Transcripts For BBCNEWS BBC News 20171122

Bosnian serb Army Commander is found and in other news, the man set to ta ke and in other news, the man set to take over as zimba bwes and in other news, the man set to take over as Zimbabwes President arrives back in the country. Emmerson mnangagwa tells supporters they are witnessing new democracy. And in other news, a former bosnian serb Army Commander is found guilty of genocide and crimes against humanity by an International Court. Good evening and welcome to bbc news. A britain fit for the future thats what the chancellor has promised in todays budget. It had a few giveaways but was delivered against the backdrop of a faltering economy with lower than expected growth and falling productivity. Among Philip Hammonds announcements. From now First Time Buyers in england, wales and Northern Ireland will pay no stamp duty on homes up to £300,000, more in london. Scotland has a different system. For the nhs in england, the chancellor promised an extra £1. 6 billion over the next year though thats still short of what the nhs says it needs. The wait for the welfare benefit universal credit, which has attracted criticism from both sides of the house, has been reduced from six weeks to five. But its all set against a downgrade in how much the economy is expected to grow over the next five years with growth in 2017 alone cut from 2 to 1. 5 . The labour Leaderjeremy Corbyn said the budget would unravel within days and misery would continue for people across the country. 0ur Political Editor Laura Kuenssberg now on the facts and figures, the winners and losers in todays budget. Almost ready to go a big day for downing street. Whose grip for months has been shaky, to say the least. Feeling the pressure, chancellor . The priority for number ten and number 11, those powerful next door neighbours. Is this a make or break budget . Was for todays events not to slip, to keep the budget tightly in their grasp. For the chancellor to be the steady National Bank manager, not to tear up the rules altogether. Knowing his ownjob as well as the governments fortunes would be shaped by what he was about to say. A cheerier start than mr hammonds usual demeanour suggests. I report today on an economy that continues to grow, continues to create more jobs than ever before, and continues to confound those who seek to talk it down. In this budget, we express our resolve to look forward, not backward. Yet, with brexit hanging over him, the risks of no deal with the rest of the eu are real and expensive. Today, i am setting aside over the next two years another £3 billion, and i stand ready to allocate further sums if and when needed. He wasnt gambling with his ability to get through the speech. Remember hers . I did take the precaution of asking my right honourable friend to bring a packet of cough sweets, just in case. But he had to reflect the worry felt by many around the country, and confessed to the fact that the economy will be sluggish for longer, the country overall less wealthy for years. The first time there has been this kind of prediction since 1983. They revised down the outlook for productivity growth, Business Investment and gdp growth across the forecast period. What ministers want you to hear is their promise to spend billions more to get House Building going, and to make it cheaper to buy the first time. When we say we will revive the homeowning dream in britain, we mean it. We do not underestimate the scale of the challenge, but today, we have made a substantial downpayment. One of the few surprises, stamp duty will be scrapped for good for those buying for the first time, on properties up to the value of £300,000. But it might only prompt around 3000 extra buyers, and it could push prices up. After tory concern joined other parties opposition, the chancellor promised to smooth the sharp edges of universal credit. Universal credit delivers a welfare system where work always pays and people are supported to earn. But i recognise, mr deputy speaker, the genuine concerns on both sides of the house about the operational delivery of this benefit. The controversial benefit wont be paused, but families would have to wait so long to receive the payment when they first claim. Families will not have to wait so long. And they will be able to stay on housing benefit for longer. There was cash for more maths teachers, for research and development, but no extra money for care for the elderly. The Health Service in england, though, will get an extra £2. 8 billion in the next couple of years, far less than its bosses say it needs. But the government will find more money to give nurses a pay rise next year. With no obvious clangers so far from the chancellor, the government hopes this can steady tory nerves. We are at a turning point in our history, and we resolve to look forwards, not backwards, to seize the opportunities ahead of us, and together, to build a britain fit for the future. I commend this statement to the house. A sigh of relief from the chancellor, but obvious anger from the labour leader. Not enough to change much, he claimed, and not enough for millions in need. Economic growth has been revised down, productivity growth has been revised down, Business Investment revised down. Peoples wages and Living Standards revised down. What sort of Strong Economy is that . What sort of fit for the future is that . They call this a budget fit for the future the reality is, this is a government no longer fit for office. Remember the government barely has a majority when it needs it, so opposition parties can make life extremely hard. He is deluded. When you look at the 0br book, the fiscal stimulus from this is 0. 