Transcripts For BBCNEWS Afternoon Live 20171024

Snooker championship 2015 to today being banned for six months for betting breaches. It is estimated he spent £35,000 in the past seven yea rs spent £35,000 in the past seven years betting on matches. More on that later. And the weather with chris. Cloudy and mild here, but i will be casting my mind to the alps with the Early Arrival of winter. More from me in the next half hour. Also coming up, a string and a prayer the moment 2115 people simultaneously bungee jumped off a 30 foot high bridge in brazil. Well tell you why. Hello, everyone. This is afternoon live, im simon mccoy. The European Council president , donald tusk, has urged members of the European Parliament to stick together or face defeat. Brexit, he said, was the eus toughest stress test, and it must not be divided at any costs. Mr tusk also said the outcome of the brexit talks is up to london, and that abandoning the decision to leave the eu is still an option for the uk. 0ur europe correspondent Damian Grammaticas reports. With just a year until a brexit deal has to be done, the eu side is deeply uncertain about how this process will end, with an organised deal or chaotic split. Huge challenges ahead, said donald tusk. Ahead of us is still the toughest stress test. If we fail it, the negotiations will end in our defeat. Donald tusk is no fan of brexit he even hopes it may not happen. But he says success or failure in the talks depends on how the uk handles them. It is in fact up to london how this will end with a good deal, no deal or no brexit. Last weeks summit in brussels brought no breakthrough. Jean Claude Juncker has denied theresa may begged him for help. Today, he said the eu wants an agreement. The commission is not negotiating in that mood. We want a deal. Those that dont want a deal, they have no friends in the commission. We want a fair deal. This is the man that will secure a deal. Michel barnier says there has to be agreement on the uk exit terms first, whats called orderly withdrawal, and only if the principles of that are settled will the eu then engage in talk about a transition period. Today he told several european newspapers, if we reach an agreement on the orderly withdrawal of the uk, such a transition period, both short and framed, is possible. A transition might, he said, be short. Period, so until 2020. The transition, he said, would leave us more time to prepare for the future relationship. That is because the eu will not formally agree to a trade deal until during any transition period, after the uk has quit the eu, so after brexit day. That means it could be several years until the terms are settled. Damian grammaticas is in brussels for us now. How worried are they that european unity could be strained by what is going on . I think, unity could be strained by what is going on . Ithink, simon, it is a concern for the eu. It was certainly a concern at the outset of the whole Brexit Process, so after the referendum in the uk, but what has happened since then is that the eu 27, as they call themselves, remaining states common position and their common approach towards negotiations. What donald tusk was pointing out there was his concern, as things go along, as we go down the line and get into the negotiations about a future relationship, trade relations, all that sort of thing, that is where more divisions could open up, where things could get more difficult, because countries have different interests to pursue, and it was a warning what might come in terms of stressors down the line, not right 110w. Stressors down the line, not right now. Quite interesting that he raised this possibility of britain abandoning brexit hope of expectation or what . Hope, yes, exactly, but donald tusk has never, i think, shied away from expressing his opinion that he views brexit as a disastrous decision, and that he wishes it wouldnt happen. So he has been clear and honest about that, but i think he is also said very clearly that he understands it is happening, the process is going forwards, and that has to be managed by the eu side. If you like, he has described himself as a romantic on this and hopes that one day it wont ever transpire, that the uk will be. I think what is more significant, really, in his comments today, is the last thing he said, when he said it is up to the uk how this works out. And that is very much eu position, they want a deal, they wa nt position, they want a deal, they want a negotiated outcome on, things will be very difficult to manage but all of that depends on the uk side coming to the negotiating table, bringing proposals about the money issues, bringing proposals about the citizens issues, sorting all of those things out, because only then will they sit down and talk about transitions and the future and anything like that. It all has to be settled early on for that to move. Jean Claude Juncker painting a rather gloomy picture if there is a no deal scenario. Yes, notjust jean Claude Juncker, also as no deal scenario. Yes, notjust jean claudejuncker, also as chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, in his newspaper interview that he gave today. Them saying that the consequences for that would be very, very serious, if there is no deal. Michel barnier, in his interview, said the consequences for the uk would include things like difficulty medical nuclear isotopes, aeroplanes, not securing landing and take off aeroplanes, not securing landing and ta ke off slots aeroplanes, not securing landing and take off slots in the eu, because of the legal agreements that underpin that, they would fall away, issues around the importation of food and agricultural produce, the need for customs checks and possible tariffs. All of these things would become hugely complicated without the sort of Legal Framework that exists now. That is what a no deal would mean, he was saying, and is why the eu side, he says, does not want a no deal, because of the huge problems. 0n the entirely social, out in the evenings, nothing to do with work at all, but when you talk to everyday people in brussels, what is their sense . Do they feel brexit is something that could still be reversed, or are they listening to what is coming from london . No, i think most people have understood or accepted that brexit is happening, it will happen, is the view, and it needs to be the eu side, their view is to manage it as best as possible, to minimise the harmful effects will stop i mean, i think there are many people in this town who would hope that it wouldnt happen, but they understand very clearly that the process , understand very clearly that the process, the decision was taken, the referendum happened, the uk government has triggered article 50, this process is now under way. But i still think there are many people too, in this town, who view it as a deeply damaging process for all sides and dont believe anybody will come out of this better off at the end of the whole thing. Damian, i have probably got you into trouble for suggesting you have a life outside work thank you very much. Dont forget you can let us know what you think, tweet us using afternoonlive. All the ways to contact us on screen right now. Hospitals in england could carry out 280,000 extra non urgent operations every year by making better use of operating theatres. The analysis comes from a Health Service watchdog, nhs improvement. It suggests that an average of two hours a day are lost in operating theatres, because of late starts and other delays. 0ur Health Editor, hugh pym, has this report. Patients waiting months for planned surgery may be surprised to hear the nhs could be doing a lot more operations. Thats the view of a health regulator, who says time is wasted and more patients could be fitted in. The analysis seen by the bbc suggests hospitals could be more efficient. Nhs improvement looked at non urgent surgery at 100 trusts in england last year. It said 1. 61; million operations were carried out but an extra 280,000 more could have taken place. On average, there was about 140 minutes of unused operating theatre time each day. Theres all sorts of reasons why theatre lists do start late. It may be that the patient hasnt been brought to the theatre on time, there may be things they have to sort out with the individual patients that make it rather delayed. Or maybe not everybody is there at the right time. But by looking at the detail of that, theyre actually able to put things right. But one leading surgeon told me there were no simple answers and many complex factors had to be addressed. We do need to look at resource issues. I think we need to look at staffing issues. I think we need to look at bed issues. Address more the staff morale within the Health Service as part of that as well. Hospital managers argue its often hard to find beds for people after surgery if medically fit older patients cannot be moved on because of social care problems. They say there are many challenges to face, including money. There is clearly more that the nhs can do by way of improving productivity and efficiency. But it cannot be the only answer. There is a gap facing nhs finances, the gap between demand and supply. We need to recognise that more funding, alongside the trusts doing more to improve productivity, are two parts of the same answer. Waiting lists for operations are rising. Hospitals are under mounting pressure. The debate over whether new money or more efficiency is the answer for the nhs can only intensify this winter. Hugh pym, bbc news. A british former assistant of Harvey Weinstein says she was paid £125,000 to keep quiet after accusing the Film Producer of Sexual Harassment. Zelda perkins has told a newspaper she signed a non disclosure agreement in 1998, after making the accusations. Harvey weinstein has denied any allegations of non consensual sex. 0ur correspondent lizo mzimba reports. Fired by the company he co founded, condemned by hollywood. Now a former assistant has said that after she was sexually harassed by Harvey Weinstein, she was paid £125,000 to stay silent. Now Zelda Perkins says she has decided to break the legal agreement, which could result in her having to repay the money. She told the financial times, i want to publicly break my non disclosure agreement. Unless someone does this, there wont be a debate. My entire world fell in because i thought the law was there to protect those who abided by it. I discovered it had nothing to do with right and wrong and everything to do with money and power. In los angeles, the premieres are continuing, but the stars say hollywood must change. Maybe this is the watershed moment where we believe women, where they feel safe that they can talk about what they are experiencing. The fact that somebody that powerful, his career has been completely ruined, i think that is a real message to anybody behaving like this. The allegations against weinstein mean that his former company, based in new york, could also now be in the firing line. In a statement, new York Attorney general Eric Schneiderman said, no new yorker should be forced to walk into a workplace ruled by sexual intimidation, harassment orfear. If Sexual Harassment or discrimination is pervasive at a company, we want to know. More than two dozen women have now made accusations against Harvey Weinstein. He denies any allegations of nonconsensual sex. Hollywood is still trying to deal with a scandal that has affected the lives of so many women. Lizo mzimba, bbc news. The firm brighthouse, which provides Household Goods to people on Hire Purchase agreements, has been reprimanded by the Financial Conduct Authority. The company will now pay out nearly £15 million in compensation to customers because of mistakes with contracts and refunds. Our Business Correspondent jonty bloom explains how brighthouse got into trouble with the regulator. Basically, you can rent to buy, Hire Purchase, anything from watches and tvs to washing machines and microwaves, and what they have found to have done is they didnt assess their customers, they didnt work out whether the customers could afford to repay them. That is the reason why the fca said they are not a responsible lender. As a result of that, they are going to have to pay 81,000 customers about £10 million in compensation. Then there was another factor, which was quite a few customers cancelled their agreements within the allowed time, a couple of weeks, and the company did nothing about it. So it will have to pay 4. 7 million in compensation to customers who cancelled the agreement and should have been let go. It is going to change its policies in future. People who might expect to get some money from the company dont have to do anything to apply for it. They will be approached by the company and offered this compensation. Some will get more than one amount of compensation, because some people borrow lots and lots of money to buy from them. Youre watching afternoon live, these are our headlines. Donald tusk tells the eu, we must stay united or face Brexit Defeat. The hundreds of thousands of nhs operations not carried out because of poor use of theatre time. As Harvey Weinsteins former assistant claims she was paid for her silence, hollywood stars say they want answers. In a moment, as president xijinping cements his authority into the chinese constitution, well explain why this matters. And in sport, everton interim manager David Unsworth says hes interested in the taking on the role permanantly. Hell lead the club against chelsea in evertons League Cup Fourth round tie tomorrow. Stuart bingham, the 2015 World Snooker champion, has been banned for six months for breaching wpbsa betting rules. Three months and one day of the ban will be suspended. And hell soon be ineligible to play for this country, but scrum half rhys webb has been included as part of waless 36 man autumn internationals squad. Ill be back with more on those stores. A 24 year old man from bournemouth who went to syria to fight with a Kurdish Militia against the so called Islamic State has died. Jac holmes, who used to work in it, is said to have been killed as he cleared landmines from the newly liberated city of raqqa. Emma vardy reports. The furthest i have shot is 400 metres. This was jac holmes third time in syria. The region, its people, and the kurdish fight against so called Islamic State became his life. While speaking to the bbc last month, he explained why he kept coming back. Ive become very attached to this region. Even more so now than before, ifeel like this is my responsibility. Back in 2015, jac holmes, a former it worker from bournemouth, had been following the war on social media. He had no prior military experience. He learned about the kurdish units, the ypg, who were fighting in the ground war to push back so called Islamic State. Despite warnings from police, at 22, he travelled on his own to syria. After spending time at a ypg training camp, he then went to fight on the front lines. For me, it was a personal choice. I wanted to fight against isis and help the situation in iraq and syria. During the battle for raqqa, jac holmes, on the left, was part of a four man sniper team all, like him, international volunteers. Jac holmes is one of a number of people from britain who have gone to fight with the kurds. Many have been arrested on their return. 98 of people are extremely happy that we are here. News of his death was relayed by the ypg in syria to kurdish representatives in the uk yesterday. The bbc understands that he was killed in an operation to clear mines in the aftermath of the operation in raqqa. His mother described him as an exceptional young man who loved being a soldier. Emma vardy, bbc news. Chinas Ruling Communist Party has written the name of the president xi jinping into its constitution, a step which appears designed to confirm his status as the most powerful ruler since chairman mao. At the closing of the countrys highest political gathering, the five yearly communist party congress, delegates voted unanimously to add mr xis thought to the partys guiding principles. 0ur correspondentjohn sudworth sent this report from inside chinas great hall of the people. 