let s start with china, because it s currently holding its annual two day national people s congress and has set out its economic forecast for the year. premier li keqiang told a packed audience in beijing on sunday, that the government hoped to achieve economic growth of around 5% in 2023. the figure is in line with most analyst predictions. last year, successive strict lockdowns slowed china s growth. official figures show the world s second largest economy grew by 3% last year, which was way below the government target of five and a half % and its slowest for decades. lets discuss this with louise loo, senior economist at oxford economics. there s widely expected to be a big shakeup in the team handling the economy. around 5%, it probably implies that growth as low as 4.5% is probably acceptable to the government and we do think that means the policy matters that we see will be a little bit more than what we expect last year. more than what we expect last ear. , , , ye
as thousands of teachers and junior doctors walk out in disputes over pay. oscars glory for the short film an irish goodbye. james martin talks to us about hobnobbing with the stars on the day he turned 31. manchester city in seventh heaven as star man erling haaland scores five. pep guardiola s side thrash rb leipzig and ease into the champions league quarterfinals. good morning. under clear skies last night, the northern lights once again when clearview, but under those same clear skies it is a cold start with a widespread frost, the risk of ice and some sunshine, but rain piling in from the west preceded by snow, but also milder air. i will have more later. good morning. it s wednesday 15th march. our main story. chancellorjeremy hunt will today announce his spring budget, with an expansion of free childcare for working parents in england expected to be top of the list. getting thousands of people into work, including those with disabilities and people on universal credit,