Transcripts For BBCNEWS Beyond 100 Days 20240714

And launches a blistering attack on his former Coalition Partner Matteo Salvini. And a weighty problem or is it . We bring you the story of the colorado air mattresses born to roam free. Hello and welcome im katty kay in washington, david eades is in london. The british Prime Minister says there will not be a brexit deal unless the eu agrees to scrap the irish backstop from the current withdrawal agreement. Speaking in the last couple of hours, mrjohnson said he would now try and persuade eu leaders to renegotiate the deal in order to get an agreement that could pass through parliament. Going off to germany and then france and then see the g7 at biarritz and i made the point that the backstops going to come out. What ive also said is that under no circumstances will the uk be putting in any kind of checks at the border in Northern Ireland. We simply dont think that is necessary. The comments are the latest in a Frank Exchange between mrjohnson and eu leaders over the last 2a hours. Writing last night to the European Council president donald tusk, Boris Johnson said the uk was ready to start talks with brussels and that he was confident a deal could be approved by parliament. But he declared the backstop unviable and anti democratic. And demanded flexible and Creative Solutions from the eu instead. Responding on twitter mr tusk rejected Boris Johnsons demand, saying the uk Prime Minister was not proposing realistic alternatives to prevent the creation of a hard border in ireland. Lets speak now to georgina wright, Senior Researcher at the institute for government. Thank you forjoining us. A lot of back and forth going on. Lets be honest, not one optimistic grain in there, is there . It is difficult to say. We didnt know that this letter was coming, so it has taken the eu by surprise. Donald tusks response is interesting, two things he said is interesting, two things he said isa is interesting, two things he said is a reiteration of what the eu have said, it is that the backstop will only apply unless and until alternatives are found. Where he was more strong in his language was trying to ditch the backstop with no alternative is like deciding to erect a hard border. We are still stuck with what to do with the backstop. Donald tusk said those opposing the backstop without realistic alternatives support re establishing a hard border, even if they do not admit it. That is pretty hostile language. It is, but this is where we are in the negotiations, it is almost like we are too far from that cliff edge to get sort of your mind focussed and find a compromise and still who is going to blink first. But you know, angela merkel, the germany chancellor echoed some of the words, although not in strong language. We said we are open to solutions, but they need to work and that letter doesnt provide what the solutions would look like. Does brussels see this as a negotiating strategy, path way, whatever you want to call it, oi way, whatever you want to call it, or do they see it a as political bid for or do they see it a as political bid foer or do they see it a as political bid for mrjohnson to burnish his own hardline credentials. It is an excellent question. I think the European Commission are taking this seriously and will look at the letter and try and tease out what it means and what the solutions could look like. But their line is firm, if youre serious about re negotiating you need to put proposals on the table. There is a second thing theyre worried about in that letter, which is the point about the uk intending to diverge from eu rules and regulations. That sends a signal that we are going to chart our own way forward. But that makes checks along the border more necessary. So you would come back to the question of how do you have checks without having a border infrastructure . It is still very complex. Interesting points you make about still too early in the game perhaps to get to the bottom of this. Thank you very much. Lets speak now to pat leahy, the Political Editor of the irish times who joins us from dublin. Again, this seems intriguing to me, presumably from what we are hearing and seeing, the irish perspective is probably you know its, we are not going to get a deal through Boris Johnson, whatever happens with parliament, and no deal is looking more and more likely and that must be more and more disturbing . Yeah, i think the view in dublin is similar to the view in brussels and you will have seen today quite a degree of agreement in the responses from mr tusk and brussels to those from dublin. I think the view essentially is this isnt really what is going oii is this isnt really what is going on at the moment has more got to do with dynamics in westminster, rather thana with dynamics in westminster, rather than a serious attempt at renegotiation by Boris Johnson. Than a serious attempt at renegotiation by borisjohnson. In a way, it is a sort of phoney war at the moment. Im not sure that brussels and im pretty sure that dublin doesnt take too seriously these proposals by mrjohnson, because of the lack of detail in them, the lack of you know a concrete proposal as to an alternative to the backstop. I think mrjohnson is talking to british voters. That process will have to play its way out in london in the early weeks in september, before any serious talking, if it is to come, between london and brussels. So there is this ireland, uk summit, is that the moment when the two leaders sit down and face to face in a room, look each other in the eye and get a better sense of what their red lines are and how much pressure they can ta ke are and how much pressure they can take from their own side . are and how much pressure they can take from their own side . I wouldnt overstate the substance of that proposed meeting at the moment. One reason relates to what i said before, that i think irish and eu officials are waiting for and will wait for events in westminster to work their way out. We expect that there will be some sort of a parliamentary challenge to Boris Johnson. That may end up in an election. So you know that process will have to reach its conclusion before there is any potential renegotiations or any re opening of talks on the withdrawal agreement, which of course dublin and brussels say they