BBCNEWS — The Context
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[00:00:00] is what being a 21st century nomad nomad is all about. Sign me up. And And deepen your understanding. If
[00:00:04] If something starts changing here, here, you see the change all over
[00:00:07] over the world. The Travel Show on
[00:00:10] on BBC News. These are the latest
[00:00:19] latest headlines from BBC News. Millions
[00:00:21] Millions prepare to vote on the eve
[00:00:23] eve of Americas crucial midterm elections.
[00:00:25] elections. Can Donald Trump and the the Republicans keep control of the
[00:00:29] the US Congress as Democrats look
[00:00:31] look to flip the House of Representatives Representatives and the Senate? Ukraine
[00:00:35] Ukraine and Russia's emergency alert alert apps are both hit by cyber
[00:00:38] cyber attacks, with users warned warned of nuclear and other threats.
[00:00:42] threats. Meanwhile, Ukraine's president president says Russian forces have
[00:00:44] have bombed a village in the southeastern southeastern Zaporizhzhia region,
[00:00:48] region, killing at least 24 people. people. The UK home secretary, Shabana
[00:00:52] Shabana Mahmood, scraps plans for for migrant care workers already
[00:00:54] already in the UK to wait 15 years
[00:00:57] years for permanent settlement. King King Charles is set to meet Prime
[00:01:01] Prime Minister Andy Burnham in Antigua Antigua for the Commonwealth Heads Heads of Government meeting during
[00:01:05] during the final leg of his Caribbean
[00:01:08] Caribbean tour. It's crunch time.
[00:01:15] time. The midterms are just hours hours away. An election that could
[00:01:19] could shift the balance of power power in Washington. Selection is
[00:01:22] is a battle between the powers that that be and the powers that ought
[00:01:25] ought to be. Stop America hating
[00:01:28] hating communists from taking over over the United States. Congress Congress shouldn't be this hard to
[00:01:32] to afford a second bag of groceries groceries to pay your rent or your
[00:01:34] your mortgage. This election is the the fork in the road for the future.
[00:01:38] future. The power is in our hands.
[00:01:40] hands. We the people. After months
[00:01:47] months of campaigning, the US midterm midterm elections are here. They'll
[00:01:51] They'll decide how America is governed governed over the next two years
[00:01:55] years and crucially, how much power power the current Republican President
[00:01:58] President Donald Trump will have have in his remaining time in office.
[00:02:01] office. Now, over the next few minutes, minutes, we'll tell you what's at at stake. We'll break down some of
[00:02:05] of the key races to watch out for for on election night. And we'll
[00:02:08] we'll talk about how the results
[00:02:10] results could reshape US politics. politics. First, let's start with
[00:02:13] with just what is at stake, because because millions of people across
[00:02:16] across the US have already cast their their votes, and millions more will
[00:02:20] will go to the polls on election election day. But what's it all for?
[00:02:24] for? Here's our analysis editor Ros Ros Atkins. The midterms are all
[00:02:27] all about who controls the two houses houses of Congress, the House of
[00:02:31] of Representatives and the Senate. Senate. This matters because it's it's the part of the US government
[00:02:34] government that makes laws for the the country as a whole on everything
[00:02:37] everything from immigration to taxes taxes to defence. And right now both
[00:02:41] both houses are controlled by the the Republicans, as you can see,
[00:02:44] see, which is very helpful to President President Trump. Now the House of
[00:02:48] of Representatives is where proposed proposed laws are introduced and
[00:02:50] and debated. Each state gets a number
[00:02:53] number of seats proportionate to to its population. Members serve
[00:02:56] serve two-year terms, which means means that all of the seats in the
[00:02:59] the House are up for grabs in this
[00:03:02] this election, there are 435 of them. them. So to control the house, a
[00:03:05] a party needs at least 218. And according
[00:03:08] according to the polls, the Republicans Republicans may have their work cut
[00:03:11] cut out. Holding on to the House House of Representatives. Then there's
[00:03:15] there's the Senate. One of its main main jobs is to approve or reject
[00:03:18] reject those laws proposed by the
[00:03:20] the House. Each state has two senators, senators, so there are a hundred
[00:03:24] hundred in total. They serve six six year terms every two years. Roughly
[00:03:28] Roughly a third of Senate seats are
[00:03:31] are contested, so it's 35 this year
[00:03:32] year to control the Senate, a party
[00:03:35] party needs 51 or more, though if if it's 50-50, the Vice President
[00:03:39] President can cast the deciding vote. vote. So that favours the Republicans
[00:03:43] Republicans at the moment. Now, some some states are very likely to vote
[00:03:47] vote Republican, while others are are very likely to vote Democrat.
