Transcripts For BBCNEWS BBC Newsroom Live 20171208

Be up to £45 billion when it leaves the eu. When it leaves the eu. Also this hour wildfires continue to rage in california as firefighters battle ferocious flames. Nearly nearly 200,000 residents have been evacuated from their homes a state of emergency has been declared. Israeli forces are on high alert for protests against the us declaration ofjerusalem as israels capital. Good morning. Its 8 december. Welcome to bbc newsroom live. A deal has been agreed in the brexit talks allowing the negotiations to move on to the next crucial stage the subject of trade and transition. The divorce bill could be up to £16 billion. After a long night of phone diplomacy, theresa may secured agreement with the irish Prime Minister and the democratic unionists whose objections on monday on the issue of the irish border had prevented a deal being struck on monday. An agreement has been made on the key Sticking Points of phase one including the divorce bill, eu Citizens Rights and the irish border. It still needs approval from the 27 members states first although this is likely to go ahead. Early this morning, the Prime Minister flew to brussels where at a joint News Conference with the European Commission president , Jean Claude Juncker. Announced that sufficient progress had been made to allow talks to progress. But he reiterated that todays result is a compromise. Mrs may said give and take on both sides had delivered a hard won agreement in all our interests. Getting to this point has required give and take on both sides. I believe that the joint report being published as in the best interests of the whole of the uk. I very much welcome the prospect of moving ahead to next phase, to talk about trade and security and to discuss the positive and ambitious future relationship that is in all of our interest. I have consistently said we want to build a deep and special partnership with the eu as we implement the decision of the british people to leave at the end of march 2019. Doing so will provide clarity and certainty for businesses in the uk and the eu and crucially for all our citizens. The deal will guarantee the rights of more than 3 million eu citizens living in the uk and 1 million uk citizens living in the eu. Eu citizens living in the uk will have their rights enshrined in uk law and enforced by british courts. They will be able to go on living their lives as before. I was clear in florence, we are a country that honours their obligations. After some tough conversations, we have now reached an agreement which is fair to the british taxpayer. We will be able to invest more in our future priorities at at home such as housing, schools and the nhs. In Northern Ireland we will guarantee there will be no hard border and we will uphold the belfast agreement. In doing so we will continue to preserve the constitutional and economic integrity of the United Kingdom. The president of the European Commission praised the commissioner for her determination and said the negotiations had been difficult for both sides. Difficult for both sides. I believe we have now made the breakthrough we needed. Todays result is, of course, a compromise. It is the result of a long and intense discussion between the commission negotiators and those of the uk. As in any negotiation, both sides had to listen to each other. Let us go to brussels no. 0ur correspondent is there. An intense morning and night for all those involved, if people thought getting to this stage is hard, the president of the European Council was suggesting what is to come is even more difficult. Assess first of all how the eu feels about the last 12 hours of what has been achieved . think the sense of relief is very similarto think the sense of relief is very similar to the sense of relief felt in london. There is a real anxiety this week that the collapse of the talks on monday, that sudden falling apart meant there was a profound problem which might throw the whole brexit timetable into chaos. We often report this in this adversarial process, britain against the European Union, but that is a shared interest in making sure that the process doesnt work and stays under competent management and keeps moving forward, delivering a deal for both sides. That has been the back of everyones mines here, there was real worry back of everyones mines here, there was real woiiy on back of everyones mines here, there was real worry on monday and that has dissipated, giving way to a sense of relief. 0ther minds are no turning to problems still to come. This is not the end, just the beginning. Were talking about moving onto trade talks. These are notoriously complex and can take many years. They involve extraordinary detail. So we have the note of celebration from Jean Claude Juncker, the president of the European Council donald tusk was more focused on the problems to come. We listen to him as well. While being satisfied with todays agreement which is obviously the personal success of Prime Minister theresa may, let us remember that the most difficult challenges still ahead. We all know that breaking up is hard. But breaking up and building a new relation is much harder. Since the brexit referendum, one year and a half has passed. So much time has been devoted to the easier part of the task and now to negotiate a transition arrangements and the framework for our future relationship, we have de facto less than one year. What do we know from the eu 27 perspective about what might happen next . The way the European Union manage the last phase of talks, gives you a clue as to how they will manage the next phase. Michel barnier, the lead negotiator was given strict guidelines. He could only talk about three issues, Citizens Rights, the irish border and the divorce bill. He could not talk about anything else until sufficient progress had been made. You can expect the same preach that approach. They will you can expect the same preach that approach. They will have guidelines determining a transition period for the eu and then they will do the same for the tree tops. They will try to set down definitions, tramlines within which Michel Barnier has to work. He has been a big figure in british headlines for the last year and you can expect him to remain in the headlines next year. Worth listening to Michel Barnier and what he sees as the next phase. Let me be clear, there is still work to be done. And negotiation on a number of issues such as the governance of our agreement or for instance. There are more paths to take. We will need to have the final version of the Withdrawal Agreement ready by october 2018, less than one year. Michel barnier, as we have reported, the bbc understands that the divorce bill could be somewhere between 35 and £40 million. Has there been much give on the eu side and that total . I think it is billions rather than millions in the ends. I beg your pardon, i said millions in the ends. I beg your pardon, isaid million. Millions in the ends. I beg your pardon, i said million. Yes, a little bit more than that. Not as toxic as some feared in british politics. All along we thought it would be the money which is the difficult part. But we have been stuck in future arrangements on the irish border and what role the European Court of justice irish border and what role the European Court ofjustice will have in terms of the rights of eu citizens in britain after brexit. The money has not been as difficult as people thought. Thats some, i think theresa may will feel british voters can live with it because it is not one colossal check but stretched out into the future so thatjoint stretched out into the future so that joint liabilities stretched out into the future so thatjoint liabilities are met when they arise, things like pensions and loa n they arise, things like pensions and loan guarantees may be years down the road. The sum is not as high as some guesswork suggested earlier in the progress that mike process. Process. It is quite a spread out programme. Some people in britain will feel nothing should be paid to the eu but theresa may will gamble that british voters will be able to live with this, if it is part of the probe set of getting a good trade deal. Process. Probe set of getting a good trade deal. Process. Thank you very much for that, Kevin Connelly in brussels. Let us get the news from westminster. 0ur chief Political Correspondent vicki young is in westminster for us. Where in the negotiations does the uk think it has done well and what aspects does it considers still to be tricky . Overall for theresa may, after an appalling start to the week when people were questioning how much longer her premiership could go on or the government could carry on, this will be seen as a victory for hire. The response from her cabinet collea g u es hire. The response from her cabinet colleagues and others, interesting that many of them are personally praising her and the work she has done because they know that she desperately needed this move onto the next phase. If we had been in a position where it had all fallen apart again, it would have been extremely tricky politically for her. Not to say they are not still problems, look at the role of the European Court of justice. Problems, look at the role of the European Court ofjustice. There will be summoned the brexit side of the argument not happy that. They continue for eight years to have some role in theirjudgment of britishjudges over the some role in theirjudgment of british judges over the rights of eu citizens. Interestingly, michael gove said he could live with it. 0thers gove said he could live with it. Others i have spoken to off camera have said as long as that is the time limit, we can live with it. It is not what they were as being a couple of years ago during the referendum campaign. 0n the issue of the irish border, you feel it has been deferred rather than sorted out. The British Government view was a lwa ys out. The British Government view was always you can decide this without knowing what our future relationship will be with the eu. It has to be decided in the next phase. They seem to have got to that. It is interesting that the dup came out and said they were not entirely happy but that is open to interpretation. Already we have seen dublin, brussels and the dup interpreting things in different ways. That argument goes on until another day. The dup have come out and said they were not actually happy but theresa may will proceed any week which shows theresa may standing up to the dup at this point in saying we need to move on. As i say, we have got through the qualifiers, the main tournament is still to come and trouble could very much lie ahead. We are starting to get a sense of what that might be like, take us through that. Interestingly, the bbc has obtained a leaked document which shows what the eu leaders say to the eu council, guidelines for the future relationship. It is about what they see as the future relationship, including a transition period or implementation period as the British Government calls. Barnier says the uk will remain a member of the Customs Union and Single Market during a transition period and under the philjones section of the European Court of justice the philjones section of the European Court ofjustice during that transition. Under the jurisdiction. That means we continue to have freedom of movement as it stands, we demean in the Customs Union and Single Market. Theresa may has said we will not be in those things. The understanding is that things. The understanding is that things will look similar and that will be a discussion point for the british cabinet. They have not had their discussion about the future, we are told it will happen before christmas. This was supposed to be the easier bet, where we end up, the cabinet have not decided on that school political row is still to come on that. Thank you very much. So the political row is still to come. 0ne one of the Sticking Points has been the irish border. Let us talk to our correspondence. 