wont. One of the things that government sources here in dublin tell me is that kind of unusually, british officials are saying the same thing, the british politicians are saying the same things to them in private that they are in public and often in talks, you get a slightly more realistic view in private. But that doesnt seem view in private. But that doesnt seem to be happening at the moment. Thank you very much forjoining us. We keep hearing it is a phoney war. But we are less than a hundred days from october 31st. A hundred days that says it all lets get to the Eleventh Hour it does feel, it feels just this logjam just sticks there. Maybe when Parliament Comes back we will see a shift. Yeah, perhaps. We have been waiting for that shift for a while. The us secretary of state has acknowledged that the so called Islamic State group is gaining ground in some places. Mike pompeo admitted there are certainly areas where the militants are more powerful today than they were three or four years ago. His comments follow a series of attacks this weekend in areas of afghanistan where is has been active and reports the group is spreading again in syria and iraq. Mr pompeo made the remarks in an interview with cbs news where he also implicitly criticised britain over the release of an Iranian Oil Tanker from gibraltar. The white house had asked gibraltar not to release the tanker but the british overseas territory rejected the request. Despite the release mr pompeo had this warning to the iranian regime. The iranian people know that the terror campaign, the Revolution Campaign that their leaders are undertaking isnt in their best interest and i hope that the iranian people work to change the behaviour of the iranian regime. And joining us now from stamford is former us spokeswoman at the un, hagar chemali, whos now ceo of greenwich media strategies. How much tension is this oil tanker putting between britain and the United States, given that mr pompeo has concerns that the iranians could still be able to make money out of this oil . Well, it is not unprecedented for the United States to apply to seize such vessels, when the uk were enforcing the law for sanctions, it is not normal for the United States to do its. Sometimes the United States succeeds and sometimes they dont. I wouldnt expect Something Like this to be become a Sticking Point between the United States and the uk. The focus is on the broader us iran tension. Things increase, the tensions increase, and i think all eyes are oii increase, and i think all eyes are on secretary pompeos discussion today at the un regarding iran. So mr pompeo made the point in the interview and the white house has made it before, the pressure theyre putting on iran is having as a results, he said his brother has less money and other organisations have less forces. We hear from the europeans that the United States is inching towards a conflict with iran. Is that a good, strong response that the white house is putting forward . Is it true that some of the proxies have less forces because of the sanctions . Yes, the answer to your last question is yes. The sanctions are working in terms of tightening the financial noose around terrorist proxies that are funded and supported by iran. You have his brother and hamas and militants in iraq. The sanctions are working in that regard. When it comes to the us and the europeans arguing Different Things or different, or about different goal as to whether the sanctions are succeeding, to be honest it is too ships sailing in the night. They arguing about two Different Things. The United States goals are focussed on undermining irans influence in the region and disrupting that nefarious behaviour across the middle east. Im not saying that the Nuclear Programme is not important, but it is secondary. And President Trump has made that clear and the treasury made it clear their goal is about undermining irans finances, or irans support to asad, his brother and others. In that regard, the sanctions are working. Will they lead to some kind of negotiations at the end . It is ha rd of negotiations at the end . It is hard to say. The United States is trying to gain leverage, as is iran. The europeans are looking at it from the joint plan of action, why the United States stepped away and whether the actions regarding sanctions are going to lead to second negotiations and the main point to remember is that if for the United States, for this administration, if negotiations are to take place, they definitely want the point about irans support for terrorism to be on the table. Thank you very much. An interesting point about there being two tracks that the europeans and the americans are moving on. You also wonder whether mr pompeo himself might have a bit ofa mr pompeo himself might have a bit of a cloud over his house. As he was doing this interview, i wants to show you some video that emerged of him when he himself was running as a congressman in 2016. Donald trump the other day said that, if you tell a soldier to commit a war crime, the soldier willjust go do it booing he said, theyll do as i tell them to do. Weve spent seven and a half years with an authoritarian president who ignored our constitution, we dont need four more years of that. From what you know of mr trump, how will that go down . Not very well. But it has been around, these things re emerge. Obviously circumstances are different now. The disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein made a new willjust two days before he committed suicide in a manhattan prison. The will put all his property worth almost 600 million into a trust. Three women today sued that estate, saying he sexually abused them when two of them were minors. This means at least five civil cases have now been brought against epsteins estate since he committed suicide ten days ago. Meanwhile there is continued focus on Prince Andrews relationship with mr epstein. On sunday the duke released a statement saying he was appalled by sex abuse claims surrounding mr epstein after video emerged of him visiting the financiers new york mansion in 2010. A short while ago i spoke to jonathan tu rley, constitutional law professor at George Washington university. If you found out somebody like mr epstein had written his will in prison in those sishs, would that