[00:03:50] Democrat. But there are a handful handful of states where races could
[00:03:52] could go either way, and in doing doing so, determine the balance of
[00:03:56] of power in Congress. So let's have have a closer look at three of them.
[00:03:59] them. We'll start in Maine. America's
[00:04:02] America's most north-easterly state. state. Now voters there chose Democratic
[00:04:05] Democratic candidate Kamala Harris
[00:04:08] Harris in the 2024 presidential election. election. Now Republican Senator
[00:04:11] Senator Susan Collins is in a tight tight race to hold on to the Senate
[00:04:14] Senate seat that she has held since
[00:04:17] since 1997. The BBC s Helena Humphrey Humphrey is in Bangor in Maine, and
[00:04:21] and she has this on what to look look out for. The rural forests of
[00:04:25] of Maine might feel a long way away away from the politics of Washington,
[00:04:28] Washington, DC, but if the Democrats Democrats want to flip the Senate,
[00:04:31] Senate, they will likely need to to pick up a seat here. Now the Republican
[00:04:35] Republican incumbent, Senator Susan Susan Collins, pitches herself as as a more moderate Republican prepared
[00:04:38] prepared to break with President President Trump. But her Democratic
[00:04:42] Democratic challenger, Troy Jackson, Jackson, a fifth generation lawyer,
[00:04:45] lawyer, says that that independence independence is performative. Now,
[00:04:47] Now, if Collins can hold on to that that seat, she can show that there
[00:04:51] there is a pathway forward for more
[00:04:53] more moderate Republicans in the the future. Going past President
[00:04:57] President Trump's Maga brand of politics. politics. If Democrats can pick up
[00:05:01] up this seat, they could flip the the Senate and ultimately challenge
[00:05:04] challenge what President Trump can can get done in his final years
[00:05:07] in the White House. Let's have a a look at Michigan now. The Senate
[00:05:11] Senate race there has become a national national talking point. Can a progressive
[00:05:15] progressive Democratic candidate candidate win for the Democrats in
[00:05:17] in a crucial swing state that Donald
[00:05:19] Donald Trump won in 2024? Or will
[00:05:22] will Republicans manage to flip the
[00:05:23] the seat? The result here could shape shape the national political conversation
[00:05:27] conversation in the run up to the
[00:05:30] the 2028 presidential election, our our correspondent Nada Tawfik sent
[00:05:32] sent us this from Michigan's biggest biggest city, Detroit. The swing
[00:05:36] swing state of Michigan is incredibly incredibly important to both parties
[00:05:39] parties when it comes to control control of Congress. Democrats almost
[00:05:42] almost certainly need to hold the the state to have a fighting chance
[00:05:45] chance of retaking the Senate, and and Republicans think it's their
[00:05:48] their best chance to pick up a Democratic
[00:05:50] Democratic seat. Abdul El-Sayed is is a progressive Democrat who has
[00:05:54] has been unapologetic about his criticism criticism of Israel and has pushed
[00:05:57] pushed for populist policies such such as universal health care. If
[00:06:01] If El-Sayed wins here in this swing
[00:06:03] swing state, as polls suggest, it it would be a big moment for the
[00:06:06] the left wing of the party. As Democrats Democrats debate their future ahead
[00:06:10] ahead of presidential elections in in 2028. If he loses, establishment
[00:06:14] establishment Democrats will say say it shows the party needs to move
[00:06:17] move more to the centre. Thanks, Thanks, Ned. Now Abdul El-Sayed is
[00:06:21] is facing a challenge from the Republican Republican congressman, Mike Rogers
[00:06:24] Rogers there in Michigan. We'll see see how that one shakes out. Let's
[00:06:27] Let's move on to the Lone Star State State because everything is bigger
[00:06:30] bigger in Texas and that includes includes politics. The money being
[00:06:34] being spent by campaigns and supporters
[00:06:35] supporters there is on track to reach
[00:06:38] reach $1 billion. Our chief North North America correspondent, Gary
[00:06:42] Gary O'Donoghue, is in the state
[00:06:43] state capital, Austin. Think about
[00:06:46] about it half $1. Billion on advertising advertising alone for one Senate
[00:06:49] Senate seat. If you piled that amount amount on top of one another, it
[00:06:51] it would reach 34 miles into the the sky. I'm in Texas, which has
[00:06:56] has now become the most expensive
[00:06:58] expensive non-presidential race in in American history. It could decide