1 . It is nothing. Living standards will be severely curtailed. We have a severe squeeze continuing in public services. Economic growth downgraded, Business Investment and productivity downgraded as a result of this budget, meaning a further squeeze on wages and Living Standards. A squeeze which will hang over companies and families around the country, a backdrop that the government at westminster will find hard to escape. Laura kuenssberg, bbc news, westminster. We will get some more reaction from westminster. Joining me now from westminster is the shadow housing minister, john healey. Good evening. Is there anything you heard on todays budget, starting with stamp duty, that you feel labour would not have done differently, that it is a good start to try to use the expenditure of trying to own your own home . Cutting stamp duty, as the government is doing, without also boosting affordable House Building, as labour planned, will simply drive up prices. That is the risk. Rather than helping many First Time Buyers at the moment, they are locked out of the housing market. This could drive prices further beyond their reach. It will help sellers rather than buyers. They will build more houses, it sounds like a mortar, and i could bring down the cost of renting for those who cannot afford to buy . More houses, it sounds like a lot more. They are doing little in this budget which will help, the office for budget responsibility, the independent office which runs a slide rule over the plans, say they cannot say that anything in the budget today will be to an additional home being built. I spent a lot of time of night filming for the bbc in emergency accommodation for 84 families, it was reported on before in the bbc, one woman with three children in a box room sharing a double bed, a kitchen you can describe as a kitchen you can describe as a kitchen and a toilet, i have seen better conditions in five hours. This represents emergency housing lots of the country, particularly in london. There are immediate needs andi london. There are immediate needs and i didnt think anybody had immediate needs being addressed today. We do not hear that from labour. How do you save people who cannot just not afford labour. How do you save people who cannotjust not afford a house but cannotjust not afford a house but cannot afford rent and have nowhere to live . That reporters the sharp end of the housing crisis which affects not just those who end of the housing crisis which affects notjust those who reported on but millions. That report is. There was no investment in the budget about building Affordable Homes, no helpful private renters and only three small scale pilots for the homeless. We have laid out plans for a big investment for low cost homes to rent and buy, a big expansion of homes set aside for homeless to move into and in the end basic consumer rights, legal rights for the millions of private renters who have fewer rights than when we buy a fridge freezer. Minimum legal standards, longer tenancies and a cap on the rent rises. Iam cap on the rent rises. I am brushing you because we had to get to some other guests, where does the money come from to build that housing . I am rushing you. The money come from to build that housing . I am rushing you. The government and the chancellor missed a golden opportunity, the Prime Minister and cabinet ministers say there is a good argument for borrowing to invest and build, as labour have argued, but he has not done that. There is a case for saying be borrowed to build the new Affordable Homes that the country needs, you save on housing benefits, have an acid which repays over the long term, it has to be a big part of building the range of new homes, not just big part of building the range of new homes, notjust the quantity of new homes, notjust the quantity of new homes, notjust the quantity of new homes, that the country needs. Thank you, shadow housing minister, john healey. Lets speak to our chief Political Correspondent vicki young at westminster. The main issues for people watching the budget are costs of living, avoiding somewhere to live, even find somewhere to live. The problem for whoever is in power is whether money comes from . The Bigger Picture is the fact that these growth forecasts are very disappointing, the worst set of growth forecast since 1983. Paying off the debt, the deficit, that was meant to be done a couple of years ago and may not now happen until 2030. There is a long term productivity problem and now it seems the growth forecast is not as strong as we might expect, which feeds into tax receipts, how much money there is for public services. Going into this, chancellor Philip Hammond was under pressure on many issues. A minority government does not have a house of commons majority, so any mistakes when into big trouble, as we saw in the last budget. That was a problem for him. Brexit down the road, he wants to make sure he has money in the back pocket for that. Today he seemed to spend quite a lot of it and the treasury has said quite openly he has decided to loosen the purse strings, spend on things like universal credit, which he was under pressure from his own side on, more money from the nhs, but labour wants more and many in the nhs do, but probably just enough to more and many in the nhs do, but probablyjust enough to please his backbenchers money for the nhs. Then setting aside £3 billion for brexit, meaning the conservative mps i spoke to on the brexit side of the argument, the levers, they say he is taking seriously the prospect of maybe no deal happening. I think he has got the balance right. We were pleased to have an input, perhaps more input that we would normally have done. He has also now confirmed that the pay cap, which was a huge issue for many people has now been set aside. Extra money available for nurses, and as other pay reviews come, contingency money is available