raise a red flag for you . From a prison stand point, having somebody on suicide watch and he writes his willis not a good combination. But that creates a real legal muddle. The obvious intent of the willis to try to shelter his estate. It is sheltering it from his victims. We now have. Several women who have filed suits against his estate, what are the chances that they get some of that 600 million . The United States has robu restitution laws, in terms of victims getting restitution for things like Sexual Assault and child pornography. What they have to do is to put a claim on the estate that will prevent the estates assets from being distributed. Theyre a claimant to the estate. Let me ask you about Prince Andrew and this video of him at the house of jeffrey and this video of him at the house ofJeffrey Epstein from 2010, after mr epstein had been convicted of sex offences with a minor, is the prince in any kind of legaljeopardy in the United States . It is unlikely he would face a criminal prosecution at this point. He denies of course knowing about any of this. But he is the recipient now of a letter from the recipient now of a letter from the attorney for one of these women, asking for a deposition or a statement to be given in the united kingdom. That falls under the Hague Convention of 1970. There is some flexibility there. He is a member of the royal family, also the Hague Convention gives wiggle room to country as to when they comply. But the expectation is youre supposed to comply. It is an effort to get his statement. He is a material witness. What they would get from him is unclear. Because he obviously has agreed to maintain his position that he didnt hear that any of these. Girls were under age. That he didnt have any interaction with under age girls. That has been contested by some of these victims and one in particular said she did have relations with Prince Andrew when she was 17. Could he be forced to testify in the United States . That that would be difficult. You would have to bring him in. If he is doing it. It is up to Prince Andrew as to how hard he wants to fight this. He is suffering in terms of optics of this, if he refuses to testify, he will seal that story and it wont be a good one for him. Thank you very much. Italys Prime Minister has said he will resign. Giuseppe conte made the announcement in a speech to a packed italian senate. In angry exchanges, the Prime Minister criticised his former Coalition Partner Matteo Salvini for withdrawing his support for the government. The interior minister hit back accusing mr conte of weak leadership. Heres the moment the Prime Minister said he was going to stand down. Translation i intend to complete this institutional period and at the end of this parliamentary debate, i will tender my resignation to the president of the republic. Matteo salvini, the leader of the nationalist league party, had earlier tabled a no confidence motion against mr conte. Heres what he had to say about the Prime Minister today translation all these series of insults, we could have left this up to saviani, renzi, not the Prime Minister, to express all these insults. How much more instability does europe need at the moment . how much more instability does europe need at the moment . I suppose the salvini point, it is interesting he was trying to laugh off the criticisms, because they were very stinging. But he believes he would and should be Prime Minister. He is riding the wave at the moment, he has huge support off the back of the european elections, immigration is still a big stick to wield and it works in italy at the moment. There isa works in italy at the moment. There is a sort of i think sense of inevitability and salvini would see it that way, that he will be Prime Minister. So he is not going to take his foot off the pedal. That is for sure. With a majority of economists now predicting america will head into recession with the next two years, the white house is reportedly coming up with plans to offset the damaging effects of its trade war with china. A new poll suggests a majority of americans, including a majority of republicans, dont like mr trumps protectionist tariffs. And that could have a real impact on his chances of being re elected in some key Battle Ground states. A poll from june in wisconsin gave democratic hopeful joe biden a six point lead over mr trump. While fellow contender Bernie Sanders came in at seven points ahead of the president. A short while ago i spoke with van mobley, the president of the village of thiensville, wisconsin, who is also a supporter of mr trump. 0k, van, you support President Trumps economic policy, including the tariffs on chinese imports. But i imagine up in wisconsin you know a lot of farmers and that they are hurting, because of the trade conflict with china. What do you say to them . Theyre adults, they understand we have a very unbalanced trade with the chinese for many years and they understand that there might be some temporary dislocations. Donald trump has provided some assistance when we go through this bumpy period, they support his trade initiatives andi would say the america, mexico, canada agreement, which he has renegotiated, is betterfor wisconsin farmers and right now it is nancy pelosi who is a hold up on that. Its kind of odd to hear somebody, a conservative republican economist like yourself, advocating for tariffs, because traditionally it was the democrats who were protectionists and the republicans who were free traders, indeed a brand new poll out, 52 of republicans support free trade and the number is rising. Are you out of step with the party . As ijust noted, some of these trade deals that have been renegotiated that are betterfor the United States and i think better for our trading partners are working. You support tariffs . Yes, i do support tariffs. So youre not a free trader . Well. Not all the time. Neither was Abraham Lincoln and neither was ronald reagan. More broadly than wisconsin, everybodys focussed on that, the president is a little bit under water in the Approval Ratings in wisconsin, of course he won it last time, it helped him win the white house. Is trump going to win wisconsin again . I think that hes going to win again, because i think hes done well and i think hes going to do well in the African American