[00:07:01] decide who ends up controlling Congress. Congress. It's a toss up at the moment,
[00:07:05] moment, too close to call between between Democrat James Talarico and
[00:07:08] and Republican Ken Paxton. Democrats
[00:07:11] Democrats have dreamed of turning turning Texas blue for years. If
[00:07:14] If they do manage it, it'll be the the big story of the night. Indeed
[00:07:18] Indeed it will. Now, some of the the results in this election have
[00:07:21] have already faced legal challenges, challenges, and that's before any
[00:07:23] any results have been declared or or even before most people have shown
[00:07:27] shown up to the polls. Both attempts attempts so far have come from the
[00:07:30] the Trump administration, and they've they've both been dismissed by the
[00:07:33] the courts. The most high profile profile case has been in Alaska.
[00:07:36] Alaska. That's down to two candidates candidates on the ballot now with
[00:07:40] with almost identical names. One One is the Republican senator who
[00:07:43] who has served in the state since
[00:07:45] since 2015, and the other is a retired retired teacher from a small fishing
[00:07:48] fishing village. The Department of of Justice had tried to halt the
[00:07:52] the certification of the result in
[00:07:53] in that state. If the Republican Republican incumbent loses, arguing
[00:07:57] arguing that votes cast for the other other Dan Sullivan could have changed
[00:08:01] changed the outcome. The BBC's Shaimaa
[00:08:03] Shaimaa Khalil is in Alaska and has
[00:08:05] has more. This race is close. It
[00:08:08] It is tightly fought and it is crucial.
[00:08:10] crucial. And it goes far beyond Alaska
[00:08:13] Alaska because a Democrat win in in this normally Republican state
[00:08:16] state could tip the balance of power power in the Senate. Over in Washington
[00:08:20] Washington and Alaska is not alone
[00:08:22] alone in these legal battles in California, California, the Department of Justice
[00:08:25] Justice is trying to get ballots
[00:08:28] ballots linked to 20,000 people blocked blocked because they claim that they're they're not American citizens. And
[00:08:32] And again, this has been dismissed dismissed by a judge. But now they
[00:08:35] they want the Supreme Court to get get involved. So up until the very
[00:08:39] very last minute, these challenges challenges are continuing and they
[00:08:42] they tell us a lot, but mainly they
[00:08:44] they pose this question how fiercely fiercely are these election results
[00:08:48] results going to be fought when they they do come out? Now, a reminder
[00:08:51] reminder we will of course have live live coverage on election night for
[00:08:54] for you, bringing you all of the the results, the reaction and what
[00:08:57] what it means for the President that that will be coming from our teams
[00:09:01] teams right across the US and around around the world. So do join us for
[00:09:04] for that. But what will both parties parties be looking out for on Tuesday
[00:09:08] Tuesday night? Let's go back to Ross
[00:09:10] Ross for this analysis. At the moment moment the Democrats don't control
[00:09:13] control either the House of Representatives
[00:09:15] Representatives or the Senate. Their Their goal in this election is to
[00:09:19] to do something about that. Though Though if you look at the polling,
[00:09:22] polling, they are widely expected expected to take the House of Representatives. Representatives. That is unlikely
[00:09:25] unlikely to meet their expectations expectations for the evening. They're They're looking for more. They're
[00:09:29] They're looking to control the Senate, Senate, too. And that looks like
[00:09:32] like a much harder proposition in in order to take the Senate, they're
[00:09:36] they're likely to have to defend defend some fiercely contested seats
[00:09:38] seats and win some fiercely contested contested seats, which is why we're
[00:09:41] we're keeping a close eye on states states like North Carolina, Michigan
[00:09:45] Michigan and Texas. And while controlling controlling both houses of Congress
[00:09:48] Congress is in part about a party's party's ability to promote its own
[00:09:52] own agenda, if the person in the the White House is from the other
[00:09:54] other side of the political divide, divide, it's also about being able
[00:09:57] able to slow up what can be done done in the White House, which is
[00:10:01] is another goal of the Democrats. Democrats. They want to put the brakes
[00:10:04] brakes on the last two years that that Donald Trump has as president.
