businesses will be one of the highest in europe. so it puts in the highest in europe. so it puts in the bin the idea

sarah corker, bbc news in manchester. border with mexico, as record numbers of people attempt to illegally cross into america. many thousands of children are now making the treacherous journey alone, and are being held in huge camps. campaigners say when president biden undid trump era orders to try to make the immigration system more "humane", he was unprepared for the consequences. 0ur correspondent, sophie long, has sent us this report from the rio grande valley. thousands of migrants are crossing the united states' southern border illegally every day. many of them are children who've made the dangerous journey alone. wejoined sergeant roger rich as he patrolled the vast scrubland along the river that separates texas from mexico. before the new president took office, we didn't have these types of numbers coming across. we see unaccompanied children all the time. we caught one on monday that was coming in from bolivia, that was ten—years—old, by himself. as every day ends here, a waiting game begins. soon, emerging from

sarah corker, bbc news. it's gold cup day at the cheltenham festival.st woman to win cheltenham's biggest prize? joe lynskey reports. just one win at cheltenham's enough for somejockeys, rachael blackmore's got five just this week. that's more than all the british trained horses combined. now she goes for the greatest race. at the gold cup, she rides a plus tard. the gold cup is the race every jockey wants to win. i've an unbelievable chance in a plus tard. we'll all be heading out there trying to to beat al boum photo and we'll be giving it our best shot. commentator: al boum photo has done it again. _ al boum photo's one of 11 she looks to beat. it's won the last two gold cups in a row. but if that horse has the history, blackmore has the form. she could be the first woman to win this race. male orfemale, she's the top jockey this week. she has been quite extraordinary. the level of ability- she's shown this week. her skill set has been absolutely amazing and it heads her into. the gold cup full of confidence. just how ground—breaking would it be for

sarah corker reports.e than £9,000. well, you expect that the pension department won't make errors, really. but clearly they had. or they will put them right. yeah, or you would expect them to put them right. these underpayments mostly affect women who may have had small state pensions but who were unaware they were entitled to an enhanced pension. linda and husband john have now made a successful claim. it's a tragedy really, because a lot of those women really, really would need... do need that money and it would really be good for them to have. an estimated 200,000 married women, widows and over 80s have been affected. the payouts average £13,500 to top up underpayments of state pensions for up to two decades. and the government is facing a bill of £2.7 billion to tackle the shortfall. former pensions minister steve webb was one of the first to raise the issue, and says the scale of the error only became from documents released in the budget. it is stunning, the scale of these underpayments, and the fac

sarah corker, bbc news.r simonjack is with me. given that rise in corporation tax, what reaction are you getting from business leaders? liter? what reaction are you getting from business leaders?— what reaction are you getting from business leaders? very much a budget of two halves. — business leaders? very much a budget of two halves, in _ business leaders? very much a budget of two halves, in the _ business leaders? very much a budget of two halves, in the first, _ business leaders? very much a budget of two halves, in the first, a _ business leaders? very much a budget of two halves, in the first, a very i of two halves, in the first, a very welcome plaster on the ongoing wounds of the pandemic, the extension of furlough, which we already knew about, extending the business rates holiday, vat cuts for certain industries or very helpful and then in 2023, the past is ripped off rather unceremoniously and painfully as you say with one of the biggest and most sudden corporation tax rises in decades, from 19%,

our business correspondent sarah corker reports. staff at knowsley safari have been kept busy throughout lockdown. but running costs have remained high, at a time when the site has been closed to visitors for many months. tha nkfully thankfully there have been some good business loan schemes to help us out and government has tried to make it possible for businesses to keep going. it has been difficult and painful and it will be used to come to recover from this. new figures showjust how damaging the pandemic has been for the tourism industry. visits to the uk's big tourist spots were down 70% last year. indoor venues were hit the hardest. outdoor attractions and countryside locations fared much better. overall, london still saw the biggest visitorfigures, with the tate modern topping the list. and for the first time, two gardens appeared in the top ten most visited. kew gardens and rhs garden wisley. now there is a road out of lockdown that has been a surge in bookings as we all start to plan our trips this summer and open—air attra