0ur ireland correspondent chris page is following developments from belfast. What has changed between monday and last night which allowed the dup to give theresa may the go ahead to make the deal . The fact the weather is like theres, the snow is any headache has led to a few metaphors being knocked around. I have heard that has been a blizzard of spin and interpretation. That is what it feels like. The dup has always said their major concern was they would not tolerate anything which would result in a separation of Northern Ireland is from the uk in political and economic terms, in effect the placing of border in the irish sea. The dup have made clear they did not get everything they wanted. Arlene foster said she cautioned theresa may on the telephone and overnight that she should not go ahead with this agreement because of unresolved issues but they respected it was up to the Prime Minister to make the ultimate decision. Regarding new trade barriers between Northern Ireland and the uk, they felt there was significant progress. We believe there have been six substantive changes and were pleased to see those changes because for me, it means there is no red line down the irish sea and we have the very clear confirmation that the entirety of the United Kingdom is leaving the European Union, leaving the Single Market, leaving the Customs Union. I think that is a very important statement to have and it is vitally important of course the integrity of the United Kingdom is kept in place. There are Still Matters we would like to see clarified. We ran out of time essentially. We think we needed to go back again and talk about those matters but the Prime Minister has decided to go to brussels in relation to this text and she said she has done that in the national interest. That is the view of the dup. The idea is government said their red line was they wanted to guarantee that there would not be a return to any checkpoints on the land frontier between the Irish Republic and Northern Ireland. They acknowledge the details could not be worked out until the next phase of brexit talks. They wanted to guarantee that no matter what happens in the next stage, there would not be a hardening of the border so in dublin this morning leo varadkar gave the agreement the thumbs up this morning. We have achieved all that we set out to achieve in phase one of these negotiations. We have the assurances and guarantees we need from the United Kingdom, and support for them from the European Union. Im satisfied that sufficient progress has now been made on the irish issues. The parameters have been set, and they are good. Now we can move on to work out the detail of what has been agreed, to talk about the transition phase, free trade, and the new relationship between the eu and the uk. This is not the end, but it is the end of the beginning. The politicians had the sense to stay inside to make their statements andi stay inside to make their statements and i will do the same. Plenty more issues at stake for ireland and there will be a distinct irish strand in the brexit talks. You need to get off that riffs and we will talk to you from inside later, thank you very much. Joe has now is the dup mp, sammy wilson, white house changed since monday which allowed Arlene Foster to see to theresa may that the deal could go ahead . Last monday we were confronted with an extremely brief statement which showed Northern Ireland would be treated differently from the rest of the uk, no assurance we would not be left in aspects of the European Union, Customs Union and Single Market, when the uk left and that had constitutional and economic repercussions for Northern Ireland. The document is leading changed sufficiently to ensure that when the uk lives, we will be leaving with them. When the uk reads the Single Market and Customs Union, we will also be leaving along with the uk. There will be no barriers put up between Northern Ireland and our biggest market in the uk through different regulations and that our position within the United Kingdom well have been safeguarded. With no hardening of the border between Northern Ireland and the republic of ireland either, what is your understanding of the dynamics in terms of the agreement worked out overnight . Well, a number of things. First, the document points out the government has put forward proposals as to how that border could beget soft in august of this year. Be kept soft. In phase two they will work through the detail of the agreements. Secondly, if that is the need and there will be of course to align regulations at some piped some aspects of trade, that will be done ona uk aspects of trade, that will be done on a uk wide basis and not on an Northern Ireland, Irish Republic basis. If you have said the Irish Government was using brexit to its advantage a few days ago, are you willing to accept that has been compromise on the part of the Irish Government and the Prime Minister leo varadkar . They had to accept the inevitable about the good friday agreement itself. I think they were trying to weaken the position of Northern Ireland in the uk and they have had to step back from that. This was a fight which couldve been avoided had they been less aggressive and cynical in their approach this time last week. But we feel that by digging our heels then on monday and by the negotiations we have ha rd on monday and by the negotiations we have hard for this week, that we have hard for this week, that we have clawed all of that back. Whilst there are still as specs were not happy with. But what are those i expect aspects because the Irish Government has drawn attention to fight the border issue will be treated as a special in phase two, not lumped in with Everything Else . We have seen that whole issue of regulatory alignment take it out. We would rather have seen. Namely that regulatory alignment does not required us to do that in the context of members of the Single Market or Customs Union, it can be done by mutual recognition of standards, by some kind of murdering of the regulations that would be within the eu. Murderer ring. Mirroring. That is why we have given the qualified endorsement we have done. Does the deal that theresa may has done ensure the continued support of the dup for her government . Yes, we have said we are happy with the parts of it that have been put in and the concerns we had about Northern Ireland being separated have been dealt with. However there is an assurance within the document we will have the opportunity in the next phase to be fully involved in those talks so that we dont have the kind of kick up we have had this week to a document which was not clear. Thank you very much, sammy wilson, dup mp. We will bring you more analysis of what has been happening in terms of their Brexit Agreement but now we move on to other news. A number of new wildfires have started in southern california, stretching firefighters to the limit. Nearly 200,000 people have now been evacuated from their homes. Planes have been diverted to one of the latest blazes in the county of san diego, and Officials Say more than 400 buildings have been destroyed. 0ur north america correspondent james cook reports. For california, an epic battle continues. They have been fighting this blaze in the mountains north of los angeles all week and still it devours forest and brush and has destroyed more than 430 buildings. Yet again tonight this blaze is running with an intense ferocity and that means the battle because of property down here, very close to the fire. These firefighters have been working very hard for the past few days. They are exhausted but they are back here again now to try and stop this fire from burning these properties. The fires now churning towards the Pacific Ocean where communities are preparing for evacuations. To the south, a new blaze exploded in san diego county, blowing up gas tanks under homes and forcing pupils to flee from schools. But those who have not been impacted by the fire, they need to prepare as if they will be impacted by the fire, where they will go, what ideal escape routes and what is a communication to families, what will they do with their pets . Often we do not ask people to think about these things continuously but tonight is one of those nights and today is one of those fires, people need to be ready. In the exclusive suburb of bel air, the situation has improved. A handful of homes were destroyed but many more were saved. The musician Lionel Richie and paris hilton were among those forced to flee their mansions. Every firefighting aircraft in the United States has been summoned to california and they are making a big difference. With resources stretched to the limit, firefighters from neighbouring states have arrived in california to help. They will be needed. The extreme weather is forecast to continue until the weekend. There is heavy security in jerusalem. There is heavy security in jerusalem. A day of rage is being planned by palestinians angered by americas recognition ofjerusalem as the capital of israel. Around 30 demonstrators were injured in clashes with Israeli Forces in the west bank yesterday. The us has warned palestinians against cancelling talks with Vice President mike pence, wholl visit the middle east in less than two weeks time. Live tojerusalem and our middle east correspondent, tom bateman. Give us a sense of what it is like they are on the ground . As you can see, the old city ofjerusalem, things have been relatively calm. Hundreds of people have left from the old gates which is a common flash point at times like this when protests are expected. Many people just walked out and walked away. One of the other gates, damascus gates, there have been people gathered and minor confrontations with police but nothing more serious than that. Some of the other common flash point in the west bank, there have been more serious confrontations, tyre set alight. In ramallah, we have seen pictures of tear gas being used. Also clashes in the city of bethlehem and further south in hebron. Meanwhile in gaza, hundreds of people have been marching in the centre of the city. Despite things being braced for the day of rage, so far things have not reached that level. As you speak to us, we can see live images of disturbances on the streets that you are talking about. It sounds as though the Security Forces are managing to contain much of the protest so far. 0n contain much of the protest so far. On this warning from the us, ahead of the visit by mike pence to the palestinians, you must cancel any meetings with them. You must not. What are they saying in response to that and are they expecting the us to bring something to them would balance up the decision to recognise jerusalem as the capital of israel . It would take quite a lot to do that, i imagine. Mike pence is due to visit the region in ten days. A Senior Palestinian official said yesterday, he would not be welcome in palestine. The white house has said overnight that any cancellation ofa said overnight that any cancellation of a meeting between Mahmoud Abbas and mr p would be counter productive. He is due to travel to the west bank to meet the palestinian president saw a decision has to be taken. A spokesman for the palestinian leadership this morning said no decision had been made. He explained the difficult political space the leadership had been left on at the moment. This brings the issue to a head. He said if mike pence visits their west bank there will be huge demonstrations. It will create a focus. He said that simply the security arrangements for that by the palestinian authorities would be such that in his view, it could set the Palestinian Government against their own people. It is one of those issues we would like to see more handled with diplomatic events on the ground. There is a reduction of political space for the Political Leadership of the palestinian people. Thank you very much. The weather is coming up next but first lets see some of the pictures of the snowy conditions across the uk. These