community in milwaukee as well, which is something that ive got my eye on. He has got tiny turnout and Approval Ratings amongst African Americans, how is he going to do well with them . He is going to do well, i think he has done some things that, the justice reform, the criminaljustice reform, it is very important to the African American community and he did reach out to them and work on that. You have been a die hard supporter of donald trump from the beginning, is there anything, if you had the president s ear and i know youre going to be at the white house today, this anything youd tell him to do differently . I think hes done an incredible job and hes under a great deal of pressure, as any american president is. Different question is there anything youd ask him to do differently . Ill keep my advice to the president confidential. Nothing about his tweets, nothing about what he says about immigrants, nothing about what he said on race, all of that fine for you you . I think the tweets are actually helpful, it allows him to get his message out and a lot of times, one of criticisms of him he is mean, well, i know some of these other politicians as well, theyre mean too. You have to be a little bit hard to get your message out in the american system, as you well know. I think hes doing a finejob. What about his comments on race . He is not a racist and hes done more for the African American community than earlier president s, for example, on criminaljustice reform. Ive encouraged him all along to reach out to the African American community and i still do and i think that he still will and i think that relationship will grow and develop over time. Van mobely, thanks for much for coming in. Wisconsin being described as the next florida in electoral politicians in the United States. I suspect we will spend a lot of time there next year. A quick line on ta riffs there next year. A quick line on tariffs from mr trump, he has been speaking, saying that china wants to make a deal on trade, something will happen, maybe soon, maybe later. We will monitor those remarks for you. How do you like the sound of movie night under the stars watching a film from the comfort of a bed . Yes thats a thing and exactly what cinemagoers in Denver Colorado were expecting over the weekend. One small hitch though. Doesnt look like the event planner checked the forecast. An afternoon storm sent more than 150 mattresses flying over the park, before anyone got the chance to even lie on them. As you can see, there was nothing weighing them down when the wind picked up. Complete bedlam, one might say. A bizarre picture. I love those pictures. There is something surreal about beds flying across the countryside. Think toy story. This is beyond one hundred days from the bbc. Coming up for viewers on the bbc news channel and bbc world news as the backstop resurfaces at the top of the brexit debate, well speak to a journalist from Northern Ireland about the importance of preserving the good friday agreement. And prince harry and Meghan Markle are criticised for taking a private jet to the south of france, after speaking out about Climate Change. So is offsetting their Carbon Emissions enough . Thats still to come. We have seen more sunshine today than yesterday. And our weather watchers have been out and about enjoying that. We have seen some great images, one is from aberdeenshire this afternoon. Tomorrow, i think more cloud in the forecast. A windier day as well and some rain to come to the north west. More cloud pushing in even through the evening for Northern Ireland and wales, bringing some rain in the short term. But it is this area of low pressure and its cold front that will bring the thicker cloud and wetter weather later on wednesday. The area of cloud moving into Northern Ireland at the moment is a warm fronts and through the small hours, that will continue to fizzle out, the rain, and the front will push into Northern England and scotland. It is a warm front and it is bringing milderair scotland. It is a warm front and it is bringing milder air and our temperatures by the end of the night will be in double figures. Certainly higher than the morning just gone. Still a few chillier spots in the north of scotland. But we move into a warm south westerly air stream. But quite gusty winds. A breezy, windy day, but a lot of sunshine first thing and it should feel pleasant. Some showers for wales later. Rain through the afternoon for Northern Ireland. Brighter by the evening. Rain into scotland and Northern England. But up to 23 or 2a in the south east of england as we start to move into that air from the atla ntic start to move into that air from the atlantic and once we start, we continue through thursday, friday, we pull that air in fact through the weekend all the way north across the uk and it looks at the moment by the weekend High Pressure could establish across us. But there was a question, you may have caught a low trying to come into the mix from the west. But we seem to be confident 110w west. But we seem to be confident now that we are going to be pulling in some warmerair now that we are going to be pulling in some warmer air through the next five to seven days. The biggest question mark is potentially whether low pressure gets into the mix through the weekend and throws showers into the north west. At the moment temperatures are looking healthy and a late taste again of summer. Youre watching beyond one hundred days with katty kay in washington, david eades is in london. Our top stories. The uk warns the eu theres no prospect of a deal unless the insurance policy to prevent a hard border returning to the island of ireland is dropped. Us secretary of state mike pompeo acknowledges that the so called Islamic State group is gaining ground in parts of iraq and syria. Also on the programme. No more plastic bottles at San Francisco airport as the travel hub rolls out a ban, starting today. Plus why having kids does make you happier but only after they leave the nest, according to a new study. Its been more than 20 years since the good friday agreement brought an end to the troubles one of the bloodiest chapters in the history of the british isles. But two decades on peace between Northern Irelands catholic and protestant communities still rests on the compromises