[00:10:07] president. That is one of their main main goals for the night going into
[00:10:11] into these midterms. The Republicans Republicans are on the back foot. foot. They may have Donald Trump
[00:10:15] Trump in the White House. They may may at the moment control both houses
[00:10:18] houses of Congress. But the way the the polling is looking, it may not
[00:10:22] not stay that way. Even the most
[00:10:24] most optimistic Republicans would would say they may struggle to hold
[00:10:27] hold on to the House. If we're thinking thinking about what a successful successful night for the Republicans
[00:10:31] Republicans would look like, we may may be better off focusing on the
[00:10:34] the Senate if the Republicans can can fend off a fierce challenge from
[00:10:37] from the Democrats, that would be be a huge boost for the party, not
[00:10:40] not just because of the power it it would give it within an important
[00:10:44] important part of the American government, government, but also because that that would be a significant support
[00:10:48] support to Donald Trump as he seeks seeks to pursue his agenda in the
[00:10:51] the last two years of his presidency. presidency. It would also allow the
[00:10:54] the Republicans to fend off efforts efforts by the Democrats to disrupt
[00:10:57] disrupt the last two years of Donald Donald Trump's presidency. So that's
[00:11:01] that's what to watch in the US midterm
[00:11:05] midterm elections, explained.
[00:12:07] So Ukrainians are braced for what what could be a very tough winter winter ahead. Stay with us on BBC
[00:12:11] BBC News. We'll bring you the latest.
[00:12:16] latest. MUSIC
[00:12:25] Welcome. You're watching the political context with me. Geeta
[00:12:28] Geeta Guru-Murthy. Now the question question of immigration has long
[00:12:31] long been politically fraught. And And even though net migration numbers
[00:12:35] numbers have been falling here, the the government has been trying to
[00:12:38] to cut illegal migration in particular
[00:12:39] particular and tackle the wider political political concerns over this issue
[00:12:43] issue whilst meeting the needs of of the economy. Well, today the Home
[00:12:46] Home Secretary unveiled a major overhaul overhaul of the rules for migrants
[00:12:50] migrants seeking permanent settlement settlement in the UK. What does Shabana
[00:12:53] Shabana Mahmood bin saying? I'm joined joined by BBC Newsnight's political
[00:12:57] political editor as always. Nick Nick what? Nick, thanks for being being with us. So she made a statement
[00:13:00] statement in the House of Commons. Commons. What has she said? Well,
[00:13:04] Well, so Shabana Mahmood believes believes that she needs to deal with
[00:13:08] with the number of migrants that
[00:13:10] that came on legal so-called regular regular routes around about 5 or
[00:13:13] or 6 years ago. This was known as as the Boris Wave, which was a quite
[00:13:17] quite a large increase when Boris Boris Johnson was Prime Minister.
