Transcripts For BBCNEWS BBC News 20240714

Brazils president has bowed to International Pressure and ordered the armed forces to tackle a Record Number of wildfires raging in the amazon forest. Tens of thousands of British Airways passengers could be affected, as pilots are to strike next month, in a dispute over pay. Its not looking good for englands hopes of regaining the ashes in the third test at headingley. And click looks at trailblazing technology thats taking firefighting to a new level. Thats in half an hour, here on bbc news. The European Council president , donald tusk, has warned that the eu will not co operate with borisjohnson on a no deal brexit. Speaking in biarritz, where the g7 summit is being held, mr tusk said this weekend may be the last chance to restore unity among the worlds main industrial nations. Leaders of most of the Worlds Largest economies make up the g7, the uk, canada, france, germany, italy, japan and the us all take part in the summit. One by one, they have been touching down at biarritz airport today ahead of the summit. Us President Donald Trump arrived aboard air force one, together with his wife melania. Before leaving the us, he had repeated his threat to impose tariffs on french wine. However, the issue did not come up when the pair spoke to the cameras ahead of a lunch meeting a short time later. The pair reiterated that they get on well but have had their differences. Donald trump added he hoped the summit would accomplish a lot. Borisjohnson has also touched down in biarritz. The Prime Minister said that when he meets President Trump at the summit, hes going to tell him to pull back from a trade war which is already destabilising Economic Growth around the world. Meanwhile, the german chancellor, angela merkel, has given her support to president macrons call for record wildfires in the amazon rainforest to be put on the agenda of the summit this weekend. Brexit is likely to be a key issue at the summit and a little earlier European Council president donald tusk who will meet borisjohnson on sunday said that the eu is willing to listen to the Prime Ministers ideas for brexit provided they are realistic. The one thing i will not cooperate on, is no deal. Cooperate on is no deal. And i still hope that mrjohnson would not like to go down in history as mr no deal. We are willing to listen to ideas that are operational, realistic, and a cce pta ble that are operational, realistic, and acceptable to all member states, including ireland. If, and when, the uk government is ready to put them on the table. After that statement, mrjohnson said that if mr tasker did not want to be known as mr no deal brexit, then he would given british demands. Anti globalisation and climate activists have teamed up with yellow vest protesters and basque nationalists in what theyre calling theyve gathered in france and irun in spain, on the french spanish border. Theyre protesting at economic and Climate Policies pursued by the worlds leading industrial countries and to promote alternatives. Prince andrew has defended his formerfriendship with jeffrey epstein, saying at no stage did he see or suspect any criminal behaviour. Epstein took his own life in a jail cell this month while awaiting trial our royal correspondent Nicholas Witchell joins me now. What has been said in this statement . Let us remind ourselves of the context. Pages of stories in the popular press about prince andrews association with jeffrey epstein, convicted paedophile who was found dead in his prison cell a few days ago. A statement from buckingham palace, from the duke of york, prince andrew, this afternoon. He says he is eager to clarify the fa cts he says he is eager to clarify the facts to avoid further spec elation. He says that he met mr epstein in 1999, and says that he quote met him infrequently and probably no more than once or twice a year. He acknowledges that he has spent time ina number of acknowledges that he has spent time in a number of his residences. He says that at no time during the limited time i spent within, did i see, suspect or witness any behaviour that subsequently left to his or conviction he does acknowledge it was a mistake and an error to see him after his release from prison. And he says he can only reiterate my regret that i was mistaken to think that what i thought i knew of him was evidently not the real person given what we know now. He says he has tremendous sympathy for all those affected by his actions and behaviour and that he is ata his actions and behaviour and that he is at a loss to be able to understand or explain mr x times lifestyle. So a fairly robust mr epsteins lifestyle. Lifestyle. So a fairly robust mr epsteins lifestyle. Why release a statement now . Key must feel that after days of speculation that has continued in the tabloids, it reached its peak last sunday with footage of him peering out from x times house in new york, Jeffrey Epsteins house, that was clearly very damaging and i think this is a consequence of the build up of press exposure in the days since. And as he would see it, need to get his story, his rebuttal, out in as forceful terms as he can. Thank you. Well next, the fate of the amazon rainforest is high on the g7s agenda. Late last night in the face of growing International Pressure the president of brazil, jair bolsonaro, ordered the countrys armed forces to help tackle them. The fires are scattered widely across the amazon, most notably in the north of brazil. Andy moore has the story. There have been angry protests outside brazilian embassies across south america. In mexico city. In santiago in chile. And in colombia, where Indigenous People were among the demonstrators. Translation i feel very sad, because the earth is our mother and what is happening in brazil. The president of brazil needs to stop the fires. We live from the earth because she is the one who gives us food. At the g7 summit, there was an offer of european financial help to fight the fires. The burning amazon rainforest has become another depressing sign of our times. And mr tusk warned a trade treaty with south american countries was at risk. It is hard to imagine a harmonious process