were the scenes for drivers in rural, re shire this morning. I yellow be aware morning is around. In shropshire, residents woke up to a wider blanket of snow, a picture postcard stuff, not so nice of you are having to get out and about in it. Dozens of schools in the county have been closed for the day. On the isle of man, some are not usually hit by heavy snow, the effects of storm caroline clear to see. All schools on the island have been closed and there is ongoing travel disruption. There is also an amber warning looking ahead to sunday, heavy snow in wales and parts of england. Simon king has a full forecast for us now. Yes. Keep tuned to the forecast over the next few days. And the warnings from the met office, there could be some significant snow and disruptive snow. Here now, we have got snow out there and that will continue through this afternoon. Snow and is continuing, problems in the west midlands, wales, north wales, up into Northern Ireland and in the north. And. Blizzard like conditions coming through. If you snow showers coming through. If you snow showers coming through. If you snow showers coming through southern and eastern areas, but they will not settle or accumulate. It will be decent sunshine, but it will feel cold in that northerly wind. Further snow showers expected overnight, is is going to be a big risk into the start of saturday morning, temperature is widely below freezing. During saturday, the snow showers becoming fewer between. Lots of dry weather with some sunshine, but on sunday stated in the forecast. This is bbc news, our latest headlines a deal has been agreed in the first stage of the brexit talks, allowing negotiations to move on to the subject of trade. The bbc understands britain will have to pay between 35 and 40 billion pounds when it leaves the eu. Getting to this point has required give and take from both sides and i believe that the joint report being believe that the joint report being be pushed it in the best interest of the whole of the uk. Be pushed. A number of new wildfires have started in southern california, stretching Emergency Services to the limit. Nearly 200,000 people have now been evacuated from their homes, and a state of emergency has been declared. Snow, ice and windy conditions are set to sweep across large parts of the uk today. Severe gales have already caused disruption to air, rail and ferry services. And well get some reaction from the Business Community and the city to the brexit breakthrough in our regular round up it is time for hugh. Hello. Good morning. You never know, brexit might have an effect on how the premier league and how much money is spent on menu tv rights. They will make changes on how they will sell those going forward. English top flight football will see an increase the total broadcast, but might seea increase the total broadcast, but might see a change on how we watch those games. What are the premier league trying to achieve with these changes . They would see as trying to appeal to football consumers, tv watching consumers. It has to be seenin watching consumers. It has to be seen in the context of recent evidence that suggests that tv figures for football are on their way down, not up. In simple terms, the premier league are trying to make sure that if you love and are entranced by watching it and tidal races and trophy challenges, that football will be on at a time when you want to watch it. Notjust saturday tea time sunday lunch times, but more in the midweek and perhaps more interestingly or co ntroversially of perhaps more interestingly or controversially of all, there will be live tv matches in the premier League Available on saturday evening. The other thing that is interesting and this sounds like it might have come from some brexit negotiation, the live packages will be available for exploitation on a Technology Neutral basis. I think we have to interpret that as an invitation from the premier league to these new tv broadcasters, amazon, net flicks, facebook, whatever, to get involved. They would like to exploit that area. The whole idea of what we consider to be television is changing rapidly. Will fa ns television is changing rapidly. Will fans be happy with this . That three oclock kick off, that traditional time, that has been preserved. If you have matches on a saturday evening, that brings a very interesting issue. I still evening, that brings a very interesting issue. Istill think that a lot of people would see saturday evening tv viewing as a Family Experience. They might turn on and what strictly, for example, orx on and what strictly, for example, or x factor. Those chose which appeal to a bigger audience, or x factor. Those chose which appealto a biggeraudience, if or x factor. Those chose which appeal to a bigger audience, if you put dab strictly against a manchester derby, then maybe you would be bringing in a big audience. If it was up against bournemouth versus huddersfield, would that be enough for a family to turn strictly and turn on the football . It crystallises the importance of premier league tv football towards a tv audience. I think there are a lot of premier League Football fans who like the idea of their matches being at 3pm on a saturday afternoon. You can do other things and get home once the match has finished. Very important. Thank you very much for joining us from london. More on that story and the rest of the sports news at 1215. More on our top story and the uk and the European Union have reached a deal on brexit divorce terms that opens the way for talks to move on to a future trade relationship. After months of at times ill tempered negotiations, the European Commission said sufficient progress had been made on key issues. The other eu members will consider his recommendation at a summit next week. 0ur chief Political Correspondent vicki young is in westminsterfor us. Just take us through the reaction. There has been plenty of it from politicians from this deal worked out overnight. What a difference four days makes. If you look back to monday, that is humiliation, but at the last minute they had to take a call from the leader of the dup and all bets were off. They have been having frantic talks and then and then another dash to brussels. This time with the outcome that theresa may wanted. It is important for her personally, people thinking that she could have been in real trouble if we had got this stage without a prospect of moving on talk about our future, wider relationship. As you say, there are some who look at what is on the table here and feel that actually the British Government has sold out, not just actually the British Government has sold out, notjust when it comes to the money, it is thought that britain might have to pay about £35 billion, that is not a figure that has been nailed down, but that is the ballpark we are in. Others are concerned about the role of the European Court of justice. Concerned about the role of the European Court ofjustice. Something thatis European Court ofjustice. Something that is hated by many on the exit side of the item in, the idea that that influence my go on for up to eight years, some are not happy. Particularly nigel farage. Its tawdry. A british Prime Minister haas to fly through the middle of the night. Extraordinary. They say well done, i minister, you have met everyone of our demands, we can move onto the next stage. The whole thing is humiliating. We have collapsed at every level. To allow the European Court ofjustice jurisdiction over this country for a decade to come is not what people voted for. A not very happy nigel farage, vicky, but there have been positive comments from other politicians. Yes, think about it, michael gove, one of the leading brexit supporters on the same side of the argument to nigel farage, with different emphasis, he has come out saying actually he can live with it. That is crucially important. A lot of this is about personal backing for theresa may, pointing out that they have done a decent job. What we are seeing here about moving onto the next phase is not what people like borisjohnson michael gove was a true that referendum campaign. For today, michael gove is happy. There is scope for people to carp and be cynical, but this is a significant achievement because it means that the rights of eu citizens are protected in the uk, the rights of uk citizens are protected in the eu. Nobody will be out of pocket because of ourdeparture, nobody will be out of pocket because of our departure, but there will be more money for us. Of our departure, but there will be more money for us. We can also get onto talking about the free trade deal. A significant step forward and one that i think the overwhelming majority of people will welcome. You heard the real prize that he and others in the conservative party are after, this prize of free trade deal, you get the impression they are willing to live with some of these compromises for now in order to get that. They think hopefully later on down the road. There are issues about a transition period, for example, then saying that they will stay in the Customs Union and the Single Market, that is absolutely not what theresa may and others have said. On the other side, there will be pleased they are not looking at a no deal situation at the moment. The idea there is progress and movement and we are moving forward to the next level, Dominic Grieve is one of those who has been fighting through the withdrawal bill in the house of commons, he was on the remain side of the icon and, he is particularly pleased of the role of the European Court ofjustice. Pleased of the role of the European Court of justice. The idea pleased of the role of the European Court ofjustice. The idea that we would remove the role of the European Court of justice would remove the role of the European Court ofjustice completely from everything is, i think a little bit fanciful because if we are embedded in the european system, where we are trading, quite apart from the question of citizens, it is going to be a court that is going to have some influence over our affairs. I dont see this proposal thatis affairs. I dont see this proposal that is here in any way undermining our national sovereignty, it makes perfect sense and it is there to provide protection and reassurance for eu citizens, in the event of there being some major difficulty of interpreting what this agreement is about. I dont think we can emphasise enough really about where we are right now. This is not the final deal, this is the qualifiers we are going through to the next stage of the tournament. A lot of these very, very difficult questions have been pushed forward to there. For now, most conservatives seem to be onside, are some privately tory mps who are not happy with this, but a lot of those questions have been deferred. Another huge question for the cabinet in particular is what are they aiming for the end of all of this . That has been resolved. We we re of this . That has been resolved. We were told there will be a discussion, they will have that discussion, they will have that discussion before christmas, but there is a long way to go here. The Prime Minister reiterated earlier that the situation in Northern Ireland is unique because it is the only part of the uk with a land border of a country that will remain in the new. In dee you. Looking at the texts of the report, it says we will work to achieve the relationship, trading relationship between the uk and the European Union that we want to see, that we believe will also be a good trading relationship or Northern Ireland. If thatis relationship or Northern Ireland. If that is not the case then we will look for specific solutions to what are the unique circumstances of Northern Ireland. Everybody recognises that because Northern Ireland is the only part of the uk with a land border of a country that will remain in the European Union, thatis will remain in the European Union, that is a set of unique circumstances and there are already unique circumstances and specific