0n the closing day of its week long congress, chinas Ruling Communist Party had a message for the world. It is marching in lockstep behind xijinping. Inside the great hall of the people, he was presiding over his own immortalisation. Those in favour, he asks. And those against. With not a hand in sight. None, comes the chorus of replies. Approved. Applause. And with that xi jinping is given his own brand of thought, the first leader since chairman mao to have it written under his name into the party constitution. Despite the arcane language and the unreformed political system, this matters, of course, because the communist party now controls the worlds second largest economy. What has happened here today confirms that much of that control now rests in the hands ofjust one man. Mr xi tells delegates that his political philosophy will help build a modern, prosperous china, and he reads out its unwieldy title thought on socialism with chinese characteristics for a new era. With the congress over, 2000 delegates head home to a country that is certainly growing richer but it remains completely unreformed politically. Chairman mao may loom large here as a symbol of strength, but hes also a reminder of the chaos that can come when one leader has far too much of it. John sudworth, bbc news, beijing. With me is george magnus, associate of the china centre at oxford university, who is currently writing a book about president xi. The pictures are remarkable, how powerful is he now . Well, you said in the package that is thought is 110w in the package that is thought is now enshrined in the constitution, thatis now enshrined in the constitution, that is a big deal, actually, much bigger than the names of the individuals who have been put on the Central Committee today, and we will find that the executive committee, the state council, that will be released tomorrow. But the thought in the constitution, that sits along mao zedong and Deng Xiaoping, who thought was put in posthumous lee. It isa thought was put in posthumous lee. It is a big deal, you cannot really oppose anything that xi jinping does 01 oppose anything that xi jinping does or says without really demonstrating that you are against the party, and nobody wants to do that. Presumably, there are some who might, and he, in there are some who might, and he, in the last few months and years, as demonstrated a tough stance within china, let alone what is going on abroad, we can talk about that in a minute, but what does it mean to people within china, is any dissent going to disappear . The government has become repressive in the last five years, and i think there is no question that this is the way that things will continue and the party, actually, now is, you know, will be interested in all walks of life, corporate life and so on. So what will happen, i think, is that what xijinping has said in his long speech was that, you know, he is going to change the way in which china goes about its kind of economic business, from, you know, having a kind of focus on economic development, which will continue, but now the new focus is on the quality of peoples lives. So that suggests we will see a greater effort in environmental policies, in social protection policies. There isa social protection policies. There is a paradox there, isnt there . If he wants people to have healthier, better lives and yet. Well, the paradox is that there is a cost to pay in terms of economic growth, particularly since right up close and personal and upfront is this problem about chinas exploding National Debt. So all of that power, you know, but the president in a very strong position if he chooses the right policies and he is very successful in what he does. But if anything goes wrong, if anything should go awry in terms of Economic Policy or social programmes and so one, of course it all sits in one spot, which is right in front of him. It is a great way of getting people behind you to say, we will be the big players on the world stage. Would he be able to say the things he has done if President Trump, say, wasnt sitting in the white house . cant believe that xi jinping doesnt thank his god, whoever that might be, for the luck that he has had in being gifted by trump this kind of geopolitical largesse during the last year. He could not have dreams that this was coming. But it isa dreams that this was coming. But it is a reality, and trumps withdrawal of the United States from a position of the United States from a position of Global Leadership and trade agreements and Climate Change and so on plays directly into chinas National Interests now. I mean, for a long time, china obeyed this mantra that Deng Xiaoping was credited with, hiding your strength and biding your time. That has all gone out the window now, trump has helped china stepped up to the world stage, but its economy is doing that too. I know some people who live in china, and whenever they come here, they take for granted that their phones are probably being listened to in china you say you are writing a book about him, do you worry that your privacy is probably being invaded one way or another . By them rather than us . So far not. If foreigners restrict themselves from talking about taiwan and tibet, it is ok, you know, you can pretty much say what you want. I wrote a but a few years ago which was, in some respects, critical of china, published in mandarin and distributed in china. I do not think thatis distributed in china. I do not think that is a big deal. Do think it might be, though . If you expressed this view domestically, the natural position is that it expands. Yeah, andi position is that it expands. Yeah, and i think because of the way we are now having to integrate what is going on in china and how that might ma nifest going on in china and how that might manifest itself over the next few yea rs manifest itself over the next few years with xi who must be obeyed as a sort of cliche, but this all powerful president means, the repressive nature, the irony is that as china becomes more economically powerful and integrated with the world, it is becoming more politically liberal. And i suppose there is a risk for people, particularly in china, you know, that they do have to watch what they say. Thank you very much to come in and for saying what you have said. Thank you. A 53 year old man has appeared in court charged with false imprisonment and possession of an imitation firearm with the intent to cause fear or violence. David clarke was charged in connection with an incident that took place on sunday in nuneaton in the west midlands. Police surrounded a Bowling Alley after reports of a gunman holding two people hostage. A Memorial Service to remember People Killed and injured in the Grenfell Tower fire is to be held at st Pauls Cathederal in london. The event has been organised by Grenfell Tower survivors and families of the bereaved, who made the request following discussions with the bishop of kensington and the dean of the chapter of st pauls. The service will held exactly six months after the fire on 14th december and will be broadcast on the bbc. Lets have a look at the weather with chris fawkes, that is not the british coast, i am guessing no, simon, this is the alps, we have had some heavy snow, this is where nice lives, venice is about there, and these are the alps, stretching across the barrier between italy and switzerland, the austrian alps over here. We have seen some very heavy snow over the last few days. How much . Well, across some of the glacial resorts, high up in strict, as much a 60 centimetres of snow building in across the higher mountains, just in the last three days alone. 0ther mountains, just in the last three days alone. Other results, a0 centimetres in lech, and kids appeal is interesting, because that is a low resort. Kitzbuhel, they have already opened for skiing, which is incredibly early for them. Whilst we have had an early taste of winter in the alps, for us the weather is from a mild direction, south westerly wind dragging in airfrom spain, so temperatures boosted. Across central areas of the uk a wriggling weather front for the next few days, and north of that, although we have got the aircoming north of that, although we have got the air coming from near iceland, so we have all got south westerly winds, but look at the temperature contrast on either side of that front. As we go on through the rest of the afternoon, quite cloudy, outbreaks of rain turning heavy across wales, the best sunshine across wales, the best sunshine across North Eastern scotland. 0ne or two occasional cloud breaks to the south of our front. Quite a contrasting temperatures, quite a contrasting temperatures, quite a contrast in. The evening and overnight, the rain turns heavier across wales and Northern England, getting into scotland for a time, blustery showers following. Across the south, low cloud with mist and fog on the hills. But a very mild one, 13 1a degrees in the south. Wednesdays forecast, the weather front is slowly sliding further southwards and eastwards, so in other words the cooler, fresh air is winning the battle, and will see something brighter, more of us seeing more in the way of sunshine. That said, across the south of england, cloudy with light rain or drizzle coming and going to the coast of South West England and across the moors. Beyond that come into thursday, warm air pushing northwards again, you can see how the front is wiggling and waving around. Well start with potentially dense fog to start the day on thursday, generally a lot of cloud for england and wales, the best of the sunshine that bit further northwards. The biggest change in the weather comes towards the weekend, High Pressure building in the west, that sends north westerly winds across the country, and that will lower the temperatures, and it will lower the temperatures, and it will also break the cloud up. So were looking at brighter weather with more in the way of sunshine, but a real shock to the system for some of us temperatures in london taking a real tumble, some of us temperatures in london taking a realtumble, highs some of us temperatures in london taking a real tumble, highs of only 14 taking a real tumble, highs of only 1a degrees friday and saturday. I say only, that is average for this time of year, but it will come as something of a shock. Thats your weather. This is bbc news, our latest headlines. The president of the European Council, donald tusk, has suggested that britain could still stop brexit. Its been suggested that hospitals in england could carry out 280,000 more operations a year, if better use was made of operating theatres. Harvey weinsteins former assistant says she is breaking a confidentiality agreement to speak out about alleged sexual harrassment. The retailer brighthouse has agreed to pay almost £15 million to 250,000 customers. The financial regulator found it had acted as an irresponsible lender. Sport now and here isjess, and theres a lot going on. A lot to discuss, including Stuart Bingham whos gone from World Snooker champion two years ago to being banned for six months. I can tell you why in a minute. Sam burgess also rugby player you will remember that was heavily criticised for his performances at the Rugby Union World cup back in 2015, hes had to defend himself this morning. And ill also tell you why britains fastest man, cj wont be going to aprils Commonwealth Games. What about everton who, is going to be the next manager . The question on everyones lips at the moment. The interim manager has just held a presser and he said hes keen to ta ke presser and he said hes keen to take on the role permanently. He told the media hell give it everything hes got. His first match in charge is tomorrow, its a big one, its a League Cup Fourth round tie against chelsea. The premier league champions. Former everton player phil neville has also thrown his hat into the ring and, as you can imagine, theres been a huge number of names linked with this role, including the burnley boss, sean dyche. Unsworth is highly thought of after leading the under 23s to victory last year. Hes made over 300 League Appearances at goodison park. Stuart bingham has been banned for six months for breaching wpbsa betting rules. Three months and one day of the ban will be suspended if he complies with any treatment recommended for his gambling and he commits no further rule breaches. He still has the option to appeal and will now miss the three most lucrative tournaments outside of the World Championship. Sam burgess says the squad for this yea rs sam burgess says the squad for this years Rugby League World cup has more x factor than the team that got to the semi finals hast time around. England play their first match against holders australia on friday. Burgess also said that rob an true doesnt know the full story about his role at the 2015 ruin world cup for which burgess was heavily criticised Rugby Union World cup. Burgesss call up was called an almighty blunder. Rob doesnt see the work i put in, rob didnt see how i contribute to the squad, he didnt see how hard i worked whatsoever. Hes not in the trenches, he doesnt see what happens, sol trenches, he doesnt see what happens, so i disagree. Im very proud of my performance for england and what i contributed to the team. The results didnt go how wed planned at the time, but robs entitped to his opinion and hes trying, fair play to him. Hadley parkes is named in the 36 strong wales squad ahead of the autumn internationals. Hes only eligible for the final game against south africa on 2nd december, the day when he qualifies to play for wales on residency grounds. Scrum half rhys webb meanwhile is also included although selection policy rules mean hell be ineligible for wales once hell be ineligible for wales once he moves to toulon. Wales face australia followed by tests with georgia, south africa and the all blacks. Scotla nd blacks. Scotland head coach has named ten uncapped players in his squad. The scots face samoa, new zealand and theres no place forjohn hardy amid reports of alleged cocaine use. Sprinter Dina Asher Smith has been included in the Commonwealth Games for australia. 75 athletes will be on the plane to the gold coast, the largest tea m on the plane to the gold coast, the largest team england have ever sent to an overseas event. It will be a chance for the heptathlete there who missed the last games in glasgow four years ago due to injury. Long jumper Greg Rutherford is also included but britains fastest man this year, cj will not be competing as hes chosen to focus on other competitions. Big loss that, cj. Thats all the sport. More in the next hour. The trial of an Army Sergeant accused of attempting to murder his wife by tampering with her parachute, has been hearing evidence of an earlier alleged attempt on her life. The prosecution alleges that Emile Cilliers interfered with a gas pipe in the couples home, hoping to cause an explosion when his wife victoria lit the oven. Emile cilliers denies this and other charges against him. 0ur correspondent Duncan Kennedy reports from Winchester Crown court. The trial of emile crilliers on the left has concentrated on allegations he tampered with his wifes parachute. Today the emphasis shifted to another charge he faces, attempting to murder his wife by tampering with a gas fixture. Emile and his wife victoria lived at a house in wiltshire and had been married for five years. The gas fixture was in their kitchen. The prosecution say mr cilliers deliberately loosened the nut to create a gas leak. A forensic scientist told the court it would have taken significant force to loosen the nut and that the tool used was one in the cilliers home. Another witness was michael 0sborne, a gas engineer, called out after victoria smelt gas in order to fix the leak. Mr osborne told the prosecution that the nut had been loosened by a quarter of a turn, possibly with a tool and that when he did it back up, the gas leak stopped. But he acknowledged under cross examination from the defence that the nut could have come undone through heat, acknowledging that the pipe was right next to the kitchen cooker. The trial has already heard that a week after the gas leak, Emile Cilliers sabotaged his wifes parachute in wiltshire. She fell a,000 feet after both her main and reserve shoots failed to open properly. She suffered a number of injuries. Emile cilliers denies two cou nts injuries. Emile cilliers denies two counts of attempted murder and one of recklessly endangering life. Americas top general has promised a full investigation into the death of four us soldiers in the west african state of niger. The chairman of thejoint chiefs of staff, joseph dunford, said a reconnaissance patrol was ambushed by suspected islamist fighters earlier this month and it had taken the team an hour to call for support. The widow of one of the soldiers, sergeant la David Johnson, says President Trump made her cry when he phoned to offer his condolences. Peter bowes reports. Sergeant la David Johnson was laid to rest at the weekend. Donald trumps call to his widow came a few days earlier as she waited at miami airport to receive her husbands body. He said that he knew what he signed up for but it hurts anyways. And it made me cry because i was very angry at the tone of his voice and how he said it, like he couldnt remember my husbands name. She also said the us military had refused to let her see her husbands body. dont know nothing. They wont show mea dont know nothing. They wont show me a finger, a hair. I know my husbands body from head to toe and they wont let me see anything. I dont know whats in that box. It could be empty for all i know but i need to see my husband. Donald trump responded in a tweet ata at a news conference, americas top uniformed military officer was scotla nd uniformed military officer was scotland address myasha johnsons concerns about viewing her husbands body. There are times when we make a suggestion to the family that they may not want to review the remains. At the end of the day, the policy is, its the familys decision as to whether or not they do that. General dunford said military investigators we re dunford said military investigators were still gathering the facts about exactly what happened when Sergeant Johnson and three others were killed in niger. He said the American People were owed an explanation. Peter bowes, bbc news. The reporting of crimes such as cyberbullying, trolling and Online Harassment has increased by 85 in the last two years, according to figures obtained by the bbc. More than 200 malicious communication offences are recorded every day by Police Forces in england and wales and the officer leading the fight against digital crime says those figures are just the tip of an iceberg. Emma glazbey reports. This is live. Me, a video streaming app. Victoria from leeds uses it to chat online, but last year she started getting abuse and threats. Photos of her home were posted online and she was dared to try and leave the house. 0ne user threatened to force himself on her. She was even told, go kill yourself, and her address was posted on twitter as a house to burgle. This has legitjust ruined my life. I used to be an outgoing person, and now im just getting there, trying to get back to my old self. With more people using smartphones and social media, police are getting more reports of Malicious Communications offences that can include threats sent by online trolls, abusive text messages, pornographic images and cyberbullying. Research by the bbc has found more than 200 offences are being recorded by police in england and wales every day. The number has risen by 85 over the past two years. I think this is the tip ofan iceberg. As policing and Society Changes into the digital age, this is only going to increase, and providers, government, Law Enforcement and users all need to get ready how we protect people more effectively, and then how we bring criminals tojustice. With the support of herfamily, victoria is slowly getting her confidence back. So far, nobody has been arrested over the threads she received. The rmt union has announced fresh industrial action. The rmt union has announced fresh industrialaction. Members the rmt union has announced fresh industrial action. Members will walk out for a8 hours from 8th november while workers on mersey rail and Arriva Rail North will walk out for 2a hours. The british architect sir david adjaye has won the competition to design the uks new National Holocaust memorial and learning centre. It will be built in victoria tower gardens next to the houses of parliament. Our correspondent sophie long has been to meet sir david. Survivor meets store teller. Sir david is the british architect whose design will honour the six million jewish men, women and children murdered in the holocaust. It will stand on the banks of the river thames next to parliament. His intention to create an active, living memorial. We need to understand each others stories, to be tolerant of each other, because the 21st century will be the century of migration and incredible growth. We need to understand who we are and where we come from, understand the common humanity which is important for us to survive as a species. This isa for us to survive as a species. This is a critical story and its beautiful its being built next to parliament right now, a symbolic powerful message to the nation and the world. How do you feel about the project you are about to take on . 