Today Weekdays 6-9am and Saturdays 7-9am

Can the government prevent another boom in house prices? NUT opposition to the government free school scheme. And military aircraft are flying supplies to the residents of an Australian city submerged in floodwater.

To speed up the loading time for this running order, we have replaced the audio with links. To hear the reports, interviews and discussions, just click on the links.

Get in touch via email , Twitter or Facebook or text us on 84844.

0615
Business news with Tanya Beckett: Ana Armstrong of Distinction Asset Management and Henry Dixon of Matterley Asset Management debate how 2010 was a good years for the markets. And Philippa Busby reports on the business of death.

0709
Housing minister Grant Shapps has said that he wants a more stable housing market to improve the situation for first time buyers. Kate Barker, who led a review of the housing market in 2004, gives her analysis.

0712
Coptic Christians in Egypt have been demonstrating for a second day, calling for better protection for Christians. Twenty-one people were killed in the bombing of a church in the early hours of Saturday morning. BBC Correspondent Rupert Wingfield-Hayes reports from Alexandria.

0716
Business news with Tanya Beckett.

0719
Last night's 60th anniversary episode of The Archers promised it was going to "shake Ambridge to the core". Times columnist David Aaronovitch gives his opinion of last night's special.

0723
A psychiatrist in Pakistan has received threats after releasing a book entitled Sex Education for Muslims. Dr Mobeen Akthar spoke to our correspondent in Islamabad, Aleem Maqbool, about why he thought the book was needed.

0726
Sports news with Rob Bonnet.

0730
The Australian state of Queensland is struggling as massive floods submerge the area. Alex Finlayson, a local school teacher in the Queensland town of Emerald, describes the flooding.

0738
Conservative MP Mark Pritchard has challenged the prime minister to be open about whether he is considering any form of deal at future elections with the Liberal Democrats. He explains his call for "clarity" on the future of the coalition.

0741
The paper review.

0744
Every year the Economist makes its predictions for the year ahead - The World in 2011. The magazine's executive editor Daniel Franklin discussed the themes of this year's edition.

0748
Thought for the Day with John Bell of the Iona Community.

0750
The National Union of Teachers has said that the government's new "free schools" in England are not wanted and will not work. General Secretary of the NUT Christine Blower and Mark Lehane, a former NUT representative and a maths teacher who hopes to set up a free school in Bedford this year, debate the schools.

0810
The coalition housing minister Grant Shapps has said he wants housing prices to become more stable to enable first time buyers onto the market. Mr Shapps explains why people should see housing as providing a home, not an investment for old age.

0816
The government is to announce the axing of mandatory increases in parking charges in order to make life easier for motorists. BBC reporter Graham Satchell reports from Knutsford on whether the shift in policy will affect motorists' costs.

0820
2011 is the 100th anniversary of Las Vegas' incorporation as a city. But do the neon lights and giant casinos of the Strip mean that it has lost the seedy charm of its Rat Pack heyday? Singer Buddy Greco and director Stephen Ives discuss Vegas' transformation over the past century.

0825
Sports news with Rob Bonnet.

0831
The Australian authorities are warning that flooding in Queensland could last for a month or more. Floodwaters already cover an area the size of France and Germany combined. The BBC's Nick Bryant reports.

0836
2010 was a remarkable year for the Liberal Democrats, having made it into government for the first time in decades. But at what cost? Lib Dem deputy leader Simon Hughes reflects on the year ahead.

0843
Business news with Tanya Beckett.

0846
It would seem that native New Yorkers would be proud of their accent, epitomised by tough-talking movie gangsters from James Cagney to Robert De Niro. But fears that their famously abrasive tones are holding them back is driving growing numbers of New Yorkers to voice coaches. Correspondent Matt Wells went to a voice therapy session in Manhattan to find out why.

0850
Labour leader Ed Miliband is to warn the planned rise in VAT is the "wrong tax, at the wrong time". Colette McBeth reports.

0853
Yesterday's episode of The Archers was supposed to shake Ambridge to its core, but did it? Series editor Vanessa Whitburn and Archers fan Kim Monday discuss last night's episode.

E-mail this to a friend

Printable version