for that. That was busy not a conservative, that was sammy wilson from the democratic unionist party, they are in this agreement with the government and feel it has done enough, i think they reflect what many tory backbenchers feel which is it was not the most exhilarating of budgets but in the end it might have done itsjob as budgets but in the end it might have done its job as long as there are no ba na na done its job as long as there are no banana skins that anyone has noticed yet, the chancellor should be ok. There is lots of talk about his own personal position being under threat. Unless Something Else comes to light i think today he has done enough to hold onto thatjob, at least for now. Thank you, our Political Correspondent vicki young in westminster. Much more on the budget tonight, we will speak to three viewers very shortly to see how they have been affected, good or bad. Lets bring you up to date with the top lines from the budget. The chancellor has delivered his budget but against the backdrop of a slowing economy. Philip hammond unveiled a series of measures, which he says will put the uk on a secure footing for brexit and beyond. In other news, Emmerson Mnangagwa, the man set to take over as Zimbabwes President , has said the country is witnessing a new democracy. The former bosnian serb Army Commander ratko galactic has been jailed for life. He was found guilty of genocide and crimes against humanity during the bosnian war of the 1990s. The budget dominates. The governments goal of balancing the budget is looking increasingly remote. The previous conservative chancellor George Osborne had pledged to eliminate the deficit the difference between what the government earns and what it spends to zero by 2015. Then it was kicked back to 2025. Now even that is in doubt. The budget has revealed that borrowing over the next five years will, on average, be higher than previously forecast. Andy verity explains. It wasnt really Philip Hammond who had the biggest influence, it was robert choate, the man who makes predictions about how quickly the economy will grow. Before the financial crash, each worker will produce about 2 more than they get before. For years, mr choate expected the growth and productivity to return, but it did not. Now he has been forced to admit it will not happen. The basicjudgment we have to make about productivity is what weight do you put on this unusually weak period that weve seen since the financial crisis, and a much stronger period of performance for decades before that . Economists really dont know what the explanation for the weak period is. Theres a whole variety of things that could have been contributing over time. Very low Interest Rates, weak investment, problems in the financial sector, maybe the output of the economy is being under measured. But we basically had to take an overall judgment, and weve been more pessimistic than we were back in march. Here is the scale of the damage that weak productivity is expected to do to the growth of the economy, meaning all the goods and services we produce. In the spring, the 0br thought we would grow by 2 this year, and then slow down before speeding back up in five years. Here is the new, realistic forecast average growth ofjust1. 4 per year, a slowdown that wont go away. Well, i think if the projections are correct, that would mean that well see a very slight slowdown. Were growing at about 1. 5toi. 7 now. The slowdown would be down toi. 4, 1. 3 . But, quite frankly, thats within the margin of error of any economic forecasts, so i think its a sobering projection. Now, if the economy is growing more slowly, the income tax and vat doesnt roll in as fast, so the chancellor has to borrow more to plug the gap between income and spending. Here is what he was forecast to have to borrow back in march. Now, he wont have to borrow as much in the short term because the economy has done better than expected since the brexit vote, but in five years, he will be borrowing a lot more. In spite of that, the chancellor chose to spend more. Take next year, when he will spend an extra £1. 5 billion preparing for brexit. He will miss out on £0. 8 billion by freezing fuel duty. Taking all the measures in the budget, its a net giveaway of more than £6 billion. Its looking increasingly unlikely that were going to get balanced books even by the mid 2020s. The point at which were supposed to have got to balance has been pushed back, and back, and back. And actually, just to get there in the mid 2020s, wed have to have another round of spending cuts over the early 2020s. Given how hard its been to get where we are, i think thats going to be pretty tough. Underlying all the treasurys numbers are assumptions that well leave the eu in march 2019, that immigration will be cut, that imports and exports wont grow as fast and each of those assumptions is deeply uncertain. Andy verity, bbc news. The budget is all about how it affects you and me. We will speak to three people to see what they make of the budget, and how it affects them. With me is shanae dennis, who is 25 years old and is a middle manager in the nhs. Im joined by laura zito, who is a student nurse on placement at a Mental Health facility. Lots to talk about via skype about the nhs. Also im joined by nia john from cardiff, who works on a zero hours contract. So all from different works of life. Shanae, you are very keen to get on the housing ladder, as are many people. Why is it so important for you to own your own home and get onto the housing market, and did you hear anything of the budget about stamp duty that mcveigh that might make you feel you can finally do it. It gives you security, when you are renting your landlord can raise the rent at any time and can sell the property and you will be left homeless. I have a four year old sun, it is important for me to provide security. And to leave something for him in the future. Maybe get some equity. You dont have too pay stamp duty for the first £300,000 now of a property up to £300,000, if it is outside london, is that a winner . It is a step in the right direction that we dont have to pay stamp duty, but it is the cost of housing, stepping onto the ladder, getting the right to budget. What would you have to save as a deposit to get the kind of place you want . 