0verwhelmed, humbled and ready to 90, 0verwhelmed, humbled and ready to go, so excited. His design was chosen from 92 entries from 26 different countries. Davids design a different countries. Davids design a beautiful shape rising out of the ground with 22 entrances to represent the 22 countries in which the holocaust took place. Sympathetically placed at one end of the park with a grass ramp is both good for the environment, it fits m, good for the environment, it fits in, but it makes a statement. A beautifully designed thing and it will help us commemorate but also help us to understand. For lil he y, this will immortalise those that helped save the lives of the millions that perished for lilit. Its important to remember those people who, during that darkness of europe, helped to save lives or even helped to give a piece of bread because in poland, unfortunately, it meant that there was a penalty of death for helping in any way, whatever way, not just to death for helping in any way, whatever way, notjust to the person, to the whole family. Its hoped the memorial and learning centre will be an immersive educational experience that will be opened to visitors by 2021. The Business News in a moment but the headlines first the eu warns it must not become divided over the toughest test over brexit. Hospitals are told they could make better use of theatre time and carry out more operations. Harvey weinsteins former pa says she was paid for her silence. Here are the business headlines people in debt could be given more time to get back on their feet. Headlines their feet. The treasury is going to consult on introducing a six week breather period where Interest Payments and enforcement action would be suspended. The financial regulator has ordered the rent to own Company Bright house to pay more than £1a Million Pounds in compensation to customers. It affects almost a quarter of a Million People some of whom signed up for deals they couldnt afford. Whitbread has seen its overall profits rise thanks to growth from its premier inn business. But its other company costa coffee didnt do as well. Sales there slowed down over the last six months. Yesterday we were talking about households getting into more that is right. The debt mountain we ta ke that is right. The debt mountain we take on is increasing. We owe about £200 billion on unsecured debts, things like loans, credit cards, a lot of alarm bells ringing there. The treasury will consult on introducing a six week period during which you wouldnt be charged interest and you wouldnt be subject to enforcement action. But you couldnt just relax and to enforcement action. But you couldntjust relax and carry on spending, you would need to get advice on how to tackle that debt. When will this come into force . Its not going to be a quick process. We think that the consultation will last up until january think that the consultation will last up untiljanuary and the government certainly wants something in place by 2019. Now, jane tunny from the Money Advice Trust that ru ns from the Money Advice Trust that runs the National Debtline and she joins us now. Thank you. What do you make of the proposals . We really welcome the proposals because, as you have outlined, we are seeing more and more people at National Debt line whore struggling with their finances and finding it difficult to make ends meet, some of the economic challenges, slow wage growth, inflation and uncertain economic environments, a changing nature in the workforce, more people in less secure roles and jobs mean there are more and more people struggling and in financial difficulty with sometimes different types of debt problems they had in the past. More and more we are seeing People Struggle with household bills. Those problems are complex and need time for us to figure out solutions to them and therefore this space will hopefully give us some time to be able to help people get back on their feet. Ive got to ask, if you, as a business, lend money in good faith to somebody, is it really going to be practical or fair on somebody, is it really going to be practical orfair on them somebody, is it really going to be practical or fair on them to have to have this six week breather period for them . So most Financial Services at the moment, they already offer a four week period of breathing space. The banks do that and they do that in recognition that allowing someone that space in time to get back on their feet actually means they are more likely to recoup the monies owed to them but also keep that customer. The people whore the poor performers are the public sector, local authorities in particular, so one infour local authorities in particular, so one in four people calling National Debt line at the moment have a Council Tax Debt and we know that councils are the quickest to send in bailiffs and take quick enforcement action. Wed like to see in this new scheme something that ties in all creditors on a very fair basis to not taking action while we are allowing space and time for people to get proper advice. Thank you very much. One of the worlds Biggest Fast Food Companies has been trying. Mcdonalds hasjust released its latest results theyve been really trying to reinvent themselves, better packaging and emphasising the healthier menu. Those results are just out. Michelle fleury is at the new york stock exchange. They seem to have cracked the recipe for success so i couldnt let a pun go the company has struggled certainly here in its home market in the United States for the last couple of yea rs. United states for the last couple of years. Now what they have managed to do is get more customers back in and persuade them to eat more food. Some of this is by offering the all day brea kfast, of this is by offering the all day breakfast, i dont know if youre fa ns breakfast, i dont know if youre fans of that, but also part of it is offering more items on the menu, customisation, things like the hot sauce, you can have that on your burger now, digital offerings, technology, bringing more into the store in terms of the way people order. All of this is starting to pay off. The company tried to address the problems theyve had here in the domestic market. And success in china as well . Yes, china and asia, thats long been a good story for the Charles Kennedy and they continue to see strong growth there. The company is trying to cut costs. One way to do that is to franchise more restaurants. The best results have been from franchise owners. There is a trend in public taste towards the healthier food, at least amongst some members of the public. Do you think they are going to feel a squeeze as other Fast Food Companies really get on to that bandwagon . Theyve definitely had the growth of the fast casual sector, so chipotle is another company posting results today, sweet, greens, dig in, other companies, theyve created a Fast Food Market that focussed its marketing on more natural ingredients, that are healthierfor you, which has eaten into the profits of the Fast Food Companies. Mcdonalds and others are trying to respond to that, but they are also competing in the Traditional Market too. The strategy is paying off for mcdonalds, Technology Remains a key pa rt mcdonalds, Technology Remains a key part but again, you could start to see others introduce technology into their stores and that levels the Playing Field again. Thank you very much. Lets drag ourselves to the markets. Yes. The ftse is not doing particularly well. Theres not a lot of corporate. Its. Exactly. We are so used to it going up quite rapidly in that when you see red, its a bit disconcerting. Whitbread, as we can see, is not doing very well because, as we were discussing, as we mentioned earlier, the companys as we mentioned earlier, the com pa nys costa as we mentioned earlier, the compa nys costa coffee brand as we mentioned earlier, the companys costa coffee brand hasnt been doing very well. The Mining Companies are doing well because of the rise in the price of copper. You are being grumpy about the ftse but that figure is still doing rather well . It is but its doing less well. Oh, dear im not pessimistic enough to be on the Business Unit anyway, thank you very much. Thank you. A group of thrill seekers in brazil are expected to become the latest Guinness World record holders. They gathered for a simultaneous mass jump gathered for a simultaneous mass jump from gathered for a simultaneous mass jumpfrom a gathered for a simultaneous mass jump from a bridge hoping to smash the previous record and hopefully not smashing anything else. Here is laura front. This is the moment they took a leap of faith. 2a5 thrill seekers tied to ropesjumped of faith. 2a5 thrill seekers tied to ropes jumped from a bridge thats 30 metres tall. How is it different to bungee jumping . Jumpers dont bounce because the rope is made of nylon. They slow down as they approach the end of their free fall. This stomach lurching adventure activity took place about an hour from sao paulo in brazil. The participants simultaneously jumped ona participants simultaneously jumped on a string and a prayer tied together wearing safety helmets. They swung back and forth until stopping. Then, some jumpers climbed stopping. Then, somejumpers climbed back up to the bridge. Translation it was crazy, a unique feeling, unbelievable experience. Youjump and feeling, unbelievable experience. You jump and its feeling, unbelievable experience. You jump and its pure adrenaline and you just go. These thrill seekers beat the previous unofficial world record of 1a9 people in a massjump. Guinness World Records has not yet issued an official statement confirming the record attempt. Utterly mad lets have a look at the weather with chris. Hi, there. For most, the rest of the day is going to be pretty cloudy weather wise. But on the mild side across the south of the uk because we are drawing up our airfrom near spain across the bay ofs by kay into some parts of the uk. Thats a mild wind direction, temperatures are way b average for the time of the year. We have a weather front bringing rain and to the north of the front, although we have south westerly winds, look at where the winds have come from. Theyve come from around iceland, doing a lap around the atla ntic iceland, doing a lap around the atlantic and into the north of the uk. Its for that reason that even though we have south westerly winds across the whole country, we have big temperature contrasts. As we go on through the evening, the cloud will continue to thicken. 0utbreaks cloud will continue to thicken. Outbreaks of rain will work into north west wales, turning heavier here. A bit of sunshine late in the day for east scotland and parts of north east england. 0vernight, well see a zone of heavier rain working across wales, Northern England and the south of scotland with some showers across the far north west. To the south of the front, it stays mild. Fresher conditions for the north and west of the uk, but it will continue to be blustery with showers. The battle zone between the cool air showers. The battle zone between the coolair in the showers. The battle zone between the cool air in the north and the mild air in the south drifts on wednesday to the south. More of us enjoying a brighter day on wednesday, a bit more in the way of sunshine to go around, although therell be a few showers in the north west. Where we see the sunshine, that is where the cooler air is. Looking at the weather picture through thursday, warmerair weather picture through thursday, warmer air starts to push a little further north. We could have some fog patches to start the day across england and wales. It will be probably quite a cloudy day, temperatures 17 in london, the fresher air still with us across the north of the uk, thats where well see some breaks in the cloud and decent sunshine. This battle zone will shift south on friday. Pressure will build to the west of the uk and we get a north westerly wind feeding in. That will break the cloud up and well see the cooler air pushing further south, progressively. Well see a drop in temperatures. Remember its 19 degrees today, but friday and saturdays temperatures come down to around 12 1a, Something Like that. Thats your weather. Hello, youre watching afternoon live, im simon mccoy. Donald tusk tells the eu, we must stay united or face Brexit Defeat. Britain, he says, could still abandon it. The hundreds of thousands of nhs operations not carried out because of poor use of theatre time. As Harvey Weinsteins former assistant claims she was paid for her silence, hollywood stars say they want answers. I want to know who was taking these actresses up to his room, and i would like to know, if people say they had a story but they didnt run it, i would like to know why they didnt tell the story in the last ten years. Brighthouse faces a compensation bill for almost £15 million. The city watchdog says its lending policy failed hundreds of thousands of customers. Coming up on afternoon live, all the sport. Everton . Everton . Yes, David Unsworth is in temporary charge of everton at the moment, and he has said he wants to ta ke moment, and he has said he wants to take thejob moment, and he has said he wants to take the job on a permanent basis. He said he will give it cazorla, and he has to, they face chelsea tomorrow. More on that coming up. Talk to you in half an hour. Chris fawkes has the weather. Cloudy and mild here, but fawkes has the weather. Cloudy and mild here, but i will be casting my eye over to the alps for the Early Arrival of winter. Also coming up, a string and a prayer the moment 2a5 people simultaneouslyjumped off a 30 foot high bridge in brazil. Well tell you why they did it. This is afternoon live, im simon mccoy. The European Council president , donald tusk, has urged members of the European Parliament to stick together or face defeat. Brexit, he said, was the eus toughest stress test, and it must not be divided at any costs. Mr tusk also said the outcome of the brexit talks is up to london, and that abandoning the decision to leave the eu is still an option for the uk. 0ur europe correspondent Damian Grammaticas reports. With just a year until a brexit deal has to be done, the eu side is deeply uncertain about how this process will end, with an organised deal or chaotic split. Huge challenges ahead, said donald tusk. Ahead of us is still the toughest stress test. If we fail it, the negotiations will end in our defeat. Donald tusk is no fan of brexit he even hopes it may not happen. But he says success or failure in the talks depends on how the uk handles them. It is in fact up to london how this will end with a good deal, no deal or no brexit. Last weeks summit in brussels brought no breakthrough. Jean Claude Juncker has denied theresa may begged him for help. Today, he said the eu wants an agreement. The commission is not negotiating in that mood. We want a deal. Those that dont want a deal, the no dealers, they have no friends in the commission, we want a fair deal. This is the man that will secure a deal. Michel barnier says there has to be agreement on the uk exit terms first, whats called orderly withdrawal, and only if the principles of that are settled will the eu then engage in talk about a transition period. Today he told several european newspapers. Thats because the eu wont formally agree to a trade deal until during any transition period, after the uk has quit the eu, so after brexit day. That means it could be several years until the terms are settled. 0ur brussels reporter adam fleming is in strasbourg for us now. We have all been talking about the splits within the uk government, clearly donald tusk is concerned about splits within the eu as well. Welcome hes concerned about the potential for splits, because what the eu is really proud of is the fa ct the eu is really proud of is the fact that all these 27 remaining eu members, will have slightly different interests and slightly different interests and slightly different politics, different governments from different parts of the spectrum, and somehow managed to stay quite united when it comes to handling the brexit negotiations so far. They manage to come up with a set of guidelines at the start of the year that would give in to Michel Barnier as his marching orders for the process, if you like, and they have managed to not have any and they have managed to not have a ny rows and they have managed to not have any rows about it. As a journalist covering the story, the second there isa covering the story, the second there is a whiff of a country breaking ranks, they shut it down straightaway and demonstrate to us that it straightaway and demonstrate to us thatitis straightaway and demonstrate to us that it is not happening at all. So that it is not happening at all. So that it is not happening at all. So thatitis that it is not happening at all. So that it is main mission, i think, in strasbourg. Remember, hes talking to the rest of the eu, rather than the uk, although we had a few little nuggets for the uk audience, saying it is up to london how the process ends. I think that might be taken by some as a good boss to do what to me was saying in the house of commons yesterday, when she said she wanted the eu to come up with ideas for the future partnership. I think that was donald tusk saying, no, it is up to the uk. Everyone has harsh words for the uk. Everyone has harsh words for the people they call the no dealers, the people they call the no dealers, the people they call the no dealers, the people who say that no deal would be fine. It is not viewed that way at all in this building. Just between you and me, and bassist no one elses listening, what countries are you hearing in those rooms that you prowl, what countries are suggesting they may have further problems down the line when it comes to seeking that unity . problems down the line when it comes to seeking that unity . I will be really honest, it is very hard to say, because they do keep bayliss on it. There is a speculation that there are two groups of countries behind the scenes, one set which is more relaxed about the idea of sufficient progress and wants to go more easy on the uk to get into trade deals, countries that have a closer trading relationship, geographical proximity to the uk, and then there are other countries, rumoured to be led by france and germany, the biggest states, who are being strict about sticking to the sequencing and the criteria for how the talks move forward. It will be absolutely fascinating to see, in the coming months, as all eyes in the coming months, as all eyes in the eu look towards phase two, the talks about trade and the future relationship, to see how those different relationships turn into negotiating positions in those countries themselves. We have already had a few hymns of country starting to think about it. For example, the swedish government said to the swedish trade agency, start mapping out our economic interests with the uk so we can start working out what our interests might be in a phase two of the negotiations. For journalists like me and you, it will be fascinating to work out the little differences, and you bet the British Government will be doing exactly the same to try and manipulate those countries to get the best deal for the manipulate those countries to get the best dealfor the uk. Michel barnier gave a newspaper interview, talking about what he wanted to see from the talks, saying that, actually, the naysayers were never going to get anywhere with this. Our many british journalists were in that briefing . How many . The Michel Barnier interview . He gave an interview to a group of continental newspapers, a variety of countries, none from the uk, unfortunately, we didnt get to ask in any of those questions, and i just didnt get to ask in any of those questions, and ijust missed a chance to speak to him a couple of minutes ago, i am told. Straight after this i will be chasing after him with that camera, doing one of those classic doorsteps. He has been saying it is all about the time frame, and that could take several yea rs before frame, and that could take several years before there is a final trade deal between the uk and the eu. He is basically spelling out what the eu has said all along, which is that you have the brexit negotiations, that ends in march 2019, only then can you start negotiating a trade deal with the uk after brexit day, and you can only sign that trade deal with the uk when it is a third country. The eu treaties do not allow the eu to negotiate a trade deal with a country that is a member, so the question now will be how close to brexit day is that trade dealfinalised. Is it how close to brexit day is that trade deal finalised. Is it the day after brexit day, which is what theresa may david davis would like . 