sarah corker reports.because a lot of those women really, really would need... do need that money and it would really be good for them to have. an estimated 200,000 married women, widows and over 80s have been affected. the payouts average £13,500 to top up underpayments of state pensions for up to two decades. and the government is facing a bill of £2.7 billion to tackle the shortfall. former pensions minister steve webb was one of the first to raise the issue, and says the scale of the error only became clear from documents released in the budget. it is stunning, the scale of these underpayments, and the fact that some older women and widows have been underpaid for possibly decades. that's why it's so important this is tackled as a matter of urgency. a review will now take place involving the assessment of hundreds of thousands of cases, and some of those affected will have died. payments will go to their next of kin. the department for work and pensions said the action it is now taking will correct hist

sarah corker, bbc news in liverpool. hospitality, a trade association representing everything from bars and coffee shops to hotels, nightclubs and attractions. good morning to you. we heard there from a bar owner in liverpool saying it was going to take years for them to recover from this pandemic. from your perspective, wasn't enough for the chancellor said yesterday to support your industry? i yesterday to support your industry?— industry? i think that bar owner was _ industry? i think that bar owner was absolutely - industry? i think that bar - owner was absolutely correct. it is going to take as long to ourfinances as a it is going to take as long to our finances as a set as the chancellor has set up for the economy as a whole. here we have taken... when we have come out of lockdown we will have closed comic been closed for 10 months out of the last 14. the debts that has built up in these businesses for them to survival take a long time for them to pay down. and the question is, the support that was announced yester

sarah corker has been talking to business people in liverpool.ive, colourful spaces, and culture is likely to be at the heart of the city's covid recovery. this has created huge challenges for our public finances... andy's live events company has already taken out loans that will total £4 million to keep going. the extension of support schemes like the furlough scheme will be a huge help. furlough will be fantastic, the business rates will be fantastic, and whether it is enough time will tell but ultimately for me at this moment in time too much of it has been around loans. the grants that are in place, the grant that has been allocated, it is imperative it goes to the right place. it takes some of the pressure off but until we are back in to places like this being 100% full consistently, then our sector truly isn't back. and as lockdown eases, there will be restart grants for high—street shops, pubs and hairdressers to help them get back on their feet. some of it is like a sigh of relief and some of it is, oh god, we've been recognised. salon ow

our business correspondent sarah corker reports.en closed to visitors for many months. thankfully there have been some good business loan schemes to help us out and government has tried to make it possible for businesses to keep going. it has been difficult and painful and it will be years to come to recover from this. new figures showjust how damaging the pandemic has been for the tourism industry. visits to the uk�*s big tourist spots were down 70% last year. indoor venues were hit the hardest. outdoor attractions and countryside locations fared much better. overall, london still saw the biggest visitorfigures, with the tate modern topping the list. and for the first time, two gardens appeared in the top ten most visited. kew gardens and rhs garden wisley. now there is a road out of lockdown there has been a surge in bookings as we all start to plan our trips this summer and open—air attractions like this one will be among the first to open in just two weeks�* time. and alex here in the giraffe enclosure is expected to be popular

our business correspondent sarah corker reports. out on the road again.ackpool, definitely. you're biased towards blackpool, though, aren't you? well, no, i'm not biased! we get so many people who come back to this hotel year after year after year. but through the pandemic, it's been a bumpy ride for coach holiday providers. this lancashire firm has nearly 50 coaches and a network of hotels. a lot of our customers have already been vaccinated so they really are, just, we want to get going now. we want to get on holiday. most of the 750 staff here are still on furlough. the boss says there is huge pent—up demand but the sector will take time to recover. we should have a good summer but make no mistake, you know, we've lost probably five months of the year already so it's going to be probably '22 before we are actually all back to normal. only 14 more miles to scarborough, we will be there in no time. rewind to the golden age of coach travel, a staple for generations of holiday—makers. in the branch offices, you can buy five shilling holiday saving stamps.

sarah corker�*s at knowsley safari this morning. good morning. who are your pals this time?w figures out this morning show that the visitor numbers for attractions across the uk last year plummeted by 70%, perhaps not a big surprise but it underlines the damage that the pandemic has done to the tourism industry. here they have been working very hard to get this place ready to welcome people back. lord derbyjoins us, the owner of the park, good morning. i'm interested to hear what your road to recovery is, to help this business bounce back. it recovery is, to help this business bounce back-— bounce back. it has been a challenging _ bounce back. it has been a challenging year _ bounce back. it has been a challenging year as - bounce back. it has been a challenging year as you - bounce back. it has been a - challenging year as you highlight, we have been closed for half of the last year. and with social distancing when we are open, we are careful and numbers are much reduced anyway. we are absolutely determined that we will come back. knowsley safari is hugely popular with gene