made by all sides. The document was agreed in 1998 and set up a local parliament, granted dual british irish citizenship to everyone in the region, and removed security infrastructure. It is widely hailed as being instrumental in bringing an end to the violence. Both the uk and the eu have said they are commited to protecting the agreement whether or not the uk leaves the eu with or without a deal but some are concerned that such an exit would lead to some form of border infrastructure. Werejoined now from belfast by the journalist siobhan fenton, the author of a book on the agreement. How real are those fears and anxieties in Northern Ireland amongst most people that the way in which this brexit saga is running is putting a strain on the good friday agreement . I think here in Northern Ireland tensions are running high and many people are worried about the real prospect of a hard border returning. What is particularly concerning for many is the fact that we are so close now to the most recent brexit date of october the 3ist recent brexit date of october the 31st and although it is just a matter of weeks now there still does not seem to be any solution put in place to try to avoid a hard border and many people are worried unless something is suddenly discovered between now and then but we could see those checks and controls of the past coming back. But is that a universal sense that they should be no hard border at all because it is 20 years down the line now and whatever border checks there might be one would hope there would not be as lets eight militaristic as that used to be. Thats one thing many supporters of brexit have suggested is there, if there are border checks they could be done in a more sophisticated way than previously. One thing they have suggested is new technology could be put in place essentially to use a can of invisible border circle of long range cameras tracking car Registration Plates rather than soldiers or controlled officers having to stop and check individual ca rs having to stop and check individual cars but the kind of counterpoint to that would be that that technology does not seem to exist yet and is not in place anywhere in the world. And all the different examples of frontiers between eu and non eu countries do involve some kind of border checks and controls. The militaristic side of this and the optics of all of that aside, the risk here is economic because if you do have checks part of the recent the good friday agreement has been successful is it helps boost the economy of Northern Ireland because of free trade across the border so any kind of cheques that impinged on that economic trade could also have an effect on security . Yes it is the case that many small and medium sized businesses around the border exist and that could be for insta nce border exist and that could be for instance small dairy or cattle farmers close to the border and trading on both sides. And suddenly theres Small Businesses would have to either face high tariffs coming in orfacea to either face high tariffs coming in or face a very complicated set of paperwork for different checks. Because these are not huge multinational corporations but very small and many people would be worried about how they would manage to cope with his big changes and many of them could end up building and we could see mass unemployment in the border areas leading to u nrest in the border areas leading to unrest within society. Given those anxietiesjust a unrest within society. Given those anxieties just a quick question, what about a United Ireland, what is the kind of polling view on the prospects of a referendum again, to turn the island of ireland into one country . Normally a United Ireland in Northern Ireland would have around 40, a0 in Northern Ireland would have around 40, 40 5 support here. Atte ntively around 40, 40 5 support here. Attentively based on on how you ask the question. But polling suggests people are increasingly supporting a United Ireland as a way to get around brexit and those who would have previously supported state within the uk are now turning towards the idea of a United Ireland largely driven by the prospect of a crash out. Now if you are a thirsty traveller passing through San Francisco International Airport from today you are going to find it harder to get hold of a plastic water bottle. The airport says it normally sells ten thousand of the bottles a day but has implemented a ban on them in its stores, restaurants, and vending machines. It is part of the drive for San Francisco international to become the worlds first zero waste airport by 2021. We can now talk to debbie raphael, the director for San Franciscos department of environment. Thank you forjoining us. Another big step on your road to 2021 how easy will it be to implement . Big step on your road to 2021 how easy will it be to implement7m big step on your road to 2021 how easy will it be to implement . It has already being implemented right now, the vendor is in San Francisco airport have been on board with this for many months. They have prepared for many months. They have prepared for the switchover, reducing their stocks of bottled water and getting ready to let visitors know what they can use instead. Any reports from San Francisco airport or whether this is going smoothly today . As far as we know it is going very smoothly, we have been preparing for this as i said for some time now and we have over 100 hydration centres set up across every terminal so visitors can fill their own Water Bottles a nd visitors can fill their own Water Bottles and we have a very willing constituency, over 56 Million People through the airport every year and we in San Francisco feel that this isa we in San Francisco feel that this is a wonderful opportunity to share our values of Environmental Protection and encourage people to think differently about their culture of convenience. It is a good way to share values of course, there has been some question from environmentalists actually about whether a band like this is the most effective way to have an impact on Climate Change and whether we would not be better off in fact giving people incentives and making more effort to invest in alternative technologies. I think in San Francisco we believe it is and not orand we do francisco we