0r theresa may david davis would like . Or could it be several years after that, which is what a lot of people in the eu think is likely to be the case. Add, grab that camera, off you go yeah he did, didnt he . dont forget you can let us know what you think, tweet us using afternoonlive. All the ways to contact us on screen right now. Hospitals in england could carry out 280,000 extra non urgent operations every year by making better use of operating theatres. The analysis comes from a Health Service watchdog, nhs improvement. It suggests that an average of two hours a day are lost in operating theatres, because of late starts and other delays. 0ur Health Editor, hugh pym, has this report. Patients waiting months for planned surgery may be surprised to hear the nhs could be doing a lot more operations. Thats the view of a health regulator, who says time is wasted and more patients could be fitted in. The analysis seen by the bbc suggests hospitals could be more efficient. Nhs improvement looked at non urgent surgery at 100 trusts in england last year. It said 1. 6a million operations were carried out but an extra 280,000 more could have taken place. On average, there was about 1a0 minutes of unused operating theatre time each day. Theres all sorts of reasons why theatre lists do start late. It may be that the patient hasnt been brought to the theatre on time, there may be things they have to sort out with the individual patients that make it rather delayed. Or maybe not everybody is there at the right time. But by looking at the detail of that, theyre actually able to put things right. But one leading surgeon told me there were no simple answers and many complex factors had to be addressed. We do need to look at resource issues. I think we need to look at staffing issues. I think we need to look at bed issues. Address more the staff morale within the Health Service as part of that as well. Hospital managers argue its often hard to find beds for people after surgery if medically fit older patients cannot be moved on because of social care problems. They say there are many challenges to face, including money. There is clearly more that the nhs can do by way of improving productivity and efficiency. But it cannot be the only answer. There is a gap facing nhs finances, the gap between demand and supply. We need to recognise that more funding, alongside the trusts doing more to improve productivity, are two parts of the same answer. Waiting lists for operations are rising. Hospitals are under mounting pressure. The debate over whether new money or more efficiency is the answer for the nhs can only intensify this winter. Hugh pym, bbc news. A british former assistant of Harvey Weinstein says she was paid £125,000 to keep quiet after accusing the Film Producer of Sexual Harassment. Zelda perkins has told a newspaper she signed a nondisclosure agreement in 1998 after making the accusations. Harvey weinstein has denied any allegations of non consensual sex. 0ur correspondent lizo mzimba reports. Fired by the company he co founded, condemned by hollywood. Now a former assistant has said that after she was sexually harassed by Harvey Weinstein, she was paid £125,000 to stay silent. Zelda perkins says she has decided to break the legal agreement, which could result in her having to repay the money. She told the financial times, i want to publicly break my nondisclosure agreement. Unless someone does this, there wont be a debate. My entire world fell in because i thought the law was there to protect those who abided by it. I discovered it had nothing to do with right and wrong and everything to do with money and power. In los angeles, the premieres are continuing, but the stars say hollywood must change. Maybe this is the watershed moment where we believe women, where they feel safe that they can talk about what they are experiencing. The fact that somebody that powerful, his career has been completely ruined, i think that is a real message to anybody behaving like this. The allegations against weinstein mean that his former company, based in new york, could also now be in the firing line. In a statement, new York Attorney general Eric Schneiderman said. More than two dozen women have now made accusations against Harvey Weinstein. He denies any allegations of non consensual sex. Hollywood is still trying to deal with a scandal that has affected the lives of so many women. Lizo mzimba, bbc news. The firm brighthouse, which provides Household Goods to people on Hire Purchase agreements, has been reprimanded by the Financial Conduct Authority. The company will now pay out nearly £15 million in compensation to customers because of mistakes with contracts and refunds. Our Business Correspondent jonty bloom explained how brighthouse got into trouble with the regulator. Basically, you can rent to buy, Hire Purchase, anything from watches and tvs to washing machines and microwaves, and what they have found to have done is they didnt assess their customers, they didnt work out whether the customers could afford to repay them. Thatthe reason why the fca said they are not a responsible lender. As a result of that, they are going to have to pay 81,000 customers about £10 million in compensation. Then there was another factor, which was quite a few customers cancelled their agreements within the allowed time, a couple of weeks, and the company did nothing about it. So it will have to pay a. 7 million in compensation to customers who cancelled the agreement and should have been let go. It is going to change its policies in future. People who might expect to get some money from the company dont have to do anything to apply for it. They will be approached by the company and offered this compensation. Some will get more than one amount of compensation, because some people borrow lots and lots of money to buy from them. Youre watching afternoon live, these are our headlines. Donald tusk wants the eu about the risk of Brexit Defeat and says it must not become divided over its toughest test. Nhs hospitals in england are told they could carry out thousands more operations by making better use of the time. As Harvey Weinsteins former assistant claims she was paid for her silence, hollywood stars say they want answers. In a moment, as president xijinping cements his authority into the chinese constitution, well explain why this matters. And in sport, everton interim manager David Unsworth says hes interested in the taking on the role permanently. Hell lead the club against chelsea in evertons League Cup Fourth round tie tomorrow. Stuart bingham, the 2015 World Snooker champion, has been banned for six months for breaching wpbsa betting rules. He will miss the uk championship and the masters. And hell soon be ineligible to play for this country, but scrum half rhys webb has been included as part of waless 36 man autumn internationals squad. Ill be back with more on those stores just after half past. A 2a year old man from bournemouth who went to syria to fight with a Kurdish Militia against the so called Islamic State has died. Jac holmes, who used to work in it, is said to have been killed as he cleared landmines from the newly liberated city of raqqa. Emma vardy reports. The furthest i have shot is a00 metres. This was jac holmes third time in syria. The region, its people, and the kurdish fight against so called Islamic State became his life. While speaking to the bbc last month, he explained why he kept coming back. Ive become very attached to this region. Even more so now than before, ifeel like this is my responsibility. Back in 2015, jac holmes, a former it worker from bournemouth, had been following the war on social media. He had no prior military experience. He learned about the kurdish units, the ypg, who were fighting in the ground war to push back so called Islamic State. Despite warnings from police, at 22, he travelled on his own to syria. After spending time at a ypg training camp, he then went to fight on the front lines. For me, it was a personal choice. I wanted to fight against isis and help the situation in iraq and syria. During the battle for raqqa, jac holmes, on the left, was part of a four man sniper team all, like him, international volunteers. Jac holmes is one of a number of people from britain who have gone to fight with the kurds. Many have been arrested on their return. 98 of people are extremely happy that we are here. News of his death was relayed by the ypg in syria to kurdish representatives in the uk yesterday. The bbc understands that he was killed during an operation to clear mines in the aftermath of the operation in raqqa. His mother described him as an exceptional young man who loved being a soldier. Emma vardy, bbc news. Chinas Ruling Communist Party has written the name of the president xi jinping into its constitution, a step which appears designed to confirm his status as the most powerful ruler since chairman mao. At the closing of the countrys highest political gathering, the five yearly communist party congress, delegates voted unanimously to add mr xis thought to the partys guiding principles. 0ur correspondentjohn sudworth sent this report from inside chinas great hall of the people. 0n the closing day of its week long congress, chinas Ruling Communist Party had a message for the world. It is marching in lockstep behind xijinping. Inside the great hall of the people, he was presiding over his own immortalisation. Those in favour, he asks. And those against. With not a hand in sight. None, comes the chorus of replies. Approved. Applause. And with that xi jinping is given his own brand of thought, the first leader since chairman mao to have it written under his name into the party constitution. Despite the arcane language and the unreformed political system, this matters, of course, because the communist party now controls the worlds second largest economy. What has happened here today confirms that much of that control now rests in the hands ofjust one man. Mr xi tells delegates that his political philosophy will help build a modern, prosperous china, and he reads out its unwieldy title thought on socialism with chinese characteristics for a new era. With the congress over, 2000 delegates head home to a country that is certainly growing richer but it remains completely unreformed politically. Chairman mao may loom large here as a symbol of strength, but hes also a reminder of the chaos that can come when one leader has far too much of it. John sudworth, bbc news, beijing. A 53 year old man has appeared in court charged with false imprisonment and possession of an imitation firearm with the intent to cause fear or violence. David clarke was charged in connection with an incident that took place on sunday in nuneaton in the west midlands. Police surrounded a Bowling Alley after reports of a gunman holding two people hostage. 0ur Midlands Correspondent sima kotecha spoke to us earlier today from outside the court house. Well, 53 year old david clarke appeared here in the court behind me at around 11 30 this morning. He confirmed his name, his address and his age, and then the charges were read out to him. Let me give them to you in a bit more detail. Two counts of false imprisonment, one count of criminal damage, two counts of possession of a bladed article, or should i say bladed articles, a knife and a samurai sword, one count of possession of an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence, and two counts of possession of an imitation firearm with intent to cause false imprisonment. Now, this is in connection with what happened in nuneaton on sunday, where police swarmed a Bowling Alley after reports of a gunman holding two hostages. A0 50 people were inside this Leisure Complex at the time, and the siege lasted around four hours before the alleged hostages were released. David clarke was told today he would be remanded in custody until the 21st of november, when he will attend another hearing. The trial of an Army Sergeant accused of attempting to murder his wife by tampering with her parachute has been hearing evidence of an earlier alleged attempt on her life. The prosecution alleges that Emile Cilliers interfered with a gas pipe in the couples home, hoping to cause an explosion when his wife victoria lit the oven. Emile cilliers denies this and other charges against him. 0ur correspondent Duncan Kennedy reports from Winchester Crown court. The trial of Emile Cilliers, on the left, has so far concentrated on allegations he tampered with his wifes parachute. Today, the emphasis shifted to another charge he faces attempting to murder his wife by tampering with a gas fixture. Emile cilliers and his wife victoria lived at a house in wiltshire and had been married forfive years. The gas fixture was in their kitchen. The prosecution say Emile Cilliers deliberately loosened the nut on this gas pipe to create a gas leak. 0ne forensic scientist told the court it would have taken significant force to loosen the nut, and that the tool was one used in cilliers home. Another witness was michael 0sbourne, a gas engineer. He was called out after victoria cilliers smelled gas, in order to fix the leak. Mr 0sbourne told the prosecution that the nut had been loosened by a quarter of one turn, possibly with a tool, and that when he did it back up, the gas leak stopped. But he acknowledged under cross examination from the defence that the nut could have come undone through heat, acknowledging that the pipe was next to the kitchen cooker. The trial has already heard that a week after the gas leak, Emile Cilliers allegedly sabotaged his wifes parachute at the airbase in wiltshire. Mrs cilliers fell a,000 feet after her main and reserve chutes failed to open properly. She suffered a number of injuries. Emile cilliers denies two counts of attempted murder and one of recklessly endangering life. The trial continues. Duncan kennedy, bbc news, at Winchester Crown court. Americas top general has prompted a full investigation into the depths of four american soldiers in niger. He said a reconnaissance patrol was ambushed by suspected islamist fighters earlier this month and it had taken the team and our two call for support. The widow of one of the soldiers said President Trump made her cry when he found two of his condolences. Peter bowes reports. Sergeant la David Johnson was laid to rest at the weekend. Donald trumps call to his widow, myeshia johnson, came a few days earlier as she waited at miami airport to receive her husbands body. The president said that he knew what he signed up for, but it hurts anyway. And i was it made me cry because i was very angry at the tone of his voice and how he said it. He couldnt remember my husbands name. She also said the us military had refused to let her see her husbands body. I dont know nothing. They wont show me a finger, a hand. I know my husbands body from head to toe, and they wont let me see anything. I dont know whats in that box. It could be empty for all i know, but i need to see my husband. Donald trump responded in a tweet. I had a very respectful conversation with the widow of sergeant la David Johnson and spoke his name from the beginning without hesitation. At a news conference, americas top uniformed military officer was asked to address myeshia johnsons concerns about viewing her husbands body. There are times when we make a suggestion to the family that they may not want to review the remains. At the end of the day, the policy is its the familys decision as to whether or not they do that. General dunford said military investigators were still gathering the facts about exactly what happened when sergeantjohnson and three other soldiers were killed in niger. Peter bowes, bbc news. And the us senator bob corker, giving an interview to cnn, said the president has great difficulty with the truth. He said he is purposely breaking down relationships that we have around the world that have been useful to our nation, the debasement of our nation is what he will be a memberfor. So of our nation is what he will be a member for. So the of our nation is what he will be a memberfor. So the president of our nation is what he will be a member for. So the president goes to twitter, and this is his response. So another spat on going because that second tweet came through just a few minutes ago. You are watching afternoon live. Commuters on southern, South Western Railway and Greater Anglia are facing more disruption next month. The rmt union has announced fresh strike action as part of the dispute about the role of guards on trains. Its members will walk out for a8 hours from 8th november, while workers on merseyrail and Arriva Rail North will walk out for 2a hours. A group of about 250 thrill seekers in brazil are expecting to become the latest Guinness World record holders. They gathered in brazil for a daring simultaneous massjump from a bridge, hoping to smash the previous record, as laura trant reports. This is the moment they took a leap of faith. 