40 to £50,000. And you work for the nhs, that is probably more than a years salary, although it could go up, a bit of tax relief in the first money that you earn. And there could be pay rises, there is no sign that that there is more investment in the nhs. Are you hopeful of getting wet deposit together . I am presuming you have a loan as well . Hopeful of getting that deposit together . Yes, i have a student loan. It is a step in the right direction but it would help me to save 300 and £300 a year, which would not be enough to get me to the 30 or 40 k deposit. I had to stay in london, that is where i get my family support. You are living with mum and dad . i get my family support. You are living with mum and dad . I tried to flee the nest, i was renting, i had to come back because paying rent in trying to save for a deposit was not realistic and i was not making ends meet, i came back home to focus on saving, but i still find the price of the properties are way too high, especially for somebody like myself who was born in london and would like to stay in london. As much as you love your parents, it cant be easy. Laura, you are a student nurse, you have this to look forward to. Did you hear anything to make you more optimistic about your future . About it was nice that nurses got a mention, but aside from thatm about it was nice that nurses got a mention, but aside from that it is just a lot of words. Nothing too promising, unfortunately. The nhs gets a bad press, sometimes it is rightly deserve. An extra £2. 8 billion in funding and immediate funding to cope with the winter. Is this what people who want to work for the nhs, because it is vocational, you have to really want to do it, is this what you want to hear, more money to be spent . 0r to do it, is this what you want to hear, more money to be spent . Or are there other incentives, maybe not having a student loan . Until september this year all student nurses. September this year all student nurses. The majority were funded by the bursary provided by the nhs. 0ur tuition fee was completely taken ca re 0ur tuition fee was completely taken care of, i am very fortunate, i was one of the last. Now it is a traditional student loan, £50,000 worth of debt by the time you leave. The money promised does not really cover what the nhs needs. Obviously with regards to wage increases, we have been told there are possibly changes to the agenda for change banding, which we are all on. We are confused about whether money is coming from and how it will be utilised for the people who work in the profession. Not enough detail. I would like to speak to not enough detail. I would like to speakto nia, not enough detail. I would like to speak to nia, you are in cardiff, in the next few months the devolved government of wales will make up its own mind about stamp duty. Are you even thinking of buying a house yet on zero i was contract . I think Home Ownership at any point in my life at the moment feels a bit like a in my life at the moment feels a bit likeafairy in my life at the moment feels a bit like a fairy tale, i dont think i will ever get together a deposit to afford a house. I would really like to own my home, most of my money goes on rent at the moment so it feels like i am throwing money away but there was nothing in this budget at the moment which would mean i would ever be able to afford a home. When you say most of your salary goes on have to give is the exact figure, but in terms of your monthly income, how much do you have left to live on . I spent £450 a month on renting my flat, my income fluctuates, sometimes that can be half of what i earn. 0ther fluctuates, sometimes that can be half of what i earn. Other times it might be more, other times less, it is always a sizeable chunk. The living wage will go up, there area the living wage will go up, there are a few tax incentives but on a zero hours contract i cant imagine it helps you at all . Exactly. My wet my it helps you at all . Exactly. My wet my wage will go up from £7. 65 per hour, to £7. 83. That is great. You will pay lex tonne less tax . Yes, but i do not know how much i will earn at the end of the month and it is always a possibility that now my wages will increases that my employers will offer me fewer shifts. Back to shanae in the studio, you are all relatively young, when they talk about productivity, a slow economic growth, do you worry notjust for yourself but your four year old sun about how the economy is going, or is there a Better Future ahead . about how the economy is going, or is there a Better Future ahead . I am very worried, also working in the nhs, iam very worried, also working in the nhs, i am very worried about where my future will like, what Career Options i will have in the future and what type of salaries i can look forward to in the future, i worry forward to in the future, i worry for my son as well. Everything is getting more expensive, including housing, but the wages are not increasing to fall in line at all. Lauret . I have joined at a very interesting time. I think we had to be very careful, we saw what happened with the Junior Doctors previously when their contract was changed, we did want a 3. 