believe it is and not or and we do both, we give lots of incentives to residents and businesses to reduce what goes to landfill by lowering their garbage bills depending on how much composting and recycling they do. The businesses save a lot of money if they compost and recycle. Visitors to San Francisco airport will be given lots of opportunities to buy inexpensive refillable Water Bottles a nd to buy inexpensive refillable Water Bottles and they will have many opportunities to save money because tap water is so much cheaper than bottled water. It really is carrot and stick. I just bottled water. It really is carrot and stick. Ijust wonder if youre heading towards zero waste when with the day come where you are notjust talking about plastic Water Bottles but fizzy drinks, juice, soda, anything being carried around in a plastic container which frankly however solid it is is not built to be used time and again. It is a very good point, plastic Water Bottles area good point, plastic Water Bottles are a start, they are emblematic of the bigger problem, where we as citizens of this planet are used to using a containerfor minutes citizens of this planet are used to using a container for minutes was a ta ke using a container for minutes was a take centuries for it to break down if it ends up in landfill. We are all very aware that recycling opportunities are getting harder and harder sell the real answer is not to continue to use plastic and single use items but the real answer is to find ways to use refillable products as much as we possibly can. Thank you very much forjoining us. Great food by the way at San Francisco airport and the only airport i knelt in the world which has a yoga studio. Now speaking of air travel and Climate Change, a row has been rumbling on over the duke and duchess of sussexs flights on private jets. Prince harry and Meghan Markle have faced criticism after reportedly taking four private jetjourneys in just eleven days, the couple often speak out on Environmental Issues this post from their instagram on the 30th ofjune with nearly 7. 7 billion people inhabiting this earth, every choice, every footprint, every action makes a difference. Their latest trip to nice was paid for by sir eltonjohn who said the couple needed a private jet for a high level of protection he defended the couple on twitter, writing, prince harrys mother, diana princess of wales was one of my dearest friends. I feel a profound sense of obligation to protect harry and his family from the unnecessary press intrusion that contributed to dianas untimely death. He went on to say to support prince harrys commitment to the environment, we ensured their flight was carbon neutral, by making the appropriate contribution to carbon footprint. well here to discuss this is leo murray a climate campaigner who specialises in the impact of aviation. Carbon offsetting played out here, this is a very high profile couple, they need protection in levels of security. Fair enough . The first thing i want to say is that i do not think that really carry and meghan are being criticised for taking these private jet flights, are being criticised for taking these privatejet flights, everyone ina these privatejet flights, everyone in a Social Circle every day, celebrities, the megarich get on and offa celebrities, the megarich get on and off a private jet all the time so really they are being criticised for being speak out against, in support of Climate Change measures. Basically hes been criticised for being a hypocrite. This is it basically and this is part of cynical passion i guess, not coming from a place of concern about the environment, if you look at where the story has come from it is through the tabloids that have an agenda to undermine those that speak out against Climate Change. I think harry and meghan, theyre not perfect, i think they made a bad choice in this case but actually it has been very good for the debate around Climate Change to have harry and meghan using the platform to raise awareness about this issue for that crime, climate scientists have said for a long time we are in great dangerfrom said for a long time we are in great danger from Climate Change and sell it is helpful to have harry saying these things. Of course to be once to bea these things. Of course to be once to be a good friend to the Climate Movement actually he would be a much better and more credible messenger if he also walked the talk. What to make of elton john if he also walked the talk. What to make of eltonjohn and the argument that he paid to offset the Carbon Emissions from that flight, is that not the kind of Market Forces behind the notion of a carbon tax that if you use more carbon you pay a higher price. I think these are quite separate things and there has been a lot of resistance from the Aviation Industry to any kind of carbon taxation. Kerosene quinnell is not taxed by International Treaty can be any form of fossil fuel but is not taxed in that way. And that helps keep air travel artificially cheap. What eltonjohn has done is he has offset the emissions from the flight and this is an idea that has been around for a while but im fed the evidence is not good that it works. I believe elton john evidence is not good that it works. I believe eltonjohn did this in good faith, he probably thinks he has neutralised the emissions from the flight but actually in practice these schemes do not deliver Carbon Savings which they claim to. And in principle we have a problem here as well because we are heading globally for a zero emissions economy and once you start to get to 2048 where are these extra carbon cuts going to come from to allow people to take these kind of journeys. Come from to allow people to take these kind ofjourneys. And come from to allow people to take these kind of journeys. And just to clarify is that people using private jets like this who are the most egregious emitters of carbon and who sit in the uk in terms of flights putting up the most common . Good question, it is by far the most environmentally damaging weight you can travel is by private jet but first class on a flight is worse than an economy ticket which in itself is worse than travelling by train. But the good news i suppose is that tackling the problem and we do know we need to curb the growth in demand