2a5 thrill seekers tied to ropes jumped from a bridge thats 30 metres tall. How is it different to bungee jumping . Well, jumpers dont bounce because the rope is made of nylon. They slow down as they approach the end of their freefall. The stomach lurching adventure activity took place about an hourfrom sao paulo in brazil. The participants all simultaneously jumped on a string and a prayer, tied together wearing safety helmets, they swung back and forth until stopping. Then some jumpers climbed back up to the bridge. Translation it was crazy, an unbelievable feeling, a unique experience. Youjump, and its pure adrenaline, and you just go. These thrill seekers beat the previous unofficial record of 1a9 people in a massjump. Guinness World Records has not yet issued an official statement confirming the record attempt. Laura trant, bbc news. Time for a look at the weather with chris. For most, it will stay cloudy for the most of the rest of the day. In the most of the rest of the day. In the forth, cool, fresh air. We have a weather front bringing some rain which will turn heavier during the evening and overnight in parts of wales. A lot of low cloud where well see some of the higher temperatures. Tomorrow the cooler irish will push further southwards. Sunshine for Northern Ireland and scotland with one or two showers across the far north west. Well keep this zone of cloudier weather across southern counties for much of the day. The cloud thick enough for a spot of light rain or drizzle. The fresher airfeeding light rain or drizzle. The fresher air feeding south wards during wednesday afternoon. This is bbc news, our latest headlines. The president of the European Council, donald tusk has said the eu must stay united or face defeat in brexit talks and that the outcome of deal negotiations was up to london. Englands nhs hospitals have been told they could carry out 280 thousand more operations annually by making better use of operating theatre time. Officials say poor scheduling means around two hours a day in surgical time is lost. Harvey weinsteins former assistant says she is breaking a confidentiality agreement to speak out about alleged sexual harrassment. The retailer brighthouse has agreed to pay almost 15 Million Pounds to 250 thousand customers. The financial regulator found it had acted as an irresponsible lender. Now the sport with jess. Stuart bingham was snooker World Champion two years ago and today hes been banned for six months. Wales have named their rugby union squad for their autumn internationals and it includes a new zealand born player who is still waiting to naturalise and, as you say, athletics, why britains fastest man wont be going to aprils Commonwealth Games. And in football, its all about everton and who is the replacement manager . Exactly. We have David Unsworth in temporary charge. He held a press conference. Hes confirmed hes keen to ta ke conference. Hes confirmed hes keen to take the role on a permanent basis. He told the media hell give it everything hes got and hell certainly need to give it everything. Hes got a big task ahead of him, his first match in charge, the game against chelsea. Phil neville is the latest to throw his hat into the ring for the role. As you can imagine, theres been a number of names linked with this job, including the burnley boss, sean dyche, but unsworth is highly regarded at the club after leading the under 23 side to the premier League Two Title last season. He enjoyed two spells as a player at goodison park making over 300 league apersons and says hed like the interim spell to become full time. Who wouldnt want this job . Its a Wonderful Football Club with amazing fans and it is a topjob Wonderful Football Club with amazing fans and it is a top job for absolutely any managerer, myself included. The chairman has given me an opportunity, the board have given me an opportunity to hopefully get a run of games where performance levels go up and we produce some wins as well. From that, you know, performances and the results will dictate any future for me as everton manager. The 2015 snooker champion will miss the uk hundredship and the masters after he was banned for six months, half of which is suspended for breaching betting rules. Thee months and one day of the ban will be suspended if he complies with any treatment recommended for his gambling and he commits no further rule breaches. He has the option to appeal but is due to miss the uk championship and the masters. New zealand born Hadley Parkes is one of five uncapped players named in a 36 strong wales squad, named ahead of the autumn internationals which begin in november. Parkes is eligible for the final game against south africa on 2nd december. Scrum half rhys webb meanwhile is also included, although new selection policy rules means hell become ineligible for his country once he moves to toulon. Wales face australia followed by tests with georgia, south africa and the all blacks. Scotla nd blacks. Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend has named ten uncapped players in his squad. They face samoa new zealand and australia, theres no place forjohn hardy who has been suspended by both club and country amid reports of alleged cocaine use. Sprinter deana ash smith has been included for the Commonwealth Games in australia next year. 75 of them will be on the plane to the gold coast, which is the largest Team Englands ever sent to an overseas event. Johnson thompson also included. Greg rutherford is on the list. Britains fastest man will not travel, hes instead chose to focus on other competitions. Thats the sport for now. Hugh is in the hot seat next. Thank you very much. Lets talk about plastic bottles back on the agenda in the commons today as mps discuss a plastic bottle return scheme in england. The scottish and welsh governments are already looking at bringing in the scheme to try and reduce the amount of plastic that ends up in the sea. Its a problem thats once again been highlighted by Sir David Attenborough ahead of the new series of the bbcs blue planet; heres one story involving this type of bird, the albatross. Plastics are crucially important. Its heartbreaking, of course, the one i would choose as most heartbreaking i suppose because i feel so strongly, are the albatross. The albatross are such marvellous birds, you know. They form partnerships for 50 years, they circle the an turkty coo collecting food, they come back to their mates at the same place but also feed their young. Not sand eels, fish and squad comes out of their mouth plastic. Its heartbreaking. With me now to discuss the issue is alice ellison, head of environment at the British Retail Consortium and also im joined by sam barratt from the Uns Environment Programme shejoins me from nairobi in kenya. First of all, alice you are not necessarily sold on this idea. Why not . I think we all agree we need to reduce pollution in the ocean. Uk retailers are looking at how we move toa retailers are looking at how we move to a more circular economy in the uk, so instead of one where we reuse and recycle, we do that more. Drs is only focussing on one particular plastic product, it wont solve the wider problem of marine pollution or how we move to the more circular economy. Sam, you think this is essentially a step in the right direction . Definitely, yes. Ithink, as alice said, Deposit Return Schemes problem with sound. Germany up to 97 of their plastic is. Problem with sound. I think we have to look at absolutely everything because plastic which is a terrifically practical product has a terrible legacy that lasts decades. Everything has to be considered and the Deposit Return Scheme seems to be very, very effective and wed welcome this move in britain. A lot of people will see some of the pictures and say, this is going to be too little too late, the problem is already vast and impossible to deal with already . Is already vast and impossible to dealwith already . Id is already vast and impossible to deal with already . Id disagree. We are working here at the un environment on the Clean Seas Campaign and we have already 32 governments, many of which are sigma arena polluters taking action on this. Ive been on a call this week with coca cola who have a major plan coming together to really address the plastic footprint that that company has, sol the plastic footprint that that company has, so i think the tide is turning on plastic. We are seeing the public be very concerned by this, we are seeing retailers starting to think deeply about their responsibilities and where that stops and starts with plastic. We have no choice but to act. China will not accept plastic from the ist january, theyll no longer be the worlds dustbin, we have to take responsibility for this upstream so the more we can do to reduce plastic entering the oceans and the ecosystems, the better the planet will be and the better well all be. We think the Deposit Return Scheme is very successful in many other countries and i think we can make a difference on this. Alice, the point that this does work in other countries would suggest that this isnt going to be a huge problem if it is introduced here . So, the uk isnt other countries, so the uks quite often given an example of how the scheme works in germany, thats got a High Percentage return rate for plastic bottles which are eligible for that scheme. If you look at plastic bottles in the uk, plastic drinks bottles in the uk, plastic drinks bottles which are recycled, 7a are recycled. How households . Yes, so if you look at how you get up to the extra bit, up to the 90s, how do you close that gap . Germany has a different struck, it already had refilla ble different struck, it already had refillable deposit schemes, my understanding is that that is why it was introduced, to protect the refilla ble was introduced, to protect the refillable market. Rates are plateauing on the kerbside schemes. Retailers absolutely need the take responsibility for the products and packaging they are selling. There is a responsibility regime which plays into our household recycling schemes and we want a discussion around how that scheme can be tweaked and used more effectively to incentivise producers the make the right choices and funding in the right place s so we are raising consumer awareness. Put simply and some of us are old enough to remember you taking the glass bottles back and getting 10p back. What would be wrong with something as simple as that . We already have a kerbside scheme, it collects 98 of local authorities collect them from households and glass and paper, so why would we want to replace that . In the evidence session this morning before the house of commons, my understanding is that the local authorities came out strongly saying they didnt necessarily support the idea of a deposit scheme, they wa nted idea of a deposit scheme, they wanted to work with producers around how to boost ourself economisting system how to boost ourself economisting syste m how to boost ourself economisting system boost our existing system. We have changed the way which consume now since 15 years ago, we buy food on the go and eat it on the go and there is an issue around that infrastructure and how we capture that. Wed want to discuss producer improvements and improving the infrastructure. Sam, how would you change the emphasis and put pressure on the producers where many say and agree with alice that thats where any incentive should now come from . I think any incentive should now come from . Ithinkl any incentive should now come from . I think i agree that producers are changing, Jd Wetherspoon bans straws in their outlets the other week, coca cola are moving, dell are moving, but what i would say is theres time for incrementalism, small tweaks are over, we need to think big and holtistically and how we can stop plastic entering out into the ecosystem from the publics homes. Many plastics are used when people are out on a run so we need to see other initiatives such as having water out in cities which london is considering so people dont have to buy so much bottled water. I would say that this Deposit Return Scheme seems to work in other countries very effectively. We have seenin countries very effectively. We have seen in britain how effective plastic bag tax has worked. I think defra is being bold and thinking about the differences that can be made. I think on balance the Deposit Return Scheme offers a lot of very good benefits for the ecosystems, the environment that we care about. I think the Public Attitude towards this is broadly positive and many people ive spoken to and seen in re ce nt people ive spoken to and seen in recent polling, the people are open to big ideas like this and it will make a massive difference so we dont have turtles and fish full of plastic and we have a better planet for our children. I would suggest that underestimates the public feeling, a lot of people get it and talk at it, Big Companies like sky are backing the ocean programme. I would significant actually people more than i would suggest people more than i would suggest people more than i would suggest people more than get it and try do what they can and are actually way ahead of you on this . Dont get me wrong, im the biggest evangelist on this issue in my organisation and here in kenya we have had a Plastic Bag Ban thats worked brilliantly. In indonesia where they have the second highest plastic pollution in the world, we are seeing incredible breakthroughs when the government sees investment in this. The world is waking up to this, we only have one ocean and we have many species in that ocean that are under deep threat and, as mr attenborough said, its a tragedy. When we see the albatrosses feeding their chicks with plastic pen lids, we realise the human footprints gone too far and we need to take all possible measures to stop damaging the planet in the way we are doing right now. China no longer wants our waste. We in britain have to take a greater responsibility for our waste. Everything has to be considered and the Deposit Return Scheme, looking at all the data from other countries, seems to work very well. Alice picking up on that point about Public Perception of this, i think a lot of people do understand the damage that plastics cause, so its just a case, and is the pressure really on the councils to work out the example sam was giving about people going out for a jog in london with the bottle of water, what do they do with it, are there other things being looked at, adventurous schemes by retailers . things being looked at, adventurous schemes by retailers . I think retailers are keen to have this conversation and to have it in the round about yes, what do we do to fill in that gap. Retailers, the exa m ples fill in that gap. Retailers, the examples there of pen lids and other plastics, the Deposit Return Scheme will only remove or could potentially only remove plastic bottles. Retailers sell lots of different products and packaging types, so theyre doing all sorts of things already. High street retailers have committed to switch from plastic cotton bud stems to paper cotton bud stems, that will remove paper cotton bud stems, that will re m ove over paper cotton bud stems, that will remove over two billion stems from the environment a year. There are all sorts of issues, we need to take action now and retailers are and we need to look at it holtistically. The Deposit Return Scheme is very expensive. We dont know exactly how much it would cost because we dont know how it would be made up but given costs from germany, it would cost around half a billion to set up and the german costs for running it are sort of similar. So lets say half a billion to set up, half a billion to run, and thats a lot of money. Is it right . There is a limited amount of money, is it right for all of that money at one solution and one packaging type or would it make sense to have a more holistic approach and capture more and remove more from our environment. Really good of you to join us. I think we are all saying the same thing and we are working out different ways of making it happen. Thank you very much. Dont forget, you can let us know what you think, tweet us using the hashtag afternoonlive. All the ways to contact us on screen right now. Elephant poaching in africa has declined for the fifth year running new research suggests. Cites, the organisation which monitors illegal trafficking says a record a0 tonnes of illegal ivory was seized around the world last year. Alastair leithead reports from nairobi. The good news is that after a ten year surge in elephant poaching across africa, the level of killing for ivory is on the decline, particularly in east africa which has lost half its elephants in the last decade, but the animals are still being killed across the continent and elephant numbers continue to fall, according to a report from cites which regulates trade in endangered plants and animals. It said a0 tonnes of ivory were recovered in a Record Number of seizures last year, perhaps because of better awareness and Law Enforcement, but also because ivory has been trafficked in smaller quantities. There has been an increase in the number of ivory being carved into bangles and pendants in africa, rather than being exported to asia as tusks which are easier to intercept. Cites secretary generaljohn scanlon said the global collective effort is starting to reap positive results, but he added, were certainly not there yet. In a moment well have whats hot and whats not in the Business News. First a look at the headlines on afternoon live. Donald tusk warns the eu about the risk of Brexit Defeat and says the eu must not become divided over its toughest test. Englands nhs hospitals are told they could carry out thousands more operations by making better use of theatre time. As Harvey Weinsteins former assistant claims she was paid for her silence; hollywood stars say they want answers. Heres your business headlines on afternoon live. People in debt could be given more time to get back on their feet. The treasury is going to consult on introducing a six week breather period where Interest Payments and enforcement action would be suspended. The financial regulator has ordered the rent to own Company Bright house to pay more than £1a million in compensation to customers. It affects almost a quarter of a Million People, some of whom signed up for deals they couldnt afford. Whitbread has seen its overall profits rise thanks to growth from its premier inn business. But its other company costa coffee didnt do as well. Sales there slowed down over the last six months. Yesterday we were talking about household debt, today we are talking about how to combat that . We have lots of unsecured debt on things like credit cards, personal loans and so what the treasury is consulting on is a possible six week period during which people would be having their interest suspended on their loans and they wouldnt be subject to enforcement action so the bailiffs wouldnt come round and that sort of thing, but during that six week period you would get advice on how to