And crazy things can come true thats the verdict of american Billionaire Elon Musk after the successful launch of his rocket falcon heavy. He says its a game changer for space travel. And coming up in the sport on bbc news Glenn Maxwells century takes australia to victory over england in the t20 tri series match in hobart. The aussies win by five wickets. Good afternoon and welcome to the news at one. Two of the victims of the black cab rapist, john worboys, have been given the go ahead for a high Court Challenge against the decision to release him from prison. Worboys appeared in person at the hearing, at the high court in london. Last month, the parole board was criticised when it announced he would be freed after less than ten years in prison. Police believe he may have carried out more than 100 rapes and sexual assaults. Today the judge ordered that he be brought from his cell to the court though his victims were not expecting him to see him there. Our home affairs correspondent, daniel sandford, is at the high court. Yes, in the last ten minutes judges have given permission for a legal challenge to releasejohn worboys after ten yea rs challenge to releasejohn worboys after ten years in prison. It was a decision by the parole board that was hugely controversial. Driven into the royal courts of justice in a high security van, the black cab Rapistjohn Worboys was left to the cells in handcuffs by four prison officers as his victims started their legal battle to prevent his release from prison. Worboys was convicted in 2009 of one rape, four sexual assaults, one attempted sexual assault, one assault by penetration and 12 offences of drugging his victims. A london black cab driver, he is suspected of assaulting around 100 female passengers. In the courtroom, hes at in the dock. The judge apologised if any victims present we re apologised if any victims present were upset by him being there in person. 0ne victim explained this morning that she had never expected him to be released. When we were told it was an indefinite sentence, it was, well, justice has been served. He is serving a life sentence now. That was the way it was put across to us. So we never thought for one second that he would be eligible for parole. In court, philip kaufmann, qc for two of his victims, said it appears something has gone very wrong with the parole boards reasoning. And she condemned the blanket secrecy as she called it. We cant challenge the decision until we know the reasons for it. And we have to make an assessment as to whether that reasoning is within the bounds of a reasonable parole board or whether its unreasonable or has failed to take into account its unreasonable or has failed to ta ke into accou nt releva nt considerations. John worboys, who devised a kit for drugging and assaulting his victims in his taxi, didnt have a lawyer at the start of the hearing, but was able to talk to one halfway through. A key decision today was whether or notjohn worboys would give permission for those challenging the decision to free him to see the reasons why the decision had been made to release him. John worboys was asked in person by sir Brian Leveson whether he gets that permission, and john worboys said yes, he was happy that the interested parties could see the reason given for why he was going to be released. So that obstacle has been dealt with, the obstacle of disclosure. The next thing that had to be dealt with was whether or not he remains in prison until this court further considers the case in five weeks time. It has been agreed that for now, john worboys will stay in prison. Daniel, thank you for a much. Tesco are facing a possible bill of up to £4 billion after britains biggest ever equal pay claim. Lawyers say women who work in the companys stores earn less than men employed in its warehouses, even though the work is comparable. Up to 200,000 women could be entitled to back pay if the legal challenge is successful. The supermarket says all its staff are paid fairly, whatever their gender. 0ur economics editor kamal ahmed reports. Tesco hasjoined a long list of organisations facing controversy over equal pay. Among retailers, asda and sainsburys are facing similar legal battles. Birmingham city council has already agreed to over £1 billion worth of payments for women cleaners and carers. And the bbc has been accused of not paying men and women equally. Tesco is one of the countrys largest employers and is now facing a series of test cases which could lead to the largest equal pay claim in employment history. Lawyers acting for tesco supermarket workers said that female staff on hourly rates earn considerably less than men, even though the value of the work is comparable. Kim ellerman and pamjenkins have worked for tesco for more than 20 years. I think that although we think we have equal rights, there are times where there are such discrepancies that you cannot explain them. And i think tescos are just one of Many Companies that really are not addressing the fact that women seem to still be paid less. Obviously, the jobs are slightly different but to put it bluntly, they are of equal value. You know, we deal with customers, they dont have to deal with customers. But, you know, we take the stock and we load the stock. They load it off the lorry and we load it onto the shelves. Tesco said that all their staff could progress equally and were paid fairly whatever their gender or background. In a statement, the