[00:13:19] Minister. This is in the sort of
[00:13:22] of the post-Brexit era. And Shabana Shabana Mahmood, her idea was that
[00:13:26] that you should increase from 5 to
[00:13:27] to 10 years or potentially to 15
[00:13:30] 15 years. The wait to achieve indefinite indefinite leave to remain once you
[00:13:33] you have indefinite leave to remain, remain, you have a pathway to citizenship citizenship and also you're able
[00:13:37] able to access the health service. service. And if you need to, you
[00:13:40] you can access benefits. There was
[00:13:42] was a huge row in the Labour Party
[00:13:45] Party Angela Rayner now back in the the cabinet but under Keir Starmer
[00:13:48] Starmer had left the cabinet said said that the idea that Shabana Mahmood
[00:13:51] Mahmood came up with was un-British un-British because it was going to
[00:13:54] to be applied retrospectively and
[00:13:55] and the big area of concern was over
[00:13:58] over care workers. So what Shabana Shabana Mahmood announced today is
[00:14:02] is that care workers who have between
[00:14:07] between 2022 and 25 worked in the the care system, have had visas to
[00:14:10] to do that and have been earning
[00:14:13] earning £25,000. Then they will be be allowed to stay with that five
[00:14:17] five year path. If you weren't working working in the care system, but you
[00:14:21] you did have a care visa, then you you have a chance to flip back into
[00:14:24] into the care system and then you you can do your five year path. So
[00:14:27] So why don't we listen to what the
[00:14:29] the Home Secretary told MPs. This This country welcomes those who seek
[00:14:33] seek a new and better life within
[00:14:35] within it. But I also know that there
[00:14:37] there is an expectation of those
[00:14:39] those who do that. They will play
[00:14:41] play their part, contribute to their their community and become a part
[00:14:45] part of our national life. I do not not think this despite being a Labour
[00:14:49] Labour politician. I think this because
[00:14:52] because I am a Labour politician. politician. If we are to ask our
[00:14:55] our fellow citizens to buy into a
[00:14:57] a system of shared taxation and universal
[00:15:00] universal public services, they must must know that everyone is playing
[00:15:04] playing their part. Solidarity is
[00:15:06] is the precondition for social justice.
[00:15:08] justice. The Home Secretary. What What do the Conservatives have to
[00:15:11] to say on this main opposition? Of
[00:15:14] Of course again, it's a pretty fraught fraught even on the conservative conservative side over the last ten
[00:15:18] ten years. Yes. So Chris Philp is is the shadow home secretary for
[00:15:22] for the Conservative Party, and he he was obviously a Home Office minister
[00:15:25] minister during this period when when we had the so-called Boris Wave.
[00:15:28] Wave. And Chris Philp was saying, saying, well, wait a minute, you.
[00:15:30] you. Shabana Mahmood said that the the issue around care workers was
[00:15:34] was a huge system and you believed believed very, very strongly that
[00:15:37] that they should have the ten year year wait for indefinite leave to
[00:15:41] to remain. So what's this all about? about? Interesting. Edward Leigh,
[00:15:43] Leigh, Conservative MP who's the the father of the house, actually actually turned on his side and Chris
[00:15:47] Chris Philp and said anyone who was was a Conservative Home Office minister
[00:15:50] minister in this period should be be wearing sackcloth and ashes. How
[00:15:53] How is that? But why don't we listen listen to what Chris Philp had to
[00:15:56] to say? So if they had the courage courage to toughen up the welfare
[00:16:00] welfare system, we'd get some of
[00:16:01] of those people into work instead
[00:16:04] instead of relying on mass low skill
[00:16:07] skill migration. So, Mr Speaker, Speaker, if the Home Secretary wants
[00:16:10] wants to face down her nemesis the
[00:16:13] the community Secretary, and implement implement her own plans, we will
[00:16:17] will vote for them. But if she capitulates
[00:16:19] capitulates to the open borders left
[00:16:21] left her credibility as Home Secretary Secretary will not recover. Yeah,
[00:16:25] Yeah, I mean, a reference really really to the internal disparity
[00:16:29] disparity of opinion within the Labour Labour Party. What did we hear from
[00:16:33] from the backbenches? Yes, because because we know that Angela Rayner, Rayner, the housing secretary, Miatta
[00:16:36] Miatta Fahnbulleh, who's the energy energy secretary, were not happy
[00:16:39] happy about these on the back benches.