solutions for Northern Ireland. There is racing at electricity there is a single electricity market in ireland, for example. Iwant there is a single electricity market in ireland, for example. I want to make sure that we wont have a hard border in Northern Ireland, but we will maintain economic integrity of the United Kingdom. That speaker professor of british and irish politics in liverpool. Good to have you with us. Give us your overall impression of your deal that has been done overnight, bearing in mind it is simply the end of the beginning as one former Northern Irish secretary described it as modelling. The deal is quite impressive in many ways. There is less ambiguity than one might have originally expected. The border on the island of ireland, it is quite clear that the uk will be aligned with the Single Market and with the Customs Union of the European Union. That remains a seamless border and means business as usual. The common travel area, the Free Movement of people, is applied to a trading relationship between the uk and ireland. The only people who can change that are those in the Northern Ireland assembly, the executive, if that is reconstituted. We have some clarity in a way we didnt expect. Dup have been pushed a little bit further than they wa nted a little bit further than they wanted to because that term full alignment is one that they didnt like on monday, but one that they have accepted on friday. Is it common regulatory goals rather than exactly the same regulations . Yes. The only way the regulations could be changed would be by the approval of the executive which isnt sitting in Northern Ireland. It is game on in terms of cross border change. The dup might try to water that down to sex oral agreements when we come down to the detail of face sectorial agreements. Given that the conservatives are beholden to the dup in westminster. Notjust the Irish Government or the British Government, but also the dup believing that they can probably water that aspect of it down in phase two. There may be trouble ahead in terms of the detail. Give us ahead in terms of the detail. Give us your take, if you would, on the detail of how this might work. Theresa may is continuing to say there wont be a hard border, so given that until a feud is ago, there were a lot of sticky issues around, the question of the border and what sort of arrangements, technical or otherwise, might be devised to ensure that. How will all of this work in practice . In practice, it will mean that trading between the uk and ireland continues as normal because the uk will be aligned with the Customs Union, it will be aligned with the eu Single Market, so in terms of the standards of goods and the tariffs of goods, they werent applied to business between the uk and ireland. That still raises questions, what happens to goods coming into island from the rest of the European Union that head north or eased into the uk . Will they be a custom surveillance operation in respect of those goods, even though that would be a small amount of trade that exley takes place . There will also be the question of whether there should be sectorial agreements that the dup mightaim for sectorial agreements that the dup might aim for rather than a blanket full alignment, a turned the dup dont like. Frankly, this is taking the uk island business as usual arrangement, it has gone further than anyone dared to hope, so we are looking at a much brighter prospect than we were earlier this week. It is good news, in terms of the relationship between the uk and ireland. It doesnt solve all the questions by any means, but good news elsewhere in terms of the protection of irish Citizens Rights. They would be counted citizens of the European Union, more clarity than we do expect. In a moment a summary of the Business News this hour. But first, the headlines on bbc newsroom live. A breakthrough over brexit as the Prime Minister strikes a last this minute deal with the eu, to move talks on to the bbc understands britain will have to pay between 35 when it leaves the eu. In other news, nearly nearly 200,000 residents have been evacuated from their homes in california as wildfires continue to rage. In the Business News shortlived excitement the pound jumps on news of the brexit breakthrough and then falls back. And businesses say more clarity is needed on what this means for them and well be talking about this more in a moment. British airways says it will shut its defined benefit pension scheme. The airline, owned by International Airlines group, says it will launch a new Flexible Benefits Programme under which members can opt for cash instead of a pension. Ba says that it reached the decision in consultation with its trade unions and employees. 260 firms have been named by the government for failing to pay the minimum wage among them sports direct, primark and two recruitment agencies which supplied it with staff in total 16,000 workers were affected, and they are owed £1. 7 million in back pay. The deadlock over brexit has been broken. After talks with uk Prime Minister theresa may early this morning, the European Commission has announced that enough progress has been made on the terms of divorce to begin the second phase of negotiations. Earlier we spoke to the head of the organisation which represents industry here in the uk. Of course, the hard work starts now. That is developing an agreement for the long term relationship between the long term relationship between the us and the uk. In the meantime between the eu and the uk. Businesses can suspend any Contingency Planning and secondly, making sure that eu citizens go home this christmas knowing that they are welcome in the uk and can stay with the full welcome and support of the uk going forward. An unconditional assurance to eu citizens. That will make a big difference this christmas. Paul drechsler, president of the cbi there. Lets get more on this with stephen phipson, chief executive of the Manufacturers Association, the eef, he joins us live from westminster. Are you optimistic of the future of the brexit talks following this . We welcome what happened last night, we are very pleased to see that we are moving forward to the next stage, there has been a lot of uncertainty around this. We are certainly very pleased as well to hear and see assurances being given for eu nationals in the uk, that is an important point for uk manufacturers. To make those reassu ra nces manufacturers. To make those reassurances is very manufacturers. To make those reassurances is very important. There is a lot to do next. Come go on to what needs to be done . Varity. Clarity. Making sure there are no barriers to trade. The supplied trains between supply chains. Any barriers to that, anything we add two additional customs requirements bureaucracy, that would be damaging. We need to make sure it is keep that as clear as possible. Im not sure if it is within your purview to commenting on this, but do you think that no hard border in Northern Ireland means no hard border at dover . Again, the point is thatis border at dover . Again, the point is that is all to be negotiated, im sure. The really important point is to keep it as frictionless, to use that term, or at bureaucracy free as possible. Manufacturing operates in and just possible. Manufacturing operates in andjust in time possible. Manufacturing operates in and just in time basis. These deliveries back and forwards across the borders are timed down two minutes and anything that gets in the way of that will affect the performance of the manufacturers. Very briefly, your members, some of them i know have been thinking about contingency plans, moving their basis of two intercontinental movement. Do you think they will still hedge their bets . Contingency planning is. Youre running out of time. They will continue to make those plans and the further you get into that discussion about what those transitional points will be, the easier it will be for them to release those contingency plans. It will be vitally important for the Business Community and manufacturing in particular will be involved in those discussions with government to get those points and make sure that detail is right on the go forward. Another record for bit cloying, bitcoin. That he was up 70 this week alone. Is it a bubble . Put it this way, it was called a charging train with no brakes. Judge for yourself. Lego has won its first copyright case against counterfeit toys in china. Its the first time the Danish Company has won. Two chinese lego have established legally that its name and logo are well known trademarks in china. Uk manufacturing doing very well at the moment, output up. It is thanks to record car production. Britains factories knocked up the longest run in two decades. In october, it was up, butfairly in two decades. In october, it was up, but fairly flat. Even so, the longer term picture is one of strong growth. Quick look at the markets. The ftse is up, really responded to the pound at the moment. The ftse goesin the pound at the moment. The ftse goes ina the pound at the moment. The ftse goes in a different direction as the pound goes up, ftse goes down and vice versa, so as the pound fell back, the ftse started to rise again. Pad against euro pound against euro. Berkeley gfoup again. Pad against euro pound against euro. Berkeley group is sharply up. Sports direct up 2. 5 points. Two thirds of a percent. Thats all the Business News. The headlines are coming up on the bbc news channel. In a moment, we say goodbye to viewers on bbc two. First, we leave you with for a look at the weather. Lots to get through with simon king. There is a lot going on over the next few days. We have got the snow which has been falling this morning, across northern scotland through Northern Ireland and the isle of man into north wales, the midlands. 0ne of our weather watcher photographs from the midlands. Through the rest of this afternoon, snow and ice potentially causing some problems in these areas where you have the snow showers. By the end of the day, you will see five or ten, maybe more centimetres falling. In scotland, though snow showers will continue to work in. A strong northerly wind, brexit connacht lizard like temperatures. Blizzard like temperatures. Blizzard like temperatures. We could still see some snow showers perhaps falling out of the sky in the north east, but not likely to settle. Equally, South West England a few snow showers primarily over the moors. In wales, the west midlands, though snow showers continuing to pilate. The isle of man as well. More snow to come here. Is forming fairly quickly. Overnight, those snow showers continuing in the north and the west. For many, it will turn pretty cold, but he quickly and tomorrow morning it will be a widespread frost. Temperatures widely below freezing. Saturday, showers few and far between and across northern wales. The pennine region also. For most people, a dry day with some sunshine, but feeling cold, maximum temperature is 2 5d. Going into sunday, we could see is quite significant problems. We have got weather problems coming in. Rain bumps into the cold air that is in place and with that it will turn snow. The met office have issued an amber warning for potential disruption through tomorrow. Sorry, through sunday in the midlands into north wales and in two northern parts of england. A lot of snow potentially falling and settling and sticking around into sunday evening and even into monday morning. Stay tuned to the forecast if you are travelling anywhere around those areas on sunday. More details on the website, that is it from me. This is bbc news and these are the top stories developing at midday. A breakthrough over brexit as the Prime Minister strikes a last minute deal with the eu, to move talks on to the crucial next phase. It means no hard border in ireland. One of the Sticking Points agreed is the divorce bill the bbc understands its between 35 and 40 billion pounds although no final figure has been revealed. Leaked documents show the uk will