of ratification by the European Countries as long as the brazilian government allows for the destruction of the green lungs of planet earth. The pressure from europe and the protesters has persuaded the brazilian president to change course. In a televised address last night, he said he would send in the troops to help fight the fires and crack down on illegal deforestation. Translation all the countries have expressed solidarity with brazil. They have offered to help tackle the wildfires and have also offered to take brazils position to the g7 meeting. Wildfires can happen anywhere and they should not be used as a pretext for international sanctions. More than 700 new fires have started in brazil this week alone. Has mr bolsonaro done enough to persuade the International Community he is taking the problem seriously . Andy moore, bbc news. Thousands of people have received emails from British Airways saying their flights next month have been cancelled, after pilots announced three days of strike action over pay. The walk outs are planned for the 9th, 10th and 27th of september, but its thought five consecutive days from the 8th will also be affected by the cancellations. I spoke to our business correspondent, katy austin earlier. Two strike dates on the 9th and 10th of september, well passengers travelling then appear to have been contacted saying their flights will be cancelled and they will be rebooked, or they can get a refund. But we have also heard from people who have had their plans on the 8th, the 11th and the 12th of september affected as well. British airways has explained that by saying their operations are very complex and therefore there are knock on effects to the services. So it is notjust people travelling on strike days who will be affected. There is also a fair amount of confusion for passengers who have been struggling to get been struggling to get through on the phones and struggling to rebook online. Some people are now saying they dont know if the flight is cancelled after all, despite having an e mail saying that it was. So difficulties with communications to say the least. What is the strike all about . This is over pay and conditions. Balpa have been unhappy with the offer that British Airways made. Which British Airways said it would be 11 over three yea rs. Balpa said it presented a number of options but they were all rejected. So the union says it is out of frustration and as a last resort that strike action will go ahead. British airways have said that is unacceptable and will cause disruption for tens of thousands of passengers. It appears that disruption is already beginning. Joining me now from arundel is emma bennett, shes had her honeymoon flight cancelled. Iam i am sorry to hear that. What happened . We got an email at 9pm last night to see the flight had been cancelled. We have been trying to get hold of them since, no reply. We try to get hold of them through social media, their websites, therefore lines, and nothing. And i am guessing that is not exactly adding to the experience. The frustration of not being able to go and then the frustration of not knowing now. Exactly. It is very Poor Customer Service which is taking up all over town. We are co nsta ntly taking up all over town. We are constantly on the phone, constantly checking e mails, doing anything that we can. We booked hotels separately which had been booked for so we are separately which had been booked for so we are trying to sort that out. Very, very stressful. Do you have any indication whether you get a honeymoon at all . Probable not. We are due to leave in two weeks. So i cannot see happening. No. And what has it meant to you . Honeymoons, like weddings, are not exactly cheap. No, it is a dream honeymoon which we have been saving for operating months. We have been looking forward to it, booked time off work, we are devastated. For 18 months. What is your message to British Airways . To reply to their customers, to give an indication as to what we can do. Just anything. Just help us, do not leave us stranded. I hope there is some resolution and you get away on a honeymoon at some point. Thank you very much. A 17 Year Old Girl has died at Leeds Festival in what is a suspected drug overdose. West Yorkshire Police were called to the bramham park site following a report that the girl, who is from the oldham area of greater manchester, died shortly after 3. A0am this morning. The force have been told she took a combination of drugs. A 17 year old boy who is also from the oldham area has been arrested on suspicion of supplying controlled drugs. Two people have died after a car crashed into a tree in loughton in essex. A 16 Year Old Girl and a 21 year old man, died at the scene and two girls aged 16 and 17 were taken to hospital in a life threatening condition. A 21 year old man from loughton was arrested at the scene on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving, causing serious injury by dangerous driving and perverting the course of justice. Police are appealing for witnesses. Chief constables in england, wales and scotland will hold an emergency meeting next month, after an alarming rise in violence against the police. In an unprecedented move, the National Police Chiefs Council has called the crisis summit, after pc Andrew Harper was killed, during a spate of attacks on officers. Richard lister reports. Blows whistle. A policemans whistle marked the start of a minutes silence we have had some technical issues, will bring you that report later. For now, the headlines. The Prime Minister hits back at a warning from donald tusk ahead of the g7 summit that he risks forever being known as mister no deal over brexit President Trump and other World Leaders have also arrived for the summit of most of the worlds richest economies. Prince andrew has said he did not see, witness or suspect any behaviour of the sort that subsequently led to his arrest and conviction of disgraced financierjeffrey epstein. And in sport. Its day three at headingley in the third ashes test. Lost two wickets as they look to stay in the series. Both openers have gone. England 54 2 after being set 359 for victory chelsea have their