Wednesday in parliament. Hello, and welcome to wednesday in parliament. As the Party Leaders trade blows over racism. You have failed the test of leadership apologise now deported british citizens, which shes now had to compensate them for, i think she might look to her own party and her own governments records as well. Bullying victims get an apology. And i want to say to those staff, it mustve been very debilitating to have to go through that experiences and to say sorry if youve had a terrible experience. And the speaker offers support to Nazanin Zaghari ratcliffe. This matter, the iranians need to know, will not go away. All that to come and more. But first, theresa mays penultimate Prime Ministers questions was dominated by clashes withjeremy corbyn over each others record in dealing with allegations of racism in their own parties. Senior labour figures paid for a newspaper advert to criticise the labour leaders record in tackling anti semitism. Jeremy corbyn wanted to talk about Climate Change. But theresa may wanted to ask him questions about events in the labour party. Mr speaker, time is running out on Climate Change. Thats what the environment secretary said yesterday. So why did the all Party Environment and mental committee accuse the government of coasting on Climate Change . The government has a fine record on Climate Change, including our recent legislation on net zero emissions. But there is an issue, mr speaker, that needs to be addressed in this house. And before the right honourable gentleman stands up and parades himself as the champion of Climate Change or the champion of the people or the defender of equality and fairness, he needs to apologise for his failure to deal with racism in the labour party. Just today, just today. Just today, 60 distinguished members of the labour party have written in the newspapers the labour Party Welcomes everyone, except it seems jews. This is your legacy, mr corbyn you still havent opened your eyes, you still havent told the whole truth, you still havent accepted your responsibility, you have failed the test of leadership. Apologise now this party was the first to introduce anti racist legislation into law in britain. This party totally opposes racism in any form whatsoever. Anti semitism has no place in our society, no place in any of our parties and no place in any of our dialogue. Neither does any other form of racism. And when 60 of tory Party Members think islam is a threat to western civilization. And the Prime Minister has said she will act on islamophobia within her own party, i hope she does. I look forward to seeing that being dealt with as we will deal with any racism that occurs within our own party as well. He suggested the government would miss its targets for tackling Climate Change. The Prime Minister said the uk was the first major economy to set a net zero target. But the right honourable gentleman, i notem, did not apologise in response to my first questions. He. We deal with islamophobia in the conservative party. Any allegations of islamophobia are dealt with, unlike his way in the labour party where he is failing to deal with anti semitism. And he can stand up and say all he likes with the labour party introducing anti racism legislation. Just last week, trevor phillips, the former chairman of the equality and human rights commission, said the following, labour today presents like a textbook case of institutional racism. Mr speaker. Mr speaker, this Party Opposes racism in any form whatsoever in our society. And coming from a Prime Minister who encouraged the hostile environment, sent go home vans around london and deported british citizens, which shes now had to compensate them for, i think she might look to her own party and her own governments records as well. Jeremy corbyn returned to the environment and accused the government of dodging its responsibility. The Climate Emergency simply cannot be left to the market. All of us need to take responsibility to secure oui common future. Labour led the call to declare a Climate Emergency and has pledged a green Industrial Revolution with new jobs. When well this conservative government face up and get a grip on this crisis and deal with it . Theresa may said she wouldnt take any lectures from labour. When the last Labour Government ignored advice that diesel fumes would damage our environment and incentivised diesel cars through the tax system. He talks about dodging responsibility. The person whos been dodging his responsibility during this pmqs is the right honourable gentleman. The real disgrace is his handling of racism in the labour party. Activists protesting, mps leaving, staff resigning. What would his great heroes of clement attlee, bevan and penn think . Look what he has done to their party. We will never let him do it to our country. The snp leader linked president trumps recent controversial comments about people of colour with the Prime Ministers own record and quoted a retiring conservative mp, guto bebb. Isnt the member for amberconway correct when he warns that the tories are appealing to the type of nationalism that has seen it ukip grow . While the tory party shares more with the extremes of donald trump and nigel farage, isnt it any wonder that scotland looks on in horror . The conservative party is a party for the whole of the united kingdom. And the only party in this house which is appealing to blatant nationalism is the party that wants to take scotland out of the union. The Prime Minister. A proposal to make it harder for her successor to suspend parliament in order to push through a no deal brexit has been approved by the house of lords. Borisjohnson, the clear favourite to be the next Prime Minister, has refused to rule out closing down parliament, whats called proroguing. If you remember, last week, mps voted to require the government to report to parliament every two weeks on the progress of restoring power sharing in Northern Ireland. The idea is that if ministers have to do that, Parliament Must be in session. Well, on wednesday, the lords went one step further, forcing a debate in both houses of Parliament Within five calendar days of the publication of each