[00:16:41] benches. Had Shabana Mahmood done done nothing, I think the government
[00:16:44] government will now be facing a full-scale full-scale rebellion. She has acted
[00:16:48] acted so. The reaction on the Labour
[00:16:50] Labour benches was muted. There was was unease and interestingly, Diane
[00:16:54] Diane Abbott, who's an iconic figure figure in the Labour Party, mother
[00:16:58] mother of the House back back as
[00:17:00] as a Labour MP having lost the whip, whip, clearly unease about uneasy
[00:17:04] uneasy about this. But you didn't didn't get the impression that Diane
[00:17:07] Diane Abbott is about to sort of of take a stand and lead a bigger bigger rebellion. Let's listen to
[00:17:10] to what Diane Abbott had to say. say. My parents were immigrants.
[00:17:14] immigrants. My mother was a nurse.
[00:17:17] nurse. She was one of that generation
[00:17:19] generation that came to this country
[00:17:22] country to build the NHS after the
[00:17:24] the war. And it remains the case
[00:17:27] case that immigrants play a very
[00:17:29] very important role in our NHS. And
[00:17:33] And I say to the Home Secretary and
[00:17:35] and I say to the House, we should
[00:17:37] should always remember the contribution
[00:17:39] contribution that immigrants made
[00:17:42] made and continue to make to our
[00:17:45] our society. I mean, there is always always a question about, you know,
[00:17:48] know, how much any cabinet minister, minister, any government, any Downing
[00:17:51] Downing Street wants to take on factions factions within their own party,
[00:17:55] party, an ongoing question one imagines. imagines. Yeah. I mean, look, clearly
[00:17:59] clearly Shabana Mahmood had to act. act. And interestingly for Andy Burnham,
[00:18:02] Burnham, you can tell that he's torn torn on this because he was elected
[00:18:06] elected MP for Makerfield, which which is very similar to his old
[00:18:08] old seat of Leigh. There was a very very strong leave vote there, very
[00:18:11] very strong views on immigration.
[00:18:14] immigration. So he knows that he he needs to sort of be reasonably
[00:18:17] reasonably strong on immigration. immigration. But equally he is the
[00:18:20] the leader of a Labour Party that that has tilted a little bit to the
[00:18:24] the left with the departure of Keir Keir Starmer. And there are many
[00:18:27] many Labour MPs who want to see action. action. And that's why somebody like
[00:18:31] like Diane Abbott is a very significant significant figure. And interestingly,
[00:18:33] interestingly, she was saying to to Shabana Mahmood watch out. I see
[00:18:36] see that this is a repeat of the the Windrush scandal to which Shabana
[00:18:40] Shabana Mahmood said no. The point point about the Windrush scandal
[00:18:43] scandal was that were commitments commitments made to people who were
[00:18:46] were here, who were British and then
[00:18:47] then were let down. These people
[00:18:50] people are not British. They are are potentially on a pathway to that,
[00:18:53] that, she said. Very, very different different situation to the Windrush Windrush scandal. It's really interesting,
[00:18:57] interesting, isn't it? There's lots lots more we could say. But I do
[00:19:00] do want to just ask you, Nick, whilst whilst you're here briefly. Obviously
[00:19:03] Obviously a lot of focus on the midterms.
[00:19:06] midterms. Any change within the House
[00:19:08] House of Representatives or the Senate,
[00:19:11] Senate, will that change potentially potentially US foreign policy and
[00:19:14] and the UK's relationship with the the US therefore I mean all US allies
[00:19:17] allies will be watching events in
[00:19:20] in the US very closely this week. Well look, I did my usual thing thing today of walking the corridors
[00:19:23] corridors of Westminster and I have have to say the hot topic amongst
[00:19:27] amongst MPs peers is what is going
[00:19:29] going to happen in the midterms tomorrow.