supermarket said we are unable to comment on the claim that we have not received. Tesco has always been a place for people to get on in their career regardless of their gender, background or education and we work hard to make sure all our colleagues are paid fairly and equally for the jobs they do. Birmingham city council has already been forced by the courts to pay cleaners and cooks, jobs mostly done by women, the same rate as bin collectors and street cleaners. And street cleaners, jobs mostly done by men. Businesses know there could be major costs ahead. The law has been there since 1984 that you can compare with a differentjob. Thats 34 years to get your house in order. So thats 34 years of having the advantage of paying unequally and 34 years of you making pay decisions and financial Strategic Decisions and 34 years where you have chosen to walk around what is hiding in open sight. This is the start of a long legal battle, tesco just the latest business to be caught up in a fight over equal pay. Kamal ahmed, bbc news. One of the killers of the toddler, james bulger, has beenjailed for 40 months after pleading guilty to having indecent images of children for a second time. Jon venables, who served eight years for the murder in 1993, was recalled to prison last year for breaching the terms of his licence. 0ur correspondent, richard galpin, is at the old bailey. Richard. Yes, jon venables was speaking from custody to the court via a video link. He pleaded guilty to three cou nts link. He pleaded guilty to three counts of having indecent pictures of children. More than 1000 pictures we re of children. More than 1000 pictures were found. Some of them were videos. And they showed children aged between six and 13, although some were younger. Venables also pleaded guilty to a fourth count of possession of a paedophile manual which was found on his laptop, giving advice on abusing children sexually. The prosecutor described this document as disgusting and sickening. His defence lawyer said that venables accepted that he had downloaded indecent images for his personal use, and he had used the dark web to get hold of the material. Venables accepted the utter wrongness and abuse involved in having these pictures. There was no evidence that he had had abusive contact with children. Venables said he needs help to understand his actions. When he was initially arrested by the police in november last year, he said it was my own fault. I have let people down again. Sentencing him, thejudge described venables as manipulative, persistent and dishonest. Richard galpin, thank you. Theresa may is meeting senior ministers at downing street this afternoon to try to agree the governments approach to the next stage of the brexit negotiations. It comes amid tensions between downing street and some conservative mps over britains future relationship with the eu. And theres pressure on the Prime Minister too from business leaders. The british chambers of commerce are demanding more clarity about the governments brexit plans. Alex forsyth reports. The Prime Minister is fast approaching crunch time. Her government must decide what brexit will really mean. Its notjust brussels, but mps and businesses too who want to know in which direction the country is heading. Small businesses and large firms need greater clarity from the government about how its going to approach the upcoming negotiations. Businesses are trying to plan. They are thinking about investment and they are having a hard time drawing conclusions from the current picture. Questions to the Prime Minister. She says a transition period will give businesses certainty. Beyond that, the government wants frictionless trade, all subject of course to negotiations. We will be robust in oui negotiations. We will be robust in our arguments, negotiations. We will be robust in oui arguments, as negotiations. We will be robust in our arguments, as i have said from the beginning. We will hear noises off and all sorts of things being said about positions that are being taken. What matters is the position we ta ke taken. What matters is the position we take in the negotiations as we negotiate the best deal. But ministers meeting here today and tomorrow are under pressure to flesh out what exactly they want. Not easy to agree for a party that is divided. I wished downing street spokesmen would shut up sometimes. They put out completely meaningless statements. Apparently, its going to be frictionless and we are happy to be frictionless and we are happy to have a customs arrangement. Yet we are not going in a Customs Union and we are not going in the Single Market. That is completely contradictory. I am sure people will always be disappointed whatever deal is struck, because there are differences. But if we End Free Movement and we have our own laws in our own country, if we succeed in that, the differences dont really matter. With such different views on how close the uk should remain to the eu, theresa may is unlikely to please everybody. Perhaps the best she can hope for is a compromise which keeps most of her party onside. So for now, the debate rages and the demand for detail grows. And thats before formal trade talks with brussels even start. Alex forsyth, bbc news, westminster. Meanwhile, it emerged that the uk is planning a schmuck the eu is planning a schmuck the eu is planning a schmuck the eu is planning a mechanism of sanctions. Well, as weve been hearing, its emerged that the European Union is planning a mechanism of sanctions to punish the uk for any breaches of the post brexit transition. Lets talk to our correspondent, adam fleming, in strasbourg. Yes, this appears in this document which was published today by the European Commission, which is a first draft of some possible legal text about the transition period that could end up in the withdrawal agreement, the final brexit treaty. 