9 increase, that does not look like happening. I have anotheryear before i qualify, hopefully if nurses can take charge we might be able to see change. Nia, how do you feel about your future and perhaps even your childrens, if you decide to have them . This budget does not offer me any new security, i am worried about how much money i will earn next month, never mind thinking about any possible childrens future, i dont think this budget addresses that. Thanks to all three of you for joining us, i wish you all the best in everything that you do. Thank you. Much more online on the bbc news website on the budget, including analysis from our whole political and economic steam. We will bring you some other news now. Events continuing to unfold dramatically in zimbabwe. Emmerson mnangagwa, who is due to be sworn in as zimbabwes new president on friday, has told his supporters the country is witnessing the start of a new democracy. The former deputy to Robert Mugabe has been speaking in harare after returning from south africa. He will replace mr mugabe, who resigned yesterday. 0ur zimbabwe correspondent Shingai Nyoka was at that speech given by the incoming president. Zimbabwes zimba bwes incoming zimbabwes incoming president Emmerson Mnangagwa has made his first public appearance since he fled the country last week. Now he left as a villain, he has come back asa left as a villain, he has come back as a hero to take over leadership of zimbabwe. There is an expectation he will be sworn in on friday as the interim president. Thousands of people have gathered here to welcome him, most of them Party Supporters. There is a huge expectation on his shoulders right now. The economy is challenged and they expect he will be able to fix that. Most families survive on street vending, students who have graduated from university have not been able to find jobs. There is a huge expectation that he might be the change that zimbabwe needs. Zimbabwes needs. Zimba bwes incoming needs. Zimbabwes incoming president Emmerson Mnangagwa has just made zimbabwes incoming president Emmerson Mnangagwa hasjust made his first public appearance. He left as a villain, but he has come back as a hero to lead zimbabwe. There is an expectation that he will be sworn in as interim president on friday. Thousands of Party Supporters have come here to welcome him. There is also a sense that there is a huge expectation on his shoulders and to deliver zimbabwe out of its current challenges. Most of those challenges are economic. The infrastructure is dilapidated. There is high unemployment and many here believe that he will provide the reform that zimbabwe needs. Archers filed into the newsroom. That just filed. The former bosnian serb Army Commander ratko mladic has been sentenced to life imprisonment for genocide and other atrocities during the bosnian war more than 20 years ago. The 74 year old was found guilty by an International Court at the hague after a trial that lasted six years. Mladic was not in court when the sentences were read out after being removed for shouting at thejudge. The bbc understands that the London Metropolitan police are investigating the Hollywood Star kevin spacey over a second alleged sexual assault. Spacey is alleged to have sexual assaulted a man 12 years ago in lambeth the location of the Old Vic Theatre where spacey was artistic director at the time. We will be answering your questions on the budget very shortly, but first lets join darren bett with the weather. By by the end of the night it will be a different hazard across the far north of the uk, this evening the rain still continues in many areas. Add to that is very gusty winds driving their way eastwards across england. The rain has lead to flooding, it has been particularly wet around cumbria, close to 100 millimetres of rain has fallen over the hills. That rain has been stuck in the same sort of place earlier in the day. Things will start to move overnight, across cumbria it will stay wet for most of the night. There are other squally winds, the gusty winds driving eastwards across england. Things tend to calm down a little, most of the wet weather clears from england and wales, further north we are introducing colder air. The winds are likely as 1 rain as 1 rain flt to is f get £313 t j; call £131,. V. ; . ;{1. F;r. Z;f. Be southern 271 7 95,55} agguthem , they call this budget fit for the future. The reality is that this government is not fit for office. Stamp duty for First Time Buyers on properties up to £300,000 will be scrapped except in scotland experts are warning it could put house prices up. The nhs in england will get an extra £2. 8 billion by 2020, with £350 million now to allow trusts to plan for the winter. The former bosnian serb Army Commander, ratko mladic, has been jailed for life after being found guilty of genocide and crimes against humanity during the bosnian war of the 1990s. And Emmerson Mnangagwa, the man set to take over as Zimbabwes President , says the country is witnessing a new democracy. Tonight on bbc ask this its all about the budget. Joining me to field your questions of which there have been many are lisa conway hughes, whos a Financial Advisor from westminster wealth management, and our personal finance correspondent, kevin peachey. But first, lets look at what the chancellor said this budget was all about. In this budget, ive set out a vision for britains future, and a plan for delivering it, but by getting our debt down, by supporting british families and businesses, by investing in the technologies and the skills of the future, by creating the homes and the infrastructure our country needs, we are at a turning point in our history, and we resolve to look forwards, not backwards. So the chancellor says the budget supports british families and businesses and that the government resolves to look forwards not backwards. But what do people make of his measures . Youve been sending in your questions. So lets start with. Allan from dunfermline asks i have previously owned a property, but my wife hasnt. We are just about to purchase a property for £198,000. Will we be exempt from stamp duty . 