In the wake of his bbc interview. And new hope as scientists try to save britains ash trees from being virtually wiped out by a fungal disease thats swept europe. And coming up in the sport in the next half an hour on bbc news the english and european rugby champions saracens will not challenge their 35 point deduction and £5 million fine for breaking the salary cap. Good evening and welcome to the bbc news at six. Hundreds of Anti Government protestors are trapped inside a university in hong kong as a stand off with police intensifies. Some have managed to escape under a volley of rubber bullets and tear gas. Police have surrounded the campus for a week now and its thought up to 500 are still inside, some armed with petrol bombs. The past week has seen some of the most violent protests since they began injune in response to plans to allow some criminal suspects to be extradited to mainland china. Critics feared it could undermine the territorys freedoms. Those plans were withdrawn in september after intense pressure, but demonstrations have continued as protesters now demand protection for democractic rights and an inquiry into the actions of the police. Our correspondent robin brant is in hong kong. This is the remnants of the protesters left on the streets here tonight. There were far bigger in number in what was a significant show of support for the protesters that remain in the university on the second night of the stand off. There are some signs that maybe it is coming toa are some signs that maybe it is coming to a peaceful end with some High School Students being escorted out, but so far only a few dozen have let go. On the streets of hong kong, and mass demonstration. This time its a protest in support of the protesters. Tens of thousands descended on the area close to the university, most young, nearly all wearing a face mask. The barriers and bricks blocked roads. They said they wanted to save their friends. One of those friends inside is anthonys brother, who we spoke to on the phone. Are you going to come out tonight . am going to come out tonight. You know you are going to be arrested, the police say . Yes. Jason said food and Water Supplies we re jason said food and Water Supplies were dwindling, but they still had petrol bombs. Others holed up inside the camp is blockaded by the police for a second night had already decided it was time to get out. Risking serious injury, they slid down ropes from a footbridge. People on motorbikes underneath, poised to ta ke on motorbikes underneath, poised to take them away. Earlier in the day just before two oclock in the afternoon, another group tried to escape. It is 1 45pm escape. It is1 45pm and escape. It is 1 45pm and suddenly we hear tear gas and you look down and see protesters making a run for it. I think there must be may be 100 of them. They came running out over the barriers and a large amount of tear gas fired in their direction. A handful were arrested. People say anyone caught leaving the campus will be charged with rioting. Those who stayed feared a repeat of this. In the early hours, police raided pa rt in the early hours, police raided part of the campus, arresting several people. They claim some are disguising themselves as medics or reported. Despite saying they want a peaceful end, the supporters outside oui peaceful end, the supporters outside our provoking police, deploying once again the simplest of tactics. You are trying to block the police and also show support . Yes, support for the University Students because they are locked inside and we are doing anything to help them, to save them, to let them out. The road out of this is still not clear. Hong kong is heading for an election this weekend, District Councils will be decided. A barometer of Public Opinion but one the government is still unsure whether it can go ahead. Robin brant, bbc news. Our Diplomatic Correspondent paul adams is here with me. Some of the most violent scenes weve seen sincejune have these protests entered a new phase . It does feel a little bit like that, sophie. We have seen some violence before but there is a kind of desperate edge to it at the moment that feels new. Hong kong people used to call the police asias finest, but they really hate them now, and there is also a kind of nihilism. The slogan on the street said, if we burn, you burn with us. They know they cannot defeat china, thatis they know they cannot defeat china, that is impossible, but they wont go down without a fight and i think some are even willing to go to china into a Tiananmen Square style bloody crackdown, perhaps to show the world the china they think they are dealing with. China has troops garrisoned in hong kong, they were on the streets on saturday clearing away rubble, and chinas ambassador speaking this morning said they will not sit on their hands and watch if the situation becomes uncontrollable. President g last month warned this could end in what he called crushed bones and. Crushed bodies and shattered bones. But for all the warnings, i dont think china wants that kind of crackdown. This is not 1989. I think they are hoping this will burn itself out, but i dont think that is going to happen soon. Thank you. Borisjohnson has told Business