0ne agreement, the final brexit treaty. One of the footnotes says yes, we need to consider this mechanism whereby if the uk isjudged to have broken the rules by the eu during the transition period, the eu could shut off access to elements of the Single Market as a result. 0ne shut off access to elements of the Single Market as a result. One of Michel Barniers advisers has been tweeting, say this is the sort of close the eu puts in any trade agreement. It is perfectly normal. It is important to be clear what this document is. Its a first draft from the European Commission. It has not been signed off yet by the other 27 Member States of the eu, the states that are staying in. And there are some intriguing differences. 0ne diplomat said this is what you need when there is not most trust between the two sides. Another diplomat said the European Commission has gone too far and been too undiplomatic in this case. So it will be interesting to see if this document changes at all on friday, when the Member States meet to discuss it. The brits say it doesnt include anything that they are negotiating about the transition period, and those negotiations started in brussels this week. So it could change because of that. In the meantime here at the European Parliament in strasbourg, they are grappling with the practical realities of brexit. They have just voted on what to do with the 73 uk meps seats after brexit. 27 of them will be given to other countries, the rest saved for the future. Adam, many thanks. The chief constable of Police Scotland has resigned. Phil gormley had been on special leave since october amid a series of investigations into claims of gross misconduct. He denies any wrongdoing. Lets speak to our scotland editor, sarah smith, in glasgow. Why has he done now . Well, he says its impossible for him to resume his duties in any meaningful way. Phil gormley has not been at work since he was put on special leave six months ago over allegations of bullying. During that time, further complaints have been made against him, seven in all. Although i understand now that he has resigned, those investigations will be closed. He was cleared to return to work in november, but then that decision was reversed when thejustice secretary got involved, because he was worried that inadequate safeguards have been put in place to protect the serving Police Officers who had made these complaints against the chief co nsta ble. Complaints against the chief constable. In a statement today, mr gormley referred to that decision when he said events since november have led me to the conclusion that it is impossible for me to resume my duties in any meaningful way. Police scotland is the second Largest Force in the uk the metropolitan police, and it has had a troubled history. The last chief co nsta ble a troubled history. The last chief constable left early after a number of controversies about policing methods. The assistant chief co nsta ble methods. The assistant chief constable is currently suspended and another investigation is going on into his behaviour. So this is a force that certainly has some turmoil in its leadership. Sarah, thank you. Our top story this lunchtime. The serial sex attacker, john worboys, appears at the high court in london, where lawyers for his victims are challenging plans to release him. And still to come. Is this the last straw for scotland . A scheme by School Children to get rid of plastic drinking straws. Coming up in sport. Newport are hoping to reach new pastures at wembley tonight. The League Two Side have never beaten spurs before, and face them again in their fa cup fourth round replay. Scientists say they now know what the first modern briton looked like 10,000 years ago and its something of a surprise. They believe that so called cheddar man who lived in South West England had skin that was dark to black, and blue eyes. Researchers have used groundbreaking dna analysis to examine his skeleton which was discovered in somerset in 1903. Jon kay reports. He lay here undisturbed for 10,000 years. In the caves beneath cheddar gorge, a replica of cheddar man. But now 21st century science means we can put flesh on these bones. One, two, three. At the Natural History museum cheddar man finally revealed. By extracting dna from his bones and scanning his skull, experts believe they have recreated his face in unprecedented detail. And he looks very different from what they expected. The hair, the eyes, the face, that combination of blue eyes and dark skin, really very striking. Something we would not have imagined. And to also get from the dna details of his biology. The fact that he could not digest milk. That is something that came really with the advent of farming. And 10,000 years ago people in britain didnt have that. Look how he has changed. This is what scientists used to think he looked like. A reconstruction from 20 years ago when dna analysis was nowhere near as developed. Cheddar man and i share a common female relative. This is modern day