remain a member of the eus Customs Union and Single Market, during any transition period after march 2019. Good afternoon. Its friday 8 december. Im anita mcveigh. Welcome to bbc newsroom live. A deal has been agreed in the brexit talks allowing the negotiations to move on to the next crucial stage on trade and transition. After a long night of phone diplomacy and an Early Morning dash to brussels, theresa may secured agreement with the irish Prime Minister and the democratic unionists whose objections on the issue of the irish border had prevented a deal being struck on monday. Some of the key agreements include the so called divorce bill, the amount the uk will pay to cover its obligations when it leaves, its worth between £35 39bn, the bbc understands. Eu citizens in the uk and uk citizens living within the eu will have their rights to live, work and study protected. And according to mrs may, there will be no hard border between Northern Ireland and the republic. My colleague david eades is in brussels following developments. Thank you very much. Politics can be dramatic stuff. The early hours agreements in the course of today going to show what can be done after a steely determination through the night to crack a deal. The essence of the deal being the situation in ireland and Northern Ireland and having to square that circle but of course much more than that at stake in terms of how the uk and eu could readily move on to this critical next phase. What will future trade relations actually come to look like, how will it be defined. Those discussions had not even started now at least that is the single signal that that can begin. For Jean Claude Juncker who has been very civil recently in terms of his treatment of theresa may, hes in a position today to talk about the possibility of moving ahead with renewed trust, determination and friendship after the level of compromise agreed here. The deal we have struck will guarantee the rights of more than three mil in eu citizens living in the uk and of1 million uk citizens living in the eu. Eu citizens will have their rights enshrined in uk law and e nforced rights enshrined in uk law and e nfo rce d by rights enshrined in uk law and enforced by british courts. They will be able to go on living their lives as before. Were a country that honours our obligations. After some tough conversations we have agreed a settlement which is fair to the british taxpayer. In future we will be able to invest more in our priorities are home such as housing, schools the nhs. That was theresa may talking about the critical three areas, eu Citizens Rights and uk Citizen Rights and laying out a clear platform. The irish question, if you like, the issue of the border and the third being about the divorce bill which is also being addressed. Let us run through those areas of concern as to where they stand now. The key Sticking Point about the divorce bill, the amount the uk will pay to cover its obligations when it leaves. We still do not have a precise figure, however, the bbc understands it will end up somewhere between 35 and £40 billion. That is 45 billion euros. Theresa may says she has reached a deal which is fair to the british taxpayer and Jean Claude Juncker said today pars result is a compromise. Theresa may was talking about eu citizens living in the uk. These rights will remain the same. Thirdly, the post Brexit Border between Northern Ireland and the republic of ireland. Britain has now guaranteed, there will be no ha rd now guaranteed, there will be no hard border. It will maintain what she called constitutional and economic integrity of the United Kingdom. Those are the critical areas that have now been deemed to have sufficient progress to allow the whole fees to move on to talk about trade relations in the future. ForJean Claude Juncker, this has been the key issue. Today pars result is of course a compromise. It is the result of a long and intense discussion between commission negotiators and those of the uk. As in any negotiation, both sides had to listen to each other. For the Irish Republic, another critical pa rt Irish Republic, another critical part of this bit of the jigsaw, no ha rd part of this bit of the jigsaw, no hard border was an absolute. It seems they are getting what they want. The Prime Minister, leo varadkar, spelling want. The Prime Minister, leo va radkar, spelling out want. The Prime Minister, leo varadkar, spelling out that he had got a satisfactory deal. Im satisfied that sufficient progress has now been made on the irish issues. The parameters have been set, and they are good. Now we can move on to work out the detail of what has been agreed, to talk about the transition phase, free trade, and the new relationship between the eu and the uk. This is not the end but it is the end of the beginning. We have not heard from the dup, the Democratic Unionist Party who hold theresa may in government at the moment with their relatively few votes. From their relatively few votes. From their point of view, critical for them to see whatever applies to the uk, applies to Northern Ireland. There can be no difference. We do not want any other arrangements just because we have a border with the Irish Republic. The word from belfast was, we wanted to carry on discussing this, that is more progress needs to be done but the message from theresa may was a clear one, we have enough know and we need to ta ke one, we have enough know and we need to take this the table, time is running out. I think it is fair to say that everyone recognises nothing is agreed until everything is agreed. It is even written into the text agreement as these issues are being laid out. There will be a long way to go but for now, it is an early Christmas Present in that everything to an extent remains on track. That is as critical in belfast as it is across the eu. 0ur ireland correspondent is in belfast now. The message from Arlene Foster was, we could have had more but they must be happy essentially with what they have led to go forward . must be happy essentially with what they have led to go forward . I think they have led to go forward . I think they are happy with the thrust of what is being done around the dup major concern which was they did not wa nt major concern which was they did not want anything which could create some kind of internal barrier within the United Kingdom, effectively a border down the idc. The dup have said that would not be good economically for Northern Ireland. Down the irish ce. It would be disastrous for the farming industry here. The dup the significant progress has been made but they have to guarantee there will not be any new barrier down the idc. They have not got everything they wanted. Irish sea. They cautioned the Prime Minister that some issues were unresolved. What they said ultimately it was the decision of the Prime Minister. They feel there will be a chance to work through issues they regard as outstanding, especially being aspect of regulatory alignment, who rules and regulations will matchup between the uk, the republic of ireland and the rest of the uk. How that will be discussed in parliament and in the next phase of negotiations which will discuss the trading relationship between the uk and the eu. In that his and the Irish Government agreed to this, the details of the new border arrangements will be figured out. Thank you very much indeed. It is a complex requirements. Reading through the text, there are areas raising concerns already among the interested party. But at least that isa interested party. But at least that is a deal in place to move forward. We will get more in a few minutes. We will get more in a few minutes. We will get more in a few minutes. We will speak to the irish deputy Prime Minister later in the programme. By the moment, from the chilly brussels, back to you in the studio. Thank you to david in brussels. Let us get more reaction. 0ur chief Political Correspondent vicki young is in westminster for us. The result was a temptation to talk about what is next, but first assess for us those key areas, the divorce bill, border question, the European Court ofjustice, all of these areas, how much progress has been made and how satisfied is the uk it has got the best deal includes . At this point they are just very relieved to be moving onto the next stage. If you think back to monday, that humiliation for theresa may, going to brussels and having to take a last minute call from the leader of the dup and scuttling the deal. She was in an incredibly vulnerable position politically at that point. Had we got to christmas and not enough progress had been made, we we re enough progress had been made, we were not talking about a transition deal, her position and the position of the government would have been extremely precarious so that is relief all round they have found these compromises. Of course it is all around compromise, not everyone is happy, the dup have made it clear they are not happy. Significantly 40s any, the fact she said to them, this is it, she has stood up to them. Significantly for theresa may. That is quite a positive thing. There will be issues regarding money for example, there will be many who still had the idea they are not happy that the uk has to pay anything at all. This 35 billion will be spread over a number of yea rs. At will be spread over a number of years. At the moment people are putting up with it and they have decided that the prize is a trade agreements. The sceptics are willing to put some of their concerns aside, regarding the European Court of justice. There will be a time limit to overseeing the rules for eu citizens living in the uk, they are willing to go ahead. Comments from people like michael gove have been telling, in their current support of theresa may. Can we see that our ha rd theresa may. Can we see that our hard brexit has been avoided, and no deal brexit has been avoided or is that premature . It is premature but that premature . It is premature but thatis that premature . It is premature but that is the feel of the argument. People were aghast that we were heading to the end of the year with no progress. All this time since the referendum and nothing has happened. People were worrying there could be no deals scenario. There were some in the conservative party who were saying, let us just drop out and carry on without any deal. But then it looks like a closer relationship with the European Union and our future relationship. This has not been dealt with by the cabinet, we do not know what theresa may thinks about the final destination. We are told they will discuss before christmas but that discussion has not yet been hard because there are very different diametrically opposed views even in the cabinet about where we go after this. That is something they have to deal with. The idea of a transition phase, most people think that is much more likely to happen. We get from leaked documents that Michel Barnier will remaina documents that Michel Barnier will remain a Customs Union during that two year period which is not what theresa may has been saying so all of these difficult questions have still to be resolved. We have got through the qualifying rounds through the qualifying rounds through to the major tournament there could be hiccups. More on that lea ked there could be hiccups. More on that leaked document, you mentioned the transition period and whether the uk would remain part of the Customs Union during that time, what else to those leaked guidelines suggest to us those leaked guidelines suggest to us about how this second phase might shape up . The idea is to have a transition phase which starts as soon as we leave so the end of march 2019, we go to a period of around two years. That is not what many on the brexit side of the argument talked about, they did not think it would be necessary, step some still think it is not. The idea is we have a trade agreement worked out by the time article 50 is over but that looks extremely unlikely and were looking at a transition phase of two years. Theresa may is saying it will look quite similar. 