0ne one who is not a First Time Buyer, one who is. Theres quite a lot of confusion about stamp duty. There is. The first thing to say is, because he is living in scotland, what we heard today doesnt apply there. We will have to wait to december to see what happens in scotland. It has its own rules at the moment. Because they are a devolved government. Yes, housing is a devolved issue. There was an important issue which is, if you buy together, with a partner or with someone together, with a partner or with someone else, and one of you is a First Time Buyer and one of you isnt, then you dont get this stamp duty relief. You could do itjust in the name of the First Time Buyer, but for many people that will not work. That applies to wales as well, but that could all change, because they can decide what they do with stamp duty. Ian ford asks can anybody tell me when the stamp duty abolishment comes in, and, if you recently bought a house, if theres any possibility of claiming it back . As long as you are a First Time Buyer, the rules started from today, one minute past midnight. If you are exchanging contracts at any time after one minute past midnight today. If you are in the middle of buying a house, a nerve racking time with your first property, you have just cashed in, basically. You can get that new bathroom. That really is good news for people buying for the first time, but as has been pointed out, it could put the prices of houses up. How does that work . The office for budget responsibility have said that it could be more then cancelled out by the fact that house prices are going to rise, and some of the real winners could be existing home owners, who were not targeted by this measure. We have had some kind of stamp duty holiday before, and the Tax Authority said it didnt actually have a huge effect. The situation was different then, because we were just coming off the back of the financial crisis. Some voices around are questioning the effect this will have. This is a very, very regional issue. If you live in the north of england and you are a First Time Buyer, and you are buying an average property for a First Time Buyer, you are only going to save around £24. In london, you could save £5,000. Stamp duty is a very regional issue. Thank you. Another question. Rhys rosserfrom london sent us his question about stamp duty. In respect of housing for First Time Buyers, is the chancellor not stuck between a rock and a hard place, in that anything he does only succeeds in increasing prices rather than increasing availability . Thats what a lot of people are wondering, if more houses are built, would that bring down rent prices, or the price of houses to buy . Would that bring down rent prices, or the price of houses to buy7m depends whether they build the right type of houses. I worry that this stamp duty is going to make pockets of places, certain prices of housing more expensive, like the £500,000 mark in london. Prices at the higher end are not going to move, because no one is going to want to move or by. When you look at the change from a three bedroom home to a four bedroom home, the cost really shoots up. If you look at the numbers in the last ten years, it has been the numbers of home movers that has dropped the most. First time buyers have come down slightly. This measure absolutely at First Time Buyers. Not that home buyers, those people who want to downsize. Quick question what do you get for half a million north of the border, and what do you get for half a million south of the border . If you are in london, maybe a flat. North of the border, much more. A flat in london, if you are lucky, and a house up north. This is one of my favourite questions that came in today. I dont know the answer. Adrian Alexander Lee asks could somebody explain to me who we borrow all these millions from . The big back drop today is the economy, and the slowdown and the fa ct economy, and the slowdown and the fact its not growing as fast as we would like. Government creates debt by. It packages them up as guilds, and Pension Companies can buy them, and Pension Companies can buy them, and it used to be used as a way to create a steady income. It is whoever wants to buy them. Create a steady income. It is whoever wants to buy themm create a steady income. It is whoever wants to buy them. It is quite cheap for the government, because Interest Rates are low. Just starting to rise. We got a tweet from tracy. She asks, is there a pay increase for nurses . Thats not clear. There is more money for the nhs. Nothing directly about pay, but it does point out that there is the review body, which will be looking at it. It says explicitly in the prebudget document that it isnt going to prejudge that. Unions have put in what they think should happen, and the Bigger Picture is, the Public Sector pay cap. And terri asks via twitter how has this budget helped education and taken the strain off our poorly paid teachers . A lot of people working in the Public Sector will question what is the incentive to stay in this job. We thought there would be a rising Public Sector wages in this budget, but we didnt get it. Any sign that this will come, kevin . If only i knew that. There is certainly a view in government that maybe that should be loosened, but Philip Hammond is saying today that this was supposed to bea saying today that this was supposed to be a responsible budget. Its going to cost quite a lot of money, and there was actually very little in the budget about real wages, about peoples day to day cost of living and pay. That is an issue