cheddar man. Adrian targett lives in the same village and shares dna with the skeleton found in the gorge. So, time to meet his ancestor. Do you want to see your great great, great, great, great, great, great, great grandfather . Ok, here he comes. And. Oh, my what do you think . It is remarkable, isnt it . I think there is probably some resemblance. But yes, i think there are certainly other members in my family who he bears a resemblance to, yes. Some of my cousins. You can see that . Yes. I think my eyes are blue. Lets have a look. They are blue they are blue. His hair is not quite as grey as mine is. Or my beard so 10,000 years after he died, 100 years after he was found, finally a face to fit the name of adrians ancestor. Jon kay, bbc news, cheddar in somerset. The german chancellor Angela Merkel has managed to agree a deal to form a new coalition government, breaking months of political deadlock. 0ur berlin correspondent damien mcguinnessjoins me now. So damien, is there a deal and what are the implications for the rest of europe . It isa it is a lot of spending in the deal because when tax in cakes are at a record high in germany, both sides of this deal are able to promise giveaways. So spending on infrastructure, roads and schools, which many economists have been calling on germany to do for a long time. So that is seen as good news in germany as it could provide an further boost to the economy. But also good news for the rest of the eu because the finance ministry in particular is in control now if the deal goes ahead as planned, of the ce ntre left deal goes ahead as planned, of the centre left social democrats who are in favour of more support for struggling eurozone economies. They wa nt to struggling eurozone economies. They want to help the french president emanuel macron in pushing forward his ambitious ideas for european reform. So all this means that this government now could be a very welcome one for paris. But this is all allowing for the fact and only if the social democrats manage to persuade their Party Members to back the deal. Because of the next few weeks 450,000 members will have to vote on this and if they vote yes we have a government by easter but if they dont know it could be back to they dont know it could be back to the drawing board with first elections and then no government. Millions of workers on short Term Contracts are to get new rights including the enforcement of holiday and sick pay. Ministers say therell be higher fines for firms that breach contracts or mistreat staff who are part of the so called gig economy. The move is part of the governments response to a review of modern working practices unions say the measures dont go far enough. Nina warhurst reports. Times have changed. Tom has around 30 full time employees like paddy. He gets sick and holiday pay. And around 20 workers like tom, he is self employed and has to save for rainy days and holidays himself. Following todays announcement, the boss will have to be Crystal Clear with all of his staff on where they stand. We are moving towards a situation where it is made clear to employees what their rights are and what their entitlements are. I think that is something that can only be good for both employee and for the business. There are up to 5 Million People working on a job byjob basis rather than as fully employed. And the government has promised to crack down on employers who bend the rules. If they fail to pay sickness and holiday pay, then the government will act. So it is not left to the little guy to have to fight for himself or herself against a Large Corporation that might be playing fast and loose with their rights. The government will be hoping that todays measures will make life clearer and fairer for all workers. But some critics argue that there is still too much power in the hands of those who hold the purse strings. And that the most vulnerable workers are still being left wide open to exploitation. They had an opportunity to make a bold step to really give protection to those precarious workers especially in the gig economy. And they havent done anything to that extent at all. They have papered over the cracks. It is unlikely that those on shift today will even notice the changes. But the government says there may be more on the way. Which respect the value of flexible working, as long as employers respect their staff. Nina warhurst, bbc news, manchester. The american billionaire who sent his own rocket into space yesterday carrying his sports car has told journalists the project was proof that crazy things come true. The launch of what elon musk calls the falcon heavy in florida is said to represent a breakthrough for the private space industry and its designers hope it may one day lead to interplanetary travel. Crowds gathered at Cape Canaveral as the rocket blasted into earths orbit, and its two side boosters landed back on earth in unison both standing upright. 