Leaders at the confederation of british industry conference that the conservatives will postpone a planned cut in Corporation Tax next year and spend the money on priorities like the nhs if they win the election. In his Speechjeremy Corbyn denied that labour were anti business and promised more investment than business had ever dreamt of. Jo swinson told delegates that the lib dems were the Natural Party of business because they wanted to cancel brexit. Our Business Editor simonjack reports. It isa it is a brave move to use the business conference to announce you are abandoning a planned £6 billion tax cut for business. I hope you wont mind if i also announced today that we are postponing further cuts in Corporation Tax, and before you storm the stage, this saves £6 billion that we can put into the priorities of the british people. The fact that it hardly raised an eyebrow shows peoples minds are on something else. Avoiding no deal brexit is something they doubt is possible without asking for more time. Can you guarantee to the audience the uk will never leave the eu without a deal . I think we are off toa eu without a deal . I think we are off to a flying start and see no reason why we shouldnt get it done in the time available. There was also a promise to cut Business Rates and lower taxes on hiring new employees. Can i please welcome Jeremy Corbyn. Hiring new employees. Can i please welcome Jeremy Corbyn. This is a tough crowd for a party that promised to hike in income tax and nationalise a long and growing risk of private companies. It is sometimes claimed i am anti business, actually this is nonsense. There anti business, actually this is nonsense. There was anti business, actually this is nonsense. There was an announcement of 320,000 new green apprenticeships but also a vision of a business friendly future. You are going to see more investment then you have ever dreamt of. You are going to have the best educated workforce you could ever have hoped for, and you are going to get the worlds leading infrastructure. Business is labour curious, but many curious about how this will be paid for. Businesses would dearly like to be talking about something else, politicians too, but the brexit issue continues to cast a shadow over this gathering. The cbi says we simply cannot afford to have another year like 2019 but in the world of business there surprisingly little confidence the upcoming election will provide the clarity everyone is so desperate for. The lib dems arrived with a promise to abolish Business Rates and replace it with attacks on landlords but it is their position to revoke brexit the leader was selling hard today. The liberal democrats are the Natural Party of business. With the conservatives in the pocket of nigel farage and Jeremy Corbyn stock in the 1970s, we are the only ones standing up for you. The snp said scotland had not escaped the damage brexit uncertainty was doing to the whole uk. £1 trillion in Deferred Investment in the uk economy and it is not doing scotlands economy any good either so the best option for scotla nd good either so the best option for scotland is to make its own choice and escape brexit by voting snp. Back at the conference there was a feeling of wary scepticism about the pa rtys feeling of wary scepticism about the partys promises. There is a lot of promises made today, its close to christmas so they have turned up like santa claus offering the world. We want to see the uncertainty taken away so we can move forward. The hope comes from hearing all three leaders today talking to 1500 businesses about their vision for the economy, and that has been missing from the election so far, but we have a lot of frustration as well because we do not have a resolution to the massive issue of our times, brexit, and we have the possibility we could be here any year having the same conversation. That is a prospect that business will be desperate to avoid. Simonjack, that business will be desperate to avoid. Simon jack, bbc that business will be desperate to avoid. Simonjack, bbc news. The high court has dismissed legal challenges brought by the snp and the liberal democrats over their exclusion from tomorrows televised debate between Boris Johnson and Jeremy Corbyn. The parties had argued that the format of the itv programme was undemocratic as the broadcaster had failed to include the views of remain voters. Itv has said the debate will go ahead as planned. There are less than four weeks to go now until the election. Our chief Political Correspondent vicki young has been looking at some of the key parts of the uk that will determine its outcome. The last parliament was one of the most volatile, the government lost more votes than ever before and more mps changed party than since the early 80s. When parliament stopped for the general election, the conservatives had 298 mps. Labour, 243. The snp had 35. There were 2a independents and 20 liberal democrats. 