that was picked up by think tanks like the resolution foundation, saying that pay, during a 17 year fall. It is a pretty grim picture for people in terms of pay. No mention for scotland and wales nhs, because that is a devolved issue. Ian macdonald asks whether nhs staff there will ever see a pay rise. Again, we have to wait until december. Next month, the Scottish Government will outline their budget plans, and there will be all sorts of things to do with devolved issues, like housing and nhs pay. Another tweet, what about firefighters and police . Public sectorjobs, and firefighters and police . Public sector jobs, and people firefighters and police . Public sectorjobs, and people we have seen go on strike and complain about salary is not going up and thejob getting tougher. I think a pay rise is really overdue, and i hope it can be in the coming year. That is a sign that there is some loosening with the police. The 1 agreement plus another 1 rise for Police Officers and prison officers. Above that Public Sector pay cap rise. There is a bit of shifting here. We will see if it extends further. The other big worry for people is pensions. Have they saved enough and should they put more in . Richard from hull asks has a rise in the state pension been confirmed in 2018 . Theres still the triple lock, so his pension will go up by at least inflation, which is 3 . 396, and his pension will go up by at least inflation, which is 396. 396, and we are looking at £3 65 a week on the basic state pension. £4 84 the new state pension, which is that flat rate that is relatively new, to £164 a week. I had a look back through the speech that hammond gave, and he only mentioned pensions wants, i think, and savings twice, and that was to do with First Time Buyers. That is such a massive difference from other recent budgets, because pensions and savings were front and centre of those. And i think we were expecting potential change in the way we get tax relief through pensions. I was talking to my clients about it, but it wasnt mentioned. Are people still tempted to move to places like cyprus when they retire . May be for the sun. There could be tax incentives to do so, but you are leaving your family s annual grandkids. So, but you are leaving your family s annual grandkids. You could be getting yourself into trouble there. A lot of people are still struggling with the cost of living and to find enough work, to find a better salary. Benefits has been in the news, particularly with universal credit, and having to address the issue of the slow roll out with that. Claire emails what about those people on employment support allowance . Employment support allowance, along with lots of other working age benefits, coming up to half way through a four year threes, and there was nothing said that that was going to end at all. That will continue, and that is a source of contention for a lot of people, receiving these benefits. Nothing specific on that particular benefit. Philip hammond focused on universal credit, which is the one that merges a whole raft of benefits into one payment, and very controversial. A concerted attack on him by campaigners, bya concerted attack on him by campaigners, by a lot of mps, some of whom are on his own side, saying that six week wait for the first universal credit payment is not good enough, and he has brought back down to five. Talk us through employment support allowance. Why was it frozen forfour years . Support allowance. Why was it frozen for four years . Part of the austerity moves, and it is where people are assessed for their ability to work if they have a disability or sickness, so it has been very controversial about how those assessments are conducted, and a lot of people are not happy with the way that is operated. Things are very different across the borders of the united kingdom. Alastair emails does the increase in personal allowance apply in scotland . Im getting slightly repetitious wait until december do they really have too . If you live in scotland, its important to keep an eye on what will happen in december. Do scotla nd what will happen in december. Do scotland keep an eye on what happens in england . Yes, because the income you earn before you start paying income taxed, the personal allowance for people on the basic rate is the same in scotland as it is across the rest of the uk. Its the higher rate thatis rest of the uk. Its the higher rate that is of bit lower. People start paying the higher rate at £43,000 in scotland. Thats different in the rest of the uk. That particular threshold will be looked at pretty closely and decided on in december. Lisa, in your line of work, are you finding that people are asking how to invest their money, but they are asking how they can get enough money to make their ends meet . The honest answer is no, because the type of people who come to me for advice have money to invest. But i do understand that the majority of people in the uk are finding it hard to make ends meet. And if you save, you are not getting much back for it. We were told to go out there and buy diesel cars. So a lot of us did, because they said they were environmentally friendly. Now we are paying the price. A few people confused what it means for a diesel car, when the cost kicks in. This is a typical question on the cost of a diesel car. From april 2018, the first year ved rate for diesel cars that dont meet the latest standards will go up by one band, and the existing diesel supplement in Company Car Tax will increase by one percentage point. Drivers buying a new car will be able to avoid this charge as soon as manufacturers bring forward the next generation, cleaner diesels that we all want to see, and we only apply this measure to cars. Sue asks, why exclude vans from the new diesel emissions