fortnightly progress report, with the aim, of course, of ensuring parliament sits before britain is due to leave the eu on the 31st of october. Peers voted to approve the measure by a majority of 103. Content, 272. Not content, 169. So the contents have it. A few minutes earlier, the peer who brought the amendment made his case. Before the beginning of the current leadership campaign, the notion that prorogation might be used for the express purpose of silencing parliament on brexit could safely have been dismissed as fantasy. But extraordinary though it may seem, that prospect has not been disavowed by the leading candidate. And if reports are to be believed, cannot even now be ruled out. My lords, the issue is uniquely grave because if we are driven over the cliff on the 315t of october, there is no way back up. An event that occurs while parliament is prorogued cannot simply be reversed once parliament is sitting again. So even a short prorogation suitably timed would permanently divide parliament of its voice on this most significant of political issues. Supposing theres a general election in the meantime, supposing there is a vote of no confidence in the commons, is it seriously considered that requiring parliament to meet in october would take precedence over these other events which may very well be occurring in the next few weeks . If weve learned anything in this house, it is there is a dialogue of the death in this place between a remainer majority here who wish to stop at nothing to prevent brexit and those of us in the minority who believe that the vote of public should be respected. And i do fear, my lords, that your lordships house is getting itself into a worse and worse place in resisting brexit. And the very future of your lordships house now is now in play. That was made clear not by me, but in the recent campaign for the european elections. I think these amendments take us to the outer fringe of where an unelected house should go. This amendment is not about stopping brexit. This amendment is about stopping the use of parliament to force through a means of brexit which has been expressly rejected by this house and has no democratic mandate. And if our future leaders have refused to rule out doing that, then this is something we have reluctantly in this house been faced with having to do. What would be wrong, grossly wrong, a perversion of our constitutional traditions and would be in my view irresponsible, would be to prevent parliament from being able to present to comment, to oversee, to revise, and if it so chooses, take other action. Thats what this amendment is about, about that and nothing else. The important thing to i need to stress right now is at this particular point, i do not believe these amendments take us forward in the right direction. I would ask the noble and learned lord to withdraw his amendments. But they didnt withdraw them, and as we saw, the measure was passed. The bill will now return to the commons in its amended form, and can expect some parliamentary ping pong before it becomes law. Youre watching wednesday in parliament with me, david cornock. Dont forget that if you miss our daily round up from westminster, dont feel guilty about it, you can catch up via the magic of the bbc iplayer. Mps have agree to change the house of commons rules to allow the investigation of historical cases of bullying and harassment at westminster. The leader of the commons said change had to be introduced at the earliest possible opportunity after the publication of a senior lawyers report into the issue. The report contains serious allegations, including those relating to members who, and i quote, shout at, dineen, a little and humiliate their staff on a regular basis often in public. Reference is made and again i quote staff being subject to unwanted sexual advances, often accompanied by touching, sometimes forceful. General white outline the testimony in an extremely accessible way and accessible report but it does not make for pleasant reading. And i want to say to go staff and must have been very debilitating to have to go through those experiences. And to say sorry, if you have had a terrible experience of. A contains sadly i think, accounts of behaviour that many of us will have read about and indeed perhaps some of us will have witnessed. Bullying, harassment and a toxic culture of insecurity and undermining have been found to become commonplace and these are all perhaps manifestations of the prorated cultures and behaviours, around the abusive power. Patrick grady. The brexit secretary, Stephen Barclay, has told mps that the possibility of a no deal brexit is underpriced. The frontrunner in the conservative leadership race, borisjohnson has suggested the chance of leaving the eu without a deal is a million to one against. But giving evidence to a committee of mps Stephen Barclay seemed to suggest it was more likely than that. The uk is currently set to leave the eu on october the 31st. I have been saying for quite a while, long before it is fashionable that i know deal outcome is underpriced and upset that consistently. I have also argued that there should be acceleration in no deal preparation, noting that it will be disruptive but from my point of view, it is far better for us to prepare. And certainly there has been no continuation in my efforts in terms of preparing for no deal but it does require across government focus to mitigate some of those risks. As things stand, it seems like you are saying chances are rather higher than million to one, that we will go out with a no deal. What i am saying is currently slated there is 2a sitting days in september and october, that is the current i think parliamentary possession, the Withdrawal Agreement as colleagues will know it is a significant piece of legislation so that is a very short period of time. You cannot programme without the lawrence and said there is a question and he goes to the chairs earlier, questions is there a concession from the eu that is going to be palatable enough for parliament to pass and there will be a large range of opinions on the table around that. What is your opinion as things stand . As i said earlier, i