first win of the season, Tammy Abraham scored twice in the 3 2 victory at norwich. And scotland have avenged last weeks heavy defeat to france with a 17 14 victiory at murrayfield. Chris harris scoring the winning try in tjheir world cup warm up match. In their world cup warm up match. Back to the g7 summit at biarritz. Arriving at biarritz airport, the Prime Minister was asked what his priorities are at this summit. The three priorities i have, possessions i have for the uk and for the world, at this g7 summit are clearly the state of global trade. I am very worried about the way it is going. Protection some tariffs that we are seeing, the uk thrives mightily on being open outward looking and that is what we will promote because it is good for the world. Number two, biodiversity. Habitat loss. Excruciating scenes we have seen from the amazon. This is being repeated around the world. A loss of species and habitat, it some places it is irreversible. We need to talk about and escalate that here at the g7. The tragedy of what humanity is inflicting on the natural role. The third thing, and this is something that we campaigned on for a long time, female education. It is the number 1 solution to so many of the global problems. Get every girl in the world the same education as every boy. Get every girl in the world, 12 yea rs boy. Get every girl in the world, 12 years quality education. You see you wa nt years quality education. You see you want to preserve biodiversity. Can there be any talk of agreement with trade deals with brazil until brazil is seem to be taking steps to get these fires probably under control . We will do everything we can to support the brazilians. Trade deals at this juncture . Support the brazilians. Trade deals at this juncture . |j support the brazilians. Trade deals at thisjuncture . I dont think we want to be doing anything. There are all sorts of people who will take any issues at all to interfere with free trade and to frustrate trade deals and i dont wa nt to frustrate trade deals and i dont want to see that. Will you be saying to President Trump that he should not be escalate in the treaty with china . I do want to see the tragedy in brazil tackled and that is what the uk stands ready to support at a global level. But notjust in brazil, this is a problem happening across the world. You are seeing a lot of habitat, the loss of habitat and species, we need to escalate to stop the global agenda and on trade, trade with china and free trade generally, you bet. We are absolutely. Generally, you bet. We are absolutely. Will generally, you bet. We are absolutely. Will you tell President Trump he should not bs letting the trade war with china . You bet. Letting the trade war with china . You bet. Be escalating. Police have used tear gas to try and disperse Anti Government protesters in hong kong. Officers are also said to have charged at demonstrators with batons outside a police station. Despite authorities closing four subway stations around kwun tong, thousands of people have gathered there, calling for democratic change. A worker at britains consulate in hong kong who was detained by the chinese authorities has been released. Simon cheng went missing on the 8th of august while on his way back to hong kong from mainland china. Police there say he confessed to carrying out illegal activity but did not say what he had been accused of. Medical leaders have called for an urgent meeting with the government to discuss continued shortages of hormone replacement therapy. Hundreds of thousands of women going through the menopause in the uk, are struggling to access hrt tablets, patches or gels. Many have suffered side effects because they cant obtain hrt products at pharmacies. Our Health Editor hugh pym reports. Thanks to hrt, karen, who lives in somerset, felt able to cope with the symptoms of the menopause. But when she couldnt get her usual treatment on prescription, she felt low and tired. And increasingly unwell, as she struggled to get an alternative. The symptoms got worse and worse but by that stage i was literally feeling hot and feverish. You get a generalfeeling of being unwell at that point. Like many others, karen feels frustrated at the lack of information about the supply shortages. Given the impact they are having on patients and their families. And thats what leaders in the medical profession want to find out. As they call on the government to do more to get answers from drug companies. What we have to do is try and Work Together as professionals with the dhsc and get these companies to be accountable. First of all, give us an explanastion can give us an explanation can give us of what the problem is and most importantly of the timelines before they will be resolved. The manufacturer of one product range says supply problems with continue until the middle of next year. Alternative treatments are available, but demand for these has increased, because of shortages elsewhere. The department of health said it is working with all suppliers to maintain the overall flow of medicines to patients. Karen has now been put on a new form of hrt, but is not yet convinced that it is as effective, and is frustrated that a problem affecting so many women is far from resolved. A person in the us state of illinois has died after developing a severe respiratory disease due to vaping. Its thought to be the first such death in america, and comes amid an outbreak of illnesses in the us that Health Officials have linked to e cigarettes. Weve all had that terrifying moment where youre getting ready to go on holiday and you think youve lost your passport. But new technology could make remembering to carry your travel documents a thing of the past. Instead, the passport would be saved on your phone and detected by a biometric scanner at the uk border. Our Business Reporter Simon Browning has been to try it out. Sunshine, holidays, city breaks. We all love our trips away. And its the time of year when flights are full, airports are bursting, and there can be lots of waiting around. Now, we all know what its like to arrive on holiday at your destination, to arrive in the passport hall and be greeted by queues to get your passport scanned. Theyre a nightmare 30 minutes, an hour. Well, new Technology Means that could be the thing of the past when our passports go onto our phones. This kiosk is called protect. Its the start of a contactless id system designed by a group of companies and academics to speed up our transition across borders. After downloading an app to your phone, you register your passport with itjust once. Now its going to ask you just to look into the camera and this is just simply to make a match between the passport photo and your live image. So your identity has been now verified, so thats been the link has been established. In a moment, this will be confirmed on the screen. This has now been done. And your mobile phone now says youve been enrolled. 