0thers say we will not be inside the Single Market and Customs Union. They say that will finish but that is not what this document from Michel Barnier implies. Of course this is the next part of the negotiation. From the Business World point of view, they should be quite pleased. We are looking at a transition period until 2021 which means they can adapt. Can the future relationship be jack wrapped up by that time is the big question . Thank you very much. More reaction coming into the deal overnight. This from the home secretary. coming into the deal overnight. This from the home secretary. I am delighted we have got through phase one, this is good progress. There will be more to do but it shows that under 20 is as leadership we have successful negotiations and can take forward this important step regarding our exit from the European Union. Under theresa mays leadership. The headlines on bbc newsroom live. A deal has been agreed over brexit allowing talks to take place on the second phase. No hard borderfor ireland. Another the bbc understands the cost will be between 35 to £40 billion although no final figure has been revealed. Leaked guidelines suggest the uk will remaina guidelines suggest the uk will remain a member of their Customs Union and Single Market during any transition period. Time to catch up with sport. Good afternoon. A number of new options for the premier league. 0ur Sports Correspondent said changes could be a risk. I still think, i may be a traditionalist but a lot of people will seek saturday evening viewing experience as a Family Experience when they might watch strictly for example or x factor. If you put one of these up against a manchester derby, maybe you would bring in a big audience but if it was up against for example a huddersfield match, with that be enough for a family to turn off strictly . And turn on the football. Now, the line up for the quarter finals at the uk snooker championship is complete but there was a big scare for the five time winner ronnie 0sullivan who needed a 6 frames to 5 win over thailands sunny akani a man 20 years hisjunior. At one stage akani was a single frame from victory but 0sullivan fought back, rather fortunately saying he felt like hed robbed his opponent. 0sulivan plays martin gould for a semi final place this afternoon. He put up a great performance. His first time out there. He played a lot better than i did really, he probably deserved to win. I got very lucky tonight. I am kind of relieved to win but i have to improve on that to win but i have to improve on that to have any chance of winning another match. That is all the spot by no, you can followed the bobsleigh and skeleton world cup, Lizzy Yarnold in action on the bbc sport website. Thank you very much. Theres heavy security injerusalem after palestinians angered by americas recognition of the city as the capital of israel called for a day of rage 00v around 30 demonstrators were injured in clashes with Israeli Forces in the west bank yesterday. It has been billed by palestinians asa it has been billed by palestinians as a day of rage. In the west bank city of bethlehem, clashes have already adopted, Israeli Soldiers firing tear gas and palestinian youths throwing rocks. So far the violence has been on a relatively small scale, the question is whether it will escalate. Around jerusalems old city, Israeli Security has been ramped up. Palestinians gathered for friday prayers. There are fears once they are over, there could be more clashes. Extra units, border police, special Patrol Police will respond on the outskirts to any major incidents or illegal processes. How heavily israel responds could determine how these protests gather momentum. 0r palestinians, integrating jerusalem the israeli capital, donald trump has crossed the line. Translation when the american president makes this kind of decision,. He is also pushing the region towards violence. Jerusalem belongs to all muslims, it is in the hearts of all muslims all over the world, it does not belong to President Trump and the dues. That was not the message the president was giving tonight at the white house. I know for a fact there are a lot of happy people in the shrimp. As he celebrated the jewish holiday of heineken cup one week early. In this room. He knows with his intervention, he has come beading gifts. We wish you a very happy chanukah. We know this one will go down as especially special. If violence escalates further, a decision the president was mike supporters regard as bold will be seen by many as reckless. The president s supporters. Live tojerusalem and our middle east correspondent, tom bateman. Will the protests gather momentum, what are you hearing . The old city ofjerusalem behind me, prayers took place and we waited to see what happened as people came out of the gates of the old city right in front of us. That is a flash point when protests are planned. At this gate, people simply walked away. One of the other gates, hundreds of people gathered and there were minor confrontations with police. As far as this part ofjerusalem is concerned, at the moment things have been relatively calm. Further afield in the occupied west bank, there have been more serious clashes. In bethlehem, police fired tear gas. Tyres have been thrown by protesters and rocks. There have been flash points in hebron and ramallah, there have been further clashes. In gazza, thousands of palestinians have been marching in gaza city and in refugee camps. Compared to, looking back to a recent crisis in the summer when there was a crisis over access allegiance to one of the holy sites, we saw more serious clashes more quickly quickly injerusalem and around the old city. The police are bracing themselves for what is described as a day of rage. It is still early days but so far things have not reached the level they did in the summer. As you speak, we are looking at live pictures of bethlehem. The Russian Foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, today reported on a conversation he had with the us secretary of state yesterday. He said Rex Tillerson hinted to them that the United States is hoping to make, the deal of the century, to solve the Israeli Palestinian problem. We would like to understand what this looks like, he said. If you hope to make this deal of this century, recognising the israeli capital ofjerusalem seems to be a strange way to go about it . Yes, it is a curious quote. We know that Sergei Lavrov and Rex Tillerson are meeting earlier this week. The reaction to the declaration by mr trump, this is a puzzling position for a Rex Tillerson to see quickly they are effectively clearly with our belief they can bring palestinians and israelis, he continued to say they can do that deal in a stroke. Solve the century old conflict in that way. It also comes at a time which adds to the puzzlement because we expect in the next ten days or so, mike pence, the us Vice President to come to the region. He is scheduled to have a meeting in the west bank with the president of the west bank, Mahmoud Abbas. A Senior West Bank officials said yesterday that mike pence was not welcome in palestine. As far as pence was not welcome in palestine. As farasi pence was not welcome in palestine. As far as i know, the palestinian leadership has not made his decision about whether the meeting will go ahead. It gives you a clear demonstration of the focus put on the palestinians. Do they met the american Vice President in the west bank on zero . 0ne spokesman said this puts them in a difficult political speeds because if they are to have serious demonstrations against the visit, they would have to, in his words, risk setting the palestinian authorities against their own people. Thank you very much. Let us return to brussels about the brexiter breakthrough. Thank you very much. So much of this breakthrough coming because there is and understanding between the republic of ireland and the British Government about how to manage on the island of ireland once brexit click send. We are joined by the deputy Prime Minister of the Irish Republic. Thank you forjoining us. It sounds as if you are happy with what you have ended up but here . Yes, we are happy. This has been a difficult negotiation over the last number of weeks, we have been working with the British Government to get the wording they were happy with and also irish people would be happy with. We have said for many months now that before we move on to talk about trade negotiations and future relationships, we needed to give people more reassured and is, especially on the border issues in ireland. We cannot see as an unintended consequence of brexit, the re emergence of a hard border which involves stopping traffic on the island of ireland, that would ta ke the island of ireland, that would take the Peace Process, Community Relations in the north and south back many years. Everyone wanted to avoid that but the last number in weeks, the view that some have had was just move this process interface do and resolve those issues then we may get a trade agreement. We wanted to have assurances. May get a trade agreement. We wanted to have assurances. There is a bit of delay on the line, apologies for interrupting but we have to move to the nitty gritty, people are wondering how that is actually going to work, how you avoid hard border at every turn . Do you see clarity there are . Yes. It is very clear, in black and white in the text agreed today that if we do not have a negotiated solution in terms of the new trade partnership that resolves theissueis new trade partnership that resolves the issue is in ireland to avoid a border, that is the default, backstop which has been committed to by the eu and the British Government that we will maintain full alignment in ireland, north and south, with the rules of the Single Market and Customs Union so that we will avoid the need for any checks or a border infrastructure. That backstop now is an insurance mechanism. We can now say to people regardless of how these negotiations go and how complicated br, if we do not have an agreed solution better than that backstop then that will apply. That will allow for the all ireland economy to continue to function so that we have the kind of seamless trade that goes on today across that border which is largely invisible on the island of ireland and which has been a positive by product of the Peace Process between north and south. We heard the taoiseach earlier see he was given assurances that your government would not be exploiting brexit to move towards a united ireland. Would you acknowledge those concerns which have come from many unionists, they area sign have come from many unionists, they are a sign of understandable anxiety . Yes. I would acknowledge that. That is why the change in this documents from the start of the leak to the end of the week involves a new paragraph which also gives a very strong British Government commitment to ensuring that there will be no new barriers to trade between Northern Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom because we absolutely accept that Northern Ireland as part of the United Kingdom. We are not looking to challenge that. The mechanisms for making those decisions are very clear in the good friday agreement. That is no dispute there. We simply wa nt to that is no dispute there. We simply want to maintain what we have today on the island of ireland which is a normalised relationship, north and south, and east and west. I hope that new text will reassure unionists and businesses that are treading between Northern Ireland and the of britain, that actually there will be nothing to prevent that trade in the future or barriers to that trade in the future and i think that is a very positive addition to the text to ensure nobody sees this as some kind of drift apart involving Northern Ireland and the rest of the latest kingdom because that is not what it is meant to be. We are simply trying to protect what is important