Transcripts For BBCNEWS BBC News 20240713

The men and womens 100 metre relay teams win silver medals. Commemorations take place in new zealand to mark the landing of the british explorer james cook 250 years ago. And our sunday morning edition of the papers is at 9 35. This mornings reviewers are the Political Editor for the sun on sunday, dave wooding, and the journalist and author shyama perera. This morning and welcome to bbc news. Boris johnson has urged the European Union to show that its willing to compromise with the uk on a brexit deal. Writing in two sunday newspapers, the Prime Minister appeals to the eu to begin serious negotiations, saying that his proposals are picking up support among mps on all sides. 0ur Political Correspondent helen catt is with me now. Tell us more about what the Prime Minister has been writing this morning. Boris johnson says the eu should join us at the negotiating table ina should join us at the negotiating table in a spirit of compromise and cooperation and he uses this analogy of the uk having jumped to an island in the middle of the river, and now he wants the eu to make the corresponding jump from the other side. 0ne corresponding jump from the other side. One way he suggests in this article that the chances of that might be improved is if he can go to brussels and with proposals that mps support. He had said in this article that he believes that the beginnings of that are there. He believed he had support from mps in every wing of his own party and even the dup and some labour mps are saying this looks like a deal that they could get behind. So what has the European Reaction been . Initially when these proposals were put to the European Union last week, they said that they welcomed the proposals but they were sceptical. There have been different reactions on different eu leaders. And latvian Prime Minister has been speaking to andrew marr. He asked him first when he agrees with Boris Johnson that the british proposals area landing johnson that the british proposals are a landing zone for a future deal. I think it is a basis for negotiations. I think certainly everybody in our country is interested in finding a deal, finding a compromise, finding a way for europe and Great Britain to move forward. Though the proposal is a basis on which to negotiate. The irish Prime Minister, leo varadkar, last night said the proposals were not forming a basis for deeper negotiations and talks will resume tomorrow. If we are having talks, why isnt that negotiations . What we are talking about is the final phase of negotiations which would turn any proposals into a deal ahead of that Eu Council Summit and there is likely more scepticism from elsewhere in the eu about whether these proposals on the basis of that. Last week there was a sense from the eu that they would require more fundamental changes. The mood music from the government is not that that is what they are planning to do or they intend to do. The conundrum for Boris Johnson to do or they intend to do. The conundrum for borisjohnson is this really. If he were to make fundamental changes to what he has put forward here, he might lose some of the support from those different groups which are crucial to getting it through parliament. He is in this bind really. It is no good having a deal that you can get through parliament which the eu will not ee, parliament which the eu will not agree, but equally no good the eu agreeing something which you cannot get through parliament. We can add at entirely sure with politics as it is at the moment but what are we expecting to come down the track this week . We can never be entirely sure. We will see what comes back from brussels but also we are expecting parliament to be prorogued on tuesday evening, suspended, and that is because Boris Johnson intends to hold a queens speech where he set up what he wants to do when parliament will be suspended. But only for a few days so suspended. But only for a few days so this prorogation should not be a problem. It should be smooth sailing. Hopefully helen, thank you. 0pposition legislators in hong kong have failed in a second legal challenge to a government ban on the wearing of masks by pro democracy protesters. Many are defying the ban and continuing to wear face masks, with further demonstrations taking place today. Hong kongs rail operator has reopened part of its metro system after an unprecedented shutdown during unrest on friday. 0ur china correspondent robin brant is in hong kong for us. Tell us about this legal ruling, this failure to get the facemask ban overturned. The high court this morning rejected the application for an injunction which would have meant that emergency legislation brought in at midnight on friday was null and void. The ban remains in place. Police have the power to arrest anyone attending an illegal gathering. I think 50 or more people. And from wearing any Face Covering or face paint. People. And from wearing any Face Covering orface paint. As far as we know there has been no enforcement of those measures at the moment. We have been standing on this road for the past hour and a sizeable number of people passed in a protest march, definitely in the tens of thousands. There is a Police Presence here up there in full riot gear, ready to 90, there in full riot gear, ready to go, but small in number and no confrontation here. The reason they are here is because it is strategically an important part of hong kong. The Legislative Council and the seat of government up there. Add to your letter to my right, that pink building is a garrison for chinas Peoples Liberation army. In terms of the ban on face night, police have the power to enforce it but there is no evidence they are doing so. The protesters have huge defiance. Almost everyone passing out ina defiance. Almost everyone passing out in a black t shirt and trousers, pretty much the uniform of the protesters, almost all wearing face masks. What will be the reaction from beijing to these ongoing protests . From beijing to these ongoing protests . 