forair do know we need to curb the growth in demand for air travel, Technology Improvements are not keeping up with growth in demand and emissions from air travel are rising. We are trying to decarbonise the british economy and we cannot have emissions from air travel continuing to rise and thatis air travel continuing to rise and that is a problem because we do not have alternative technologies. The good news is in the uk about 15 of the population are responsible for 70 of all flights, a small group of frequent flyers and mostly at the upper end of the income spectrum and taking advantage of tax breaks that make air travel artificially inexpensive. And they are responsible for the majority of damage so when we talk about tackling the climate, keeping impact from aviation within safe limits, it is not about annual family holidays or visiting family overseas. It is about second homes in tuscany. That weekend in rome, perhaps do not take it is what youre saying. Thank you much. Yesterday we told you about President Trumps desire to buy greenland despite the island saying it wasnt up for sale. Perhaps mr trump was wondering what he could do to change their minds when he tweeted this a photoshopped image of a coastal town complete with a golden skyscraper bearing the president s name and the caption i promise not to do this to greenland . That is quite funny. He has a sense of humour now and again. This is beyond one hundred days. Still to come a new study claims having children will make you happier but only once theyve left home. An interim report has found that a Lightning Strike, and the sudden loss of two large electricity generators, caused nearly a Million People to lose power in england and wales earlier this month. National grid says what happened was extremely rare. Lights out, chaos and confusion. It was the biggest blackout in a decade, hundreds of trains cancelled and passengers stranded. Today, more detail on what caused the power cut. At 4 52pm, there was a Lightning Strike north of london hitting a transmission line. Immediately, hornsea offshore wind farm lost power. It shouldnt happen with lightning. At the same time, a gas power station in bedfordshire also tripped with two large generators failing. There wasnt enough reserve power to instantly bridge the gap. So the emergency system kicked in to prevent a wider shutdown, 5 of the countrys electricity demand was taken out. It meant 1. 1 million customers lost power. Shortly after 5pm, the system stabilised. Why was there so much disruption, especially on the railways . Some of the chains needed engineers to start them again causing widespread chaos and delays. So, should the National Grid be more resilient . This company and its batteries help to restore the power supply. Its on standby to deliver instant electricity when needed. Thats something the Energy Regulator will also be looking at is part of its investigation. It could fine the National Grid or any of the other Electricity Companies involved if they are found to be at fault. Emma simpson, bbc news. Most Research Says that people without kids are often happier than those with children thats usually because they have less free time, sleep and money. But a new Study Suggests that parents are actually happier then non parents but only when their children move out. Yes, up until now most surveys of parental happiness have focused on those whose children still live at home. But the study by Heidelberg University in germany focused on people aged 50 and older and found out that parents had greater Life Satisfaction and fewer symptoms of depression, but only if their kids had left home. With me now is blogger vicki psarias, also known as honest mum she has two young children. And joining us from oxford is one half of the two empty nesters blog nigel ridpath. Thank you both forjoining us. Vicky, you have two children aged nine and six and you are called honest mum. It is a grind, it is ha rd honest mum. It is a grind, it is hard work, you do not sleep enough and do not have enough time to yourself and you have a lot of routine to work through. Absolutely, it isa routine to work through. Absolutely, it is a struggle as a parent, maternal rights are not great when it comes to the workforce and then again later on we find women are economically fragile because they are then caring for elderly relatives which is also relevant to this because we pick up that and thatis this because we pick up that and that is i presume why parents are not feeling so lonely but i feel immensely happy, not saying that you must be happy to have children, lots of people do not have children and they are as happy. But personally i feel theres nothing as precious to me is the unconditional love you feel as a parent. For instance also the support your own kids can give you, often we forget the power our children can give to us. I had an operation last year and my kids kept me feeling happy and loved and i think it is important not to dismiss that and just to say it is when you are elderly and your kids have left that you will start to feel content. Ijust do not buy this, i have four kids and three have left him and every day i asked them to move back in with me i never want them to leave, i want them around me all the time we spent all this time raising our children and then they go off to couege our children and then they go off to college and we never see them, it is a disaster i think you move on to a different stage in the relationship. I have and one of the things that i have ta ken the i have and one of the things that i have taken the opportunity to do with my partner is that we have got into a with my partner is that we have got intoa certain with my partner is that we have got into a certain level of independent travel that we just couldnt do when we had family holidays. We kicked that all off with a two month round the world trip. That would have been massively hard to do with children when we had them. And actually we have inspired them since to travel to some of the places that we have been to. Im with nigel i support your view if not entirely but considerably because i also think that you get suddenly time to do things he had not been able to do. But it is fair to say really this is a kind of life continue because when my children come back is