326 is the magic number needed for an absolute majority. The bbc has been tracking how each of the parties have polled this year, with the lines here showing trends. The conservatives have seen an increase since august, now up to around a0 , with the brexit party down to 8 . Labour are currently averaging about 29 and the liberal democrats 15 . This, of course, is a national picture. Its impossible to predict how this will translate into local results and, of course, doesnt factor in people who havent yet decided. Now, this is how the country voted in 2017. Lets take a look at some of the key battle grounds that borisjohnson and Jeremy Corbyn have been campaigning so far. Mrjohnson will need to take seats off labour in places like the midlands if hes to get a decent majority, and hopes that brexit will be a factor. Seats like ashfield. The area strongly backed leaving the eu, and mrjohnson hopes his promise to get brexit done will persuade labour voters to vote for him, and could remain voters switch from labour to the lib dems to help him . The conservatives are also optimistic about making gains in wales seats like alyn and deeside but theyll need to fight off the lib dems in the south west. Places like Taunton Deane and wells, seats the tories took from the lib dems back in 2015. The green party has to decide to boost the lib dem vote, but the brexit party not standing will help mrjohnson. Jeremy corbyn needs to win 64 more seats than he did in 2017 just to get a tiny majority, so hell have to take seats from the tories. Places like telford in the midlands. Labour will also hope to perform strongly in london, and hope that remain voters will choose them over the lib dems so that they can hold onto seats like battersea. But itll be really hard for labour to get an outright majority without the scottish seats they used to rely on, which is why mr corbyn has been campaigning in Glasgow North West and lanark and hamilton east. Otherfactors could be important. The lib dems are a long way behind in many of their former strongholds, but tactical voting might help jo swinson. The snp could win more seats and have a lot of influence if theres another hung parliament. They could reach an agreement to allow mr corbyn to become Prime Minister, even if he doesnt win the election outright. So, after the most volatile parliament, we now have a very unpredictable election. Throughout the election campaign, were reporting from all over the uk from places where the election could be won or lost. Tomorrow, we will be reporting from southampton all day, on tv, radio and online. We will be finding out what matters most to people there. Prince andrew is facing renewed calls to speak to the american authorities following his interview with Bbcs Newsnight on saturday. In the interview he was questioned about his friendship with the convicted sex offender jeffrey epstein, who died earlier this year. The prince denies allegations about his own conduct. Our royal correspondent Nicholas Witchell reports. The Prince Andrew backlash. The prince is paying for what he said during his bbc interview. The story continues to make headlines around the world. The British Royal who is trying to disentangle himself from serious allegations, but who appears to have made matters very much worse. That is certainly the verdict in the british press. Andrews interview with newsnight is widely described as a car crash or worse. In the United States enquiries are continuing into the activities of the convicted child sex offender jeffrey epstein. He took his own life earlier this year, but us investigators are keen to learn more about his friendship with Prince Andrew. Lawyers say andrew should cooperate. I know that the federal authorities here are continuing to investigate everyone who is accused of enabling jeffrey epstein, or participating in his crimes, and Prince Andrew is accused, so i would expect him to talk to law enforcement, to answer all of their questions. The official line from Buckingham Palace is still that if asked, the prince would consider helping us law enforcement. In otherwords, there has been no change from what andrew said on saturday. In the interview andrew categorically denied any impropriety with virginia roberts, the then 17 year old who claims she first met him in a london nightclub where, she said, andrew was sweating heavily. Andrew said there was a very simple reason why that could not be true. There is a slight problem with. With the sweating because. I have a peculiar medical condition which is that i dont sweat, or i didnt sweat at the time. But photos have now been found of andrew from around the same time leaving a nightclub and looking as though he is sweating. He also said public displays of affection are not something i do, a statement which is not entirely supported by the photographic evidence. Public interest in the story shows no sign of abating, though it was a subject the Prime Minister was keen to avoid. I wont get dragged into commentary about matters concerning the royal family if thats all right. So, what now for andrew . Tonight the Accountancy Firm kpmg has said that it will not be renewing its support for its pitch at the palace scheme which encourages young entrepreneurs because of what it calls Adverse Press scrutiny around him. The company says the decision was taken before the newsnight interview. Nicholas witchell, bbc news. Our top story this evening. Police in hong kong have fired tear gas and rubber bullets as protesters try to escape a stand