branding, and rob asks, will the costs be age related, and if so, before which year of manufacturer. Kevin . Philip hammond was very clear that he had an eye on tomorrows newspapers when he was talking about this. He said, its not going to be on vans because i dont want to give the headline of white van man being hit. And in big city centres around the country, those fans need to go into city centres to keep those businesses going. Absolutely. In terms of cars, theres quite a lot of confusion. It is complicated. As you point out, we we re is complicated. As you point out, we were told to buy diesel cars not that long ago, and the government has realised that they would be in trouble if they turned round and said, youve got to pay more. This is an new diesel cars. If you have a smaller car, you are only looking at an increase of about £20 in that first year. For a larger car, you are looking at a bit more. It is for those cars that dont meet pretty tough eu emissions controls. Picking up tough eu emissions controls. Picking up from what kevin was saying, this was a potentially disastrous budget for businesses when it came to cutting down on diesel emissions. Its something theyve definitely have to worry about, as many businesses have to meet different standards. If it were to apply to vans, that could be problematic. Another question from twitter. Was anything announced about student debt in that budget . A lot of nurses particularly were hoping there might be some relief, some incentive to continue with their studies or get into nursing in the first place. There didnt seem much. The Prime Minister stole the chancellors thunder with this. At the conservative Party Conference there was an announcement about students. It was announced that students in england would need two and £25,000 before they start repaying tuition fees. That was at £21,000 before. There is a little bit of detail in the budget this time. For example, there was an issue where people work over repaying Student Loans because hmrc was only looking at it on an annual basis. So thats going to be looked at again, and that should be sorted out, according to the dark pages of the budget document, by about 2019. A discussion i have heard many times is, why dont more businesses offer to help people pay off Student Loans . Its a very good idea, and it might attract the right students to them as well. We have run out of time. So many questions on the budget. A lot of people still very worried about the cost of living and are not really very well reassured. We will analyse the budget in the hours ahead here on the bbc news channel. At 1130 tomorrow we will have another session of ask this on the budget. You can send your questions you can get the latest reaction and analysis on todays budget announcement at www. Bbc. Co. Uk news, where you can see how the budget will affect you using the bbcs budget calculator. Simply enter your details to see whether youll be better or worse off following the Spending Plans laid out by the chancellor. That may inspire a few questions for tomorrows programme. Hello. By the end of the night its going to be a different sort of hazard across the far north of the uk. This evening, the rain continues in many areas, and add to that some very gusty winds driving eastwards across england. The rain has lead to flooding. Particularly wet around cumbria with close to 100 millimetres of rain. 0ver cumbria with close to 100 millimetres of rain. Over the hills, that rain has been stuck in the same sort of place during the day. Things will move on a bit overnight, but cumbria stays wet overnight. These are the squally winds driving eastwards a cross are the squally winds driving eastwards across england. Things will tend to calm down a bit and most of that wet weather will clear away across england and wales. Further north, its turning colder, and as the rain turns heavier, it will turn into snow. That is the hazard we will need to focus on for the northern parts of the uk tomorrow morning. Most of the snow over the hills. The heaviest of the snow will tend to push away north eastwards, but showers coming behind it and the wind picks up as well, particularly across Northern Ireland, forcing showers back into the north west of england. 0ther parts of england and wales and starting off brighter. The wind changes direction to more of a westerly. A windy day, but not as windy as today. A showery picture across the northern half of the uk, again with some sleet and some snow, most of which falls on higher ground. Still not bad on temperatures in the southern half of the uk. We have a north westerly wind, and that will push its way down across the whole of the uk by the end of the week, in time for the weekend. Friday will be a chilly day with maybe a touch of frost from the midlands northwards. A few showers further south, where there will be a bit more cloud. You will notice temperatures across southern parts of the uk will be never. Some wintry showers this weekend. Eight or 9 degrees, wintry showers this weekend. Hello, im ros atkins, this is 0utside source. Ratko mladic has been brought tojustice. Hes been found guilty of genocide and war crimes during the bosnian war in the 1990s. Well report from the hague. Robert mugabes successor has arrived back in zimbabwe. Earlier Emmerson Mnangagwa addressed a cheering crowd. Well see the dramatic moments when a north Korean Defector singh today we are witnessing the beginning of a new unfolding democracy. Well see the dramatic moments when a north Korean Defector ran across the border. He survived despite being shot five times. We will bring you up to date on the budget in the uk. And well be live in buenos aires. The desperate search for argentinas missing sub goes on. Its been a week and oxygen supplies will be very low