0f from beijing to these ongoing protests . Of course they are seen around the world that it is not the light in which the Chinese Government would wish hong kong to be viewed. They are not and we are into the fifth month. We had two significant event last week. On tuesday the celebration in beijing of the 70th birthday of the founding of the 70th birthday of the founding of the 70th birthday of the founding of the peoples republic of china, hugely important event for beijing. As that took place, the president was there, receiving the crowd, watching the parade, there were violent protests in hong kong. We had a juxtaposition of the media in Mainland China while those two things are taking place but one that had gone well and that was as far as beijing was concerned, we had escalation on friday with the shutting down of the metro system here, and the chief executive here bringing in those emergency measures. For me that is a clear sign ofan measures. For me that is a clear sign of an escalation on the side of the hong kongs government in terms of what they want to try to do to quell these protests. But we have had a protest here today which is sizeable in number. Nowhere near the 2 million that we had at the beginning but sizeable in number and disruptive. Police presence. But as far as we know, no real serious violent confrontation. Thank you. Robin brant in hong kong. Roman catholic bishops are gathering at the vatican this morning for the start of a three week meeting which will include discussions on whether to allow married men to be ordained as priests. These are the pictures coming live from the vatican, which you can see. This is not get under way. This is the synod getting under way. The move, which would break centuries of tradition, would help to alleviate a shortage of clergymen. John mcmanus reports. This is the fourth synod that pope francis will open since he was elected pontiff. Unlike the others, its set to be controversial. As well as the expected focus on the social and environmental challenges in the amazon, such as deforestation and mining, the 264 participants will also discuss whether the church should set aside its own rules on priestly celibacy and ordain older, married men. That would boost the churchs presence in rural regions, where a shortage of clerics means priests often visit some communities only a few times a year. Another idea is how to acknowledge and perhaps promote the often central role that women play in maintaining catholicism. But there is serious opposition to the synod among some senior catholics who fear this will dilute or change long held teachings. The us Cardinal Raymond burke, whos emerged as the de facto leader of those forces within the vatican opposed to pope francis, has called for fasting and prayer to combat what he termed theological errors and heresies. John mcmanus, bbc news. David willey has been reporting on events in the vatican for nearly 50 years. Hejoins us now from rome via webcam. Lovely to see you. How significant is this issue of discussing whether married men could become priests at a time when there are so many other pressing issues for the church . Of course this is not the main subject of the discussions here in rome. It is just of the discussions here in rome. It isjust one of of the discussions here in rome. It is just one of the suggestions that have been made by Church Leaders in the Amazon Region to deal with the lack of new priests. Basically the church is being hamstrung in large parts of latin america by the fact that there is an acute shortage of priests to minister to the predominantly catholic population. The Catholic Church, quite understandably, wants to keep its leading presence in that area of the world, and to carry out its work of spreading the gospel. There are some problems. For example you have got brazil, which covers 60 of the Amazon Region, where you have got the head of state, the president , describing the local catholic hierarchy as the worst of the worst. He is an evangelical. Pope francis on the other hand is very keen to foster the best possible relations with other religions, with other separated christians, evangelicals, muslims and hindus as well, and he is in favour of beefing up the effo rts is in favour of beefing up the efforts of the Roman Catholic church for interreligious cooperation. There is already of course the Vatican Department which deals with that. Then there is another thing, an interesting thing you may see in the pictures today. A lot of red among the crowd, which are the new cardinals that he has appointed for the first time. The future leaders of the church and the electors of the next pope. They are increasingly in favour of his. People who think like him. In other words there are big changes in the offing and the leadership of the Catholic Church. The whole generation of old man is gradually dying off and new people have been chosen by pope francis who are going to lead the church in what he hopes is a more successful direction for the catholic religion in the 21st century. You say that these changes are in the offing but how quickly does the Roman Catholic church ever really move . 0h, how quickly does the Roman Catholic church ever really move . Oh, well that is the 64,000 question. And the pope himself is very conscious of what he is up against. It must be very difficult for him to have some American Catholic bishops for example accusing him of heresy, of not following catholic traditions and so on. There are certainly movements within the Catholic Church which are becoming increasingly bitterly opposed to him. But on the other hand, you have got other events, like next week for example we are going to have the canonisation and promotion to sainthood of cardinaljohn henry newman. He was a very interesting person. He was a priest in the Anglican Church who converted to catholicism and was very influential in the 19th century in promoting better relations between rome and the rest of the christian world. There is certainly a change of emphasis. It has been slow in coming. Ithink emphasis. It has been slow in coming. I think the pope is essentially a man who shows great