think eight no deal is underpriced and this governments intention and both leaderships candidates position to seek a new deal and i think it is the will of many members of parliament for there to be a deal. But, the question then it will be is there a deal that is palatable to parliament and if not will Parliament Vote to revoke or if or will we leave with no deal and there are experienced parliamentarians around the table and they will all have had their own view as to what the likely outcome is. So the mps asked did the government accept that no deal would cause serious disruption. I dont think again it is anything new, each session that i have appeared, i pretty much appeared the month before the committee on average, each session, and sometimes it has upset my colleagues that no deal will be disruptive. I have always been clear on that. But the no brexit i think is the worst of those two outcomes which is why i have always supported the deal and i have consistently voted for a deal. But if we are left with a primary entrance between no deal and no brexit, i said to the Committee Last time i think it is important that we respect the democratic results. Now the chancellor told us recently that a disruptive no deal brexit would cost up to 19 billion pounds. Is that a figure you agree with . Firstly that is a prediction for 2035 and i am sure the chancellor himself would say that it is very difficult for any finance ministry with certainty to protect 15 years after the implementation period. Secondly that figure as she was no Government Intervention, now, again, there are teams within the treasury working on the white Government Intervention would be taken in the event of no deal. Of my question however it was as the chancellor spoke about in the house of commons, does not reflect the position of the government, the current government . Either it does or it doesnt. It reflects research from the treasury as to a position in 2035 and it will be for the committee to form a view as to whether they would expect the treasury to take in the government to take action in the event of no deal, not the least when the government itself is working to do so. That is that the governments assessment, are we now separating out. As a former treasury minister, all the assessments from the treasury are collectively signed off as a government assessment. Said the governments assessment as as the chancellor said. But i am also so that one does not selectively pick out from those reports putting them in context, and it is in reference to 2035 and it is in reference to know intervention from government in the event of no deal. Stephen barclay. The government has said it will do all it can to re unite Nazanin Zaghari ratcliffe the british iranian woman jailed in iran for alleged spying with her family. She was admitted to a hospital psychiatric ward in tehran on monday and all visitors have been banned. Nazanin Zaghari Ratcliffe was jailed in 2016 after being convicted of spying. A claim which she denies. Her husband Richard Ratcliffe sat in the gallery of the house of commons as politicians discussed her case. I bring this urgent question today because my constituent cosmic plate is urgent and desperate. On monday, handcuffed and shackled at the ankles, Nazanin Zaghari ratcliffe was taken from her cell and praising into a psychiatry ward and a hospital in tehran. The reasoning for this move has not been made clear to her lawyers or indeed to herfamily. She has not been allowed to update her family either by phone or by seeing them through visits. We have no idea how she is being treated. We believe that some circumstances have changed, counter access needs to be granted urgently but more importantly than that, we want to ensure that Nazanin Zaghari ratcliffe gets access to her family. She will be in contact with the family as our way and that is the best way we have of determining the status of Nazanin Zaghari ratcliffe right now. And it will be indeed cruel to deny this lady and a psychiatric ward of a public hospital, access to her family. That must happen immediately. I deployed the maltreatment of prisoners wherever it occurs in the description she has given is completely unacceptable. As foreign secretary, borisjohnson told mps that nazanin was teaching journalism in iran rather than on holiday. Labour said hed been described as one of two villains in the story. So will the minister agree with that verdict and condemn the former foreign secretary in our next Prime Ministerfor handing irans hardliners their biggest excuse, the biggest piece of propaganda to justify this horrific injustice to one of our own, to one of our own citizens. And can he state unequivocally that the uks governments commitment to free up Nazanin Zaghari ratcliffe goes beyond any particular set of personnel or ministers in that frame Nazanin Zaghari ratcliffe must be a top priority for the next Prime Minister, whoever that might turn out to be . I think the honourable gentleman for that. Nazanin Zaghari Ratcliffe has been transferred to a public hospital, she certainly does need medical treatment and we have been calling for that for a very long time however if she does not get the treatment she requires, if she is abused in hospital or the purpose of transferring her to hospital is to abuse her further than has been the case already, that would be a cause for utter condemnation. As would any forced confession. I think we flagged this up pretty well today if i may say so mr speaker and in the event that a confession is obtained from Nazanin Zaghari ratcliffe, the International Community is perfectly entitled to question it, to put it very mildly indeed. He asked me to establish Top Priorities of the incoming Prime Minister and i think he can be absolutely sure that one way or the other that Nazanin Zaghari ratcliffe will be at the forefront of the minds of whoever is successful in this particular contest next week. Last month Richard Ratcliffe went on Hunger Strike in protest at the detention of his wife. He camped outside the Iranian Embassy in london and was visted by more than 100 mps, including john bercow who spoke directly to mr ratcliffe. For as long