fantastic andi my children come back is fantastic and i relate in a different way to when they were aged nine or 11. We have more fun together probably now than we did when they were younger. They are still absolutely integral to my life. I think that is exactly right. I was just to my life. I think that is exactly right. I wasjust contemplating this the other day when i got my haircut andl the other day when i got my haircut and i was sitting next to a man with and i was sitting next to a man with a three year old boy who was having his hair cut a three year old boy who was having his haircut and a three year old boy who was having his hair cut and you would think that the child was being murdered itjust took me that the child was being murdered it just took me back to those times and of course there is a lot ofjoy in the bringing up of a young family but also times when it just feels like a bit of a struggle every day. And often that coincides with a time when you are trying to build your careerand when you are trying to build your career and other stuff going on. I would agree that the relationship i have with my is one that isjust evolving onto the next stage. |j have with my is one that isjust evolving onto the next stage. I love to see the kids grow up, there are times through an airport im quite glad not to have to carry 15 different bits of equipment vicky, can you imagine a time when your kids leave home and do you think thatis kids leave home and do you think that is the time that you will look forward to or not . Im that person already worrying about that and helping my kids willjust move back in with me me too, i hate it everyone says that they miss those days, i have quite an older sector that follow me, grandmothers as well as mothers and they all say i miss those days and even coming to the studio my little six year old said i cannot wait to get into bed cuddle you tonight when you get home. It is precious and i understand the freedom but also as parents we can still travel with children, it does not have to be expensive. We just came back from devon recently with the kids and really it is magical times. I often say these other times of my life. No period is adversity free and obviously as you get older you have grandchildren most the time soi you have grandchildren most the time so i think as you say it continues. So just so i think as you say it continues. Sojust enjoy so i think as you say it continues. So just enjoy today and i will try not to complain moving forward judging from what you are saying you will not change your view at all. Nigel is there anything you would do differently in terms of being a pa rent differently in terms of being a parent and then moving on, do you start younger, not have children, what is new customer what is your view . I read the book the profit when the kids were young and they say the parents are the archer and the children are the arrow and you need to aim in the right direction and when it leaves the boat you just have to make sure you have sent it in the right direction. That has stuck with me. What wisdom to close that sequence thank you so much. We will have to agree to disagree on this one ever since the victorian Prime Minister Benjamin Disraelis famous boast 150 years ago i have climbed to the top of the greasy pole people of all stripes have accused politicians of spending their careers doing just that. Well lets take a look at a more literal interpretation of climbing the greasy pole, with the help of a contest in indonesia. Stay with me, katty there are 174 slippery poles, and hundreds of competitors in a mad dash to the top. It was part of celebrations to mark the countrys independence day. Better to be at the top than the bottom it looks like trying to do this Programme Every day we will see you tomorrow. We have some drier weather towards the end of the week. Today an improvement on yesterday. There is a lot of cloud looming out in the atla ntic lot of cloud looming out in the atlantic and that will have a part to play in the next day or two. The cloud already thickening across parts of ireland bringing rain and drizzle into Northern Ireland and western parts of wales. No where near as many showers as yesterday. Further south are a good chance of staying dry with some sunshine. A bit of rain and drizzle around as the band of cloud moves north up to what scotland and across to Northern England. A lot of areas will become drier by the end of the night and we have clearer skies in the south. Some sunshine to start the day particularly across england and wales. We may pick up some showers across Western Areas as the cloud increases. The wind is picking up together with the rain in Northern Ireland and western scotland. Towards the south east with some sunshine and temperatures a shade higher than today. Higher pressure here. The weather front is tracking east and south overnight into thursday. The amount of rain it produces, it is more a band of cloud and drizzle but that should fade away. Then low pressure towards the north west of the uk. Further south in the afternoon generally dry and may be a bit warmer in the mid 20s in the south east. Some rain for a time coming in from the atlantic for the the north of the uk but heading into friday that gets pushed away. High pressure building close to the uk and we change the wind direction pushing the rain away and bringing in warmerairfrom pushing the rain away and bringing in warmer airfrom the pushing the rain away and bringing in warmer air from the south. So at last some decent weather in the way coinciding unusually with a bank holiday weekend. The highest temperatures in the south east. This is bbc news. The headlines at 8. The battle of the backstop the eu rejects borisjohnsons calls to ditch the arrangement, hes adament, it has to go. It just doesnt work for you to itjust doesnt work for you to and we cant have this backstop. A warning from britains Oil Refineries their long term future may be doubtful after a no deal brexit. A 20 year old appears in court, charged with the murder of pc andrew harper, killed while investigating a burglary last week. The night a Million People in england and wales lost power the industry watchdog opens an investigation there could be fines. Khaleeya was just 14 when she was diagnosed with ovarian