Today we look at how Andy Burnham is preparing for government on the weekend before he’s due to move into Number 10.

He’s still to make decisions around his cabinet public, but we reveal how he’s actually keeping a lot of Keir Starmer’s staff.

Laura, Paddy and Hennry Zeffman discuss his plans for oil and gas after the BBC is told he’s planning to announce new drilling off the coast of Scotland and ask, does that give us a clue as to who the chancellor will be?

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00:00 Intro
03:15 What happens before a new prime minister takes office?
06:15 Cabinet choices and the first tests of power
06:34 The first decisions facing Andy Burnham
16:21 Has a lack of leadership contest changed policy?
17:51 What could be announced on Monday?
19:12 Inside Andy Burnham’s team
22:58 Could there be an early General Election?
25:23 Burnham’s vision and expectations
32:52 Who gets the top jobs in the Cabinet?

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Heartstopper has been praised since it first aired in 2022 for the way it has sensitively dealt with a number of topics that many teenage and young adult viewers will be familiar with – such as sexual identity, mental health and bullying.

The series is now coming to an end with Heartstopper Forever, a feature-length film.

And the two main protagonists, Kit Connor (Nick) and Joe Locke (Charlie) both even served as producers on the film.

The pair spoke to the BBC about queer love, acting as producers and whether they’ll work together again in the future.

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#HeartstopperForever #KitConnor #JoeLocke #BBCNews

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Iran has threatened to block further trading routes in the region, as the US launched a fresh wave of strikes on military targets.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said the Strait of Hormuz would remain shut until the US ended its “acts of aggression”. They also threatened to close off other regional oil and gas export channels.

The warning came as the US military’s Central Command said it had carried out drone, air and navy strikes on Iran on Wednesday morning, following another seven-hour operation overnight.

Fresh hostilities between the US and Iran in recent days have served to underscore the strategic importance of the Strait to the global economy.

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#US #Iran #BBCNews

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Tehran has launched fresh attacks on US military bases in neighbouring Gulf states, while Washington continued to strike sites across Iran overnight.

Tehran said it had struck targets in the region, including in Jordan, Kuwait and Bahrain, as a sixth day of renewed hostilities strained their preliminary deal to end the war.

Meanwhile, the US military said it inflicted a six-hour wave of strikes in multiple locations to “degrade Iran’s ability to threaten innocent mariners” in the Strait of Hormuz.

The latest exchanges came after US President Donald Trump warned Iran it had “better behave” or face further military action should Iran not return to negotiations.

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#US #Iran #BBCNews

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AI can write, code, plan and problem-solve in seconds. But as we hand more tasks over to machines, what happens to our own skills?

In this episode AI Decoded investigates whether AI is enhancing human intelligence or quietly eroding it.

From doctors and software engineers to students growing up with AI tutors, we explore new research suggesting that reliance on AI could affect critical thinking, expertise and decision-making.

Presenter Marc Cieslak is joined by world leading Paediatric Neurosurgeon Owase Jeelani, Digital Transformation Researcher Dr Tapani Rinta-Kahila, and AI Decoded co-host Dr Stephanie Hare.

As AI becomes our everyday assistant, are we gaining a powerful new tool — or outsourcing the very abilities that make us human?

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#BBCNews

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