off at a university. And still to come a tiny book written by a teenage Charlotte Bronte will return to her home after it was sold at auction. Coming up on sportsday in the next 15 minutes on bbc news. We hearfrom eddiejones on that Rugby World Cup final, what he would have done differently and his future with england. Its a deadly fungal tree disease called ash dieback thats swept across europe and could wipe out most of the ash trees in britain. Now Scientists Say theres new hope after a team from the Royal Botanic Gardens kew identified the genes that provide resistance to ash dieback. It means trees could be bred that are unaffected by the epidemic. The research is published in the journal nature ecology and evolution. Our science correspondent Rebecca Morelle reports. The stunning colours of autumn revealing the richness of our forests, but theyre under threat. In 2012, ash dieback arrived in the uk from europe, where its already ravaged woodlands. Its caused by a fungus that kills the ash trees it attacks. One of the classic symptoms of ash dieback is a darkened lesion on the bark of the tree, and we can see this long diamond shaped lesion where the fungus has grown into the tree. But, by studying these trees, researchers have discovered a very small proportion are resistant to the disease and theyve now pinpointed the genes that fight off the fungus. It does give us hope that by understanding the differences between the dna of ash trees with and without resistance to ash dieback, well be able to breed trees with increased resistance and those will help to safeguard future populations of ash. This disease really is transforming our woodlands. Its estimated that there are 100 million ash trees in the uk, but the rapid sweep of this deadly fungus could kill off up to 70 of them and a recent report put the cost of this loss at £15 billion. In their search for a solution, scientists have been extracting dna from ash leaves. The idea is to take the genes that are helping trees resist the disease and incorporate them into new plants through breeding. But ash isnt the only tree in trouble, so a major project has been under way to collect 15 million seeds from different woodland species. Theyre stored at minus 20 in a giant freezer. Its an insurance policy against future threats. We dont know whats around the corner for our woodland. There are threats from Climate Change and from plant Health Threats, pests and diseases and land use change. So we dont know whats going to happen to our woodlands in the future, so by banking the seeds here, we have them, theyre out of the environment, away from plant Health Threats and theyre a back up. We know how to germinate them. Its the diversity of trees that makes our forests unique. Losing any one species, though, would dramatically change them. But the hope is that this new research could preserve woodlands for future generations. Rebecca morelle, bbc news. The american businesswoman whose links with borisjohnson have been repeatedly questioned has described her anger at the way she feels shes being treated. Its alleged Jennifer Arcuri received favourable treatment when mrjohnson was mayor of london because of their friendship, a claim he denies. Ms arcuri told the bbc shed been snubbed by a man she considered a friend. When i reached out to him asking him about this media and what happened with the story, i was completely sidelined. Why keep me away . Why treat me like the enemy . Two teenagers have beenjailed for life for murdering 17 year old Jodie Chesney in a case of mistaken identity while she was in a park with friends in east london. Svenson ong a kwie on the left will serve at least 26 years. Arron isaacs, whos 17, was sentenced to a minimum of 18 years. Police have released footage of the moment the pair were arrested in march shortly after the attack. Were all living longer and that means more and more people are needing extra care. How to pay for it is one of the biggest issues of our times. Social care in england is under huge pressure. The Council Run System is in crisis, in desperate need of reform and more funding. Experts say the situations so bad that politicians who ignore it at this election, do so at their peril. Heres our bbcs social Affairs Correspondent alison holt would you like a cup of tea . Over many months, weve heard from family after family bearing the brunt of a council run care system in crisis. Its crucial that as families, we find somewhere that is spot on. Were going to go this way now. All right . Why . I want to be here. Confronted by confusion, underfunding and struggling to get the support they need. Im desperate and im not the only one. For anne burn that has meant fighting to keep open the care home where her 90 year old mother also called anne lives. The charity run home is losing too much money, but finding another place nearby is difficult. They said this is your home. You just dont pinch peoples homes away, do you . Do you think people realize how much pressure the care sector is under . No, definitely not. I mean, i didnt and its only when you have to find somewhere for a loved one that you realize its dire. So why is the care system in crisis . Were an aging population. An increasing number