on the island of ireland but do nothing to create new barriers on the irish sea and between Northern Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom. The Unionist Community a nationalist communities will be reassured by that today. As you go breath for a moment in the brexit situations, how do you feel that you have got your way and the British Government have got to say that we have got to give you what they want. I dont think that the British Government should see it that way. It is good for britain, too. We need North South Co operation in the ireland of ireland. It is good for britain that the Peace Process is protected, that peace funding is protected, that the common travel area between ireland and britain is protected. All of those things are agreed any text that was signed off on this morning. It is good for ireland, britain and the relationship. Have to stop you. Thank you very much for your time. 0na thank you very much for your time. On a critical issue and a critical day in terms of negotiations. Time for the weather. You could say that, and neater. Good afternoon, a real west east split with that weather. Recent areas dry and cold, but sunny. A real cluster of snow showers through scotland. Northern ireland stretching down through wales and the north midlands. Pretty much what you got at the moment is what you will keep overnight. Although the showers should start to become a little lighter and fewer in nature. Will be a cold start to saturday morning, a ha rd a cold start to saturday morning, a hard frost and icy stretch on the road. The threat of its no shower. Snow showers chiefly into the north of scotla nd snow showers chiefly into the north of scotland and running down into the cheshire gap. A little bit more sunshine coming through, but bitterly cold. Top temperatures 0 5 degrees. 0n bitterly cold. Top temperatures 0 5 degrees. On sunday, things will pretty interesting. This weather front will bump into the cold air, it will cause some disruptive significant snow. So much snow that the met office has issued an amber weather warning. North wales, the north of england and the midlands. Be prepared for some disruption. This is bbc newsroom live, our latest headlines theresa may has said a deal struck with the European Union, which paves the way for brexit talks to move on to trade, is in the best interests of the whole of the uk. The bbc understands britain will have to pay between £35 and £40 billion when it leaves the eu. Getting to this point has required give and take from both sides and i believe that the joint report being published is in the best interest of the whole of the uk. A number of new wildfires have started in southern california, stretching firefighters to the limit. 200,000 people have been evacuated from their homes and a state of emergency has been declared. Snow, ice and windy conditions are sweeping across large parts of the uk. Yellow be aware weather warnings have been issued in some areas with up to eight inches of snow expected. We have just had some we havejust had some reaction we have just had some reaction from the labour Leaderjeremy Corbyn to the labour Leaderjeremy Corbyn to the Brexit Agreement. He is speaking in geneva at the moment and he says that britains future relationship with europe should be based on solidarity, Mutual Benefit and fair trade and on proactive he is speaking as i talk to you. If there is any further response, i will bring you those later on. A lot of people have been reacting to news of the agreement that allows us to move onto the second phase negotiations, crucially entree. 0ur chief Political Correspondent vicki young is in westminsterfor us. Yes, compared to a few days ago on monday when theresa may had that humiliating experience going to brussels having a last minute call from the leader of the dup and coming back to the United Kingdom without any deal at all, this is obviously a much more positive outcome for theresa may, despite the long night, she didnt get much sleep. She got on a plane very early and headed off to brussels. This was and headed off to brussels. This was a very good step forward for her. A precarious position at the start of the week, if you didnt move onto the week, if you didnt move onto the next age, that would have brought all sort of problems for her from all directions. Today, it seems that the leading brexit supporters are onside, not everyone is happy, there will be some concerned mps who believe that we are paying too much, not paying a penny to you. For now, people like michael gove are onside. There is scope for people to carp and be cynical, but this is a significant achievement because it means that the rights of eu citizens are protected in the uk, the rights of uk citizens are protected in the eu. Nobody will be out of pocket because of our departure, but there will be more money for us. We can also get onto talking about the free trade deal. A significant step forward and one that i think the overwhelming majority of people will welcome. That is better than some of the. 100 billion euros being demanded, looks like it will be a lot less than that. The British Government will say that they might even be able to get the rebate on some of this money, so they will be happy about that. The role of the European Court ofjustice, a real problem for many on the conservative side, people in ukip and the rest of it, their influence will continue for up to eight years over the rights of eu citizens and people like my taute one are not happy about that. People like farage. What an extraordinary situation. A british Prime Minister has to fly through the middle of the night to go and meet three unelected people who condescendingly say well jolly well done, may, youve met every single youve met every single one of our demands. Thank you very much. We can now move on to the next stage. I mean, the whole things humiliating. Weve collapsed at every level. And to allow, the European Court ofjustice to have jurisdiction over this country, for nearly a decade to come is not what people voted for. People on the other side, they are pleased because they think they can at least now talk about the future. They were very concerned about a no deals and aria, many in the conservative party saying that if we do not move on soon, we should just walk away have no deal and get on with it on our own. That now for the time being at least looks less likely, so they are much happier about all of that. This is what the labour party has to say. Its good that the talks can now move on, i hope we can avoid the chaos that weve had this week and over recent months as we go forward. We have to remember that this is the point we had hoped to get to two months ago. What the Prime Minister needs to do is to focus on transitional measures immediately, that work should have started in october, it now needs to start straightaway. That is the next step, this possible two year interim period. What will that look like for the Business Community, particularly, that is important. We will then get onto the end stage, what is the final vision this government has for this future of the relationship on going for decades with the European Union . That crucially has not been resolved, the cabinet has not discussed it. They will do by christmas, we are told, but that is when the Big Questions will need to be answered. So now brexit talks can move onto the crucial subject of trade. What does this mean for uk companies trying to plan for brexit . Im joined by our Business Correspondent jamie robertson. We havent even started on the key pa rt we havent even started on the key part of what businesses want to know, but what has been reaction been to the fact that at least the European Union and the government have got to this point . Talking to the Manufacturers Association this morning, des, they were saying that you have got to remember that what youre looking for in the months ahead is trying to get to a frictionless border. Echoes of the way the manufacturers are so integrated into the supply chains within the european continent, supplies go backwards and forwards across the channel, they need to have. It is not to do necessarily with tariffs and the amount of taxes that are charged, its a lot more to do with the speed and the fluency with which those things go across the border. Generally speaking, the reception that we got from the cbi was generally favourable. I will play this clip of the president of the cbi. He was generally in favour. Now the hard work starts. That is developing an agreement for the long term relationship between the eee and the uk. Long term relationship between the eee and the uk. Eu. Long term relationship between the eee and the uk. Eu. Bringing great clarity to the transition so that businesses can suspend any Contingency Planning. Secondly, we can ensure that the ee use systems go home this christmas confident that they can stay with the full support going forward. Unconditional assurance to eu citizens will i think make a big difference this christmas. Businesses in the uk, outside of Northern Ireland, they are looking at what is being talked about for Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic and no hard water there. How is that informing what they are inking no hard border. How they are thinking about how they think about over . No hard border in ireland might mean no hard border in dover, absolutely. It seems to be some way away where we will be able to forge our own trade steals away from the European Union. At some point, say if we do a trade deal of free trade deal with america or any other country, we would say chicken, that comes in belfast. Taking 1000 cheap chickens which are all washed in chlorine. That would be basically illegal to sell in the Irish Republic or anywhere in the European Union, but there is no border or something there to ship it down south and sell cheap chicken. Really difficult phrase for you to set yourself up for. Once you start to change regulations, or if europe changed its regulations, how do you get the two sides to actually continue to trade together and to trade to other countries, as well . You get into multidimensional chess arranging for different relationships between yourselves, other countries and the European Union, European Union and those other countries. It becomes very, catered. Multidimensional chess and cheap chickens, it is mind boggling. The european president john claude jonker said that both sides had agreed that citizens living in the uk from the European Union and vice ve rsa uk from the European Union and vice versa would remain after brexit. Uk from the European Union and vice versa would remain after brexitm would guarantee the rights of more than3 would guarantee the rights of more than 3 million ee uses and is living in the uk and 1 million uk citizens living in the eu. The citizens living in the eu. The citizens living in the uk will have bell writes enshrined in uk law will have their rights. They will be able to go on living their lives as before. The cochairman of the group of3 before. The cochairman of the group of 3 million was set up to focus on the 3 million European Union members living in the United Kingdom. What is your reaction to what you have heard . It is going to be a relief for eu citizens living in the uk that now their certainty on what is going to happen to us. But when you see the reaction on forums, people are still worried and they are still worried because at the moment we have come here for another member state, we work here with families, in the future we will all have to apply for the home office to stay. That is conditional. If we fail that process , we that is conditional. If we fail that process, we have to leave or we will be deported. I am not saying that millions will be deported, but there will be deportation and people are worried about this. Is that the key concern that you are seeing on forums . At the moment, yes. The British State hasnt helped itself because of the hostile environment and over the