tackle your debt. When are they going to introduce this . The cone sootation period we think is going to end around january. The consultation. The government really wa nts consultation. The government really wants something in place by 2019. Mike 0connor is the chief executive of the Step Change Debt Charity and joins us now. What do you make of the proposals . When people are struggling with financial difficulty, giving them breathing space to allow them to get advice on back on their feet makes sense for everybody. Do you think though that this goes far enough . Isnt a lot more action needed . Well, people have to get debt advice. I also think if you get debt advice. I also think if you get debt advice. I also think if you get debt advice and agree to an affordable re payment plan, debt advice and agree to an affordable repayment plan, the breathing space should extend for a year. Most people want to repay theirdebts, year. Most people want to repay their debts, theyjust year. Most people want to repay their debts, they just need year. Most people want to repay their debts, theyjust need a bit of help while they are doing it. Its easy not to feel a lot of sympathy perhaps for the lenders, but what about people who have lent money in good faith and theyve got this six week breather period and you were saying about making it even longer, isnt that a bit unfair to them do you think . No, because 600,000 people come to us every year and the average debt they have excluding mortgages is £1a,000. We go and talk to their banks and they agree to suspend interests and charges, when people cant pay the capital, piling on more charges is an illusion because they are not going to get it back. If you have a scheme where you can have an affordable repayment plan and the lender gets back their capital, rather than push them under water with more charges, that makes economic sense for the bank toos. Isnt the key though to stop people getting themselves into debt in the first place . Yes. You have got to get rid of problem debt. But most people borrow and most people can manage repayments but what happens to some people is, their relationship breaks down, they become ill, they lose theirjob and suddenly they are in a crisis. In those cases, thats where this is a lwa ys those cases, thats where this is always going to happen. Thats where people need a hand to get bacton their feet. Its good for them and their feet. Its good for them and theirfamily their feet. Its good for them and their family and its good for the physical and Mental Health and its also good for the economy, it gets people back economically active. Michael 0connor, thank you very much. A quick look at the markets. Yes, the ftses going back upjust how we like to see it. I love your analysis, thank you very much whitbread not doing so well after troubles at costa. The Mining Companies are doing well because of a rise in the price of copper. Thank you very much indeed. Some breaking news. Comments made by the labour mp jared 0mara some breaking news. Comments made by the labour mpjared 0mara this news concerns. Justine greening has written a letter tojeremy corbyn . Yes, in it, she says that violent, sexist and homophobic language must have no place in our society and parliamentarians of all parties have a duty to stamp out this sort of behaviour. She wants to know whether the labour party will be investigating these latest allegations against jared 0mara. She is suggesting that the Labour Party Re m ove she is suggesting that the Labour Party Remove the whip from him while the investigation is carried out, that would mean hes effectively not pa rt that would mean hes effectively not part of the Parliament Labour party while any investigation is taking place. Now, last night, at the Parliamentary Labour Party meeting, mr 0mara apologised for comments he made many, many years ago. They have surfaced, they are abusive comments, they are unacceptable according to they are unacceptable according to the labour party, he apologised for that, that apology seemed to be accepted that, that apology seemed to be a cce pted by that, that apology seemed to be accepted by most of the people in the room, then this lunch time there have been some other allegations, this time from a constituent of his called sophie evans, appearing on the bbc daily politics programme, and she said that he had made some very disparaging comments about her, had used offensive language when speaking to her, much more recently just months before the general election, he categorically denies that that ever happened. He of course, the mp for Sheffield Hallam, he beat nick clegg, the former leader of the liberal democrats at the general election. We are waiting to hear from the the general election. We are waiting to hearfrom the labour the general election. We are waiting to hear from the labour party, the general election. We are waiting to hearfrom the labour party, they have told me in the last couple of hours that they will be putting out some kind of statement this afternoon about all of this, but there are clearly some mps in the party whore very uneasy about this. The conservatives in the form of Justine Greening obviously trying to say that labour should be doing much more to deal with this situation. Thank you very much. Time for a look at the weather, heres chris fawkes. For most, it will stay cloudy through the rest of the day. There are some big temperature contrasts around. Further north, coolerfresher around. Further north, cooler fresher air, temperatures about 12 for scotland and in between we have a weather front that will bring some rain. The rain turns heavier during the evening and overnight, across parts of wales and Northern England. Southern counties of england will have some fog patches developing over the hills. A lot of low cloud. For tomorrow, this cooler fresher airwill for tomorrow, this cooler fresher air will push its way further south. The skies brighten across wales and Northern England. Still some sunshine for Northern Ireland and scotla nd sunshine for Northern Ireland and scotland with one or two showers across the far north west. Well keep this zone of cloudier weather across the southern counties for much of the day. The loud thick enough for rain or drizzle. The fresher air feeds further south during wednesday afternoon. Hello, youre watching afternoon live. Today at a. Donald tusk tells the eu we must stay united orface Brexit Defeat britain, he says, could still abandon it. Thousands of nhs operations not carried out because of poor use of theatre time. As Harvey Weinsteins former assistant claims she was paid for her silence hollywood stars say they want answers. I want to know who is taking these actresses up to his room. And id like to know if people said they had a story, the reporters, they had a story and did not run it, i would like to know why they didnt tell the story in the last ten years. Brighthouse faces a compensation bill for almost £15 million the city watchdog says its lending policy failed hundreds of thousands of customers. Coming up on afternoon live, all the sport. It is the replacement for everton people are talking about. Good afternoon. In sport, well hear David Unsworths thoughts on the vacant everton managers job. Hell be in interim charge for the moment. But he is interested in the role full time. And news of a suspension for former snooker World Champion Stuart Bingham. And in the weather, chris, it will warm for some . We have hit 20 degrees today and staying mild overnight but heavily rain around andi overnight but heavily rain around and i will also look at the alps, with an early taste of winter. Thank you, i think also. The controversy in russia because of a film. About the last tsar and his mistress. Well talk to michaeljayston. Who played the tsar in the 1971 epic nicholas and alexandra. Hello everyone this is afternoon live. The European Council president donald tusk has urged members of the European Parliament to stick together or face defeat. Brexit, he said, was the eus toughest stress test and it must not be divided at any costs. Mr tusk also said the outcome of the brexit talks is up to london, and that abandoning the decision to leave the eu is still an option for the uk. 0ur europe correspondent Damian Grammaticas reports. With just a year until a brexit deal has to be done, the eu side is deeply uncertain about how this process will end, with an organised deal or a chaotic split. Huge challenges ahead, said donald tusk. Ahead of us is still the toughest stress test. If we fail it, the negotiations will end in our defeat. Donald tusk is no fan of brexit. He even hopes it may not happen. But he says success or failure in the talks depends on how the uk handles them. It is in fact up to london how this will end with a good deal, no deal or no brexit. Last weeks summit in brussels brought no breakthrough. Jean Claude Juncker has denied theresa may begged him for help. Today, he said the eu wants an agreement. The commission is not negotiating in a hostile mood. We want a deal. Those that dont want a deal, they have no friends in the commission. We want a fair deal. This is the man who will secure a deal. Michel barnier says there has to be agreement on the uk exit terms first what is called orderly withdrawal, and only if the principles that are settled will the eu then engage in talk about a transition period. Today, mr barnier told several european newspapers, if we reach an agreement on the orderly withdrawal of the uk, such a transition period, both short and framed, is possible. A transition might, he said, be short. It makes sense that it covers the financial period, so until 2020. The transition, he said, would leave us more time to prepare for the future relationship. That is because the eu will not formally agree to a trade deal until during any transition period, after the uk has quit the eu, so after brexit day. That means it could be several years until the terms are set. 0ur brussels reporter adam fleming is in strasbourg. He said donald tusk was aware for unity across the member states. He is concerned about splits because what the eu is proud of is the fact the 27 remaining members, who have different interests and politics, different interests and politics, different governments, have so far managed to stay united when it comes to handling brexit negotiations. They have come up with guidelines at the start of the year given to Michel Barnier as his marching orders for the Brexit Process and managed not to have rows about it. Covering this story, the second there is a whiff of a country breaking ranks they try to shut it down and demonstrate to journalists it is not example of that happening. That is his main mission in strasbourg. He is talking to the rest of the eu here, rather than the uk but he had nuggets for the uk audience, saying it is up to london have the process ends which might be taken as a riposte to what theresa may said in the commons yesterday, when she said she wants the eu to come up with ideas for the future partnership between the sides and i think that list on the task saying no, this is up to the uk on how it goes and everybody here has harsh words for the no deal people, those in the uk who say no deal as a result of brexit would be fine. In the uk who say no deal as a result of brexit would be finem is not viewed that way here. Between you and me, what countries are you hearing, in the rooms you prowl, what country suggests they might have problems down the line when it comes to seeking eu unity . have problems down the line when it comes to seeking eu unity . I will be honest, it is hard to say. People keep a lid on it. Speculation at the moment is there are two groups of countries behind the scenes. 0ne moment is there are two groups of countries behind the scenes. One set is more relaxed about the idea of sufficient progress and wants to go easy on the uk and get into trade deals, countries with a more close trading and geographical relationship with the uk and then blows the biggest states, france and germany, strict about sticking to the criteria for howell talks move forward. It be fascinating to see in the coming months as all eyes look to phase two, talks about trade, to see how different economic relationships turn into negotiating positions. Hospitals in england could carry out 280,000 extra non urgent operations every year by making better use of operating theatres. The analysis comes from a Health Service watchdog nhs improvement it suggests that an average of two hours a day are lost in operating theatres, because of late starts and other delays. 0ur Health Editor hugh pym has this report. Patients waiting months for planned surgery may be surprised to hear the nhs could be doing a lot more operations. Thats the view of a health regulator, who says time is wasted and more patients could be fitted in. The analysis seen by the bbc suggests hospitals could be more efficient. Nhs improvement looked at non urgent surgery at 100 trusts in england last year. It said 1. 6a million operations were carried out, but an extra 280,000 more could have taken place. On average, there was about 1a0 minutes of unused operating theatre time each day. Theres all sorts of reasons why theatre lists do start late. It may be that the patient hasnt been brought to the theatre on time, there may be things they have to sort out with the individual patients that make it rather delayed. Or maybe not everybody is there at the right time. But by looking at the detail of that, they are actually able to put things right. But one leading surgeon told me there were no simple answers and many complex factors had to be addressed. We do need to look at resource issues. I think we need to look at staffing issues. I think we need to look at bed issues. Address more the staff morale within the Health Service as part of that as well. Hospital managers argue its often hard to find beds for people after surgery if medically fit older patients cannot be moved on because of social care problems. They say there are many challenges to face, including money. There is clearly more that the nhs can do by way of improving productivity and efficiency. But it cannot be the only answer. There is a gap facing nhs finances, the gap between demand and supply. We need to recognise that more funding, alongside the trusts doing more to improve productivity, our two parts of the same answer. Are two parts of the same answer. Waiting lists for operations are rising. Hospitals are under mounting pressure. The debate over whether new money or more efficiency is the answer for the nhs can only intensify this winter. A british former assistant of Harvey Weinstein says she was paid £125,000 to keep quiet, after accusing the Film Producer of Sexual Harassment. Zelda perkins has told a newspaper she signed a non disclosure agreement in 1998, after making the accusations. Harvey weinstein has denied any allegations of non consensual sex. 0ur correspondent lizo mzimba reports. Fired by the company he co founded, condemned by hollywood. Now a former assistant has said that after she was sexually harassed by Harvey Weinstein she was paid £125,000 to stay silent. Now Zelda Perkins says she has decided to break the legal agreement which could result in having to repay the money. She told the financial times, i want to publicly break my nondisclosure agreement. Unless someone does this there wont be a debate. My entire world fell in because i thought the law was there to protect those who abided by it. I discovered it had nothing to do with right and wrong and everything to do with money and power. In los angeles, the premieres are continuing but the stars say hollywood must change. Maybe this is the watershed moment where we believe women, where they feel safe that they can talk about what they are experiencing. The fact that somebody that powerful, his career has been completely ruined, i think that is a real message to anybody behaving like this. The allegations against weinstein mean that his former company, based in new york, could also now be in the firing line. In a statement, new York Attorney general Eric Schneiderman said, no new yorker should be forced to walk into a workplace ruled by sexual intimidation, harassment orfear. If Sexual Harassment or discrimination is pervasive at a company, we want to know. More than two dozen women have now made accusations against Harvey Weinstein. He denies any allegations of nonconsensual sex. Hollywood is still trying to deal with a scandal that has affected the lives of so many women. Lizo mzimba, bbc news. The equalities ministerJustine Greening has written tojeremy corbyn demanding an explanation for comments made by labour mpjared 0mara. He quit the commons Equality Committee following widespread criticism for homophobic comments he made before being elected. The mp who defeated nick clegg in the election has apologised for using what has been described as via language in statements which were posted online in 2002 and 200a. Vince cable has also waded in on this . Nick clegg held the seat in sheffield and was beaten by jared 0mara in the election and a vince cable has joined calls 0mara in the election and a vince cable hasjoined calls for the labour party to discipline him by withdrawing the party whip, so he would not be a member of the Parliamentary Labour Party. Justine greening, also was an equalities minister, she wrote tojeremy corbyn saying violet, sexist and homophobic language must have no place in society and all parties have a duty to stamp out this sort of behaviour. She is asking the question whether there will be action taken against jared 0mara, who apologised last night at a meeting of Labour Party Mps and he says he is deeply ashamed of the comments which date back about 15 years. This lunchtime, a constituent was on the bbc and she repeated offensive language he had used to her. More recently, before the general election. He has denied using bad language so recently and talked about going on a journey. He says he made comments in the past, but he has changed his views on these things and he clearly feels he has done enough and he has resigned from the select committee. The Labour Party Press office have said they will put out another statement this afternoon. We will wait to see whether they decide what action is needed. Might we hear from jared 0mara himself . Needed. Might we hear from jared omara himself . He has not been a particularly high profile since winning that seat. I do not think he has yet made his first speech in the house of commons. Behind closed doors last night he made the apology and his colleagues were supportive, saying he made a mistake, he has acknowledged it and is sorry for it and has changed his views on many of these issues. The issue will be if there are more recent comments, that will be difficult. The labour party is under pressure to