140 million passengers arrived at the uk border in 2017 and that is expected to double by 2050. But airports cannot double in size, so they need to process us faster so we arrive and leave much quicker. The advantage of this is that passengers can choose to use it, and if they are low risk and eligible thats to say you can come through without too much examination then they can go through and not stop, they can just keep walking. Whereas the rest of the passengers who have to be seen can go to the normal control. The security of our data has never been under such scrutiny. The designers of protect insist safeguards are in place and information is encrypted. But other questions remain. What if your battery dies . What if you have brought the wrong smartphone . And can the biometric tunnel be fooled . Im going to test whether the passport application works, but im going to try and trick it with this mask. The Developers Say the system is ready for implementation, and the home office says it continues to investigate the application of new and emerging technologies at uk borders. Werejust gonna see. Im hoping it did not recognise me. Thats right. It is a big negative. None of us like to queue, even though we are so good at it. But are we ready to replace them with a hassle free biometric future . Simon browning, bbc news. The English Football League has agreed to work with Bury Football Club and a potential new buyer, over the bank holiday weekend, to secure the clubs future in league one. The efl has extended its deadline about the viability of the club to next tuesday. Our correspondent leanne brown is at burys gigg lane stadium. Her real hope for the club . Array of hope . Fans have decided to meet for what would have been a match against tranmere but have not played against tranmere but have not played a game in the season due to being stopped by the afl. They were given until midnight last night to prove their finances. Efl. Until midnight last night to prove theirfinances. Efl. Two hours before that deadline, they announced they were selling to cnns sporting rescue. They have until tuesday at 5pm to finalise the deal. The buyers are led by rory campbell, son of the former labour spin doctor, alistair campbell. They specialise in football and Data Analysis and say they are looking at the clubs finances very closely. Alastair campbell. Because of the integrity ofa game campbell. Because of the integrity of a game they cannot afford to postpone any more matches. And no one wants to see a club lose its place in the league. It is unclear though that if that sale can go ahead and four days, whether the clu b ahead and four days, whether the club would actually be ready to play a game. Which potentially could be next saturday. I have been speaking to bury forever. The supporters club. The club have not paid staff, the ground needs cleaned, the ground is not ready. They were unsure whether today would be a party or awake. At the moment, it is a show of support that they will give them all the help they can to get players back on the pitch ready for next saturday. Thank you very much. A spacecraft carrying the first russian humanoid robot to be sent into space has failed in its attempt to dock at the International Space station. Fyodor is the size of an adult, and has been learning basic skills, but eventually its hoped robots will be able to carry out more complex tasks like spacewalks. The spacecraft was unable to lock onto its target, but another attempt will be made on monday. This news before the weather. A record has been broken for the highest Late August Bank Holiday weekend temperature in wales. They recorded 27. 4 celsius. That has come from the met office. Now its time for a look at the weather with chris fawkes. For most of us it has been a very warm and sunny day with a bit of high cloud around in the skies. Here isa high cloud around in the skies. Here is a photo from earlier, in lancashire. You can see the extent of the sunshine here. That scene is being repeated across much of the uk. Overnight, better patchy cloud into coastal parts of south west england. Perhaps South West Wales and still the scope for a few showers in the Scottish Islands but otherwise after one day the temperatures are slow to fall overnight. Temperatures of around 11pm, 18 21d for some places. So a warm night for sleeping. Temperatures will drop a little and for sunday the same sunny weather again. Could be a bit of nest and look cloud at times, running on some of our coastal areas but otherwise dry, plenty of sunshine for most of us dry, plenty of sunshine for most of us and anything even hotter. The days top temperature, 27 in edinburgh and up to 32 in london and south east. That is your weather. Hello, this is bbc news. The headlines. Prince andrew has said he did not see, witness or suspect any behaviour of the sort that subsequently led to the arrest and conviction of disgraced financierjeffrey epstein. The Prime Minister hits back at a warning from donald tusk ahead of the g7 summit that he risks forever being known as mr no deal over brexit. I still hope that Prime Minister johnson will not like to go down in history as mr no deal. Borisjohnson said in reply it would be the eus donald tusk who will be known as mr no deal brexit if he doesnt listen to uk demands. President trump and other World Leaders have also arrived for the summit which looks set to focus on trade