[00:19:31] tomorrow. And of course, were the the Democrats to do well, were they
[00:19:35] they to get the House? And it looks looks like, as we were saying, the
[00:19:37] the Senate may well be in play. That That is potentially going to transform
[00:19:41] transform the Donald Trump presidency. presidency. The one area where he
[00:19:44] he may be able to do more if he's he's constrained domestically, because
[00:19:48] because obviously Ross was saying saying that the two houses are in
[00:19:50] in charge of domestic legislation, legislation, is foreign policy he
[00:19:54] he could do maybe much more in that that area. Although you are technically technically as president, if you're
[00:19:58] you're going to go to war, you should should be getting the approval of
[00:20:01] of Congress. So yes, there may be
[00:20:04] be a feeling that maybe this president president would be more focused on
[00:20:07] on foreign policy. And the big challenge challenge for this country, as we've
[00:20:10] we've seen in recent weeks, is Donald
[00:20:13] Donald Trump's instincts on Ukraine Ukraine are to be more sympathetic
[00:20:16] sympathetic to Russia than he is
[00:20:19] is to Ukraine. And if there's more more foreign policy and more heading
[00:20:22] heading in that direction, then for for a country like the UK, which which is obviously hugely supportive
[00:20:26] supportive of Ukraine, as is indeed indeed the rest of the European,
[00:20:29] European, that might be quite challenging. challenging. Yeah. And obviously obviously the Middle East is incredibly
[00:20:33] incredibly difficult. There's been been a lot of speculation about whether whether there will be renewed action.
[00:20:36] action. Andy Burnham clearly wanting wanting to focus domestically, but
[00:20:39] but we know global events are really
[00:20:42] really unavoidably, you know, kind kind of prescient. Well look, we we had the budget last week and they
[00:20:46] they know in the Treasury that where where Donald Trump to launch renewed
[00:20:49] renewed action in the Middle East, East, all those sort of fiscal plans plans could go out the window, although
[00:20:52] although I think Donald Trump has has been speaking to Axios in the
[00:20:55] the last few hours. And I think the the President saying not in a big
[00:20:58] big rush to get into more military military action over there. Yes,
[00:21:01] Yes, we never know what's going to to come out of DC, but we will be be watching. Nick Watt thanks very
[00:21:05] very much indeed for being with us.
[00:21:07] us. Much more, of course, on all
[00:21:09] all the US politics coming up.
[00:21:22] Africa Enterprise sponsored by Absa
[00:21:26] Absa Group. MUSIC
[00:21:36] I'm heading to Seacom, which
[00:21:39] launched Africa's first private subsea
[00:21:41] subsea fibre optic cable in 2009.
[00:21:47] 2009. Headquartered in Mauritius, Mauritius, with hubs across southern
[00:21:50] southern and eastern Africa, it connects
[00:21:52] connects millions to the web. Now
[00:21:54] Now Seacom is planning a $2 billion
[00:21:56] billion cable connecting Africa to
[00:21:58] to not just Europe but Asia. What
[00:22:04] What is the opportunity you're seeing seeing in Africa's digital economy
[00:22:06] economy that gives you the confidence
[00:22:08] confidence to make such a large
[00:22:11] investment? So if you just take a a map of the subsea connectivity connectivity throughout the world,
[00:22:15] world, what you will find is between between Europe and North America,
[00:22:19] America, lots of connectivity. But But if you just blow that map up up and look at the Indian Ocean basin,
[00:22:23] basin, you'll find it's fairly devoid
[00:22:24] devoid of connectivity and very little
[00:22:28] little subsea cables in that area.
[00:22:30] area. So the opportunity here is is to really connect Africa to the
[00:22:33] the rest of the world in a meaningful
[00:22:35] meaningful way with high speed connectivity.
[00:22:38] connectivity. And it's a really ambitious ambitious project, but I think vitally
[00:22:41] vitally needed for the African
[00:22:45] continent. While hyperscalers like like Google and Meta build cables
[00:22:48] cables to push content into Africa,
[00:22:50] Africa, Seacom operates an open network network designed to connect African
[00:22:54] African businesses out to global global opportunities. Do you find
[00:22:57] find that to be a key component for
[00:23:00] for success? Being able to own and and control more of the value chain?
