01/01/2015

0650

It is 56 years to the day since the Cuban Revolution swept Fidel Castro to power, setting in train the rift with the United States that will now change, after the diplomatic re-set announced last month. Among the changes will be an end to restrictions on Americans travelling to the island, something that is particularly welcome for Cubans working in tourism. Correspondent Will Grant is in Havana.

0710

Britain's combat mission in Afghanistan is over. As of today the British role, along with America and other NATO countries will be almost solely to train and support the Afghan army. So are the Afghans up to the job, or will we see the Taliban retake control of large parts of the country. Omar Samad used to be an ambassador for Afghanistan in Canada and France. He's now returned to work for the number two figure in the coalition government, Abdullah Abdullah.

0715

Speaking on yesterday's programme, our guest editor Baroness Butler-Sloss warned that victims and survivors of childhood abuse shouldn't have too much influence over who chairs the panel of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse. The retired judge, who stepped down as head of the public inquiry, said there could be "real problems" if they were to decide who is its eventual chair. John Mann is the Labour MP who has given a dossier of allegations of historical abuse to Scotland Yard. Peter Riddell is director of the Institute of Government.

0725

This year will be the 800th anniversary of the Magna Carta, one of the most famous documents in the world. It established for the first time the principle that everybody, including the king, was subject to the rule of law. There's a new translation of it published today by David Carpenter who is professor of medieval history at King's College London. 

0730

One hundred thousand people were out in central London last night to see the fireworks and bring in the New Year and another 75,000 joined the Hogmanay celebrations in Edinburgh. What about those who keep the emergency services running on what is traditionally their busiest night of the year? We asked two people working through the night to send us their audio diaries. Adrienne Tonge is a volunteer 'street angel' in Bolton. Dr Andy Webster is a consultant in an A&E department in Leeds.

0745

From today, a ban by the French government on the low-cost taxi service UberPop will come into force. On Wednesday, the budget service, which links private car owners with customers willing to pay for rides, announced it was suspending services in Spain after a legal challenge by taxi drivers there. Cabbies across Europe have staged protests at the arrival of the US-based taxi app over the past year. Adrian Mars is a technology journalist and futurologist.

0750

It's 10 years today since the introduction of the Freedom of information Act (FOI). It was passed by the Labour Government, but Tony Blair later said he had been an "irresponsible nincompoop" for having introduced it - while David Cameron said it "furs up" government. So, does it work effectively? What are the strengths and weaknesses of the act, and how does it impact on the workings of the government? Christopher Graham is current Information Commissioner. Professor Robert Hazell is professor of Government and the Constitution at UCL.

0810

As the New Year begins, what will be the big stories for the UK in 2015? Today presenter Sarah Montague spoke to Political Editor Nick Robinson, Home Editor Mark Easton and Economics Editor Robert Peston.

0820

From 9am this morning Radio 4 is devoting almost an entire day to War and Peace. It is a marathon 10 hour production with a stunning cast including John Hurt, Simon Russell Beale and Lesley Manville. It is just possible you won't have 10 hours to spare to listen to it in its entirety today so we thought we'd help. We play a version digested for you by the Guardian's John Crace ‘War and Peace in less than 5 minutes’, read by Simon Callow.

0830

The New Year has brought Afghanistan control of its own security, after 13 years. The remaining foreign troops will be in a training and support role and the Afghan National Army will lead the fight against the Taliban. The challenge is immense, 2014 was the bloodiest year in Afghanistan since 2001, with more than 4,000 Afghan troops and 10,000 civilians killed. Ahmed Rashid is author of several books on the Taliban and the region. General Sher Mohammed Karimi is chief of staff of the Afghan National Army.

0835

The administrators of collapsed delivery firm City Link have announced 2,356 job losses after a bid to buy the company failed. The administrators, who took over City Link on Christmas Eve, said an unnamed consortium's offer was not acceptable. We speak to two City Link employees: Louise Tilley is Business Development Manager and Mike Parkinson is driver for City Link in Preston.

0840

Britain's first official call on a mobile was made on 1 January 1985 by 24-year-old Michael Harrison, son of Vodafone Chairman Sir Ernest Harrison. Michael left the family New Year's Eve party in Surrey and drove to Parliament Square in Westminster with a Vodafone Transportable VT1 phone.  After Big Ben had struck 12 to ring in the New Year, he dialled home and said "Hi Dad, it's Mike. Happy New Year. This is the first-ever call on a UK mobile network." Mungo Park was the first person to buy a 'mobile' phone when they were made commercially available.

0845

'The theory of everything' is out in cinemas today. The movie - which has received four nominations for the Golden Globe Awards - follows the life of physicist Stephen Hawking as a student at Cambridge University, when he meets his first wife Jane and is diagnosed with motor neurone disease. Motor neuron disease (MND) is rapidly progressive and terminal. It affects the brain and spinal cord: people can still think and feel, but their muscles refuse to work. Sarah Ezekiel and David Setters are both living with motor neurone disease and are members of the MND Association. 

(If you want to find more about it you can visit the Motor Neurone Disease Association website www.mndassociation.org)

0850

2014 was an eventful year for space exploration - with Philae landing on a comet, Nasa testing a new spaceship and curiosity still mooching on Mars among the successes. The biggest setback was for commercial space flight, with the Virgin Galactic crash. What does 2015 hold in store? Monica Grady is professor of Planetary and Space Sciences at the Open University. Professor David Southwood is former director of Science and Robotic Exploration at the European Space Agency.


All subject to change.