Mecca Stampede: Saudi Authorities Blamed

Over 700 Muslim pilgrims die during a stampede at the Hajj in Mecca. So how can the authorities cope with the millions of people joining the event each year? Dr Irfan al-Alawi, executive director of the Islamic Heritage Research Foundation, expressed safety concerns two weeks ago on Business Matters, when a crane collapsed onto the Grand Mosque. Now he tells us his fears have been borne out. Much research has focused on the behaviour of crowds and crowd safety. We hear from Paul Wertheimer of Los Angeles-based Crowd Management Studies and ask what advice he would give to the authorities in Saudi Arabia.

The Volkswagen emissions-rigging scandal spreads, as the car maker admits European vehicles are also affected. The company will reveal the names of executives implicated in the affair on Friday and appoint a new CEO. So who is most likely to step into this challenging role? We ask Stefan Vosswinkle of the German car magazine Auto Bild.

Hill farmers in many parts of Britain have a serious problem on their hands - bracken - a tough fern that thrives on steep, wild terrain. Its growth has increased with climate change and is swallowing up land that the farmers need for grazing livestock. But could this problem become the solution to future energy needs in the form of biofuel? Fergus Nicoll reports from North Wales.

President Obama hosts China's President Xi Jinping at the White House during his week-long visit to the United States. But how warm are relations between the two world powers? Economist Irwin Stelzer of the Hudson Institute gives us his view.

Australia’s birth rate has fallen to its lowest level in a decade – Phil Mercer our reporter in Sydney has more. Plus, could salt really be banned from restaurant tables in Bolivia?

All this and more with our two guests for the hour - Peter Morici, Professor of International Business at the University of Maryland and Wei Gu, China correspondent for the Wall St Journal in Hong Kong.

(Photo: Muslim Pilgrims at the Jamarat ritual. Credit: AFP/Getty Images)