as it is necessary for this matter to be raised, as it has been by the honourable lady, with persistence and passion, it will be raised, this matter, the iranians need to know will not go away. Until mother and daughter, mother and wife and husband are reconciled so they can live as one. Mr speaker you have already indulged me today so i hope youre will indulge me a little bit rather as a read out a message from Richard Ratcliffe from my constituent, who says on behalf of of Nazanin Zaghari ratcliffes whole family, i want to thank the speaker and the house from the bottom of my heart for the support, compassion and empathy that you have shown us in these troubled times. We will not stop fighting for her release and i hope that the house will not stop either. Thank you mr speaker. Tulip siddiq. The bbcs director general has been defending the broadcasters decision to take away free tv licences from the majority of over 75 year olds. Tony hall told mps on the Culture Committee it was always assumed when the bbc took over responsibility for the concession from the government as part of the 2015 licence fee settlement that its universal provision could be reviewed. The bbc announced last month that only pensioners in receipt of pension credit would receive their licences free from june next year. This was a process that was going to happen anyway, the notion that somehow we had any possibility of not accepting the over 75s risible, and they are coming at us that it was going to happen. The key thing as has been made clear by me and others is how we can negotiate the best possible deal for the bbc which is what we did and can i say that was tough, it was really hard going and we negotiated things that we felt could counterbalance the over 75. But the Committee Chair argued that concessions offered in return for taking on the policy had more than offset the cost to the bbc. So as a bundle and when they make clear those numbers that would end up being about £7 million that has been found but certainly the value that you got back from the closing the lid from the iplayer and the increase in the licence fee is certainly seems to be greater than the £250 million obligation that you have taken on for the over 75. Anything it would seem that you are a gainers from this, getting your current policy of not honouring the original agreement but. Can ijust say the idea we are not honouring the original agreement is wrong and i really refute that and i resented. We absolutely are honouring the agreement we came to with George Osborne and John Whittingdale to the t. So honestly if you want to come out and say things you are not honouring the agreement, you are wrong. This is absolutely crucial that i establish this because we are carrying out what the government said we should do to the t. Lord hall said everyone knew that reform of the over 75 licences was likely if not inevitable. Tony hall. And that was wednesday in parliament. Thank you for watching. I do hope you canjoin me at the same time tomorrow for the latest developments in the bid to stop the uk leaving the eu without a deal. Bye for now. Hello there. Wednesday brought to to 27 degrees across parts of eastern england. We wont see temper just like across parts of eastern england. We wont see temperjust like that across parts of eastern england. We wont see temper just like that for a little while anyway because things have been changing from the west. This band of cloud brought outbreaks of rain from wednesday and behind me, more cloud which is heading away for friday. In between, though, as owner of slightly clearer weather. Sunny spells and some showers. It will be quite breezy. The remnants of what was essentially wednesdays rain still clearing away from the far south east during the morning and behind that, spells of sunshine and behind that, spells of sunshine and showers. More plentiful across the northern half of the uk. Thursday afternoon ends like this and maybe one or two showers in the afternoon across parts of east anglia and the far south east that many parts of england and wales will be dry with bells of sunshine. Cooler and breezy. The odd shower in the isle of man creeping into wales but for Northern Ireland and scotland, lots of showers blowing through quite quickly in the west or south westerly breeze. Some heavy, some thundery, not great news for the first day of the open at portrush. They will be showers at times and equally some spells of sunshine and a keen westerly breeze. As we go through thursday night, we will continue to see showers for a time in Northern Areas. Clear spells further south and a cooler, fresher night than we have had recently across parts of eastern england. Behind me, cloud and rain gathering down to the south west. That is our nest next whether make up. Putting in for friday. Southern parts of the uk have been pretty dry recently with not much rain at all. There will be a relative rain from this system as its slides its way mand it will get into southern and central parts of scotland, probably not getting into northern scotland. The best of the dry and bright weather. Temperatures lower than it have been than they have been. Fridays wet weather pushes away as we get into the first part of saturday and then were back to a mix of sunny spells and showers. Some heavy with rumbles of thunder mixed in and sign of things turning warmer in the south. Sunday, a dry day for just about all of us. Into next week, Northern Areas look u nsettled, next week, Northern Areas look unsettled, southern areas could turn very warm indeed. Welcome to bbc news. Im mike embley. Our top stories the Ebola Outbreak in the democratic republic of the congo is declared a Public Health emergency of international concern. President trump hits out at his democratic opponents and ridicules them after a vote to impeach him is sidelined. The worlds most notorious drug lord will spend the rest of his life in prison. The man known as el chapo will also have to hand over billions of dollars. Exactly. I am a very proud dad now. The conjoined twins who now live full and separate lives. We meet the surgeons who made it all possible, the latest in our exclusive series