0ur science correspondent, victoria gill, was watching. Five, four, three, two, one counting down to space travel history. The worlds most powerful rocket ignited all 27 of its engines and lifted off from Kennedy Space centre at 8 45pm uk time. Less than ten minutes later, in a carefully choreographed aerial dance, its three boosters returned to earth. Two landed simultaneously back at Cape Canaveral. But video feed from the third core booster cut out and it has since emerged that it missed its target drone ship and plummeted into the atlantic ocean. But every other aspect of this launch was a textbook success. Despite elon musks own serious misgivings. I had this image ofjust a giant explosion on the pad with, you know, a wheel bouncing down the road and a tesla logo landing somewhere with a thud fortunately, that is not what happened. With its power and reusability, the falcon heavy could be a candidate for nasa to send heavier and more capable robots to explore the surface of mars. But ever the showman of commercial space travel, elon musk used it to let loose his own tesla roadster into space. Complete with a mannequin in the driving seat and david bowie on a loop on the radio. Mr musk says his car could be on this journey around the sun for hundreds of millions of years. Victoria gill, bbc news. A group of children in glasgow are waging war on plastic and in particular, straws. Theyve already convinced scotlands biggest council to ditch single use straws, and people in the village of ullapool have also agreed to abandon them. Now the children are taking their campaign further afield. 0ur scotland correspondent lorna gordonjoined them on the isle of arran. They call themselves the ocean defenders. Passionate about nature and conservation and on a mission to end the use of Plastic Straws. Now theyre heading across the water to arran in a bid to spread the word. I care about it because theres animals out there in danger because theyre eating plastic. Its our future and we need to make sure that its not all gone when we grow up. The Straw Campaign works from both ends. The youthful campaigners from sunnyside primary think the key to their war against Plastic Straws is getting other children, including those on arran, involved too. I hadnt really thought about it but now the presentation has told me a lot more about it. And its very different now. I think the most surprising and interesting thing is how much this does affect the environment. You wouldnt expect that from wee tiny Plastic Straws. There is always litter on the beaches. Plastic litter in particular. They work hard on arran to keep their waters and beaches clean. These blue things are in fact cotton bud sticks. But plastic waste, once it enters the sea, can travel far. Injuring and killing marine life in the process. So even here you find. . Even here we find plastic, despite all the cleaning that goes on. You clean, a storm comes in and there will be more plastic washed up. How do you feel about that . I really dislike it everyone can do something to try and help the marine environment. And issues of plastics. School by school, and business by business, the childrens message is being heard. Were trying to make people stop expecting a straw in their drink. These Primary School pupils, with their passion to reduce plastic waste, have had much success already. The kids were fantastic, they are so knowledgeable confident and passionate in the way they speak. Did you find the arguments persuasive . I mean, youve got the Plastic Straws. Absolutely. The childrens hope now, that arran will become scotlands first island to ditch Plastic Straws for good. Lorna gourdon, bbc news, on the isle of arran. The Winter Olympics open this friday and one of team gbs hottest medal hopes is triple World Champion speed skater elise christie. Lets get all the latest team news from pyeongchang and our Sports Correspondent andy swiss. Welcome to pyeongchang whered this time on friday the Winter Olympics will be officially underway. So far we have had blue skies and freezing temperatures. Even the athletes have been taken aback byjust how cold it is. But preparations are very nearly complete. Ready for liftoff. Britains snowboarders springing to action this morning. The temperature a bracing 15. But pyeongchang is offering the warmest of welcomes. This is the winter 0lympics, of course. And it is living up to its billing. We dont normally have to wear so many layers. So especially in the morning we are really stiff riding. But it has warmed up a little bit and luckily the sun is out for some of us now. Yeah, you just deal with it, you know. We are snowboarders so we just have to get on with it. The british team are hoping the games here in pyeongchang could propel them to new heights. But while the focus here might be on the athletes, the Olympic Movement itself is also under scrutiny. The reason, russia. The country is banned from these games because of doping and yet more than 160 of their athletes have been allowed to compete under a neutral flag as 0ars 0lympic athletes from russia. And more could still be admitted, leaving rivals including britain frustrated. The uncertainty can be quite challenging, quite tricky. And i think both the ioc and obviously the court of arbitration for sport is involved now as well. And those decisions will be happening we think right up until possibly the starting point of the games. It is a bit of a mess, isnt it . It is certainly a confusing situation and one i do not think anybody in sport would want. And this is no time for distractions. After their success in sochi, led by lizzie yarnolds gold, team gbs target here is up to ten medals. So will it be a Winter Wonderland . They will be hoping the celebrations are onlyjust beginning. The Opening Ceremony takes place here on friday and amongst those attending is the sister of north Korean Leader kim jong. The good news for everyone
comparemela.com © 2020. All Rights Reserved.