of older people need help with such things as washing, dressing and eating. The number of working age adults with disabilities is also rising. But in the last nine years, in real terms the Money Councils in england have spent on social care for each adult has fallen, despite recent government top ups. It means fewer people now get local authority support, and those providing care say across the country the fees they get from councils simply dont cover the costs. Mark adams runs an annes care home in liverpool. Mark adams runs annes care home in liverpool. It is a constant battle to balance the books. In the northwest, several of our homes are losing about £2 million a year. And were using surpluses that thankfully we make in other parts of the charity to just about keep those homes afloat. Thats not a sustainable position. These stacks of inquiries, discussion papers and government reports represent more than 20 years of talking about how we should pay for Adult Social Care in the long term. None have led to significant change. This is an issue which has tripped politicians up at previous elections. Yet an ageing population and increasing pressures mean they cant afford to ignore it. So, what needs fixing . As well as the need for more money and a Long Term Plan for the sector, theres a serious shortage of staff. Although scotland and wales spend more money on care per head than england, attracting and keeping nurses and care workers is a major issue everywhere. With families and the charity working together a buyer has now been found to keep anns care home open. Even so, she has little time for the politicians who have so far failed to reform the care system. They dont know what its like. So you dont expect them to help in any way because they dont realise what its like. Youve got to go through it yourself to know, havent you . Ann cartwright ending that report by alison holt. Its a miniature book called the young mens magazine, written by Charlotte Bronte when she was 1a years old for the toy soldiers she and her siblings played with. And now its going back to where she wrote it to the brontes old home, now the Parsonage Museum in haworth in yorkshire, after it was bought at auction in france for more than half a million pounds. From paris, Lucy Williamson reports. Inside this tiny book Charlotte Bronte covered the world. Stories of heroes and adventurers, feuds and love affairs in far flung corners of the globe. The manuscript called the young mens magazine was written for her brothers toy soldiers. Today it sold for three quarters of a Million Euros to the bronte Parsonage Museum in howarth. It already has the other four surviving little books. We are absolutely delighted. I could almost hear the whoops of delight all the way from howarth. It is the second time they have tried to buy this manuscript. The first time they tried and failed in 2011 when it was bought by the collection that is being dismembered here. To finally bring it home for them now is a great moment. Packed into these 4000 tiny words are early clues about Charlotte Brontes literary ideas. In one story she describes a man in a burning bed, a scene that is revisited in her most famous workjane eyre. After a journey of almost two centuries, the little book that allowed Charlotte Bronte to explore the world outside howarth is finally coming home. Lucy williamson, bbc news, paris. Time for a look at the weather. Heres darren bett. We had sunshine today across many parts of the country, it was a lovely day. But there is a downside to this time of the year. Temperatures are falling away quickly and it could be frosty widely. Not as cold as last night for northern ireland, but very cold in the highlands. It could be 9 or 10, the in the highlands. It could be 9 or 10, the coldest it has been all autumn. In the south east there will be some patchy mist and fog, still around for the rush hour in the morning. Cloud coming in across southern england and wales and heading towards the midlands. Some sunshine as you head northwards, but a change in weatherfor northern ireland. The breeze is picking up and tomorrow we will see cloud and outbreaks of rain. 10 degrees, milderfor outbreaks of rain. 10 degrees, milder for wales outbreaks of rain. 10 degrees, milderfor wales and outbreaks of rain. 10 degrees, milder for wales and the south west and colder in the east. Not as cold tomorrow night, any frost tending to lift. It will be milder by wednesday morning because we have a breeze picking up from the south. Cloud will push its way northwards. Most places will be dry. If there is any rain, it is more likely to be towards northern ireland. Those temperatures are still 6 9d, but a bit chillier in the breeze. It will turn milder later on in the week and it will be in western part of the uk closer to that area of low pressure that will see some rain. Further east it will be dry. That High Pressure is a long way away. We have still got a number of flood warnings and later this week there could be warnings for the river trent and the severn. Those temperatures widely getting into double figures eventually. Thats all from the bbc news at six, so its goodbye from me and on bbc one we nowjoin the bbcs news teams where you are