investigate. Dawn butler, the equalities shadow minister has talked about that saying there should be an investigation. We will have to see if the labour party goes down that route. Donald tusk tells the eu we must stay united orface Brexit Defeat britain, he says, could still abandon it. The hundreds of thousands of nhs operations not carried out because of poor use of theatre time. As Harvey Weinsteins former assistant claims she was paid for her silence hollywood stars say they want answers. Ina in a moment what happened when the queen visited the household cavalry. In sport everton interim manager David Unsworth said he wants the job full time and he will lead them against chelsea in the fourth round of the league cup tomorrow. The 2015 World Snooker champion Stuart Bingham will miss the uk championship and masters after being banned for six months for breaching betting rules. And new zealand born Centre Hadleigh Parkes has been selected in the wales squad for the forthcoming internationals despite being ineligible for the first matches. I will be back with more on most stories at half past. The trial of an Army Sergeant accused of attempting to murder his wife by tampering with her parachute, has been hearing evidence of an earlier alleged attempt on her life. The prosecution alleges that Emile Cilliers interfered with a gas pipe in the couples home, hoping to cause an explosion when his wife victoria lit the oven. Emile cilliers denies this and other charges against him. 0ur correspondent Duncan Kennedy reports from Winchester Crown court. The trial of Emile Cilliers, on the left, has so far concentrated on allegations he tampered with his wifes parachute. Today, the emphasis shifted to another charge he faces attempting to murder his wife by tampering with a gas fixture. Emile cilliers and his wife victoria lived at a house in wiltshire and had been married forfive years. The gas fixture was in their kitchen. The prosecution say Emile Cilliers deliberately loosened the nut on this gas pipe to create a gas leak. 0ne forensic scientist told the court it would have taken significant force to loosen the nut, and that the tool was one used in cilliers home. Another witness was michael 0sbourne, a gas engineer. He was called out after victoria cilliers smelled gas, in order to fix the leak. Mr 0sbourne told the prosecution that the nut had been loosened by a quarter of one turn, possibly with a tool, and that when he did it back up, the gas leak stopped. But he acknowledged under cross examination from the defence, that the nut could have come undone through heat, acknowledging that the pipe was next to the kitchen cooker. The trial has already heard that a week after the gas leak, Emile Cilliers allegedly sabotaged his wifes parachute at the airbase in wiltshire. Mrs cilliers fell a,000 feet after both her main and reserve chutes failed to open properly. She suffered a number of injuries. Emile cilliers denies two counts of attempted murder and one of recklessly endangering life. The trial continues. Duncan kennedy, bbc news, at Winchester Crown court. The firm brighthouse, which provides Household Goods to people on Hire Purchase agreements, has been reprimanded by the Financial Conduct Authority. The company will now pay out nearly £15 million in compensation to customers because of mistakes with contracts and refunds. Lets speak now to the labour mp, rachel reeves, who is chair of the commons business select committee. Does this go far enough . It is welcome but i do think and believe Financial Conduct Authority working on this, looking at capping the cost of short term credit, including bees went to own schemes, which is what brighthouse were selling and essentially they were not doing credit checks properly and that is one reason they are happy to pay out money, but also people who paid their first instalment and then change their minds were not being compensated and for those reasons brighthouse are having to refund £1a. 8 million to customers which is right, but there are many people paying way over the odds at brighthouse and other short term lenders and the fca need to get a grip on this part of the sector of lending, because too many customers are being ripped off and are paying over the odds for goods like washing machines and fridges. There was a report last year that showed for a washing machine worth maybe £300, customers pay more than £1000 when the interest stacks up. Payday lenders have now faced a cap on how much they can charge, but these rent to own schemes for white goods primarily, there is no cap and it has to change. The difficulty, and im sure you have constituents who have been affected, if they need a washing machine, and often, they simply cannot get it, they do not have access to credit other people have access to credit other people have and that is why they forced to go to Companies Like this. They cannot win. I understand that argument but it is the argument people used when Stella Creasey was trying to cap the cost of short term credits payday loans and those have been capped and people can still get them, but there is a maximum of fees and charges put on the loans, which is not the same for these schemes. What i would call for would be a cap on how much can be charged. The Financial Conduct Authority have also suggested that for example Housing Associations and other providers of rented accommodation in the social sector could rent these products, washing machines, cookers, directly, rather than people having to go to essentially short term lenders like brighthouse. There are others out there as well. It cannot be right we make the most vulnerable people, already on low incomes, Something Like a5 of people who use brighthouse are in the bottom 20 of the income distribution, that they are having to pay more than others for the same goods. There must be a cap on how much can be lent, as well as proper of affordability checks and compensation when people opt out of the schemes. A controversial new film has premiered in russia after months of protests, threats and violence. Matilda, which tells the story of a romance between the future czar nicholas ii and a ballerina, has attracted huge attention ever since 0rthodox activists, led by a russian mp, began a campaign against it. The film has become the latest test case of artistic freedom in russia, as our moscow correspondent Sarah Rainsford reports from the premiere in st petersburg. This is how extremists responded to a film about russias last czar. They torched two cars and rammed another one into an empty cinema. This is what upset them. Matilda is russias most controversial film in years. A love story about a ballerina and a future czar. More soap opera than biopic, it has become a test of artistic freedom here, as the violence and calls to ban it have grown. Despite the threats, matilda made it to opening night. With the arsonist arrested, celebrities, socialites and stars poured in for the Saint Petersburg premiere. After months of threats, violence and controversy, matilda is finally getting its moment on the red carpet. Some foreign stars are not here and we are told that is because of security concerns but for the director, the fact the film has made it this far is a reason to celebrate. Translation i hope there are no incidents now so that people can come to the cinema and watch the film in peace. But i think this is a victory, not so much for me or for matilda, but for common sense. It is a failure, however, for this mp, who campaigned relentlessly to get the film banned. Nicholas ii is an orthodox saint so this woman insists the love story is blasphemous. But nicholas and matilda did have a romance and the proof is amongst the dusty documents in this theatre archive. The dancers diaries record late night trysts with the man she called nicky. There is even their first kiss. On these pages at least, it goes no further. Translation even these diaries say that if anything happened it wasnt how the film director imagined it. I think that is why there has been protest. You have to be respectful. But the director puts a barbie doll with ken and makes them kiss and roll around in a passionate embrace. Even at the premiere, the director was ha rangued. This man told him his film was a threat to national security. He has not actually seen it. The dispute is bound to rumble on. But after this gala performance, matilda will hit screens across the country with extra security for cinemas just in case. I will be speaking to the actor michaelj stern. He played tsar nicholas in the film, nicholas and alexandra but first, lets look at a clip from the film the actor michael jayston. That was then and here he is now, michaeljayston joins that was then and here he is now, michaeljaystonjoins me from our brighton studio. Having played czar nicholas, what do you think about this controversy now . Well, i think any totalitarian state is bound to not like criticism. If you have a point of view. It is like the labour party at the moment, they do not like criticism from within. I did not know anything about this affair. Nicholas was supposed to be very much in love with alexandra and they had four children. I do not know where he had the time to dally elsewhere. I did not know about it. If they dont like it, dont go to see it, dont show it over there if it offends them that much. I dont know, it is odd. What is it about that period and particularly about him that seems still to capture so much imagination . Your film him that seems still to capture so much imagination . Yourfilm was a very long film. You must have studied him a long time. Yes, i did. But, dont forget, either inherited the ruthlessness of the remand offs. A lot of people died in his regime under his orders. Romanov. I think he would have preferred not to have had czardom inflicted on him. But it was tradition. It is the same in russia, it has always been a violent nation. Marxism, they called stalin the red czar. Marxism has never worked on the face of the earth, but the exponents of that thing, one day it will happen, the revolution will happen. It is ok on paper but does not work in theory. It has failed in china, which is an oxymoron, they are capitalist communist. With investments all over the world. I really want to concentrate on czar nicholas. I can still see him, looking at you. When you played him and he was surrounded by that amazing cast with laurence 0livier, tom baker, michael redgrave, jack hawkins, what were your memories of that film . A lot of people liked it, but it got very good notices in this country. It got some appalling notices in america. I thinkjanet some appalling notices in america. I think janet suzman when some appalling notices in america. I thinkjanet suzman when i got away with it. Sam speigel, the producer, he won three 0scars, but he was not very good, e interfered with the director all the time he interfered. We had a fantastic cast but it was two not terribly interesting people. It was the events that went around the czar and his wife that created that fantastic chunk of history. They themselves we re chunk of history. They themselves were not particularly interesting. I remember they had moira, who was related to nick clegg somehow, she is russian. The jury related to nick clegg somehow, she is russian. Thejury is related to nick clegg somehow, she is russian. The jury is still out as to whether she was a spy. She was the mistress of gorky and hg wells. An amazing woman. She was in her 70s when she was on that film and she said she met rasputin at 16 and i asked what he was like and she said he had piercing eyes and he smelt. It was an amazing cast. The script was not terribly good. A lot of critics said janet and i did the best we could with not very good material and when you have people saying, iam material and when you have people saying, i am stalin, material and when you have people saying, iam stalin, in material and when you have people saying, i am stalin, in a material and when you have people saying, iam stalin, in a bar, and i am lenin, i am trotsky, saying, iam stalin, in a bar, and i am lenin, iam trotsky, some saying, iam stalin, in a bar, and i am lenin, i am trotsky, some of it was a bit ridiculous i thought, and it was too long. A lot of people still like it, of course. I am one of those. A lot of people, a colleague from radio a said you are the definitive character in thejohn lowe carry series. What are you up to now . John lowe carry series. What are you up to now . John le carre was lowe carry series. What are you up to now . John le carre was at the Festival Hall not long ago and i was offered a casualty Christmas Special and signed the contract and could not go. I said to the letter and i said to him, you had an interview recently and hughes said donald trump was horses backside and i said this is unfair on horses, expect litigation from the rspca and the jockey club. I have got a lot of signed copies. He is a lovely man. His real name is david cornwell. I was so upset i could not go to that. He was there himself. I correspond with him occasionally. It was his birthday yesterday, he was 86, he is as bright as a button and he is on his next book and when you send a letter he replies by return of post, which is Old Fashioned letter he replies by return of post, which is Old Fashioned courtesy. Thank you, fascinating to talk to you. I was going to say follow that and someones got to and its chris fawkes. Snowing in the alps shock . Is that earlier than it should be . Partly as well in germany and switzerland. If you think about it, i think switzerland. If you think about it, ithinki switzerland. If you think about it, i think i recognise these legs. Are you a big skier there simon . That was a couple of years ago, yes. My holiday snaps leaking out, me in my white fantastics. We have had snow in the austrian ski resorts. Low ski resorts as well, theyve managed to open and the resort levels are down to 800 metres which is low. The snow has been early and its a case of shovelling it out of the way across parts of switzerland. Looking at the Weather Forecast here, we have got relatively mild conditions across the uk. South westerly winds everywhere but if you look at where the airs come from, across southern parts of the uk, the airs come from spain, whereas across the north of the uk, the winds have tracked around the atlantic, having started off their life up near iceland. That is why we have big temperature contrasts. 0vernight, we have a wiggling weather front bringing a heavy spell of wales and Northern England. Low cloud for the south. Mist and fog patches here with temperatures 13 or 1a. That is the kind of temperature wed expect to see in the middle of the day. The brighter, cooler, fresher air is winning the battle. Well see more sunshine. The fronts never too far away from the south. Here, a lot of cloud, mist and fog patches and spots of drizzle and dampness around the coast and the moors of South West England. As we go on into thursday, that weather front returns back north and will probably start the day with some fairly dense patches of fog around as well. A lot of cloud for england and wales, the best of any sunshine across the north and scotland as well. The biggest change in our weather will be towards the end of the week and the weekend as High Pressure builds in towards the west. Well start to get the north west winds sweeping in and the north west winds will blow the fronts clear of the uk. So, it will be a case of temperatures dropping through friday and the weekend, but also well see more in the way of sunshine breaking through the way of sunshine breaking through the cloud. Look at the temperatures in london, through friday and saturday, we are looking at highs of 15. Thats actually around about average for the time of year but its a bit cooler than the weather we have seen over the last few days. Soa we have seen over the last few days. So a change on the way. It will turn cooler but therell be a bit more in the way of sunshine towards the end of the week and the weekend as well. Thats your weather. This is bbc news, our latest headlines. The president of the European Council, donald tusk has said the eu must stay united or face defeat in brexit talks and that the outcome of deal negotiations was up to london. Englands nhs hospitals have been told they could carry out 280,000 more operations annually by making better use of operating theatre time. Officials say poor scheduling means around two hours a day in surgical time is lost. Harvey weinsteins former assistant says she is breaking a confidentiality agreement to speak out about alleged sexual harrassment. The retailer brighthouse has agreed to pay almost £15 million to 250,000 customers. The financial regulator found it had acted as an irresponsible lender. Time for sport, lets go over to hugh. A lot going on, snooker, athletics, football in a moment but what is going on elsewhere . Its a busy day. Good afternoon. Well be talking about Stuart Bingham, the former snooker World Champion, hes been found guilty of breaking betting rules in the sport. Some see it as lenient, some see it azhar, its a six month ban, three months of it has been suspended. Rugby union news today as well, wales and scotland naming their squads ahead of the autumn internationals. Plenty of new faces in there. Some familiar ones named for england too in the Commonwealth Games athletics squad. Well be talking about who will be going to australia, the gold coast next year. Staying with new faces and its who is going to take over at everton . David unsworth speaking to the press today says hes keen to take on the role permanently, theres no stand out candidate as yet, sean dyche has been linked with it, chris coleman, Carlo Ancelotti is available too. Unsworth is well liked by their fans available too. Unsworth is well liked by theirfans but available too. Unsworth is well liked by their fans but does available too. Unsworth is well liked by theirfans but does he have the experience to take on a job like this . The aa year olds first game in charge is the game tomorrow away at chelsea. Their former player phil neville is the latest to throw his hat in the ring. There have been a huge number of names linked with the role. Unsworth highly regarded after leading the under 23 side to the premier league title last season. He enjoyed two spells at goodison park, making over 300 League Appearances and says hed like his interim spell to become full time. And says hed like his interim spell to become fulltime. Who wouldnt wa nt to become fulltime. Who wouldnt want this job . Its a wonderful foot ball clu b want this job . Its a Wonderful Football Club with amazing fans. Its a topjob Football Club with amazing fans. Its a top job for absolutely any manager. Myself included. The chairman has given me an opportunity, the board have given me an opportunity to hopefully get a run of games where