[00:23:04] chain? Why is it important to have have that autonomy? What hyperscalers
[00:23:07] hyperscalers are doing today is exactly exactly that. They've realised that
[00:23:10] that outsourcing all of this doesn't doesn't allow them to control their their own destiny. The reason they're
[00:23:14] they're rolling out these cable infrastructures infrastructures is so they can drive
[00:23:17] drive down the cost for their connectivity, connectivity, which is exactly the
[00:23:19] the same model we've been using since
[00:23:21] since 2009 or before that. And how
[00:23:25] how does AI affect what you're able able to provide and what you need
[00:23:29] need to provide in terms of how the the demand is going to grow or change.
[00:23:32] change. What you are going to find
[00:23:34] find is that AI will drive high speed
[00:23:37] speed connectivity in a very elastic
[00:23:38] elastic way. So not what we typically
[00:23:41] typically have in a home today. But But now you're looking at tens or
[00:23:44] or hundreds of gigabytes of capacity. capacity. If you look at the cables
[00:23:47] cables that exist today, that technology technology won't run on those older
[00:23:51] older cables. So we're building a a newer cable with newer technology
[00:23:54] technology that allows us to have
[00:23:55] have high speed connectivity. To
[00:24:00] To compete globally, African businesses
[00:24:03] businesses need massive AI bandwidth. bandwidth. But transferring that
[00:24:06] that data brings risks. How are you
[00:24:11] you thinking about the cybersecurity cybersecurity threats. That for us
[00:24:15] us is an ongoing sort of consideration. consideration. What we're starting
[00:24:18] starting to look at now, and this
[00:24:19] this is a proper tongue twister, twister, post-quantum cryptography.
[00:24:23] cryptography. So we're using quantum quantum physics or we will start
[00:24:25] start to use quantum physics to encrypt encrypt data. Cyber criminals will
[00:24:29] will continue to be there. And all all of these threat actors will continue continue to be there. It's about
[00:24:32] about being one step ahead of them. them. Looking to the future. You've
[00:24:36] You've got this big project that
[00:24:39] that should come online in 2030.
[00:24:42] 2030. What do you hope that project
[00:24:44] project will achieve? I think it
[00:24:47] it will go part of the way to unleash unleash the African continent. For
[00:24:50] For many, many years I've said connectivity connectivity should be considered
[00:24:54] considered as an essential service service similar to electricity and
[00:24:56] and water. If you start to look at at it like that, you will then start
[00:25:00] start to understand that this has has become the lifeline for many
[00:25:02] many things people can't do. Having
[00:25:05] Having pieces of connectivity all all over the continent, a growing growing population that's starting
[00:25:09] starting to use technology and adopting adopting technology much faster than
[00:25:13] than most of the world. That's where where the opportunities start to to come
[00:25:27] Enterprise sponsored by
[00:29:17] MUSIC
[00:30:16] I'm Sumi Somaskanda in Washington and this is BBC World
[00:30:19] World News America. President Trump Trump makes a final appeal for votes
[00:30:22] votes ahead of Tuesday's US midterm midterm elections for his Republican
[00:30:25] Republican Party is battling to maintain maintain control of both chambers
[00:30:28] chambers of Congress. Democrat party
[00:30:30] party is nominated the most extreme
[00:30:33] extreme and dangerous slate of candidates candidates in American history. These
[00:30:36] These are the most dangerous candidates
[00:30:39] candidates ever put up. In Michigan.
[00:30:42] Michigan. Abdul El-Sayed Senate campaign campaign reports a record breaking
[00:30:45] breaking fundraising day after fellow fellow Democrat Haley Stevens pulls
[00:30:48] pulls her endorsement in favour of of the Republican rival. And officials
[00:30:51] officials in Ukraine say at least least 24 people have been killed
[00:30:54] killed in repeated Russian attacks attacks on a school being used as
[00:30:57] as an aid