First Six Months of 2017, there was over 5000 deportations of eu citizens. With a more strict regime, there is a huge worry. I have been speaking to the people in their 80s or 70s, they have been here 15 years and they really dont understand why they need to apply to the home office. We would like to see more reassurances from the home office that some people who apply, they should qualify automatically. Same for people who have been here a long time and have been given indefinitely to remain. Does the ability to refer to the European Court ofjustice, ability to refer to the European Court of justice, although ability to refer to the European Court ofjustice, although a spokesperson of theresa may saying that the government anticipates only two or three Citizens Rights cases per year from two or three Citizens Rights cases per yearfrom britain two or three Citizens Rights cases per year from britain would two or three Citizens Rights cases per yearfrom britain would be referred to the ecj, but does the ability for that to happen offer you any reassurance . I think it is good because it means that if a uk judge has a question and needs an interpretation of the european law because a status will be based on european law, they can ask the eec j. I european law, they can ask the eec j. Ithink european law, they can ask the eec j. I think it european law, they can ask the eec j. I think it is a shame that the ecj has been politicised because really it is just an instrument for ukjudges to really it is just an instrument for uk judges to ask questions, it is a reference caught, so when i hear Michael Farage talking about a court that has british laws, that is not true. I think it is good that the ecj will have a simpler role. If it is just ecj will have a simpler role. If it isjust for a judge to ecj will have a simpler role. If it is just for a judge to ask the ecj questions for eight years, why not ten years, 18 years or indeed the remaining time of my life . Good to get your view survey, thank you. The headlines on bbc newsroom live theresa may has said a deal struck with the European Union, which paves the way for brexit talks to move on to trade, is in the best interests of the whole of the uk. The bbc understands britain will have to pay between £35 and £40 billion when it leaves the eu. Leaked guidelines show that the new cable remain in the customs market during any transition period. The Health Secretary says the nhs in england must be better at dealing with Mental Health crisis cases. Jeremy hunt was speaking to the bbcs newsbeat about their recent documentary which follows four radio 1 listeners. Mr hunt admits theres a bottleneck in parts of the country for Mental Health beds. Newsbeats Political Editor jim connolly reports for becks, simple tasks can be a challenge. That is turned off, that is turned off. Her obsessive compulsive disorder and anxiety sometimes means she finds it ha rd to leave anxiety sometimes means she finds it hard to leave her home. However, it is some of her other Mental Health conditions that have led to suicidal thoughts. I took a story to the Health Secretary. Every time i meet people like becks, im reminded that we may have made progress, but there isa we may have made progress, but there is a whole lot more that we need to do. Once worried she told us was shocking. One particular story she told us. This is one incident that has caused a particular distress. I felt suicidal and impossibly dangerous. So they were like we cant give you the medication because it would have to be seen by a doctor, there were no doctors at that time, i got home at three in the morning and two days later i had a bad panic attack. Back to this clinic, they try to admit me again, but there were no beds. The thing she talks about there, there we re thing she talks about there, there were some positives and some negatives. Positive is that she did have a crisis team at her local hospital. Those of only started in the last three years. Compared to the last three years. Compared to the scale of what we want to do, which is to be much better at being there for people going through the agony that becks is going through, there is a long way to go. While government plans was praised early this week for trying to spot the early signs of depression for children, what they didnt do was the early signs that people tell us about. That is that services are simply overstretched. Labour says funding has been cut to plug shortfalls in other parts of the nhs. Services in this area it are patchy now means that for people like becks, it means hugely that its dependent on where they live in the country. Coventry has been chosen as the uk city of culture for 2021. It beat submissions from paisley, stoke on trent, sunderland and swansea to win the title. The bid team said their plans were about changing the reputation of a city as well as hosting a year of cultural celebration. Hello and welcome to the herbert art gallery and museum right in the centre of coventry. You are looking at Coventry Culture old and new in the same shot. These are ascension. There are a dance troupe based in the city. Behind them, the ribbons that were such a crucial part of coventrys industry in the 1840s. Come over here, this is George Eliots writing desk. The writer of middlemarch was based on the city in the 1840s. It said that that book is based upon her time in coventry. Lets meet laura and emma who were the team behind the bid. You were up there in hull last night, youve actually brought the envelope down to try and donate it to the museum, its so important to you. Why did coventry win the city of culture . Coventry one city of culture because of our youth. We are a city thats seven years younger because of our diversity, we are an amazingly multicultural city and because of the scale of what we can deliver. Theres 40 Million People within two hours of the city and we cant wait for them to descend on the city. You mention the average age of coventry, 33. Nationally, it is 40. Who is going to be paying for your Year Long Programme . The city council have been absolutely integral, but we have also got an amazing private sector in coventry. We have got many businesses backing the bid, so as we go into delivery, we only hope that will grow. Now you are programme coordinator, youre going to be putting on the events. 365 days, unless it is a leap year. I havent checked that. What is going to be going on in coventry . A few other things were going be starting on straightaway are our streets of culture celebration and our ring road poem. Were going to be 21 communities across the city and have world renowned artists working with those communities to create their own street festivals. Were going to take our iconic ring road and do a 2. 2 mile long poem. Etched, projected and painted the whole way around it. 2. 5 mile poem . Yes. Thats what were going to do. Thats pretty big. What would Philip Larkin who was born in the city have made of that . Im sure he would love it. How confident are you that you can pull this off . Incredibly confident. Weve have a transformative bidding period and without the support of the city behind is, the community, the universities and other businesses, it wouldve been very hard. They were there with us in hull yesterday and were ready to deliver. Thank you very much. Those have a quick word with aj and ben. I almost caught the mid move, you almost took me out there. Guys, you are a dance troupe based in the city. Coventry getting the title of city of culture, what did mean to someone like you . It means so much to me, to aj and for ascension as well. Firstly, weve been born in coventry, been here for 27 years. Its been a part of my life, its made me who i am today if i was without coventry, i wouldnt be where i am today. Aj sounds absolutely exhausted. Most try and ask a question. What i was thinking was when you see that coventry has got this title, people who are finishing University Courses could be less likely to leave the city. Youre knackered. Im knackered. But honestly it means so much, were so passion about helping and getting young people to leave university, college, school. In 2021, they will be the ones making companies and starting their own ventures and sharing the word. Coventry now is that the centre and the hub and the nucleus of where creativity is going to come from and all those young people are going to be inspired by. It means so much. I cant speak we are going to be finding out a lot more about coventry in the next four years. In 2021, the year it is the city of culture. Firefighers spent an hour freeing an internet prankster who cemented his head inside a microwave oven at a house in wolverhampton. Friends managed to feed an air tube into the 22 year olds mouth to help him breathe. Theyd poured ready mixed cement around his head, protected by a plastic bag, to try to form a mould. The oven wasnt plugged in. West Midlands Fire Service as the caller might have prevented them from helping someone else and genuine accidental need. In a moment the news at one with jane hill. First the weather. Good afternoon. There has been a real west east dividing our weather today. 0ut real west east dividing our weather today. Out of the west, a wintry flavour as you can see from this picture. So the snow showers frequent and heavier may have caused some disruption. Blowing in by strong, gusty winds across scotland, Northern Ireland, down across the irish sea into the north midlands and part of wales. We have seen up to 11 centimetres snow seen so far across parts of Northern Ireland. By contrast, further east, you are wondering what all the fuss is about. You can see here that it is a beautiful afternoon in wakefield. Bitterly cold, but lots of sunshine. What you got in the day is what you will keep into the early evening rush hour. Risk of snow through the midlands, wales, stretching up into the isle of man. A rash of snow showers, perhaps not as frequent as they have been into Northern Ireland, plenty of snow showers across the north and west facing coasts of scotland as well. That is going to add to those snow depth totals. Going through the evening, snow showers will continue, but the winds were gradually fall any showers will ease off a little as we go through the night. It is going be a cold night a frosty start. With any showers, it could be some icy stretches first thing on the right. Bitterly cold night on saturday, but a slightly quieter day. Showers are little more isolated i suspect on saturday. The risk of some snow showers to come, it will be a cold day, temperatures barely above freezing. We are still under this influence of cold air spilling down from the arctic. All the time, mild, moist air is trying to push in from the atlantic. This weather front is the atlantic. This weather front is the dividing line and when it bumps into that cold air on the leading edge, there is the potential during the early hours of sunday morning for some significant disruptive snow. The met office is issuing an amber weather warning, be prepared for some disruption across north wales, north of england and the midlands. We are going to see the potential for 10 20 centimetres of snow falls that system pushes its way across the pennines and the north york moors. Mother and letter from the south, cold and dry to them all. A breakthrough over Brexit Britain and the eu reach a last minute deal to move talks on to the next phase. After a night of intense negotiations, theresa may flew to brussels early this morning to finalise the agreement. Getting to this point has required give and take on both sides. And i believe that the joint report, being published, is in the best interests of the whole of the uk. The president of the European Commission said enough progress had been made to move discussions onto trade. I believe we have now the break through we need. To this result today, it is of course, a compromise. Therell be no hard border with ireland and its thought britains divorce bill will be between £35 and £40 billion