performance levels go up and we produce some wins as well. From that, you know, performances and the results will dictate any future for me as everton manager. So news of the world 2015 snooker World Champion, Stuart Bingham, hes been banned for six months, half of which was suspended for breaching betting rules. Three months and one day will be suspended if he complies with recommended treatment for his gambling issues, and if he commits no further rule breaches, hes also ordered to pay £20,000 in costs. He still has the option to appeal. As it stands, hell miss two of the sports top three tournaments. New zealand born Hadley Parkes is one of five uncapped players named among the squad for the autumn internationals. The scarlets centre is eligible for the last of the four games against south africa on the 2nd december, the day on which he qualifies to play for wales on residency grounds. Six new caps in the summer, you have got to be positive in terms of what we are trying to do. We are thinking about the next two years. I must stress those players arent out of equation. We are trying to develop some depth and look at some other options as well. The scotland head coach has named ten uncapped players in his squad. They face samoa, new zealand and australia but theres no place for the edinburgh flankerjohn hardy who has been suspended by club and country due the alleged cocaine use. Venus williams has recorded her first win at the end of season wta tour finals first win at the end of season wta tourfinals in first win at the end of season wta tour finals in singapore after her defeat in the opening game. The seven time grand slam winner beat the french open champion 7 5, six seven, 7 5. Asher smith has been included in the Athletics Team for the Commonwealth Games in australia next year. 75 athletes will be on the plane to the gold coast, the largest tea m the plane to the gold coast, the largest team england have ever sent. Johnson thompson is also included after missing the last games in glass due to injury. Long jumper Greg Rutherford is also included. Britains fastest man however will not travel, hes chose tonne focus on other competitions. That is all the sport for now, more in the next hour. Now on afternoon live, lets go nationwide and see whats happening around the country in our daily visit to the bbc newsrooms around the uk. Lets go to rogerjohnson in salford with news of an art gallery with a difference. And in a moment well talk to Harry Gration in leeds about a special day for the worlds 0ldest Football Club. First to rogerjohnson, tell us about this art gallery. Yes, its called heart sold, an art gallery for people with Downs Syndrome which was established here in the north west. This weekend their work will be exhibited at an artfair in their work will be exhibited at an art fair in the middle of manchester which brings in artists from across the uk. Theyll be alongside the likes of damien hirst, tracey emin. People who know their tv will also know this is the bbc Breakfast Studio we share on northwest tonight. We had a Downs Syndrome boy here last week doing modelling for river island. Its all about showing what people can do, rather than what they cant. These guys whore involved in heart sold have been given a professional platform to ta ke been given a professional platform to take their art to the mass market. They are already finding a good deal of success. Listen to the lady who set it up. Its art. The artists that produce the art just happen to have Downs Syndrome. I think it willjust be an added bonus that when people do understand our organisation and our artists do have Downs Syndrome, its a kind of a lovely shock factor. Im proud to say these artists do have Downs Syndrome and this is what they can achieve. When you say theyve had some success , when you say theyve had some success, thats an understatement, looking at some of the people whove expressed interest in these. Arnold schwarzenegger took away a picture straightaway. The duke and duchess of cambridge when their first born Prince George was born, thats the picture, thats a print of it, but the original was sent to them. Normally apparently they dont accept and keep gifts of that nature but it was explained to them that it was done by a Downs Syndrome artist. Suzie who you heard from, her son max is ten, he has Downs Syndrome, thats one of the reasons shes so enthusiastic about this, the duke and duchess kept that, its hanging on the wall in Prince Georges bedroom and thiss given them a platform to put them up in them a platform to put them up in the artfair them a platform to put them up in the art fair in manchester this weekend showcasing the very best of art work from across the uk and further afield around the world. Thank you very much. And now to Harry Gration in leeds, whats special about sheffield fc. Ina in a soccer mad city like sheffield where Sheffield Wednesday are 150 yea rs where Sheffield Wednesday are 150 years old, Sheffield United 128 yea rs years old, Sheffield United 128 years old, Sheffield United 128 years old, Sheffield United 128 years old, sheffield is acknowledged as the worlds oldest Football Club. Whats special about sheffield fc is its regarded as the place where the original rules of football were established and, do you know, the first games that were actually played amongst the representatives of sheffield fc were probably married players against single players, so you can see it has a nice history thats developed. It desperately wants to get back to where it first started which was within a stones throw or so of the Sheffield United ground at bramall lane. A very special day, 0ctober 2ath, 160 years old for sheffield fc. 1857. Quite remarkable. Is that your team . Thank you, yes ive supported them since day one, i was waiting for that question, simon, them since day one, i was waiting forthat question, simon, on them since day one, i was waiting for that question, simon, on me head and all that. No, its not my team actually but i have a lot of respect for football in sheffield. They are in the eighth tier of football at the moment, sheffield fc but i think theyve got real ambitions to try to get back to their original ground and make their way up back to the professional game if they possibly can, that would be a wonderful, wonderful story. A lot of people will be looking at you thinking wasnt that the bloke that sang to simon last week. Tell people what happened that night you went out for a charity dinner, didnt you . happened that night you went out for a charity dinner, didnt you . I did actually. I went to do a this is genuine as well a fund raiser for 0pera north in leeds and i got an incredible reception for what i did with you. This is first broadcast ive been allowed since that on air it had a big impact you and me both, harry. Great to talk to you harry and roger, thank you very much. Youre watching afternoon live. If youd like to catch up with more of those news nationwide stories, go to the bbc iplayer. You can see Harry Gration singing as well if you would like to see that, its also on the iplayer. The reporting of crimes such as cyberbullying, trolling and Online Harassment has increased by 85 in the last two years, according to figures obtained by the bbc. More than 200 malicious communication offences are recorded every day by Police Forces in england and wales and the officer leading the fight against digital crime says those figures are just the tip of an iceberg. Emma glazbey reports. This is live. Me, a video streaming app. Victoria from leeds uses it to chat online, but last year she started getting abuse and threats. Photos of her home were posted online and she was dared to try and leave the house. 0ne user threatened to force himself on her. She was even told, go kill yourself, and her address was posted on twitter as a house to burgle. This has legitjust ruined my life. I used to be an outgoing person, and now im just getting there, trying to get back to my old self. With more people using smartphones and social media, police are getting more reports of Malicious Communications offences that can include threats sent by online trolls, abusive text messages, pornographic images and cyberbullying. Research by the bbc has found more than 200 offences are being recorded by police in england and wales every day. The number has risen by 85 over the past two years. I think this is the tip ofan iceberg. As policing and Society Changes into the digital age, this is only going to increase, and providers, government, Law Enforcement and users all need to get ready how we protect people more effectively, and then how we bring criminals tojustice. With the support of herfamily, victoria is slowly getting her confidence back. So far, nobody has been arrested over the threats she received. In a moment, whats hot and whats not in the Business News. First a look at the headlines on afternoon live. Donald tusk tells the eu, we must stay united or face Brexit Defeat. Britain, he says, could still abandon it. The hundreds of thousands of nhs operations not carried out because of poor use of theatre time. As Harvey Weinsteins former assistant claims she was paid for her silence, hollywood stars say they want answers. Heres your business headlines on afternoon live. People in debt could be given more time to get back on their feet. The treasury is going to consult on introducing a six week breather period where Interest Payments and enforcement action would be suspended. The financial regulator has ordered the rent to own Company Bright house to pay more than £1a million in compensation to customers. It affects almost 250,000 people some of whom signed up for deals they couldnt afford. Whitbread has seen its overall profits rise thanks to growth from its premier inn business. But its other company costa coffee didnt do as well. Sales there slowed down over the last six months. Talking about households getting into more debt. Today perhaps some respite being offered . Into more debt. Today perhaps some respite being offered . Yes. We are requiring much more debt acquiring much more debt. What the treasury is doing is consulting on introducing a six week period during which you wouldnt be charged interest and you wouldnt have enforcement action, so the bailiffs wouldnt come around, all that sort of thing, during that six week period. But during that time, you would be expected to seek advice on how to deal with your debt. When are they suggesting this comes into effect . The treasury is going to end this consultation period injanuary we think. The government really hopes to get something in place in law by 2019. Laura lambie is Senior Investment director with Investec Wealth and investment and shejoins me now from our glasgow studio. What is business going to make of this . Anything that protects the vulnerable in the country can only be good news. This is part of a number of measures that have been aimed at trying to help those whore facing a high cost of debt. You may recall that payday loans, there was a call for those to come into the same remit as credit cards repayments whereby Interest Payments could not be more than the actual original sum involved. So this is pa rt original sum involved. So this is part of i think an Ongoing Investigation into the high cost of credit. Related to that is whats happened to brighthouse today, theyve been fined by the fca. Is this a signal then about what other lenders can expect to feel from the force of the regulator . I think the fca has been really clear when its been working with brighthouse, its been doing that since 201a in that all customers should be treated farley. That was certainly not the case in the period between 2010 and 2017. These customers fall into two camps, one camp whereby an initial payment was made then the contract cancelled and the company did not refund money. The second camp whereby customers were sold products that they could not afford to meet the repayments on so, as you said in your introduction, £50 million being paid back affecting 250,000 people. Do you think there is a new attitude in officialdom towards debt now . think there is a real awareness and that its those that can least afford to pay back debt seem to be paying the most. The average household at the moment pays an average interest of £1,000 a year, so its certainly big business and its good that thats regulated and customers are treated fairly. Whitbread being let down by costa . Yes although whitbreads profits rose, that was due to premier inn whove benefitted from staycations and the falling sterling attracting visitors to the uk, but costas been struggling a bit with opening stores, with a fall in Consumer Confidence and the high price of coffee beans which are priced in dollars. Laura, thank you very much. A quick look at the markets. Its not been a particularly exciting day on the ftse. We are waiting for news of growth thats coming out tomorrow. Whitbread not doing particularly well after the problems with costa. Mining companies though doing particularly well with a rise in the cost of copper. Egon, thank you very much. Some breaking news coming in from westminster. We are hearing from the labour party whore saying they are launching and investigation into the behaviour into jared omara in relation to comments he made this year. Its claimed hes been making misogynist and homophobic remarks and that the Sheffield Hallam mp who was elected ifjune, he unseated the ex deputy Prime Minister nec, has already quit the commons Equality Commission nick clegg, has already quit the commons Equality Commission. An investigation will be launched into comments and behaviour been reported from earlier this year. That news just coming in from westminster. A group of about 250 thrill seekers in brazil are expected to become the latest Guinness World record holders. They gathered for a daring simultaneous massjump gathered for a daring simultaneous mass jump from a gathered for a daring simultaneous massjump from a bridge hoping to smash the previous record. This is the moment they took a leap of faith. 2a5 thrillseekers tied to ropes jumped from a bridge thats 30 metres tall. How is it different to bungee jumping . Well, jumpers dont bounce because the rope is made of nylon. They slow down as they approach the end of their freefall. The stomach lurching adventure activity took place in hortolandia about an hour from sao paulo in brazil. The participants all simultaneously jumped on a string and a prayer. Tied together wearing safety helmets, they swung back and forth until stopping. Then some jumpers climbed back up to the bridge. Translation it was crazy, an unbelievable feeling, a unique experience. Youjump, and its pure adrenaline, and you just go. These thrillseekers beat the previous unofficial record of 1a9 people in a massjump. Guinness World Records has not yet issued an official statement confirming the record attempt. Laura trant, bbc news. Now hold your horses, its time for another royal story here on afternoon live. The queen has inspected a skeleton horse on a visit to the household cavalry which is trotted out to teach troopers about the anatomy of the animals they ride at state occasions like trooping the colour. The queen was treated to a demonstration by the company horses inside out who also educate troopers how to provide a stable environment for their animals. I think that horse had a rather baleful look about him. A p pa re ntly apparently the queen asked, does that wash off, rather practical. Now that is it from us, coming up, jane hill has the news at five, before that though a look at the weather with chris fawkes. For most of us, the rest of the day is going to be cloudy weather wise. 0n the mild side across the south of the uk because we are drawing up our airfrom nearspain the uk because we are drawing up our air from near spain across the bay ofs by kay into southern parts of the uk. That is a mild wind direction, temperatures above average for the time of year. We have a the bay of biscay. We have south westerly winds, look at where theyve come from, round iceland, doing a lap around the atla ntic iceland, doing a lap around the atlantic and into the forth of the uk. Even though we have south westerly winds across all of the country, we have big temperature contrasts. Through the evening, the cloud will continue to thicken. 0utbreaks through the evening, the cloud will continue to thicken. Outbreaks of rain working into north west wales, turning heavier here, a bit of sunshine late in the day for east scotla nd sunshine late in the day for east scotland and across parts of north east england. 0vernight, well see a zone of heavier rain working across wales, Northern England, the south of scotland with the showers in the far north west. To the south of ourfront, it in the far north west. To the south of our front, it stays mild, temperatures 13 or 1a, low cloud mist and fog. Fresher conditions from the north and west of the uk, but therell continue to be some blustery showers. This battle zone between the cooler area in the north and the warmer area in the south, that means more of us enjoy more in the way of sunshine, although there area the way of sunshine, although there are a few showers in the north west. Where we see the sunshine, that is where the cooler air is. Looking at the weather picture through thursday, warmer air starts to push further north. We could have fog patches to start the day across england and wales. It will be a cloudy day. The fresh air still with us cloudy day. The fresh air still with us in the forth of the uk, thats where well see breaks in the cloud and decent sunshine. The battle zone will shift south through friday and the weekend as pressure builds. Well the weekend as pressure builds. We ll start the weekend as pressure builds. Well start to see more of a northwesterly feeding in. That will break the cloud up for most areas and well see that cooler air pushing it way further south progressively. Well see a drop in temperatures. Remember it will be about 19 today. Into friday and saturday, temperatures coming down to around 12 1arks Something Like that. Thats your weather. Today at 5 00. The eu needs to stick together to avoid defeat in the brexit negotiations, according to the councils president. Donald tusk says the outcome of the talks are down to the uk and that brexit could still be abandoned. It is in fact up to london how this will end, with a good deal, a no deal, or no brexit. Well have the latest on the negotiations. The other main stories on bbc news at 5. 00. The labour party has Just Announced an investigation into into its mpjared 0mara, following allegations he made sexist and homophobic comments. A new Study Suggests hospitals in england could carry out hundreds of thousands more non urgent operations every year if theatre time wasnt wasted. The Hire Purchase firm brighthouse is to pay out nearly