good morning. it is a fairly cloudy start for money. some drizzle in the west, some heavier rain in scotland. that will push north eastwards through the day, with brighter skies in central and eastern areas. details later in the programme. good morning. it s thursday, 2nd february. british gas is facing an investigation after using debt collectors to break into the homes of vulnerable people and forcibly fit pre payment energy meters. the tactic which results in someone s heating being cut off if they don t have the cash to top up their meter is only supposed to be used in homes where there are no young children, pensioners or other vulnerable people. but an undercover reporter from the times newspaper found the meters were being fitted in homes which should be protected. aru na iyengar reports. hello? british gas, your gas supplier. we re here with a court warrant. can you please open the door? otherwise we will have to open it for you. this is the exciting bit. i love t
british gas suspends its force fitting of prepament meters following a report that it was imposing them on vulnerable customers. its chief executive, chris 0 shea has apologised. there chris 0 shea has apologised. is nothing that i can 5 can there is nothing that i can say that can express the horror i had when i heard this, when i saw this. it is completely unacceptable, that language is completely unacceptable. the largest ever outbreak of bird flu is now infecting mammals in the uk. hello and welcome if you re watching in the uk or around the world. europe s biggest energy firm, shell, has reported record annual profits of nearly $40 billion in 2022, more than double what it made in the previous year. the profits are the biggest in the firm s history boosted by higher energy prices since the start of the ukraine war. shell has already said it will pay tax in the uk for the first time since 2017 as a result of the government s windfall tax. let s take a closer look at t
an emotional appeal to the public from the family of nicola bulley to help find her. and a warning that mammals such as foxes and otters are contracting avian flu after eating dead birds. and coming up on the bbc news channel: the countdown is on to the six nations, as england s new coach steve borthwick goes for a more youthful side. good evening and welcome to the bbc news at six. the bank of england has rasied interest rates to 4%, their highest level for m years, as it continues its attempts to curb soaring inflation. the latest rise, the tenth in a row, will mean higher mortgage payments for homeowners with a typical tracker mortgage. but people with savings should benefit. the bank also said that the uk is set to enter recession this year though it could be shorter than was previously forecast. and it also predicted a significant fall in inflation by the end of this year. our economics editor, faisal islam, has all the details. sophie, rates have been raised consistentl
good afternoon and welcome to bbc news. the bank of england has raised interest rates from 3.5 to li% their highest level since 2008. the increase will leave millions of households facing higher mortgages at a time when many people are already struggling with energy and food bills. it will also have an impact on repayment charges on bank loans and credit cards but it is better news for savers, who should get a higher return. the bank of england says the increase will help to curb rising prices. our economics correspondent andy verity reports. in leeds like every where else, the cost of keeping up a mortgage isjumping, because of interest rates. stu is used to saving after spending much of his life on a minimum wage. he got a better paying job as a librarian, but like many, his wages have stagnated. when his mortgage expired his payments went from £90 a month to £360. i thought the days of checking the bank balance were gone. but they re back with a vengeance now. it is
british gas admits there s no excuse for using debt agencies who broke into homes to fit prepayment meters. and, we speak to microsoft s bill gates about covid, vaccines and conspiracy theories. i guess people are looking for the bogeyman behind the curtain, the over simplistic explanation. and coming up on the bbc news channel. manchester united say they will conduct their own process before determining the future of their player, mason greenwood, after assault charges were dropped against him today. good evening. the bank of england has raised interest rates to the highest level for more than 1a years, with inevitable consequences for people with mortgages, credit card debt and other borrowing. the rise by 0.5 percentage point to 4% is yet another attempt to control inflation. the bank confirmed that the economy is set to enter recession this year, but it said the recession could be less pronounced than previously thought, as there are early signs that the economy is st